Tuesday, May 16, 2006
First Family Day (aka "Gotcha Day")
I know it has been quite some time since I have sent you an update on Hallie. Today is the one year anniversary of the day she was placed into arms, so I thought it was appropriate to look back at this past year. There is so much--where to begin??
Hallie turned two on April 28th. We had a "princess" birthday party for her here in Memphis. Some of her little friends and their parents came. My parents were here from Ohio and my sister, Megan, and her baby, Sophia, were visiting from Germany where they live, so it was perfect. Hallie had a blast. The kids had too much fun with bubbles, sidewalk chalk, balls, the slide and a pinata. Well, Brett had to actually break it because none of the kids was strong enough. But they sure scooped up that candy! Hallie blew out her candles a
nd really enjoyed herself. Earlier in the month, we celebrated her birthday at Grandma Bonnie's in Illinois. Aunt Lin got her a Winnie the Pooh cake then, and of course, she loved it! She also got an umbrella, which she thinks is the coolest thing ever, and a Disney Princess puzzle. She can name all of princesses! So as you can see, we made up for not being able to celebrate her birthday last year with two parties this year!
Hallie LOVES day care, or school, as we call it. And, really, it is. She goes to the Foreign Language Immersion Child Care Center where her teachers speak nothing but Spanish. It is amazing how much Spanish she has picked up. She does speak English at home and all of a sudden she talks ALL OF THE TIME! But I love to hear her talk. She is even putting words together to make sentences. But, back to school. She looks forward most every day to going. She can name all of her friends, and hugs all of them when she leaves every night. her teachers love her,
too. She had some biting issues the first few months of the year, but they seem to be over now (thank God!). They color and make art projects that she brings home and are displayed all over the fridge. A few weeks ago, we had a FLICC family picnic and she really got a kick seeing all of her friends on a Saturday.She loves to watch this show on Disney Channel called "Little Einsteins." It's made by the Baby Einstein people so it's all about art, music and geography. It could literally keep her entertained for hours. It is a lifesaver every morning since I have to get her ready and myself ready without Brett here (he's still on the morning show, going to work at 4 a.m.) But we try to limit her TV watching to that and Sesame Street--still a classic!
My parents got Hallie a tricycle for Christmas. She likes to ride it, but still can't reach the pedals, so I end up pushing her. They also got her a wagon for her birthday and she is very into wagon rides. She also likes to spend time drawing and coloring. She holds a crayon or marker like an adult and makes very precise strokes. She can even draw what sort of looks like a heart when you ask her to do so.
Hallie is very healthy. She is in the 25th percentile for weight and is between the 25th and 50th percentiles for height. (Which means she is petite, but healthy.) She's still wearing 18 month size clothes--occasionally 12 month size--but the pants and shirt sleeves are too getting too short. She does, however, have a tendency to have febrile seizures when she has fever. She has had two now: one in January and one just two weeks ago. The first time was extremely scary. The second time was frightening, but Brett and I expected it and we knew what to do. The doctors say the seizures are purely fever-related and do not affect her brain. It is not a sign of Epilepsy. It is a hereditary condition and is something she should outgrow by age 6. Last week, she had another high fever (104.1), but Brett and I were able to get it down without a seizure occuring. What a relief. How scary to see your child helpless like that.
Well, I could go on and on and on. Hallie has grown so much and changes so much over the past year--it is truly amazing! It is hard to believe she is the same little baby that came to us with tears streaming down her face one year ago today. She couldn't walk and couldn't talk..and now look at her..playing, dancing, singing, coloring, talking on the phone to Grandma and PaPa and Grandma Bonnie. She is truly a blessing and the greatest thing in our lives.
# posted by JDonnals : 10:04 PM
