Daddy Time

So I have wanted to keep a diary kind of log titled 'sleeping mysteries' because we have gone through so many stages in the sleeping habits of our preciosa hija! It was a Friday and she had a busy morning in the nursery and then we had to wait so I could go to the doctor (not enough time to go home). She was getting a little cranky so I gave her her pacifier and held her...about 10 minutes later the world and its interest started fading and she was fast asleep. Daddy went to get some blankets so we laid her down on the floor while he (daddy) kept working. I could not resist and took pictures...so precious!

Mailbox

One of Gabriela Zoe's favorite (almost) daily activities is getting the mail. To sidetrack a little I say 'almost daily' because like I said to a friend recently we have a routine...breakfast lunch, dinner at some point we'll take a nap and most of the days GZ will be in bed by 7:30 :o) Routine rules us...j/k.
So GZ likes going down the stairs walking over the grass crossing the street...holding mommy's hand and playing with the little rocks while mommy gets the mail. By the way we always have to take one little rock for each hand in order to be satisfied in returning home, one can find little rocks at the most random places...now I have to take them back or they will take over ;o) A while back I showed her how you can write on the cement with the rocks and she not only tries to write on the cement but on our wood floor too!
The day I took these pictures we had just gotten home and daddy got home as we were checking for the mail. GZ recognized the car and was super excited!

Baby Shower

About a month ago we went to our friends' baby shower! Marcus and Marie are expecting their baby anytime within the next couple of weeks. Stephen voted that the baby is named Stephen Earl Defoe...hehe, maybe that's why he was one of the ones picked to have a toilet paper diaper! One of the games to was so fun was drawing what Marcus' and Marie's baby (name will be announced at the birth) is going to look like. With Marcus having a beautiful Caribean dark skin and Marie gorgeous blond hair and blue eyes the possibilities are endless. I really think that I had the best representation however it was funny to see people drawing the baby like a zebra or half and half...good laughs. It was so much fun as you can see from the pics and the weather was gorgeous and perfect for the outdoor event. We can't wait for this little junior to show up...so excited!

Little Helper

Gabriela Zoe has been helping me with putting away the dishes in the morning. I have wanted to record it for the longest time because it is so cute. Today we did not unload the dishwasher until the evening and so daddy was home and able to record it. We've got the greatest kid in the whole wide world....she always adds and smile and a giggle to our life!

Walking

About five days after her birthday GZ took her first steps! Stephen was with her and I was at work...no I am not a momzilla who will get upset that she missed it. I got to see her the next day and it was very exciting...I actually cried which is not a reaction I was expecting at all! She has been walking with assistance...stroller, chairs...anything light enough to push since Thanksgiving but these were unassisted, all by myself, I'm a big girl now steps :o) So wince then she has been falling and building her confidence. This morning whe walked from her bedroom to ours, she fell a couple of otimes, but instead of the usual ''I'll crawl the rest of the way' attitude she got up and kept walking!!! So neat and finally we have a video of her doing it to show for it. It has not been easy to get video of her before....so here she goes...watch out world!

Feeding

A few days ago we were eating eggplant parmesan with pasta and she wanted to eat by herself. It's easier I think getting food on a fork than a spoon so she really enjoys putting the food in her mouth. I am very proud of her and she smiles knowing that I am proud of her...so sweet!

Colors!

We started coloring this past week and I have her first drawing on my refrigerator...something I said i would never do!!! And here I am proud mommy with my baby's art on the refrigerator :o) A few days ago we sat ar her new table and chairs in her room and got a Fire Safety Coloring book her uncle Michael the firefighter gave her and we had fun coloring. She understands that you only color on paper and that makes me happy!!! as well as the fact that they are washable markers so when the marker misses the page it can easily be fixed :o)

Fun with Baby

Gabriela Zoe has been enamored with the window and the bushes, trees and probably squirrels that she sees running around in our 'backyard'. It is really neat to see her getting aware with the outdoors. One of our favorite things to do is going to get to the mailbox and play with the rocks. She has loads of fun when we do that :o)

Temperature

Gabriela Zoe had a fever last week so we checked her temperature often to make sure that everything was under control. After a couple of days she had the whole routine down and she wanted to check her temperature herself and check mommy and daddy's temperature :o) So on Monday we were able to take a picture of her doing it....proof that we are not just babbling...our child is smart!

Park

About a week ago we met up with her friends O and D at the park. It was her first time playing at the park (she went once before for a bday party but she was very prissy then) and she really enjoyed the swings and playing in the sand. I wondered why I had not taken her before!!!! It was really good for me also to hang out with a friend and bask in the warmth of the sun :o)

All on My Own

It is so wonderful to see GZ accomplishing little tasks on her own...like just a month ago we had to put her on her horse and most of the time she just fell over. The day I took this pic she climbed on it all on her own!!! You can see she is excited that mommy is excited!

Got Milk?

GZ likes her milk...or maybe that is the primary drink I give her..whatever! So she likes to drink it from her cup straight up...like you see below...
she likes it with a straw, and her sippy. She is just amazingly coordinated like that!

Climbing the Bumbo

while like I like to say a picture can hide 1000 words as well as its worth as many words. This pic and video says it all...no shpeal from me.

