... because she's not using sign language at all any more!
I also think in years to come, photos of the 3 of us holding hands will show her getting taller & taller:
And sometimes it's nice just to document the little things, like spontaneous hugs!
Saturday, April 13, 2013
Looking back at last May
So, I'm finally getting around to doing pages for our May 2012 trip to Walt Disney World. I am amazed to see how different Alexandra is now, compared to then! I am glad that I am archiving the little things, like a couple of pages that reference her use of sign language:
... because she's not using sign language at all any more!
I also think in years to come, photos of the 3 of us holding hands will show her getting taller & taller:
And sometimes it's nice just to document the little things, like spontaneous hugs!
... because she's not using sign language at all any more!
I also think in years to come, photos of the 3 of us holding hands will show her getting taller & taller:
And sometimes it's nice just to document the little things, like spontaneous hugs!
Sunday, February 24, 2013
Journal Your Christmas, December 24th - January 1st
Okay, it's almost March, so maybe I should finally post pictures of the rest of the Journal Your Christmas pages that I actually did complete during the Christmas season. *smile* Little girl (well, and my job & other things) keeps me busy. I am woefully behind on scrapbooking in general, but at least I finally got photos printed so I can be confident of where I left off! Here are the pages from JYC 2012!
Ta da!!!!
Ta da!!!!
Thursday, February 14, 2013
good thing I set that up to post ...
... the post below I set up a long time ago to get published today & I am glad I did - because otherwise it probably would've plum slipped my mind. I did, however, remember to get pictures today of our little valentine. Most of the shots are blurry, because she's enjoying racing around a lot, but here's the best of the lot!
Isn't she sweet? She borrowed a necklace from Mommy to complete the ensemble.
Isn't she sweet? She borrowed a necklace from Mommy to complete the ensemble.
Our Valentine
I am actually composing this in September 2012 ... and setting it up to post on February 14th, 2013. I think it will be an interesting reminder to see how much she's changed in a year. When these photos were taken, she was crawling a lot, but had not really mastered standing - that happened about 4 weeks later. And walking didn't happen until the middle of May 2012. Now, in September, she's running a few steps & has a vocabulary of about 60 signed words and 7 spoken ones.
Sunday, February 3, 2013
Snow angels
I love snow. Really really love it. Last year, Alexandra wasn't even crawling during the winter, so while we got some cute pictures of her sitting the snow, and patting at it, or watching snow fall, it wasn't the most interactive experience. So, this year I made sure we were ready. Armed with several full sets of snow gear, we were a laughingstock, with no measureable snowfall ... until this weekend.
We made the most of it by trekking to the local arboretum & crawling over branches and fallen trees ....
...and we made snow angels in our front yard.
We came inside for hot cocoa, which Alexandra wasn't too sure of, and marshmallows, which she absolutely adored. Supposedly we'll get more snow tonight ... and by Thursday, it may all melt away under rainshowers, so we'd best get in as much snow play as we can!
We made the most of it by trekking to the local arboretum & crawling over branches and fallen trees ....
...and we made snow angels in our front yard.
We came inside for hot cocoa, which Alexandra wasn't too sure of, and marshmallows, which she absolutely adored. Supposedly we'll get more snow tonight ... and by Thursday, it may all melt away under rainshowers, so we'd best get in as much snow play as we can!
Saturday, January 26, 2013
Sharing some childhood favorites
I'll admit it. I'm sentimental. Over the years, I've saved many things that have had meaning to me, from different eras of my life. I would say I'm not much of a packrat - about 4 tubs of things that don't necessarily have much practical use in my adult life, but each object evokes a series of memories and corresponding emotions.
After Alexandra entered our life, I saw the contents of those boxes very differently. I'd never really had a conscious thought of "someday if I have a child...," except for a nightgown I'd found at a craft fair that had perfectly matched a larger version I'd saved. Other than that, these objects were just possessions from my childhood, often things that most people would not see as valuable or significant.
Before she was born, I'd allocated a ton of space in our spare closet for the books we'd received from friends and family to sell as part of a fund-raising effort for adoption costs. As the books sold, space freed up, and when Alexandra started outgrowing things, I put them in there. When she got to be 6 months old, I realized I had to have some kind of organizational system, which prompted me to pull everything out to examine it.
I basically wound up packing things up more neatly and stacking several things off to one half of the closet with the vague idea of "someday she might actually like playing with or wearing that." This week, I remembered a specific plaything and went to dig it out. I found the box easily - it is a size just so, and the silvery paper on the box is quite distinctive. I recall receiving a gift from my maternal grandparents in that box, but I don't know what the gift was. What I do know is what I decided to store in that box - my kitchen playthings. Heavy duty aluminum pots, pans, lids, and tea kettle ... and a Raggedy Ann and Raggedy Andy tinware tea set - two cups survive, along with numerous tiny saucers, 2 sizes of plates, and a battered tray.
