The Evolution Continues

Seemingly overnight I have gone from having a shoe hater to mothering a budding Carrie Bradshaw. Seriously, how cute are these?

I heart these boots. Their tiny suede perfection makes me smile every time I see them. And the best part is my little bugs loves them too!

I love the 'dinner roll' effect that most soft soled baby shoes have on her feet. It's like she has little buns for feet. Yummy.

I even have video of her making mischief in her new suede boots.

And just so we're clear, I do not consider four pairs of shoes for one baby that many. Apparently the ladies at daycare do. Wait 'til they see what I have planned for winter.

Pumpkin Patch

I love the change in seasons in Vermont but especially love fall in particular. The crisp air, bright sunshine (on good days), falling leaves, tart apples, I could go on and on. It's fabulous! Yesterday Addison and I went out on an adventure to pick up our pumpkins and mums for this year. It's really her first pumpkin experience as last year she was too small to go out.

Guess which 'pumpkin' I picked?

In case you're wondering how one carries multiple pumpkins and mums with small child in tow...in a handy shopping cart of course. I have no idea where how the farm got this thing (they had only one) but it made my life way easier and Addison loved it.

Our bounty, pushing the cart to max capacity.

Addison also had her first whole apple. She thought that was pretty awesome. I'm not sure that she actually 'ate' much of it but it certainly kept her busy which made shopping a lot easier.

Some of our display when we got home.

And one last thought...

We had fun but it just wasn't the same without Daddy there. Hurry home, babe, we miss you!!

Twelve Month Stats

We had Addison's twelve month visit early last week and thankfully all remains well. So, without further ado....

The little lady today. (touching her nose just for you)

Weight: 20lbs 5 ounces (45th percentile)

Length: 29.5 inches (75th percentile)

The little lady at the beginning.

Weight: 7lbs 9 ounces
Length: 20 inches

She's gained over 12lbs and 9.5 inches in the past year. Not too shabby! (and we are still unclear where her length comes from or if it will stick around)

Baby Love

Addison received her first baby doll at her birthday party (thanks, Aunt Stephanie!) and she is quite taken by it. I can say, 'Go get the baby!' and she'll crawl over and grab her and wave her triumphantly in the air. Typing this I realize it sounds quite dog like...

Anyway, here is Addison inspecting her baby.


Yes, everything looks good.


Awww. Kisses for the baby. She spends most of her time either kissing the baby or trying to poke it's eyes out (they open and close, it's fascinating to her).

And while the eye poking is somewhat distrubing to watch, those kisses, oh the kisses! They are like a sweet piece of candy.

Twelve Months

Darling Addison,

Twelve months, one year....six of one, half dozen of another....it's all hard to wrap my head around either way. Just like some people will tell you, the days are long and the years are short.

As usual, you have been a busy little beaver this month. You are so close to walking but continue to toddle around everywhere holding on to whatever object is in your reach. You take a few steps on your own but then resort to crawling as it is usually much quicker and you have places to be! You have many new gestures and expressions but your current favorite are the previously mentioned 'o' face and pointing your finger at any and all objects that catch your eye. You have an amazing attention for detail and can spot a crumb on the floor from across the room.

You continue to expand your vocabulary, mainly with sounds like ba, ba and so forth but you have also been saying ma, ma much more lately which of course, I love. You have months of ma, ma's to catch up to all the da, da's you've said! You love to be outside and enjoy our bike rides, backpack hikes and our walks around the neighborhood. You especially love dogs and lately birds as well. You squeal with delight whenever you see a dog (near or far) and it is quite charming although loud.

Most importantly, my dear girl, you have given me a gift that no one else could by making me a Mommy. I have been lucky enough to experience many things in my life but only you could give me this and I am so grateful. Being a wife and mother are the best things that have ever happened to me. And before you think this sounds like a bad 1950's cliche (which will be a totally irrelevant culture reference by the time you ever read this), know that I love my work, my friends, my independence but nothing has given me what you and your Daddy have.

I love you, baby girl and I don't care how many months or years old you are, you will always be my baby.

xoxo,
Mommy

Let Them Eat Cake

Grammy Carol upped the ante and had this yummy ice cream cake waiting to celebrate Addison's birthday. Isn't it awesome?! I know at least one person who thought it was pretty incredible.

I call this picture 'Daddy, get your hand and that stupid fork out of my way!'.

Daddy finally gave up and let her use her hands and all was well.

