Big girl!

Ok, so today was another big day at our house! When I went to get Stella up from her mid-day nap, I found her sitting upright, pacifier in hand, grinning ear to ear. She certainly has something to be very proud of as this was her first time sitting up all by herself! She has sat up with our help, but has never gotten up on her own and stayed that way for a little while. In my excitement at seeing her this way, I said, "hold on a sec, I'll be right back," as I dashed off to grab my camera. Well, unfortunately 6 month-olds have no concept of waiting and unfortunately don't have the concept of object permanence either. That being said, she toppled over the moment I left the room and burst into tears because I was gone. So, any attempt at capturing "the moment" was lost very quickly. She was happy once again when I made it back to her room. I got her up, changed her diaper, etc...(the usual routine) and let her play on the bed while I watched her and sure enough, she went for it again. So, here's her big moment...(after the real big moment)...

Ta-da!

6 Months Old!

Our baby girl is 6 months old today! I can hardly believe it! Last night before I went to bed, I reminded Nick that 6 months ago we didn't know Stella yet...and it was just a few hours later that we got to meet her for the very first time!
Sometimes I try to look ahead at what the next 6 months should bring...the ability to walk (maybe), first words, eating on her own, getting into everything, learning, doing, trying, failing, succeeding...she will be a very different person from the one that we know now. These past few months have been amazing to say the very least. I am so thankful that I am a mom. I love watching her grow and change and learn. I am fascinated by the smallest things and am constantly wanting to know how I can do it even better...by "it" I mean parenting.
It is a great blessing to be a parent and a job that many often take too lightly. We have the ability to impact the world through our children. We can teach them to be giving and honest or to be liars and cheats. We can give them false hope (i.e. American Idol try-outs) or guide and mold their talents. We get to be coaches and friends, disciplinarians, teachers, cheerleaders, nurses (good thing I know how to do that pretty well), and bankers...whatever role we have to take on, we know we can not do it alone.
On Sunday morning we had Stella dedicated at our church. It is a brief ceremony that allows us as parents to stand up before our congregation, our community, with family and friends present to say that we are raising this child in a Christian home. We dedicated her life to God with the hope and prayer that she will someday on her own choose to follow Him too. The dedication allows us to look out at those people that we count on and ask them for their help. We need them to pray for us, we need them to coach us, to keep us accountable and to be role models in Stella's life. We are hopeful that not only the friends and family that were present on Sunday morning, but also those who know us and care about us will recognize our dedication and support us as we raise Stella in the best way that we know how.

Go Hornets!!

Part of our visit to MN was to attend my 10 year reunion for Edina High School. It was quite the night. Nick was a great sport and came as my date even though most of my friends were not bringing boyfriends or spouses. Oh well, he had fun anyway. Nick spent most of the evening cheering on our high school whenever conversation slowed...he would say, "Go Hornets! or EHS for life" just to keep things interesting!
It really was a fascinating evening. Very fun, and still a bit strange. Most of the people in that room were classmates that I hadn't seen since graduation and most likely will not see again for another 10 years. It's very strange knowing that I spent the better part of the first 18 years of my life with most of these people, yet barely know a lot of them now. Either way, I did have a lot of fun and am really glad that we went.
I only wish that we had taken more pictures...

Ready to go!

"Freeman, Kramer, Anne, Tay & Milne"

