Barnum & Bailey Bellobration

This past Sunday, we took Anna to her first circus with Maw Maw and Paw Paw! I LOVED the circus as a little girl, and I was super-excited to share it with Anna. Anna had a great time, but my mom says she *still* thinks that I'm the one who enjoyed it the most...and she's probably right. Barnum & Bailey is no Cirque Du Soleil, but there's still always something magical about the circus.

But enough about me. This journal is supposed to be about Anna, right?!

Anna seemed to like the elephants the most. She went nuts over them! (Get it? Nuts! Gee, I am so funny). She would light up when they would come out and start waving vigorously and saying "hey, hey, hi, hey". Then, she'd repeat the whole scene as they were leaving, but would say "bye, bye, bye" instead, of course. Anna even got to watch an elephant named Asia painting at the circus preshow. Yes, I said an elephant. Painting! I personally think Anna could have out-painted the elephant, but for some reason, people were amazed. (Totally kidding...kind of!)

Anna's favorite clowns - Mommy & MawMaw

Clownin' around with MawMaw

The animals seemed to hold Anna's attention the most - the elephants, horses, tigers, dogs. I think she'll enjoy the rest more when she's a little older and can understand the difficulty and danger a little better.

She started getting seriously tired about halfway through the second half of the show and had a total meltdown, after which she fell asleep. Hard. So hard that she slept through the blast of the human cannonballs! I guess you had to be there to understand just how loud they were - but trust me, she was reeeeeeeeeeallllllllly tired. It was a very pleasant end to a great first circus experience - the first of many!

Then we stuffed our face at Luby's. The end.

Fromage!

I took the camera out tonight because Anna looked so cute sitting at her new little table (which has yet to be painted) and cuddling with her "baby".

But then she got up and started mugging for the camera. I jokingly told her to say "cheese", and she did - clear as day! Over and over again! What a ham!

I'm convinced that there isn't much she couldn't say with the right motivation at this point.

Viva La (New) Mexico!

This past weekend, we took a trip to Albuquerque, New Mexico, with our friends Ross & Nicole to baptize our beautiful new Goddaughter, Olivia. Olivia was a superstar during the christening. She slept for most of it, and she didn't even make a peep when the priest poured the water on her head.

Ross, Nicole & Olivia

This trip was Anna's first time on an airplane, and she did pretty well during the flight to Albuquerque. She was quite active, as most toddlers are, but we were able to keep her quiet and busy with Elmo DVD's, snacks, and sticker & coloring books. The return flight didn't go quite so smoothly; it ended in Anna throwing up on me. But why ruin a nice story with the details, right? ;) So, moving on...

We stayed with Ross' sister Marjorie and her husband Sam in Placitas, right outside of Albuquerque. This was the view of the mountains from their house - can't complain much about that!

Placitas, NM

Here's a pic of Anna after her bath our first night in Placitas. She had a lot of fun playing with all of the rocks in her jammies and crocs.

We did a lot of running around visiting with Ross & Nicole's families, and we even got to make a trip to Seboyeta, where Nicole grew up. There's not much in Seboyeta except dirt, horses, beautiful scenery, and some really great people - Anna had a blast with all of them!

Here we are with Domingo. Anna thought he was pretty cool from far away but was scared of him up close, so we couldn't get the picture we wanted of her sitting on the saddle.

Domingo, Mommy, Daddy & Anna

And here's Anna with Gabby, Ross & Nicole's niece. She's almost 3, and she and Anna are the same size, so it was funny watching them together. Anna loved holding Gabby's hand, and chased her around all weekend wanting to mimic her every move. Thanks Gabby for being such a good sport!

Anna & Gabby in Seboyeta

Notice that they're holding hands even while Anna is going for a ride!

And one last picture from Seboyeta, just because I can't help but feel the whole "Where's Waldo?" vibe when I look at it...

Can you find Derek on the mountain?

Thanks again to Ross & Nicole for giving us the honor of being Olivia's Godparents and for treating us like family while we were in Albuquerque! I know it was "interesting" traveling with two babies, but we all survived it!

16 Months Old

Tinkle, Tinkle, Little Anna

About a week and half ago, I bought this little training potty for Anna...

I had read that it was good to just let them get used to the chair with no potty talk for a while, so at first, we let her sit on it fully clothed in the living room. Then, we moved it into the bathroom and would sit her on it after she was undressed while we were running her bath. We wouldn't force her to sit on it, but for the most part, she was happy to be there. And I we figured something might "naturally" happen.

Well, tonight it did. Anna tinkled in her potty like a big girl! I'm not sure that she even understands what happened, but we made a huge deal over it and she seemed pretty pleased about the fuss.

We're so proud of you, Anna! I guess now it's time to officially start potty training! Bring on the Elmo "Potty Time" DVD!

Hanging Out at the Bar

Since Anna will be 16 months old tomorrow, we figured she was now old enough to hang out at the bar - in our kitchen, that is. Here she is feeling like hot stuff after her bath sitting on one of our barstools...

We'll wait until AT LEAST next month to bring her to a REAL bar ;)

How To Know When Your Infant is a Toddler

When they can go from this. . .

To this. . .

. . .in a span of 10 minutes for no reason whatsoever!

And yes, I just kept taking pictures. How horrible am I?! Can't wait for the "terrible twos"!

Love Letter #2

Dear Anna -

The best part of my day is when I pick you up from daycare - that exact moment when you catch a glimpse of me through the glass of your classroom windows. Your whole face lights up, and you run over to me as fast as your little feet will move. Your little arms are outstretched, and I know that you want to be held just as badly as I want to hold you.

I cherish that moment every afternoon, and I will as long as it lasts because I know there will come a day when you may instead beg me to let you stay just five more minutes. For now, it just doesn't get any better than that.

Love, Mommy

Maternal Instincts?

In true little girl style, Anna has now discovered the world of baby dolls. All of her stuffed animals are "baby". She holds them and sways, saying "baby" over and over again. She puts them on the ottoman for the glider in her nursery and pushes it back and forth saying "rock, rock". She was even trying to share her milk with one of her teddy bear "babies" last night. It's really sweet.

I would say that perhaps her maternal instincts were kicking in if it weren't for the fact that she'll drop them on their heads and ditch them in a second for a bite of banana. Good thing there is no CPS for baby dolls - they'd be knocking on the door!

15 Month Checkup

Here are Anna's stats from her 15 month checkup:

• Weight: 27 lbs. 1.0 oz. (95th percentile)
• Height: 31.5 inches (80th percentile)
• Head Circumference: 18.5 inches (80th percentile)