We Love Waffles!

For Christmas, Robert gave me the fancy waffle maker I've been wanting - I love waffles, and so does Claire! I've been looking for a chance to try it out, so when I got off from work a little early today, I decided Claire should have breakfast for dinner. We tried a Krusteaz mix and added some applesauce, cinnamon & nutmeg for apple spice waffles, and they were a big hit with my food critic! She almost ate an entire Belgian waffle by herself (along with some applesauce for dipping and a can of mandarin oranges). Growth spurt, maybe?

Asking for more with an overstuffed mouth

Christmas 2009: Part Two

I don't know how I managed to forget this - we actually had a white Christmas this year! It snowed Christmas eve, and we took Claire outside to check it out. She was not impressed. I think the experience would've been better if she had not had freezing ice hitting her in the face.

The day after Christmas we drove over to Fort Worth to see the "B" grandparents. Their complex has a small aviary in the lobby, and Claire always likes looking at the birds.

We played and visted for awhile before going to Flying Fish for lunch.

Christmas 2009: Part 1

We headed to Arlington last week to celebrate Christmas with Robert's family. On Christmas Eve we finished up our shopping (we were so on the ball this year), had the not so successful trip to see Santa (see below) and enjoyed some good quality time with our family. Robert's Ma found a couple of remote-controlled cars for Claire that also ended up keeping Robert and his cousins pretty entertained. Claire was more interested in chasing after the cars (or running away from them) and picking them up.

Christmas morning was so much fun with our traditional brunch (including breakfast casserole, Ma's famous coffee cake and lots of coffee) before moving on to looking at our stockings. Claire had so much fun pulling everything out of her stocking.

She was really excited by her "phone" that Santa brought her and spent a lot of time "making calls" on it!

Every year there are some interesting surprises in the stockings, as Robert's cousin Mike demonstrated.

I managed to get our from behind the camera for a photo with my authentic Texas dollar bill.

We moved on to unwrapping presents, and Claire loved her perch on the rocking chair that belonged to her great-grandfather Bob and that her daddy hung his stocking on every Christmas until Claire came along.

Almost everyone was able to make it, but we sure missed Aunt Carol and Robert's aunt Susie.

Tom


Ashlee & Ma


Lee & Mike


Bob, Gayle & Clark

Claire had a good time unwrapping her presents. She raked it in, as usual.

One of the cutest things was watching her feed her baby doll. She figured out what to do right away, and liked sharing the bottle with her baby.

We had such a great time as always! Coming next, Christmas with the "B" great-grandparents!

Merry Christmas!

Claire met Santa yesterday - still not a fan. Hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas!

Update to "Sick"

Just wanted to let you know that Claire is doing much better. We took her to our regular pediatrician on Monday, and her lungs still sounded great - and she's back to her old self. I got an extra workout chasing her around at home yesterday, and other than some coughing, she seems to be totally fine. We also found out that her friend from school was released from the hospital yesterday morning and is on the road to recovery. Thanks for your prayers and thoughts!

How to eat cream cheese

We recently introduced Claire to the wonder that is cream cheese, and it has quickly become one of her favorite snacks. Claire gave us a demonstration the other night of the proper way to eat an English muffin with cream cheese.

1. Hold the muffin up so that you can take a bite from the middle (area with the maximum amount of cream cheese).
   
   
   
2. Give Mommy and Daddy a big smile to show off your C.C. mustache.
   
   
   
3. Repeat step 1.
   
   
   
4. If you're lucky, you'll even get some cheese up your nose.
   
   
   
5. Finish your muffin, then scream and cry when Mommy tries to clean the cheese off your face (not pictured).
   

Sick :(

Claire hadn't been feeling great for a few days (waking up, coughing, just not totally herself), and by Saturday afternoon we thought she needed to get checked out. We took her to the after-hours pediatric clinic near our house, and it was fuller than we'd ever seen it. After we'd been there about 30 minutes, a couple of EMTs came in wheeling a stretcher, and a few minutes later wheeled out a mom holding a little girl who wearing a nebulizer mask. We were really surprised and concerned to recognize the girl as someone from Claire's class at daycare, then a little worried to wonder if Claire had been exposed to something.

When we finally got back, we told the nurse and the doctor about the connection, since while they obviously couldn't tell us what had happened, they would know if Claire needed to be checked for something. They ended up running an RSV test on Claire that came back positive. RSV can be really bad, but Claire appears to have a fairly mild case. She hasn't had a fever or any issues breathing, fortunately. The doctor told us that based on when her symptoms started, today or tomorrow would probably be the worst. Claire actually seemed better today after getting the best night of sleep she's had in awhile (about 13 hours straight!). So, we're going to try to see her regular doctor tomorrow to confirm the diagnosis, but she seems to be on the road to recovery.

Yesterday she was still feeling pretty icky after waking up from her nap, and she just wanted to snuggle with me on the couch. This is pretty rare since she usually wants to be up and running around, so we knew she wasn't feeling very good. I was glad we could be there to comfort her and just let her relax and start healing. Hopefully she's back to herself before Christmas!

A couple of pictures from our cuddly time:

An almost smile

First Christmas Pageant

Claire's school held a holiday pageant last Tuesday night, so Claire had her first moment on a big stage! Each class performed a song, and Claire's class was supposed to shake little noisemakers to "Feliz Navidad." Eight of the kids in her class were able to make it, and as you can imagine, it was somewhat organized chaos up there. We were seated several rows back so the photos aren't great, but you can get an idea of how it went.

