Daddy's bad influence

Sara is in this really fun stage where we can get her to repeat just about anything we say. She doesn't necessarily know what those things mean, but she'll do her best to mimic us. So Daddy thought it would be fun to add a little potty humor to her speech. (insert eye roll here.)




This video was taken in the car on the way home from Pismo. I have gotten to listen to our daughter say "poop" about five times this morning WITHOUT PROMPTING.

Gee, thanks Larry!

Baby's first word

Okay, Sara says "mama" and "dada" all the time, but she doesn't say them in ways that make us sure she's saying them with meaning. The one thing she says for sure with meaning is presented here:

Our weekend in Pismo Beach

Over the weekend we joined our friends up in Pismo Beach for the annual clam festival. It was so fun! We got to meet Stacey and Jeremy's little one Abby, who is about three months older than Sara. We also got to meet Emily and Geoff's TWINS Gene and Cruz, also just about three months older than Sara. It was so fun to hang out with friends, eat yummy clam chowder, and see all the little ones interacting with each other. It was especially cute when Sara and Gene started loving on each other. I guess they both wanted to practice their kissing technique!

We had a great time and definitely hope to go again!

Fun days

Last Sunday we went over to Grandpa and Nana Paula's house to belatedly celebrate Grandpa's birthday. Happy birthday, Grandpa!



On Monday we went to Tanaka Farms in Irvine with Oma, Tante Tanja, and Cousin Ryan.





Sara wasn't quite sure about the animals.


That afternoon Sara practiced her standing skills on the dishwasher.





Fun times, indeed.

Eleven months old

It's so strange to think that a year ago I was very pregnant, taking Lamaze, and thinking I still had at least another six weeks of pregnancy ahead of me. Now, here I sit with a precious little daughter who has completely changed our lives just like everyone said she would.

Sara had a big month! First of all, she's now a crawling machine. She can easily cross a room much faster than I ever imagined, provided she doesn't get distracted by something along the way. She's also obsessed with standing right now. She loves to pull herself up at every opportunity and then let go with one hand. She doesn't "cruise" much yet; she just likes to stand there. She also loves to empty things: her toybox, her bookcase, the old diskettes in the office bookcase... The world is her oyster right now as she explores!

She is also starting to communicate more and more. She's nowhere near consistent about it yet, but depending on what else is going on she just might point, wave, or sign for "more." She babbles up a storm, but I can't make out any words for certain just yet. She likes to say "mama," "dada," and "baba." She will also repeat sounds. If I tell her to say "mama," she'll say it. Whether she understands that I am "Mama" is still unclear. If someone says "Yaaaaay!" she'll most likely smile and clap her hands, which is just about the cutest thing we've ever seen.

As our baby becomes less and less of a "baby," we try even harder to savor every moment. I thank God for her every day!