Celebrating Veteran's Day with an Update

Since our friends Emily and Brad have become parents to both Isabella Lynn and a new blog, I feel compelled to update our little space on the web to share a little of what is going on in Anna’s world at the moment. But, first, let me welcome Baby Isabella into this world! I know that her parents will love and cherish her…and we will as well. Okay – I feel like I am doing the greetings at church before the service starts.

So. Anna. Where to begin since I haven’t updated this thing since Anna’s 12-month stats. Today is Anna’s 16-month birthday. I always rolled my eyes at those people who told me that “they grow up so fast.” I must take back all the eye rolling! It is true! As much as I miss Anna being a baby, I find that I enjoy Anna being a toddler. She is a sweet, mischievous, independent, loving, busy little girl. I am amazed by how much she understands. We keep a stack of Anna’s books in the living room. Last night, I told Anna to go find Fox in Socks. She toddled up to the stack of books and sorted through them until she found Fox in Socks, then she brought it to me and backed up and sat in my lap waiting for me to read the book to her. After story time, Joseph, Anna, and I sang Ring Around the Rosies. Anna knew just what to do and even shouted “Down!” at the very end while she crumpled to the floor. It was precious. We did it over and over again!

Last month, Anna changed schools. We have seen a tremendous difference in her: Anna’s love of books has increased exponentially, she has become much more independent, and she seems more focused on the project or task at hand. Clearly, she is brilliant. I am so happy that Anna is able to attend this school. Knowing that she is there each day makes it easy for me to come to work. I look forward to seeing what Anna has learned each day!

In the last few months, we’ve been to the Memphis Zoo with the AquaBabies, to the pumpkin patch with Big Pop and Nana, trick or treating with the neighbors, to the Holy Souls Fall Fest with Mia, to an air show to see the Blue Angels, to a spaghetti supper (first school fundraiser), and much more! We're looking forward to the upcoming holidays so that things will quiet down for a few days. Okay...so I don't think anything is going to get any quieter anytime soon. At least I have started Christmas shopping...can't make that a last minute thing any more...

12-Month Stats

I'm not doing a very good job of mommy blogging. Alas. I will report back soon with birthday party details, reports of walking, and expectations of teeth. For now, I leave you with Anna's 12-month statistics.

Weight: 20 lbs., 15.8 oz. - 47%

Head circumference: 17.5 in. - 31%

Length: 28.5 in. - 29%

Day 5 of the Poos

I just wrote a long post about Anna having the poos and then deleted it because I can only talk about poo in so much detail. Here is the edited, more concise version. On Thursday, Anna came down with the poos and left daycare sick. I stayed home with her Friday. Joe and I both cared for her on Saturday and Sunday. Joe stayed home with her today. At some point, we cleaned up poo that appeared to have been fingerpainted in her crib. We cleaned up poo from the tub. We rubbed Malox in places I didn't know Malox could, or should, be rubbed. The three of us are tired of the poos. I hate poo. The end.

P.S. Oh, and Anna took five (!) steps today to get to her daddy. I wasn't there, but I got the full report when I came home from work.

Blogging a comeback

Seeing as how Anna is growing up so quickly, I felt like I should document her activities (and mine) during this sweet, sweet period of our lives. It seems like forever since I've last had anything to say, and judging from the pictures I last posted, it was.

In January of this year I started back to work in a new area of the law. I left other people's families behind so that I could devote my life to my family. Now that I am six months in, I know the change was a great move. I am in an office of about 30 people, less than 10 are attorneys. The work we do there is not critical to mankind, but we provide a level of consumer protection and regulation in an area that could lend itself to fraudulent activities. I get to be the transactional attorney I wanted to be in law school and the litigator I learned to be in the first year or so of private practice. I am learning the intricacies of office politics and am exploring the parts of my personality that make me an effective/ineffective co-worker. While this isn't always a fun process, the work central to the office is fascinating and keeps me going back for more each morning.

