These Polka-dotted Shoes Were Made for Walking

I have been a very loyal blogger for a couple of years now. This began as a place for me to journal the range of emotions I was dealing with as a result of infertility and my miscarriage. I found I had this internal dialogue that just needed an escape so, for some reason, I decided to make it public. I don't know how many people have actually read all of the words I've put here, but I know there have been a few and that's enough for me. I know I helped at least one stranger through her struggle with infertility as well. I've said it before, but the journey it took for us to have a child has helped me grow. I feel like what was once an ugly, sad and dark time has transformed into something entirely different. Now that I'm "on the other side" of it all, I am able to look at it with an objective eye. At the risk of sounding overly metaphorical, it's now just one patch on the quilt of my life and it adds to the overall beauty of the collection. A collection of experiences that I've had and will have in the future.

I've been debating on whether or not to continue posting here now. That is why I've been absent for a little while. I was sort of avoiding the decision. I also feel like I have other avenues to share our life with Jordan (read: Facebook). It may not seem like a big deal but this blog is very personal to me and I didn't want to just abandon it one day without a formal goodbye. I'm not absolutely certain that I will never post anything again, so this may be more of a "to be continued" than "the end". I don't know what the future holds for us in regards to having more children. We may end up at the RE's office again or we may adopt. I may feel the need to chronicle our next adventure and if I do then I will be back. I have prayed for guidance and I know God will lead us down the path He desires for us. I don't feel like Jordan will be our only child but only time will tell. For now I am just waiting for the answer to that question.

Of course, what would a post be without pictures? Pictures are always a must.

About to take a dip in the baby pool.


She learned sign for hat and then decided that wearing one was okay after all.


I just love this one.


Using her new walking skills to explore the backyard with Daddy.


Another one of my favorites.


A family portrait.

Jordan's First Birthday in Pictures! (And my 100th post!)

She woke up happy on her birthday!


Enjoying some toast topped with chopped pears for breakfast.


She had to spend some time doing one of her favorite things which is pushing the chairs around the kitchen.


We went to Chick-fil-a for lunch but I left the camera at home. She enjoyed eating what I brought for her and one of my fries. There were also some balloons which always fascinate her. Then we came home and she took a nap. After some rest she was ready to continue her fun day.

We are off to the park.


I think this swing is going to be fun mom.


She enjoyed the view.


No fear!


Yep, that was a lot of fun.


We did a little bit of exploring. It was windy today, can you tell?


Jordan's first trip down a slide. I'm pretty sure she enjoyed the ride.


She stood here for a while and then attempted to crawl...


but she didn't like the wooden chips. It was time to go home anyway.


Jordan ate a lot of lasagna for dinner. A lot... of lasagna. She has tasted it before but this time she made a meal out of it.


Lasagna makes a girl thirsty.


Signing "all done". It was a really fun day!

Jason and I sang Happy Birthday to her just before bed. She smiled the whole way through and I think that is because she really did have a happy birthday. :)

Dear Jordan,

Happy Birthday to my sweet baby girl.

You were born at 9:35 in the morning one year ago. We didn't know you would be welcomed into the world quite that early but thankfully you were healthy and strong. I remember hearing you cry for the first time and I cried too. I was so happy and I couldn't believe that my wish had finally come true. Dr. Reed brought you around the curtain so I could get a quick peek at you before they dried you off and wrapped you up. Your blood sugar was low so they had to take you to the NICU for a little while but they let me give you a kiss on your cheek first. I remember how soft and squishy your cheek felt. That was the first of many kisses because I still just can't get enough of your squishy cheeks. I'm so glad you have learned to give kisses and hugs back now. Your little arms wrapped around my neck make me so happy!

