By request...

Adelaide now rides front-facing. She even has a cup and snack holder. She sits, reads her books, and sips her juice, while mommy sips coffee and we sing along to her music. Jenna, being part of Ade's maiden voyage, requested I post about her new carseat.

Also, Jenna requested more photos. Here is one of Ade chillin', watchin' some Noggin:

Pretend play

I noticed a few weeks ago (during the HFM crisis), while my mom and I took Adelaide on a walk in her stroller, Adelaide seemed to be "eating" something from her tray, where I usually put her snacks on her walk. However, I forgot to bring any on this walk... So, I think that was Adelaide's first real "pretend" moment.

Then, this past Friday, we planned to meet the Frank clan at the pool after work for pizza dinner and swimming, but a thunderstorm ruined the plan right as the pizza was delivered. We brought the pizza over to their house, and Adelaide and Carter had the best time playing. Carter pretended he was feeding hay to a horse in its stall (aka a baby gate at the bottom of the stairs). Adelaide watched intently for a while as he picked the "hay" off the carpet and fed it to the "horse." Then, she bent down, and picked up some hay for herself! It just amazed me. She had learned the pretend game, and joined in. They had a very nice time for a while, with Adelaide picking up hay, handing it to Carter, and then Carter fed it to the horse.

I am just so shocked how quickly she is learning things now. Oh, and she sings "Eee-Iiii-Eee-Iiii-Oooo!" How adorable!

I need to also upload some videos of her playing with Krista's puppy, Fran. They were two little babies in love. It was so cute.

I really am going to book that vacation day for archiving soon; otherwise, all of my photo/video efforts are never going to be caught up!

Discrimination, I cry!

So, I was thinking the other day that Adelaide is old enough that she would probably enjoy storytime at the Library. I popped over to the Wake County site, and what do I find? The events for kids are all on weekdays in the morning! Aren't there enough working parents like me who would like to enjoy the programs the public library has to offer on a weekend?

While I don't think it is nice to want to sue a benevolent entity like the public library system, I have to wonder if I could win a discrimination suit... ;-P

In any case, I do notice every day that the world, at least here in Raleigh where there are plenty of Stay At Home Moms (SAHM), is not built to cater to working parents. I certainly don't mind taking some time off once in a while to enjoy activities with Adelaide, but wouldn't it be nice for places like the library to offer at least one weekend event per month? I actually did email the librarian contact and suggest that. We shall see if I get a response... Maybe no one has ever asked before!

Also, being in class two night a week for my consulting MBA course is killing me. It is good that daddy puts Ade to bed a few nights a week, but it really is exhausting for me. I hardly see Ade on those days. I had been planning to take two classes in the Fall, but forget that. After this experience, I promptly dropped one of my Fall courses. Mommy isn't SuperWoman anymore. She is only superwoman, small s.

Look at Ade stuffing her face with ravioli - pasta, sauce, and ricotta cheese all over her face and hair and hands:

Mangia, bambina, mangia!

These feet were made for walking...

and that's just what they'll do! Ade has been taking a few steps here and there, 2, 3, 4, 5, but it seems like she made a break-through today. She would walk to me over and over again, and if I backed up, she just kept walking. She walked in the grass for long stretches and if she fell down, she just got back up!

Here is a video clip of her walking:

Amazing Adelaide

Adelaide is so adorable, and amazing. She learns something new every day, it seems. She can give you a high five, and now enjoys saying "CACA!" about everything. She gives sweet hugs and kisses to people, toys, and even remote controls. Anything she loves, basically. She also holds toys out for us to hug and kiss as well.

Adelaide loves shoes, and if she finds a pair of our shoes on the floor, she tries to put her foot into them. She loves being tickled, especially under the chin, armpits, and chubby thighs. She also loves me to spin her around. She is a little daredevil. She likes to try to lift heavy objects of any kind, especially if they are bigger than her. She pushes things round on the floor, and climbs in or on them if possible, such as baskets, step stools, and laundry bins.

