Our Goofy Gal

Now that Andra's crawling, she's picking up speed everyday...and becoming much more adventurous and daring too!

Her crawling style makes me laugh. She picks her arms up really high like she's swimming, and her legs just follow casually along. Must have been all those swimming lessons!

Today, I was tidying up her nursery. I turned around and she was nowhere to be seen. After a split second of panic, I spotted her. In the corner, behind her giant glider. Just hanging out. Her ball was back there (thanks to Pudge, no doubt), and I think she was after that. Anyway, it was a Kodak moment for me. :) Doesn't she look mischievous?

Beautiful Day

One of my very best friends in the whole wide world tied the knot on Saturday. Crystal is officially a married woman! As you can see, she was a breathtaking bride. Funny thing is, Crystal's a perpetual tomboy. I can count on one hand the number of times I've seen her in a dress. It's always a hoot seeing her so girly girly. But I love it.

Crystal, Shannon and I have been inseparable since the 8th grade. One of our teachers nicknamed us The Laughing Tripolets because we were always disrupting class because we were too busy laughing together. Our friendship has been a source of joy and laughter ever since!
Crystal's family lives on lots of land out in the country, so she had her wedding at home in her giant backyard. I have lots of memories in Crystal's backyard, so it was fun to create another wonderful memory this weekend. Wishing you a lifetime of love, Crystal and Jimmy!

And...She's Off!

It's official. Andra's crawling!! Dave and I have been debating over the last several days whether she's officially crawling or not. She's been on all fours with "forward motion" for a few days now...but her uncoordinated efforts didn't much resemble crawling. But as of tonight after dinner, she went several "steps" that seemed amazingly coordinated. I'm so proud of her! It's a little odd watching my baby crawl...does this mean she's officially a toddler? I hope not! I still want her to be my baby.


In addition to crawling, we're reaching another milestone this week. Andra's cutting her first tooth! It's barely through the surface of her gum, but you can definitely feel it when you rub your finger across her gum. The process of teething hasn't been too bad. She's been fussier than usual, but nothing unbearable. She's never been interested in pacifiers, but since she's started teething, she's become much more attached to it. It makes me a little sad to picture her smile with a tooth in it. I love her gummy smile right now. I can't imagine seeing a tooth in that grin!


And finally...one last milestone to report. We had our first incident of projectile vomit. But I'll spare you the details of that. :) Nothing serious, I just think she got a little motion sickness after dinner and all the excitement of crawling! Until next time...here's a grin to hold you over.

Daddy's Day

Andra and Dave made me feel so special on my very first Mother's Day, I knew the pressure was on to give Dave an equally great first Father's Day. I hope we succeeded. :) He got his favorite breakfast (biscuits 'n gravy), and then Andra and I sent him on a scavenger hunt throughout the house to find his gift. We got him a massage--some well-deserved relaxation time for a Daddy who works so hard to provide for and love his girls. We love him for it.

Andra's lucky to have such an involved, hands-on, loving Dad. Here's a picture of Andra enjoying the day with her Daddy.

Where the Wild Things Are

What a fun day! Dave took the day off work and we made our first trip to the Indianapolis Zoo. Dave and I both hadn't been there for years, so a lot has changed!

Andra has an Animal Train toy she loves, so today, she got to see all the animals in REAL LIFE. :) She seemed to have fun, and especially liked the petting zoo, where she could get up close and personal with the animals. She got friendly with a horse (see below), and yes, she stuck out her tongue for the picture with the elephant. Apparently she didn't like the elephant.

We had a fun trip and will definitely be returning. I already told Dave I'd like to go to Christmas at the Zoo this winter. I think it'll be even more fun as she gets older and notices more of the animals!



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Pool Dayz

Now that Andra has officially passed her first session of swim lessons, we hit the pool pretty often...especially with the recent unusually hot weather we've been having! She loves the kiddie pool at the Y. I think she'd sit in there all day if I'd let her. She's perfectly content to chew on whatever bath toy I've brought and just watch the other kids. The best part is when the lifeguards blow the whistle and all the kids have to get out of the "big pool" (Remember when you were a kid and HATED those 10 minutes that were for adults only?? It was the LONGEST 10 minutes of your life!) Anyway...during the "kid break" we can hit the big pool together too and just float around. It's the best.


On a side note, the V. and G. clans have survived the crazy Indy floods. No major damage to report. My sister lives next to a retention pond and got the worst of it, and although the water got dangerously close, they managed to keep the inside of their house dry!

And finally this weekend...more evidence our baby girl is growing far too fast. We had to lower her crib a level. We'd caught her a few times pulling herself up on the rails, so we decided to play it safe and lower the mattress. Well, we invested in really nice nursery furniture that "adjusts easily." Liars.



Nothin' easy about it! Dave had to basically dismantle the entire crib to lower the mattress, and then put the crib back together again. What a trooper. I think he wanted to put it on the lowest level, so he wouldn't have to go through the re-adjusting again in a few months, but I couldn't bring myself to let him do it. I've got to pace myself with this growing up thing. It makes my heart hurt sometimes.

So needless to say, Daddy earned his gold star this weekend. :)

Score for Mommy!

I'm doing a victory dance. I have defeated Andra in the battle to keep shoes on her feet!

This girl refuses to wear shoes. Every pair I've put on her, she's found a way to wiggle out of them in record time. I've tried shoes with strings, velcro, straps, buttons, elastic...the list is exhausting.

No longer! I bought these shoes at Target the other day, and I'm definitely a satisfied customer! We tested them while shopping, and they actually stayed on her feet all the way to the checkout lane! Small victory, but I was still skeptical. I bought them anyway and hoped for the best.

The first real test drive was when she wore them for the first time over the weekend. They stayed on her feet for HOURS! She pulled and tugged, but couldn't get them off. I win! I win! Point for Mommy! (Grandma V. pointed out this won't last long. As soon as she figures out how to un-attach the velcro straps on her own, we'll be back in the shoe aisle)

For the time being, I'm basking in the glory of my victory and singing the praises of Circo Mary Janes in Size 3. They're definitely worth the $10 investment, and they're cute too! (Maybe Andra's already developed a fashion standard, and all previous shoes simply didn't meet her standard?)

Don't get me wrong, I still give her little piggies plenty of time to wiggle and breathe outside the confines of her shoes. It's just nice to not be chasing missing shoes in the grocery store, on walking trails, in the backseat of the car, from Pudges slobbery jowls...