Cuteness

Today we went shoe shopping with GramB (who rode up this week with a friend) and when Grace quickly lost interest in the shoes, she entertained herself with this mirror. Can't say that I blame her...the new "walking shoes" she supposedly needs aren't near as fun as the cutesy ones. Oh well. If she's anything like me, she'll definitely enjoy shopping someday...

New Computer, New Approach

Well, I finally have my own computer again! I've been borrowing my brother-in-law's Dell Mini since turning in the work laptop nearly eight months ago. I so appreciate him helping me out for what (unintentionally) ended up being much longer than expected. Unfortunately, though, it hasn't exactly been ideal for blogging...it is so tiny, the touchpad is broken (requiring a mouse that's all too tempting for Grace), and it's slowed down significantly with the addition of my many pictures. I've been spending way more time than I should in trying to get caught up, which has gotten on all of our nerves around here. :)

So, my sweet husband got me a MacBook Pro with the understanding that I'll become more efficient with my computer time (no more excuses). I'm definitely still figuring it out - Apple newbie here - but already see it being much better. At the same time, I've come to the conclusion that my long rambling posts and millions of pictures just aren't necessary...especially now that we're through Grace's first year. I'm sure I'll appreciate being able to look back on them later, but I don't want to take precious time away from my family now. I've realized I'm just way too detail-oriented and way too much of a perfectionist for serious blogging...it's way too time-consuming for me.

This has been on my heart and mind for a while, so it's interesting that it also came up today in my new women's bible study (which I'm loving already). It was mentioned that the number one thing children in therapy have to say about their parents is that they're always on their phone or computer. That made me want to throw up a little. Grace can't ever think that about us! So, my posts are going to start looking a bit different. I'm aiming for more frequent/regular posts, but much more brief. A little blurb and some pictures...done. I've already added a few that way and it's definitely easier, and I'm caught up (well, except for Mexico). Anyway, I'm excited. That's all.

Playing Hooky

Thursdays just aren't the same without playgroup. I haven't been feeling so hot the last couple of days - sore throat and congestion (which David's experiencing as well) - so Grace and I stayed in for the first time in a long while. Couldn't take the chance of giving something to those sweet babies. (When do I have to stop calling them that?) So, here are some pictures from last week since we're missing out on the ones today. :)

Up, Up and Away

Yesterday, David came in from pushing Grace around in her car acting all hyper and telling me to get outside. I was in the middle of something, so I begrudgingly tiptoed (shoeless) out on our porch. He coaxed me up to the end of the street, still barefoot, where (with the houses no longer blocking my view) I saw several hot air balloons heading toward us. One was even getting super low, like it might land at the park behind the school. We got all excited...Grace and I (and the dogs) started heading that way, while David ran back to grab my flip flops and the camera. Although that particular balloon happened to go back up, we did see another one through the houses that looked like it might be in our neighborhood. More came overhead, with the people in them waving down at us. We hadn't realized it was the weekend of the nearby Balloon Festival, so to us it was just a fun and unexpected surprise on a Saturday afternoon. Made for a neat memory...

Kisses

Grace has become a kissing fool lately. Her affection is generally spurred on by baby dolls, real babies, and dogs...but every now and then - when she wants to - she'll extend it to people as well. Ironically, she almost always wants to kiss me when my tone changes about something she knows she's not supposed to be doing. :) Here she is at dinner in one of her especially kissy moods:

Big Girl

I can't say Grace ever minded her first car seat, but she's definitely excited about her new one! She is officially facing forward like a big kid now and it pretty much cracks her up. She's been randomly giggling throughout our car rides...funny Gracelyn.

12 Month Well Visit

Today we went in for the much anticipated one year check-up. Grace was a little champ despite getting four shots and a prick on each big toe (they were trying to get a blood count and the first one clotted). Dr. Smith says she's a perfectly healthy and happy little girl - not that I needed her to tell me that - and thankfully her ears are all cleared up. She weighs 22 lbs 10.5 oz (80th percentile), is 31.25 inches long (100th percentile), and has a head circumference of 19 inches (100th percentile). She's still big and tall, but it's not a concern, and I couldn't imagine her being any other way. Here's the breakdown from the first year:

5 minutes - 7 pounds, 2 ounces & 20 ½ inches
2 weeks - 7 pounds, 1.5 ounces & 19 ¾ inches (strange)
1 month - 8 pounds, 6 ounces & 21 ⅛ inches
2 months - 11 pounds, 7.5 ounces & 22 ⅛ inches
4 months - 16 pounds, 3 ounces & 24 ¾ inches
6 months - 18 pounds, 11 ounces & 26 ½ inches
9 months - 20 pounds, 12 ounces & 29 ¼ inches
12 months - 22 pounds, 10.5 ounces & 31 ¼ inches

We got the go-ahead to turn her around in the car in the big girl car seat we just bought. We somehow made it the whole year in the infant car seat...luckily we went with the one that went up to 30 pounds and 32 inches! We're finishing up the transition to whole milk in a sippy cup and should be completely finished with formula and bottles very soon. I don't know why, but it's kind-of sad to me (the bottle part). As far as food, we're giving her pretty much everything (except nuts and shellfish) and fruit and dairy definitely remain the favorites. She's gotten a bit finicky with some veggies, so we'll be working on that! As far as developments, we were able to check off everything on the 12 month list and quite a bit on the 15 month list. She's moving and talking right along. Her favorite word at the moment is "uh oh"...we hear that one all day (and at the appropriate times, too, if you can imagine). Here are a couple videos from this month of just Grace being Grace:





