Holiday Time

Katherine, the holidays are always a special time of the year, but they have been extra special since you have been in our lives. This has been our second Christmas together, and while your first Christmas last year was wonderful, this one was so much more special as you are beginning to understand that something different and special is going on.

A few nights before Christmas we took a drive around town to look at the Christmas lights as we traditionally do – we thought you might enjoy the twinkling lights and beautiful holiday displays as well. I did plan ahead – researched and printed a list with the most elaborate displays in town, dressed your warmly and buckled you snugly into your car seat. Armed with a map on my phone, I navigated your daddy to our first destination. Arriving and pointing to the beautiful light displays, you had peacefully fallen asleep. As we continued our tour, you had a perfect nap (yes, we know better than waking a sleeping toddler… not even for Christmas lights) and just as we were driving back home you woke up. As I mentioned to your dad that I am sure you would have enjoyed the lights, he ignored the fact that is was dinner time by now and discontinued our drive home. Instead he drove to a part of town which always has spectacular displays. Your eyes were big and your face was beaming with joy as you discovered the lights, the snowmen, santas, reindeer and even saw some gigantic penguins pulling a sleigh.

This Christmas has also been special as your grandma (my mom) is visiting us from Germany and you get to spend time with her… reading stories (in German… today you tried to bring her an English book to read to you, which didn’t go over so well, but you did look at its pictures together), playing together with your toys and looking at picture books – and she is teaching you some great German children’s rhymes as well. We’re even sneaking in some German TV on some evenings, we had some cake today made from a German recipe (which you “helped” to make) – and you even tried to reach for the German beer we had the other evening (unsuccessfully I may add as I was quick to get it out of your reach).

You are teaching me that Christmas isn’t about the presents, it’s about the memories we create. While you certainly enjoy your new car racing track, it’s not about the toy, but about pulling us across the living room and playing with it together with you. The memories of you helping me with my baking in the kitchen, the memories of you hanging ornaments on the bottom of tree as we were decorating it together, the memories of your big eyes when you saw the Christmas tree lit up for the first time – that’s what Christmas is all about. I love you always and forever.

Snuggle Time

Katherine, tonight, as we do many nights, we snuggled up on the couch after dinner. Sometimes we watch a little TV together (yes, usually your favourite show which you negotiate to put on) or like tonight we read a story together. Well, ok, not one as one is never enough when we get started, but a whole book filled with stories. I love that when we get started with a good book, you always ask for more, and I love that I can never resist reading you “just one more”.

Snuggle time on the couch in the evening is my favourite time with you, we get to spend time together, “hanging out”, cuddled up close to each other. Lately as the days are getting colder outside, you bring a little blanket to the couch which we settle underneath. Some days a plush bunny, bear or doll will join us and many nights we’ll have some crackers or apples as a little snack. You always make sure to share your snack with me (sometimes you’ll feed me) and if daddy sits in the dining room reading or working, you’ll climb off the couch and bring him a cracker or slice of apple too. Snuggle time is our favourite time together and I look forward to it every day.

You are teaching me that it’s not always about the quantity of time we have with the people we love, it’s about spending quality time in the time we have together. We can never predict what life brings, and I treasure every moment we get to spend together, right here, right now. I love you always and forever.

Colours, Shapes and Building Blocks

Katherine, as you grow bigger, smarter and more curious, I am always looking for toys for you to play with that are fun, but challenging at the same time. One thing I have learned about you is that your eyes light up when you get to figure out “how to”.

There is a little secret I want to share with you… I love Rubik’s Cubes! I have, ever since I was a little girl and my mom (your grandma) gave me my first Rubik’s Cube for my birthday. I couldn’t figure out how to solve it, so she went out, got a book and solved it for me. Then she gave me the book and I learned how to do it on my own... and I loved it! I have solved that cube many, many times over the years, and still do once in a while (even though I have to admit, I haven’t  in a while as life is busy) – there is nothing quite like taking those jumbled squares and putting them back in the right order with a few well calculated moves.

So a few days ago I was at the toy store (to get your doll a fall outfit, but that’s a story for another day), and I walked by a whole shelf of different toddler Rubik’s toys. Of course I couldn’t resist bringing a little something home for you – a shape sorter… no, not an ordinary shape sorter, this one has 18 colourful shape openings around an octagonal sphere (ok, I admit, I couldn’t wait to open the box with you). And sure enough, your eyes lit up as you began to explore how to get all the pieces inside.

