Twelve months ago, our sweet Mallorie came into our family. Baby snuggles have turned into quiet moments twice daily during bottles, the soft body is becoming firm with muscle tone, toothless smiles have been replaced by a smile filled with teeth (molars are almost in!), and her strong personality has continued to blossom. She has a huge amount of stranger danger but is happy to smile at friends unknown from a safe distance, I laugh watching her stuff her face with as many puffs as she can cram into her chubby hands, and her smile is contagious. A shrill "hiiiii!!" greets me after each nap or babysitting engagement. Darwin is tormented by her daily and Cleo remains in high places when possible to avoid having her whiskers grabbed. Morgan loves to hold her, bring her toys, and hold her hands while she learned to walk. On the other hand, Morgan does not love sharing her "favorite" toy of the day, having Mallorie try and play where she plays, and frequently covers her ears in the car, stating, "Mom, she's too loud!"
For several weeks, MJ (as we like to call her), has been cruising along the furniture, walking while holding to Morgan's hands, and taking a step or two before hitting her knees and crawling furiously toward her goal. That changed dramatically last Monday when, for whatever reason, she decided that walking would be the new mode of transportation. It's as if a switch was flipped and she went from mostly crawling to mostly walking in like 4 days. I LOVE to watch her diaper-shaped bottom waddle around the house, arms outstretched for balance, babbling softly to herself.
I think this is my favorite stage of development.
Local family plus my out-of-town dad (who decided two weeks prior to the big day that he wanted to be a part of the activities) came to our house for the celebration. We lucked out with the weather - it started raining after dessert - so the 20 of us we were able to eat outside on tables furnished by Nancy and Steve. Chadwick put on the chef hat and made steak rolls for the main dish, hot dogs for the little people, along with the usual, delicious sides. The décor theme? Ladybugs! With Chadwick's help, I was able to design and decorate a ladybug and flower cake. It turned out well, though wasn't quite as fancy as the "Tangled" castle cake a friend made her daughter..... =)
Unlike Morgan, Mallorie attached her chocolate cupcake with relish. She wasn't sure what to do initially, but once she figured out this was something to eat, it was all over. I have a great slideshow of the whole studying, eating, and smearing of chocolate. Nancy and I dunked her in the tub after to get her clean...she was not impressed. After a cuddle and time with a baseball bat and piñata, her good spirits were restored.
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| On your mark, get set, GO! |
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| The final result |
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| Meltdown in the tub |
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| Nana watching the chaos |
Presents were opened in parts - here is Morgan playing in the bag from Round 1 of opening.
Time has flown, yet not, this first year. It's certainly been a time of change for me! I love these sweet girls and the things they teach me each day.
