God bless us, everyone!

And so He did, with a wonderful Christmas! It was an absolute joy to watch Bailey play with her grandparents, parents and dogs as she opened her presents Christmas morning. Each gift she opened was her favorite and it was difficult to convince her to put it aside and open another gift! Her last gift of the morning was a kitchen set that bubbles and sizzles when you put a pot on the stove. She spent the rest of the morning making "hot coffee" for momma and daddy and "chicken nugget soup"!

We feel so very blessed to have each other.
We wish you a wonderful and blessed 2010!!!

Happy Fall Ya'll!!

We went on a visit to the Pumpkin Patch over the weekend. Bailey enjoyed patting the pumpkins and hopping between the rows.
Next week, Bailey as Tinkerbell!!

Random Cute Pictures!!!

Bailey opened the fridge and helped herself to a ladyfinger off the side of the delicious tiramisu my friend Katie made for my birthday!

Bailey and her Gammaw!

Bailey and her beloved hippo shoes.

In the rocking chair with two of her many Eeyores.

Bailey loves "yogurk"

Fish out of water! She loves Nemo.

Sportin' a sassy new hat!

Other cute things Bailey does:
When the dogs were wrestling on the couch the other night she stood in front of them and shook her finger at them saying "Stop it! Please!"
She also enjoys reading a book called "How I Became a Pirate" so to tell us that is the book she wants she crooks her finger (like a hook) and says "arrrgh, arrrgh"

When eating her snack she will hold out a goldfish and say "mama, eat it! bite!" and when you get close to take the bite she grins and pops it into her own mouth!

These days we hear a lot of "I do it! I get it! I take it!"

She's quite a character!

Baby Hippo

Today was Brent's first band contest of the year. Bailey and I decked out in our Hutto Hippo finest and went to cheer on Daddy and the Hippo Band. Bailey looked adorable in her hippo shirt and matching hippo shoes!

The "Plague" is Upon Us

I am standing witness to one of the most heartbreaking scenes I have ever witnessed. If you haven't heard (and I'm pretty sure most of you have) Bailey has come down with the flu. And I don't mean, "Bailey has the sniffles and since everyone else has the flu, then this must be the flu too." Being a teacher I hear this all the time (usually followed by the student returning the next day proclaiming "I'm cured!).

Friday night before we put the Squidget to bed, Tam and I noticed that Bailey was running a low grade fever. By 11 o'clock however, it was no longer a low grade anything and Tammie and I started thinking the worst...flu.

A long night ensued and a trip to the doctor's office in the morning confirmed our fears. Normally the flu test takes 15 minutes to produce a result...Bailey's took less than five!

Type A was the result which means there is a 75% chance that it is the H1N1 strain (which also means that there is nearly a 100% chance that Tammie and I will also come down with the flu...yeah). For all the hype and fear-mongering happening concerning this flu strain, it really is just the flu...no better or worse than your typical run-of-the-mill flu. But that still doesn't make watching Bailey suffer through it any easier.

For all of you who have sent their prayers and well wishes, thank you and please keep them coming. This is going to be a long week for the three of us, and maybe even a long couple of weeks (depending on whether Tam and I become "unclean").

We'll keep you posted.

Oh, and Happy International Talk Like a Pirate Day!


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Three Reasons I Know My Daughter is a Genius

1. The other day we were leaving Baskin Robbins after having ice cream with friends and we saw a horse trailer in the parking lot. Bailey has never seen a real horse so we watched it for a moment and then I said we should head home to tell Daddy about the horsey. So we drive home and chat about other things, sing to music, etc. We get home and Bailey goes right up to her Dad and says "Daddy, horsey! Horsey!" What a memory!
2. Same day I went into the kitchen to take out the trash. Bailey was watching the dogs out the sliding door and Brent was in the back. I yelled to Brent I was taking the trash outside. When I returned Bailey had pulled a new trash bag from the cabinet under the sink and was attempting to shake it out to put in the trash can. Such powers of observation!
And finally 3: Bailey is a big fan of the book "No, David" written and illustrated by David Shannon. Last night Bailey was going through the books on her shelf. She pulled one off that she has never read, "How I Became a Pirate." She looked at the cover and exclaimed "No David!" And sure enough, the book was illustrated by David Shannon! She recognized the style of the artist!
Like I said, genius...

