Bird takes flight (Anna)

Emma climbed our entire flight of stairs today, and managed to wiggle back down some of them as well. We were most impressed.

She's also learned to open the baby gate at the bottom of the stairs when we don't close it properly - we discovered her today happily standing on the wrong side of the gate calling to be let out. Time to up our vigilance. :)

Baby steps

We still struggle with ambiguous "firsts". When we say "milk", and Emma says "muk", is that really a word, or just imitating a sound? When we say "baby" and she comes back with "baaba", is that a word?

But yesterday and then again today, she reached an unambiguous milestone. She took her first steps. For the first time, she let go of all the props that hold her up, pulled her knee up and took four steps into our arms for a big cuddle. No furniture, no hands. Just her own legs and determination. 

We are in awe of how miraculous it is to see her going from lying on her back unable to do anything to, just 10 months later, being able to do all the complex mechanisms it requires to take a step. I think she was a bit stunned when we whooped with joy. 

That's our girl.

Transitions (Anna)

Emma is starting her transition into child care tomorrow, to get ready for Caroline going back to work. The child care spot we have is fantastic; we couldn't be happier with it. That doesn't make it all any easier, however. 

Top five things you don't want to be saying to us at the moment if you value your life. 

1) I just couldn't do it. I would feel like a terrible mother. It would be too painful. The guilt would be awful. Oh, I guess I shouldn't be saying this around you. 

2) Your baby will cry. (For the rest of her life.) 

3) Anna, why do you care whether she's in child care or not? I can understand Caroline - since she's at home with her all the time, but what difference does it make to you?

4) I heard a terrible story/read a study about the things that happen to kids in childcare. 

5) What's the big deal? I'd be relieved if I were you. 

Tidying up (Anna)

We're trying to get our  guest room ready for Caroline's sister, Michelle and her partner Peter, who are coming to visit from Australia. But every time we try to put the contents of the drawers back in the drawers, or the CDs back on the shelf, Emma pulls them right off again. She does it with great glee and doesn't even pretend that she's trying to help. *sigh*

Tomorrow, we head off to Seattle for the weekend, and to pick Michelle and Peter up from the airport. We're looking forward to getting to know Seattle and having a bit of a break, and of course, seeing M and P. At the very least, the hotel room won't have so many books for Emma to pull off and spread around the house...:) 

Spaghetti baby (Anna and Caroline)

Apparently, Emma likes spaghetti sauce....

Luckily, she also likes baths.

Nice moments (Anna)

This afternoon, spontaneously dancing with Caroline in our living room, with Emma tucked between us and giggling at her Mums' antics, I was reminded that this was one of my fantasies before we had kids - dancing together with our baby.

The reality was not quite the same as the fantasy - in the fantasy, the baby wasn't wiping her snotty nose on my shoulder and bleating like a broken food processor, and there were no dishes waiting in the kitchen to be done - but on the whole, the reality is pretty darn sweet. And I thought, the snot is worth it; it's what makes it reality, and not just fantasy.

Pearly whites (Anna)

Well, it's official. Ater much fanfare, the sightings have been confirmed.

She has teeth.

Why is growing teeth so hard? In the last 17 months, she's grown an entire brain, a spinal cord, kidneys...she's doubled her own weight and then some...and yet growing her own teeth is clearly so painful...