Mira & Daddy Play Chase with Jeter & Shatzie

The puppies love playing chase! Shatzie tries to entice us into a game of chase by flaunting his stuffed animals in front of us (notice the pheasant hanging out of his mouth). Jeter likes it, too, but always with the hope that it'll turn into a good wrestling match (notice his "threatening" barks!

Destin!!!!

Mira's first beach vacation was quite the success! We all had a great time!

Mira was not too crazy about the sand or the ocean, but thoroughly enjoyed her "tadpole" pool and beach toys. She also enjoyed being held practically around the clock! She had a lot of fun in the swimming pool - spending time in her float and swimming with each of us.

Grandma Sheila joined us on the drive to Pensacola, where we picked up Papanui at the airport, then we all five continued onto Destin where we met up with my brother, Kenny, and his family - Coco, Olivia, & Avi.

Between us all, we rode the waves, soaked up the sun, built sand castles, battled beach tents, drank frozen concoctions, ate great food, raced and bumped kayaks, discovered wild life, laughed, debated, swore at an Applebee's server, shopped, bicycled, savored the scenery, got sand in every crevice, ran on the beach, spotted dolphins in the distance, got a little crispy, boogie boarded, and skim boarded. (Phew!)

There are lots of pics, so I am just going to put a link to our Shutterfly album.

The drive home (we decided we would do it all in one day) was abominable! Mira slept alot, but woke up extremely unhappy about still being in that blasted carseat! We stopped often to give her (and ourselves) a break, so we ended up traveling a full 12 hours! Yuck!!!

Ah...Home, Sweet Home!! Now...the laundry...

Need a laugh??!!

I was working upstairs while Mira jumped in her jumparoo. Jeter and Shatzie got into one of their very frequent wrestling matches. They sound like they are tearing each other apart, but, don't worry...it's all in good fun - no one ever gets hurt.

Well, Mira thinks these little spars are so funny and entertaining, and they always command her full attention. She'll strain, twist, and turn until she can see the show, then she often smiles or laughs while watching them. No matter how loud or piercing the barks and growls get, she totally enjoys the sport.

But, today, she found them flat out hysterical! I've never seen her laugh this hard - so hard that, at one point, she was laughing but not making any noise! It was quite infectious, so we were both cracking up (you'll find it impossible not to laugh along with her, too, I'm sure)!

I didn't have our video camera handy (wouldn't ya know it!), but I improvised and caught the action on our webcam! So, I'm not sure how good the quality of video will be (it's hard to hold still when you're laughing so hard), but just the sound bite alone will be worth it!!!

I couldn't get the video to load to blogger since it was done with the webcam, so after literally hours of messing with this (yes, it's totally worth it), it's now on youtube. Click here to enjoy!

Sneak Peek!

A few of Mira's photos are posted to Melissa's blog - they are so beautiful!!! Can't wait to get the rest of the proofs - we're going to have such a hard time deciding!!!

First Day of Gymboree Level 2

We had SO much fun today!!

First, we met Casey and Mason at Jason's Deli for a delicious (Happy Birthday to Casey) lunch before walking next door to Gymboree. We had a great time visiting - the kiddos were so good and let us have a conversations!!

Gymboree was a blast! Mira and I both smiled and laughed so much! We sang a bunch of songs to start things off, as usual.

Then she played with some cool musical instruments dangling down on the end of yarn - trying to grab them was great for hand-eye coordination! She really loved that green castanet!

Their next task was to climb through tunnels. :\ We put Mira and Mason halfway in the tunnels, and they just sort of stared at each other... =)

Then she "climbed" all over some gym equipment - searching for more noise makers along the way. This was good cruising and crawling practice!

Next, we had a dance party! This was definitely our favorite part! The song was very upbeat and would freeze every so often. So, we would all dance like crazy - holding our babies - then freeze when the song stopped. All the babies, except for Mira, would crack up when we froze. Mira would stop smiling and laughing and get real serious, looking around as if she were thinking, "Why did everybody stop? We were having such a good time!" Then, when the song and dance would re-start, she would just giggle herself silly!!! It makes me smile again just thinking about it! =)

We closed with some familiar songs and some new ones, plus the parachute (which elicited squeals of delight all around the circle), bubbles, and finally, sang good-bye to Gymbo!

Can't wait for next week!

Suffice to say, she was thoroughly exhausted and fell asleep before we even got out of the parking lot!! Of course, this was only a 30-minute power nap, as usual....

Quick Update - Dr's Visit & Photo Shoot

Monday, we went and saw Dr. Crittell for Mira's 6 month Well-Baby visit. The doc said "she's perfect" to which Kenny and I answered in sync, "well, we already knew that!"

