Christmas 2006

Well Christmas has already passed in a whirlwind! Meredith really didn't care much about it at all. She enjoyed some of the boxes and has taken a particular liking to a talking puppy from her great grandma elliott (she tackles it and giggles when it talks to her), but otherwise she could have cared less! We went into Greensboro on Christmas eve to spend most of the day with Chris's mom, step-dad, sister and brother-in-law. Meredith did incredibly well considering she only got one not long enough nap in that day. She was asleep in the car before we even hit the highway to come home. She woke up long enough to get her cute gingerbread pjs on and her daddy read her The Night Before Christmas and off to dreamland she went. We actually had to wake her up on Christmas morning since she got to bed so late the night before! We went over to my mom and dad's house and had breakfast, opened gifts and Meredith went down for a nap. Shortly after she woke up, we headed over to Chris's stepsister's house, who fortunately lives in Raleigh now. We did the Elliott Christmas over there and Meredith pretty much lost it since she was so tired from all of the action! We got her home and she took a really late nap and when she woke up she was ready to play. Chris's grandparents spent the night and we had breakfast for them and Chris's dad and step mom the next morning. By the time they left on the afternoon of the 26th, I was ready to crash!! Meredith seemed to enjoy all of the attention, but she had 3 very late nights in a row and we are just getting her back onto a normal schedule!
We did a bunch of shopping/returns the past few days and we bought her first pair of Stride Rites since she is a walking maniac lately. She no longer takes only 9 or 10 steps, she can walk all the way accross the room now with no problem. The shoes will take some getting used to, but she seemed to like them (size 5.5!!!) By the way, I can't believe that her shoes cost more than a pair I bought at the mall for me!! She was so cute in the store walking all over the place. She even walked right out into the mall (with daddy close behind). She also rode one of those little rides they have at the mall (no such thing as the penny horse....75cents now!). Chris and I both said how it made her seem so grown up with her big girl shoes on and riding a ride (she thought it was pretty fun!) She will be 11 months old on Tuesday, so I guess she is a big girl!
I am working today, hence the post! I was off the rest of the week and we are closed on monday for new years day, which will be nice. Fortunately, it is pretty quiet. I will post some pictures once we get them uploaded. I honestly didn't take a ton of pictures, but there are a few cute ones.

Oh, on another happy note...My friend Jessica had her little boy today....Miles :) Happy Birthday!

Pictures

I just can't help but post more pics. We had a 'photo shoot' the other day trying to get some good Christmas ones in front of the tree, so these are the many poses of Meredith :) The one with the holly was one that we printed from Snapfish with a border!

Christmas is almost here...

Well, Christmas is upon us! Today is my last day of work for a week and it should be a totally slow day, so I am going to take a minute to write a new post. We somehow thought that now that we have a baby, Christmas would be easier as far as parents coming to us instead of us having to go all over. It hasn't proven to be easy at all. I think we have things worked out now, but I don't think anyone (inlcuding me) is overly thrilled with the plans. I think we are going to go to take a family vacation next year, just the three of us! I just want to make it special for Meredith, even though she'll never remember it.
Miss Meredith is so much fun these days. She is walking quite well now. She can take around 10 steps max right now, but she is getting better every day! Chris and I know that we are in trouble once she is truly mobile. She has no fear and is into everything! The little wicker chair in the pictures is her favorite now. She can crawl up into it and stand up, yes stand in the chair! Who knows what is next?!
She does seem to be working on a little cold. She has been couging a lot at night for the past few days, but I also think it could be the dry air, so we are digging out her humidifier to see if it will help. Plus, every time she coughs, I wake up, so mommy is tired!!
I steamed her some fresh asparagus last night and she wasn't terribly thrilled with it. I think it was just a texture thing though. I have pureed it and given it to her before and she liked it, so I think it was just weird since it can get stringy so easily. We did let her have a bit of gingerbread cookie the other night and she wasn't overly impressed, which made me happy!
I doubt I will make another post until after Christmas, so hope everyone has a great one!
I feel like posting a lot of pics of my beautiful baby :)

Walking!

Here is another fun picture from the beach this weekend....