Stin Ygeia Sas (Cheers)

it was so much fun teaching her to do cheers...I think she had fun too even though she had not idea what she was doing besides the fact that it was entertaining her parents :o)

Cutest Words She Says

well basically all of them are cute...Stephen and I know that Gabriela Zoe said "Evangelia" at least twice to each of us at different times! In vain have we tried to convince her to say it again. The other word she says consistently is 'tsa' that she says it when she plays peekaboo and some times at random. She says 'dada' 'gia' (which mean Hi in Greek) and when its together 'giagia' is grandma. The most frequently spoken and understandable gibberish is 'oloudloudlou' 'ticketickletickle' SO CUTE....I just had to write them down so I don't forget!
She definitely understands No because when she is about to do something she is not allowed to do and we say 'no' sometimes she starts crying! Sad but makes me happy to know she understands.

More Music

from the time she was little I would sit on the piano and let her press the keys and have fun. It had been though a short time that I neglected to do it. The other day Gabriela Zoe walked up to the piano by herself and started playing away. It is a great time spent while mommy is putting dishes away or cooking. In fact I have a hard time taking nice pictures of her because they come out blurry...she is a girl on the move...however when she is at the piano she turns and gives me great smiles!!!

A Weird Week

The week started last Monday when Gabriela Zoe woke up crying and we realized she was stuffy and had a low grade fever! After that we had two good nights until I thought that vicks would help her breathing. Undoubtedly I believe it did...however after a few hours vicks makes you all sweaty and gross and that would wake her up. My mom reminded me that by giving me the advice of putting something between her clothes and skin to avoid the cold sticky feeling. Well I think the towels bothered her so she kept waking up at night. So two nights ago I decided to nix the vicks and since we have had good sleeps!! Praise God! From the sleepless nights I think i got tired enough that my immune system went bye bye so i caught the cold too...still fighting it :o) Then on Friday night after I handed Gabriela Zoe to Stephen to put to bed because I felt like I was going to collapse...i went to bed and slept...I think for an hour. When i woke up I felt bad for Stephen hanging out by himself on a Friday night so I decided to join him and try to eat something. As I went down the stairs, I am not sure if it was step or step step but the next was was DROP. About 3 or 4 stairs worth. God protected me it and it was only a slight twist.
Now Gabrila Zoe is doing much much better and my foot is feeling better...still hurts when i put all my weight but I can definately go up and down the stairs easier.
God did not allow this week to finish in defeat...we saw healing happening to our bodies...Praise be to His name :o)
Please pray that Stephen stays healthy and strong and that our healing will be complete!

Intresting Things our Daughter is Doing

Climbing up stairs...yep that was the first time I caught her and a minute after I took she picture she took a fall...she has not fallen since, and if you are worried she was only on the first step so thank God it was not a far fall. Since then her agility has increased and within a minute she is one the next level!!! Now we have been trying to teach her to come back down the stairs the same way but it is not sinking as fast as the going up part. We have figured the sooner we teach her the less we will have to worry of her taking a serious fall....

Another things she is liking to do is put things into things...let me explain...her toys in the trash can is a good example, or her toothbrush in a cup, a good thing if you ask me. Also the other day after I got home from grocery shopping she was just wandering so i decided to give the three of my smallest mixing bowls, since I rarely use them, and because they are colorful I thought it would grab her attention. They did!!! She was banging them on the floor and everything but the fun thing for me...when i saw her putting a Balance bar, I also left it for her to play and its another story, inside the bowl...so so cute.
Speaking of the Balance bar after I had seen her carefully placing it inside the bowl I returned to putting dishes away, until I heard a constant chewing rhythm...I go to see what she is eating...she had taken the balance bar out of the wrapper and was enjoying the nice sugar toping...I guess now I know she is not allergic to nuts.
Today as she was taking her bath...I think for the first time she really noticed the shiny silvery water stop. I believe that she thought it was edible or at least mouth appealing because she dipped her face inside the water to bite it. She did not do it once but twice!!!! I was just cracking up and she could not figure out why mommy was laughing with her unsuccesful and mouthwatering attempts of bitting that silvery shinny goodness :o)
I so much enjoy being her mom!!!

About town

One of the things I really enjoy is taking scenic walks, whether it is in our little community or our beautiful outdoor mall and this little new manmade pond close to our home. I get to appreciate them even more if I have spend some extra time inside the house. Above are pictures from our different outings the last couple of weeks.

Our Standing, Walking, Crawling in funny places...PRINCESS

Gabriela Zoe now is able to crawl around with great agility and that in now how she ends up in weird places....like inside/underneath the exersaucer. Praise God we put gates on top of all the stairs to prevent the unthinkable should we not watch for one minute. She is amazing about entertaining herself...even though after some time she requests my attention rather strongly :-) Moreover, since October 25th she has been pulling herself up to standing and the last few weeks she has been experimenting with letting go (which also has made her an expert bottom lander (-: ) On Thanksgiving day I was picking some stuff up from the room adjasent to her and she was playing in her room. Since she had been quiet for a while I popped my head in to see what she was up to...ta da!!! She was standing pushing her cube and taking steps behind it and pushing and walking. I started laughing which startled her and caused another bottom landing. We are having fun!!!