Aussie Rescue & Placement Helpline

Well she has done it folks. Claire is now walking. She really walked for the first time (more than a couple steps and without coaxing) last sunday night but has been building up all week. Now she is walking pretty much everywhere. We are so proud of our big girl! I need to pull pics off the camera and I promise I will post this week sometime. This has been an exhausting week all around as I travelled to Chicago for team building. We had a good time but I was definitely glad to be home with Claire and Kyle.

I ordered my birthday present using my family birthday money and I’m pretty excited about it. I got a Polar Heart Rate Monitor. I’ll be able to use it for group fitness classes at the gym as well as my running. I’m training for the Peachtree Road Race in July. It’s a 10k that takes place every year on the 4th downtown. It’s a very ambitious goal but I think I can do it. I started my running last week with Gypsy and I’ve got a LONG way to go.

I also ordered Claire’s gift from Mim, Pap, Mamaw and Papaw Kinnaman. She got a sand and water activity table that I know she will just love!

I promise to update more this week. We will definitely have pictures to share next weekend after our planned trip to the aquarium.

The obvious answer is “in my belly” but enjoy this video of Kyle reading Claire her special birthday book.

birthday book

We had a wonderful time at Claire’s first birthday party this weekend. We are so thankful for all of the family and friends who chose to share the day with us. Claire is definitely loved and spoiled. The only thing that would have made the day better was better weather. It had been sunny and 80 all week but rain and cold weather rolled in on friday and stayed around for the weekend. This meant that we couldn’t utilize the deck which would have been helpful but it worked out in the end. Jim and Patsy came to town and it was all around a very busy weekend. I can’t believe my precious baby is one!

On March 8th we took Claire to see her first thrashers game against the Calgary flames. She was mesmerized by the action on the ice. It was a great game too. We won 5-2 and there were some great fights which I always enjoy. We were also excited because JJ and Chuck were able to join us…. Also, I made her sweater:) My first attempt at an honest to goodness article of clothing.
First hockey game

If you want a sneak preview of the photos from our smash cake photo session… Tessa has posted a few on her blog.

You all would be amazed at how much Claire is changing every day. She is doing great with all of her new foods and is largely self feeding at this point (with the exception of breakfast which is yogurt and cereal). This is so much easier for us because she can pretty much eat whatever we are eating. She loves just about any meat, veggie, or pasta you put in front of her. On our trip to florida she even tried clams, scallops, catfish, venison, and shrimp. She loved them. I also have yet to come across a veggie she won’t eat. She loves to chase little veggies (peas and corn) but will also eat green beans, sweet potato, acorn squash, zucchini and asparagus. She has been a little bit picker about fruit of late. while she will down an entire banana in one sitting her mood determines what other fruit she will eat. Some days I can give her an apricot or a pear and she will eat it and some days she will throw it on the floor. She spent weeks with blueberries being her absolute favorite but then she figured out that they are way more fun to hold up to your face and squish them.

She is so close to walking too. She will stand on her own for 30 seconds or more and occasionally will take a step without holding on to things. She just needs confidence. She is excited to see her mamaw and papaw though this week. Maybe she is waiting so she can show them?

We had fun this past weekend. We got together with our friend Tessa who is an up and coming atlanta family and wedding photographer to do a smash cake photo session. We look forward to sharing the photos soon!

In the meantime, please enjoy Claire eating spaghetti…
spaghetti

Hey guys, I can’t believe this month is almost gone already. We took a short trip to Cocoa Fl last week to visit my grandparents and it looks like Kyle’s parents will be down here for a visit next week. Kyle and Jim are planning on finishing up the basement and I cannot tell you how excited I am. Here are a few pics from February and the beach. Claire loved the water and sand. We loved the sun. It will be warm here soon but I definitely want to take a beach vacation soon.

I suppose it’s time for a verbal update. Claire keeps going and growing. I wish you all could see her. We’ve been trying lots of new foods and becoming much busier in general.

She has moved on from baby food and is now also eating solids at just about every meal as well. Her favorite food for a while was blueberries. We were going through 2 pints a week(!!!) but about a week ago she decided it’s much more fun to throw them so I guess that’s the end of that. Her typical breakfast includes cereal and a yogurt. Lunch is a 4 oz jar of fruit, some cheerios and maybe some cut up bananas or other fresh fruit. Dinner is another 4 oz jar that contains meat and veggies and then if possible she gets some of what we are having. Tonight we had steak with baked sweet potato and peas so claire got to chase peas around her tray which she loved. She likes real peas much better than baby food peas. Go figure?

She is becoming very mobile these days. While she still hasn’t had the courage to let go of furniture/me/other steadying object it should be any time now. She’s ready to walk on her own and she is already moving very quickly. She loves to play with her toys but nothing holds interest for very long. She is very busy. As I write, she has a book in one hand and is beating on her drum with the other.

She is also learning to mimic our speech. She can even say a few words. So far she is pretty confident with momma and daddy. She loves to wave to herself and tell people “bye bye”. She also loves her puppies. She comes up and pets their nose and says “dog!” The only phrase I wish she would unlearn is “NO”. Whenever she is into something she is not supposed to be or she misbehaves (throws something/ screams/etc) I say “no ma’am”. And then she says “No ma!” and laughs. I think she will be stubborn like Kyle.

I’m looking forward to next week when we will take her to Florida to visit with her great-grandparents. We may even get to go the beach or watch the shuttle launch. We are excited to see our family down there. Well I must sign off for now.

Everyone knows I love my cart cover that I got from Kozypal. I love how functional and unique it is and to top it off you are supporting a WAHM (work at home mom). Well they are giving away 2 gift certificates on their website. It makes a great gift for just about anyone with a couple of young kids or one on the way.