Ta da!

Cora got her birthday present from her Daddy a week early!
Stace put the finishing touches on her toy box Tuesday night, and we now have it set up in place by the window in the living room.
She loves it! She likes standing in front of it, holding on and pulling out toys. She was very excited when she first saw so many of her stuffed animals all together, she didn't know which ones to pull out first. (Pulling things out of boxes is still a favorite activity - she's now taken to pulling her clothes out of her drawers, too!)
The toy box has no sharp corners anywhere, and a padded bench seat for a lid. The sage green gingham fabric on the seat is the same fabric used as accents on her bedroom curtains.

Good friends

On Sunday, we went to visit Christy, Mitch and
William for dinner. You've seen William here before, Cora's good friend who's about 2 1/2 months younger than her.
Cora gets very wound up when we go to their house, because she loves playing with William and his toys. William seems to like having Cora around too. They crawl after each other, try to play with the same toys - taking from one another, naturally - and Cora was giving William hugs, when she wasn't hitting him.
They made a very yummy dinner, with tri-tip. Stace was pretty excited to have red meat again, and it was delicious. After dinner, William got out his mom's collection of pots and beaters. Cora was duly impressed, and was entertained for quite a while. At one point she had three beaters and whisks and was collecting them, throwing them, collecting them, and swirling them in the pot. Good times.

Today was a very normal day. We spent the morning at home, with Cora taking a good nap and me getting things done around the house. In the afternoon we met my mom and sister for a walk around Bridgeport lake. Cora loved seeing the ducks and doggies, and we were impressed with the amount of water in the river. It was a beautiful day, cool but with bright blue skies, puffy white and grey clouds, and snow on the mountains. The day was made better when my sister hooked me up with a pound of Starbucks. Gosh, it's great having family 'in the biz.' We then went to the grocery store and came home and made dinner. After dinner, we did some baking. Now, it's time for bed.
I love the last photo here - Cora is making friends with Somer, and trying to pet her. Somer's face should be in the dictionary next to the word "endurance."

Santa Clarita Winter

This morning we awoke to snow-covered mountains all around the valley. It looked just like an Alpine scene. I went out on the bike early on to see how much water was flowing in our normally bone-dry Santa Clara River. There was plenty of water and quite fast flowing.

This afternoon Cora wanted to take a hike out to the Placerita Canyon Waterfall trail. It was really pretty. My little girl seems to really enjoy the outdoors. I carried her in the backpack. She loves that.

Here's our intrepid Lisa taking on a mighty and trecherous river. See how she shows no fear or concerm for her own safety. This is the spirit of a true adventurer.

It's raining again now and due to rain for the next few days. No Sunday golf for me. This will be the first time in 4 years that rain has stopped play.

Dad, I'm reading!

Cora is quite a little reader. Don't interrupt her when she's reading, please.


She's had a runny nose for a month now, and since Monday it has worsened to a constant (green) stream, with a very wet cough. She's not very happy about it and, as all parents know, it's hard to watch your little one in discomfort. But we also know how very lucky we are, in that this is her first real "illness" yet and she's going on one.
Stace hasn't been riding to work the last couple of days because it's been raining (!). It's supposed to be wet through Sunday. Crazy! We need it, so we can't complain.

The first birthdays begin...

On Saturday, we all celebrated Kelsie's first birthday! I went to Pepperdine with her parents, Mark and Lylia, and they moved to Santa Clarita after college. We attended our labor classes together, and we girls got together weekly before Lylia went back to work in September.
Anyway, they had a very fun party for Kelsie at Gymboree. We haven't been to Gymboree since August, and Cora really enjoyed her return. She played on lots of great toys, including a parachute; practiced her standing - what a daredevil; and even sat with the big kids in her very own chair when it was time for cake.