One Crazy Summer

Summer started out well enough with Mom and Dad visiting Disneyworld while the Squidget enjoyed 4 days with Grandma and Grandpa. Shortly thereafter we all ventured to South Padre for some fun in the sun. Then Squidget decided sleep was for the weak and she sure as heck isn't weak! so she stopped sleeping through the night as she had done for months now and took to waking up 6-8 times a night screaming bloody murder. Fast forward 6 weeks, that's right I said 6 WEEKS, and mom and dad finally bucked up and instituted the "cry it out" method, which is just as unpleasant as it sounds but effective. Now we are on night 4 of resuming sleeping through the night and we are all enjoying our summer a lot more! Although Brent's summer is over now since summer band began yesterday at least we are getting some rest now!
Bailey has also taken her first few steps unaided. She is a late bloomer in this area but as my friend told me today, it means she is gifted because she doesn't want to do something until she knows she can do it right the first time! ;)
She is as adorable and funny as ever, talking with the puppies in their language by panting along with them and requesting "pool?" every few minutes. She has no fear in the water and will happily fling herself away from whichever parent is holding her, grinning and flailing her legs. We try to go often since she loves it so much.

So now we are trying to stay out of the over 100 degree heat we have every day and enjoy what's left of our summer. We hope you are doing the same!

Somebody's Gotta Do It

Since my darling husband has been neglecting his blog (but not, thankfully, his family!) I thought I would step in for a guest post. It would also be difficult for Brent to post this weekend since he is spending the majority of it on a bus to Florida with 100 high school band kids!
As if that thought isn't scary enough, I am going to join them tomorrow evening in Orlando for the extravaganza that will be 4 days in Walt Disney World!! I know, I'm in need of psychological help...
But on to what you really want to know about...BAILEY!!!!
She continues to dazzle her parents daily with her wit and charm, not to mention the fact that she is a genius. Not sure if we've mentioned that before. She has many words in her vocabulary, among them puppies, baby, Blaylee (that's Bailey), mama, dada, papa, nana, bubbles, and many others but her definite favorite would be NO! It's cute the way she says it...
Also, at our most recent doctor visit last week we learned that she is now 34 inches tall, almost 3 feet!!! WNBA here we come!
She also has a very definite sense of style but I'll let her pictures speak to that...

 

Ever seen a cuter baby? Didn't think so...

Happy summer everyone!!

And the Results are in...

Drum roll, please...

No pertussis (that's Whooping Cough for everyone else)! No croup (that's...um...croup for everyone else)! Allergies! 

Whoever thought we'd be excited about allergies?!

Bailey has been having a great week. After her last visit to the doctor on Thursday, the general consensus is that Bailey is probably suffering from something floating in the air (and these days, who isn't...). A little children's allergy medicine before bed (just a 1/2 a teaspoon, don't freak out. She's not hooked up to an IV with this stuff...yet) and we are right as rain the next day. 

Aside from the swine flu scare(insert dramatic music...) nothing much is going on in the Acuff household. Bailey learned how to say Max's name (well, we thought it was Max's name, but it's really just "maa." Kind of like "baa," from a sheep...except with an "m."). She wakes up in the morning, and as the dogs make their way to the back rooms, toenails a clattering, she waves to them and says "maa."

But then she pointed to a picture of a dog and said "maa." It was a picture of a dachshund, and it did look like Max...no problem. Then tonight she pointed to another dog being walked down the sidewalk and said "maa" (definitely NOT a dachshund and nowhere near resembling Max). So we figure that is her word for dog...maa. I guess the way she figures it, Max is a dog, his name is "maa," henceforth EVERY dog is named "maa."

Works for me...

Her other new word for the week is baby. And she likes saying both of them. Bailey points to pictures of babies and says "baydie." She'll even point to her pictures on the wall and her reflection in the mirror and say "baydie." And this doesn't hold true for just any picture...only pictures of babies.

Told you...

GENIUS!!!

Weekend's Not Over Yet!

 I can still get it in under the wire.

We've had a pretty quiet weekend here in the Acuff home, but there has been quite a bit of excitement in the last couple of weeks. Bailey is still "recovering" from, well, something. After our excitement last weekend (you remember...that trip to the Urgent Care?), mom and dad were hoping for a quick recovery.

Oh, what foolish people we are...

Grandma and Grandpa Acuff spent a couple of days taking care of Bailey (thanks again!), warning us as they left for home on Wednesday that "I still think she needs to stay home. She's still got that cough." Yes, mom...you were right.

