Vacation, Finally :)

I won't write as much as I normally might... our very first family vacation earlier this year (March 2008) was GREAT! Josh & I got some alone time at a FABULOUS resort in Galveston for our anniversary, and we got to spend lots of time with Jade and my side of the family in Texas (my parents and my sister). Also, my brother Chad came down (he lives in CA) as a surprise when we arrived--it was great to see him, and he LOVED meeting and playing with Jade (not to mention shopping for and buying her ridiculously cute outfits)! Jade did fairly well on the plane trip(s) and slept for the most part... although I got a "lap-full" on the last leg of the trip (I won't go into details... but it was stinky and wet!) and she got pretty fussy having to sit in our laps the whole time. Can't say I blame her!

All-in-all, it was a fun, WARM trip--thanks to everyone who helped out (my parents with the cost, anyone who watched and helped with the animals, Carol for helping me cover things at work, and anyone else I missed!).

Checkin out the fishies at the Zoo
Jade & Josh popping out of a mole-hole at the Zoo
The elephant family!
Two Funny birds I saw...
Reading with Grammie & Papa--Dr. Seuss of course!

Here is a slideshow of all of our pictures... WAY too many to post here!!! But if you like any of them and want to see the full-size picture, just click on it in the slideshow.

Jade's Jumperoo

Jade Marie luvs her Rainforest Jumperoo... here are some pics of her in it last weekend. Oh--and a cute smile picture, just because. Enjoy!

Proving the experts wrong at the ripe old age of 9 months...

I read a lot of "milestone" emails regarding normal baby/child development. I've come to realize that Jade is pretty much the standard for all of these experts--she does almost EVERYTHING development & growth-wise according to normal milestones. Ivana (the daycare care-giver) decided she is the baby they make growth & development charts based on. It is eerily comforting.
Except teething & socializing.

TEETHING--experts say "many babies may be finally getting their first teeth finally. Some babies may not get any teefers until around their first birthday". Jade now has FIVE teeth--2 top, 3 bottom. She has more teeth than any baby I know her age. Which tells me one things... like her Mom, she loves good yummy fruit that requires teeth to eat :) Maybe I am projecting...

SOCIALIZING--experts say "babies don't really interact, play with, or actively seek out the company of other babies. They are much more interested in toys & Mommy or Daddy". Despite the fact that I have read that several times, I think it's total crap!!! Jade LOVES playing with other kids, especially other babies. And, as you can see below, she's not the only one! I have a video of these two crawling around together that I will try to get posted today or tomorrow--it's sickeningly cute.

Little boy in the picture is a friend of the family's son; he is about 14 months old. Jade is already interested in shoes... his.

She enjoys this toy, but she's good at sharing... and knowing where the camera is at all times
This is her looking for a get-away path, while he charms the others to distract ;)

The Pictures...

Still missing some cute ones from the old camera, but some of these are from just yesterday (cowboy-slippers, diaper & dad shots)! I can't believe how big she is getting, so quickly--almost one year... there will be more pictures to follow in posts tomorrow, but for now--ENJOY!


Jade Marie chooses the funniest places to take a nap...

Sorry, No Pictures yet!

Just wanted to give everyone a little update...

We got a new camera last week (pretty sweet deal @ Costco if anyone is looking to buy!), so I will bring it in tomorrow & post some new pics. We're still looking for the cord to the old camera, as I have some cute pics on there I don't want to lose... we'll see how it goes :)

Last night it rained so much I thought our house might float away with us in it. I realize that is actually happening to people in other areas and I'm not trying to be funny--we live next to a lake & I really was worried! I kept checking on Jade (the rain was pretty loud), but she slept just as soundly as her Mom does... and just as spawled out! She had her head tucked in the corner, laying on her side, with one leg up on her blanket and her foot in between the slats of her crib. I put her foot back in (thought maybe that was an accident and she fell asleep with it stuck that way?), but it was back between the slats this morning... she cracks me up.

Jade had her 9-month check-up a couple of weeks ago--happy & healthy, as usual! I'll put more about her growth & development in the next post, with the pictures.

XOXO--love to all!