Unfortunate Eavesdropper

There are things you never thought you would say, until you are a parent. There are things you never thought you would hear, until you are a parent.

Overheard:

"No, Isabella, let's NOT put Mama's toothbrush in the toilet."

All About the 1-Year-Old Bella

Stats are in, activities need to be updated! So here it goes, all about Isabella! (The second part is in "Meme" format, an idea I stole from Maria)

Size: 17lbs, 12ozs... 28inches... that's 3% weight, 10% height. Yes, she is a little shrimp, my favorite little Pipsqueak.

Motor-Mouth: ahhh, it starts so early - you love to hear their little voices and realize that you hear them ALL DAY! I love it :) She babbles with great inflection, so much so that sometimes I have to pause and remind myself that she really isn't talking. "Mama!" comes with such great command that it accomplishes exactly what she thinks it should - she has my complete attention. (At least for another few months.) "Dada" is often with great excitement as he arrives home, or with question in her voice as she seems to ask "where?" "UP" is both a game we play where she squats down and then stands up, saying it each time, or it is a gentle but persistent request that she whispers while looking up from around my feet. "No" has surprising emphasis, and often accompanies something she knows she shouldn't be doing. The other day she approaches an outlet (safety covers intact), turns to me and emphatically says "NO!" She will vigorously nod her head while saying "Yeah" when asked a question such as "Do you want to go swimming?" The jury is still out on the definitiveness of please, tickle, more, uh-oh, and a few different animal sounds. However, each day she is doing a good job at convincing me that there is more than meets the ear with her.



Favorite Drink: Half-and-Half. No, don't think Guinness and Harp, think the cream for coffee. (We tried whole milk and she wouldn't drink it). Papa Joe introduced coffee creamers at breakfast one day, and a week later I am almost weaned thanks to Daddy putting half-and-half in my bottle. (Now we're working on weaning her to whole milk, which is going very well. She gets very excited and signs "milk please" when she sees a bottle. )

Favorite Toy: The nearest cell phone, or other electronic or sharp device that does not at all resemble a brightly-colored, age-appropriate toy. Or whatever another kid has in their hands. When all that fails, I do like to play with the stacking shapes, a ball, and in the swimming pool.

Favorite Food: Milk! Despite Mama's best efforts at limiting me to healthy foods, I have also developed quite a taste for popcicles and ice-cream sandwiches. (Thanks, Daddy!)

Favorite Game: Itsy-Bitsy Spider! Little Fishy! Peek-A-Boo! Running away! Raspberries on people! Oh, I just love to play, to laugh, and to make other people laugh.

Favorite Place: OUTSIDE! I love to be outside, whatever the weather! Especially now I LOVE the swimming pool at Meme's house!

Pregnant Phenomenon

What supernatural force makes us pregnant women faithfully apply make-up before every OB visit? Do we really think that he won't notice that our bodies are expanding with reckless abandon, thanks to a little lip gloss??? We don't look fat and pregnant because we bothered with eye shadow???

Birthday Party - 4th of July

So the post is a little late, but better.... well, you know.

We all had such a great time on the 4th, including the little Birthday Girl! Some kids shy away from the attention a first birthday party can bring, but Not my Bella! She's used to having lots of family, especially cousins, around, so this was like any other weekend party at my folks' house.

That is, until we introduced singing and CAKE! She clapped after we sang to her, and then Daddy let her into the Teddy Bear cake.

Cautious at first, it did not take her long to figure out that this tasted GOOD and she wanted MORE! We handed her a cupcake for her very own, and I will say that most of it ended up in her mouth!

Then the subsequent SUGAR HIGH! She ran around the deck laughing, with a big smile on her face. She and her icing-covered hands climbed onto my lap to share the experience... and the stickiness!

After all of that it was dark enough to start the fireworks - NOT that my law-abiding (and even law-enforcement centered) family would ever participate in the illegal activity of setting off projectile explosives. Ssshhh. At this point Bella, who was already past her bedtime but still enjoying the effects of sugar, proved that she is not to be scared by some bright lights and explosions! Rather, after each "Boom" her bright eyes fixed on the colorful display and she voiced what every American has been vocalizing for however long this great tradition has been around - " OOOOOOOO!" And she would clap her hands and sign "more" and smile!!! When she did start to whine (our fireworks engineer is somewhat less than a trained professional, and the delay between booms proved to be too long for the Birthday Girl) I picked her up to nurse her so I could still watch. Both the timing and the angle turned out to be perfect, as with the very next boom her head popped up and she was looking up at the sky to see the dark night illuminate with color. She could not seem to sign "more" quick enough!

The whole day was SO much fun. Happy Birthday Isabella Marie, my beautiful and precious Gift!

Happy First Birthday, Isabella Marie!

Then

NOW

Great to be Pregnant

The situation: a hug in the kitchen

The comment: "Hey, your belly is bigger and it's not just fat anymore!"


Thanks.