Sleep Report

So guess who woke us all up in the middle of the night? The other baby of the household, HOMER. It seems that some type of predator, we're not sure if it was a cat or a raccoon, was trying to invade our house in the middle of the night. Homer, being the watch-cat that he is, defended us all by letting out loud, obnoxious howls to scare off the dangerous beast. Which promptly woke us all up.

Can I please just get a full night of sleep soon??

Oh So Sweet Dreams

I can be pretty superstitious sometimes, and after 11 months of broken sleep, I really don't want to shake the cosmic forces, but i'm just so damn excited that i'm going to do it anyways....Marea has been sleeping through the night for a full week.

Okay please let her sleep through tonight. I don't know what i'll do if I have to get up with her because i'm still soooooo very tired because I can't sleep! I stir a lot more at night than I used to, and I've been waking up every morning at about 4:30, waiting for my little love to call out to me and I just can't fall back asleep! And now that Marea is sleeping through, she's been waking up around 5:30-6 a.m., and well I can't make poor Gary get up with her every day, (although he's such an awesome husband and dad and he does it a lot anyways!) so, I bit the bullet and got up with her and the roosters this morning, meaning that i've been up since 4:30. YIKES! Now if I could just get my own sleep back on track, I just don't know what i'll do with myself. It's been a long time coming and it's finally here. I think i'll probably live it up by staying up until at least 10. Wow!

Another big milestone worth noting....Marea has been falling asleep for her naps without breastfeeding. This is a big step, unfortunately it's a step we're taking so that I can stop breastfeeding. I'm having a very difficult time wrapping my brain around the idea that my baby and I will no longer have that connection, but I know we have lots of other wonderful things to look forward to. In the meantime, i'm savoring every minute of it till we finally call it quits.

Marea ate halibut and salmon over the weekend and absolutely loved it. Now that she's older i've really starting getting adventurous with her food. She is a great eater. Must of been all that awesome breastmilk that got her off to a good start.

Mobile, Coordinated, Thoughtful, Curious and Fearless

As I sit here watching Marea play in the back yard, these 5 words come to mind. She loves to play in the rock walkway area and has figured out how to pick up the rocks and lift them up to a pot that is turned upside down on a bin and stick them through the little hole and it makes a 'thud' sound as it hits the bottom. She's really enjoying that. But she also found a long iron hanging plant holder that she is now banging against the rocks. And i'm sitting here wondering, how long do I let her play with this potentially dangerous object and give her the satisfaction of exploring her curiosity without hurting herself? I want her to explore everything around her, and i'm glad it naturally seems to be part of her personality. She's no girlie-girl (yet). She seems to be pretty rough and tough, willing to take a few bumps and bruises for the sake of doing something she just HAS to do. Like I said before...the toddler years are upon us, and although I see her little attitude emerging when I have to play safety cop, I'm more excited about her boundless desire to figure it all out. I guess we'll figure it out together.

Potentially the most dangerous of all...sticking her feet in Homer's water dish! (Hey, it bought me about 10 minutes, which I then used up trying to get the most perfect photo!)

Growing Up

The Little Miss is turning into a toddler right in front of our eyes. She's really taken off walking, and toddles all throughout the house. She's still a bit weary of separating from me in public, but her stranger anxiety seems to of settled down a bit. She's very interested in everything around her.

She is learning so much...giving kisses, dancing when I put music on, calling homer over for a pet (ya right!), kicking all her balls around the house, escaping from the baby gates, playing with her toys in new ways...such as putting things in as opposed to throwing things out! She's making lots of new sounds too, in fact, I think she tries to mimic what I say sometimes. She is no longer a baby blob! She's a little person!

Everybody's Moving!

With all the talk and preparation for our big move back to So. Cal., Marea decided she was also going to get moving....on her own two feet.

The day before she turned 10 months old, she took a few steps independently while being coaxed by cousin Sara. Over the past two weeks, her balance, coordination and will has skyrocketed. She can't yet get into the standing position from sitting down, but she'll find just about anything to pull herself up on and just walk away. And she's in heaven. Our baby can walk.

And...our baby can talk! She can absolutely say 'ball'. She knows what it is and says ball. She loves playing ball. Definitely a current favorite.

Speaking of talking, Marea and I have started our sign language class and it's really fun. There are few older toddlers in the class and they are definitely using sign language. I'm really working on using signs regularly at home so she'll pick up on it. I'll admit, it feels kind of silly, and sometimes she gives me this puzzled look, but I know the wheels are turning and before long, she'll be signing right back.

And now, introducing Marea's newest cousin, baby Emily....next summer they'll be running around the beach together.