Althought she kept asking, 'What? Do I have something on my face?'.

Here's to our little ice cream lover!

Thanks, Ba and Grammy!

Bass Pro Shop

On Sunday afternoon, Scott, Addison and I struck out on our own for a little family time. And where does every family head when they have some time to themselves. Why the giant retailer Bass Pro Shop, of course!

I had never been to one before and I have to say, I was impressed. We started out with a great lunch in their very busy restaurant. Check out the Buns. She was engrossed.

This is what she was looking at while we were dining as it was at the head of our table (and she was facing it). Talk about kid friendly.

After lunch, we entered the main store. It is huge and truly has something for everyone (well maybe it's a little light on the female side but you get the general idea). Below is where Scott became engrossed.

Note the other players...small boys.

Here is picture of the main display in the back of the store. (click thru for better quality) A giant cliff, waterfall, stuffed extravaganza with another large fish tank at the bottom. Quite a statement.

Even with all this excitement, my favorite part was when we left the store. Outside there was a mass of all terrain type vehicles that Addison was dying to get her sticky little hands on.

The cuteness is killing me! Are you catching the tongue?

And just like Goldilocks, this one was just right.

I bet you wish we had one near us, right?

Puppy & Rocky

Scott's parents have two horses (Puppy & Rocky) that they have had for a number of years (certainly well over 10 yrs but I can't remember the exact number). We knew our budding Doctor Doolittle would be totally into seeing the horses up close and personal so off we went on Sunday for a visit to the barn.

Daddy & Addison in the barn.

Daddy helping Addison feed Rocky a carrot.

Addison thought she should sample it first which I am sure Rocky appreciated.

Petting Puppy with Ba and Daddy.

Addison, Daddy, Ba & Puppy. Isn't Puppy gorgeous?

Of course, the trip wouldn't be complete with out a smig of time on Puppy's back.

Addison spent a good deal of time enjoying the grass and pointing at the horses while squeeling.

Mommy & Addison (this is her new expression - the 'o' mouth all the time)

Addison's 'slimed' foot. One of the horses was smelling her feet and apparently they smelled pretty tasty because her whole foot went into it's warm, wet mouth. She thought that was pretty funny.

A few more pats before we headed out.

We had so much fun at the barn. It is a beautiful piece of land very close to Larry & Carol's house that feels rural but is in the middle of a developed area. A treasure! We loved seeing Rocky, Puppy and the other horses that board at the barn and the little lady thought it was awesome!

Advice For Traveling Alone With A One Year Old

Don't.

Okay, that's probably a little strong.

But what starts out all cute and innocent like this....

"My teddy made the trip!"

"The ceiling talks!"

Can rapidly turn into this...a sweaty haired mess after twenty minutes of vigorous crying before passing out in your arms.

Good fun.

But hey, she didn't seem to mind.

In all honesty, traveling down had a few dicey moments but was totally manageable. It was the second leg of the trip home that darn near killed me. Poor thing was miserable and pretty much everyone else on the plane was too. If you think 40 minutes of non-stop screaming isn't too bad, try it some time. It's a loooonnnggg time.

But, we did get to see Daddy (yippee!), Ba, Grammy, Uncle Tom and Aunt Danielle so it was well worth it!

The Murray Family in Virginia

(Scott) I am in Virginia, doing three weeks of training and missing my Jill and Addison tremendously. Fortunately for me, Jill and Addison came to Virginia to visit me on Addison's actual birthday (Sept 19th) and we all gathered at my father and step-mothers house, "Ba" and "Grammy Carol." They live about 30 minutes away from where I am training, and my brother and sister-in-law, Uncle Tom and Aunt Danielle who live in Northern, Virginia on the D.C. border came and visited as well. Unfortunately we were negligent in getting Tom and Danielle into the photo line-up.

Here is Grammy Carol perfecting Addison's walking techniques.

Here is Ba, with Jill and Addison.

And here is Addison loving on one of her awesome gifts from Ba and Grammy. She can't wait to try it on.

I had such a great time visiting with Jill and Addison, I hate the fact that tomorrow they leave and I go back to training here...I can't believe it is going to be two whole weeks before I get to see my two ladies again. I will be very sad but am excited to see you guys when I get back. Love you both and will be thinking of you guys constantly.

(PS-there are some really cool photos with us and my parent's horses, but Jill stole them for her blog, which I am told is forthcoming.)