We're such dorks. Dorks in love with our baby girl. Dorks on the same wavelength. So, I guess that's okay.

She got 6 vaccines!! Thankfully, 3 of them are combined and one is an oral drop, but that still left her getting 3 shots. =( I couldn't help but tear up a little this time, even though she was such a trooper, as usual, and barely cried at all!

She weighed in at 16 pounds 3 ounces (gained 2 lbs 1 oz from last well-baby at 4 months) and measured 25 3/4 inches (gaining only 1/2 inch after last time's huge growth spurt). This puts her at exactly the 50th percentile for both.

Of course, she's doing great developmentally as well. She's sitting up very well, making "pre-crawling" motions, tries to cruise a little, babbles away, looks when you call her name, she's working on that pincer grasp, trying to figure out object permanence, laughs and smiles all the time, looks where you point, etc, etc!!

No signs of any teeth yet - although she has been tugging at her ears, sucking her bottom lip, and chewing like a mad woman lately...

Mira's also doing a wonderful job of drinking from a sippy cup and a regular cup! We're practicing both, and she loves it!! We'll be kissing those bottles good-bye by her 1st birthday! =)
Wednesday, we took Mira back to Melissa Stephen's Photography for her 6 month shoot (she did her newborn photos as well). Melissa & Mira were both amazing, and we just can't wait to see the proofs! I think they might be even harder to choose than with the newborn pics! Mirabelle has so much personality already! They are going to be SO good!! I'll keep you all posted, and we'll have a new header photograph for the blog soon!!!

That's about it for now!

Fun Saturday

I started off the morning by cashing in one of the two personal training sessions that I won at the Croquet Classic!

Wow...that was quite a workout. I haven't (really) worked out in so long; I am going to be ridiculously sore tomorrow. I already feel it coming on!

But, it was a lot of fun, and I felt great (except for the 10 minutes in which I thought I was gonna puke/black out). I go back Thursday for my next workout - SO excited!!

This afternoon, we finally got Mira's "tadpole" pool out and let her play in it. At first, she fussed - I think she was scarred by her last experience (just kidding Mason)! But, once she realized the water was warm, and her favorite bath toys were in there, she totally loved it! She got to splashing pretty good at one point, and didn't seem to mind having water in her face. She stayed in until her little toes turned to prunes, and we finally had to just drag her out! What a relief - she likes the water! Destin, here we come!!

Busy week...

Mira and I made a quick trip to Fairfield to cheer cousin Olivia on as she tried out for twirler. Of course, we ate at Gilberto's (twice) and Mira's outfit just happen to go lovely with the Mexican-inspired bench...an impromptu photo shoot ensued. As usual, Mira and Avi enjoyed hanging out, too.

On Tuesday, Mira graduated from Level 1 to Level 2 at Gymboree! The one criteria is that they can sit all by themselves, unsupported. They stay in Level 2 until they can walk which, unbelievably, won't be all that long! Looks like most of the other babies in Level 2 can already crawl, so Mira & Mason will have some catching up to do! We'll miss Ms. Kelly's singing, but we'll see her around.

Since Mira is sitting up so well now, we can leave the infant carrier in the car when we go grocery shopping! It makes it so much easier, because the carrier never fits on there just right, and I always ended up putting it in the basket which left little room from groceries! She also really enjoys sitting up, looking around, chatting with passers-by (i.e. reaping compliments), and investigating everything that I take off the shelves!

Last Wednesday, we went to our second Supper Club, where a group of young families get together for some good eats - everyone is supposed to take a turn hosting. We've already met a lot of really great new people at just two suppers. Matthew stole Mira away for a few minutes and got her to smile this time rather than scaring her with his fake sneezes. =) It was a beautiful evening and a ton of fun - not to mention we had lots of delicioso Mexican food!

Mira and I went up to Kenny's office then had lunch with some of the TCD clan. Mira thought she'd take a peek at the menu to see what she wanted for lunch (she had sweet potatoes). Emily toyed with Mira's crazy curls, so she had to look up and see who was messing with her 'do.

Happy Mother's Day!

I'd already say that my first Mother's Day was a total success (and it's not even over yet)!!

Mira started to rouse around 6:30 - Kenny was no where in sight. I pulled her over into bed, assuming she was ready to nurse. I decided to try and steal a good snuggle first, expecting her to fuss at me to hurry up with the food. But, to my delight, I wrapped my arms around her and snuggled her close, and she immediately went back to sleep! So, we lay cuddling for a few minutes (I sort of nodded off again, too) before Kenny returned...

