a fat little handful of firsts

1st birthday? Check!
1st daycare experience? Check!
1st cold?!? ch.... ch... eck heck heck!

and in exactly that order.

Let's do some catching up! August saw the embarcation of a long overdue renovation of our humble kitchen. Scott decided to take the beast by the horns and tackle the whole affair himself, which meant that Lola and I would take a trip to Massachusetts for a temporary stay while the dustiest of work was undertaken. Temporary.

Main kitchen wall stripped to the studs

Tore out the ceiling to replace lights and wiring

Removed particle board sub-floor that was water damaged

It was a long temporary. But while we were there, we had a lot of really great time with my parents and sister and even some visits with the niece and nephew. And, as September came rolling in, we planned a little something for Lola's first birthday. There were actually two parties - one that my aunts threw at their house and the other, the following day, at the grandparents'. Busy but fun weekend for Miss Lola.

Birthday party at Aunts Leo and Bea's House


Second birthday party at grandparent's house

Once we got home Lola took on her first day of child care. The university where Scott works has a really good child care facility and so we went about getting all our diapers, clothes, and bottles and food in order for the first day! The infant care there has a 4 to 1 ratio of children to care givers and Lola took to her new surrounds like a champ. She enjoys interacting with other kids her age and we're hoping she'll have further encouragement and motivation to develop her gross motor skills.

Lola sitting next to a teacher at her day care

Being around so many new people inevitably led to her first cold. After the first two weeks her nose was running, she got stuffed up and couldn't breathe well when lying down, and then the coughing started. We learned all about saline spray for the nostrils, steamy bathrooms, sleeping in her baby swing, baby Vicks on the chest, and lots of hand washing in order to get through it. Lola held up great throughout and is ready for day care again tomorrow.

Before - suffering thru the first cold


After - feeling much better and heading out for some fresh fall air