Spaghetti Oh-o

We all have a picture like this tucked in one of our mother's dusty old photo albums. It's the classic spaghetti-splattered, I'm-stuffed baby face. Here is Georgia's contribution to this age-old rite of passage. She is now officially a messy, messy eater. Bon appetit my little angel!

G & G

Dear Georgia,

There is so much news to tell you! You took your first solo steps 4 days ago (July 29, 2007) with your Papi. You have done this several times since then but continue to prefer the security of walking while holding on to a few fingers. You are newly re-fascinated with your feet right now and say "toes" and "foot" all day long. You have also started to attempt putting on socks when you think I am not looking. :) You enjoy smacking your lips together to make kissy sounds, you are eating everything including grapefruits and pickles and at night before I put you to bed you sing me a 1-2 minute song. The lyrics are simple they go "ooooh oooh ooh ooooooooh". It is so pretty. I really enjoy hearing this song. Thank you for your sweet voice! Hear are the words I have heard you say: duck, sock, foot, toe(s), mama, dada, nana, elbow, nnn (for nose), wawa, agua, pato. So you have a vocabulary of 11-12 words. Excellent job!

Love and Butterflies

A few days ago when Mom visited and we were loading Georgia into the car a little butterfly landed on my elbow. I laughed and it fluttered around and then landed on my hand right by Georgia. It was so sweet. Gigi looked at it and I was quiet this time. The butterfly was in no hurry to fly away so we had a charming few seconds to enjoy its visit. The sun was glistening that afternoon and the butterfly visit made the day even more refreshing. Ah summer!! I love this time of year!

Busy Weekends

Dearest Georgia,

Our weekends have been packed as of late. Fourth of July, Aunt Mindy's Birthday and visiting Allison, Yong & Michael have kept your social calendar packed. You really enjoyed the country music at Trail Dust, particularly when the band played one of your current favorite songs, the Hokey Pokey. Too bad you couldn't try one of the cupcakes from Sprinkles. They were sooo delicious!

You and Michael seemed to hit it off instantly. We all loved hearing the oohs and ahs coming from both of you. Don't you two look so cute in your picture?

The picture with you in the dress is the dress that your Tio Luis Pedro gave to you when we visited him in Dallas. What a pretty dress it is! Gracias Tio!

Now I am in the middle of planning your first birthday bash. Would you like it to be a fiesta with a mariachi or would you prefer a Hawaiian Luau? I've got to decide soon!

Papi & Gigi

Yesterday we went on a walk and snapped some cute photos before the adventure. The weather was so beautiful and it was such a nice respite from all the rain that we walked around for over an hour. Towards the middle of the walk, when we were furthest from our house, I realized how far we had gone. With no car close by there was nothing to do but start trekking back. By the end of our journey we were exhausted. In fact, when we were one block from our house Wally refused to go any further. So Rodolfo carried him back the last block. Poor poochini. Still, it was nice to be outdoors!

Happy Father's Day!

Today we celebrated Father's Day. We had a nice time hanging out at Granny & Grampy's house. Georgia gave her Papi some orange swimming shorts. Hopefully these will be put to good use at the beach this summer! Papi says that he has had a very nice day and the best gift he recieved was Georgia's beautiful smile. :)

Your wish is granted Aunt Mindy

Well, the Aunties have been requesting photos. So, all you Georgia fans, you are in luck! I have finally bought a camera! Now I will be able to pour out myriads of beautiful snapshots of our cutie. Here are some from today.

Bananas

Dear Georgia,

Your tastebuds are blossoming now. I'm glad to see you so interested in using your new set of teeth. I know how eager you are to put them to good use. However, I wish you wouldn't grind them together so much. The sound worries mommy that you might saw away your first set. You seem to love bananas very much. Please remember that there are other foods out there worth exploring. Mommy is sorry she made you eat so much oatmeal, but please don't banish it forever.

Yesterday you gave me the sweetest little look. You gazed into mommy's eyes, placed your chubby hands on my cheeks and leaned forward like you were about to give me a nice kiss. My heart was overflowing with joy thinking that you wanted to kiss me. I should have known what you were up to though. You have done this before. Just when you had me in the palm of your hands (literally) you opened your little chomper and bit down forcefully on my nose. Ow! Please remember, only mommy's boobies are available for food.

The pictures here are from our zoo outing with Amy and your boyfriend Jake. You two are such dolls! You are 9.5 months in this picture and Jake is 4 months.

Swimming and Imitating

Georgia has been doing all sorts of new things as of late. Last week I took her swimming for the very first time. At first she was afraid of the water because I dunked her under immediately when we entered the pool. I should have let her adjust to the new environment, but it was so cold!! I thought a quick entrance would help her warm up, instead it made her hold on to me for dear life. I had to think fast, and as we waded back and forth through the water I started to sing a little and splash the water with my hand. The singing really helped because she slowly loosened her death grip around my neck and actually started splashing in the water too. Music works magic with children. :) We had a good time splashing around. I think the other people swimming laps thought we were a little selfish because we hogged an entire lane, but it was fun for us all the same. It is not everyday one is introduced to swimming for the very first time!

