Happy birthday, Audrey!

Here's our happy little water babe, a few days before her first birthday.

Chompin' on a watermelon rind in the park. She's not a kid who likes a lot of fruit, so when she finds something she does like, we tend to let her go for it!

With her buddy Molly, at the park. Look, Mama: I've got my foot! I know I do this all the time, but still: I've got my FOOT!

It's so hard for me to believe that my tiny little baby is already one year old. I know that everybody says that, and I hate to be cliche. And yet, the reason everybody trips about their baby turning one is because it goes so fast, and so slow, and the days add up, one by one, drop by drop, and before you know it, what was once your baby is now your child. I think about all the things she can do now, and how very strong her will and personality are becoming, and even the seemingly simplest things that she can do now were impossible just a short time ago.

And I'm oh so very tired, because, well, remember back when she was first born? How hard she was, how difficult to soothe, how particular her needs? Well ... I'm a little concerned that we're entering a renewed period of cantankerousness. I am praying to whatever benevolent forces might be that we're not going to go through three tough months every year. That would be, well, not fun. TM and I joke that she's hit her terrible twos early. She is an advanced child. Seriously, she has begun to throw some pretty phenomenal temper tantrums. And she seems to be tired all the time. And she sleeps, it's not like she doesn't sleep: at least two naps a day, at least one hour each, and more often at least one of her daily naps is more like two hours or more. AND she sleeps for anywhere from 9 to 11 hours at night! Oh, I'm hoping this fussy phase will be short. And I'm fearing that it might not be.

But when she isn't fussy or tired, she is just the sweetest, happiest baby around. She still loves to be on the move; she's learned to climb the stairs, and loves to chase after the cats (who really do not love to be chased. Fortunately, she rarely gets close enough to them to freak them out too badly; Georgia, in particular, is a very good sport about the whole thing). She had two weeks of swimming "lessons" with her dad in mid-June, and spent 30 minutes a day for eight days splashing and shrieking and having a grand time. Since then, they've been hitting the pool in our condo complex more days than not, and they both love it.

She's closer and closer to walking all the time. I think that's what's making her both tired and fussy: I think her little brain and body are churning out new programming at a furious rate, and when it all comes together, I think we'll all settle back into a more "normal" state. Of course, it will be a new normal, involving chasing after a toddler for 12 hours a day!

We're looking forward to her big birthday bash on July 19th, but we celebrated fairly quietly over the July 4th weekend at my mom's, with dinner out (and breakfast, too), more presents (from Nana) than a one-year-old needs (thanks, Nana -- we love you!), and, of course, her first cake:

Fortunately, she was far more interested in getting it on her than in her, so thus far we're successfully dodging the sugar beast. We'll see whether that trend continues at her next party!

I'll try to post more often than once a month, I really do try not to let so much time go by. We'll see how July works out.