2011 In Review

Wow! It seems like just yesterday that I wrote my 2010 In Review post!!! Last year I wondered what emotion would dominate 2011…there were certainly many…excitement, confusion, frustration…EXHAUSTION, lol!!! The one dominant emotion though? I’d have to say…Awe.

I was in awe of how crazy intense labour was…it awed me that I was able to deliver Elena…seeing Elena for the 1^st time was completely awe-inspiring…

I was in awe with just how little sleep I got those first few weeks…& in awe of how much I was actually able to accomplish on so little sleep…

And I have been in absolute awe of this extraordinary little girl who picked me to be her Mama…watching her grow & learn & discover her world is beyond anything I imagined when dreaming of being a Mom.

It is as this New Year approaches that I realize, for the first time, I am not looking toward the New Year wondering what it will hold…for the first time I can remember, I just am in the here & now…I know 2012 will have it’s trials & triumphs, changes & challenges…for the first time I am content to sit back, let them come & enjoy the ride…

I wish you all wealth, health & happiness in 2012 & I pray for nothing but success for those trying to conceive <3

I’ll leave you with some photos of our Christmas…

 Christmas Eve

 At the Candle Light Service...Elena LOVED running around...don't worry, this was before the service started :)

 Christmas Morning...Santa has arrived!

 Elena & I about to open her Stocking...

Elena playing with the Ball Popper Santa brought her...oh the squeals of delight!!!

Happy New Year, Everyone!!

Christmas Traditions

Well, here we are…Christmas Eve! Christmas has always been my favourite time of year…I love winter & the smell of snow (yes, snow smells) & the crunch under my feet…but as I mentioned last year, it had always been bittersweet. Not this year though, this year is all sweet & I am beyond excited to start my own Christmas traditions with Elena! Some traditions we’ll start this year but some will have to wait until Elena is older & can understand.

When I was a kid, I could not wait for Christmas morning! When I learned that some families exchanged gifts on Christmas Eve, I was so jealous! I remember one year, my Dad had to work Christmas Day (he was a street car driver in Toronto) so my parents decided we would open presents on Christmas Eve morning. I was so excited!! Except then I was super excited Christmas Eve Eve!!! So in honour of that excitement & anticipation, on Christmas Eve Elena will be allowed to open 2 presents…one will always be a new pair of pajamas…so she looks cute in Christmas morning photos…& the other will be a Christmas story book…oh sure, as the years go by, these gifts won’t be a surprise…she’ll of course figure it out but it’ll be a fun...

Tonight we are going to my Mom’s church for their Candle Light service…I’m not sure if this will become a tradition since I’m not religious at all but the service is beautiful, I know Elena will love the music & my Mom will enjoy showing us off. I feel a little hypocritical going since I don’t buy into the whole religion deal but I can really appreciate the beauty of it…

As for the Santa Question…I love the innocence & magic of Santa Clause…I love the idea of believing in the generosity of a jolly man who fulfills a Christmas wish…however, I never liked the idea that some kids get a ton of gifts from Santa (not judging here, this is just my opinion) or that they get everything they ask for. Aside from the fact that I just can’t afford to do this, I don’t want Elena to have that sense of entitlement…Elena will receive 1 gift from Santa Clause Christmas morning plus her stocking will be stuffed with fun little goodies…I think that allows her to experience the magic yet keeps her expectations grounded.

Once Elena is old enough to understand, before Christmas she & I will go thru her toys & she will pack up the ones she no longer plays with & ones she’s grown out of & we will donate them to the local mission. Also when she’s old enough to understand, we will be involved in the Adopt-a-Family program. I will teach Elena that even though we don’t have a lot, there are others that have even less. Christmas has never been about the commercialism for me & I want to make sure that Elena learns more about giving than receiving…

I’m sure over the years we’ll develop other traditions & refine these but I think it’s a good start. I’m just so very excited for Elena’s 1^st…I know she won’t remember it & I’m sure she’s going to be pretty over whelmed but she only has one 1^st Christmas.

So Merry Christmas, everyone! Happy Hanukkah…Happy Kwanza…Happy Winter Solstice…or whatever you celebrate, enjoy!

She Did It!!!

Did you see that!! Elena's walking for reals!!!! She totally blew me away tonight when she did it! We've been trying to make her for a while then tonight she just up & walked to me & we haven't been able to stop her!! I am so proud & excited!! And somehow she seems smaller, littler I mean...does that make sense? 

9 Months...Wow!!!

It’s just amazing how time is flying!! I can’t believe Elena is 9 months old & it’s almost her 1^st Christmas!

And she’s walking!!! Well she’ll take 2 or 3 steps from the table to the couch or from the couch to the exersaucer or from the couch to me so I’m not sure if 2 or 3 steps counts as actually walking yet but she’s so close. The most she’s done in one go was 4 steps where she took 2 steps, stopped, balanced herself, took 2 more steps then fell to her knees & crawled the rest of the way. She stands like a pro now too & will stand & play.

She’s babbling like crazy now…it’s funny that her 2 most repeated sounds are “da da” & “ba ba”…it’s obvious they have no meaning since she has neither a Dada nor a Baba (bottle) lol! She’ll also “say” “ya ya ya” & “gee gee gee”…but nothing seems to actually mean anything though she’s very animated in telling her stories so when she does talk, we’ll have to watch out! She also does this alien voice that is hilarious! I’m going to try to post a video to show you, we’ll see if I figure out how (I apologize for the loud Agent Oso at the beginning )…

Elena had her 9 month well baby check up today…she’s 22 lbs 5 oz & 2’ 5” tall putting her in the 95^th percentile…She’s the biggest baby the Dr has right now. Everything looks fine & he’s pleased with her development.

I mentioned that Elena has her 4 front teeth (2 top, 2 bottom)…I was able to get a photo…it’s a little blurry but shows her teeth well…

And that’s about it for us lately…I am really looking forward to Christmas & have been thinking a lot about what traditions I want to start with Elena…but I’ll get into all that in a separate post.