What A Walker!!

Addison has become quite the walker. Actually, walker is an understatement. Runner would be a more accurate description! It has been about a month since she started taking a few steps here and there. Then, the day after her first birthday, she just took off! Now the girls can't be stopped!
She is so proud of her efforts and often pauses for a moment to applaud her efforts. She will literally stop and clap for herself. It is too cute!
Addison is at the point right now where she is almost refusing to crawl anywhere. She wants to show off her new talent and can often be found walking laps in the basement.
But, the road to walking has not been a smooth one. Our poor little girl has endured her fair share of bumps, bruises, and the occasional bleeding nose. Yes, bleeding nose. That is what landing nose first on a hardwood floor will do to you! But, nothing will hold her back. She shakes it off, stands up, and once again, is off to the races!

The Big Day

Addison spent her actual birth day hanging out with her mommy and her best friend Ceilidh (and Ceilidh's mommy Thelma) at "Little Feet Fitness and Fun". Little Feet is an indoor play area designed for the little ones.
Addison and Ceilidh had a blast climbing in and around things, jumping in the jumping castle, playing with the balls and riding in the cars. Addison found a few things that she took a quick liking to. The first was the jumping castle. She couldn't actually jump in it but she loved sitting there while the other kids did! The second was anything that she could climb through and the third favorite of the day was the cars that she could climb in and get pushed around. What a great time we had!!
Later on that day we celebrated with Grandma and Grandpa Hunter and Nan and Bubs. We enjoyed a spaghetti dinner and cupcakes (all made by mommy). Mmmmmm...

Splish, Splash. It's a Birthday Bash!

On January 19th we got together with friends and family to celebrate Addison's 1st birthday. What a party it was!! Some may have thought it a little extravagant for a first birthday party. But it was more than that. It was our opportunity to thank all of our friend and family who have been so wonderful to our new little family over the past year. I guess you could say that it was a "thank for helping us make it to Addison's first birthday" party. Who knew that "parenthood" could be so challenging and yet so rewarding. It is the love and support of our loved ones that keeps us grounded.
The party started of with some splashing and fun in the pool and was followed by some wonderful Italian food and delicious birthday cake.
Addison was given many wonderful and thoughtful gifts. But most importantly was the fact that she was surrounded with loved ones.

Ladies and Gentlemen, WE HAVE A WALKER! Sort of.

Well, it has been a couple of months now that Addison has been walking around the furniture
(since she was about 9 1/2 months old). And in the last month she has shown her daredevil side and began letting go. It was the cutest thing. She would steady herself. Lift one hand. Slowly raise the other. 1..2..BOOM. On the bum. But she is a determined little one and would get right back up.
Then she would get in a stance with one foot in front of the other, lift the hands, we would get all excited thinking she was going to take a step and she would lift the wrong foot (the one in front) and BOOM. On her bum.
Then Friday. Tah, Dah!! She moved the correct foot and took her first step. It was so exciting!! She is very proud of herself and moves from the footstool to the couch all the while grinning from ear to ear.
To top it all off, she took two steps today. What a show off.
Watch out world. Addison's a walker. Almost.

Winter Wonderland

Ok. This post might be a little out of order. But I love these pictures and wanted to include them for everyone to see.
Christmas Day in Parry Sound was perfect for a family walk. We bundled up and took Addison out for her first ride in a toboggan. SHE LOVED IT!!
You couldn't ask for a more perfect memorable moment. Crisp white snow, clean fresh air, and the ones you love.

Daycare Sucks!! (For mom anyways!)

Well, it has begun. Daycare that is. Addison went to daycare for the first time today. Ok. It was just 1/2 the day. But that was long enough for me. I think that leaving my baby with someone else is one of the hardest things that I have had to do.
We have a wonderful daycare provider who loves Addison to pieces. And, well, Addison absolutely loves being there playing with the other kids. It seems to be mom(me) that is having the hardest time with the whole thing.
I really thought the process would be a lot easier. I have spent the last four months dying to have a day to myself. Mmmm...a day shopping, hanging with friends, maybe a movie. All of that without the worry of diapers, feeding, naps, etc. Now it is a different story.
I carried Addison with me everywhere during the nine months I was pregnant with her. And then, for the last year, I have continued to carry her with me almost everywhere I go. For almost the last two years Addison has been my life. Now someone else will be feeding her lunch, putting her down for her naps, and cuddling her when she cries. That's hard.
I guess every child / parent relationship goes through changes. This is just the first of many changes that our family will go through.
On thing is certain. Addison will always be my life. That will never change.

Addison's first Christmas

What a great Christmas we had this year! Having Addison around for the holidays certainly added a different dimension to the season! We were able to spend Christmas in Parry Sound with the Bright side of the family. Grandma and Grandpa loved having Addison around and didn't spoil her at all (yeah right!). It was great fun watching her go from sitting back and watching how it works to diving right in and ripping the paper. This year it was definitely allabout the paper and boxes. I can just imagine that will all change by next year!!