First Steps

Lily has been standing up on her own for about 2 months now. Only two weeks ago she took one small step forward at daycare on her first day. Since then I have been pretty low key on her walking to Mama. Well tonight after dinner, when we were both so tired, Lily decided to walk.

I am just so proud of her determination. I am also finding out that Lily does things on her own time.

Take a look:

A Few Firsts in Lily's Life

Well, we are into the second week of daycare and back to work. My house is a mess, my dog is not getting as many walks and I am going into the change jar to by transit tokens. Can't wait for that first paycheck so I can say goodbye to EI.

Lily seems to be enjoying daycare and has transitioned well for the first week. She does cry at night when I put her to bed which she did not do before. Tonight I had to rock her to sleep when she just wouldn't soothe herself. It is a big transition for the both of us so a little extra cuddling is needed.

The first day of daycare Lily took one step towards me at the end of the day. I am so worried I am going to miss this so I will leave my video camera there everyday and hope it will be captured. All the other kids are walking and I can see Lily wants to be up with the kids. She is doing a lot of standing but is not too eager to take steps.

Below is a picture of the first day I dropped her off and our provider, Natalia immediately took her to the water table where she forgot all about her mama.

At the end of last week we went on a big road trip to Sudbury to see her Vietnamese "brother" and to help celebrate his birthday and his Baptismal. It was a jam packed weekend with a Hallow e'en party with the Asian adoption community in the afternoon. Lily was dressed as a Fairy Mouse and I went as Jeanie. A blondie I am not!!

Following that party we joined a family who travelled to Vietnam with us (Cedric's mom and dad) to celebrate a birthday party for Cedric with the inclusion of Lily. It was just adorable and we had so much fun with lots of their family members attending.

Of course we can't help ourselves to gush over both of these babies and match these two in a marriage when they are older. If not marriage then wishing them a life long friendship of course. Below is a picture of the delicious cake that was made. All through our trip and when we arrived back in Canada these two got the names Pebbles and Bamm Bamm for obvious reasons.

Cedric's Baptism was a wonderful event and I feel so very proud of him. I was asked to be his Godmother and it is just such an honour to be in this little boy's life. We all wore traditional Vietnamese dress and celebrated afterwards with a brunch. Boy these babes were so tired by the end of this very busy weekend.

I just finished day one of my second week and today Lily went to Aunti Andi's house for the day. She got to play with Samantha and Jack. Lily loves being with this family and always has so much fun. I feel so thank ful to have such caring people close by. It makes going back to work just that much bearable.

Daycare and Back to Work

It is the eve of my going back to work and Lily attending her daycare. Yup, I am feeling a bit stressed on both fronts but what keeps me from going over the edge is the fact that Lily is very social and loves to be with other kids. Her daycare is bright and cheery and there are three other wee ones. Two little girls of similar age and a boy. We have been a few times already but last Friday I left for an hour and besides the scream that lasted all of 5 seconds she was just fine.

So I will do a gradual back to work/daycare over the next three weeks so we can all adjust slowly.

I calculated that I will have three hours a day with Lily during the week. The daycare provider will get to have about 7 waking hours with her (I am jealous already). Well I will just take one step at a time and hope for a positive outcome.

The past three weeks I have noticed that Lily has gained a very strong attachment to me. A couple days ago when we were at my friends for a playdate, Lily screamed for me as I left the room. It was a chilling scream that I had not experienced with her in relation to me leaving her side. That was a first. This past weekend while at home I have had to be very close to her. Could be that she is sensing something with the trips to the daycare OR it could be that her one year molar has just started cutting through.

Much more to do before lights out. Here is a picture of Lily and Char just after a walk in the neighbourhood. The new present came from Aunti Georgie (used toy for Lily's b-day). She had so much fun driving the car.

Bed with a Belly full of Cake

Everything a little girl turning one could want for her birthday. Family, friends, a tea party, kids to play with, cake and ice cream (and mama not too far away at any time).

I too will flop into bed shortly. It has been a long day. My girlfriend Andrea hosted a small birthday party for Lily since my house is still recovering from the kitchen reno. Lily loves playing with Andrea's two kids and lately when they are together I feel just a little bit better about having to go back to work early. I think Lily will do just fine in her daycare with a couple other kids near her age.

We made party hats and then noticed that most of the decorations were on the floor. Hmm not a good craft for the 1-4yr old crowd. There sure is a lot to learn for me on the party front.

There was cake, cupcakes, ice cream and an extra bowl of chocolate frosting for those with a very sweet tooth.

I had asked people not to bring presents and consider bringing a used toy that their child was not longer playing with. It was so much fun to see the toys that the little ones picked out for Lily. Then there was the exception when Lily opened this gift from Oma.....a mini Lily.

And what is a little girls birthday party without a nice pot of tea at the end of the day. Here is a pic of Lily and her very good friend Samantha sharing tea.

Happy 1st Birthday Lily

Yesterday was Lily's 1st birthday.

How blessed am I to be able to celebrate this milestone with her. We stayed close to home with visits to the park, walks with Char and then at the end of the day a trip to High Park to see all the dogs. Her friends Sam and Jack came by for a visit to sing "Happy Birthday" and while she was sleeping Juni and I made a fabulous birthday cake that is so yummy. A white cake with a chocolate butter frosting that melts in your mouth. We will eat that today at her party.

Lily and I have had more than half of her life together. It was on March 29th that I first looked into her beautiful eyes and new just how precious she was. A perfect match was made that day.


Meeting Lily that day has been the most important event of my life and I am forever grateful that my sister Michele travelled with us and was apart of that very special time.

Lily, I am wishing you a life of happiness, the best health, special moments with good friends and family and in between all of this some exciting adventures.

Forever in love with you!