Thoughts on 2011

No doubt 2011 will go down as one of the coolest years of our lives. Besides the wow factor of having your first child, I'll remember this year as one of extreme change, one where the learning curve was quite steep, and one that brought more happiness than you would think possible.

This video sums up 2011 for me- all kinds of baby steps and lots of smiles. Happy New Year!

Our Christmas Story

I think Mom summarized the holiday best when she said, "Just think- last year at Christmas Collins wasn't even here yet and now here she is walking and talking and looking cute in her red dress!".

It is kind of mind-boggling to think how life has changed since last Christmas and to realize how much extra joy and fun this baby brings to everything. That was certainly the case for this year's holiday.

Whether it was chasing around cute Will Brockway, or cracking up when playing the drums on Mom's iPad, or sneaking her first taste of chocolate with Baba's brownie trifle, or making silly sounds all day long with Poppy, or showing us her dance moves for the first time, or walking countless number of laps around each house holding on tight to whoever's finger was available- it was all fun and memorable. Here are some pictures from Christmas 2011...

Hanging out with cousin Taylor was a highlight of Christmas Eve at Baba's.

 Collins got some of the neatest toys including her first baby doll...

After all the festivities, this was the perfect way to relax...

Then on Christmas morning, I don't know if it was more fun watching Collins or the excitement on Dad and Heather's faces as they showed her what Santa brought...

After a particularly unpleasant road trip home (car trouble and baby screaming due to no nap), Collins got out her wiggles with a fun new toy and some dancing at the Forks.

Thanks to everyone for making it such a special first Christmas!

Walking Footage

It wasn't a fluke. Collins is walking! She still prefers her method of walking (holding onto one of our fingers with one hand and carrying some random household item in the other hand), but more and more she will let go and take a few steps on her own. I love her expression after she takes a couple of steps- it's a mix of surprise and delight in what she's done. Here is some footage of her walking- the second video makes me laugh.

Christmas Traditions

Dear Collins,

I know you can't appreciate Christmas traditions this year because you are only 10 months old, but I just wanted to give you something to look forward to (or advanced warning) that next year and the 20 to follow will be filled with lots of fun holiday traditions. Mom will make sure of that. Here's what I'm thinking...

1. Christmas pajamas- once the Thanksgiving turkey has been gobbled, you will get your new Christmas pj's so you can get excited about the holiday season.

2. Advent calendar- I used to love this when I was little.

3. Cookie baking extravaganza- let's have an all-day baking session in the kitchen and then eat our goodies while watching Christmas movies.

4. A live performance- maybe the Nutcracker? Cinderella? A Christmas Carol? Let's go see a play that gets us in the Christmas spirit.

5. Light spectacle- your Dad is a master navigator of back roads around town and where to view all the best Christmas lights. We'll go for a tour every year.

This is just a partial list because I don't want to scare you with my over-active imagination. Let's just say I am excited to share this Christmas and all future holiday seasons with you. Can you tell???

P.S. We did manage to check one Christmas tradition off our list this year. You looked very cute in your Christmas pajamas.

Love you,
Mom

And That's a Wrap

Dining out with Collins, that is. She proved to us on Saturday night that we are becoming "those" people. You know the ones that you don't want to sit near at restaurants because they can't keep their child under control? Yep, that was us. We went to a sports bar (at 6 p.m. mind you!) thinking she could handle an early dinner at a loud, not so nice sports bar. Umm, no. As Collins made lots of noise and threw every toy on the ground that we gave her, we proceeded to suck down our beers and burgers with lightening speed in an effort to get the heck out of there. It was an embarrasing and stressful outing. Up until recently, she could go to restaurants with no issue and we could convince ourselves that she was an appropriate dining companion. Sadly, no more. So that's why for the foreseeable future, we'll be dining at home with this little wiggleworm.

Two Wow Moments!

I was still processing what happened on Thursday night when something even bigger happened Friday night. Here's how it all went down...

Thursday night, Alli and I took Collins to the Capitol Tree Lighting. When we got home, Brian was just getting home from work. Alli was walking out the door and said "Collins- Bye, Bye!". Without missing a beat, Collins replied "Bye Bye!". We all just stood there in shock like, "Did that really just happen?". Of course the next 10 minutes were nothing but us saying "Bye" over and over again in hopes she might repeat herself. Not happening. But the next day, I tested out the "Bye Bye" and got a whisper-like "Buh bye" from her in response, along with a smile. I think she said her first word!

