Moiras pals one year later . . .

Moira had her friends over for lunch today so we decided to get an updated photo.

5 months old
Ava, Bradley, Abbey, Moira, Nicholas

13 months old
Aria, Moira, Bradley, Ava

Splish Splash

Well somehow we managed not to take any bubble bath pictures, that is until today ...

In other news Kess and I went to check out what being a competitive disc dog is all about (you can't call them frisbee dogs because it's trademarked). We met a really nice group of people who get together to practice and train. Everyone was really impressed with Kess and not so impressed with my ability to throw the frisbee. So they were nice enough to offer to throw it for me at competitions until I can improve. So Kess will compete in her first competition mid may in Mt. Vernon. Nick's even agreed to come check it out, but I had to promise he'd learn to throw the frisbee ( err.. I mean disk) like a ninja.

At long last . . .

Well just when we thought our nervous nelly would never strike out into open territory she started walking. Moira has never liked pacifiers but she dug this one out of her toy box and apparently it was just what she needed to steel her nerves. Luckily the video camera was nearby and though I missed the first solo flight I was able to capture several bursts of sustained walking.

Fun in the sun

We had a wonderful spring day today. We headed back to the botanical gardens to enjoy them with Grandma Judy and Auntie Terri. Thanks to global warming we had record breaking temperatures 78 degrees! With a little help Moira was running all around and giggling in delight. We llok forward to many more sunny days.

Emma's Birthday

Moira's friend Emma turned one today so we headed over for a little celebration.

Emma's a real cutie with beautiful blue eyes. She's also quite the chatterbox and is happy to keep a running comentary for everyone.

The kids still don't really play together, but they do enjoy stealing toys from one another and poking, pulling, and pinching at eachother. Emma wasn't to sure what to make of Moira.

Spring Suprise

Well we finally had a weekend at home and Nick suggested that we check out the Seattle botanical gardens. We were surprised to learn that Bellevue also had a botanical garden and so we headed off to check it out. I am happy to report that the Bellevue gardens are much nicer than the Seattle park. We gave the macro lens a good workout and here are a few a my favorites.



Nick and I both agreed that this was the coolest flower to be found (see above). Unfortunately the identification card was missing so we dubbed it the harlequin flower.

I WANT IT NOW!!

Well there's just nothing like a good old fashion fling yourself on the floor arms waving foot kicking tantrum. As poor Moira has become more self aware she has discovered that sometimes there are things that she can't have and that is apparently very frustrating. I keep thinking things will improve as her communication skills develop but I have a feeling I'm in for more than one public meltdown.

Itty Bitty Kiity

In addition to our families two legged members we also has a dog, kess and two cats loki and chaos. Chaos is generally afraid of everyone and as a result even people we've known for years are sometimes suprised to learn that we have two cats. Chaos's one true love is small spaces with a particular devotion to boxes. If you set a box on the floor he will eventually go in it. Once Moira had dumped all of her toys out of this one chaos found that he fit quite nicely.

Boxers and Bunny Ears

Well who knew that boxer shorts could be so much fun. Moira has taken to gleefully flinging Nick's boxers out of the laundry basket and then parading them around the living room. With Easter just around the corner I couldn't resist getting some bunny ears for Moira to wear. She seems to think they're hilarious when we wear them, but doesn't care for them much herself.

Daily Cuteness

Well we haven't been up to much. Moira is still just taking a cautious step here and there, but no real walking. We're headed to Bellingham this weekend for uncle Bo's birthday and for a flyball tournament in Canada. It should be a busy weekend, but it will be nice to see everyone. Moira has recently discovered that she can crawl much faster when she carries things in her mouth. Maybe Kess has been giving her pointers.

Moira's Birthday

Well we made it through the first year, and Moira had a great time charming all her guests at her first birthday party. With all of her grandparents in attendance there was plenty of love to go around and everyone got a little cuddle time.

