Beauty and the Beast

We took Bailey to her first mainstage production in the theater yesterday - Beauty and the Beast. She was entranced throughout, and at the end of the show exclaimed, "Let's do it again" - A ringing endorsement!!

After the show, we met Nick (Lumiere), Jennifer (Belle) and Eric (The Beast), and a number of other cast members. They were kind enough to let us take pictures with them - Bailey was shy. When we left, however, she informed Adam and I that she wasn't leaving. We informed her that she, actually, was.

Oh - and, she's so conditioned that after we see Disney type things we see Mickey Mouse (we've been to Disneyland, DisneyWorld and Tokyo Disney a number of times) that she asked if we could go see Mickey now. Guess we'll have to "un-condition" her!

Winter Wonderland

I have been watching one of the most beautiful sunrises I've ever seen this morning. The sky is clear, the colors are brilliant, and the white of the wintery weather that we've been experiencing is adding a calm that, frankly, I've needed this entire holiday season. Yesterday, we had the best snow that I've seen in a long time. Bailey has never seen snow like this. Now, she's been spoiled and will want nothing less. We taught her to do snow angels and many times she just plopped down and started doing them. She was happy, though, to run through the snow and see how her footprints disrupted the snow - she loved picking up the snow and eating it - and, she tried her hand at throwing (and deflecting, in a snowball "fight" with Daddy) snowballs. I used to wish for snow as a child, and then would be too cold in it to really enjoy. So - we bundled Bailey up like the child from A Christmas Story and let her play in it. She lasted much longer than I'd expected, and it was so fun to watch her play!

A vision in pink in a sea of white

In Washington, if there is more than 1/4 inch of snow that stays longer than 45 minutes it's called a snow day. We had a snow day today - and more COULD be on the way (which, in Washington, means it will tease us but never arrive). Bailey had fun playing in the snow until her fingers were cold - then...she was DONE!!

Ah Minnie - Good to see you!!

This is a "pic overload". Just a few pictures from our trip to Disneyland. Momo and Papa joined us, and we had a lovely time. Bailey is getting older and able to communicate her joy and her desires much more clearly - we did the Peter Pan ride a number of times!!

We interrupt this blog...

...about Bailey, for a quick post about mommy!

Adam's group holiday party was last night and I got a new dress. I've always gone for the LBD (little black dress). However, I decided to venture outside of that world into the world of racy red. So - without further ado - here is the new "racy red" dress!

Bailey's First Symphony

We took Bailey to the Seattle Symphony last night for Marvin Hamlisch conducting the Holiday POPS! I was a little nervous, of course...I mean, it is the symphony. I was worried that she'd be super antsy and restless and that everyone around us would have an awful time (and that we'd leave after 3 minutes because everyone was having an awful time). Well - that wasn't the case. Bailey did a great job. The evening was (to some degree) catered to the kids, with Santa Claus and Christmas music. We did leave after the first half, more because it was getting late and we didn't want to press our luck. But most of the people around us (actually, all of the people but one man whom I have some choice names for) said that she did great. This one man was a real Scrooge McDuck - in fact, when we mentioned the comment that he'd made (very unkind man, btw) the people around us had choice words about him. I suspect that the second half was uncomfortable for him. But, I digress! The concert was lovely, Bailey looked absolutely adorable, and she enjoyed the music!

Oh Christmas Tree

We had initially planned to wait until after our Disneyland trip to put up our Christmas tree, but I woke up on Thanksgiving knowing that I would not be able to wait. So - the day after Thanksgiving we went and got our first live tree and decorated it. Bailey was very helpful at decorating, although all of the ornaments ended up in one section of the tree. The holidays have begun!

10-4 Good Buddy!

Bailey and Makenzie had opportunity to play together last week when Makenzie was up for Thanksgiving. These two have such a special bond - they just pick up where they last left off and move forward with their friendship. They are getting to be more verbal in their communication, which was made evident when they were rough-housing and Bailey got a little too rough. Makenzie looked right at Bailey and said, "Ouch, Bailey, you hurt me." and Bailey apologized. We were so proud - they're learning to solve differences with words. Hope that lasts!




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Happy Thanksgiving!

I'm sitting here, looking at the video monitor in Bailey's room, listening to the quiet of the house (we're not early risers because we like it - we only wake early when we have to), and thinking about all that I have to be thankful for. Every little moment of my day is filled with so many blessings. I hope that you'll all stop and whisper a word of thanks for everything, little and big, that blesses your life! Happy Thanksgiving!

Nothing Short of Brilliant

3 Year Stats

We had Bailey's three year appointment today. She's doing great!! According to their measurements, she's 34 pounds, which puts her in the 85th percentile, and she's 38 1/2 inches, which puts her in the 90th percentile. So - she's tall and lean (which I know because all of her pants are too short and to baggy on her).

All went well - she just hated the flu shot (and, who of us likes those anyway).

We've been Elved!

We interrupt this blog...

...for a little bit of deeper thinking. I don't typically go this route simply because I'm not sure that anyone really is into any more than pics of Bailey and what's going on in her life. However, I don't want to forget this thought and, as they always say, "the memory is the first to go." And, it's my blog, so I'll type what I want to (or, something like that)

I was thinking about this as we watched Barack Obama's acceptance speech on election night. The speech was, for us, moving, and inspiring, and encouraging. I had many moments that caused me to well up with hope for the first time in a pretty dreary eight years. Regardless of how anyone felt about the election - I don't think that many can deny that it is time for a change. Both candidates preached about it during the campaign. I did vote for Barack Obama, and I've been quite open about that. I've read a number of posts by folks who did not vote that way stating that people voted for him because he was black - while I'm sure that there were some who did, I was not one of those. I can't imagine voting that way, without any intelligent thought.

I was born in 1967, certainly not the "height" of racial times. But, while we were supposedly a society that "shunned" racism, and all men were created "equal", that wasn't evidenced in this country. I distinctly remember studying the formation of our country and being told that all men and women of all colors, shapes and sizes were created equal and that we were a country that presented every opportunity for everybody. But, until I was in my 20's, I don't recall any black men or women in the professional workforce, or in places of power (CEOs and executives). In school, it was a sea of white until 5th grade (that's the first year that I remember any other ethnicities in my classroom - although, my 4th grade teacher from from the Philippines). But, we TALKED about equality like it was something that existed. It was talked about a lot. But, never demonstrated in the world that I saw.

Over the last week I've had this thought running through my mind. Bailey will never remember the "Bush years". She'll study them in school, but she won't have any recollection of the job that he's done in office. The very earliest that Obama will leave office, though, will put her at 7 years old. She'll remember these years. She'll remember that he was president. She won't, necessarily, consider his presidency and weigh in on how well he did. She'll just remember that he was president. But, when they teach that all men are created equal, she'll SEE that as true. She will never experience conflict between the principle and the truth alive in her world. She will always see that to be fact. She will always see that there truly are no limitations. I love that my daughter is being raised in that kind of world. A world where there are no limitations. And, don't think that I'm naive - I certainly see that there are many other influences that aren't so positive. But, for this moment, I'm so encouraged by this - my daughter will always remember a world where anything is possible because all men and women are created equal.

She smiled with her eyes

Here are all of the photos in a little montage. Enjoy!

She's Three

Just have a moment but want to share some of the GORGEOUS photos that my friend Leah took for Bailey's 3 year photo shoot. Leah is SOOOOO talented and we feel so blessed that she shares it with us!! I'll post more later!