Shoe Shopping

Julia and I embarked on an important adventure today – we went to buy her first pair of real shoes.  She has been wearing soft-soled shoes for quite awhile as that’s what is now mostly recommended by doctors to be best for kids feet while they are learning to walk (I’m sure this recommendation, like all others, will probably change by the time we have to buy shoes for our next child).  But we’ve had a couple of warmer days and I’d like for her to be able to play outside so it was off to the shoe store – Stride Rite, of course.

I’ve actually been looking forward to this because as most people who know me know, I love shoes.  This is an inherited trait from the Nadeau side of the family and while my shoe shopping has definitely been curtailed in the past couple of years due to budget constraints and just simply not having places to wear different shoes, it’s still one type of shopping I actually like to do.  And, just in case anyone is wondering about my claim that this is an inherited trait I will offer this – my Dad has no less than 15 pairs of just sneakers.  Who knew there were so many a person had to have?!?  So not only is it inherited, it is also a gender-neutral trait!

Okay, back to Julia.  We go into Stride Rite (after she has had a long nap and eaten lunch) and start looking at shoes.  That goes fine; we’re having fun pulling shoes off the shelf and tasting them, seeing how tough they are by throwing them on the floor, etc.  Then it comes time to measure her feet and there is NO WAY that she is putting a single toe on that measuring device.  Not happening.  There’s a calming down period, some watching of other kids getting their feet measured, and then attempt 2.  Again, not happening.  She climbed into my lap and clung to me like I was a tree and there was a wolf trying to eat her.  I calm her down again and then basically end up forcing the child to stand as the clerk measures her feet with lightning speed and determines she needs a size four.  Okay, great.  We pick out the shoes, get them on and they seem to fit.  Hopefully they do, because we each got a half a millisecond chance to push on the toes to see if there was some room!  After that we were out of that store as fast as possible.

Bottom line is that I think our days of fun mother-daughter shoe shopping trips are a ways off.  But she did prance around happily in them once we got home so I think she might have gotten the shoe gene too! :)

11 Months Old

Julia is 11 months old today!  She celebrated by dancing.

A Vacation of Firsts

This is my last night of vacation and that is a little sad.  However it was a wonderful week and half.   It was great spending so much time with Alyssa, Julia, and the rest of family in RI.

Julia had a great time too, she learned to wave good-bye and now enjoys doing it all the time.  She also has said her first real word (other than ma-ma and da-da)….any guesses…its one she hears all the time time.  That’s right its diaper!!!  I was folding her diapers and I said ‘diaper’, Alyssa then looked at me and said Julia just said ‘diaper’.  I thought she was just making it up.  So I said it again and clear as day Julia said ‘diaper’.  It was very cute.

Julia also corrected us on the sign for ‘more’.  We have been trying to teach her to put her hand to her mouth when she wants more.  But the other day Alyssa noticed every time she said ‘more’ Julia would put her hands together making a circle.  Pretty much just like this.  So Julia taught us the correct sign.  Thanks!

Here is a small selection of holiday pictures.  The first is a gift from Kate, I am sure Julia will enjoy the humor of it as she gets older.

It looks like Julia can’t wait to start cooking.  Although I think she needs a lesson on how to use the rolling pin.

Alyssa sure is excited to have this level, Julia needs convincing though.

Julia received her first gift from her cousin Alex.

All in all a great time!

Happy New Year everyone.

Snownami – Day 2

Well, when the last flake had fallen we had about 18 inches of snow.  That is the the 6th largest snowfall this area has ever gotten and apparently this will be the first white Christmas in DC in 20 years.  We will be celebrating our white Christmas in RI but are enjoying looking out at our wintry wonderland for now.  Here are a few pictures from today. 

Julia feeling snow for the first time.  She really didn’t know what to make of it, other than she hates being cold!

Me – round 1 of shoveling.

Andrew and Julia bundled up for our walk around the neighborhood.

Andrew’s snow angel!

Snownami -- Update

The earlier pictures were taken at around 9:30 am, this set was taken around 5pm.  I think we must have about 18-20 inches of snow.  You can barely see our small picnic table anymore.

Also I have been asked to elaborated on the title for these posts.  While watching the news this morning they asked for people to name this storm.  There were several good ones but my favorite was Snownami.

Snownami

It looks like we are well on our way to having a record snowfall in December.  Previous record was 11.5 inches, I think we are pretty close to 12 from the looks of things.  Here are a couple of pictures I took from out our back door.  Alyssa hasn't been brave enough to go out with a ruler yet but she told me she would later.

Hopefully we will be able to dig ourselves out in a week or two.

Some cuteness

Here are a couple of new videos we’ve taken of Julia in the last week.  The first is her walking!  This was taken a couple of days ago and she is already upping the ante – today she was trying to RUN (I’m not kidding)!  She doesn’t quite have the balance for that yet so she keeps taking falls but apparently she has places she needs to be!

 

This one is of her eating her lunch.  I just thought she looked like a cute little bird eating worms!