Anna adjusted wonderfully to my work schedule. She attends "school" and is in a class creatively named the Infant 3 Class. Ms. Mallory is her teacher, and I don't know who is more attached to Mallory...me or Anna. Joseph and I are able to carpool to work, so we get to drop off and pick up Anna together. I can't deny that some mornings I still cry when I leave Anna, but I know that she is loved and well cared for at school. Joseph is able to talk me off the ledge on the days that I can't bear to leave her. Other days we both drop her off and then stand like zoo patrons at the window watching for her next move - it is almost always a big grin.

This morning the daycare owner asked me and Joseph about promoting Anna to the Pre-Toddler 1 Class. The question reduced me to tears for it was an admission that Anna is going to grow up at some point! She is actually well on her way...

Anna can wave bye and blow kisses; she can stand up without holding on to anything and can walk a step or two before sitting down. She says mama, dada, dog, bye, hey, and baba (bottle). She loves to explore! I can always make her laugh by tickling her neck. She loves to be outdoors with the trees and wind! Anna is such a sweet kid, so laid back and happy. She only fusses when she is tired or hungry.

Let's see...what else is happening in our lives? Oh, we bought a minivan! Danielle and Melissa, I am prepared for the "I told you so," so go ahead! We love the van, and I am absolutely okay with the vehicular symbol of my new lifestyle. Bring on the soccer games!

9 month stats

Weight: 18 lbs., 12.8 oz. (49%)

Head Circumference: 17.5 in. (64%)

Length: 27.5 in. (47%)

Cute Pictures

I'm a bad blogger!

It feels like it has been ages since I've last posted here. I'll have some more material this afternoon, as Anna and I will be attending an AquaMoms playdate at Gina's house. I've made Mint Chocolate Brownies (from scratch!) for the occasion.

So what have we been up to? Grillin' and eatin'.

Exhibit A:
The pork butts (first picture) were amazing! Joseph smoked these "low and slow" for over 12 hours. We ate part of one with our friends H. and R. while we watched the Super Bowl. The other one I ate for my lunches this week and then we froze the rest. We'll have BBQ on demand for a long time to come. And I'm completely okay with that. Seriously - it was better than any restaurant pulled pork.

Anna continues to be the best kid ever. She just finished her first round of antibiotics for a mild ear infection (that got the mama and the daddy, too). She loves to eat but hates applesauce.

Exhibit B:
Joseph fed Anna some sweet potatoes this morning. She loves it when her daddy feeds her because she gets BIG bites!

On the crawling front, Anna keeps going backwards. She is beginning to move sideways like a sidewinder snake. I'm not sure how else to describe it. Today, we watched as she straightened one leg out and formed a triangle with her arms and body. Joseph says that this is a precursor to walking. Um, wow! She must be the strongest kid ever.

Anna likes to sit in her Fisher Price barn and play with the animals that dangle in front of her, although I think that her favorite thing to do is crawl backwards under the tv stand and play with the buttons on the dvd player. Heh. I always liked buttons, too.

Going from stay at home mom to a working mom has been surprisingly easy. I love my job - I work with great people and what I actually do at work is fun. The daycare Anna stays at during the day is nice. They seem to love Anna - they hold her a lot and always tell me how sweet and funny she is. Clearly she is the smartest, funniest, cutest, most advanced kid there. Clearly. Joseph and I are carpooling, which makes us a joint task force for getting Anna ready in the morning and picking her up in the afternoons. The extra time alone in the car is nice, too. I think that Joseph's "cave time" has all but disappeared, but hopefully he has adjusted.

I did call in the reinforcements yesterday. I was trying to clean house, and Joseph was busy trying to clean the grill, and Anna demanded somebody's full attention. Bebe came over after she watched her grandson Patrick play basketball and watched Anna and helped fold clothes. I was able to go get my hair cut and Joseph got a nap in. Yay for grandparents.