Zoo

We skipped swim class today and took Mabel to the zoo. We weren't there for all that long, but did get to see the hippos and stopped to see some goats.


And stood in their food bowl:


Didn't pet these goats:

1 year checkup

I took M to the doctor today for her 1 year checkup. She weighs 24 lbs, is just over 30 inches tall and has a big ol' melon. Her stats put her in the 90th percentile across the board. Her head has been 90th since the moment she was born. Her weight has been 90th also, except for her 9 month checkup where it dropped to 85th. Her height has been increasing though. She started out in the 50th percentile at birth, was 75th at 9 months and now is 90th. Our little bubba is growing like a weed!

She also got 2 more shots and a toe prick to get a blood sample. All standard. M was not happy about the shots this time. Not even baby music videos on the iPhone could keep her from screaming. But she survived.

We also got a referral for a pediatric ophthalmologist as M's tear ducts are still plugged. We'll see what needs to happen re: surgery once we meet with them.

Mabel's First Birthday Party

This past Saturday we rented a little party room at a nearby park to celebrate Mabel's first birthday with friends and one set of grandparents.

Birthday girl

On the 12th Mabel turned 1.

Her first gift was well received:



Her party is today.

Lots of pictures to come, once we get a little bit of down time.

It walks!

First few steps, right into Kate's arms. Repeated a few times.

Signs

When Mabel was maybe 4 months old we got a sign language DVD for babies. Since we don't watch TV with Mabel, that DVD was a rare treat and one that she would watch for almost 1 minute before losing interest. And we pretty much gave up on the DVD but since we try to repeat some of the signs along with whatever is going on...

At this point we have pretty consistent signs from Mabel for "milk" and "more". Encouraging. Maybe it's time to give that DVD another spin.



Kate spent much of the weekend baking for Mabel's upcoming birthday. She also got Mabel a new car seat that faces forward. I gave slow cooking some ribs a shot and they turned out great. Pretty easy too with a nice smoke ring from the apple wood smoke.

Post-Housewarming

Party was a success. Nice turnout, good weather, food was edible. House survived.

On to the birthday preparation!
Mabel's paternal grandparents will be out in just over a week for the festivities.

Next up we're going to look at getting some house projects started like updated electrical, plumbing, bathroom(s), whatnot. Or at least we'll get a better idea of what will be involved and then deal with what we have for a while. Either way, it is time to call some professionals in for help. Fun stuff.