January 19

January 19. One year ago I spent my last day as a full-time reporter for the Antelope Valley Press. (I wrote about it here ) Nearly a year to the day, I returned to Palmdale for another good-bye lunch. The paper's long-time assignment editor, Linda Lee, is stepping down from the position after a number of years, both as a reporter and editor. Linda always treated me very well, and I appreciated her understanding as I dealt first with a long-distance relationship (which required time off) and later with a pregnancy filled with morning sickness. It was neat being back to see many of my old friends, and it was fun showing Cora off. Thankfully, she was a dream baby at the lunch, even during the speeches. She was content to eat the whole time, taking breaks to point at things and giggle. She seemed to be trying to giggle and clap appropriately, when the adults were.
Here are the best parts of my new life as wife and mother. On weekends, Stace will often bring Cora in for feeding in the morning, and then they will play in the bed. Here, Cora is practicing standing.

Playful baby

Peekaboo is still a favorite game of Cora's, and I've found it to be a good distraction when it's diaper-changing time. She is getting better at hiding her face with her hands, as you can see here:

She also still loves dancing, though this isn't the best example of that.
Other Cora tidbits: for the past few days she's been busy practicing sitting up, from the lying down position. When on her tummy, she scoots backwards and then tucks her legs up and under her, pushes back, and voila, she's sitting.
She also likes to wave at me, when I come to get her out of her carseat. As soon as I open the car door, she's waving away, sometimes with a big smile on her face, and other times with a serious expression. It's still hit-or-miss whether she'll wave at new people, when we encourage her to.
On Wednesday I took Cora into the doctor's office for a quick weight check. She was 18 pounds, 5 ounces, just one ounce bigger than she was at her 9-month appointment. She's gained 3/4 of an inch, to 28 3/4 inches long. The doctor looked at her chart, and knowing how "big" Stace and I are, said she is probably just fine. She is burning calories with all this crawling/scooting!
Stace said I should mention the yummy, healthy quiche I made tonight. He loves it when I make quiche, but the fat is of course in the crust. I used whole wheat couscous, mixed with some egg white, and pressed it into the pie plate. I also used the carton egg white mix, instead of whole eggs with their yolks. Tomatoes, onion, ham and cheese comprised the filling. Stace loved it, and had nearly half of it himself. We enjoyed dinner after a walk - Cora and I met Stace partway as he was on his bike ride home. It's a good life.

New toys

Stace is getting a little help here in sanding Cora's new toy box. It's all assembled now, and Stace is now filling and sanding the nail holes. We're awaiting hinges and decorations and the assembly of the bench seat, and then Stace can begin varnishing. He used beautiful wood, so we won't need to cover it with paint.
Here is Stace's newest toy - a Thomas the Tank Engine Hornby train set. We got it off of EBay for a great deal, and it will add to Stace's childhood train set collection. Cora and Somer are impressed.
We had a nice weekend. On Saturday, we had friends over for a girly party in the morning (Stace and some others went hiking) and then we went bowling in the afternoon. I even did some baking beforehand, for the morning event, when I had a consultant from this company called Once Upon a Family come and speak. Everyone came back to our home after the bowling for a Christmas gift exchange. Since we don't host all that often, it was nice to have friends and family at our home.

Not until you're married!

When is it too early to have that chat, the one all parents dread? Here is Cora and William playing...

Bananas and toy boxes

Here's some photos of Cora having "dinner" tonight, on her 11-month birthday.
Stace and I were having leftover Mexican lasagna (from this great recipe on my friend Sophia's Web site - I highly recommend it!), but it wasn't something Cora could have. I got out the yogurt and a banana, planning to give her chunks of it, and before I knew it Stace had given it to her like this. She liked it, as you can see, though I had to stop her from eating the skin and stem a couple of times.
The third photo shows Cora's method of eating yogurt. She likes to open her mouth for me to spoon it in, and then help push it further into her mouth with her hand. It makes for messy eating, with yogurt all over her hands.
We've been busy getting caught up with our friends this week, in person and on the phone. Today (Wednesday) we had lunch with our friends, Elissa and baby Harvey. They're Stroller Striders and also go to Real Life Church, where we've been going since August or so. On Thursday we plan to see Christy and William in the day, and then have dinner with Sarah (another Stroller Strider) and her husband and son.
In other Cora news, in time for her 11-month day, Cora said her first definite word. On Tuesday, we went into the mall pet store to look at the puppies. When we got inside, in view of the dogs, Cora clearly said "doggie." Quite the big moment! Also, she seems to have learned to sit up, from the lying-down position. After a nap today I found her sitting up. Time to get that crib mattress lowered!
Stace has been busy this week constructing his toy box after work - er, I mean Cora's toy box. It's really taking shape, and Somer, the construction foreman, approves.

