We Have a Teenager Under Our Roof

Okay... technically not an actual teenager... but as of yesterday, Elsa is 13 months old! I swear each month is flying by faster than the one before.

She's still not quite walking but Elsa is all over the place these days. Between crawling, climbing up and down the stairs and cruising the furniture, that girl does not stay in one place long. Thankfully, she was willing to sit on my lap for a couple of minutes last night to capture some pictures.

Smiles with Mama

Cheese!

Elsa has inherited "The Meghan Look"

And here's a cutie pie pictures we clicked on Sunday:

Practicing her super model poses

Crowing from the Rooftop

Back in the day when I was a Marketing Director, I participated in monthly management meetings where we were asked to report a "crow". Crows were essentially reports of something great that had happened in the prior month; they had to be measurable and something that was above average.

During my final management meeting before departing the Credit Union, my manager joked that I would line up Elsa and Bear every month and make them do Crows (yes, even my boss realized and made jokes about what a geek I had become).

Well, I never made Elsa or Bear do Crows (yes, you can now all take a big sigh of relief), but as Elsa turned one last week,  started reflecting on some of the major accomplishments of the year. And, I believe there are three that are truly "crow-worthy":

1. I was able to provide Elsa breast milk for an entire year. This is the recommendation of the American Academy of Pediatrics but according to the 2011 Breastfeeding Report Card published by the CDC, only 44.3% of babies are breastfed at 6 months and only 23.8% of babies are breastfed at 12 months. Just yesterday, I packed up my breast pump and added it to the growing collection of baby items in storage. I'm proud that I made it as long as I did; while it certainly wasn't always easy, I'm glad I stuck it out with the trusty pump instead of waving the white flag. 
2. Elsa has jumped up the charts with her weight and height as she continues to develop and practice healthy eating habits. As you may recall, we had a bumpy start when it came to eating. From the start, it was a struggle to get Elsa to eat. She was born at the 50th percentile for weight and height but quickly dropped to the 12th percentile for her weight. Through some coaxing and my acceptance that the bottle was the best route for Elsa, our baby has turned into quite the little eater (the other night, she out ate me at dinner). And, according to today's doctor appointment, Elsa is continuing to climb up the charts - she now weighs 21 pounds, 2 ounces (about 55 - 60th percentile) and measures 30 1/2 inches (85 - 90th percentile).
3. Elsa is able to stand up tall. Laugh as much as you want but that girl has a freaking huge head! It continues to chart at about the 90 - 95th percentile and I am just amazed at the strength of her neck. Okay, yes, I joke with this Crow. But still - what a head (and BTW, it is an incredibly cute head that by no means looks proportionate; but the "Claussen head" was my biggest fear when it came to childbirth)!

And a Pinch to Grow an Inch

This weekend was a big one in the Claussen house - Elsa turned the big O-N-E!!

Carl and I kicked off Miss Elsa's birthday by waking up bright and early to wish the Birthday Girl a happy birthday at 6:49 a.m. I don't think Carl was very happy about getting up so early but he can take that up with Miss Elsa, as that was the time that she chose appropriate to grace us with her presence last year.

After a round of the Birthday Song and some early morning cuddles, it was time to prepare for the first of her parties (yes, as in multiple shindigs!).

After the house was prepped, the Birthday Girl got in some play time!

And then it was time for cupcakes, ice cream and presents!

After a day of cupcakes and fun, we got up bright and early the next day to do it all over again!

Baby's First Christmas

Elsa has now experienced the wondrous joy that is Christmas!

It was fun to see Christmas through a baby's eyes this year. She loved eating opening her presents and has already put them all to the test. Lots of great pjs, books and toys. And, of course, her favorite gift - an electric Disney Princess toothbrush!

Here's some pictures of Miss Elsa partaking in the Christmas activities:

11 Months - I've Been Procastinating

It's been hard for me to accept that my little love is almost one, and that's why I've been procrastinating on her 11 month post. After all, if I don't write about it, it means it didn't happen, right?!

Well, it did happen - nearly three weeks ago (oops!). I tried taking pictures of her and they really didn't turn out that great because she is constantly on the move these days, trying to explore and learn about every inch of the house.

On this particular day, she had taken interest in the Christmas tree and all of the fun packages that were waiting underneath:

Why isn't my name on this package?

Ooohhh! Tissue paper...

Tissue paper!

TISSUE PAPER!!

There's a Reason for My Lack of Posts...

The Elsa Monster has been on the loose! Every time a laptop is out, she wants to slam it with her fists. So, my laptop has been tucked out of the way and I'm just not good enough at typing on  my phone to create new posts.

So, here is a list of headlines of all of the posts that I have been wanting to publish this last month:

The Delicacy Known as Tissue Paper
A taste test review written by Elsa regarding the variety of tissue paper that resided under the Christmas Tree during December. She didn't have the opportunity to pick out her favorite because Mama tore it out of her mouth before she got a full taste.

The Ornery Ones
While Elsa is not quite one, she has started perfecting the art of temper tantrums, making me question whether "The Terrible Twos" are starting super early in our house.

Splish Splash
Elsa has finally started liking her baths... probably because she has discovered how fun it is to splash water all over Mama!

New Year's Diet
I've discovered a new diet - feed your soon-to-be-toddler the food off of your plate! It automatically eliminates a quarter of the food you would typically eat. I should totally write a book about this. I could probably make millions! Too bad my sweet little terror  toddler has made it impossible to use my computer!

Oh, and in case you're scoffing at the fact that I supposedly can't use my laptop and yet here is a new post - I wrote this post while waiting for the bulletins to print at the church office :-P

 

Mommy Milestone - First Baby-Free Weekend

I feel like I tackled a major mommy "first" this weekend - I spent 2.5 days without my precious little Elsa.

As the weekend approached, I was excited yet nervous and hesitant. Excited because I was traveling to visit a dear friend and her beautiful little 5 week old! Nervous because I had never been away from Elsa for more than 12 hours before. Add to that the fact that I was going to be around an itty bitty baby potentially clad in Elsa's newborn clothes (we have passed our clothing on to my friend), and I had a feeling that some tears may be shed by the end of the weekend. And hesitant because I didn't want to get bitten with baby fever over the weekend. I love Elsa more than words could ever convey but having a second child right now isn't part of Carl's and my "plan".

Before I left for the trip, I asked Carl if he had any advice to help ease my separation anxiety (as you may recall, Elsa and I had a couple of Mommy and Baby adventures this summer). His response, "No.... I really just enjoyed the silence." This made me realize that perhaps Mommies and Daddies are wired a tad bit differently.

Now that it's all said and done, I have to admit that while I missed my baby, being away from her really wasn't that bad. And, I'm shocked to say that while the newborn was adorable and I enjoyed snuggling with her, it didn't make me feel the urge to reproduce anytime soon. Elsa, you'll be happy to know that you'll get Mommy and Daddy all to yourself for a while longer!

And I'm happy to report that Elsa and Carl thoroughly enjoyed their Daddy and Baby weekend. I hear that it was full of laughs and noisy playtime activities - like banging the heck out of Mommy's coffee table.