Liz & Kelley

Julie & Liz

Amy, Alana & Liz

Lisa, Liz, Sarah & Diana

Julie, Anne, Ryan & Liz

Sarah & Liz

Emily, Emily, Liz, Megan, Julie & Anne

...part 2

OK, so we returned from Jacksonville on the 8th and turned around less than 24 hours later to go to Minnesota!! Because I was a bit overwhelmed and over exhausted by traveling alone with our sweet one, Nick "volunteered" or "agreed" (depends on your perspective) to fly to MN with Stella. (We booked separate flights...it's a long story and not very interesting.) Anyway, they had a direct flight out of Cincinnati, while I flew from Dayton, through Milwaukee to MN. I thought it would be easier for Nick to take Stella on his DIRECT flight...well, that flight was delayed almost 2 hours while mine was right on schedule. Oh well...we all survived and were ready for a great long weekend with family and friends.
The main purpose of the trip was to attend my 10 year high school reunion, but we squeezed in a lot more fun as well. Stella got to swim in MN for her first time...with her grandma and great-grandpa! She went to the Mall of America, went to the park and played on the swings and slide, took walks with Grandma and loved being gushed over by everyone who saw her. Here are just a few of the fun moments in MN:

Yea, Uncle Jimmy was in town too!!!

Playing at Great-grandpa's pool!

How many little girls can say they've been swimming with their great-grandfather!? Stella can!!

4 generations!

She loves it!

Stella's splendor in the grass moment after swimming!

Playing with Great-grandma!

Dad, Grandpa & Great-uncle Jeff

Great-aunt Ann

Special times with Great-grandpa!

Swinging with mom

Do we worry about germs at our house? Nope!!

Ready?

Go!

Time to head back home

We're Back! and we have a lot to report!!!

Ok, so we had every intention of blogging while traveling...too bad we were having way too much fun to sit down at the computer for any significant length of time. So, now that we're home, we'll catch up! So, it all started on August 1st when Stella and I left for Columbus, Ohio to fly on Skybus airlines.

*side note*

First of all, let me say that is a stellar airline! We had a fantastic experience! The first 10 tickets on every flight cost only $10...we had to pay the "high" price of $30 each way. They're very family friendly, they board and exit the plane from both the front and the rear so that it virtually takes no time at all, it's clean, the staff are fantastic...I could go on, but that's enough for now...check out skybus.com if you're interested.

**

Ok, so we spent the 1st-8th in Jacksonville with Amanda, JP and baby Bella! It was wonderful! Stella and Bella had fun getting to know each other and can't wait to be together again. It was extra special for me to see my best friend "in action" as a mom. It was wonderful watching her love and tend to every need of this precious babe. We had lots of fun times with the girls, but did get a chance to have some rest for ourselves. Amanda's very generous mother, sisters and brother took the babies off our hands so we could go out for dinner, get our nails done and even get massages! It was amazing having such great care-givers so close. I know Stella misses them already! Here's some photos from our great week together.

Isabella Ann Valdez
***if you want to log on to their website, use our link and then enter the password "bella"***

Mandy and Bella

Celebrating Mandy's Birthday!!

Bella LOVES her swing!

Laying out poolside

One of Stella's wonderful baby-sitters...Cassy!!

One of Bella's first times swimming

"The girls"

While we were vacationing we continued introducing Stella to new foods with great success! Her diet now includes: rice cereal, peas, green beans, squash, carrots, sweet potatoes, bananas, peaches, pears and applesauce! We haven't found anything that she doesn't like yet!! I've told a few people that I'm convinced if we put a steak in front of her, she'd figure out a way to eat it, even without teeth!
This isn't the only big development...Stella is starting to crawl! It's more of a scoot right now, but she can turn in a complete circle while on her belly, and she can put her knees underneath her belly and push off the ground to move a few inches. If there is something nearby that she wants, she can and will get it! A true crawl is not far away! YIKES!!

Stella & Bella

Here is my new friend, Bella. We have gotten along great this week. Can you see we even are wearing matching outfits!? That is the sign of a really good friend!! More updates to come later...

Hello from Florida!!

Sorry we haven't sent many updates yet....we are having too much fun!

By the way, I love swimming!!!

Great-grandpa, I hope you have the pool in MN nice and

warm for me when we're there next week.

***We'll be sure to send lots of photos of my new friend Bella and me. Overall my mom says we're behaving rather well...although we're both deciding to nap a little less than usual. I guess that's because we don't want to miss out on any of the fun!!