He brought me a tray full of delicious breakfast and cards and presents!! Kenny and Mira each got me a card - they both brought tears to my eyes. Mira's had a picture of her on the front and an original poem written by Kenny & Mira on the inside - super-sweet!! I also got a very nice gift card to my favorite local spa - enough to get a massage and facial!! I am so excited about this!

Apparently, he took a poll at work and was (correctly) told that he should not get me a juicer for Mother's Day...thanks ladies! ;) Kudos to Kenny for asking opinions and dodging a bullet!

My other gift was the super-secret project that Kenny & Mira have been working on for a couple of weeks. I've been banned from upstairs on many occasions in the past few days while the finishing touches were done. At one point, our computer sort of crashed, and Kenny thought he had lost the whole thing! Fortunately, most was salvaged after reviving the computer - phew!!!

They made me a 15 minute video - complete with snapshots, video, and sappy music - of Mira over the past months. It starts with video of my big, pregnant belly and ends with a photo of her sitting up by herself "reading" one of her books. I cried...again. It was so fun to see the early video of Mira - it just re-iterates how much she's grown and changed! She was so tiny and helpless, and now she is so big and capable!

For lunch, we went to the Mother's Day Brunch at the Petroleum Club with the Montgomery's. The food was fabulous (as usual), and we had a great time chatting with Matthew & Casey. Mira sat up very nicely in the highchair, but soon got bored (when we wouldn't let her play with the silver) and then tired, so she was quite fussy through the majority of the lunch! Kenny tried to put her to sleep at one point, and she kicked and bucked like a wild stallion - I could hear her screaming across the club!! Of course, as soon as we got her back in the car, she was all smiles! What a stinker!!! =)

Tomorrow, Mira and I will make another trip to Fairfield to cheer Olivia on as she tries out for twirler! I can't believe she's going to be in h.s. next year!!!! We'll have to turn right back around and come home, so we can make it to Gymboree on Tuesday - Mira is graduating to Level 2!!! Yay!!

Some exciting stuff that is coming up later on in the month: our 2nd Supper Club (Mexican Fiesta is the theme) is this coming Wednesday (same night as the season finale of LOST!!!!!), Mira turns 6 months old on the 17th, we have our 6 month Well Baby check-up on the 18th, 6 mo. photo shoot with Melissa Stephens on the 20th (so, so excited about this!), and G'ma Sheila arrives on the 31st just in time to drive with us to Destin on June 4th (Mira's first beach trip)!!!

Goodbye to April

This last week of April was a busy, fun-filled one! I'm looking forward to the May flowers that all these April showers promise!

Kenny and I didn't do so well at the Croquet Classic...but, I did win something! There was a silent auction at the luncheon, and I won 2 personal training sessions for $20 (valued at $80)!!! I'm very excited!

We had so much fun at the tournament, though. Thankfully, Katy and April were there to take care of Mira (who was none too happy during the first round). She cheered up after a good nap and a bottle. =)

Kenny was silly with Mira and managed to get her to giggle out loud at the luncheon!

We got to play 3 games and enjoyed visiting with everyone. It was a beautiful day and the all-white rule did make for pretty pictures.

After the tournament and luncheon, we had a "pool party" at the Montgomery's! Mason had a blast in the kiddie pool, but Mira was not having any of it! The water was cold, and Mason was being such a boy - splashing like a wild man!! She was perfectly content as soon as we took her out! She watched Mason continue to splash crazily! It is so funny to see how very different they are in every way!

Kenny and I took Mira to the park and played at the playground. We were dissapointed when we realized our park doesn't have swings! Mira loves to swing, so we'll have to find another nearby park that does have a swingset. We had fun anyways on all the other equipment!

Over-due Update

Well, it's only been a couple of weeks, but so much has happened since Easter!

Last Wednesday, we joined a fun group of young couples (all with small kiddos) for our first Supper Club gathering. We plan on getting together each month, taking turns hosting the dinner. The little ones range from infant to young toddlers, and there were 6 couples at our first get-together. We had great Italian food and really enjoyed meeting and visiting with some new people. The host couple had a baby swing in a big, old tree in their backyard, so Mira and Mason tested it out - they both LOVED it! Mira even got a big kick out of watching Mason swing - she laughed out loud at him! =)

This past weekend, we went to DFW - the first time since Mira was born! Mira's Uncle Kellen met us for dinner and then hung out a little at our hotel. It was really great seeing him - it's been months since we got to visit!

Saturday was super-busy! We started the morning off at the Fort Worth Zoo for the Zoo Run. It was a beautiful day for a race - clear skies and nice and cool, but not cold. Kenny was excited that he beat his goal time; he ran the 10K in 43 minutes!