So on Friday night, Collins and I were playing in her room and she was "cruising" around her crib (walking around it while holding on to the bars). All of a sudden she just let go of the bar and took three steps on her own, arms outstretched to help her balance. I watched frozen, hardly believing what I was seeing.  And as suddenly as it started, it ended with a plop down on the ground and a big smile on her face. It was an incredible moment.

I'm still wondering if it was all a fluke. It's fine if it was, but those are two cool moments I'll never forget. The fact that she talked and walked on back-to-back nights makes me laugh because she always manages to surprise us. She'll be 10 months old on Tuesday, and while I'm so excited for her to reach these milestones, I'm also wondering- is there anyway I can stop her from growing up so fast???

Getting Ready for Christmas

I was quite excited to start decorating for Christmas last weekend. I thought Collins would think the Christmas lights, the tree and the ornaments would be fasicnating, and we would have lots of festive fun exploring all of our seasonal items together and decorating the tree. Not so much. She was mildly interested in a box of ornaments and then moved on to her normal faves- my purse and cell phone. I was left to decorate the tree by myself while Brian chased the little one around.

Days after the tree was up, she looked at it like she was seeing it for the first time. Go figure!

Pullen Park

Pullen Park in Raleigh is awesome. Although Brian grew up going (and so did his Mom), I had never been before a few weeks ago. It's a city park that has a cool train ride and a beautiful carousel! They just finished a two-year renovation, and the place has been a circus ever since it reopened. We've been twice recently- to check out the new additions and then to ride the carousel. Now I see what all the fuss is about!

On the Watch

Much like we were on a crawl watch there for awhile, we're now on a walking watch. She's getting closer every day. Collins' balance is much improved as she can walk comfortably by holding on to only one of our hands instead of both. She also figured out how to walk with her toy without any help from us. Her driving skills aren't the best and she's a little distracted at the wheel- let's hope she didn't pick up some bad habits by riding with me. Here's what it looks like... (and sorry- I couldn't figure out how to get the video turned so you'll have to watch from the side- I'll try to videotape better next time!)

Bringing in a Professional

I am obsessed with taking, looking at, and cataloging photos of Collins. You might have noticed. But my camera skills can only take us so far, so I brought in a professional. Courtney is a friend I worked with at Duke, and she is an amazing photographer. She came and took pictures of Collins when she was 2 months old, and I was anxious to have her come back now that she is a different baby at 9 months. Here are some of my favorites (keeping in mind that I made the tactical error of scheduling Courtney to come on Daylight Savings day- can you say fussy baby?). My three favorites pictures are on our Christmas card- soon to be arriving in your mailbox!

 

Love This

According to the weekly newsletter I get from BabyCenter.com on my 9 month old's development, any day now I should walk into Collins' room after naptime and see her standing up in her crib smiling at me.

Standing in her crib? Yes....

Smiling? Not so much....

Giving Thanks

There is nothing in this world I'm more thankful for than my little girl. That's the obvious when thinking about Thanksgiving and what I'm grateful for this year. After a little more thought, here are the other related things I'm giving thanks for in 2011.

1) Family...I'm grateful for the family we have close and the family that is a couple of hours away and how invested they all are in Collins' life. She will be a better person because she has their love and influence.

2) The amount of time I've gotten to spend with Collins this year.

3) Watching Collins' personality emerge- we're already seeing lots of curiosity, determination and happiness.

4) Parenting with a person who is smarter and more rational than I am. This comes in handy in the moments when you are emotional, scared or have no clue what you're doing.

5) A new experience. Being pregnant and having a baby has to be one of the strangest, scariest, most thrilling experiences a person can have. I'm glad I got to go through it.

Finally, I'm thankful that my favorite meal of the year is almost here!

A Cool Down

This 80 degree weather in November is no good. After a couple of unseasonably warm days, I welcomed today's cooler, drizzly and cloudy weather. This feels more like Thanksgiving weather, and it allows for cute head-to-toe fleece outfits like this.

Bake Sale

I know I have an unhealthy obsession for the Barefoot Contessa. Brian gets annoyed with me because I refuse to make any recipe that doesn't come from Ina. But he wasn't complaining last night when he tried a leftover Barefoot Contessa pecan square that I made for the church bake sale. I am telling you- you need to try this recipe! The shortbread crust is almost as thick as the praline pecan topping- it's heaven in a bar form.

Here's what they looked like along with the link to the recipe.

Recipe for Pecan Squares