I know it goes without saying, but we're pretty proud of her. In our opinion she's the sweetest, funniest, cutest little girl, with the best personality, there ever was. Bet you've never heard a parent say that before! :) She's made us laugh, cry, and learn more in the past year than we ever thought possible. It hasn't always been fun and easy (thinking about those first six weeks still makes me cringe) and we won't ever claim to have it all figured out, but all in all I'm proud of the way we've adjusted. The kind of parents we wanted (or didn't want) to be was something Dave and I talked a lot about before Grace got here. We didn't read parenting books (unless the weekly BabyCenter email counts), or watch morning shows to learn about the latest thing you're not supposed to do, or set out to be the most knowledgeable parents around. Not that that's bad, it's just not us...I would've ended up totally overwhelmed and terrified! Instead, we tried to use common sense and sought the advice of medical professionals and other (respected) parents. We appreciated and tried to maintain structure, while also trying to avoid being inflexible or making others feel like Grace's schedule was more important than their time. We tried to remember that our life/marriage isn't supposed to revolve around her and that other people's worlds certainly don't! We tried not to freak out about germs (except maybe when she was new and swine flu was scary) or - as she became more mobile - hover in an attempt to prevent every fall and bump. And, yes, she's gotten sick and hurt herself...and, no, it wasn't fun. We haven't been perfect by any means, we've just tried to "relax" and keep things in perspective.

The truth is that she's not ours, she's God's. So we'll certainly be smart, cautious, and protect her when necessary (and, of course, love her like crazy), but we'll also remember that He gave her to us and He is the one in control. I read an article recently that noted the one thing that truly matters when it comes to parenting is whether you're raising your child(ren) to love the Lord. Wow. That's huge. Especially since the best way for Grace to learn about God right now is through David and me and the way we treat each other, treat her, and treat situations. She's definitely watching...and she's a sponge. So while I'm proud of us for making it through the first year and coming out a solid family unit, I'm not especially proud of the fact that I let it be a season of spiritual stagnancy. I'm pretty sure it's way past time to stop using the new mom thing as an excuse! If I'm not making my personal relationship with Christ a priority, how can I be successful with my biggest responsibility to Grace? Here's to hopefully looking back on the second year and feeling proud of how we grew in that area as well. :)

Grace Turns One: Part 2

We're back from Mexico! We returned safe and sound to one happy little girl (and an amazingly together GramB). Coming back to her is truly the best part of vacation. As mentioned in Part 1, I struggled quite a bit with the idea of leaving her this time. Maybe because ultimately it was something we'd planned by choice as opposed to something (not really optional) related to David's job. Leaving fresh off a sentimental celebration with family and friends didn't help either! However, after Grace's double ear infection and the inevitable stress of pulling off a party (no matter how simple), Mexico ended up being exactly what it was intended to be...a relaxing, work-free, and child-free time together. That's a later post, though.

Grace's first birthday party turned out exactly as we'd hoped. David's one request (since before she was born, actually) was that it not be over the top. What can I say? He's consistent! No really, I agreed with him and did my best to keep it reasonable. We had it at our house, invited our immediate family and closest friends, and ate barbecue. David smoked an assortment of meat (ribs, brisket, jalapeno sausage, turkey) on his big new smoker and I have to say I was impressed...especially being that it was his second time! Our moms made the potato salad and baked beans, which we greatly appreciated, and of course we had to have some chips and queso. :) The only things "splurged" on were the owl invites, banner, thank yous, and party dress - all from Etsy - and her adorable owl cake. Well, and accidentally the jellybeans for the party favors. I went to the candy store at the mall (not the brightest) and totally misread the sign (just plain dumb)...what I thought was price per pound was actually per quarter pound. Got a good laugh out of that one.

I put Aunt Kimmie in charge of taking pictures during the party and she took it very seriously. We ended up with over 200! These are obviously not all of them...there are more on Facebook. Thank you to everyone who came and for your sweet gifts, but more than anything for just being there (and part of our lives in general). I promise our official thank you notes are next on the list! Love you all.

The invitation (not ours, but you get the idea)
The fun stuff
Mommy & Grace
Daddy & his masterpiece
The silly birthday girl
The fabulous guests (the ones we got pics of, at least)
Our little family
Sweetest moment of the day...for me
The much anticipated cake experience
"All this fuss over me?!?!"
The opening of presents
The after-party fun
The next morning (a bit like Christmas)

Grace Turns One: Part 1

Well, today was the day...and what a sweet day it was. Grace rallied from her ear infections (although she's still not quite 100 percent) and we made it to playgroup, which turned into quite the little celebration. Grace's friend, Rosslyn, was also born on the 2nd and their bud, Sam, on the 4th. Rosslyn hosted today and the house was all decorated for her party this weekend, then Elise's mom brought special matching onesies for a group picture (and one with moms included, finally). This sweet group has been such a blessing to us and I hope we celebrate many more birthdays together! Thanks to Levi's mom for the amazing pictures...







Back at home, I attempted to get Grace's last official chair pic while still in the tutu ensemble (courtesy of cousin Jo). I don't know if she was delirious from no morning nap or just happy to be feeling better, but we ended up with some pretty silly ones. Thank goodness we won't need to be taking anymore of these...it's nearly impossible now that she knows how to get down from the chair (and speedily). Here are just a few:





And, here are all the monthly pictures together:


We ended Grace's birthday day with her first dinner at Patrizio. I told David that's what she picked and that I had no idea how she'd known it was my favorite. Let's just say it was a big hit and she'll definitely be taking after me in the loving Italian food department...



*Stay tuned for Part 2 (the actual birthday party) which, realistically, may not appear until after we return from Mexico.