Thursday at daycare was a bit of a struggle. Bailey coughed all day and her nose was a faucet. I had made an appointment to see her doctor, and everything went "GREAT" from there. Doctor ordered a breathing treatment (hey, it's not as easy as it looks. You try pinning a screaming baby AND holding a breathing mask over her mouth and nose...for almost 15 minutes), then the doctor ordered a pertussis test. For those of you not in the know, pertussis is usually referred to as Whooping Cough. yeah...

We'll know the full results on Monday, but basically it boils down to one of three things:

a) Bailey has whooping cough...not great;

b) Bailey has croup...still not great, but better than (a); or

c) Bailey has severe congestion and drainage causing her cough...which one would you choose?

Bailey is still a very happy baby, laughing and playing all day, giving kisses and hugs and making mom and dad laugh all the time (peek-a-boo is her favorite...). Her appetite is healthy (and I mean healthy...this girl is turning into a bottomless pit!) and she is sleeping well. No matter the diagnosis, Bailey is well on the mend...it just might take a little longer than we want.

So now it is Sunday night. Tammie and I are getting things together for tomorrow when Grandpa Burke takes his turn with the baby bug and getting ready for TAKS testing this week...(oh boy!) and watching the weather. To be honest, I am more worried about the bad weather headed our way than I am about what the doctor will let us know tomorrow. Take care and keep the little Squidget in your thoughts. We'll keep you posted when we hear more.

Yes, I Know...Missed Saturday Post

But this time I have a reason...(unfortunately).

Bailey has been sick this weekend. First we couldn't make a dirty diaper (which was VERY upsetting for everyone involved), then we started running a 103 degree fever. Quick trip (relatively speaking) to the minor emergency, and low and behold...ear infection.

The other concern of the doctor was that Bailey had been congested for 2 weeks now, and the possibility of pneumonia was creeping up. So antibiotics and a prednosone derivative, and hopefully Bailey will be on the mend.

Actually, after giving Bailey her first dose of medicine (namely the prednosone derivative) and Bailey is already doing worlds better. No fever and a lot happier baby. Hopefully things will start to clear up quickly. Keep the little Squidge in your thoughts (and her mom and dad who are desperately trying to keep a little sick baby comforted and happy...a full time job in itself).

(Oh, and dirty diaper success on Saturday night...finally...after lots, and LOTS of crying...from most of the people in the house...woohoo)

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Kept My Promise, and It's Not Even Saturday

Bailey is the cutest. We all know this...there is no denying it. Every day there is something new that just makes us love her more.

Lately Bailey has been very clingy. Clingy to mom that is, not dad. If mom is not around, hey, dad's the best. But as soon as mom walks in the door..."Dad, who?"

Tonight, same song, second verse. Mom and dad both on the floor playing with the Squidget. Time for bed, so dad gets up off the floor so he can pick Bailey up to take her to bed. Nope, can't have that. Bailey just cried and cried until mom gets off the floor, at which point Bailey immediately reaches for her.

Cute, a little hurtful, but I understand completely. Bailey just stares at me, sad faced and pouty bottom lip. I told her "you break my heart," and then, right on cue, she mended that broken heart and melted it all at once. As soon as I told her she had broken my heart, Bailey leaned forward and gave her dad a big kiss.

How can you not love a little girl like that?

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Turning Over a New Leaf

Ha...do you honestly believe that? Well, I'm going to "try" and post something at least once a week. Hopefully on Saturdays, but really, what are the odds?

This week in Bailey Land...

Bailey has actually been home most of the week (as well as mom and dad...), because of a cold. She has had one of the worst coughs she's ever had in her 14 month old life (which mom and dad are now enjoying...yeah) and has consequently kept herself and her parents awake until all hours of the night. Mom home Monday morning, tag...dad home Monday afternoon (that was an interesting change of the guard..."Hi, honey. Bye, honey," literally as we passed each other going in and out of the door). Grandpa on Tuesday (Bailey and grandpa played "hide-and-seek" all day long), daycare on Wednesday (at which time Miss Ruby said "I think she may be getting pink-eye...THANKS!), and dad again on Thursday.

Away to the doctor we go! And of course, the infamous words from the doctor..."There's nothing that we can do. You'll just have to try and keep her happy."

At what point, in the entire history of children, has ANY parent EVER been able to keep a sick kid happy? Huh? When?

Bailey switches from happy baby to "The World is Coming to an End" baby faster than a speeding bullet (at which point she could probably throw her toys over a tall building in a single throw...catch the Superman references...speeding bullet...over a tall building in a single, um, bound? Okay, never mind). Runny nose, goopy eyes, and tons of drool round out our "wonderful" week with our precious little girl.

