We're baaaack!

It's been quite a hiatus and a lot has happened but I'm dedicated to being more regular with my posts...it's the only way I'll be able to look back on this whole child rearing experience and remember what has happened.

Since August Gwen has turned 1 (which of course she had no knowledge of, just knew that there were these weird boxes covered with pretty paper). We made it through a great Thanksgiving with my family in Virginia and xmas with James' family in Virginia Beach. Gwen had her first overnight outside of the house (not bad but certainly made us realize we have to get her out more). She has started walking and is now full-blown running. She has started talking and is now into two-word sentences. She is drawing on everything and thanks to aquadoodle our walls are still unmarked (we still have to teach her that she should only draw on paper).

So far the move down to Chester is still the best thing decision we made all year. I love working from home, it's less stressful on both James and I (good for his blood pressure), and having the extra space to roam has been so great for Gwen. She has this macked out play room next to the kitchen that is any kids dream. James created a play house out of our TV box that has grown into a shingled house with plans for an attached garage for her many push toys.

Gwen from September

So now for what's going on now: Gwen is saying a new word every day. Her recent additions are 'car', 'bubbles', fifi (for her blanket called sophie), daaaaaa (for dad), daaaa (for mom). She's generous with her high fives and she loves giving her animals and animal photos frequent kisses but she'll only give kisses and hugs to people when she really means it and when you least expect it. As usual, she's also still a thrill seeker, preferring to be tossed around than sit still which is also why we have hesitated to put her on an airplane...she just doesn't want to sit still! She's only 16 months but is already wearing her 24 mo clothes because of her height and she's all body just like her Happa.

More to come soon!

One smart cookie

Today Gwen was playing with Vi (her best friend and nanny) and Vi asked her to get the ladybug book. So, Gwen reached up on the bookshelf and got the ladybug book. Then, Vi asked her to get her foot book. So, Gwen reached up on the bookshelf and got the foot book. Dude, my kid is not even 11 mo yet and she's WICKED smart! She's also already going up and back down the stairs on her own.

Now, if only she'd say mama in reference to me, not just as a general statement.

Wow, it's been awhile since I've posted and a LOT has been going on! Let's see...house first (it's shorter): We're fully moved in. Mom and dad spent a few weeks with us helping us unpack boxes, keeping Gwen entertained, etc. All in all we were fairly box free in under two weeks which was pretty amazing. We decided that a formal living room was a useless room for us so we moved the dining room into the front living room and changed the former dining room into Gwen's play room (it's close to the kitchen and out of the line-of-sight of my office). It was the best decision we've made since moving in as we spend more time in her play room than any other room in the house. Since I was able to keep my job we splurged and bought a beautiful 56" LED TV and the box has been almost as much fun as the TV as it is a perfect play house for Gwen (we cut a little door and windows out). I've painted ONE room but I have a plan for the rest of the rooms so I just have to slowly but surely knock one room out at a time...those white walls don't stand a chance.

Now, the good stuff....Gwen. She has completely blossomed since moving. All this space has brought out the adventurer in her. She crawls like a speed demon all over the house and has been standing and 'cruising' with the help of furniture for awhile now. she's even stood on her own for a few seconds several times now. She's babbling all the time and, while she doesn't yet know exactly what it means, says mamamama and dadadada (on command). She's waving and clapping too. Her favorite things: her big brown bear (she hugs and kisses him when you say his name), all of her books (she flips the pages for us....laughs every time I read 'no Pat no, don't sit on that'), any dog (real, picture, stuffed), climbing up anything she can get a grip on, climbing the stairs, and shoes (she walks one shoe around the house, stares at her own shoes, tries to eat our flip flops....). Her favorite music is anything from Lady Gaga (she bounces whenever her songs come up on her playlist...yep, she has a playlist), her favorite books are her brilliant baby word books, anything dr. seuss and her noisy farm book, and she loves to play with her big bouncy balls (she bats them across the floor and then chases them).

Last week gramma and happa sent gwen a little walker toy. Here is a video of her first use...she's a pro already!

The big move

Well, it's official. The Rouse family is moving to Richmond. We closed on the new house yesterday. We'll be living in Chester, which is about 12 miles south of Richmond (close to James' office, the airport and closer to Deven...about 1.25 hours which is a HUGE improvement on the 4-5 hr commute from Northern Virginia). The moving van is coming to clean out the Fairfax townhome next Thursday and we'll be officially moved in on Friday, May 21.

I've been really lucky that ACRP has been so open about the move. I'll be starting my telecommuting arrangement on June 1, driving up to the office for important meetings or when needed. The thought of not commuting 1.5 hours to the office EACH WAY gives me butterflies in my belly.

We'll post photos as soon as possible!

7 months

Here are some recent photos of Gwen. Just this morning she pulled herself up to standing in her crib. She's been standing with help for awhile now and pulling herself from laying to sitting but going all the way to standing was big-time for her! Way to go kid!

April Update

Well it's official, the Rouse family is moving to Richmond. Some of my work folks know but the rest will know tomorrow. They have been really cool and are open to a telecommuting arrangement so I'll be able to keep my role but ditch the 1.5 hour (EACH way) commute. YAY!!! The house if half way packed and we can't wait for the moving van to get here on the 20th!

Here are the new digs:

Gwen's 6 months of smiles video montage

Thanks to mom's donation of a mac computer (god I love mac), I was able to get a little creative with our collection of videos...enjoy.