Other cute news... Gigi has been imitating sounds and actions. She loves making kissy sounds, yesterday she started singing in a soprano voice and waving her little arm in the air (she was prodded on by Rodolfo who was doing the exact same thing) and this afternoon as she, Wally and I were sitting around she started panting. I realized that she was imitating Wally! What a silly girl!

Happy Mother's Day!

We have celebrated Mother's Day all weekend long. Yesterday the fam came over to our house for a delicious picnic on the porch. We had lots of fun chatting and joking around with everyone. Then this morning Rodolfo made me scrambled eggs with tomatoes and toast. It was very sweet of him and quite delicious. This afternoon we went over to Nana and Grandpapa's house for lunch. Aunt Mindy took tons of pictures and here are some of them.

Princessa 6 months

Here are some of the adorable pictures taken of Georgia at her 6 month photo shoot. We will be doing the 9 month photos in about a week. I can't wait!

We love Target!

Georgia and I made our rounds today at Target picking up the groceries for the week and saying hello to all the babies. Actually Georgia would scream hello to every baby/child sitting in a shopping cart that we would pass. She doesn't really say the word "hello" yet, it is more like "aahaaaa" with lots of hand waving, but I know what she means.

As to other milestones, Georgia is just about to crawl now. She pulls herself forward with her arms and hands. She moves very swiftly when Wally is near. She is also clapping now with both palms hitting each other. For a while she would try clapping but her hands wouldn't quite touch. We go to pick up her 6 month photos tomorrow. I can't wait!!

Zoo photos

Zoo Days are Here!

Granddaddy, Gigi and I headed to the zoo yesterday for Gigi's first zoo visit! Instead of seeing tons of animals, we saw tons of kids! The zoo was having a science day and probably every school in the area participated. Streams and streams of kids ran past us the entire time. It was highly entertaining. When we first arrived we bought some sunscreen because I had forgotten to pack any. A little girl ran past us as I applied the sunscreen to Gigi's face and commented "This must be their first time at the zoo!" She was very perceptive. The most interesting thing I learned while there is that Grizzly Bears are native to Oklahoma. Who would have ever guessed!

Friends

Here is a picture taken of Georgia and her friend Samara Lynn at Sammy's baptism party. Aren't they so cute!

Teething

I think my little angel is teething! This morning she grabbed my finger and chomped down on it in her normal chewy fashion, but this time I felt something sharp and jagged instead of soft gums. I tried to look inside, but as always, she kept her lips tightly pursed and wouldn't budge for observation. She is almost 8 months so it is about time for a tooth. I can't wait to get a good picture of her smile once it emerges. And come to think of it, someday the toothfairy will visit this little pearly white. So fun!

The pictures above were taken at Laurie's wedding. Somewhere out there is a picture with the Aunties and Granny, but the Aunties haven't e-mailed it to me and so I only have these shots above. I can't wait any longer girls! I had to post something from the wedding.

Tio Luis Pedro in Dallas

This week Georgia met her Tio Luis Pedro for the first time. Tio Luis Pedro was playing soccer in Dallas at the Guatemala vs. USA match. We drove down on Wednesday afternoon and went to the game with Aunt Rebecca, Aunt Mindy, Uncle Randy & Uncle John. It was fun sitting in the stadium and cheering on the team. This experience was Georgia's first trip anywhere and she had lots of fun. By the time we returned to the hotel, it was almost midnight and needless to say, she was quite tired. We were able to snap a few picturews which are posted below. Now she needs to meet her Tia Cynthia, and of course, her Abuelita Orie, Abuelito Ofo and Abuelita Tenchi. Oh, and by the way, Gracias Tio Luis Pedro por el vestido blanco. Que lindo esta! Voy a tocar algunos fotos de Gigi en su vestido y ponerlo aqui muy pronto. :)

Tip-toeing through the Tulips

The weekend is here!!!! Yea!!! We have been having gardening all day long. First we went to TLC and bought hostas, hydrangeas, and other potting plants. Then we came home and Rodolfo edged while Georgia and I planted. Then I decided to pull out the camera and snap a few. Georgia enjoyed being outdoors and didn't complain once. She might be true to the meaning of her name. It was a little overcast outside, and I worried that the photos wouldn't turn out, but actually I think they look great.

Dress shopping

Easter dress shopping is upon us. Out of the myriad of dresses available I had to select only one. This pink dress is so cute. I purchased it thinking maybe it would be the one. It got the "best twirly dress" vote from Aunty Rebecca. But then, finally, after careful consideration, the winning Easter dress is instead the beautiful floral one below. It was chosen for its simplicity, length, collar and empire waist. We look forward to debuting this dress at the Easter parade.