Naked Evvie and the Long Hallway- Plus a Stylin' Pompadour

Her tentative steps are almost an all-out run now, as Evvie works up the courage to walk on her own. She enjoys her push-toys a lot (although the dog has taken a contrary position on their use).

Post Holiday Mechanics

Evvie helped daddy put together her new push toy. (Help consisted of moving all the parts around and lubricating the screwdrivers with saliva).Once this push-wagon was complete, Evvie wasn't sure which she preferred- riding in it or pushing it around! She's extremely fond of pushing carts around, and not afraid to show off her skills by humbly clapping and cheering.

Her new hat came in handy when we returned from Christmas and the house needed time to warm up.

Christmas in Saranac Lake

Our Christmas Eve eve commenced in the great state of New York where Ruby an Griffin were eagerly awaiting the arrival of Santa. They kept Evvie entertained with their energy and their fish until the big day when the presents arrived.


It was a whirlwind trip with Hallie, Ruby, Jay & Smitty battling various ailments, but perservering with the Chritmas Spirit intact! Everything culminated with a big swim with Uncle Butch, Uncle Jason, Hallie, Griffin, Evvie & Jay in the hotel pool. The best times always seem to pass too quickly.

Christmas in Turner

We celebrated Christmas with the Princes a little early. Evvie loved Grandma's plush Rudolph doll and learned how to really rip presents open. She loved her new animal farm and kitty kitty from California, as well as some great books and outfits. Unfortunately we had to leave her presents & Ruby behind for our trip to upstate New York! Ruby promised to take good care of everything, and to keep grandpa from breaking anything.

Hi there!

Evelyn has just decided that as longas her nap is going to be super long (3 hours- woo-hoo!), she's going to wait until after lunch to take it. No more 10am naptime, just one good long middle-of-the-day snooze.

This picture was taken at 11:45 am, and as you can see, she's not in any dire need of sleep.

Brusha Brusha!

With a whopping six teeth in her head, Evvie's picked up the twice-daily brushing habit pretty well. We just have her brush when we brush and she's all over it.

You've got to buy special baby toothpaste wihout fluoride, because it's designed to be able to be swallowed rather than spit out. This was all news to me when I was standing there in the grocery store with a plethora of options before me. It's not the first time I've felt lost as a parent, and certainly not the last.

The Kiss

Such a sweet little girl!

Thinking Outside the Box...

But Standing in One!

This morning Evvie woke up later than usual. After nursing she still seemed cranky so I offered her more breakfast. After polishing off 10 oz of yogurt and a slice of soy cheese I thought that this change in her routine was fairly dramatic and might signal something. Something might happen today.

What happened was that Evvie suddenly became willing and eager to stand without holding on to anything. She took several steps several times today at grandma's house while holding hands-which she had previously been unwilling to do (usually with a look of- "hey, I can crawl WAY faster than this!"). Something's clicked. Something's changed. It's fascinating to watch. Today she woke up ready to try.

So that's it. She's thirteen months old, and although still not walking, she made huge steps today (pun intended).

A Disturbing Bit of Play...

After Evvie went to bed and we cleaned up behind her, we noticed a miniature crime scene where she had been playing...
I think I may call a child psychologist and hope that I sleep tonight.

New Teeth

So here's a picture of the best angle on Evvie's new teeth. We didn't even realize she was teething, until turning her upside down during play a few days ago. Surprise! Incisors!

(You have to look carefully to the sides of her top front teeth, but there's at least one.)
Momma's got a pretty good set of choppers that she's gloating about in the upper corner of the picture as well. Show off!

Farm Fun

On our way out of town after Thanksgiving, the Grandparents followed us to Nezinscot Farm to see what animals were out and about. We saw llamas and sheep at the first pen, which got Evvie going "baaa". After that, a couple of farm cats inspired a shrill series of screeches (as kitties always do).

We saw some pigs and then goats, and then got brayed at by a donkey at about 400 decibels. Evvie wasn't quite sure if she was amused or not, but the goats quickly regained her attention and she "baa"ed for the rest of the night.

Pilgrim Day

Evvie had her second official Thanks- giving among family in Turner. As you can see, she did not happen to be overtaken by the theme of the "First Thanksgiving" (despite "hat" bein her current favorite word) and discarded the idea of looking like a pilgrim rather quickly...


