Weekend Rambles

* Amelia took her first independent steps this weekend. She thought it was pretty funny . . . even when she fell.

* Ken planted about half of our garden this week (pictures coming soon). I can't wait for home-grown tomatoes.

* I gave my talk today in church and miraculously, did not cry - I think that's a first.

* We went on our first bike ride of the season tonight. Amelia seemed to enjoy her ride in her bike trailer. After we came in, I thought, "Oh, I should have taken pictures.". Hopefully next time.

* When Ken has momentum, things get done. I've been talking about updating the food in our 72-hr kits for a year. In one day, Ken bought a 55-gal drum for water storage and 2 sets of MRE's for our 72-hr kits. I wish I had momentum like that.

* For the past 20-years I have stated that I had no interest in attending my 20-year high school reunion, but now that it's actually approaching this summer, I've been thinking a lot about going. I still don't think I'll make it, but it's odd how time changes things.

It's a beautiful day . . .

It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood.

The sun is shining.

The birds are singing.

The daffodils are blooming.

And everyone seems to be outside working in their yard.

And then there's my neighbor (who I have yet to meet), who came into our yard and sprayed for weeds on our side of the connecting fence. I was going to tell her thank you, but I figured she'd be embarrassed. I know I would have been if I had been caught "weeding" in someone else's yard.

Success

. . . for both Amelia and me!

Random Thoughts

* It is REALLY hard for me to watch Amelia self-feed when she squishes food in her hand. Ken says I'm doing good, but I can literally only try a few times each day - it's too much for this clean freak.

* I love this time of year. I love watching basketball all day long; the only bad part is watching my favorite team lose in the first round. So sorry Aggies!

* I bought some Scooby-Do graham crackers for Amelia - solid crackers, perfect to hold in her hand, and shaped like little dog bones. Amelia isn't so fond of them, but I love them - too bad they're made of wheat and I shouldn't eat them.

* It is hard to make myself work on my Primary lesson and Sacrament Mtg. talk when there is so much basketball on.

* Libraries overwhelm me - too many books, where to begin? I really wanted to read a book I didn't currently own, so I found a book Brenda had mentioned, "The Persian Pickle Club". It turned out to be a good, quick read. Next up, a recommendation from Kat, "Mormon Scientist, The Life & Faith of Henry Eyring."

* Amelia does signs for things all day. I wish I could figure out a way to catch them on video without her seeing me do it (she seems to be camera shy).

* Does anyone out there keep track of how many loads they get out of their box/ carton of detergent? Everytime I'm running low on dishwasher/laundry detergent, I think, "really, did I really do that many loads?" Some day I'm going to keep track . . . but then I've been saying that for years.

Stats & Notes

Amelia had her 1-year well-baby checkup. She weighed in at a hefty 18 lbs. and measured 28 3/4 inches long. Average for height, but still only less than 10% for weight.

I knew Amelia wouldn't be going front-facing in her car-seat at 1-year, but the Dr. said that WA's recommendations are that a child stays rear-facing until they're 2-years old. I said, "wouldn't that make their legs be cramped/ bent against the seat?". To which the Dr. replied, "well, I guess the safety board thinks that broken legs are better than broken necks in case of an accident." Strange.

Amelia may be small, but developmentally, she's right on track. I think the only issue she may be experiencing is her inability to feed herself - even crackers, etc. She picks up crackers just fine, but then doesn't seem interested in putting them in her mouth. I also haven't encouraged much more than crackers in her hands because the thought of sticky food everywhere just about puts me over the edge. Looks like I need to get over my cleanliness issue in order to foster her growth. Any suggestions on good finger foods to start with . . . and keep in mind - she still has no teeth.

Happy 1st Birthday

Happy 1st Birthday Amelia!

"Is all this for me? And the singing too?"

"Hey, how did the candle get blown out? Dad, did you blow out my candle?"

"I'm just going to dive right in."

"But now it's all over my hands - ick!

Can someone wipe this off for me?"

Amelia liked her birthday cupcake, but really preferred that we feed it to her.

Due to too many things happening this weekend, Amelia got to celebrate her birthday for 3 days. (I'm sure we wouldn't get away with this when she's older - but it worked this year.) We opened cards on her birthday, and went out to dinner with Grandpa Ernie that night. On Saturday, we did the birthday cake. She was too tired to open her presents that evening, so we put that off until Sunday.

Amelia was better at opening birthday presents than she was at Christmas.

The bubbles and the toy car that Daddy bought were a big hit!

She got a really fun toy with lots of buttons and lights . . . but she liked the bubble wrap just as much.

Once the bubble wrap was put away, she had fun showing her new toy to Grandpa.

I can't believe our baby is 1-year old. Happy Birthday Amelia! We love you!