Ade loves chapsticks and lipsticks. If I put any on, I have to also pretend to put it on her lips, too. She likes to brush my hair with her hairbrush, and sometimes daddy's too. She splashes in her bath, and kickie, kickie, kickies.

She gives the biggest, cheesiest grins, and long tight hugs after waking from naps or in the morning, and also when we pick her up from daycare. Randomly, she will plant the moistest, slobbery kiss right on your lips, during which she goes, "Mmmmmmm-mmmaaa!" - her way of making a kiss sound.

Ade is so good at putting the balls down the sink drain in her toy kitchen and then watching them come back out the bottom. She is also figuring out how to put the shapes into the right puzzles holes. You just show her something a few times, and she picks it up so quickly. I love teaching her new things and watching her figure it out.

Ryan loves the way she hands you a book to read, and then sits back, hands on knees, waiting eagerly.

Our precious nugget.

Hand, Foot, and Mouth

After days of Adelaide napping on top of me, running a fever, and generally being lethargic and pishy, she seemed better Wednesday morning. We took her to school so that we could get some work done. I checked her on the webcam, and she seemed to eat lunch and take her nap just fine. Around 3:30 they called me from Kiddie Academy and said Ade just wasn't herself. Ryan was already on his way to pick her up, so I called the ped again. They said to bring her in. So, we went straight there. She had a case of Hand Foot and Mouth - a virus that causes sore in the mouth and throat, as well as a rash typically on the hands and feet. Ade never got the hand and foot part, but Thursday she got a rash all over her face, neck, chest and back. It was so sad looking. She had more energy but was CRANKY and miserable. Yesterday she was markedly better for the Fourth of July. We ate lunch at Steak-n-Shake, went to Target, and grilled out for dinner. Then, Ade slept from 6:30 to 8:30 this morning! She really needed to catch up on her sleep.

But, the best news is that both yesterday and today Ade took naps in her crib! I laid her down without nursing her, and just patted her back until she fell asleep! How crazy is that? It is almost like she is a normal kid now! Ha! Having time without a child in your arms both during daylight AND at night is just nothing I expected to even hope for.

And a few new Ade tricks:

• She can touch her head and ears when you ask her to.
• She snaps her fingers if you do.
• She is learning shake-n-bake also is the symbol for "no" - shaking your head.
• She took 3 steps on her own, several times over the past few days.
• She moos you if ask what a cow says.

Once more, a plea, someone please buy our old house. Buy it!!!

Party, party, party!

Adelaide's first birthday party was a great hit! She was feeling a little icky with some congestion and from her vaccinations (more on this later), but she had a great time anyhow.

We held her party at Falls River Swim Club, where we are members. We ate yummy sandwiches that Uncle Jon brought from Panera, and had cake that Aunt Jenna designed to go with Adelaide's birdie theme. Grown-ups got framed pictures from Adelaide's 1-yr old photo shoot, and the kids got gift bags with birdie finger puppets and bird whistles.

Adelaide brought home so many fun new toys! She had a great time tearing open the paper and shaking the boxes. The toys inside were okay, too. ;-)


I have uploaded a bunch of photos here:
http://www.dotphoto.com/Go.asp?l=sltrunzo&P=&AID=5351159&Show=Y

I am working on getting the video stuff working next. I plan to take a whole vacation day to do Ade's first year scrapbook and DVD. I can't wait! I love projects like that!

So, a not-so-fun update - Ade has been miserably sick Sun-this morning. She had a high fever off and on and was congested. She clung to me like a little sad monkey. Our usually crazy energetic baby just sat on my lap with her head on my shoulder and whimpered. It was heartbreaking. The past few nights she has started out in her crib, but come to bed in the middle of the night after waking to get more Motrin. She went back to school today, and judging by the webcam, she is doing well. I hope tonight she goes back to staying in the crib all night long!