Why Bother with a Flu Shot?!?!

I know that the flu shot doesn't prevent you from getting the flu, but after two bouts of the stomach flu in two weeks time I am starting to question what exactly the purpose of the shot is. We had settled in for a nice Christmas celebration with my family yesterday when Claire started to act increasingly whiny and crabby. Being the bright parents we are we assumed that her teeth were bothering her...that was until she puked all over me. That put an abrupt end to our celebration as we headed home to tend to our sick child. I started to feel more and more nauseous as the night progressed and by bedtime I was in the same awful situation as Claire. Yuck. Seriously gross. This strain luckily wasn't half as bad as last time, but I am hoping that this is the last of it this season. Thankfully Art has been lucky enough to stay healthy through both of my bouts, and has been able to take great care of both Claire and I (along with the help of my mom). Since I have been in my pajamas for nearly 24 hours, and therefore, have not had a chance to download any of our Christmas photos here is a shot of Claire and I pre-flu.

Merry Christmas

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

To celebrate the fact that it was a White Christmas, we bundled Claire up in all her winter gear and took her outside to explore the snow. As evidenced below, she wasn't used to the weight of all the gear. Once she was outside, she has a great time...at least for a few minutes.

Lets Celebrate!

The medication for Claire's ears had kicked in by Saturday afternoon, so she was in great spirits for her party. The house was filled with great grandparents, grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins and Claire was loving all the activity. She wasn't quite sure what to think of all the presents, but participated in tearing the paper on a few. She was also a little hesitant when it came to the cake. Given her personality, we didn't think she would demolish it and she proved us right!! Claire had a fabulous time and was even up a whole 45 minutes later than usual!

My first video using my new Flip video camera. I am loving it!

nti

ONE YEAR OLD!!

HAPPY 1st BIRTHDAY, CLAIRE! We made it a whole year together! To celebrate Claire's birthday, we had big plans of heading downtown to see the Macy's 8th floor holiday display. Unfortunately, her morning doctor's appointment revealed that she had a double ear infection, which meant she was feeling a little under the weather. We will have to check it out some other time. Hopefully she is feeling better tomorrow for her big party.

Here is the update on what Claire has been up to this past month. Claire,

• has two teeth on bottom, one on top, and several more on the way!
• finally learned how to clap on her own and just started to blow kisses.
• is quite fast on her feet.
• has learned how to shake her head no. This only occurs at bathtime when she refuses to get out.
• began signing "more".
• says "more" and "on" and repeats many other words.
• is officially done with bottles. We transitioned her to whole milk in a sippy cup about a week ago, and she is doing great!
• has her daddy's taste in food...pizza, pasta, and bread. :) She is not a fan of meat and the only vegetables she will even come close to touching are carrots and sweet potatoes.
• has become unpredictable when it comes to naps. This past week she has been refusing to take her morning nap, which means only one nap a day. Not sure if we are ready for this!
• is 28 inches tall (23rd percentile) and weighs 19lbs 12oz (34th percentile).
• keeps us on our toes! We can't wait to see what this next year has in store for us!

Playtime and Pizza

The Steele Family was in town for the Thanksgiving holiday, so they stopped by for a little playtime and pizza on Saturday night. It was great to catch up with them and to see their little guy Colin. What a cutie!