And, she's off...

Over the break, Adeline decided she would let go and take her first steps! What a blessing to be at home with her for this milestone!

It all started on the third day of Christmas. She was playing on the floor with Uncle Kyle when he lifted her up, set her back about three feet, and she took several steps right into his arms...and did it again and again! Over the last two weeks, she has slowly ventured more and more and seems pretty proud of what she is accomplishing.

Speaking of Christmas...The Christmas Eve blizzard changed everyone's plans, but we made the best of it. This was the first time I ever remember not going to Midnight Mass and it was an odd feeling. Santa brought Adeline a red wagon which has traveled a circular path throughout the house so far. At times, she is content to just sit in it and play or read books. We made it to Ben's parents for Christmas lunch and back home again for a quick visit from my family. Everyone wanted to be home before dark so the celebrations were cut too short! Thankfully, my family has always believed that Christmas is a season, not just a day. Who knows how long we'll keep this one going?!?!

I took her for her 15 month well-baby check at the beginning of the week. Her measurements confirmed what we'd been thinking -- that she is pretty tall and skinny!! (She certainly didn't get that from me!!) She weighs 21 lbs. 4 oz. and is 31 1/4 inches tall. She continues to WOW us by saying a lot of words. One of the most precious things she says is "bess oo" -- BLESS YOU -- when someone (or something, like the dog!) sneezes!

I leave you with a few of her first birthday pics. (I finally got them uploaded!) My sweet friend, Stephanie, made the cute orange tulle skirt and candle onsie she is wearing! Thank you, Steph! In the other pics, the light pink top was either my mom's or her mom's so it is a neat hand-me-down.

I couldn't even post more than a title!!

We have moved and continue to unpack boxes while preparing for Christmas! Don't know if those are the best reasons for not posting anything since the little girl's birthday, but that's all I've got! We are more than thankful for our new home. We have doubled our space and are thrilled with our new neighborhood! God has given us more than we could have imagined and it all happened so fast. It really doesn't even seem real still...We can't get the cars in the garage yet, but that day will come! It was wonderful having 16 family members here for Thanksgiving and we look forward to the Christmas season, as well.

Adeline hasn't decided to walk on her own yet, but crawls like crazy! She is talking all the time and just amazes us with the way she thinks about things and understands what you say to her. She is loving her Fisher-Price nativity for the Advent season.

She likes dogs -- a lot -- until the big ones bark really loud and get rowdy! She and Josie (our dog) get along just fine! It's precious to watch her love on Josie, although Josie isn't quite as thrilled about her most of the time. She continues to love books and, of course, we read the ones with dogs over and over.

We've marked "first haircut" off our list! The front of her hair was so long it was interfering with eating! My hairdresser, Theresa, did a fabulous job cutting bangs and trimming the sides.

So much...

Happy Birthday, Little One!

Sweet Adeline -- Happy First Birthday! You have filled our world with wonder since we first met you in the wee hours of the morning! You took my breath away the instant I saw you. God has truly blessed our whole family and all our friends by giving you to us. Everyone said we wouldn't remember life before you were here and that is true. It seems like you've been here for much longer than a year. You've done so much growing and I can hardly wait to see what you'll do next. Right now, you are working on standing up on your own so I bet you walk all by yourself very soon! You love to laugh, talk, blow kissess, wave, and hold your baby. You are an amazing little girl! You bring us much joy! TTAYLI (You'll learn what that means one day!)

Eventful...to say the least!

In my last post of videos, you might have noticed the cardboard boxes behind Adeline. Slowly, but surely, we have been preparing to sell our house. Over the last two years, we've updated bathrooms, painted rooms and the exterior, replaced the central heat/air, replaced the fence, and moved lots to storage...all so someone else can come live here! It was all worth it because our house sold in just over a week! Great, but we hadn't found a new one yet. Thankfully, that changed yesterday when we made an offer that was accepted in just over an hour! It a wonderful home with lots of space to share with family and friends. The plan is to be moving mid-October and continue in this incredible adventure. God has been so good to us and we give thanks for the ways He has moved in these last few weeks. Our prayers have been for all parties to be blessed and I am certain that is happening! Keep the prayers coming as the inspections get scheduled and more (and more and more and more) boxes get packed.

Adeline's first birthday is a few weeks away which seems impossible! What a tremendous time this has been. Lately, she has popped two more teeth on the top and continues to babble all the time. She's decided she doesn't like peas again, but I'm pretty sure she'd eat a whole can of green beans if I'd let her! She is a fast scooter, but takes the time to pull herslf up now, too. She tries walking when someone holds her hands. She signs the word "more" and we are working on the word "please" right now. She says "dada", "mama", "baby", and has a word that resembles "dog" when she is talking about Josie. I've always cuddled her tight, swaying and singing a little song (if you can call it that) with the words "my baby" over and over. Recently, she started moving back and forth doing it, too. It's delightful to hear her and watch her do this! Of course, I'll share it with you if I can get it on video.

Lately...

Adeline still isn't crawling, but is scooting like crazy! In the last two weeks, she's figured out how to go from her tummy to sitting which just adds to her unique style of getting WHERE she wants and WHAT she wants (well, most of the time)! I have FINALLY been able to load some video so you can see her in action!!

Adeline loves books! Of course, this makes her mommy glad. Here's another video of her reading! It's precious!

Ben's mom and dad were with her watching her one evening last week. They'd put her to bed, and all of a sudden, her mobile started playing. They walked in to find her standing up and punching the buttons!! So, my mom came over about 10:15 that evening to hold her so Ben and I could go ahead and lower the mattress. Since she's become more mobile, we were just waiting for this moment to arrive!

She's trying to cut two more teeth on the top and she said "mama" last week! That made me smile, for sure. She's said "dada" for a LONG time and now I get to be included, too!

It has been GREAT to spend more time with her over the summer! The change of routine has been nice and I dread the early alarm clock next week. We've scooted, been to camp, gone swimming, visited the library, gone shopping, been swinging and swinging, and taken care of daddy after his surgery. (LONG STORY short: Ben had his gallbladder out 2 weeks ago and is doing great!) In the midst of all that, we are preparing to put our house on the market! Always an adventure...

P.S. Aunt Julie had an ultrasound last week and it looks like Adeline's cousin will arrive mid-March! YAHOO!

One of the best prayers ever

So, last Sunday we went to Tulsa to see WICKED! It is an incredible musical that I could see over and over again! There was a large group of us, including my brother Chris, my sister-in-law Julie, her mom and aunts and cousins, and our friend, Wendy. After the show, we went to Julie's grandparents' home in Jenks to have pizza. We were asked to gather together so Chris could say the blessing for our meal. Now...you have to understand that we give Chris a REALLY hard time about blessing meals because he tends to get rather wordy! So, I prepared myself for more than just "thank you for the food and the family and friends all gathered together". True to form, he went on to specifically pray for various people in the family, including Adeline "who will be a cousin in March"!!!! Of course, my eyes were closed while praying but they popped open immediately to look at Chris and Julie, who were both beaming and grinning from ear to ear! We've been given permission to share the news and there's no better way than posting it in a blog, huh?!?! We ask your prayers for a healthy pregnancy for Julie and for this precious baby.