Sophie's First Day of School

Sophie writes her name

The other day, Sophie handed this piece of paper to me. I said, what is this, and she said: "Sophie." And sure enough, there on the page, she had written her name for the first time. It was pretty amazing, as we had never even practiced writing letters with her.

The many faces of Baby Martha, 3 months

It's Never too Early...

For a little Christmas cheer.

Halloween 2009

Carving pumpkins with Mom.

At the library Halloween party with our neighbor Dominic.
Thanks to Grandmama Sallie for the costume!

Afternoon Tea Party

Thus far, Sophie likes dressing up, having tea parties, and going to theatre. May this stage last forever! And no, I don't remember from whence the black eye came!

Summer Vacation in North Carolina

Sophie's First Lie

Last summer, while we were eating veggies from our garden with Casey and Eric (pictured above), Sophie threw her milk on the floor, then without pause looked up and said "Eric did it."

The offending cup.

My Do it Myself

Soph has a real yen to dress herself these days. Yesterday after much bluster and misdirection, she finally put on her pink gardening shoes all by herself. She was very proud. Emboldened, she went straight for the green dress, and upon pulling it over her head, announced, I got it! She wore her green dress like a cape for the rest of the day.

Regarding a hot and windy day at the zoo

The only animals at the zoo willing to pose for the camera.

Birthday Party in Honor of the Letter B

For Soph's birthday, we celebrated all things beginning with the letter B: balls, beads, balloons, beanbags, bagels and Bloody Marys. Friends gave her a butterfly ball, barrettes, books galore, two bikes (including a Barbie bike), and best of all, a blue boa that sheds its feathers all over the house. We danced to the Beach Boys, the Beatles and Bruce. It was, in short, a BLAST!

Entering Year Two...

Babe in the Windy City

In her final days of being able to ride a plane for free, Soph decided to take a trip to Chicago to see her cousins and Donno. She let us come along.

Donno insisted on seeking out the remnants of her Czech heritage in Chicago by scoping out all the Czech restaurants within a thirty mile radius. Here she is with James and Anna Catherine at Klaus, the oldest of the bunch. The decor was Czech kitsch, the food was mediocre, Lulu cried through the whole meal, but Soph was too busy eating her way through a platter full of sausage and onions to notice.


Outside the Chicago Insitute for Art
On a playground in Wheaton with her some time best friend and other times arch nemesis: Lulu McGraw.

The Pagans and the Christians

Soph was not the most aggressive of Easter egg hunters. In fact, she never made it past the first egg. She just plopped down and started eating candy, until her Daddy coaxed her back to the hunt. I don't think she'll be tagging deer anytime soon.

Big Girl Bed

One of the challenges of transitioning from a crib to a big girl bed is, of course, the ease with which a girl can get out of a big girl bed. Sophie has been doing a decent job of staying in bed and going to sleep, but every now and then we sneak into her room and find her asleep in the strangest places.

Almost Two

Let's just skip over Christmas and how I've been away for so long, those weeks I spent in Florida, while Sophie got everyone sick back in Georgia, how her Daddy missed us and how long the plane ride was home. Forget New Years Eve in North Carolina and Valentine's Day in Hays, when I festooned our built-in bookshelves with paper hearts; those dark February Days when we didn't leave the house all day long, or worse escaped to McDonald's because there's nowhere else to go in Kansas. Pretend I've been chronicling our little lives all along, pretend you know exactly how we spent the ides of March, what we wore, ate, drank and how we filled the hours. Shall we then?

Sophie turns two next month. This is a list of things she would like for her birthday:
Elmo
Elmo
Elmo
Elmo
Zoe
Big Bird
Bert
Ernie
But mainly, Elmo.

Close your eyes and make a wish, baby girl!

Taking Bets

How long do you think the Christmas tree will survive the Sophinator?

Sophie's first haircut

Sophie behaved like an old pro in the salon chair. It may have been the marshmellows Mommy fed her, or perhaps it was all the attention the cosmotologists lavished on her, but she sat still while her stylist trimmed those baby curls away--okay, straight, fine baby hair that resembles her father's.

Happy Halloween

The biggest difference between Halloween of last year and this one is that Sophie has acquired a taste for chocolate. I don't know from whence it came nor how she learned what lies beneath those brown wrappers, but she knows.

We carved Jack-o-lanterns and hung ghosts from the porch. She loved the pumpkins, mainly because they look an awful lot like big orange balls.

Our friends Shala and Darrell bought the giraffe costume for Sophie while on a road trip. They found it in a thrift shop and just couldn't resist. We're glad they didn't.

To Claire Marie

Beloved friend, one time flower girl, sister of my heart, and all around rockin' chick, we sure wish we still lived near you. You would be Sophie's most beloved babysitter and confidant (think you could handle hearing butterfly, butterfly, butterfly over and over again?) We miss you and your family so much. Not a week goes by that we don't think of you and pray for you and wonder in amazement over the fact that you must be 17 or 18 now. Say it isn't so! Maybe we will try to visit you over the holidays. xxo