You are teaching me that it’s ok to still feel like a kid, even when I am all grown up. You reminded me to pick up my Rubik’s cube again once in a while and just get lost in the game. As for you and me… we keep having so much fun sitting on the floor playing together with “our” new toy. I love you always and forever.

You Are Watching Me

Katherine, you are learning by watching and acting on what you see us do.

When we have gone out for lunch or dinner, I used to always wipe your mouth with a napkin at the end of a meal (yes, you have never developed a liking for bibs). And I have to admit, when it's a tougher job and I don't have a wet wipe handy, I sometimes would sneak a little water from your sippy cup onto the napkin to make my job easier. I have done it lots of times, but lately you are becoming more independent and are grabbing the napkin yourself to wipe your mouth. When you first started doing that, I thought to myself that it's fun to see you do this by yourself, but I definitely didn't give you enough credit how well you are doing. What daddy and I observed next, made us both laugh and at the same time be so proud of you. You lay down the napkin on the table, grab your sippy cup, turn it over and dab water onto your napkin, then wipe your mouth with it.

This has become your routine now after a meal out and after you are done, you push the napkin away and put your arms up in the air to signal us you are done.

You are teaching me to be concious of what I do and what I say. You learn from daddy and me what's right and wrong behaviour and I want to be leading you along the right path. I love teaching you all about life. You even make me eat my vegetables, because when I eat them off my plate, you eat them off yours. You make me try new things, because when I try new things, you will to. I love you always and forever.

Splish, Splash

Katherine, you have taken your first swimming lessons. I am so glad I got to be part of it!

Not only did we enjoy time together in the pool, but you already learned how to hold your breath when going under water. We had lots of fun – I got to pull you through the water and you even “swam” a short distance on your own when the instructor and I passed you between us. There were lots of giggles and a few tears along the way (yes, I have learned that you do not like to drift through the water on your back). You love chasing balls and rubber ducks in the water and you even reached for rings below the water line. By the end of the week you had earned your Starfish level swimming designation – I am so proud of you.

You are teaching me to enjoy the summer days and live in the moment. Lots of moments to live for this summer, lots of memories being made. I love you always and forever.

Love of Technology

Katherine, they say that child development depends part on nature and part on nurture. Well, when it comes to you and technology, I’d say both play a big part in your young life. Both your daddy and I love technology, and learning it comes easy to us… and for the nurture part, well, we encourage you to play with technology and our “tech toys”.

Your favourite? Hands down my iPad. Yes, I am still claiming it as mine – just so we’re clear on it. Even though I had to explain in a couple of business meetings last week why my portfolio case had a nice old fashioned paper notepad in it, but my high-tech iPad slot was empty.

You are having so much fun playing with it – we have installed some great toddler games on it including some simple puzzles, animated picture books and my favourite – fun German word games, all of which you effortlessly navigate. Watching you over the past few months, I have watched you go from randomly tapping onto the screen to today, where you know exactly how to swipe your finger over the screen to flip between the pages and to tap on the icon of a specific game you want to play.

What I love about watching you play with the iPad is that it’s nothing special to you – you’ll seamlessly switch from playing with it to building something with blocks to running around outside or “reading” a book.

You are teaching me that life never stands still – new things to learn, new technologies to embrace. For you it’s normal to see and be exposed to new things every day, but as we grow older we sometimes tend to stay still with the knowledge we already have. Life is about growing and learning, every day.  I love you always and forever.

Big Steps

Katherine, tonight you have decided to take some big steps - literally. You have been experimenting for a while with the stairs in our house, and you have become a pro at climbing upstairs.

Lately you have been doing really well at climbing downstairs by going backwards, but over the last little while you haven't been happy going downstairs backwards... it's been clear you were wanting more. We have done ok a few times for you to step down facing forward, but it was always contingent on me holding both your hands - you are so tiny still that each step is tall enough to reach higher than you knee.