While he ran, Mira and I strolled around, checked out the booths, and I pushed Mira in a swing for a bit - she really loves to swing!

Then, the three of us did the "1 Mile Fun Run" which, in actuality, was a leisurely stroll through the zoo (Mira slept soundly).

It was awesome! The animals were so playful and some (the lions) were eating breakfast - plus, there were no crowds to combat! We will definitely make this an annual tradition!

Then for lunch, we met up with Monica (a friend from the Dale office in FTW). She hadn't seen Mira yet, and was pleased to hold her throughout the meal. I tried to convince her to relinquish the child and eat, but that didn't happen. She didn't eat her food - she took it home in a to-go box!

We did some quick shopping before heading over to Dawn's house to visit and have dinner with her and her three little ones. This is the family I nannied for a couple of years ago. It was such a riot seeing how big they've all gotten. The 3 1/2 year-old twin boys, Jack & Riley, were such a hoot! Riley cracked us up with catch phrases such as "It's all a part of the plan...more or less" anytime something didn't quite go as he planned. Jack very sweetly offered to share his Cheerios with Mira - almost insisting that she take it! She did, in fact, take it - so, I had to secretly (and quickly) steal it from her when Jack wasn't watching! Sydney, 6 1/2 years old, entertained us with singing, dancing, and reciting the names, teams, and positions of her favorite NHL players. It was a lot of fun!

Mira is starting to sleep better again - she woke twice last night, but very quickly went back to sleep, and I didn't have to nurse all night!! She woke up around 6:30 this morning - I'll take it!!

She is also doing better each day with sitting up on her own. She can prop herself up almost indefinitely and sometimes she'll let go and stay up for a little bit (before face-planting!). Don't worry - we catch her...most of the time. :\ So, this means she will be graduating to Level 2 in Gymboree soon, and we will go back to Melissa Stephens for her second photo shoot of the year! Here she is watching the bubbles at Gymboree:

This weekend, Kenny and I are going to be playing in a croquet tournament. This should be interesting, since my only experience with croquet (before last night) was watching Alice in Wonderland - I hope they don't use birds for mallets, walking/talking cards for wickets, and rodents for balls... : But, Kenny and I played two games in our backyard last night after Mira was tucked in, and I must say (sorry Sweetie), I DOMINATED!! =) Looking forward to taking the tourny - results ASAP. ;)

The other interesting part of this croquet tourny is that it is croquet etiquette for everyone to wear all white! Yikes! Luckily, white is so "in" this Spring that it was fairly easy to find a decent outfit for me and Kenny both - now, for shoes...

Well, that is about it for now. We have LOST tonight and lunch with friends tomorrow. Mira is ready for our show...here she is in her Dharma onesie with her hard-earned "fish biscuit" - only LOST-ies could understand.... =)

Easter

We had a lot of fun in Fairfield celebrating Mira's first Easter. For the most part, she hung out in the lap of cousin Avi. They sat in the bed and watched cartoons together, and Avi was the expert on putting Mira to sleep.

We'd hand Mira over tired and fussy, and she would simply conk out in Avi's lap! It was the craziest thing! (Mira likes her face covered when she's napping...IDK)

We decorated eggs and built a candy town. It was pretty cold, but we also managed to sneak in a quick Easter egg hunt.

Aunt Coco painted Mira's toenails - they are absolutely adorable!!!

I think Mira wore her Easter get-up for about 3 minutes (enough time to take photos). Then she was ready for a nap; I undressed her so she would be more comfortable and handed her over to Avi! She was out like a light!

Puppy Love

Mira and Shatzie love each other. He doesn't care what she does to him; it's attention, and he'll take it! She thinks it's funny when he sniffs her face.

Jeter has learned to dodge her grabby little hands - it hurts when she pulls a fella's beard!!!

Hard to Believe!

She seemed so big at the time! Now look at her!

Yum!!

Just a quick entry to share an update on the whole "eating solids" thing...

It's been slow-going (as to be expected), but today it seems like it just "clicked" for her - "Wow! This is FOOD! And it's tasty, too! I'm such a big girl!!!!"

She was opening her mouth and literally diving at the spoon! She'd swallow it down and fuss if I took too long with the next spoonful (reminds me of a video I saw of Kenny when he was a baby). We made an extraordinary mess and she ate a ton (compared to what she's eaten so far) - I made three or four different batches before she finally slowed down!

It's all very exciting - her learning such great new feats as rolling over and eating solids! I don't think I'll ever get over the amazement of how fast they grow and change! All this in just a little over 4 months! Wow! =)