Weekend ramblings

With four teeth, Cora is enjoying her Cheerios more these days (well, actually I should say her Trader Joe's O's). When I give them to her, she will hold one in between her fingers and crunch them in between her teeth. She also has begun "sharing" her food, or whatever else she finds to pick up. She offers it to you, and then sometimes gives it up when you reach for it.
Doesn't she look sweet in her new lilac outfit? Thanks, Mitchum family! We already had a hair bow that matches perfectly.
She is still sleeping fantastically, and has been in a better mood the last few days. She is getting very good at giving hugs and nuzzles, the kind that melt a mama's heart.
Cora is seen here in the cafe at Borders, where we stopped for a hot drink (and milk for Cora) after a shopping trip at the mall. I was a good girl and spent ALL my birthday money. Thanks, Sue, Gordon and Mary! I purchased the reddish sweater and dark green-blue corduroys you can (kind of) see me wearing in the photo, and a pair of dark jeans and another pair of beige corduroys. I really needed the new trousers, as my figure has changed quite a bit after 11 months or so of nursing Cora. All of my pants were too loose on me, making them hang down too long and then be too long as well. It was great buying pants that fit (or will fit, after hemming)!
On Saturday, Stace installed a new toilet in the spare bathroom, and put in our new home theater system (another great Christmas gift for which we're most grateful). I think he wished he had gone to work instead! He also has spent a lot of time this weekend designing the toy box he plans to make for Cora. From what he's shown me, it will be amazing, and perfect for the great toys Cora received for Christmas.

Back on track

We are happy to report that just in time for my birthday (Thursday), Cora is back to herself. Today, Friday, she didn't wake up until 7 after going down at 9:30. What a relief! If only Stace could sleep so well - the jet lag is still waking him up at 3 and 4 in the morning, and he's having trouble getting back to sleep.
The photos here are from my birthday dinner at Claim Jumper with we three, and my parents and Melanie. Cora was fairly well-behaved.
I had a delicious chicken pot pie (thanks for the suggestion, JT!), which was so big, it will be dinner again tonight. Stace had the rotisserie chicken, as he is back to eating well after quite a few sausage rolls and pasties and fish and chips and pork pies in England. His cholesterol check is next week! I'm very thankful for the lovely presents , and am looking forward to doing some clothes shopping with my birthday gift certificates to Ann Taylor!
In the smiling photo, you can see the other little 'gifts' Cora got for Christmas, those pesky two front teeth. They appeared around Christmas time, and probably contributed to some of the screaming we reported earlier.

Also Thursday, we visited Lylia and Kelsie. We haven't visited each other since September, so we both noticed quite a change in our girls. Kelsie will be one in a few weeks!

Home again

We made it back home by about 8 p.m., local time, on Tuesday night. I can report that the flight was better than our way in, with Cora sleeping for almost three of the nearly 11 hours. Her nap of two-plus hours allowed Stace and me to get some needed rest, and she was content to sit and play in the bassinet while we ate dinner. I thank the Lord for both of those things, as Stace and I were both very hungry. Cora also did plenty of crying, as she was overtired because she needed more sleep than she got. It was a lot of work, and Stace and I took turns trying to keep her happy. Mercifully, she slept fairly well last night in her own bed, and perhaps she will get back on Santa Clarita time quickly and easily.