Daily Grind

I'm posting these videos mostly for myself. They will seem long and uneventful to everyone else but for me it is a sweet reminder of why I wanted to be a mother and how lucky I feel to watch her learn and grow each day.

Following the Leader

Clara loves to walk her parents around the house. At first it was hard and scary and then it became the only thing she wanted to do. It's a killer on Mom and Dad's backs but her delighted squeals make it well worth the pain.

Bitter Sweet

Before we said our final farewell to Kansas we made a trip to Cameron, MO to say goodbye to Clark's grandmother who passed away. It was a beautiful service but even more beautiful was the gathering of the family that dearly loves her and will miss her. Here are all of her grandchildren and some of her great-grandchildren.



Clara got lots of attention from her second cousin, Annabelle!

Worst Blogger Ever

A special apology to my parents and in-laws for being the worst blogger EVER. I've got excuses by the truckload but the real culprit is my own laziness. Getting behind makes the task even more daunting but here's my first effort to catch up. While I may not have blogged, I fortunately still took pictures and home vidoes. It is crazy to look back at these and see how far Clara has come is such a short time. She looks like such a big girl now compared to this next video.

We took this in June while we were packing up our apartment in Wichita. Too cheap to buy blocks, we made-do with plastic cups. My favorite part about this video is Clara's arm flapping; she's starting to grow out of it now but it is something that Clark and I have always loved.

Rewind

These photos were taken in December of 2009. We used one of them for our Christmas card but I didn't get the rest of them back until just recently. I love them so I had to post them. I can't believe how small she was and how much she has changed in so little time.

Hairdo

Playing with Clara's hair. It is almost long enough for pigtails on top but I had trouble getting her to hold still long enough to put the clips in her hair or to get a straight part.

Summer Fun

Clark caught Clara and I playing with our "blocks." Okay they are not blocks they are empty plastic cups but they are still stackable and PRETTY. They also make great noises when you knock them over. At the time, Clara wasn't quite sure what to do with these things when they are stacked in a big pyramid but now she is very excited to knock any structure mommy builds down - usually before it gets very tall. Banging them together has also proved most entertaining.

I have recently introduced Clara to the pool. We go to the YMCA almost every day (though this week has been difficult with all the rain and thunderstorms). The first day she was a little uneasy but every day since she has played in the water like an old pro. We spend about the same amount of time at the pool as we do PREPARING for the pool but it is well worth it. Pool time = sleepy babies. This is Clara all tuckered out from splish-splashing in the sun. Don't you love to watch little ones sleep; so precious!