And now Easter weekend...and nobody wants a nap. Well, actually, mom and dad want a nap. It's Bailey who doesn't seem to think that being tired means you need to sleep (silly, silly baby...). She'll take one nap in the morning, but later in the day, crabby-tired baby makes an appearance, and no one gets to rest. Bailey is on the mend. Eyes are not quite as red, nose not as runny. Grandma Acuff is in for the Easter weekend and luckily Bailey is putting on a "show" for Grandma. Cute, sweet, precious Bailey makes an appearance as long as Grandma is in the room.

Maybe Grandma can stay this next week?

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Did You Know There Was a Month of March?

Apparently, I didn't.

My most sincere apologies for the length of time in between these posts. It doesn't seem as if a lot has happened (everything seems to blur together), but we have had a lot going on.

Bailey is growing everyday (just in case you didn't know that babies actually grew), and her personality is becoming stronger (as in strong willed...her favorite word these days is "No." Oh great...) More teeth and a few more bruises (no matter how hard she tries, that wall just will not budge, no matter how many times she beats her head against it). Bailey is crawling around the house with a purpose these days and is starting to show an interest in (maybe) pulling up and standing (usually when she is mad...).

Mommy had surgery (nothing major, just a nose job. Love you, sweetie!) so it was "Daddy Daycare" and "Personal Servant" around our house over Spring Break. Tammie couldn't pick up and hold Bailey, which I think turned out to be the worst part of the surgery for her (that and the pain, swelling, bleeding, discomfort and inability to sleep for almost 5 days...), but I think that we generally had a restful (and much needed) Spring Break. Tammie got her car towed (illegally, I might add...and I'm just looking to fight!), but we are fortunate to have a great friend (Katie Lewis) who is in the property management business and offered up an invaluble resource to fight the tow. Anyone and everyone who is reading this needs to bookmark the website www.texastowingcompliance.com. It was an eyeopener for me, and it is my goal to make sure EVERYONE knows their rights when it comes to towing in Texas.

Daddy had his first physical (*dripping with sarcasm* Yeah...) and was issued a clean bill of health; Grandmas and Grandpas of both sides are competing to see who gets to spend the most time with their granddaughter (Grandpa Burke even raced me to her daycare, then called me to brag that he had gotten her first.) At the writing of this post, Bailey is getting over a cold, slowing getting back to normal. She kept mom and dad home yesterday and grandpa today, but hopefully will be back to daycare and a normal(ish) routine tomorrow.

On a sad note, Bailey lost her Great Grandmother Applewhite in the first part of March. If ever anyone deserved a special place in Heaven, it would be Harriet Applewhite. In the 13 years that I knew her, not once did I ever hear her speak a bad thing about anyone, even if she believed that someone had wronged her or her family. Harriet's sole purpose in life was her family and friends; everything that she did, thought, or said was for the betterment of her family. There was not a selfish bone in her entire body. She will be missed more than she could possibly know.

Take care and make sure every day is lived to its fullest. Hug your loved ones and don't wait to tell them how much they mean to you. More to come (hopefully sooner than later...).

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Mama Mia!

It's official...she knows who we are. Tammie and I just love this video and play it over and over again (which I'm sure you will too!). Apparently Bailey didn't like having video taken of her becasue she is the one who reached around and turned off the camera (sniff--my bright little girl...already a computer genius).

Dada?

One year and two weeks...wow!

Bailey is growing every day (and learning new words every day...guess Tammie and I have to start watching what we say) and she is a joy to watch. Every new morning brings a little more personality with it (and these days a "special" prize. We try to make it to daycare before that one drops) and new things for Tammie and I to experience with Bailey. But this past Friday she wound her daddy around her finger a little tighter.

Bailey has been saying "mama" and "dada" for a few months now. For a while there, each one was her favorite word, and depending on the day we heard "mama/dada" ALL day long (don't get me wrong. Tammie and I love to listen to her talk. But we are trying to nurture a linguistically superior mind here...let's try some variety in our word selection). Lately when I'm around her, everything is dada. The flowers on the wall, the pictures on the refrigerator, ...the dogs. As we all expect, she was just pointing (her new favorite activity) and saying her favorite word at the time (dada...it's so cute).

However, when I picked Bailey up from daycare on Friday, she turned and saw me coming in the door. She then laughed as loud as possible, waved her arms in the air, then pointed at me and pronouned "dada." 

