One Year Home

This time last year we finally brought the Bambina home after an extended stay in the hospital following her birth.  This weekend we celebrated the anniversary of bringing her home with loads of playtime, a relaxing hike, and a visit to the Halloween happenings on the Alexandria waterfront.  

There was so much beautiful fall foliage we kept getting glimpses of, so we found a place to take it all in:

Check out the giant tulip poplar that the Girlie and Daddy found on our hike.  It's nice having a tree expert in residence, even if he insists on quizzing Mommy nonstop.  Do I really have to hear the latin name, too?  

On Sunday we had some downtime in downtown Alexandria.  After a lovely ethnic lunch, we checked out some of the art on display for Dia de los Muertes:

Funky and wonderful!

Then it was time for a stroll:

We topped off the weekend by giving out candy to some trick-or-treaters.  The Girlie welcomed them with open wings (sans headband of course):

Happy Halloweeeeeeeen!!!

One Year Ago Today

Happy birthday to you!  Happy birthday to you!

Happy birthday, Sweet Girlie... Happy birthday to you!

It's hard to believe that you were born one year ago today.  Our lives have changed so much that we're not even the same people we were twelve months ago.  You are so much a part of us now that I know you've been with us always in some way.  You probably know all about our first date, and how Mommy always had a crush on Daddy in high school.  You were with us in Italy when Daddy proposed, and in State College when we said "I do."  And now you're here with us every day where we can hug and kiss you and spin you around until we all fall down laughing.  

If I wrote for one year straight, I couldn't put into words everything you've taught us and made us feel.  In fifty years, I hope I can remember how it felt to hold you, to make you laugh, and to see you learn something for the first time.  We love you more than you'll ever know.

Some things you love at one year are:

Mommy and Daddy,

taking a bath,

giving kisses,

bird watching,

walking,

listening to the "Good Morning Yaya" song,

checking the mail,

sling-ing a ride,

doggies,

books,

other kiddos,

following us into the kitchen,

cake (just discovered today),

nursing,

pushing your Dino,

singing,

and much more than we can include here.

Please don't grow up too fast!  XOXO

Carousel

Yesterday we decided to enjoy the fabulous weather with a visit to the National Mall in DC.  And we had a fabulous time!  We played it green and rode the metro into the city.  The Girlie has been on the metro before but not for a long time, so it was all like new to her.

At first she was kind of suspicious of the big tunnels and dark lengths of space, but she adapted pretty quickly.  She rode the train like a pro, and got a few waves from fellow passengers in her travels.

Can you feel the sunshine and light breeze in these pictures?  Perfect fall weather...

Our first stop was the National Museum of American History, one of our favorites.  

The Girlie stopped by to say hello to Julia Child:

She taught us a bit about DNA sequencing:

And then Daddy schooled us on the hip culture that surrounded him growing up:

The absolute highlight of the trip was our ride on the carousel.  The Bambina loved it!  She even got to ride for free since passengers under 1 year don't require a ticket-- she made the cutoff with just two days to spare!!

Going through childhood this second time around is just as eye-opening as the first...

Catch Up

A lot has happened since our last blog post, so we've got some serious catching up to do.  Apologies for the major delay...  While enjoying the arrival of autumn, we've been busy with visitors, milestones, and soaking the last drop out of afternoons in the sunshine.  Let's have a recap of the past few weeks.

The grandparents all came down for a visit:

(Notice the background in the last picture.  I think Pappy needs some help, Girlie.)

We had a wonderful visit with Renee and Mitch at their gorgeous home.  The Bambina couldn't stop exploring, but she did stop for a quick photo op:

Aunt Anne came to visit, and as you can see, we had a BLAST:

She did her own hair above.  Looks much better than when Mommy does it, don't you think?

Plums are a very messy food.  They don't mix well with white carpeting.  

She's been cruising up and down the halls on the Dino.  She is unstoppable!  As these pictures flow on, it's fun to see how she can walk more and more in just a short time.

Going down:

Espresso anyone?

Our little birdwatcher in action:

Future fashionista??

Sorry for the onslaught, but we didn't want anyone to miss anything!

After all of this uploading it's now time for a break, but we'll post again soon.  

XOXO

Standing O-vation

We've been busy here practicing some new tricks.  Just last week the Girlie took her first steps!!  She is all about standing, cruising, and shuffling now.  Every chance she gets she tries to push along the laundry basket, or her dino, or the entire play garden which is about 4 times her size.  You think that's going to stop her?  Here's a teaser:



And another:



Rock on, Babycakes!!!

11 Months

We are just 1 short month away from the Bambina hitting the twelve-month mark!  Wow!!  It is unbelievable how fast a year can go...  And how much this little one can learn in these months that seem to be speeding past.  She is crawling and cruising all over the place.  

In order to make life a bit easier with this active little one, and to make a style statement of course, we got some Babylegs for her this week.  And now for the benefit of your viewing enjoyment, let's vogue:

Daddy keeps calling her "Flashdance," but Mommy is all for the revival of legwarmers.  This is one '80s fashion icon that deserves a resurrection.  These things are great for protecting sensitive knees.  And so easy for the potty!  Why didn't we think of this idea and start selling it to the masses??  

Unfortunately, the hat we ordered didn't quite fit...

Today we celebrated the Girlie's 11th month of lovely life with a morning stroll to Georgetown, and it was absolutely gorgeous.  Ahhh, autumn...  Afterwards, Mommy took a detour for a haircut and when she returned the Girlie wasn't sure what to think:

Umm, Daddy...  Who is this lady?  

You look really familiar.  I know I've seen you somewhere...

She knew the whole time, but it was still very entertaining to see the perplexed look on her face.  

It is hard to believe that the end of summer is here.  It's even harder to believe how much our little girl has grown and changed.  Her personality has always been evident, but she expresses more of it each day and it's amazing to see.  She makes our lives so much more alive.  Everything is more meaningful.

For My Daughter in Reply to a Question

by David Ignatow

When I die choose a star 

and name it after me

that you may know

I have not abandoned

or forgotten you. 

You were such a star to me, 

following you through birth 

and childhood, my hand 

in your hand.