Well, my little baby is officially taking steps. Yes, that means more than one step. Last night she took three steps in a row. (I almost cried and she looked at me like, what's wrong mom?) Mind you, they are from one piece of furniture to another, but she has no support at all. She is getting more and more confident every day. We finally took our big coffee table out of the living room this week and got one of those big padded ottomans that can double as a coffee table and it opens up so we can throw all of her toys in it too! I think it even makes her feel better since it is soft and if she bangs into it, it won't hurt! I know I am already much more relaxed with her cruising around the living room.
She has been waking up between 1am-2am every night for about a week. She cries for a minute or two and then settles back down. It seems to be a fairly consistent time, so I'm not sure if it is her teeth (still nothing has cut through on top) or if she's having a bad dream. She has also started fighting her naps and bedtime. She used to just lay down and play for awhile and just drift off to sleep, but now she likes to scream for a good few minutes or more. I try to get her into a calm routine 30 mins before bed, but there is no calm with this child. Even when she is rubbing her eyes because she is so tired, she wants to be crawling around and getting into mischief! I saw this baby about her age at the store the other day and he was sitting so calmly in the shopping cart and I just watched in amazement! I haven't dared to put her in the cart yet because I know she would be diving for everything she could get her hands on! I think it's safe to say that I have a 'spirited child' (thanks for that term Jess F!).
p.s. We think that her hair is starting to get some curl. It definitely has a wave in the back, so we'll see what happens as it gets longer. Chris & I both had super curly hair as babies, so I wouldn't doubt she will have it too. Oh yeah, she also ate spinach last night and loved it! I am determined that she won't be a picky eater. I did mix it with some baby food, but she didn't even make a face, just opened up her mouth for more! What a good girl :)

Smiley baby

The picture on the stairs was taken just before Meredith took a header into the corner right there at the stairs...she recovered well, but there were tears shed for sure. Her newest thing is crawling up the first step and then turning around and sitting. Yes, that is drool all over her shirt and dripping from her chin and she has some unruly hair these days too! She has gotten into this funny smile where she scrunches up her whole face and shows her gums/teeth.
I also LOVE this picture of her at the beach. We took a quick trip down to Emerald Isle this weekend with the folks, grandma & Allison. It was awesome to be down there in the winter since I've never done that before.

A few pics

Family picture after the wedding

Meredith and dad watching the Carolina/State game.
Halloween dalmation..I'm a bit behind!

10 months

Meredith is 10 months old and is just so awesome right now. She is so curious about everything and is into everything! She is standing much more confidently and has taken a few very tentative steps, I'm actually still not sure if they truly quality as steps, but she is figuring it out. She is babbling like crazy and has added a few sounds to her repetoire . Mama, dada, baba, nana and her latest is bookie or boogie..she is either going to love books are be a gambler! She has been doing this funny grumbling, growl thing the past few days and I guess she is just experimenting with what her voice can do. She did it all the way home from Brier Creek the other night and Chris and I just laughed! Sometimes when music comes on she starts to bop her head and bounce up and down...it is so cute!! She continues to love non-toys like the cell phone, remote control, pots and pans from the drawer under the stove, shoes, magazines, newspapers, boxes...you name it and she is trying to either chew on it or drag it around. She seems to love dragging around things that are much too big. She pulled one of Chris's shoes (by the laces) all the way up the steps with her and it was hilarious because she wouldn't let go, but she was so determined! Of her real toys I'd have to say that the glow worm still ranks right up there. We took her to get her Christmas pictures taken last week and it was dark on the way home and I gave her glow worm to her while she was in her carseat and she totally cracked up when it lit up in the dark! She isn't really paying to much attention to the Christmas tree yet. She was quite intrigued by the box for our fake tree, but not the tree so much. She did want to eat one of the lights, so we'll have to keep a close eye on her! Her top two teeth are coming in and I think these are bothering her more than the bottom two did. She hasn't been overly grumpy, but a little out of sorts the past few days.
Other good news. Meredith has a new little friend...my friend Heather had her baby on Friday. A little girl named Reese (not sure on the spelling yet). Congrats!
Ok, for some odd reason my snapfish account is now a 'forbidden site' at work...so, no pics today!