Happy 5/6 Birthday, Alma! (10 months to the non-nerds)

This past month has been a roller coaster -- super exciting, magical moments to extra sad goodbyes and feelings of being lonely in a new town.  We are so happy to now be in our new house, (mostly) unpacked and off the roller coaster ride.

Alma has had a rough month as well.  Not sleeping as well.  An incredible tummy ache that came from gorging herself on veggies.  A long stretch of time where our houses were messes with packing or unpacking and we spent entire days chasing Alma around to get her to take the newest item we accidentally left around out of her mouth.  Lots of riding in the car -- down to North Carolina and back, daily trips to the home improvement store and more traffic jams than normal -- which isn't always her favorite.  But, as always, she has been a champ and has kept us laughing during all of the stress that comes with moving.

Alma updates:

* If I let her, Alma would happily overdose on strawberries. Getting them in the shopping cart without her screaming for one is a challenge.  In general, she still will not eat mushy foods besides a yogurt/baby oatmeal mixture.  And even then, she refuses to let us put the spoon in her mouth; she does it herself.  Can you say "independent child"?!  Sure, a good portion of it ends up in her hair, but she gets most of it in her mouth so we cannot complain. 

* Alma can say or imitate bye, g'night, dada and barking like a dog. She says mmm for milk.

* The little bit of hair at the back of her head is so soft and I cannot help but to twist the tiny thin curls around my fingers.  This drives her a little crazy.  Welcome to being a girl, Alma!  Ha ha ha.

* Alma's crinkle nose smile is too much. And the raspberries that she blows back at people are equally as charming.

* Before we left Philly, we were taking a trip or two to the zoo each week to see the animals together.  I love watching her watch the animals.  She especially seemed interested in the penguins and the smaller monkeys.  Can't wait until she can tell me what she thinks of them.

* Alma is turning into a serious thumb-sucker.  She has started to give up her pacifier and use her thumb as a comfort for falling asleep and when she is in front of strangers and feeling anxious.  Her index finger is even starting to make its way up and over her nose like I did as a child ... until I was in 4th grade.  Here's to hoping that it is only a temporary habit!
* One of Alma's hats always falls in her eyes when she is riding in the stroller so she has taken to always keeping a hand on it.  It looks like she is tipping her hat to everyone we pass.  Cherrio, chap!

The brightest moment in this month and in this move was our first night in our new house when we let Alma crawl around in the rain on the open part of the front porch.  It was great to see her joy as we started to decompress and begin to realize how many great memories we are going to make in this house.  Alma, as always, was our little instructor as she demonstrated how to be present in the moment and enjoy nature.  Thanks baby girl!