First Boat Ride

Not only did Mia swim in the lake for the first time last weekend, but she also took her first boat ride. And, loved it. She's definitely an outdoors girl. We thought she'd get annoyed by the big life jacket, but she didn't seem to mind it. Uncle Chris was blasting the music on the way home in the boat, so in the picture with me, Mia is bouncing to Kid Rock. Lullabies are for babies :)

Polar Bear Swim

We went to Smith Mountain Lake with Andrew's family for Memorial Day Weekend. Mimi and Papa have a house, boat and jet ski there, and we're there a lot during the summer (who wouldn't be?). The water was FREEZING this past weekend - we're talking people-skiing-in-wet-suits cold. You'd think a 22-pound baby would be deterred from those temperatures. But, not Mia (or her crazy cousins). She braved the water all three days, splashing and playing until her lips were blue and her whole body was shaking (and mommy couldn't take watching her anymore, which was about 10 minutes at a time). Seeing how much she loves the water, I'm really looking forward to this summer with her. We joined our community pool and have a few trips planned to the beach. Should be so much fun.

Fun with Friends

Our college friends - Robin, Krissy & Brad - visited us this past weekend with their kids. Mia had a blast playing with the older girls. Now that she's walking, it's easier for her to keep up with them. They take very good care of her - making sure she has toys, pushing her in her car, holding her hand while she's walking, etc. I tried to get a picture with all three of them in it, but some of them (eh hmm, Mia and Greta) weren't cooperating. Not pictured is baby Colette, who is 7 weeks old and was so good all day. Thanks for coming to visit you guys! (By the way - my friend Robin drove to Virginia from NY by herself with a 3.5 year-old and a 7-week-old. She's a fearless mommy.) And, I must add how our lives have changed. A few years ago, we would've spent the day at the Downtown Mall enjoying drinks outside or visiting some local wineries. Now, we have pizza and chocolate chip cookies and spend the afternoon on the playground :)

Cracking Up

Babies laughing is one of my favorite sounds. You can't help but laugh with them. Here Mia is cracking up at her dad, who is blowing air in her face with this syringe-type thing the hospital gave me when I was having trouble feeding her. Who knows where she found it. I have a tupperware container in the kitchen cabinet that she plays with that has all of her baby bottle stuff in it - I guess that's where it was. Anyhoo - she thinks it's the funniest thing.

Worst Mommy Of The Week Award Goes To...

ME!!!!!!!!! I let my baby fall on her head - not once, but twice this week! On Monday, I was checking email and Mia wanted to sit with me. So, I lifted her up and put her in the office chair behind me. She was playing with one of her toys (or so I thought). The next thing I know, I hear this loud thud on the floor and I look over and Mia has fallen off the side of the chair flat onto her back and head. She actually didn't cry that hard. What scared me most was she laid her head on my shoulder and stayed there for about 10 minutes. This might seem normal for some of you parents, but Mia is not a snuggler. So, I called the doctor, and they told me some warning signs to look for. Thankfully, she was fine. Then, on Thursday morning, we were playing on the couch. I was eating my bagel and breaking off small pieces for her (one of our morning rituals - and, yes, she also has a healthier breakfast for those appalled that i feed her a bagel every morning :). I saw her crawling away from me, so I said "Mia" in that "you better come back here" tone. And, as she looked back at me, she lost her balance, fell off the couch and landed in a headstand position on the floor. Then, her neck did this twisty thing and she completely flipped over. But, the worst part was she landed directly on top of her head - I can't get that visual out of my mind. This time, I took her to the doctor (they told me to come in since this was the SECOND time that week). Again, we lucked out and she's fine. Turns out, the "goose egg" that I thought was on her head is the soft spot closing (oops). So, now I have her on a leash. Kidding (kind of). But, just in case this happens to you, here are some signs of head trauma/concussion: 1) not crying right away 2) dilated pupils 3) persistant vomiting 4) very sleepy for hours at a time.

Corn on the Cob is Good!

Mia decided she wanted to try our corn on the cob the other night for dinner. I put it in her mouth thinking she either wouldn't like it (because corn is the thing she spits out when she gets a spoonful of vegetables), or she would lick off the butter and leave the corn. But, she actually ate it off the cob! She even has a mouthful to prove it :)

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all you moms out there! Don't you just love this day? It's almost like a birthday. At least, in my house it is. But, that's also because I start talking about it weeks in advance. So, everyone knows it's a big day for mommy and mommy can do whatever she wants on that day :)

I had a great day. It started with a card from Mia and Andrew telling me that my gift is a cleaning lady. Woo hoo! Then, we went to brunch with my parents, Andrew's parents and my grandmother. Mia did not want to eat and only wanted to walk around the restaurant (and do her cute beauty queen wave to people at each table), so brunch wasn't extremely relaxing. But, the food was delicious and we all came home and took a nap.

Here are a few pictures of us at brunch - Mill Street Grill in Staunton. The group picture includes Mia's two grandmas (Nana and Mimi) and her great-grandma (Granny Ross).

What's in that Sippy Cup?

Mia after a little too much "juice." Her facial expressions are priceless - I had to share.

Look! No Hands!

Mia has come a long way in a few weeks! Check her out walking around the house (excuse the mess - the big box is from her new car seat that arrived today). This is probably the farthest she's walked by herself - plus she turned around and headed back to me, which she never does. Maybe she saw her friend Kelsey walking around today and decided that she finally needed to let go of mommy and daddy's hands?

Kindermusik

Mia has been in Kindermusik since she was four-months-old. I've tried to sign her up for other classes but keep coming back to this one because she loves it so much. Here is a picture of Mia with some of her Kindermusik friends. We got together for a picnic after class. (Katie's Will is on the far left, looking very proud of himself for whatever it is that he just accomplished.)

Save Me, Daddy!

Mia loves to play outside. She's like a little puppy and goes to the door when she wants to go out. Here, she's tapping on the window trying to get Andrew's attention while he's mowing the lawn. In the second picture, she's upset because daddy wasn't listening and mommy told her that she couldn't go outside because it was dinnertime.

Wild Thing

"Wild Thing" having a blast in the bathtub a few nights ago.