Laurel as a busy little bee this Halloween. More photos here.
Author: William
Still, Still Here
The Codys have had a lot lot going on recently, and unfortunately that has resulted in us neglecting the blog. I am declaring an end to that neglect. We will be posting more frequently around here, starting with this post and a Halloween post soon to follow.
The real reason we have been so busy is that we recently moved. It was no secret, but we never really talked about it on the blog. We are the process of building a new home that is closer to both of our work places. A few weeks ago we sold our old home and moved into an apartment while we await completion of the new one, which we should be in by the end of the year. This process of looking for and buying a new home along with selling our old one has sucked up so much of the little free time we had, especially keeping the old one ready for showings.
Laurel has done great with the move and seems to adjusted to the new daycare, though we miss her old teachers. She has grown so much in the past month. At her 15 month checkup she was in the 92 percentile with height. Her vocabulary is growing everyday as well as her ability to effectively communicate. She now uses a combination of single words, sign language, and gestures. She just had her first dentist appointment and is working on her 4th tooth.
I uploaded pictures from my parents’ visit to Dallas about a week ago. I hope some of you found them. If not, here is a link. We were still settling in to the apartment during their visit, so please excuse any mess.
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Still Here
The Codys are still here. Kyllan and I have just been working hard. Here is a photo of our big girl. She has been sporting pigtails and taking a backpack, as opposed to a diaper bag, to daycare recently. She is growing up so quickly.
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TCI Photos
Pictures from our recent trip to Turks & Caicos are up on Flickr.
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Vacations
Earlier this month Kyllan took a girlcation with some old college friends and left me and Laurel all alone in Dallas. I won’t name any of the people that seemed overly concerned, but I did let them know that Laurel and I had a great time by ourselves. (I have been a parent just as long as Kyllan has!) There were trips to the park in her wagon, running errands with daddy, free photos, and lots of being tossed in the air.
We took a family trip to Turks & Caicos this past week. A return to the country we honeymooned in for Kyllan and me, the first trip for the Cody parents and Laurel’s very first trip to the beach. We had a great time and the beach was just amazing as we remembered. The fall semester beings next week, and I am incredibly busy right now, so I might not get around to uploading pictures and video to the blog until early next week. Maybe sooner.
Below is a picture of Laurel taken at the photography studio at Buy Buy Baby. The photographer was training someone and has no babies to take pictures of, so he offered me free photos if I let her take some of Laurel. You can see the progress of her scar from “the incident” healing.
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1st Birthday Party
This past Saturday Kyllan and I held a party for Laurel’s first birthday. There was cake, balloons, presents, and a beautiful 1 year old girl. We had a wonderful time celebrating the occasion with friends and family at out home. Laurel had a great time too, up until the “incident.” Laurel is okay now. During the party a young guest was giving Laurel a hug when one of the two girls tripped. When they feel over Laurel hit her forehead on the entertainment center. There was a lot of blood. One of the things I learned when I became a farther was that there existed an entire range of human emotion that I had not yet experienced. For the most part these new emotional experiences have been that of joy and wonder. This was fear. It was Laurel’s first injury and while she may have quickly recovered, her mother and I did not. It was traumatic…
During a unscheduled 1 hour intermission we started discussing the items going into Laurel’s time capsule. When she emerged from her room we tried to give Laurel her first piece of cake, but she, understandably, was not in the mood. We moved on to presents and Laurel slowly begun to perk back up. By the end of the evening she was back to her old self and even gave the cake another try.
There are several photos from the party on my flickr. A large band-aid does appear in the middle of the set.
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One Year Old
Dear Laurel,
I can’t believe that you turned one year old Tuesday. This past Saturday we threw your first birthday party. I am sure the stories will be told in the Cody house for years to come. Seriously… Our trip to the aquarium on Tuesday, for your actual birthday, went much closer to plan. (I will post on the party, the “incident”, and the aquarium later, as well as post pictures.)
Your mother and I cannot believe how much you have grown over the past month. It is like you change just as much during your 12th month as you did months 1- 11 combined. We blinked and your helmet was gone, your ears were pierced, your first two teeth came in, you out grew the infant car seat, and you went from stumbling to take a few steps to walking around the house with ease. Also, you manage to grow cuter every day. It’s amazing.
You have added “Uh-oh” to your vocabulary, which previously consisted of “mama”, “dada” and your favorite snack, “mum mum.” Well, we think you are saying “mama” and “dada.” You are definitely saying “mum mum” and “uh-oh.” You continue to show a love for music and books. Earlier this month I had to move your crib after hearing crashing sounds one night, only to look at the baby monitor to see that you had reached over the side of your crib and grabbed a book from the shelf. Your mother and I sat half puzzled half amazed as we watched you turn page after as if you were reading it. You taking books and turning pages one by one has become quite common, as well as you babbling as if you were reading the story out loud. You seem to really be enjoying my children’s soundtrack playlist, being partial to the Sound of Music and anything sung by Julie Andrews in general. You grabbed hold of a big bird stuffed animal while at the store the other day. You appear to be fond of it. It is the first stuffed toy you have really shown a preference for. There was a stuffed elephant when you were a few months old, but I think you only liked the crinkly sound his ears made. Maybe if we put the two together they can be Big Bird and Snuffaluffagus.
Your favorite things at 1 year are:
- Pretending to read
- Waving bye-bye
- Walking all around the house
- Crushing cheerios with your sippy cup
- Cuddling
- People watching
Thank you for an amazing year. I will treasure these memories always.
Love,
Dad
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Everywhere
It’s official. She is everywhere. We can’t even turn our heads for a second.
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Time Capsule
Kyllan and I are making a time capsule for Laurel’s 1st Birthday, to be opened when she graduates from high school. I have a few friends that have asked about contributing something and for suggestions. Just in case some of you are interested, those suggestions are below. We are adding items to the capsule at her party on the 21st through her actual birthday on the 24th.
- A personal letter to Laurel
- Photos of you and your family
- Photos of local landmarks
- A post card featuring your city
- Your business card
- Daily newspaper
- Headlines and news articles
- A magazine
- Grocery or gas receipt
- Catalog
- Movie ticket stubs
- Brochures
- Technical information or specifications
- Stamps
- Car ad
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No More Baby Steps
This Friday Laurel seems to have decide that she prefers walking to crawling. Where as before she would take a few steps, fall, and then start crawling, over the weekend she started getting back up and immediately trying again. Well, she must have gotten the hang of things in the last 24 hours because now she is walking all over the house none stop. She is even walking places that she would crawl before. It is amazing how much she is changing as her 1st birthday approaches. She got rid of the helmet, got her ears pierced, and now is walking all over the place. Kyllan grabbed a short video on her iPhone earlier this evening.