"hmmm"


"No, I Don't Think So"


"THERE!"


(luckily momma took up the slack!)


Cousin Ava also proved to be an excellent sport and ground some cinnamon and allspice the old-fashioned way.


On the way to Turner we took an extra-long there while Evvie napped. Her batteries were pretty charged when we got there at 11 am and amazingly she remained awake and in excellent spirits right through until we left at 5 and then her normal bedtime at 7pm. It was one of her first one-nap days, and she handled it like a champ. She's only had 1 before this and that was a real low-key boring ol' day home with dad.

It was a wonderful day with the best Thanksgiving spread this side of the Mississippi. Dad and mom gorged themselves as usual and Evvie tried a few bites of asparagus, but pretty much stuck to the sweet potatoes.

Ava taught her a lot about pilgrims, while Iris gave her a few pointers on looking real cute in matching outfits.

Reduce - Reuse - Recycle

The little scamp opened up our new recycling cabinet and found a plethora of... "toys".


The intent of this cabinet had been to keep us tidier and more organized...

Thursdays Happen

A True American Patriot

While her dad may be a Patriots fan, Evvie doesn't seem to have the same fire for the game.

No, it's not heavyhanded- have you seen the amount of purple her mother puts her in?

One is Fun!

Today Evvie was a party animal! We celebrated her belated first birthday with a fun party at Grammie and Grandpa Prince's house.

First she watched the birds with Grandpa while the guests arrived...

Then she opened her presents with lots of help from Ava and Iris. Ava even made a great book for Evvie to read. It's full of doggies!

Evvie enjoyed her new books, toys, clothes, and most certainly her new giraffe rocker from uncle Jeddie! Grammie seems to be having as much fun showing it to her as she'll have riding it!

Today may have been Evvie's first chance to have cake and icing, but she declined the opportunity. (And her momma and daddy were up until 11:30 making the cupcakes!!!) She just pushed it away in disgust. Well, what can I say- she's a cheese and crackers girl! Cake will have to wait for another day.

All the girls got together after cake for a snuggle in the rocker.

Thanks to everybody who where there in body and in spirit for her great loot and great amount of love. Evvie's blessed with the great gift of love from many, many directions.

1 Year Wellness Update

Lots more shots (MMR, chicken pox, HIB) this time around. We've got to get better about brushing her teeth, but Evvie looks good, although a bit underweight.

New Stats:

Weight: 17 lbs. 10 oz
4%

Length: 28"
15%

Head: 17.75"
49%

I'm beginning to hate these benchmarks. The measurement process seems pretty suggestive, as her length last August was 28 1/2 inches. Look- she's shrunk! It is obvious that she could gain some weight, but you cannot see her ribs. She's been eating like a trooper lately, so we'll see if the pounds add up. No forward-facing car seat yet, honey! (Gotta be 20 lbs. for that)

Her love of stuffed animals continues to grow, and she shows her affection by hugging them and tackling them to the floor. Her Kitty Lynx, her Pooh, her Jacob Giraffe, Her mama & baby Gorillas, Howie the Cowie and her Mr. Enormous Bear are among her favorites.

Pennsylvania and New Jersey

After taking her first plane trip (which went very smoothly, by the way), Evvie woke up in a brand new bed in Malvern, PA- home of Uncle Butch and Auntie Bobbi.

It was merely one week before Evvie's birthday so Grandpa and Grandma Smith drove down to celebrate!

Grandma brought the balloons...

...Grandpa brought his beard...

...and Rhonda brought her new hat!

There was pumpkin pie and merriment to be had by all. Evvie hauled in some great loot- a stack of new books, a stuffed froggie that eats bugs, and a musical caterpillar that she can ride on!

Evvie was also quite taken buy Gus- Butch & Bobbi's Labradoodle, and climbed up a whole set of stairs to get to him. Then she climbed up them again.

And again.

Jay's thinking abut building a set of stairs in our one-level ranch for her to play on!

Then it was off to the Jersey shore to see Steve and Lauren exchange vows.

It was a lovely ceremony by the ocean, then a lively party! The first dance was to Tom Waits' "Little Trip to Heaven (On the Wings of Your Love)" which tugged on Jay's emotions quite a bit.

After a whirlwind weekend, it was back to Maine and to the destruction that is our kitchen remodeling project. (Soon just a happy memory, right?...RIGHT?!)

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