12 months!

september 18, 2012!

before
we could
bat
an eye
our
wee grub
turned
o n e

. . . . . . . . . . . .

my friend
put it perfectly
when she said
that the first year
is simultaneously
the longest
and
the fastest
year of your life.

it feels like
a decade passed
in a year.



and just
look at her!
she is a bruiser.
no doubt about it.

. . . . . . . . . . . .

things have been
c r a z y
since my last post.
vee turned one
almost three weeks ago!
i feel like a bad parent
waiting until now
to write all this down.

in that time
i went to mexico
for a week.



grub
and wee grub
managed
just fine
without me....

and then
the grandparents
came to stay with us
for two weeks
to celebrate vee's birthday
with her.





i do not know
if it is that
vee heard their voices
on skype
or somehow knew
they were her
grandparents
but she warmed up
to them almost instantly.



right before
they arrived
vee started
some serious teething
and was in
quite a bit of pain
while they were
visiting...
her two top teeth
made their appearance
right before they left.



the pediatrician said
that now that vee
was one year old
she could
start eating beef.
he recommended
(i kid you not)
t-bone steak
(i laughed outloud).
grub is thrilled
to have an excuse
to buy
nice cuts of meat.

. . . . . . .

on her
actual birthday
she opened
presents
from family.




(one of her favorite presents. from grandma)

it was tedious.
she
really had
no interest in
opening things.
she got stuck on
the ribbon
of one box
and there was
no progression
from there.

on the evening
of vee's birthday
we tried to have
a little party
with a few friends.



that was NOT
successful.
i learned:
a) don't have party's
for children after 4pm.
b) keep it to family
(or very dear friends)
until they are old enough
to tell you
who they want to invite.

our weekend party
went much better
despite the bad weather.



vee's teeth seemed
to be bothering her less
and she was in good spirits.

i decorated.


(decorations courtesy of my friend elvira)

we made some
cupcakes...

 

and had some
friends over.
all people who
made an effort
to be involved in
vee's 1st year.

 

it was more like
a thank-you to them.

we even offered
vee a cupcake
(obligatory for
1st birthdays)





i was glad it
was a hard frosting
because i am not
fond of
baby photos
with food
smeared
on their faces.



vee was perplexed
and opted to dismantle
the strange device
and it never made
it anywhere
near her face.

i tried to
encourage people
not to bring gifts
but of course
many people brought
presents for vee.
i was so happy
that people
brought her
books
since that is what
she loves best of all.


(many new books from omi & friends!)

the party wound down
in time for
vee to have
her afternoon nap.
parents
and grandparents
relaxed
with a sigh
of relief.

how can we be tired?

my brother
just had
a birthday party
for his 6 year old son.
15 x 6-year-olds playing
miniature golf.
my brother
called it
mini golf anarchy.

how will we survive?

honestly
i am looking
forward to it.

after her birthday
i told vee
that
she better get
right down
to writing
all her
thank you notes...




she opted
for more exciting
post-birthday party
fun...



thunderdome-style
balloon cage!!!



oh well.

happy very
belated
birthday
to our
sweet
wee grub.



there is much
to say about
what vee has been
up to
but i will save
that for later.

until then...

xo

ps behind-the-scenes
pre-photo shoot
touch-up: