Words that sound like elephant

Kara: knocks her sippy cup onto the floor

Me: Kara, was that an accident?

Kara: brrrrrreeeeee (elephant noise)

I usually get frustrated when people misunderstand me... and I'm not exactly a fan of Kara throwing things off of her tray. But in this case, both were totally excusable by cuteness.

What does a bear say?

This is soooooooo cute! I can't even tell you how much I love it when she sees an animal and makes its sound. Her little roars and clucks are the sweetest thing ever. Every now and then, she'll crawl up to one of the dogs and bark at it.

(click on image to view video in Picasa web)

And for those who will scrutinize...yes, we know a bear says "growl", not "roar". We have been trying to correct this issue ;-)

Happy Birthday, Kara James!

Dear Kara,

Today you turned one year old! You won't remember it, but you had a great week filled with loved ones and cup cakes.

Your friends (Owen, Bryleigh, Bronwyn, Ethan, Lauren, and Andrew) celebrated your birthday at Bouncin' Bears. You had a great time following Owen into the moonwalks that were too big for you, and you ate half of Ethan's lunch. Luckily, Ethan is good at sharing.

Then, we held a party for the whole family at our house. All of your grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, great grandparents (those who have not gone to be with the Lord), and a few great aunts and uncles were able to come. Even Mrs. Anna and Mr. Scotty came to wish you a happy birthday...and help mommy get things organized. You are very fortunate to have so many people who love you.

The party was so much fun. We put a gallery of photos from your first year on the wall, and we had cupcakes with chocolate butterflies. Everyone gave you wonderful presents, but you will have to wait to play with some of them because no one needs that many toys at one time.

But today, your actual birthday, you gave Mommy a present by sleeping past 7am. And in return, Mommy took you to the doctor for your 12 month check-up where they gave you 3 shots. Sorry! But then we had lunch with Beeba, and she made sure you got ice cream before anything else. You'll have to watch out for her, she's sneaky. We went to Bible study tonight, and the nursery workers said you started walking! What?! I guess you really are a big girl now!

Our little Kara James, we love you and we hope this next year goes by a little slower so we can make sure we don't miss a thing that you do!

All our love,

Mommy & Daddy

Taking the dog for a walk

Kara recently received a cute, little stuffed puppy dog. She LOVES this toy! She cuddles with it when she is sleepy, she teases the dogs with it, and she drags it all over the house.

Every now and then, she decides that it needs to go for a walk. So she puts it in her baby stroller (usually head down), and pushes it around the house.

Oh, by the look of the pictures you may think she is walking on her own, but is she not. She has taken a couple of solo steps, but she definitely prefers to crawl. She only walks when she has something (like a stroller) to hold on to.