A year ago today

Happy Halloween!

The life of the party

I think this picture speaks for itself:

12-month checkup

Erin went to the doctor yesterday, which was very upsetting for her. She is now well aware of who the doctor is and what happens to her when she goes there! She weighed in at a feather-weight 19 lbs. and 15 oz. She is on the verge of cracking the 20-pound barrier. It's just in the 25th percentile, but she has been between the 25th and 50th percentiles her whole life. The doctor wasn't worried because she eats well and gets enough formula/milk and always has lots left over, um, at the other end. He said that's just her, and to expect her to slim down even more once she starts walking and burning even more calories. She is 30-1/4" tall though, which is in the 90th percentile! It helps to be tall and thin for getting into things, which suits her just fine. Her noggin is almost 18", which is just about in the middle.

She also got her hemoglobin checked (a finger prick, good results), and 3 shots - MMR, flu, and chicken pox! Poor little girl. On top of that, she has a cold and a new tooth just broke through on the bottom, so she has a lot going on right now. She is handling it like a champ, though.

In the spirit of growing up, I made her a cheese toastie and scrambled eggs for lunch, two things she has devoured in the past, but she wasn't too interested in either one. We got some whole milk at the store today, so we'll try that after naptime. I'm sure she will notice the change!

Birthday Weekend!

Erin had a great birthday weekend in Concord! Friday, she played with her cousins and warmed up for the weekend. Saturday, she played some more, went on a walk, helped make her birthday cake, and had a Halloween party with her cousins. Today, she tried some of the cake (it got two thumbs up) and opened lots of great presents from her family. It was a mega-birthday celebration with Aunt Maria, Uncle Chris, and Great Grandad's birthdays too. She had such a great time - thanks, everybody!

Here are some pictures, and more can be found here:
http://picasaweb.google.com/bob.callaway/ErinSFirstBirthday

From Erin's First Birthday

P.S. We took the new car (which finally got returned from a "2-hour" repair job, 3 days later on Friday afternoon) and all enjoyed having lots more space. Bella lounged on the back seat and was quite comfy.

1 Year Old!

WOW! We made it! Erin turns 1 today! What a wonderful (and exhausting, and worrisome) year it has been. We are so lucky to have this fabulous little person in our lives.

New tricks:
- Cruising up a storm and occasionally standing for a few seconds on her own.
- Waving on command...her whole body gets into it!
- Sitting forward in the car, which she loves.
- Getting into everything - the dishwasher, boxes of checks, toy containers, her closet...
- Drinking formula from a sippy cup...cow's milk is next (thank goodness, before we go broke)!
- Eating lots of new foods - she will try most things, but some are more favored than others. Fruits are still not her favorite, but she likes most veggies, breads, and meats. She loved my Smithfield's bbq sandwich the other day, which was bittersweet for me because I didn't want to part with it.
- Climbing, or trying to climb on things. She is a little monkey!

We are having so much fun and are really enjoying her at this age. It just keeps getting better, which is a relief because the first few months weren't all that much fun! She is headed to Concord today for her birthday bash weekend. Stay tuned for pictures!

New Car

Well, poor Bob finally gave in and agreed to get a new car. I have been bugging him ever since Erin was born about the Ranger not being kid-friendly without any back seats. We did some searching and checking out various crossovers, SUVs, and minivans (yes, minivans) and determined that the Ford Taurus X was right for us. They are not making them anymore, but we really like their design, safety record, and have heard lots of good things about them. Plus, Erin's cousins have one, so she wanted one too!

It had decent storage space, but wasn't huge-feeling like some of the other ones and gets good-enough gas mileage. One of us has trouble parking (ahem - it's not Bob) and was nervous about trying to dock some giant thing at the grocery store. So, yesterday, Erin and I went to check out a 2008 dark gray "X" SLE with 11,500 miles that I found online at a dealer near us, and we both loved it. We had our eyes on a couple of other ones, but those were out of town and had 4-wheel drive and leather seats, 2 options we weren't sure we wanted.

So Bob went back after work and test-drove it for himself. We agreed that it was in good shape and was what we wanted, so he made the deal after some tough negotiating! They offered a good price for the truck, so we let them take it off our hands for us. So long, Ranger...you were so good to us the past 4 years, hauling many a load of mulch, wood flooring, furniture, and so many other random things. You treated us well, and we hope you find a good home. Sorry, I could not quickly find a better picture to do you justice:



We have a few pictures from our garage last night, but will get better ones soon. After being cozy in the garage last night, it had to go back to the dealer today to get a few minor things fixed and will get to pick it back up tomorrow, complete with repainted bumper, new weatherstripping, and some fixed molding. It does have a few small scratches, but otherwise is in really good shape. We love it, and Erin does too!

The Name Game

We have been trying to figure out what we want Erin to call people (non-family adults, that is). I was raised saying "Mrs. Smith" or whatever to everyone, and it sounds like Bob had a combination of "Mrs. Smith" and "Miss Mary". I hear a lot of kids now using first names. Is it not customary nowadays for kids to call someone "Mr. Jones"? Or is it a regional thing that isn't done here? Maybe it is related to their age? I know some people feel old when they are called by their last name, so they may not like that. I don't want her to be embarrassed, but I also want her to be polite!

All these decisions! Being a parent is so hard...but definitely worth it, of course.

Spaghetti!

Look what has surpassed scrambled eggs as Erin's new favorite food (notice the nearly empty tray):



The kid won't touch a banana to save her life, but she scarfs down spaghetti like she can't get enough. Who knows?

The Beach!

Erin got to go visit Grandma F. at her beach condo this weekend. We all had lots of fun visiting with her and being at the beach! It was such a nice time to go, without all the summer crowds. We went out on the beach, went to the museum at Ocean Isle, ran some errands, went out to eat one night, and played a lot with Grandma. Grandma and Grandpa's place is so nice, and we had such a wonderful time! Erin is a big beach bum, so she was right at home.



Oh, and I also enjoyed a vacation from Bella, who went to the kennel and came back with a positive test for roundworms and antibiotics for them. Bella has had a knack for costing us money lately!

Pumpkin Patch!

Erin had such a fun weekend in Concord with her cousins, grandparents, great-grandparents, aunts, and uncles. We went to a pumpkin patch on Saturday that also had a petting zoo and plows to climb on. She had a lot of fun! She also played with her cousins' toys at their house and practiced climbing Grandma and Grandpa's stairs (her favorite new trick) and cruising around their living room. Luckily, she managed to get a few naps in between all that busy playing! Mommy and Daddy also got to go see Uncle Dale and Aunt Maria's new townhouse that is under construction in Charlotte - very nice! We still haven't had time to make it to the new Ikea store, but maybe next time.






(Holding hands during our picnic at the pumpkin patch)