More Christmas

We had an absolutely wonderful Christmas this year. On Christmas Eve we read ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas to Austin, let her open one gift and set out cookies and milk for Santa Claus. Even though she is still too young to grasp the concept we wanted to make sure we had some Christmas traditions started. On Christmas morning Austin practically ran to the Cozy Coupe that Santa had brought to her. She spent most of the morning in it. She can use her feet to go backwards in it, but has not figured out how to make it go forward. I also have caught her a couple times “Dukes of Hazard-ing” it and trying to get into it through the window and not opening the door. We had to take several breaks while opening presents in the morning. Each present Austin unwrapped she wanted to play with right away. At some point I think she became overwhelmed with all her new toys that she emptied out the Tupperware cabinet and climb inside and just chilled for awhile. After Austin’s morning nap we headed over to My Mom and Rob’s house. We spent the majority of the day over there hanging out and of course Austin had a ton more gifts to unwrap. All in all it was probably the best Christmas to date.

Today we went over to my friend Ragen and Rito’s house for a BBQ. Our friend Swender is in town with her daughter and we wanted to get the kids together. Jaxson is 9 months old and McKenna is 13 months old. It was so cute to see them interact. We tried to get a picture of the 3 of them together and from the pictures below you can see how difficult that was.

Merry Christmas

Santa Claus

We finally went to see Santa Claus this year. I was worried about how Austin would react. I would say she did better than I expected. Once we sat her in Santa's lap she started whining and pointing at us. They quickly took 3 pictures right before the tears started. The picture below was the best of the bunch. I think you can tell she looks freaked out.

Last night we ventured out to Glendale Glitters, which I thought was a holiday light display...it ended up just being a holiday festival (food, music and way too many people). I felt pretty stupid because I really wanted Austin to see holiday lights. Luke and I both have taken the last 2 weeks of the year off, so we plan on getting down to Zoo Lights at some point.

Belly Button

This past weekend Luke and I went to Vegas for our annual NFR (National Finals Rodeo) trip. We had skipped last year and were ready to get back in the saddle (no pun intended...okay maybe a little bit). After 14 months it was nice for Luke and I to get away for a few nights, but I missed Austin tremendously. She stayed with my Mom and Rob and from what I hear she had a great time over there terrorizing my Mother's cats.

14 Months Old

Today Austin turns 14 months old. Man how time flies when you are having fun. This past week Austin made two different trips to the doctor. On Tuesday she finally got her 1st H1N1 flu shot and on Friday she got her regular flu booster shot. She had no reaction at all to the H1N1 shot, but the regular flu shot made her a little fussy. This was the same reaction she had when she got her 1st regular flu shot back in late October. She has been practicing her walking skills and can go further and further without falling down.

Update on what Austin is up to lately:

Walking
Loves to climb on things
Points at everything
Can sign, “Milk” and “Dog”
Stacking blocks
Pulling stuff out of drawers and cabinets
Says “Mama”, “Dada”, "This" , “Night, Night” and “Cheese”
Has at least 12 teeth, maybe more but she bit me last time I checked
Eats everything we eat, still loves Cheese
Drinks out of a sippy straw cup
Is down to 1 bottle per day (right before bed)

We had planned on going to either Zoo lights or another light display called Glendale Glitters last night, but a combination of things made us stay home. 1. I am fighting a cold, 2. Its finally winter time in Arizona and the overnight low was suppose to be 36 degrees 3. Austin was fussy from her flu shot and 4. The freeway we needed to take down there was under construction and down to only 1 lane. We will still try to get out to one of these light displays later on in the month. We plan on taking Austin to see Santa this coming week. We will see how that goes. I am not sure what her reaction is going to be to Santa. Last year she was so young it did not even faze her that some stranger with a long white beard was holding her. Fingers cross for this year. I am also including a picture of the Christmas lights that Luke put up this year. He definitely up'd the ante from years past.

Thanksgiving

This year for Thanksgiving we decided to stay at home and I took on the task of cooking the turkey. This is what I've learned: I am never cooking a turkey again. The turkey turned out good, but its a lot of work. Plus who want to stick their hand into a raw turkey and pull out its neck? Gross! I also made homemade gravy for the first time and I was quite proud of myself. My Mom and Rob came over and since it was so nice outside (80 degrees) we sat out on the back patio when we ate. It was a little strange having such a small Thanksgiving, but nice in the same way. Austin pretty much ate whatever we put in front of her. I would say she liked the stuffing the best and the green bean casserole the least. The rest of our days off we have just been relaxing around the house. No "Black Friday" shopping for us. I prefer to wait until "Cyber Monday" and shop from the comforts of my home and not fight the crowds or the lines.

Since the weather has been so nice we have been taking a lot of walks. I've posted a video below of our walk last night before dinner. It melts my heart...you will see what I am talking about when you watch it.

Flip Video

We just received a Flip Video as an early Christmas present from Luke's Mom. It is the neatest thing ever. The Flip Video is a pocket camcorder that makes it easy to take and share videos. It even has a flip out USB arm to plug directly into your computer. Needless to say I am sure you will start seeing a lot more videos of Austin on the blog...

Walking

I posted last week how Austin was not walking yet, but we thought she was getting close. Being a first time parent I have to admit I do worry about Austin hitting all her milestones “on-time” a little too much. When we went to Austin’s 1 year appointment, the pediatrician asked if she was walking. We responded no and he did not even bat an eyelash. I inquired about when we should become “concerned” and his response was not until 18 months! Now why do/did I think that every child walks by the age of one??? His response made me start wondering and I decided to do some research. I found out actually that most children walk between 9 and 18 months with an average of 14 months. Even with having this information, Austin not walking was making me anxious and I am glad that I can relax now.

