A Tale Of Two Ducks

We have the best dog in the world.  I know everyone probably thinks that (although my family went through a four year period of knowing we had the worst dog in the world - poor Buddy).  But we really do have the best dog in the world.  He is obedient, patient, very sweet with Sara, and has somehow always known that he could play much rougher with John than with me.  He has also always known the difference between his stuff and our stuff (except for a few minor puppy incidents).  He does not mess with our stuff, including food that might be sitting right under his nose on the floor.  He doesn't touch it!

But alas, baby toys just look so similar to dog toys. Somehow he still knows they're not his, but it tortures him so! Every time a new toy gets introduced to Sara, Bear has a fleeting moment of hope that we're simply informing her that we've got a new toy for the dog.  He watches the new toy intently and may even venture to put his front teeth around it gently until we inevitably say "No Bear, that's Sara's." He does a good job of leaving it alone after that.

However, after saving several miniature rubber ducks from the woods at my parents' home over Christmas, the introduction of a rubber duck to Sara's toy collection was too much for the dear ol' boy to handle.  We let Bear take home the first rubber duck he rescued and that of course has been his favorite toy for the last few weeks (evidenced by the missing duck head).  So when I decided to get out Sara's rubber duck, it was just too confusing.  We caught him licking it a few times, and when we put it up on a shelf in the living room, Bear sat staring up at the duck, whining softly.

You know he just wants to grab that duck and run!

John then thought that putting the duck in Sara's crib might drive home the message that the duck belongs to her.  But when I put Sara down to for a nap and moved the duck to a new, out-of-sight location, Bear secretly pushed open her bedroom door and sniffed the perimeter of the crib while she slept.

It is funny and heartbreaking to me at the same time.  After all, he does try to share his toys with Sara.  But that's not a two-way street, at least until Sara's old enough to decide on her own to share with him.  It will be so much fun though to watch them become good friends.  Until then, poor Bear will just have to show some restraint.  I wonder how long it will be before we come home to a second beheaded duck...

One of Bear's other exciting finds over Christmas!

What Sara Wanted To Say...

I have some more posts up my sleeve but Sara wanted this one to herself.  So since she's can't write yet, it had to be in video form...enjoy!

Five Months Later...

My apologies for taking such a long break.  It has been a busy few months, so I will take a moment to update you.

On September 7^th, our beautiful Sara Jane entered this world, and nothing has been the same since.  She has been loud and energetic since that first day.  I love that she is going to be a girl who knows what she wants and lets the world know about it.  It has been the greatest joy of our lives to watch her grow and learn.  This past month in particular has been very eventful.  She was four months old on January 7^th and over the past few weeks, Sara has:

Started grabbing…everything.  Toys, jewelry, hair (dog and human alike)…everything.

Really started talking.  She makes all kinds of sounds and obviously enjoys listening to herself make those sounds.  It is very common for her to wake up in the morning or after a nap and spend 10 minutes talking to herself in her crib.  Eventually she stumbles upon a thought she wants to share with others and screams out for us to come get her.

Laughed!  She’s quite stingy about this talent but it has happened (evidence below).  Frankly, I think she knows she’s teasing us by getting really close to a laugh and then stopping, or even eeking out a small giggle.  But she’ll erupt one day and I can’t wait because it is just the cutest thing ever.

Got her roll on! She is rolling over from back to belly, and usually gets mad within a couple minutes because she doesn’t like being on her belly.  I guess that’ll just be motivation to learn how to flip the other way.

Started solid foods (just tonight).  She had a small bowl of rice cereal, and in spite of the odd faces she made to begin with, and the fact that most of it ended up on her face, bib, and eventually her pajamas, I think she really liked it.  Bear was also quite fond of the activity and was ready and waiting to take the clean up shift.

She also met an enormous amount of doting relatives (Aunt Cat, Aunt Sarah and Uncle Justin, the entire Franklin clan, a few of the Rosses, and her namesake, Great Nanny).  She handled the attention like a pro.  She also mastered a 13 hour driving trip.  I was very nervous about that one, but she proved once again to be a very content little girl.

She loves music and being sung to.  She also loves when we read to her, and thank goodness for cardboard books because Ms. Grabby Grabbingston loves to help turn the pages.  John’s goal is to teach her some Italian and we’re also going to do some basic sign language.  One sure way to get a great big smile out of her is to boisterously exclaim “Buon giorno Principessa!” (pronounced “bone jor-no prin-chee-pay-sa”).

She was a party girl on New Year's Eve with her best buddy Phinn.  Thanks for the party dress Aunt Sarah!

We've also been enjoying some strangely warm Chicago weather by taking Bear for a walk every day.  I think she's a big fan of walking!

We are loving every minute, and trying to just treasure them as they race past us.  I will admit that I can’t wait to see who this girl grows to be, but I suppose I’m also glad to wait.  She certainly makes waiting a lot of fun.

My aim is to begin sharing the fun stories of Sara here on a regular basis.  Thanks for your patience!