Gracie's First Christmas

We had a wonderful first Christmas with Gracie this year! Although she was too young to know what was going on around her, we still enjoyed opening her gifts and dressing her up in Christmas attire! She was definitely showered with lots of love from our friends and family...and Santa of course!

Before we left for Midland, Trinity and I helped Gracie open her gifts from Grandma & Grandpa, Thomas, Jessica, & Addison, and Jen & Mike. We set her in her swing and would hand the gifts to her before opening them for her. She got some great books, clothes, an owl, and some finger puppets!

We spent Christmas Eve with Nana, Pop-Pop, and the extended Pinkerton family. We enjoyed a wonderful Mexican spread, and then all the great-grandbabies opened gifts from Grandma and Grandpa Pinkerton and some aunts and uncles. After dinner we went to Nana and Pop-Pop's house to open more gifts. Gracie got a seahorse glowworm, a singing clock, a doll, some pink and purple cars, clothes, and the My Baby Can Read program. I have to say the singing clock might be her new favorite toy. She could stare at it for hours, and it has helped me calm her down a few times this week! We also watched the first DVD in the MBCR program, and Gracie loved looking at all the images while Momma read the words to her!

Christmas morning I took Granny Buff to Christmas mass while the rest of the family hung around the house. Once we were back from church, we ate a wonderful Christmas meal and then opened presents with Mimi, Pop, Uncle Steven, Aunt Megan, and Granny Buff. Gracie got another glowworm, a Target gift card, some fun rattles, and a generous investment in a college savings fund!

And when we got home, Santa had left Gracie her first baby doll and a princess bath toy set! I can't wait for next year, when she will be a little more aware of the holidays.

You can see all of our Christmas pictures on our picasa site!

Merry Christmas!

Belly Laugh

Here is a video of one of the first laughs we heard from Gracie. It's about one minute into the video. The girl is hard to catch with a smile or laugh because she gets distracted by the camera! You can see her look at the camera for a split second at some point during this video, and when she does she looks a little confused to see a camera instead of my face. Too funny!

Daycare

On Thursday we turned in Gracie's paperwork for daycare. The last few days I've been having moments of weakness and crying as I count down the weeks and days until I have to send her to "school." I've never wanted to be a stay-at-home mom, but I never dreamed it would be so hard to even THINK about my baby being in daycare. I know that it does not make me a bad mother, and I believe that it will be very good for Gracie to play with the other children and be comfortable without me at her side all the time. But that doesn't always console me.

The last few days I've been trying to get Gracie as ready as I can for the new routine. We've started feeding her a bottle daily, as she isn't too fond of being denied her mommy (I guess we should have been doing this much earlier). I've also tried to have her down for naps at regular times, which is not going so great. I can't seem to get her on a consistent nap schedule or to get her to fall asleep on her own during the day. She requires the following for nap time: music, movement, and Momma! I worry she will be the baby everyone at daycare knows about...you know, the one who won't nap and screams when you put her down.

But, I think most of all I worry that some of her "firsts" will be at daycare, and I won't experience them with her. I love the look in my daughter's eyes when she discovers something new. Just the other day we heard Gracie's very first true belly laugh! Trinity and I just looked at each other and started laughing together. What an amazing experience to see and feel true joy! It's moments like that one that I do not want to miss.

On a more positive note, we are very pleased with the daycare that we've found. It is half a mile from our house, and Trinity even has plans of walking her there and back when the weather cooperates. Of course we are very impressed with the teachers in the infant class and trust that Gracie will have a great experience. And I am sure that I will quickly adjust to the new schedule and enjoy my adult time at work. It might just take me a few days or weeks to be comfortable in our new routine. I need to remember that not all moms get three full months at home with their babies, so I am truly blessed to have had this time at home with Gracie.

Dear Gracie

Oh the things we will do to entertain you. I have danced a jig for your amusement, I speak gibberish at high octaves just to see you smile, and I sing now more than I ever did when you weren't around. Your mother will sound like a crazy woman as she does whatever is needed to get you to smile and I hear her reading to you and I just laugh. To hear a grown woman read "One Berry, Two Berry, pick me a Blueberry" from another room is such a silly thing to hear.

You have a pensive stare that has intrigued us. You stare at the ceiling fans and especially at "your pictures". That group of frames that resides above the sofa has been our saving grace in times when you won't calm down. We still marvel at how you can be so engrossed in them.

I had you resting on my legs, facing "your pictures" and was singing you a ridiculous song that I was making up. It didn't rhyme, which bothers me to no end, but you were enjoying it. It was clear you were tired and slowly my song was putting you to sleep. Your eyes closed and I stopped singing because I assumed you were out, but resting on my legs you let your eyes peek open and you made a slight "huhn" to let me know I needed to continue.

So I did. I made up more verses to the ridiculous picture song and you kept looking at me through those little slits. I would stop and you would smile and "huhn" again for me to continue. It was one of those moments that made me smile.

Love,

Your Father

Getting in the Holiday Spirit

This past weekend Mimi came for a visit. She had conveniently found a conference to attend at the Gaylord in Grapevine, which is a short 20-30 minute drive from our house. The Gaylord is decorated to the max for the holiday season, so we took Gracie to see Mimi and get some good Christmas photos on Thursday night.

Dashing through the snow...

While we were waiting in line to get our pictures in the sleigh, a grandma with another baby asked how old Gracie was. I could tell she was surprised when I answered, "Two months!" Apparently her grandson was 3 months, and he looked to be about half the size of Gracie. His mom turned to us and asked how much she weighed when she was born, but Trinity misunderstood her and told her how much she weighs NOW...15 pounds. You should have seen the look of shock on her face! Mom and I quickly corrected the misunderstanding, but it was pretty funny!

At the life-size real gingerbread house

We had so much fun walking around the hotel and enjoying a glass of wine with Mom! And Gracie was so well behaved. It threw a little kink in her schedule, but she did great! It's so nice to know that she can be flexible with her schedule. You can find all our Gaylord pictures here.

Dear Gracie

Being a parent can be very rewarding, I knew that going in. When your mother and I started planning to have a baby we knew there would be firsts that would make us so in awe of life. I am still waiting for your first steps, your first word and your first heartbreak but until then I have been stopped dead by a single sound you make. The "Oohhhhh".

I wish I knew what you were thinking. You smile and you chatter on to us but I hear the "oohhhh" from the other room and I just stop and smile. There is such a jubilation in the tone of it. I like to think you are discovering something for the first time and it is amazing you. Simple things like sunlight on the wall or the way the mantle now has a nutcracker on it. All of these are new to you and it makes me smile to think that we get to appreciate the simplest things through your "oohhhh".

I dread the moment that these things start to become standard for you. Your mom and I will do our best to keep exposing you to new things that will make you in awe of the world as much as we have been in awe of you.

Love,

Your Father