Here She Comes!

Yes folks, Megan's walking!  She just took off on August 1, and now there's no stopping her!

(Side Note:  This was one of those days when I just gave up picking up toys and just let the kids play.  I picked it all up once they were in bed, which just gave them a clean palate for the next day of fun.  But, I wouldn't have it any other way!)

12 Months Old

I'll spare you my usual shock over how I just can't believe my baby girl is growing up so fast.  I will say, however, even though each day seems to fly by, we do our best to enjoy every second with her.

At 12 months, Megan...

• weighs 20 pounds, 12 ounces and measures 29 inches.
• walks independently!
• loves to play in water.  Bath time is a favorite!
• loves to play with her big brother.  Her new favorite game to play with him is to see how many of her toys she can bang into his head.  This, however, is not a new favorite game of mine and requires a lot of "no-nos" on my part.
• understand what "no-no" means and most always stops what she's doing when she hears it.
• still hates her car seat.  At this point, I think she always will.
• is showing signs of a great imagination!  She loves on her baby dolls, talks on her phone, etc.
• is a pro at making a big mess.
• loves to throw her toys, cups, etc. to see if we'll pick them up.
• says several words - mama, dada, baby, bye, uh-oh, etc.
• has had a real bout with teething.  There were a few days when nothing seemed to soothe her.  But, she's up to five teeth now, two on top and three on bottom.
• is completely on table food and whole milk now.
• is becoming more expressive.
• stands up by pushing up from a squatting position.
• has tried to undress herself a couple of times - even managed to get her diaper off once!
• has favorite toys that she chooses to play with first.
• likes to feed herself and will eat anything!
• is very independent

I often say Andrew is my sweet, sensitive one while Megan is my wild child with no fear.  Here are a few of her 12 month pictures:

But, Mommmmmmy!

Andrew is at such a fun age.  He's able to tell us what he wants and when he wants it, and if we don't agree - this is the face we see:

River Rats

07.25.2010

William and I decided to make this Sunday a family day.  We laid out of church (GASP!) and headed to Cherokee.  We took the kids to play in the river at Oconaluftee Islands Park.  Andrew wasn't so sure about playing in the river at first, but once he warmed up to it - he had a great time.  And Megan, well she'd play in water any where, any time.  We spent several hours there, stopped for ice cream and to browse in a few gift shops, and then headed to Dillsboro Smokehouse Bar-B-Que for supper.   We had a nice day.  Any day when we feel like our kids have had a good time is a nice day!

Here are a few pictures from our adventure:

I had to love on Megan a little before I threw her in the river. :)

Megan's 1st Birthday Party

07.11.2010

For Megan's first birthday party, we used a butterfly theme (just like her nursery!).  We had a hard time finding a place to host her party.  We wanted somewhere indoors so that we didn't have to bear the heat, but we also wanted a place that might provide some activities for the older kids.  We never did find exactly what we were looking for, so we rented one of the local community centers - one I had never even be inside before.  If you know me at all, you know that wasn't an easy decision for me.  I'm a planner and knowing what I have to work with in terms of layout and decor is very important for me to pull things together.  But, even though I planned her party blindly, I still think things turned out okay!

We decided to set up an art table for the kids.  We had sun catchers for them to paint, coloring sheets and crayons, finger paint, play-doh, doodle pads, and more.

Thank you to all of you that helped make Megan's 1st birthday party a success!

Lots of yummy foord to eat.

The party tables, complete with balloons!

Hanging out with Daddy

Ready to party!

I'm not so sure Caroline thinks Megan is as funny as Grandma does!

The Art Table

Little Ella coloring a butterfly.

Nicholas and Allison - the artists.

Richard - the biggest kid of all? :)

Sweet Little Ledger

It's time for presents!

These look like fun!

The Birthday Cake

Megan's pink cake!

This is YUMMY!

Being ONE is delicious!

I might be full...

Megan, showing off her birthday shirt.

Taking a walk...

The best big brother EVER!

It's not a party without Pin the Tail on the Donkey!

Happy Birthday Megan!

07.07.2010

Megan celebrated her first birthday on July 7.  I can't believe it. 

I cheated and didn't make her a cake.  But we did have a store-bought one and let me tell you, Megan loves cake!

Since Megan's party wasn't for a few more days, we had a quiet celebration at home, just the four of us.  It was perfect.

Megan was really good at opening her presents!

Playing with her new butterfly.

Andrew had a couple of surprises too!

Oh, what's this?

YUM!

Andrew thought the cake was pretty good too!

I like being ONE!

Do I have something on my face?

Is it all gone?

There has to be more here somewhere!

Now I pout.

All done!