Yesterday was the six month anniversary of the day we met Gabby, and what a six months it has been! We really can't believe it - it feels like yesterday that we were sitting in the lobby of the ICBF building, sick with nerves and anticipation, waiting to meet our little girl. We talk again and again about how incredibly lucky we are to have her.
I read the book "The Kite Runner" several months ago, before we met Gabby. There is a scene in which Hassan says to Amir, "For you, a thousand times over." That really struck me when I read it. Fast forward to a couple of months ago when I decided to watch the movie (the book is better, by the way, as is usually the case). That line literally took my breath away and I started crying and just couldn't stop, because it so perfectly expresses what I think every time I look at Gabby. I would do it all a thousand times over for her.
On a lighter note, she is doing all kinds of funny things these days. She loves to play in the toilet. Ditto for the bath tub. If we don't put the toilet lid down, we find her splashing around in the water and/or putting all sorts of objects in the bowl. So far, she has put shoes (hers and mine), a battery-operated toy, a spoon, and my hair brush in the toilet. She clearly doesn't understand what "yucky" or "dirty" mean yet. She also likes to drop things in the bath, and if I don't notice them amongst the bath toys before I turn the water on, they get soaked. These items, to date, have included my flip flops, the same battery-operated toy (which miraculously still works), my hair brush, a cd case, several spoons, and a box of band-aids.
She also loves to dance and shakes her little booty just about any time she hears music. She used to just sort of bob up and down, but now there is foot shuffling and some stomping as well. And she really has great rythym, which she must surely get from me. She is also starting to give hugs. I wish I could say that Daniel or I are generally the object of her affection, but it's actually the cat. It is so cute - she will drape herself over him, lay her head on him, and smile this contented little smile. And she loves books! This makes me very happy, as I have always loved to read and think that it led to my love of learning. She'll bring a book over to one of us, climb in our lap, and open it up. She has a short attention span, so usually after about, oh, 10 seconds, she's climbing right back out of our lap, but it's usually to go get another book (and then another, and another) and repeat the process.
Next weekend Gabby and I are going to Seattle to visit Tio Matt and Tia Traci. I'm a little bit nervous about flying alone with Gabby - I can't imagine keeping her within the confines of a 2x2x3 space for 2 1/2 hours. The person that should really be nervous is the poor soul that will be sitting next to us.
Well, that's it for now. I have a couple of cute pictures that I want to post but they're in the camera and I don't know where it is, so I will post them later.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Way too long...
I know, it's been WAY too long since we posted. Summers are always so busy - BBQs, birthday parties, baby showers, weddings - it seems like we're booked out every weekend until September.
Gabby is doing very well. She is walking like it's going out of style - it's her favorite thing to do these days! She still reminds us of a drunken sailor, but every day she gets more and more graceful and coordinated. Now she can stop in the middle of the room, lean over and pick something up, and keep going without missing a beat (that is, without doing a faceplant).
She is also talking A LOT - it's her second favorite thing to do these days. She is testing out not only her new vocabulary, but her vocal range as well. To date, we have not been able to locate a "volume" button and none of the dozen or so remote controls we own seem to work. Sometimes we simply give up on conversing in her presence because, well, we just can't compete. In addition to lots of chattering that we can't understand, she now clearly says dada, agua, water, uh-oh, qua-qua (quack-quack), guao-guao (kind of like "bow wow" but in spanish, and she yells it every time she sees a dog), gampa (grandpa), and mama. Mama is probably the word she says least often. I was feeling pretty wounded by that until I talked to another mom this weekend that told me her son said "mama" for the first time at around a year and a half and only after he started saying the word "elk."
During the last two weeks of June my boss was out of town and I worked full-time. I know that LOTS of moms work full-time, but I don't know how - it is REALLY hard. I felt like I hardly got to see Gabby, not to mention what the house looked like. I went to get a massage on Friday afternoon and when they told me there had been a "scheduling mix-up" and there was nobody there to give me my massage, I seriously had to excuse myself to the restroom so that I didn't CRY in front of the lady at the front desk. And that was after only two weeks of working full-time.
This past weekend my sister was here from Seattle for her baby shower. She and Gabby had not seen each other since March and had a good time reconnecting with each other. Gabby wishes Tia Traci didn't live so far away!
Well, that's it for now... We hope everyone is enjoying their summer and having as much fun as we are! I'll post some pictures tomorrow.
Leslie, Daniel, & Gabby
Gabby is doing very well. She is walking like it's going out of style - it's her favorite thing to do these days! She still reminds us of a drunken sailor, but every day she gets more and more graceful and coordinated. Now she can stop in the middle of the room, lean over and pick something up, and keep going without missing a beat (that is, without doing a faceplant).
She is also talking A LOT - it's her second favorite thing to do these days. She is testing out not only her new vocabulary, but her vocal range as well. To date, we have not been able to locate a "volume" button and none of the dozen or so remote controls we own seem to work. Sometimes we simply give up on conversing in her presence because, well, we just can't compete. In addition to lots of chattering that we can't understand, she now clearly says dada, agua, water, uh-oh, qua-qua (quack-quack), guao-guao (kind of like "bow wow" but in spanish, and she yells it every time she sees a dog), gampa (grandpa), and mama. Mama is probably the word she says least often. I was feeling pretty wounded by that until I talked to another mom this weekend that told me her son said "mama" for the first time at around a year and a half and only after he started saying the word "elk."
During the last two weeks of June my boss was out of town and I worked full-time. I know that LOTS of moms work full-time, but I don't know how - it is REALLY hard. I felt like I hardly got to see Gabby, not to mention what the house looked like. I went to get a massage on Friday afternoon and when they told me there had been a "scheduling mix-up" and there was nobody there to give me my massage, I seriously had to excuse myself to the restroom so that I didn't CRY in front of the lady at the front desk. And that was after only two weeks of working full-time.
This past weekend my sister was here from Seattle for her baby shower. She and Gabby had not seen each other since March and had a good time reconnecting with each other. Gabby wishes Tia Traci didn't live so far away!
Well, that's it for now... We hope everyone is enjoying their summer and having as much fun as we are! I'll post some pictures tomorrow.
Leslie, Daniel, & Gabby
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