The BIG 1!!

As promised, here are a few pics from little miss' first birthday bash...

We went with a fuschia and aqua theme since the weather here in T.O. is SO dreary and miserable right now. 

It was the first day of spring but not a bloom was in sight. 

Sigh.

I've been rather crafty since I've been home on this mat leave. 

Time is such a sweet thing.

I made the cutie pie hats above - one for the Birthday Girl and one for each of her two "littler" friends attending. 

The other tough part of having a baby at almost 40 - every other kid in our family is all "growed up". 

Double sigh.

Got a neat idea from Kimmie at www.sugaranddots.com who made a tutu bed skirt for her own sweetie pie. I used the same concept to make this tutu table for the big day. 

It turned out super cute, non? So easy.

Our Ava's bestie Dora made a guest appearance...here she is with the King and the Original Baby Girl mid-kisses. 

And they kept coming. 

And coming...

Fun was had by all. 

Especially the Birthday Girl. Wink wink. ;)

The original babymama's birthday

It was the original babymama's 79th birthday yesterday. 

I look back at photos of her and smile. 

She was so unbelievably beautiful. 

Here she is with my dad (she still has this dress...truth) and her ever-present cigarette. Oy. 

Check out how stylin' she is in the pic below! Smoking AGAIN. 

And so skinny I wonder if she ever ate at all. 

Probablly just smoked. And bought really cool clothes. 

Today the original babymama is not so much into fashion anymore. 

Says her time has passed. 

She still smokes though. A lot. 

And loves us and her grandkids more than anything.

Love you mama!

The dreaded first cold

I have been SO careful. Ridiculously careful. But apparently, not careful enough.

Little miss has her first cold. 

And as high maintenance as she is...she is even more high maintenance with a cold. 

She won't sleep propped up. 

She's struggling to breathe through her oh so congested nose. 

And hates the saline drops. 

Her cough sounds like my mother's - a lifelong smoker. 

And to make matter's worse, daddy doesn't sound or feel much better. 

I may die from exhaustion today. Just so you know. 

I pray this passes soon.

To blog or not to blog....

As I watch my little miss enjoying her second (third?) Dora episode this morning I am still in awe of the fact that she can stand on her own. 

And move around. 

And say mama. 

And....I don't want to miss a moment but they are all so fleeting. Having a SURPRISE baby at almost 40 has afforded me the luxury of getting to do it all over again and this time I promised myself I would savour every delicious moment.

It's funny...as stuff is happening, you swear you'll never forget it. 

But you do. 

And that sucks. 

I swear I have all but forgotten what my other two were like between the ages of 2 and 6. Sure, I remember their birthday parties, funny things they did...but overall, honestly, it's all a bit of a blur. Thank God for photos and video! 

Seriously.

I am hoping this blog serves it's purpose and that is to capture all of my baby girl's (almost daily!) new milestones and to allow friends and family a glimpse into our little Ava's "closet" full of not only some of the cutest outfits EVER but also of fond memories of time spent with friends and family celebrating life's big moments. 

And we do enjoy a good party. 

Life really is a journey. I'm just trying to keep up.

And so it began...

First blog entry. So much to say.

It's hard to believe this blog, which I have contemplated many times over the past year, has finally (or is about to) come to fruition.

My inspiration...my beautiful baby girl Ava Grace had her first birthday party just this past Sunday. Again, hard to believe a year has passed since that life-changing day. It seems like only yesterday we were up all night...oh wait! that was yesterday....sigh.

So...she's not much of a sleeper. This we know. And yes, we've tried EVERYTHING. Formula before bed, soft toy, pacifiers in crib, lights on, lights off, salt lamps (I swear it) and the dreaded C.I.O. For you non-mommies...the heartless Cry It Out method. Nothing worked. Just sayin'

And now...even in a sleep-deprived haze...she turned one. 

She survived. 

And miraculously...we survived.

Will post birthday bash pics soon!