J-E-L-L-O

When you thing of Jello, can't you just hear the old Bill C*sby commercials with jello and all the laughing smiling kids? Everytime I think of it, I sing the jingle in my head. I had given jello to Claire once before, but I fed it to her..this evening she wanted me to put it on her tray so she could feed herself...Seriously though once she felt the jello in her little hands, it was a giggle fest.
What followed could've been a commercial for Jello.





Who'd of thought that the highlight of my day would be watching my little girl eat jello, but it was.

Ed's Oyster Shack...

And the verdict is.....

She likes Oysters too...
It's so weird to me that it was one year ago that we got the call about our wonderful child. It amazes me that fast forward and we're hanging out at the oyster shack like the past year wasn't the culmination of so many hopes and dreams for us. So many years whenever one of my Bf's was is town, we would all gather at her parent's house and they would host us "kids", treating us to oysters, food, drinks, and at times karaoke(ok I think that was for them...and for our entertainment)
Jon and I were always the ones without a child. So it was so cool to finally be able to have her with us....like we were never really without her. So fun was had by all as we celebrated my friends Birthday.
On cue from her Daddy, and everyone's camera in hand...Claire was delivered her first oyster..and as if it would have been any different...she loved it....
Then of course, she was off to play with all the other kids....Awesome days!!

Back yard fun

Claire knows that Daddy is sleeping behind that window...Did I mention she's a Daddy's girl!!
See all those teeth...they're coming in droves...
This is as close as I could get to a "fall" picture....try not to notice that we have no grass...I won't mention to those northerners either that it's February and it was like 80 this day(last week)
I've been trying to figure out the manual modes on my camera..I thought this was a pretty pic.

Next week will mark 1 year since we rec'd that fateful call. You know that call, the one that dropped your stomach to your knees. That call that changed your life forever. I have tears in my eyes just thinking about that call. Saturday marks that day and lucky for us one of my BFs will be in town for her birthday and we're all hanging out. We'll get to introduce Claire to "Ed's oyster shack"(Her Dad has a whole set up in their back yard). Funny as it seems, hanging out at the oyster shack with our child is something we dreamed about. Don't laugh, we have simple dreams. Til then....

15 months old

Lessons from Daddy...
Proof to others that she really does cry,
Her new obsession...the phone!!!

Our little girl is growing up so fast. She doesn't even seem like a "baby" anymore. She just feels and looks like a little person to me.

At 15 months she is really asserting her independence. She already pitches fits. And yes I do let her cry. Sometimes I just have to ease her down to the ground, let her have her fit and walk away. Sometimes I find it pretty humorous. Other times..not so much.

Her teeth are growing in like weeds. She has 12 already with two more looking like they want to surface. She babbles and talks although we don't understand a lot of it. She has the Dad, Daddy, Da, DaDa down pact. She also has the dogs names down, and a few other words. But Mama, Ma, or Mom is seldom heard although she was saying it in Taiwan. She runs and climbs and falls, and is still full of laughter. She knows how to play hide and seek. And my favorite is when she runs away from me, arms up in the air screaming and laughing when I say "I'm gonna get your toes!!"

She still captures my heart every single moment of the day.

Zoo Day=Family Day

I'm a zoo geek, really I am. Actually I'm pretty much a geek at heart and now that I have a little one, I can indulge. Jon had not been to the zoo in about 20 years..seriously, borrow kids like I used to do and go. Since Jon and I work opposite shifts we try to reserve Saturdays for "family day" and do something outside of the house. No housework(trust me it shows) no yard work(shows there too) but just some good old fashioned together time. And so the adventure went...

Next indulgence....date night? We'll be trying that one soon!!