You have brought countless smiles to so many different people's faces. That includes family, friends and all the strangers you have charmed with your cute little grin and wave. You have truly brightened this world! Especially when it comes to your Mommy and Daddy's world. We have so much fun watching you play and explore. You are curious, determined, cheerful and have moments of such sweetness that I try to relish it because I know you will be busy again just as quick! I cannot believe how much you have changed in one year. You went from a tiny 5 pound baby to a cruising, waving, laughing, babbling, pointing, speed crawling, and recently climbing (eek!) little girl.

I am so excited we are celebrating your first year of life and I look forward to celebrating each year to come. I love you!

Mommy

(I have pictures to share of course so I will come back with those for my 100th post! I can't think of a better way to celebrate 100 posts.)

11 Months - My Little Valentine

A few weeks ago we celebrated Valentine's Day with our little Valentine. Jason was sweet and bought us each our own bouquet of flowers. My gift to him was a framed picture of Jordan that he could take to work and I must have taken 75 pictures but only ended up with a few that were worth framing. This girl is just too busy to sit still for a photo.

And... a few days ago I turned 30 and Jordan turned 11 months.

Eleven.

Months.

I'm not sure which is more unbelievable. That I'm no longer in my twenties or that Jordan is less than a month away from being a one year old. I can tell you that I'm way more excited about one than the other.

Jordan is currently into exploring every room and thing in the house. She explores everything but the toy box these days. Today we almost had the cliche mess of a child in a flower pot but I was able to get there just in time. I'm not sure how many times her hands have ended up in Daisy's water bowl and her hand prints line the bottom of the television. I'm also mystified as to why she is tempted to taste the granules that are in the bottom of the fire place but she looks at me like I'm crazy when I try to feed her green beans. Today she ever so gracefully spit some back out with the distinct look of disgust on her face. (What a stinker.) She is still endlessly fascinated with Daisy while Daisy is still less than thrilled about that fact.

I think her favorite thing to do right now is to point. She points all day and at everything. We go outside and she points at the trees, the cars, the houses, the leaves and tells me all about them. Her babbling is sounding more and more like her own language. I truly believe she is telling me about things even though I can't decipher what it is yet. But I enjoy our conversations none the less! She is also quite the copycat and has learned how to fuss at the dog. The pointing comes in handy here as she will wag her finger and babble some commands to Daisy after I've fussed at Daisy to get out of the kitchen. That's right girl, you got my back.

Other than that, I'm putting some things together for Jordan's birthday party. I know it will be here before we know it!

This isn't the one I gave to Jason but I liked it too. Maybe she will grow up to like Daisies as much as me.


Our pretty flowers from Daddy. Was it presumptuous of me to assume the bigger one was for me?


Hanging out at the Weymouth house on my birthday. Notice the indiscriminate pointing.


The family had decided we had a theme this time and that included mustaches.


Jordan wasn't a fan.


Forget toys. Socks are way cooler.


The pointing continues!


The many...


many...


faces of Jordan.


Last but not least, just because you have a pretty face does not mean you always take a pretty picture.

10 Months - Cruisin'

The little peanut that came home from the hospital under five pounds is now about to graduate into a bigger car seat. Technically she was a few ounces too light for her first car seat the first time she rode in it. Just for nostalgic purposes...

Who is that teeny tiny little baby who was too small for her newborn sized clothes??? Now we have a cruising ten month old who I can hardly keep up with. She is using her crawling skills to keep me on my feet (literally and figuratively).

Lately Jordan has decided if Jason and I are laughing about something then she should be laughing too. Then of course we laugh because she is laughing and so the cycle continues. She is also learning that she can do silly things to make us laugh. (Pictured below is one of those times that she knew her goofy faces were entertaining me.) It's good times in the Minter household.

We've also had two snow storms this month which is a bit strange for North Texas. We let Jordan touch the snow but I don't think she liked how cold it was. I hope this strange weather returns when she is a little older! We saw a huge group of children sledding by our house and in a few years we will be joining in on the fun.