All of it is lovely in my eyes, and now, it's being passed along to my daughter. I had some vague idea that maybe I'd be upset if she broke or damaged the pieces, but the reality is that my childhood memories are firmly etched in my memory, and she can only expand upon those memories. If something gets bent or broken (and the tea kettle, which I'd forgotten had a loose rivet, has been sent for repair at Grandpa's workshop, within less than 24 hours of play), it's all part of the process of childhood play. I'd rather she bang it and just enjoy the hell out of it, than carefully handle it and get not one jot of fun.
The contents are already integrated with her other kitchen items - felt food, plastic food, picnic basket, pots, cups, etc. - and she is joyfully making us pretend soup and pretend jam. She sometimes will announce, "GIDGEN. BYE." which means she's decided she wants to abandon whatever task she's doing in favor of going to her room to play with her kitchen. She's happy, she's creative, and she's given new life to objects that hold cherished memories. Now, we'll create new memories, like this:
Mommy: What are we going to make now? Oh! Frog casserole *puts toy frog in a pot, opens pretend oven door* Alexandra, please close the oven door.
Alexandra: *closes oven door*
Mommy: "Is it done yet?" *pause* "DING! Let's check!" *opens oven, looks in* No! Back in the oven!
Alexandra: *closes oven door*
Mommy: "Is it done yet?" *pause* "DING! Let's check!" *opens oven, looks in* No! Back in the oven!
Alexandra: DING! *opens the oven to look in* DONE. *tries to pull out pot, which gets stuck* HEP, MAMA.
Mommy: "Okay, I'll help." *turns pot handle* Okay, you get it.
Alexandra: *pulls out pot with frog in it* YUM!
Don't look at me like that. Her Disney Princess play kitchen came with utensils, plates, pots, pans, spoons, cups AND a fish (Flounder) and two frogs (Tiana & Naveen, I assume). Apparently they are SUPPOSED to be cooked. Sheesh.
After Alexandra entered our life, I saw the contents of those boxes very differently. I'd never really had a conscious thought of "someday if I have a child...," except for a nightgown I'd found at a craft fair that had perfectly matched a larger version I'd saved. Other than that, these objects were just possessions from my childhood, often things that most people would not see as valuable or significant.
Before she was born, I'd allocated a ton of space in our spare closet for the books we'd received from friends and family to sell as part of a fund-raising effort for adoption costs. As the books sold, space freed up, and when Alexandra started outgrowing things, I put them in there. When she got to be 6 months old, I realized I had to have some kind of organizational system, which prompted me to pull everything out to examine it.
I basically wound up packing things up more neatly and stacking several things off to one half of the closet with the vague idea of "someday she might actually like playing with or wearing that." This week, I remembered a specific plaything and went to dig it out. I found the box easily - it is a size just so, and the silvery paper on the box is quite distinctive. I recall receiving a gift from my maternal grandparents in that box, but I don't know what the gift was. What I do know is what I decided to store in that box - my kitchen playthings. Heavy duty aluminum pots, pans, lids, and tea kettle ... and a Raggedy Ann and Raggedy Andy tinware tea set - two cups survive, along with numerous tiny saucers, 2 sizes of plates, and a battered tray.
All of it is lovely in my eyes, and now, it's being passed along to my daughter. I had some vague idea that maybe I'd be upset if she broke or damaged the pieces, but the reality is that my childhood memories are firmly etched in my memory, and she can only expand upon those memories. If something gets bent or broken (and the tea kettle, which I'd forgotten had a loose rivet, has been sent for repair at Grandpa's workshop, within less than 24 hours of play), it's all part of the process of childhood play. I'd rather she bang it and just enjoy the hell out of it, than carefully handle it and get not one jot of fun.
The contents are already integrated with her other kitchen items - felt food, plastic food, picnic basket, pots, cups, etc. - and she is joyfully making us pretend soup and pretend jam. She sometimes will announce, "GIDGEN. BYE." which means she's decided she wants to abandon whatever task she's doing in favor of going to her room to play with her kitchen. She's happy, she's creative, and she's given new life to objects that hold cherished memories. Now, we'll create new memories, like this:
Mommy: What are we going to make now? Oh! Frog casserole *puts toy frog in a pot, opens pretend oven door* Alexandra, please close the oven door.
Alexandra: *closes oven door*
Mommy: "Is it done yet?" *pause* "DING! Let's check!" *opens oven, looks in* No! Back in the oven!
Alexandra: *closes oven door*
Mommy: "Is it done yet?" *pause* "DING! Let's check!" *opens oven, looks in* No! Back in the oven!
Alexandra: DING! *opens the oven to look in* DONE. *tries to pull out pot, which gets stuck* HEP, MAMA.
Mommy: "Okay, I'll help." *turns pot handle* Okay, you get it.
Alexandra: *pulls out pot with frog in it* YUM!
Don't look at me like that. Her Disney Princess play kitchen came with utensils, plates, pots, pans, spoons, cups AND a fish (Flounder) and two frogs (Tiana & Naveen, I assume). Apparently they are SUPPOSED to be cooked. Sheesh.
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Journal Your Christmas, December 18th-23rd
Almost up to the Christmas Eve and Christmas Day pages .... holiday merriment abounds!
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