Yesterday was such a beautiful day outside we decided to try the park again for a picnic. We laid on the grass and ate our lunch and it was absolutely wonderful. Austin was completely enamored by the other children and the dogs at the park. It was definitely a treat for the 3 of us.

Last night after dinner something clicked in Austin and she decided it was time to start walking. As you can hear on the videos below we will all so giddy about it. After we put Austin to bed I kept watching the videos over and over again. I am so proud of our little girl. Now it is shoe time!

13 Months 2 Weeks and 1 days old...

and we have a WALKER!

Blogging Streak

Blogging has become difficult these last few weeks. We do not take as many pictures of Austin each week and she is also not changing as much week by week as she did when she was younger. I was not going to blog this week and give myself a break, but I just calculated that I have blogged 89 weeks consecutively. I could not break that streak.

Austin is still not walking. She is getting close and we really thought it might be this weekend. A couple nights this past week she took two steps in a row. She can stand independently and even squat down and pick something up. I did not walk until I was 14 months old, so I know Austin will walk in her own due time. Enjoy the picture of Austin in her punk rocker t-shirt.

13 months old

Nothing really new this week. Austin turned 13 months old on Friday and she started giving hugs when you ask for one. This absolutely melts my heart. She is also getting pretty good at following basic commands like, put the toy in the box or hand me the toy. Just one picture for this week of Austin standing on the couch (not sure why she has to stand on the furniture) enjoying some morning cartoons.

Happy Halloween

Yesterday it was really nice outside so we decide to go to the park and have a picnic. Well when we got there they were in the process of re-seeding the grass (Doh!). We decided to stay anyways and eat lunch at one of the picnic tables and then go on the train ride. Austin was not too sure of it at first, but I think by the end she was enjoying it. We even got sprayed by the sprinklers (which they warned us might happen), so it was almost like being on a water ride at Disneyland. Last night we went Trick or Treating just over to our neighbor’s house. They are so nice; they knew Austin would not be able to eat any of the candy she got so they bought her a big bag of blocks. We then sat out front and handed out candy for a while before it was Austin’s bedtime.

Dora the Explorer

I am happy to report that Austin’s fever is finally gone. I called the pediatrician’s office on Monday and they said it sounded like Austin had something viral and that it was not from her shots. They said to just make sure to give her Motrin to keep the fever down and plenty of fluids. She had a fever all day on Monday and Tuesday and it was driving me bonkers. She was a little stuffed up, but other than that, she had no other symptoms. Her fever was finally gone on Wednesday and we realized she had cut a molar. I also noticed on Saturday another molar cut through too. Maybe it was teething????

This afternoon after Austin got up from her nap Luke was busy fixing her closet doors and I needed to use the little girl’s room. I set Austin down in her chair, gave her a cheese stick and turned on some cartoons (I know bad Mommy). So, please ignore the fact that my child is eating, standing on furniture and watching TV. I swear she was sitting when I left her...(turn your volume to hear the Dora the Explorer theme music).

One Year Old Photos

Off to YaYa's House We Go...

Last night was Austin’s first overnight visit at my parent’s house. I am not going to lie; when I dropped her off I had a pit in my stomach. Partly because Austin is fighting a fever, cold, flu, teething, allergies, shots…actually I do not know what it is. She has been running a low grade fever for the last couple of days and has had a runny nose on and off. She is still eating and drinking well, so I have not been too concerned, until this morning when I realized the temporal scanner I have been using is not accurate at all. When we got home from picking Austin up this morning I thought she felt warm. I took her temp with the temporal scanner and it said 100.1. It was time for a diaper change so I decided to use the rectal thermometer to confirm. Wow, it said 101.8 and I know rectal temperature is the most accurate. Now I am all freaked out that her temperature has been higher all along. I immediately gave her some Motrin and offered her some pedialyte to drink. She is napping now so I guess we will see how today goes. I almost hate to bring her to the doctor’s office with all the sick kids that have the flu.

Pumpkin Patch

Today we took a trip to a local pumpkin patch so that Austin could pick out a pumpkin. As you can see from the pictures below the pumpkin Austin picked out is almost as big as she is. She also picked a small pumpkin that she could carry with her. The weather has been in the mid-80’s, so its nice to finally start getting back outside to do things. Last Sunday we were suppose to have Austin’s 1st year photos and family pictures taken, but our photographer had a family emergency and needed to reschedule. So yesterday we went to the park up in Anthem and had the photos taken. I cannot wait to see them. The park is very nice and we plan on taking Austin back up there on a regular basis.

Austin is still not walking, but we are not fretting. What she is doing, is climbing. Last night I was sitting on the chair in the living room and she climbed up next to me all by herself. Every time I would set her back down on the floor she would climb right back up. Think we are in trouble?

I almost forgot, on Friday was Austin’s doctor’s appointment. She weighed in at 22lbs 15 ounces (75%) and is 31 inches (97%) long. The doctor said not to worry that she is not walking and said that he will not become concerned until she is 18 months old. He said that she sounded like she is right on track developmentally. He also gave us the go ahead to transition Austin to whole milk (which we had already started last Sunday). I am happy to say Austin’s last bottle of formula was on Friday night and she does not seem to miss it at all. We are also slowly transitioning her off the bottle. The pediatrician's thoughts on it, was that it was better we do it sooner than later. Right now Austin is only getting two bottles (one before afternoon nap and one before bedtime), which is down from four bottles of formula she had been getting. We decided to get rid of her morning bottle and her bottle right after her morning nap. She does not seems to mind and will happily drink her milk from a sippy.