Now every mother has the best of intentions when it comes to what they will feed their child. I've made all of Jordan's food, mostly with organic produce. Right now her favorite seems to be yogurt mixed with applesauce and blueberries. She's still enjoying puffs and I am doing my best to keep her interested in veggies. I think she has realized that she is getting the short end of the stick though and she would rather have what we are having. Even if it's an ice cream sandwich...

No, I did not let Jordan taste my ice cream sandwich. No, that is not the evidence on her face.

Blueberries are great but they are messy!


Daddy and baby silhouettes.


My little ham was squinting her eyes at me and laughing.


Wearing her "Jordan" shirt she got for Christmas from her cousins. She refused to sit still for a picture!


My little mini me. I have to find my baby pictures so I can show off how much she looks like me here.


Snow storm number one. Her first snow!!!


Snow storm number two. She didn't know what to think of all that cold white stuff.


After being stuck inside for three days from the snow and ice, we started to get a little silly.

9 Months - One Feet, Two Feet, These Are Neat Feet!

Jordan Mae (aka: Stinkerpot, Little Miss, Booger Bear, Snuggle Bunny, Little Gene, and most recently "La-La", per Daddy, since that's what she says 24 hours a day) is 9 months old today. That means we are 3 months away from her first birthday. I feel like we have gone from counting up to a countdown. A countdown to the age of one!

Our girl went from crawling one day to pulling up the next. Literally! For a while she was doing her own version of crawling that looked a little disorganized and was not the most efficient method of getting around (even though eventually she would get where she wanted to go). Then one day she finally figured out how to organize all those limbs into working as a team and then the next day she decided it was time to move on to the next thing. Now we can hardly keep her off her feet because she uses everything to pull up on. Our legs, tables, couches, the ottoman and she's even tried the wall a few times but without much success.

She has also been learning how to feed herself. While she isn't completely sold on most solids that we've tried, she does enjoy feeding herself little puffs. The first time I gave them to her she must have sat in her high chair for 45 minutes just focusing on getting those little pieces into her mouth. For a while there were more going into the chair and onto the floor than in her mouth but tonight I only found six in her chair. I'd say her accuracy has improved quite a bit! She also finally cut two teeth on the bottom. Hopefully someday she will be willing to put her teeth to good use.

One thing that is fun about this age is her personality is showing more and more. I find evidence of who she is in all the things she is doing. I am even doing my best to put a positive spin on the fact that she has quite the opinion about certain things.

1) She is always reaching for things and going out of her way to get her hands on things she probably shouldn't have. Translation - She will be a goal oriented person who won't give up on her dreams.

2) She gets so mad at me when I remove her from an area she shouldn't be. Translation - She won't let society tell her what her limits are.

3) She doesn't sleep much and often thinks it's time to play when it's really time to sleep. Translation - She will be the life of the party and a lot of fun to be around. (That's fine as long as she doesn't have too much fun.)

4) She would rather be held than sleep in her bed. Translation - She is a very affectionate and loving person.

Of course she is not always getting into trouble. There are times that she will just crawl over to me and lay her head on my leg. She also will lay her head on my shoulder and give me a quick snuggle every once in a while. I know every parent probably believes their child is intelligent but I truly believe we have a smart little cookie on our hands. Her pediatrician pegged her a genius months ago. While I think "genius" might be overstating, I am willing to agree that she is going to have her Daddy's smarts. Apparently a high needs baby can often mean a smart child, so with that in mind, the bags under our eyes are merely evidence that we have created someone special.

Visions of sugar plumbs are dancing in her head. Asleep on Christmas Eve.


Christmas morning and curious about that snowflake.


She didn't care to unwrap any gifts but she thought the bows were lots of fun!


Continuing the solids adventure.


I just love her outfit and expression here.


Visiting her Great Grandpa (her Gene counterpart) and Great Granny during Christmas. She had fun playing with Grandpa's hands.


We also visited "Uncle" Troy. He thought she wouldn't like him but she looks happy to me!


Using her new skill (standing) at her new toy.


There is a Jordan in there somewhere.


My happy girl!