Happy Anniversary

Today Eric and I celebrated our 2nd wedding anniversary. I am amazed at how fast another year has gone by. This year has been a whirlwind for our family. Here are just a few "small things" that happened; We bought a new house, Eric had back surgery, Coho had surgery b/c he ate a sock, we both started new job and most importantly we had our baby girl Kallie.

I feel so luck to have met and married my soul mate two years ago and I look forward to a lifetime together. Happy Anniversary Honey, I love you!!!

Last night we headed out to dinner to celebrate . . . as a family :)

Bates Family Anniversary Dinner

Ready to eat!

So tired after a big night out!

Daycare Fun

Kallie went back to daycare on Monday after almost three weeks off because she was sick. I was a bit nervous on how she would react since she had only been to daycare 4 times but she was as happy as can be when I dropped her off. She immediately started waving and talking to all of her friends. I have a feeling she is going to be a little social butterfly.

When I went to visit Kallie mid day she was fast asleep . . . she actually took two great naps. I also noticed she had a blue streak on her forehead and her hands were blue . . . her teacher told me the kids finger painted and Kallie seemed to like to eat the paint more than anything (no worries it is non-toxic).

This week I also asked them to start feeding Kallie breakfast. I circled a few things on the menu for her to try; oatmeal, peaches, cheerios, veggie soup, avocado and cottage cheese. So far so good . . . here are some pictures of Kallie and her friends all lined up eating peaches and oatmeal this morning. I still can't believe how fast Kallie is going up!

Happy Nine Months

Kallie turned 9 months old today! As usual the last month has flown by. This last month was full of transitions for the Bates family but of course Kallie smiled through it all. She is in a new house enjoying a much bigger room and started daycare where she has lots of new friends.

Kallie you continue to light up my world. Over the last month you have really turned into your own littler person. You love to sit on your blanket and play with your toys all by yourself, you love bath time now that you have a real tub, you love pulling on Coho every chance you get, you love sitting in your high chair eating puffs and you are so proud when you actually get one in your mouth, you love making me laugh so you can laugh back, you love pulling daddy's hair any chance you get and he usually lets you do it b/c it cracks you up, you love having Grammy babysit one day a week but most importantly you are a beautiful happy girl who is loved by all!

Happy nine months Kallie B, we are so blessed to have you in our lives! Kallie has been sick for the last week or so but here are a few pics with half a smile...

Stats: 18lb 10oz (70%) & 27.75in long (70%)

Best Buds!

Kallie loves her pup Coho. Well we know she likes to pull his hair and play with his tail . . . that counts as love right? I keep telling Coho she will be his best friend very soon! He has no idea how much feed she is going to drop from the table just like I did when I was little. Our beagle Pokey at my meatloaf every time (YUK)!

Happy Nine Months

Kallie turned 9 months old today! As usual the last month has flown by. This last month was full of transitions for the Bates family but of course Kallie smiled through it all. She is in a new house enjoying a much bigger room and started daycare where she has lots of new friends.

Kallie you continue to light up my world. Over the last month you have really turned into your own littler person. You love to sit on your blanket and play with your toys all by yourself, you love bath time now that you have a real tub, you love pulling on Coho every chance you get, you love sitting in your high chair eating puffs and you are so proud when you actually get one in your mouth, you love making me laugh so you can laugh back, you love pulling daddy's hair and he usually lets you do it b/c it cracks you up, you love having Grammy babysit one day a week but most importantly you are a beautiful happy girl who is loved by all!

Happy nine months Kallie B, we are so blessed to have you in our lives! Stay tuned for pictures...

9 month stats - 18lb 10oz (70%) and 27.75in (70%)

First Mother's Day

This year I was so excited to celebrate my first official Mother's Day. It started on Friday when I received my first homemade mother's day card from Kallie, finger painted and all. It made me realize how it is the small things that mean the most.

Being a mom has changed me so much over the last 9 months. I can officially say I know what it means to be a mom. Being a mom means having unconditional love and knowing that you would do anything for your child, it means rocking your baby girl to bed at all hours of the night, it means sleeping on the floor of her room because you are worried about her bad cold, it means watching her play with her basket of toys and smiling b/c you are so proud of her, it means smiling when she waves at everyone that walks into the room (including Coho), it means laying on the floor and cracking each other up laughing uncontrollable, it means watching her practice eating and being so proud when a puff actually makes it in her mouth and most importantly it means cherishing every moment because it goes so fast!!

Thank you Kallie for bringing so much joy to my life . . . I am so proud to be your mom and more importantly to have you as my daughter! I LOVE YOU KALLIE B.

Kallie's first day of daycare

With the move to Issaquah we decided to put Kallie in the daycare at Starbucks. Our first choice was to continue our nanny share with her wonderful nanny Alexandra and buddy Cy. When Eric and I sat down to think about the time we would spend driving to and from W. Seattle we decided we would rather spend that extra time with Kallie. Being working parents we don't get to spend much time at night with Kallie and the thought of driving instead of spending time with her at night made our decision final.

So today was the day I had been dreading for weeks. I decided if I didn’t think about it maybe it would just go away which turned out not to be the case. I woke up feeling confident about our decision and talked to Kallie the entire way to daycare in the car telling her how much fun she was going to have with her new friends and reminding her over and over again that “mommy would always come back”.

Kallie was so excited when we walked into her classroom. While I was busy putting away her bottles, extra clothes etc. she was busy making friends. She was giggling and having fun from the moment we walked in. I decided to hang out with her for a bit so she (well let’s be honest so I ) could get comfortable.

When it was time for me to go leave Kallie was all smiles as I was fighting back tears (crying). I know Kallie is in great hands with her three teachers I just wish I was able to be her teacher. I fear missing her big moments like when she starts to crawl or takes her first step. I know as each day goes by it will get easier. Kallie loved being with her nanny Alexandra and I am sure she will love being with her new daycare friends too. I look forward to watching her interact and grow with her new friends in her class.

When I walked in to pick up Kallie tonight she smiled and put her arms out. I was so happy she was smiling and very happy to see me. Her teachers are so great . . . the made a little book for me with pictures and notes about Kallie’s first day . . . such a special treat! Here are a few pics from her first day.




And she's out!