I was surprised to say the least.

And what made it even better, was she waved at me, crawled over to me and put her hands up to be picked up (is it being prissy if a man cries at being called dada?). Well, I didn't cry, but I can tell you that she made my week! This was the first time that Bailey has ever shown that she associates the word with the object (or person in this case. Because people aren't objects. Especially women. They should be loved and treated with the utmost respect. Women fought hard for equality, and I for one will not objectify women...except for some of the actresses on TV and in movies. But hey, they're ASKING for it!). Now I can delude myself into believing that all those times she pointed at objects and said "dada," she was really saying, "Dada, what's that?" or "Dada, look at that!" (I'm a first time parent. I'm allowed to make these kinds of assumptions...right?).

Needless to say, I have shared this experience with ANYONE who will listen. And now you know too...

(There needs to be a little clarification. When I say that Tammie and I need to "watch what we say," in no way am I implying that we are being foul-mouthed sailors in front of our child. As a matter of fact, we are already trying to be careful with our choices of words when the little squidget is in earshot. She mimics things so quickly that she can really surprise us with what she says. 

So far we are up to the following:

dada, mama, mmmm...., uh-oh (current favorite), titty (Grandma Burke SWEARS it's "pretty," but I'm not so sure), hi, whoa, wow, ta-oo (thank you, I think), uh-uh (another favorite, unfortunately), and various assorted swear words that I have "no" idea where she picked them up (had to be daycare...had to be).

More to come, I'm sure.)

Quick and Cute

Just a quick and cute story about Bailey...

Bailey has a friend at daycare, Alex, who is the cute granddaughter of Miss Rubie. Yesterday while I was dropping Bailey off, I had put Bailey still in her carseat in the chair. Alex came running up to Bailey like she does everyday and pointed up to Bailey saying "Aylay" (baby speak for "Bailey"...cute huh?). Bailey then had to respond in kind, so she blew her kisses.

And I mean full on, hand to the mouth, (*smack*) kisses! Advice: always teach babies to blow kisses. It's cute and they LOVE to do it. Bailey blows kisses to her mother every morning as we are pulling out of the driveway and blows kisses to me in the mirror all the way to daycare most mornings.

Cute!

Birthday Video of Bailey

I tried to add this to the earlier post, but time got away from me (and the upload was taking FOREVER!). Here is a short video of Bailey after she has "enjoyed" her birthday cake.

This is what she thought of the whole birthday experience...

From Bailey's 1st Birthday

(You'll never realize what it actually took to upload this video.  Good lord, I thought this was supposed to be easy.)

12 Months? 1 Year Old??? Oh My!

Well, it's official (really, really). Bailey is ONE YEAR OLD!!!

I first would like to thank everyone for the support and well wishes over this past year. It has truely been the most exhausting, frustrating, wonderful and happy year that Tammie and I have ever spent together. Having a child isn't easy (as most of you know...and Billy and Tyfany are starting to find out), but it is the most rewarding thing that Tammie and I have done.

And now for the news...

Over the last month, all three of us have gone through one kind of infection or another. Tammie started things off with a sinus infection (and probably spread the virus to the rest of us...thanks dear) and was put on antibiotics. Shortly thereafter, Bailey got an ear infection (we didn't catch this one early. We all took the brunt of it this time...no sleep, only sleeping in mom and dad's bed, crying for long, LONG periods of time, not eating...yeah). And just as Bailey was starting to make a turn for the better, dad get a sinus infection (what do they say about the family that goes on antibiotics together? No seriously...what do they say. I'm curious.).

All of us are feeling much better, and thankfully just in time for Bailey's first birthday. And now what you really want to hear about...the birthday party!

Well...

Bailey didn't get a nap before the actual festivities began, so unfortunately we wound up with a pretty grumpy birthday girl. There were good moments (fleeting as they may have been) when we would get a smile and a little chuckle, but one thing is for sure...ALWAYS get a nap in before a party (I would even recommend this to the adults...everyone can benefit from a few zzzzzzz....).

Bailey was great and the party went well. Lots of food and a spectacular Eeyore cake for Bay (Bay = Bailey...just in case you haven't slept very much and are in a fog. So how are things going Billy and Tyf?). After a short (3 hour) nap, Bailey woke up just in enough time to say goodbye to her grandma and grandpa Acuff before they headed back to the coast. Tammie and I fed her and tried her birthday cake again...

