Changes

Enjoying her independence!






















The last week has been really tough. Maggie has gone through so many changes lately; she is walking (trying to run) and talking (learning new words and phrases all the time). She is becoming more independent and separate from mama, insisting I let go of her hand on walks, saying no and up and "this" or "that" to just about everything else she wants. This week she has not wanted to be separate from mom at all--she wants to be held, comfort nurses about 3 x an hour (!!) and is waking at night again wanting me to comfort her. It has been hard and I can see how distraught she feels when I even leave the room.

A table for Maggie

Jon hoped to build Maggie a table and chairs himself, but with orals looming ahead he didn't think he would have time. So this weekend we went to IKEA and bought this set for $25 (!) Maggie is getting into pretend play and right away she was giving her dolls sips of tea and rearranging the furniture.

Her first hike (she insists on walking herself)

Desperate Mama gets help on Thanksgiving

With Jon on an epic mountain bike ride Thanksgiving morning and a very clingy girl, I had to get creative so that I could finish the pumpkin pies and vegetables in time for dinner. Maggie wanted to be close, and I couldn't hold her while rolling out pie crusts so I set her on the counter with a few measuring cups and she was very happy dipping her hands in the flour. Here she is trying the pumpkin:

Recent Maggie

Our girl is changing so much! Doesn't she look grown up? Maybe it's because she's walking around now, or babbling these adorable, hilarious sentences that sound serious sometimes, and sometimes like she's telling a joke. She is indpendent and getting into things (mom's coffee the other day ( decaf thankfully) but she also needs mom alot, lots of kissing, and hugging and nursing. It's a very sweet time. I feel so lucky to watch her discover things and rediscover things with her.

Tea at Lovejoys

On Saturday, Heather, Mandy, my mom, maggie and I went to the city for a girl's outing. We spent about an hour at the knitting store gathering yarns for various projects (Maggie was too excited to nap and instead walked around the shop pulling yarns from the shelves and laughing with her aunties.) Then we went to Lovejoys-a tea shop in Noe Valley--and ordered the Queen's tea (see all the food below!) Maggie fell asleep right before teatime which turned out perfectly--she woke up in a good mood mid-way through, which allowed me a little time to sit back and enjoy the couch and delicious tea. We couldn't help thinking about everyone who wasnt there--Maggie's cousins, Ben, Dad--and how we needed to come back to Lovejoys with them. Hopefully soon!

Playdate with beatrice

Tackle

Playing ball

Happy girl

First fingerpaints

Playgroup: Frances, Alma, River, Soleil, and Maggie

Maggie and I have been part of the most wonderful playgroup since she was about 4-5 months old. When we started out they were 5 babies who mostly lay side by side and we would oohh and ahh when they reached for something or rolled over. Soon they were sitting, then crawling, and now, half the group is running around (when they're not climbing the walls or one of the moms). Honestly, it was pretty hard to catch any of these little ones still enough to take a picture, but here are some attempts to capture the group: Frances, Alma, Soleil, River and Maggie

Our days

It rained for the first time in months last week. For a few days there was a lingering sweetness in the air and I thought we were close to fall. Now it is hot again. We brought the baby pool back out. The tomatoes are still ripening. But Im dreaming of fall and the quieter days when the rain gives us an excuse to stay inside.

In truth, there are really no quiet days anymore. Maggie is getting closer to walking every day (see her favorite "look no hands"), and I LOVE the way she chats and sings all day in her little language. She continues to learn new words and signs all the time--she says more for basically anything she wants. And man, does this girl want a lot of tomatoes. Every time we go outside she points to the tomato plants and says more (which she basically says without opening her mouth so it sounds a bit like mmmmrrrrrr.)





Here she is with her new wagon...she mostly likes to get inside but occasionally stands up to push it around the deck (although its still a bit fast for her)

Discovery Museum

Proud climber
Splashing and getting wet
Frogs and fish
Lunch by the harbour

We have been spending a lot of time at the Discovery Museum so its not a big surprise we ended up there on Maggie's bday with nanny and dad too.

Maggie's 1st birthday party

We had so much fun last Sunday celebrating maggie's birthday at the magical Robson Harrington Park. Lots of friends, family, food and cupcakes too. Maggie, it seems, prefers tomatoes (from our garden) to sugary cupcakes! We had a bunch of short videos from the party so I decided to put them together...check it out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtXrlSnkmNU

Some photos from Maggie's birthday party

Maggie had a magical birthday party last Sunday with friends and family.

to maggie on her 1st birthday

Here's the link to a maggie's birthday movie--it's a little early (her bday is on August 25th) but I thought I would share it anyway. It was fun to go through old pics and videos. So much change in a year! and I hear the changes are even bigger from age 1 to 2.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9TIJdoHIY9s

Coming up on a year

Just a quick update on Maggie...she is such a curious, loving and EXPRESSIVE person! Each day she shows us more and more of her unique personality; exploring, talking and finding new ways to make mom and dad laugh. She says mama and dada, and her favorite--dog. She understands so much and is moving and getting into more trouble throughout the house each day. How quickly this happened! Wasn't she just that peaceful sleeping baby in my arms? Wasn't I just listening to the sweet sounds of her nursing, knowing that everything was exactly as it should be? I feel so LUCKY to have this little one in my life. So lucky.

I've been working on a birthday movie--just a little love note from a mom to her girl. I will post it soon...

tennis pro

music

claire and maggie

giggles from way back when

Hanalei!

We live in a pretty incredible place, but this spring when the opportunity came up for a trip to Kauai, we couldn't resist. We convinced the grandparents to come; we talked aunt Lauren and uncle josh into making the trek. I didn't know what it would be like traveling with a 9 and a half month old, but I was convinced that the sand and air and water would be worth the sleepless nights and five + hour plane rides. It was.

The flight from San Francisco to Kauai was hard--harder than I had imagined it to be. Even with snacks and new toys and walks up and down the aisle and a very helpful hubby, we were crammed in to those seats and maggie wasn't exactly thrilled. But we made it to lihue and then hanalei and soon we were swimming in the most incredible water, with maggie making us all laugh. I said to Jon that it was worth it, even for that moment, but the trip ended up being full of such moments.

The best part was the time Maggie got to spend time with her grandparents and her aunt and uncle. Since she was about 2 months old she has had a really hard time when anyone but mom or dad holds her, so to see her get to know and love (the way she smiles when nanny comes in the room now!) family was really special.


One of the most wonderful parts of a vacation is the return home. we returned last night at midnight and our little babe was up again with the sun, seemingly unaware that she had slept half of her normal night time sleep, and Im sure we will feel the pain of that fatigue for a couple of days. But our garden is huge (thanks to heather for watering) and I am reminded of how lucky we are to live where we do, to have our family walks in the chilly mornings, to play in the grass and have our family so close!