Day Off

Let me start by saying I love my daughter more than anything on this Earth. I am thankful for every single day with her. I also know there will come a day, much sooner than I anticipate, that she won't want to hang out with me. Having said all that, Meggan and I had a day off from work today and instead of keeping Amelia home, we put her in daycare...it...was...awesome. Before anyone judges us, keep in mind that we don't have any family living near us and we don't have any babysitters around so this is probably the 4th time in a year that we have had a whole day to ourselves. We took full advantage by relaxing, going to a restaurant we can't take Mia to, catching a movie in the theater, etc. It is days like today that make me retroactively appreciate all the things I used to take for granted...like NOT stopping in the middle of lunch to change a dangerously foul smelling diaper.

We're Back

We've been out of town for the last few days, so the blog has been on a hiatus. We were down to see some of my family and to have an early celebration of Amelia's 1st birthday. Amelia was so very excited for her birthday that she fell asleep before opening gifts or having cake and didn't wake back up. Well, technically, we didn't wake her up for it. This may not have gone down as the most popular decision amongst the other party goers, but once considering all the facts - she'd been sick for a few days, she hadn't been sleeping well, she had a slight fever earlier in the day, most of the party goers would be at the same location the next morning and the party could be held then, and the fact that Amelia had absolutely no idea there was a party...or what a party is - it seemed like a great idea to let her stay asleep. So, the next morning we got the party started...and Amelia still didn't care. With help, all the gifts were opened and it was time for cake. I was hoping for a full on smashing and smearing session. What I got was Amelia lightly sticking her pointer finger in the cake and tasting it. I tried to help matters by grabbing a chunk of cake. This failed miserably at getting Amelia to grab the cake herself, but what it did do, was REALLY piss her off. Apparently, she was simply moving at her own pace and was not seeking any assistance. Either way, she didn't have any interest in actually eating the cake. 0 for 2. So, it appears the final summation of the weekend was several hours driving, lots of money spent, many pictures taken, 2 parties attempted, multiple presents ignored, 1 cake wasted, and despite this, 1 pretty enjoyable trip to see family.

Step by step

Well, this wasn't her best attempt of the night, but it was the only one we could catch on grainy video.

Late

This is just a note to any blog readers who remind me when I miss a day of posting....it is 12:30am and I am still at the office. There will be no post tonight as my brain is dead.

One small step for man...

...one giant leap for Amelia. Last night, Amelia joined the land of the walking. I can't really pretend that she ran a marathon, or even that she looked all that graceful. However, she did indeed walk. It covered the wobbly span of about 5 feet and it took roughly a full minute, but it was still perfect to me. She would take a tiny step, regain her balance, and take another step. We were visiting friends who have a son a few months older than Amelia. He is able to fly all over the place. The irony is immediately preceding Mia walking, Connor's mom set him down and he took off. I turned to her and said Amelia just collapses to the ground when I set her down. So, I proceeded to put her on the ground and instead of falling, she decided to show me up and take her first steps. I'm not sure if my comment spawned her desire to prove me wrong by walking, but just in case it did, I'd like to say ... Amelia never likes to eat her vegetables or let me sleep past 6:30.

Video

Sadly, as much as I have had to work this week (I left the office at 11pm last night), the little dancing video of Amelia is just about the most I have seen her in a few days. In case you are wondering - that sucks. I just have to keep reminding myself that I work so hard because her future Harvard tuition isn't going to pay itself...or something like that.

Dancing Machine

Amelia is getting a head start on her career on So You Think You Can Dance