SUCCESS!!!

Bailey LOVED the cake (especially using it as a hair styler), and really enjoyed playing with her new toys. She chased her new balls all around the kitchen, banged away with her very own drumsticks (courtesy of her dad, of course), hugged every Eeyore she got and kissed her bag of new Bathtime Letters and Numbers (English major perhaps? Lets all hope not...I can't spell and don't want Bailey correcting everything I say).

And then bathtime...

Her new inflatable Rubber Duck Bathtub was a hit. She just loved bouncing against the sides and poking him in the back of the head (a little mean spirited if you ask me, but cute nontheless). A little more playtime, a good bottle and it was off to bed for the birthday girl. Aparently she needed it too...she slept until 9 am this morning (you know, I used to look at sleeping in as 10  or 10:30. Now if Bailey sleeps past 8 in the morning it's a good day).

Once again, thank you for the birthday wishes (both mine and Bailey's) and for all the support and prayers throughout this first year. Please keep them coming (as I figure it, we still have 17 more years to go) and please keep in touch. I have updated Bailey's photos on Picasa. If anyone would like copies of the pictures there please let me know (I don't think I uploaded the full size pictures, but would be happy to send ones to you).  Take care and I hope everyone has a safe and happy year.  

Well That Worked Well, Didn't It

I believe it was the last post (Nov. 16th) in which I stated my resolve to post something new "every Saturday." I believe I kept that resolve for...oh, one week.

Let me catch you up...

• Bailey had her first Thanksgiving (yeah!);
• Bailey had her first Christmas (yeah!);
• Bailey had her first urinary tract infection (yeah???)

The week before Bailey's first Christmas (yeah!), on Wednesday, I had stayed at home with Bailey because she had woken up early with a low grade fever and just didn't feel well. We followed the assumption from everyone that Bailey was having trouble with her teeth. She did have FIVE coming in at the same time (and the gap between her two front teeth is MASSIVE! Dear god, I can already see the orthodontist bills...) so Tammie and I assumed as well.

Stupid, stoopid, assumptions!!!

Never, in the entire 11 months that Bailey has been on this earth, has she ever had a definite problem with cutting teeth (when will we ever learn...). The first time she had "trouble" teething, it turned out to be a major case of diarrhea (with a very red bottom to accompany it). The second time she had "trouble" with teething, her fever topped out at 104-105 degrees, prompting a midnight run to the emergency room (actually it was 11:30 pm...but it soon became midnight).

Three hours later, two massive shots of antibiotics, a prescription and lots (and LOTS) of crying, Bailey finally started to feel better. We went home and soon got Bailey back on her schedule, welcomed once again with a happy baby in the mornings.

Then Christmas (yeah!), which Bailey truly enjoyed (probably not as much as mom and dad, but then again WE knew what exactly was going on...Bailey just loved ripping paper and playing with each new toy she was handed). It was extremely cute to watch as we handed her each new toy that was unwrapped. She would look at it, look at the toy already in her hand, quickly discard the "old" toy, and (with gap-toothed smile spreading across her face) joyously accept the newest offering.

Then California...

I miss my baby...

Because of the rigors of traveling, Bailey's schedule is toast...

She screams every night when we put her down to go to sleep...

I miss my baby girl...

Tomorrow we head back to work; Miss Ruby will get Bailey during the day...

May God have mercy upon  her soul...
(and pray that she truly is the miracle worker Tammie and I believe her to be)

(otherwise, we're screwed...) 

Happier note...Bailey's newest (and cutest) tricks:

1. We can sit up by ourselves;
2. We can crawl (army man style, but boy can she move);
3. We can wave (mostly to herself, but who's counting);
4. We can clap (and use appropriate sound effects like "yeah");
5. We can say "Hi" (and she knows the appropriate time to use it...);
6. We can say "Shhh" (but she doesn't always stay "shhh"...);
7. We can pet the doggies...without smacking them:
8. We can kiss (usually she just licks you, but it's still a kiss in my book...); and
9. We can blow kisses.

Even with the difficult times, it is good to relax and remember all of the great things that take place as well. We get caught up in what is wrong instead of what is right, and it causes us undue stress and emotional drain. It tears me apart when I hear Bailey crying and even screaming at night, but I remind myself that she is safe, she is not in pain, and that this is a temper tantrum caused by conditions which were out of her hands. Everything will be okay...we've just got to give it time, patience, and lots of love.

Take care everyone. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! May all of your wishes come true.