Getting ready


Making her way onstage


Trying to get them all arranged


The song had barely begun before she totally lost interest


Examining the floor


The class (Notice that she was the only girl! There are a couple more girls in th class that didn't make it, but they're definitely outnumbered.)


Examining the floor again in the back

Their "performance" was definitely good entertainment. We only stayed for a few more songs - someone was getting pretty fussy and wanted to run around rather than sit in Mommy or Daddy's lap. We tried to get a few photos before we left - this was the best we could do.

Overall it was fun, and I was glad that she didn't freak out on the stage. Maybe next year she'll actually participate!

A Few Random Things About Claire

I have several little stories and funny things about Claire to share! Most of these I had planned on making into their own posts, but I’ve realized that if I don’t write them down soon, I’ll forget them all!

• A few weeks ago, some friends of ours were in town and we met them out for dinner. We ended up getting home over an hour after C’s bedtime, and she was so tired. I changed her diaper and was about to put her in her pj’s when she hopped up, ran over to her crib, and started pointing to it and doing the sign for “please.” I was so surprised that she was asking me to put her to bed – first (and probably last) time that has happened!
• C loves it when I sing to her, and we always sing a couple rounds of “Jesus Loves Me” and “You Are My Sunshine” before I put her to bed. She’s started saying “more” or signing “please” after I finish, so I’ve had to add a couple of songs – and give her advance warning that “this is the last one” to satisfy her.
• We’ve added something new to the bath time routine that she loves. Claire was starting to get fussy every time I took her out of the bath – I think because she knows that bed time is coming. After wrapping her in a towel, I started holding her close and singing “Rock-a-bye Baby” and acting like I was going to drop her when I got to the “baby will fall” line. She thinks it’s hilarious and now she starts snuggling and giggling as soon as I start singing, and I love the extra snuggle time because she likes for me to hold her really close as I rock her in my arms back and forth. I also start getting the “please” sign to sing it again before the song is even over – “please” is her universal sign that she wants something!
• Whenever I pick C up at school or from the church nursery, she’s starting running towards me as fast as those little legs will carry her and throwing herself full force into me for a hug. One of the best parts of my day! Then she grabs her jacket from her cubby and runs to the door ready to go, then looks back at me like “what is taking you so long?”
• Claire has gotten really good at blowing kisses and has started to give them to Robert and I unprompted. It’s so cute and warms my heart every time.
• We went to the Christmas parade in Boerne a little over a week ago, and C’s favorite parts were the music and the big trucks pulling the floats. Girl loves trucks!
• Claire has learned a new way to show me what she wants – she’ll grab my hand and pull me over to wherever something is. Nothing like being drug around by a 20 month old! Lately she likes to pull me over to the stairs – we’ve been spending more time in the playroom, and she loves to go up there. She climbs up the stairs like a little monkey, but every once in awhile she’ll stop, look up, and get this expression on her face like “I still have that many more steps to go?”
• Claire still loves to dance, and she’s added some new moves to her repertoire – bobbing her head side to side, spinning in a circle, and stomping her feet. We always listen to music in the playroom, and she’s started stopping down for some commercials. I also record “Glee” and fast forward to the musical numbers for her – they really get her going! Must get a video of it soon!

Thanksgiving 2009

As per family tradition, we spent Thanksgiving at my parents' house in North Texas. There was a full house as always, and the big hit this year was the smoked turkey that was almost an afterthought. Oh, and of course all of the desserts, including two of my favorites - red devil's food cake and graham cracker pie. I think I had at least one piece of cake or pie at every meal (except breakfast!). My trainer would've been so proud! Being able to indulge occasionally is why I work out, though. :)

We hadn't made the drive to Nana and Granddaddy's since Christmas last year, and we figured out that C's limit is about 5 1/2 hours (this is when the screaming began in earnest). Unfortunately the drive is a little over 6. She is still rear-facing, and I'm considering turning her around at Christmas, but we haven't decided for sure yet. I figure once you turn them around, you can't go back, and I like the additional safety that rear-facing provides, but I'm wondering if trips might be more pleasant for all of us when she can face forwards. We'll see.

Except for the drive, Claire had a great time. She thoroughly enjoyed Thanksgiving dinner and all the leftovers (especially the dressing, twice baked potatoes and broccoli cheese casserole). She also enjoyed the new toys that Nana got for her, and having so many people to play with. We were all so happy that Aunt Nancy and Uncle Kerbow were able to come for awhile on Friday. We've missed seeing them!

Claire's 2009 Christmas List

I know, I know - I've been a total blog slacker lately. Things have just been really busy lately, and the spare computer time I've had lately has been spent on planning our upcoming vacation to Hawaii - can't wait!!!

I've had several people ask for some ideas of gifts for Claire, so I'm posting a list here. If there's something in particular you'd like to get her, just e-mail me and I'll cross it off the list.

• Baby doll (something like this )
• Fisher Price Little People sets (she has the Nativity set and Noah's Ark playset and now the People Mover bus)
• Maracas (something like these)
• Lego Duplo blocks
• Little Tikes Easy Store slide
• Fisher Price Doodle Pro
• Toy truck/bus/fire truck
• Wooden puzzles
• Basic coloring books
• Board books (she loves Sandra Boynton books, and I think she'd like any by Karen Katz, Fiona Watts, or Eric Carle)
• Music CDs (particularly Praise Baby or the Jack Johnson Curious George CD)
• Veggie Tales or Praise Baby DVDs