Tonight you stood on top of the stairs, and you weren't turning around to get down. Standing a few steps below you, I was holding out my hands to you, but I saw this determined look in your eyes and knew right away that you wouldn't take them. After a moment of standing still, you stepped down by almost sitting down and moving your legs on by one carefully down to the next step. Then the next step and the step after that, wobbling and fighting to keep your balance at first, then becoming more and more confident in what you were doing. Step by step you made it all the way down, arriving at the bottom with a big smile and a sparkle in your eyes.

You are teaching me that sometimes we just have to take a leap of faith and believe that we can do anything we want. When we are determined to do something, and believe with all our heart that we will succeed, nothing stands in our way. Thank you for reminding me of that tonight. I love you always and forever.

Heavy Lifting

Katherine, the last weeks have been so busy – we have been moving offices and gone through quite a transition with our businesses… and you were there right in the middle of it.

As you are fully mobile now… I mean “right in the middle of it” quite literally. You were walking and toddling around the office, having a great time especially as we started to pack boxes - sometimes you outpaced us unpacking what we had just put in a box and sometimes you added items to the boxes; we just often had different ideas what should go into a particular box.

You even made it through some shelving rails sliding on your foot – even the bruising it caused didn’t keep you sitting still for long; a few tears and many hugs from everyone in the office and you were off and running again.

It was so much joy watching you “help” in so many ways – you even “assisted” daddy with the assembly of new chairs… there was not a screw you didn’t re-organize for him. But the coolest thing to watch was that you repeated what he was doing; you took screws and put them into the pre-drilled holes. Ok, so the assembly took a little bit longer, but who would complain with such a great helper!

You are teaching me that adapting to any change in life is easier when you do it with a smile on your face and expect to have fun and new adventures along the way. I am excited to find out what adventures are waiting for us around the corner. I love you always and forever.

A Little Walk

Katherine, this evening daddy and I went for a little walk with you. Yes, we have gone on lots of walks before, but this one was special. It was our first walk together without a stroller.

Yep, we went for an actual walk – all three of us walking! We went down the little walkway along our property and strolled around the cul-de-sac behind us. We stopped to look at fences, rocks on the ground and you took a break sitting down on the road (yes, it’s a very quiet cul-de-sac).

Pointing to the green grass, the blue sky and many things in between, you were taking it all in and we had lots of fun together. You were concentrating on every step you were taking, holding daddy’s or my hand for most of the walk… but once in a while you let go for just a few moments and began to explore the area around you on your own.

You are teaching me that it’s important to take time out to have fun together. It doesn’t need to be complicated or involve lots of planning… just “being in the moment” once in a while, being a family and laughing together is all I need. I love you always and forever.

One Step at a Time

Katherine, you are learning new things every day. Some days they are little things like figuring out how to take off your bib we just lovingly put on you before starting to eat (adults don’t wear bibs when they eat, why should you?)

But then, there are some days, where months of trying and failing and trying again lead to having a lifelong skill. This past week was one of those days. You have been walking by holding daddy’s and my hands for quite some time, you have been cruising along furniture and walls, you have been standing up, fallen down and gotten back up many, many times, sometimes even taking a little step or two. But this past week everything changed. One evening we were playing in the living room, you stood, holding my hands when all of a sudden you let go and you walked, on your own – putting one foot in front of the other one as you walked across the room.
Just like that you got it, and the look on your face, full of joy, said it all. I am so proud of you.

You are teaching me that no matter how hard we have to try to learn a new skill it’ll be worth it. If we fail (and fall down) at first, we’ll have to try as many times as it takes, but never, never give up. You remind me every day to look at life’s possibilities not its limitations. I love you always and forever.

Taking Control of your Life

Katherine, I am amazed how you are taking a little more control of your life every day. You have a strong opinion which food you like (or don’t like)… and in which order you like me to hand you your food – you are very good at gestures clearly signalling yes or no. And feeding you with a spoon is not an option at this point, it’s all about finger food that you can put in your mouth yourself (however, we have agreed to compromise when it comes to soup – thank you for that).

There is one other area of your life where you have made it very clear that you are in control. You love to put music on when we are at home. Your daddy has programmed our stereo equipment so that you have access to a Bavarian Kids radio station which is your absolute favourite and has upbeat German kid’s music – he has set it up for you so that you have one-button access to turn it on yourself (in a height that you can reach)… and you often crawl over to the stereo system to start the music on your own. One the tunes are playing, some days you sit on the floor for a while and tap your hands on your legs to the beat, and other days a big smile appears on your face as you crawl back to your toys to play.

