Starting the Second Year

Anna Jane turned one on January 2. I am still in disbelief. I remember Andrew's baby year very well, and I am positive it lasted longer than this past year has. I've always heard that time seems to pass more quickly as we get older, and I believed it...but not to this extent! I vividly remember the day she was born and the feelings I had when I heard her cry for the first time. This past year has been such a joyous time in our house. Andrew is still so thrilled to have a little sister and loves it when she kisses him goodbye for school or waves at him and says, "Bye!" He loves to read to her, and regularly gets down on the floor to play with her. We are so blessed.

Since I am slacking on my scrapbooking lately, I thought I'd give an update here on what fun new things Anna is doing:

Anna is very verbal. She has 26 words that she says regularly (yes, I counted!) and we love to listen to her talk. She wakes up in the morning, stands up in her crib, and says, "Mama!" if I don't hear her jabbering right away. When I pick her up, she proceeds to point out everything in her room that she knows the names of: bear, picture, Anna (in the picture), clock. As we go out into the hallway, she keeps talking, "Mama. Ball! Dada. Down!!" Some interesting words that are also in her vocabulary include: drain (in the tub), Elmo, Bible, dance, and teeth (when she wants to brush her teeth). We are so impressed!

Anna is crawling all over the place and gets into everything she possibly can. She can mess up the living room with her books and toys in two minutes flat. She can also empty the tupperware cabinet faster than I ever imagined she'd be able to. I am trying to keep "pick-up" times to three times a day, but I know the clutter stresses Tim out, so he often goes around and picks up whatever she just got out. She is quick, let me tell ya. She doesn't have her walking legs yet, but she can stand for several minutes in the middle of the room and dance back and forth to music. As of today, she has taken one step unassisted, but hasn't ventured to take that second step. I am confident that she'll be running around before long.

Anna is not sleeping through the night. *sigh* One 3 a.m. nursing session with Mom is a good night. A really good night. I know I should probably let her "cry it out" since she is obviously old enough to sleep through thte night- but I can hardly stand to let her cry for five minutes. Our house is not exactly spread out, either, so her crying is heard by all of us- and Tim gets up at 2 to go to work. Excuses, excuses....I know. But, she is only going to be young for such a short time- so I don't honestly mind the middle of the night snuggling as long as it doesn't last more than fifteen minutes. :)

Anna is a snuggler. This makes her Mama VERY happy. I get hugs and kisses all day long and I absolutely love it. Anna will play for a bit, and then she'll look up and say, "Mama!" and then crawl over, pull to standing while holding my pant leg, and reach up for me. I give her some hugs and kisses and she pats me on the shoulder and hugs my face, and then she says, "down" and off she goes again to play. I'm glad she is such a secure little girl and that she gives me lots of loving!

Anna had a great 1st Birthday party. We invited family and some good friends to Round Table for a pizza party (Anna's favorite food). She wasn't sure what to think about the cupcake we plopped in front of her, but once she realized it was sweet, her hesitation disappeared. She was interested in her presents, and very excited about the music that was playing in the game room. Here are a few pictures of our little girl at her Birthday Party:

As Anna begins her second year of life, I vow to make the most of each moment with her. Before long, she will be telling me "just drop me off at the door, Mom," like Andrew said to me last night before basketball practice. I will cherish the frequent hugs and kisses from Anna now and make sure to sneak some out of Andrew as well while I still can!

Unsure About The White Stuff

It snowed today.

I remember watching the evening snow fall when I was a young child, my nose pressed up against the sliding glass door, trying to guess how many inches had fallen. I remember praying long and hard for a school delay, or better yet, a snow day, so that we could play outside all day long.

Andrew was rather disappointed this morning when the light sprinkling of snow that was on the ground didn't give cause for a delay. Imagine his delight, however, when the snowfall returned this afternoon and gave us three inches! He burst through the back door after school, begging, "Can I please have a friend over for a snowball fight? Please? PLEASE?!" (Since I am still recovering from a 24 hour stomach bug and didn't want to infect any neighborhood children who might come inside for hot cocoa or a potty break, I said, "not today, bud"). Instead, we all bundled up and went outside to play in the front yard.

Anna Jane was a bit unsure about the white stuff. The snow was still falling, and it got into her eyes and tickled her nose. Once the snowman building began, however, and I managed to shield her face with her enormous hood, she cheered up a bit. In fact, her fussing turned to giggling once her daddy brought out the sled and gave her a ride.

As for myself, my feelings about snow have changed, um....a bit over the years. I love to sit inside with a cup of hot tea (and preferably some cookies) and watch the snow gently falling to the ground. God gives us so much beauty in nature, and snow is one of those amazing gifts that never ceases to make me smile....IF:

1) My husband doesn't have to drive in it. He works 45 minutes away, up a BIG hill, and it worries me when he has to drive in bad weather.

2) I don't have to drive in it.

3) I don't have to go play in it for more than thirty minutes. (Am I a party pooper or what?!) Snow is beautiful, but it is also COLD and I don't have any snow gear other than really short boots and some pitiful gloves.

4) I am allowed to make the kids pose in the snow for pictures. Somehow this makes up for the fact that I am actually out IN the snow with them.

I know this makes me sound like a not-so-fun Mommy. I AM really fun. Honestly! I am especially fun in the Summer when we can all go to the pool or the park and the temperatures are well above freezing. :) I also like to play inside where the heater keeps our house at a comfortable 72 degrees.

To my parents- thank you for taking us to Carmichael Hill to go sledding on those horrible freezing cold days when you really wanted to sit inside and read the paper or take a nap. In honor of you, I am going to strive to spend more time playing in the snow with my kids (uggh) and toughen up a bit.

But tomorrow, if the snow is still here, I will likely ask Tim to do it. After all, I AM still recovering from that stomach bug thing. Right? :)