Constant Beginnings

All day yesterday, Claire was saying "ba." "Ba" was her "word" for everything, especially when it came to Chris. I began teasing him that she thought his name was "ba." It became our little joke. Later in the afternoon, she was standing beside the loveseat next to me when Chris made a funny face and she laughed. She began saying "ba" several times and the joke continued. I said something like "Ba is so funny. Isn't he funny?," then moments later, "say Dad." The next thing we knew, she said "dad." It was crazy!! She said it so clearly, articulating each "d." This was the first time her syllable was a C-V-C format vs. the traditional babbling structure of C-V-C-V. Given all I know about language development and the requirements to be labeled a "true word," this seems to fit. It was a commonly understood word, meaningful and situationally appropriate. However, she has not said it since.

        Claire has been working on developing her skills. She doesn't mess with things like walking, talking or feeding herself. Instead, she strives for those skills not typically seen. The first skill attempted--fitting her entire paci in her mouth. We aren't talking the silicon part, but instead, the entire paci. I am pleased and rather proud to say that she fully acquired this skill when we were in Las Vegas, but failed to get it on film. Today was our day. It went in little by little and actually ended with a smile. She is one funny & talented kiddo. Everyday it's something new. Since she's mastered the paci, we'll be moving to training with the bottle.

        Growing up, my Dad always used the phrase "Shaggy D-A" to refer to our unkept hair. The phrase seems fitting for this post. Our poor dog has been deprived, probably both of attention and hygeine. He hadn't gotten a haircut since September. It seemed kind of cruel shaving off his warm coat in the chill of winter, so we kept putting it off. It finally got to the point of necessity. Harvest was shedding hair all over our rugs, so it was time. Today was his day of pampering. We tried a new grooming place, which ended up to be the greatest deal yet. Typically we pay around $80 for each cut, simply because he gets a special bath, and the upgraded package. Today he got the same treatment for only $35! She usually charges $45, but because this was his first time, she gave us $10 off. It was awesome. We are certainly going back and we won't wait until the point of no return again. Isn't he handsome?

We have some new blog readers (yay!!!) who are thinking I am crazy (stupid??) posting everything and anything, so I feel the need to clarify the purpose of our blog and the numerous entries. My family, whom I am very close to, lives across the country. We talk each and every day (3 sisters + my Mom/Dad = a lot of minutes), but the phone calls still do not fill the void of not seeing them in person. We've been fortunate to see them every 2 months or so, but because we were roomates or saw each other nearly everyday in years past, phone calls just don't compare. To top it off, we have a baby with whom they want to develop a close relationship. Do you get it?? We're tight. Consequently, this blog is a family journal of sorts that they can look at whenever they want to see what we are up to. Yes, I post some dumb stuff, but everything we do is interesting to them. Even Chris and I love to look back to previous entries and review the events in our lives or the changes in Claire....

      What a difference one week makes! Just last week, Claire was getting a handle on crawling, inching crawl by crawl to the object she desired. It was a slow, turtle crawl. Now it is a lighting speed crawl. She comes when you call her name, she pulls herself up on anything, and reaches for everything. Let's just say she has already attempted to taste Harvest's food. I, luckily, was able to dig the kibble out of her mouth before the full taste took place. Ugh! It is a whole new world at our house. We came home from Vegas and decided it was time to baby proof our house. We bought the outlet covers, baby gate, and cabinet locks. Our life is changing so rapidly and we are loving every minute of it!!

        Claire went swimming for the first time in Vegas. The temperature outside was 80 degrees, which was perfect. The water wasn't as warm, but it was a good first experience. Chris dipped her in and she adjusted well. In fact, she adjusted very well, ultimately giving Chris what he deserved, which were several splashes in the face. I love this kiddo!!

