It's my party and I'll cry if I want to, but mostly I'll smile and eat cake!

How time flies! A little over a week ago, we had Ruby's first birthday party. We tried to keep it pretty simple. Family and friends were invited to come to our home for cake and homemade pizza. We stuck with a Valentine's Day theme, as Ruby was Valentina for the first 9 months of her being. [[posterous-content:pid___5]]

Pinterest provided the inspiration for the many homemade decorations and for the cupcakes. Those cupcakes! Many hours of work, and they were NOT pretty... on the outside. They did have redeeming qualities on the inside.[[posterous-content:pid___1]]

Ruby got so many fun gifts - great toys and clothes for the summer! Keeping her opening all the gifts and not distracted by the new fun things was quite the task![[posterous-content:pid___18]]

We followed gifts with cake. Everyone sang to Ruby. She wasn't really sure what to think. She looked like she might cry! The cake was a new experience. She played with the frosting a bit, took a break for a drink and plopped the cup right in the middle of the cake and then finally dug in a little bit.[[posterous-content:pid___22]]

After cake, Ruby needed a serious bath. I thought this would be the perfect opportunity for the Grandmas to get some play time with Ruby. Oops! Ends up, Ruby was pretty overwhelmed and the bath didn't go so well... in fact, we are still getting over being scared of baths a week later. She settled back down though.

She finished her day playing with her guests and all of her new toys. At about 6:45PM, when she officially became one year old, she said good night to all and went to bed one tired girl. The party continued on late into the night, as Ruby snoozed upstairs.

...being one.

It's official. We don't have a teensy tiny baby any more. We have a very active and busy girl who is working hard every day to figure out how this world works.  It is as if a week or two ago, someone switched the one year old switch and started a whole new ball game.  Her attention span seems to have grown shorter, no longer content to sit in a stroller or lay on the changing table, and staying in front of a four foot wide backgroud for pictures today... near impossible!  Mom and Dad needed a drink and a nap after an hour of trying to get her to face the right way and not crawl away.  We did get a few shots in the snow last week... she was so in awe by the cold and white that she actually did stay still.  Unfortunately, she got cold pretty quickly and the photo shoot was cut short.  We will post the inside ones when we get them!

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Life is good, and we thank God for a year of good health and lots of happiness.  It seems we have many adventures waiting for us in the second year.  Stay tuned...

By the way, birthday party pictures and stories will be coming soon!

Cooper

Last week we lost one of Ruby's closest friends, Cooper. Cooper was Papa and Babcha's dog who always welcomed Ruby at the door, always tolerated and sometimes returned her wet slobbery kisses, always was gentle and patient when Ruby chased him around the house - when he really just wanted to lay and rest, and always got 95% of Ruby's attention at the Wagner's.

 

It is weird to think that Ruby won't have actual memories of Cooper - but we will be sure to tell her about her first four-legged friend. Lots of people will miss sweet Cooper - myself, Steve, and Ruby included. 

Here is some video of Cooper and Ruby this past Christmas.

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Sledding!

We took advantage of the snow on the ground and the warm temperatures on Monday and pulled Ruby around the yard on her sled.  She loved it!  The snowsuit was a consignment shop find - Columbia fleece - nice and warm, but not to bulky to fit in the carseat.  When I bought it, I swore I wouldn't use the hood as it is a little silly.  Ends up, it is so much easier to get on and off than a hat.  Function won over fashion.  Good thing she can pull it off!

 Enjoy the pics!

Mom and Dad's weekend away

This weekend Mom and Dad headed to Colorado to go skiing with Ruby's "Aunt" Shannon and "Uncle" Dave.  That meant a weekend with Babcha and Papa for Ruby.  We left for Denver on Thursday evening, arriving just as a blizzard hit Denver.  When we awoke Friday morning, Denver had already gotten about 8 inches with 7 inches more falling that day.  Luckily we got out and up into the mountains anyway.  We enjoyed two days on the slopes (except for Dave who enjoyed ESPN in the lodges - as he was sick :) ).  Only one fall the whole weekend (by Laura), and yet we are still feeling it in our muscles now!  We arrived back on Sunday afternoon, just in time to watch the Superbowl - although we probably paid more attention to Miss Ruby than the game.

 We got a full report from Kevin and Helen everyday, as it was a long time to be away from our baby!  Ruby and Helen visited Pat and her babysitting kids on Friday.  Ruby was especially interested in the four year old and apparently he was equally interested in her. :)  Otherwise, Ruby spent the weekend chasing around Cooper and Bailey, climbing on the furniture, reading with Babcha, and learning silly games from her Papa.  She ate well and even took a bottle overnight the first two nights... the first bottle she has taken since November!  The final night Ruby slept through the night!  So that is the new precedent.  This mama is putting her foot down and saying no more eating overnight.  Which seems to have worked last night... the only problem is binkies.  In her pack n' play, she can't throw them out... in the crib she can and that becomes a problem.  A problem you can bet we are already coming up with solutions for!

 Now we are all home and happy to be together.