10.30.2010

Our Little Minnie

Happy Halloween!






I took a costumed Natalie to the Avila Valley Barn last week. She is such a little people-watcher! She was so busy watching the little boys run around to even think about looking at the camera. The few smiles I captured coincided with someone running past and entertaining her for a second.

We looked at the goats...

and chickens..


and cow, pony, and a donkey too. She was having fun until the goat licked her hand. Then she didn't know what to think!


We had our pumpkins on the front porch waiting to be carved, and then David brought an even bigger pumpkin home from work yesterday! We took Natalie out to see if we could get some smiles out of her. Slightly more successful with two people making funny faces at her.



But she still wanted to sit on the pumpkins and check them out.


10.25.2010

12 (and a half) month stats + updates

Natalie had her One Year checkup last Friday! Green lights all around. She had a TB test and got her Chicken Pox vaccine. She sat there like a big girl and didn't even cry!! The nurse put her band aids on and then gave her a sugar-free lollipop. (She licked it for a bit, and then I took it away when we got to the car. It was dripping everywhere, and lolly + car did not seem like a good idea).

Stats:
Weight: 19lbs, 1 oz. (15%)
Height: 29 in (40%)

I got to babysit little Liam this week! It's amazing the difference 8 months in age makes. He is such a good baby and full of smiles!

He watched Natalie finish her lunch and Natalie offered him food. (These are the only pictures that turned out. I'm signing up for an e-photography class ASAP. I'm tired of blurry pictures!)



Then Natalie played will all the moving pieces on Liam's chair.


And THEN, BOTH KIDS TOOK A NAP. At least 30 minutes of silence. Amazingly, Liam is not the one that woke up. Natalie decided naps at home are for the birds. Especially when Mommy is in the other room playing with your cousin. (I wasn't, but I think she was afraid she was missing some action). So, Natalie had "quiet time in her crib" until Liam finished his nap.

Sometime in the past 2 weeks, Natalie has learned to kiss her babies. Grandma & Grandpa Remillard kept Natalie while we went to dinner for my Oct 15th celebration. They mentioned that she was kissing her baby. Neither of us had seen her do that. We knew she would pick it up if we asked, but the kissing part was new. She does it all the time now.



And tonight, MOMMY GOT KISSES!! When I got home from work, I picked her up and asked her for kisses, but she turned her head. So, David gave me a kiss and then I asked her again and she did it!! Three times. Makes me smile. Even if it was super slobbery.

Other newness. We took Natalie for her first ride on the bike. We got her a bike seat and helmet for her birthday. Last weekend we took her to the Bob Jones trail. Her helmet was too loose and she continued to pull and tug at it until she figured out how to get it off. I spent the whole ride worrying about it. When we got home, we ordered the smallest helmet we could find (Specialized Toddler helmet, if anyone is looking) and expedited shipping.


Saturday we took her to Orcutt for the 1st Annual Ride for Youth. David's work sponsored the event. We did 10 miles, and Natalie did great! She whined a little bit, but as long as I was riding next to her, she was happy. We didn't take our camera, but I'm going to see if I can get some pictures.

David put together Natalie's birthday wagon and they toured the backyard.


Natalie loves playing with her doll stroller. She likes to push it sometimes while standing, but most often on her knees. She thinks about getting in it too.




Dancing is another of her favorites. She loves when I push the music button on the stroller. I have a fun video, but getting it to convert for Blogger might be a task...It's so cute, she bounces up and down. On Saturday at the bike ride, she was bouncing around with the sound system.

Random picture..I found these crocs at Rite Aid. She's pretty steady when she stands in them. Her feet are still cemented to the floor for the most part. ALTHOUGH, she did take a few cautious steps last week! We found some new toys in her room and held one up. She was so excited that she moved her right foot forward. She did it a few times, but I haven't seen anything since.

10.14.2010

The Birthday Party




Natalie's birthday party went great and was a lot of fun! We are so lucky to have great friends and family who were able to celebrate with us. We even lucked out and had perfect weather (maybe even a bit too warm for the patio)!

Natalie took a great nap in the morning, woke up and had her cup of milk.



Grammy, Papa, Patty, Jake & Ryan arrived shortly after. Since Ryan has outgrown his slide, we brought it home a few weeks ago, but we haven't had a chance to use it much. It was so cute to see Natalie and Ryan playing together! We asked Ryan to sit at the top and hold onto Natalie. We anticipated that he would slide down with her, but when it came time to go, he just let go and let her go alone! She loved it! Down, down, down, down, and down she went! Eventually, she tried climbing UP the slide. Needless to say, she loved it!










We tried to get a few family photos, but none of the ones on my camera turned out too great. (If anyone got any good ones, please forward!)



When the party got going, there were kids everywhere!




Visiting.



Natalie didn't know what to think about the present process. She liked finding toys in the packages, but she didn't like when it was time to move onto the next.




Cake.


This was my favorite part. I knew she'd dig into her cake! She really got into it...





And it was everywhere!


She even cried when we took it away.

Overall, a very good day. Thank you to everyone who was able to come and spend the afternoon with us. I know Natalie had a great time, because she didn't make a peep when we put her down for bed.

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