       

ct\\c         Our trip went well. It was a great time, visiting my family and checking out the strip. Claire spent alot of time in her stroller and loved taking in all the activity. We spent our days wandering around, swimming, sleeping (sad, I know) and eating. The first night, Chris, Claire and I spent the evening in the hotel catching up on sleep from our long night the day before while the rest of my family went to see Chicago. The second night, my sisters and I bought our parents tickets to Mamma Mia. They loved it and were happy with the surprise. The final night, Lauren offered to babysit Claire while the rest of us went to see Second City, which is a comedy show. We had a great time. I am not sure if the gambling & alcohol were the highlight or the show, either way, it was fun. Lauren did well with Claire. We were very thankful for the evening out. Everyone loved spending time with Claire, although she wasn't her constantly happy self. I guess nobody is perfe...

  Rrrrraaarrr!       Aren't I beautiful?? We went shopping for our trip last week and bought Claire her first swimming suit. Can I just say how sexy she looked?? She knew she was hot stuff too. Yes, it was a bit skimpy, but when you got it, flaunt it!

Our plans for a nice, long, relaxing weekend in Las Vegas didn't begin as planned. We left Boston around 6:00, landed in D.C. safely. We had a brief layover in D.C., boarded on time around 7:50. This is the point where our luck took a drastic shift. Chris, Claire and I boarded the plane first to allow ourselves extra time getting situated. After nearly 45 minutes of waiting for everyone else to board, we were ready to go. The plane stood still. An hour later, we were notified that a fuel pump was broken and as a result, we'd need to stop to refuel in Kansas City. Wonderful. This delay would push back our arrival approximately 2 hours. We began to taxi from the jetway, only to hear the notification that the left engine wasn't working. Oh, joy! We were less than thrilled with this news and were even less thrilled to hear it would be another hour or so until the mechanic could alleviate the problem. We did end up leaving, arriving safely in Las Vegas at nearly 4:00 am after al...

Claire is finally crawling. We saw her move forward a bit on Saturday for the first time, but she didn't last long enough to capture it on video. She finally crawled for a bit longer today. She isn't going very far, but is great to have achieved this incredible milestone. Now Harvest better watch out!

      Chris has been away on business for over a week with a few more days to go. We are counting down. Claire misses her Daddy. She especially enjoys his entertainment as I can't be "on" 100% of the time. I do my best, but I don't compare. I miss my partner. Waking up each and every night, several times per night as of late, changing every diaper, giving every bath, feeding each meal, reading, playing and providing all the fun is EXHAUSTING!! And to think our child is awesome. She's laid back, happy go lucky and a pretty independent kiddo. I don't know how single parents do it. I have the upmost respect for them, that's for sure. So, this post is for Chris. We love you and miss you! Here are some pictures from your daughter. She is going to give you tough competition for the remote. It seems to be her new fascination--that and my cell phone. I think she may want her own. Is 8 months too early?? She is also wanting to stand ALL THE TIME!! It is cute, but a...

      I know I skipped a holiday when I debuted Claire's Easter attire--St. Patty's Day. We didn't forget, but just got so caught up in the idea of naked babyness that it slipped our minds. Claire got the shirt from her Auntie Lisa, Uncle Phil, Olivia, Luke and Ava who obviously appreciate the holiday spirit as much as we do. In fact, her Uncle Phil has historically enjoyed a good green guiness on the big day. Claire won't be following suit in that tradition, but did feel it was time to break out the shirt and call on St. Patrick himself for a little luck. She has developed a bit of a cold and needs something a little stronger than mommylove to beat it--so bring on the luck!

        Okay, so Claire is nearly 8 months old and has made no attempt to crawl--at least forward. She can move, scoot and roll backwards like a pro. In fact, she is so good that I can put an object anywhere in the room and it is guaranteed moments later, she'll be there. People mentioned months ago that she could skip crawling altogether, but I wasn't so convinced---until now. Yesterday she began pushing herself up from a seated position into a monkey stance. The next obvious step is a knee bend, push from her arms and whala--she's standing!! However, until that happens, we have a monkeybaby.

      After hating the look of our kitchen cupboards for over a year, we finally had crown molding put on them. I love the finished product!! It is a huge improvement.