(from left to right Ross, Keron, Dean, Desta, Paul, Judy, Moira, Will, Laura, Mel, Heidi)

Moira even managed to get into the present opening a little. . .

and unlike most babies she was very dainty with her cake, perhaps she didn't want to get her dress dirty.

Well the last year has been simply amazing and watching Moira grow into the sweet little girl that she is has been pure joy. How soon we forget the difficult nights and replace them with smiles and giggles. I look forward to many more birthdays and really appreciate the love and support of our family. Thanks so much for hosting the party grandma Juju it was lots of fun.

Moira's music video

Bubbles

Grandma Judy always has something fun!

Home projects

Dad and Moira completed their first home project together. Of course Moira helped out by eating the instructions and repeatedly stealing the screwdriver, but everyone had fun anyway.

Moira inspects the craftsmanship . . .

and gives her seal of approval.

Trying on the birthday dress

Shall we dance?

Fluffy skirts are fun!

Well this dress is a little over the top, but you can't say it isn't cute.

Magic Pajamas

Well it recently occured to us that Moira might be waking up because she was getting to cold at night, so we bought her some thick fleece pj's. If the first night is any testament to their power Moira slept 11 hours!!! Needless to say I'm off to the store to get a few more in hopes of continued success.

What's Flyball??

Many people have expressed mild curiosity about my weekend activities with our dog Kess. We compete in a dog sport called flyball. It's very fun for both the dogs and humans, but also very noisy ( picture 200 really excited dogs in what are often concrete and metal buildings). Kess has already earned 2 titles and if you've spent any time around her you know that she has an aptitude for fetching things. This is one activity where her incessant fixation on tennis balls has really paid off.

The dogs run down a 50ft straight away and jump over four hurtles, they then trigger a box to release the ball and return with it. Each team has 4 dogs and the team with all 4 dogs completing the task properly in the fastest amount of time wins. It's all very organised with starting lights and optical sensors. At any rate we have lots of fun and it gets me out for some free time with other dog crazy people.

There's never a dull moment

Baby you can drive my car. . . as long as it's in reverse. Moira has been enjoying her Christmas gift from grandma Judy, but as of yet she can only travel backwards. It would seem that going bbbrrrrtt while you drive a toy car is innate knowledge in humans as Moira always makes sure to include the sound effects.

For reasons known only to Moira and our cat loki they have formed a strong alliance. Moira gleefully screeches and paws at the cat who purrs all the while.

Well we were all happy to get back to our normal routine. As Moira has become more mobile she has become a real handful. She just gets into everything. As a result our living room is becoming more and more sparse. This weekend will consist of concealing the stereo from her busy little hands and installing another baby gate.

Last but not least

We officially survived the holidays. It was nice to take a moment and consider just what a difference a year can make. Moira has changed our lives in more ways then we could ever have imagined. We day dream about sleeping and eating a meal in quiet contentment, of staying up late and not having to worry about how early we'll have to get up. In return however we get to see the beauty and wonder in everything through the eyes of our child. We get to remember that christmas lights on a cold night can be the most beautiful thing you've ever seen and that there is always time to have fun in life. We also learned that cheesy family photos are mandatory. Here's the latest one. . . . as you can see Moira has already perfected her my parents are dorks expression.

Mmmm. . . Broccoli

Need I say more.

Moira's Magnificent Hat

Moira now has a hat befitting her regal attitude. Of course her newest skill is pulling off hats and flinging them aside in disdain so the moment is short lived. She did however ham it up for the paparazzi on grandma Judy's deck.

Christmas Pictures

Well now that you have all gotten your Christmas cards I can post the Christmas pics. I didn't want to spoil any of the surprise cuteness by putting them all on early.

Thanksgiving

Well we survived Thanksgiving. Everyone had a great time and we managed to squeeze 17 people into our little townhouse. Moira dazzled everyone by doing a lot of standing and found the bounty of appetizers on the coffee table an irresistible temptation.