You are teaching me that being in control of our lives is important. There are many things you cannot control, yet you have found simple, but important ways for you to feel that you have a say in what’s going on. Thank you for reminding me that it’s not always about the big things, little things matter too. I love you always and forever.

Acquired Taste

Katherine, oh it’s been a while since I wrote to you. You are growing and changing so quickly and as you are becoming more mobile your daddy and I are having our hands full catching up with you… and keeping your little hands out of things they shouldn’t be in (yes, that includes flower pots).

We were having so much fun together the other day going out to a restaurant for lunch. While we always pack back-up food for you when we go out (your favourite cereal and some fruit are almost always in your bag, just in case) – we are always open for you to try the food where we eat out… and did you surprise us. Your daddy had ordered a French Onion soup, and after he had a taste and shared some spoonfuls with me, you enthusiastically pointed to the soup bowl. Since that’s what you wanted, we gave you a little taste… which resulted in a big smile on your face and more pointing towards the soup bowl (we happily obliged and daddy kept sharing the soup with you). You love French Onion soup!

You are teaching me to always try new things and be open to new experiences. Some things we try in life we’ll like, and some we won’t – and that’s ok, but at least we’ll have tried. I hope you’ll always keep that sense of adventure (yes, at 13 months, every new experience is an adventure) and remind me to do the same. I love you always and forever.

Happy Birthday

Katherine, you are one year old… Happy Birthday!!

So many people who see you tell me they can’t believe a year has passed already since you were born. But to me this past year didn’t feel like it went too fast – we have spent so many amazing moments together and it felt like a year well lived.

Your birthday has been a special day – daddy and I decided to make it all about you. We spend the whole day playing together and had lots of fun. Knowing that you don’t like big crowds of people, we opted for skipping the idea of a big birthday party and had a small celebration with just the three of us in our living room (yes, on the floor – where better to have cake and presents… and a big balloon too). You got your first taste of cake (I made you a cherry cake with cherries picked in the summer from our backyard) – yum!

You are teaching me to enjoy the moments, the days, weeks and months. I feel privileged to have been part of your first year, every day has been a gift. This journey we are on together is nothing short of amazing and I can’t wait to see what the next year brings. I love you always and forever.

Happy New Year

Katherine, it’s a new year – welcome to 2012!

Your first New Year’s eve was calm, relaxed and perfect all in one. We stayed home, had a great dinner and lots of cuddles and playtime.

Every day is special for you and brings with it new experiences and new skills. You are growing by leaps and bounds. No, really, I mean it literally… just this morning when I wanted to dress you I had to put 3 shirts aside that didn’t fit you anymore and I have to admit the pants you were wearing all day were a little on the short side (didn’t the pant legs still reach down to the socks the other day??)

With your physical growth comes more strength and balance as well. You have figured out how to stand up from sitting by pulling yourself up on furniture and you are cruising around the living room with your snazzy walker.

You are teaching me that a New Year’s celebration at midnight isn’t complete without including you. As responsible parents we didn’t want to wake you at that time of night (ok, and we didn’t want to think about how difficult it would be to get you back to sleep if we would), but when your daddy and I wished each other a happy new year with a glass of champagne at midnight, we looked at each other and agreed that you were missing from our celebration. So we tip-toed into your room, kissed you gently and had a silent moment together welcoming the new year and all it will bring.

Happy New Year baby girl, may 2012 be a year filled with joy, happiness and health.

Christmas 2011

Katherine, you have experienced your first Christmas… the lights, the sounds and the experiences.

They say baby’s first Christmas is more about the parents than the child – and that held so true especially before Christmas. We went to see Santa (luckily he was stopping by the mall, so we didn’t need to travel all the way up to the North Pole); you were rather not impressed by me wanting a picture taken of you on Santa’s lap. Fair enough; we compromised on me holding you while sitting beside Santa.

We had a low-key celebration on Christmas Eve, just daddy, you and me… our little family and it was perfect. Lots of giggles and cuddles, playtime with new toys and a beautiful walk with all three of us on Christmas day.

You are teaching me that Christmas is as special as any other day when we make it so. This Christmas wasn’t about the presents, but about being present in every moment… that was the true gift of Christmas.

Merry Christmas baby girl!