Little Helper

Sabine is very keen on helping us around the house these days. She helps me carry laundry, close the dishwasher, and look under the couch for lost cat toys. She also helps her daddy floss in the mornings:



And Sabine likes to help people kiss her favorite stuffed animals. (Here, her friend E is the vaguely-willing recipient of this help):



And even though the weather's getting cooler, she still likes to help me carry the keys to the mailbox when we go to check the mail:



And now that's she's one, she fortunately understands she needs to start pulling her weight around here.



Man, I love this kid.

Sabine's First Words!

Alternate title: So Much for Mama and Dada.



A week ago our little pumpkin said her first words. (Yes, words, as in plural.) As usual, I was bribing her with treats to get her to stay still while I changed her diaper, and I asked her if she wanted a puff. (Click here to see what I'm talking about, if you are not familiar with this infant finger food.) Instead of doing her normal sign for "more," she loked at me and said "A puff." Clear as a bell.

Our conversation then wnt something like this:

Me: "Did you say 'a puff'?!"

Her: A puff."

Me: "You said 'a puff'! A PUFF!"

Her: "A puff."

Me: "A PUFF A PUFF A PUFF!"

Her: Silent. Clearly thinking, "What do I have to do to get a cracker around here?"

Since then "a puff" comes out abut 10% of the time. The rest of the time she'll say "a-pub" or "a-pap," but we are excited all the same.

A few days later, we brought in the balloons for her birthday party, and she developed a "brrrrrrooo" sound that she makes for balloon. It's actually pretty close, once you know what you're listening for.




We still haven't heard "mama" or "dada," but the B-words are definitely getting some play. She now also attempts "banana," bunny," "bear," and "books."




What can I say? The girl's got priorities.

In other news, she had her one-year doctor's visit yesterday. She's doing pretty well overall. She's shot up in height, she's 29.25", which puts her in the 57th percentile. Her head circumference is in the 5nd percentile, and she weights 17 lbs 3 oz., which means she's only in the 3rd percentile for weight. That's definitely small, but our doctor didn't seem too concerned. We're just going to continue giving her solid foods, and we got the go-ahead to start her on whole milk. Hopefully that will help her both add pounds and stay asleep longer at night.

The Big One

Happy birthday to my sweet angel baby. I can't believe it's already been a year. 365 days ago she was such a fragile, helpless newborn. Today she ran around, played in her new tent, and showed her grandmom how to smell the flowers.



Today Sabine has seven and a half teeth; she wears size 6-9 month clothing; she can sign "more," "all done," "milk," and "fish;" she can pet the cat nicely; she can fit many of the shapes into their correct spots in her puzzle; she likes to hug her stuffed animals and walk on her tiptoes; and she had a taste of her daddy's chocolate cake:



Over the weekend we had a little party, and she had her first cupcake. It went over pretty well....



She didn't quite finish it, but she definitely liked it. She was quite the social butterfly, smiling at everyone all day, and sharing her toys with some of her friends who stopped by. Then she took a great nap when all the guests left.

The balloons were an exceptionally big hit. Sabine always admires the big balloons at the grocery store, so we splurged and got one of those as well, and she has been toting it around for the last three days saying "brrrrrooo!"



It has just been incredible to see how much she learns and changes every day. And yet in many ways she's the same happy, fiesty, strong girl she was the day she was born. (Both Dustin and I clearly remember the doctors commenting, independently, on how strong she was.) We are so insanely proud to be her parents, and we're excited about where the next year will take us.



We love you with all our hearts and souls, Sabine.

Aspen

Last Friday Dustin took off early from work, and we spent a long weekend in Aspen with some good friends. The car ride was long (just ask Sabine) and unfortunately both she and I were still dealing with a little head cold, but it was all worth it. The leaves were still changing, we saw our first snow on the passes, and mommy and daddy got to go out to a fancy restaurant with friends (and wine!) while we overpayed a babysitter to watch T.V. while the girls slept at the hotel.

We got a few pictures on my phone’s camera.

Sabine playing in the leaves in Glenwood Canyon on the drive up:







Wandering through the hall of our hotel:



Sabine and Daddy on Main Street, looking very “Aspen chic:”



We made it back safe and sound, and while Sabine's cold has finally cleared up, she seems to have contracted a little stomach virus, so we're just laying low this week. That's working out well, since we have a little party to get ready for this weekend!

Little Pumpkin

Last week we went to a local pumpkin patch with Sabine's Grandmom and Grandpa. We're hoping to make it an annual tradition so that we can watch her grow from year to year:



It was located at a great local farm, and so not only were there pumpkins...



but there were animals! There were sheep:



And there were goats (but apparently mommy was so busy taking pictures of the goats she forgot to get Sabine) and then there was Sabine's favorite, the donkey.



Grandpa's favorite was the steam-powered tractor.



And here are a few pictures of Sabine showing off the fruit (and by "fruit" I mean "vegetables") of our little potted garden:

Lots of Friends

Last weekend we took advantage of the late summer weather, and we went for a picnic up in Chautauqua with Sabine’s good friend E. (And E was nice enough to bring along her parents.) The girls were excited to see the each other, despite their expressions in the picture. The playground equipment was also big hit.





Then during the week we went to visit a good friend of mine and her two little boys, B and E, who I think are also going to be good friends of Sabine’s. B is a little older, and he has lots of stuffed animals, including giraffes, which are his favorite, and BEARS, which are still Sabine's favorite. So once a big, soft bear was introduced, there was much wrestling and giggling. I only had my phone camera available, so the pictures are a little blurry. But they were definitely having a good time.









And here’s one more picture from the week. No context; I just love it.