New Kicks

I just couldn't resist when I stumbled across these new kicks for Claire. While she doesn't really wear shoes right now, I figure it won't be long before summer turns to winter and she is walking all over the place. I better be prepared, right?!?! :) I decided to try them on this afternoon and while they are still a little big (I swear that her feet could not be smaller), they were pretty darn cute. She enjoyed them on her feet for all of about 1 minute....

She found it was much more fun to tote them around the house in her hands. At least she likes them...even if they aren't on her feet!

Great Minnesota Get Together

We headed to the State Fair last Saturday morning with my parents and sister's family. We got there bright and early. We hit the animals, went on the carousel, and made numerous pit stops for food. In the 3.5 hours we were there, we shared a caramel roll, cheese curds, foot long, and corn on the cob...yum, yum. Claire enjoyed people watching from her stroller (just like her mom), but wasn't quite sure what to think of the horses on the carousel (especially when they started moving up and down).

Family Photo Op

Claire came home from day-care last week with a note asking us to bring in a family photo. That night I started going through our hundreds...wait, thousands, of photos to find just the right picture to send with her. After much searching, this is what I found:


I am not even joking...that is how pathetic our family picture efforts have been. The first two were taken within the first few weeks of her life and the last one is pretty unflattering of all three of us. Seriously need to work on getting more pictures of the whole family. So, in an effort to send little Claire to school with a recent, somewhat flattering photo, we had to have a family photo session (see results below). Hopefully, we can make an honest effort to take more family pictures these next 8 months...

Happy Morning

After a long week of fighting a tough little virus, our happy girl is back!

Sneak Peek

We had Claire's pictures taken this morning. Here is the link to our sneak peek:
http://katiewelshphotography.com/blog/

Eight Months Old

Claire passed the eight month mark while we were on vacation this week. She is becoming more and more active (we didn't think it was possible)...and is definitely keeping us on our toes. At eight months old Claire:

• LOVES to stand up...despite being vertically challenged, she manages to pull herself up on anything in her sight
• has stood by herself (no hands) for 5 seconds or so a handful of times
• climbs up the stairs
• still has no teeth
• overcame her fear of swimming (hopefully)
• began stealing other babies' food at daycare...this was enough evidence for us to move her up to 3 servings of solids/day (breakfast, lunch and dinner)
• expanded her finger food selection beyond Gerber Puffs. So far she has had small pieces of banana, avocado, toast, sweet potato and cheerios. Bananas and Cheerios are by far her favorites
• learned the power of whining...we are sure there will be plenty more of this the rest of her life
• adores other babies and small children...the sight of another little person is enough to send her into a series of giggles

Time will only tell what this next month has in store for us!!

Sorry for the Delay

...my eight month old update post is coming. My parents were apparently tired from the long week of vacation because they forgot how old I am. They have plans to retake the photo tonight and will hopefully have a full update for everyone later this weekend. :)

Grandview Lodge

We headed up to Grandview Lodge last Friday for a summer get away with Art's family. The week was spent swimming, playing in the sand, going for long walks, golfing, boating, and catching up with everyone. It was so entertaining to watch the little ones interact with one another. Claire LOVED playing with her cousins...in fact, I don't think I have ever heard her laugh so much before! :) Here are a few pictures from the week. We are already looking forward to next year's trip!