Past and Present

About 26 years ago, at the age of one, I sat on my Mom's lap for this family picture. I wore a beautiful smocked custom made dress sewn by my Mother. It is now one of my most cherished items from my childhood and I am so thankful to have it today. I now get to pass it on to Claire and hope she treasures it as much as I have.

This was the only picture I could find with me wearing the dress and all I can say is thank goodness for digital photography. I'm not even looking at the camera! :) A lot has changed from March 1985 to July 2011.

Lock Down

I kind of feel as though I have been on Photoshop lock down recently. Last month I took TONS of pictures for my family and I've been spending every spare moment editing the images.

Johansen grandkids, Olafsson grandkids, Ashlyn's baptism, Ashlyn's 8 year portrait, pictures of Avery, Blake, the three of them together, Soren, and lastly, my niece, Vivian. All in a span of about two weeks. It's exhausting just listing them all. Posting pictures of Claire's birthday has taken a back seat to it all while I get her cousin's pictures edited, but that's okay. It is such a joy capturing their adorable faces.

Below are some of the pictures I took in celebration of my niece, Ashlyn, getting baptized next month. She was born a couple of days after Erik and I got married. Kids grow up way too fast!

Smarty Pants

Every parent thinks their child is a little genius, and well....Erik and I have joined them. :) Claire is quickly picking up on things we have been teaching her and it is so exciting to watch her repeat them back to us. Take a look at her latest tricks:

Look How Big!

Claire's 1 Year Portrait

Claire Bear - 1 Year Old!

Our little "Claire Bear" isn't so little anymore. On June 30th she turned 1 year old! This post is more difficult than ones past because I don't even know where to begin. Coming to terms with the fact that I don't have a baby anymore is difficult. I feel like I didn't cherish every day as much as I should have. I should have smiled more through the tough moments, I dwelled on the difficulties too long, and I didn't spend enough time teaching and molding her tiny brain. Even with a few regrets, I am delighted to see how much progress Claire has made in one year and how happy she has made Erik and I. Children develop so quickly, it amazes me everyday. If only we adults could learn as much as children can in such a short amount of time. Seriously, what did I learn in the past year? Not much.

This past year has been one of such joy and happiness. Sure we had to figure out the ropes of welcoming a newborn child into our family, but I honestly wouldn't change a thing. When I did something wrong, I tried to learn from it and improve the next time. When I did something right, I relished in the results (Claire is such a good sleeper) and patted myself on the back. Before I had a child, I had no idea how much I would doubt myself and the decisions I make and just when I was getting the hang of everything, I have found myself in a new, unfamiliar territory. Yes, the newborn stage was hard, but I feel like now the real challenges have begun. For example, I used to think children learned how to hit from others. Um, not anymore. Claire has just started to hit out of frustration and I promise you, she didn't learn it from any adults or children around her. I read tons of baby books prior to having Claire and I guess I better get started on the pre-toddler books as well. Any recommendations?

This past month, Claire has become a little sponge and is beginning to show many new signs of learning and progression. When we read to her, she doesn't care about the words, she just turns the page as quickly as possible to see what's next. When we are doing something on the iPad, whether it be flashcards, playing the xylophone, or tickling an imaginary teddy bear, she always has to grab it and look behind it as if she wants to know where the image is coming from. Hilarious! When asked "Claire, how big are you?", she puts her arms above her head and waits to be tickled. As of a few weeks ago, Claire started swim lessons and has made a lot of progress. She no longer cries when she is dunked and the instructor says she has great breathing control. How funny! My absolute favorite thing she does is when she points to something and says "whas thaa?" (what's that). It is completely adorable! And as of a few days ago, she has started to sign "more" by patting her hands together (it looks like she is clapping). Claire also finds it very amusing if you ask her to put something away (meaning put it in the bucket). She drops it into the bucket and waits for your reaction. It's so cute.

We are thrilled to see Claire progressing so much lately and I hope we can keep the few negative aspects of her personality, like her new-found hitting, to a minimum. This past year has been one of the happiest years of my life and I anxiously await the next year of Claire's. What a whirlwind it is going to be!

12 Month Bear Picture

(to view the others, click here)

*Note: birthday party post coming soon!*

Exciting Update (I wrote/scheduled the post above last week) - on Wednesday, July 6th, Claire took her very first steps! While standing in the kitchen, she took three steps and then plummeted to the ground. We are so thrilled, yet also a little nervous to see her mobility improving.

Unexpected Results

Erik and I are constantly stubbing our toes on our bed frame and it always results in a second of pain followed by instant relief. Well, not this time.

Two weeks ago on a Sunday night, Erik and I were headed into bed early for the first time in who knows how long. We were so happy to get to sleep earlier than usual until something unexpected happened. The usual toe stub turned into a broken toe! Early to bed went out the window in a matter of seconds.

I have personally never broken a body part and since I have known Erik, he hasn't broken anything as well. We had no idea what to do. Urgent Care facilities were closed so Erik called his friend who said it was okay to wait until the next morning before doing anything. After an x-ray we were initially told that it was indeed broke, one of the worst kinds of breaks (a spiral fracture), and surgery was imminent. After an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon later that day, we were told that it could heal on its own after diligent wrapping. A simple toe wrap? Who knew breaking a bone could be taken care of so easily?! Because of our terrible insurance, we are crossing our fingers that Erik's toe will heal correctly and no surgery will be needed in the future. So far so good.

Festival Fun!

One of my favorite things to do during summertime is enjoy all of the festivals that happen around town. A couple of weeks ago we went to two in the same day. Erik went golfing and us girls (me, Claire, and Khloe) started our morning at The Gateway Mall where they held the "Chalk Art Festival". It is amazing how talented some people are. Drawing is at the very bottom of my list of abilities and so I am always fascinated at how good some people are at it. Claire and Khloe enjoyed looking at all the paintings, but I think their favorite part was the cookie we all shared before we left. Yum!

 

Later that evening, Erik and our nephew, Soren, joined us for the "Outdoor Festival". This is by far the coolest festival I have ever been too. They had so many attractions and activities and the best part was that they were all free! Soren had a blast sitting in the University of Utah's medical helicopter, going inside a S.W.A.T. van, and playing with the fireman's water hose.

Claire, on the other hand, enjoyed all of the girly attractions like touching a giant tortoise, going on a pony ride, visiting the petting zoo full of miniature buffalo, goats, and horses, and collecting as many stickers from the booths as possible. :) This festival is definitely going on my list of activities for next year. It was so much fun!