1st New Year's Eve!

It is your first New Year's Eve and we are having the party at our house so that you can go to sleep when you get tired and the family can party all through the night, as is the Russian way of celebrating the New Year! You spend the day saying "Da! Da! Da!" and say "Mama" when you want me to pick you up! This is the first time you use the word specially for me and not just for fun!
In the evening all of your grandparents come over to celebrate and you stay up way too late posing for pictures and enjoying all of the love! Tomorrow morning you will open all of the wonderful gifts that Ded Moroz will have brought for you!

Papa!

You napped all day for the first time without any white noise, and then in the evening you said Paaapaaa during your bath!

Kiss Kiss

We say "kiss kiss", you give kisses!!

Yellow!

We have had this theory since you were very small that you really liked the color yellow...do we know you or do we know you? Now that you are on the move and can get to the things you are really interested in, it is ALL yellow ALL the the time! From your alphabet floor mat, the yellow square on the turtle's back must always been in your mouth and the yellow 4 must always be in your hands! When you play with your blocks you pick out all of the yellow ones and pile them up around you! And in the ABC's book, we read l, m, n, o... and when you see the yellow pineapple (p), you are overcome with joy!!

Stand Up, Sit Down

You stood on your own for a few seconds, then instead of grabbing on to something or just falling, you bent your knees and slowly sat yourself down on the floor! Very impressive!

1st Tooth!

Your first tooth is peeking through (bottom right)! Daddy got his first tooth at 6 months and Mommy didn't get her first one until 14 months, so you are right in the middle at 9 months!

Later, Daddy was eating watermelon, which you have not yet tried but were super interested in. He traded you pieces of watermelon for kisses!

Down Stairs

You have mastered climbing up the stairs, but it dawned on you today that there's got be a way to get down too! You figured out that there are two ways to get down the stairs - scooting down on your tush or sliding head first! Mommy is not a fan of the second option!
You're making sounds that sound like real words - up, ouch, shoes! So fun!

Grandma Toma's Birthday

It was Grandma Toma's birthday and party today, and you had so much you stayed up a whole hour past your bed time!

Happy 9 Months!

You are 9 months old today, and since it's December we are off to your photo shoot, holiday style! And we have finally figured out how to get you to smile for your pictures (since you always get shy in front of photographers)! The photographer thinks he is doing a great job making you smile, but really it's because Daddy is in the back flashing your favorite sign "Offered By Sherman Smith and Associates"! Haha!! And you blew raspberries without spitting for the first time, you twirled your lips and showed off your new skill!

Happy 9 months, sweetheart!

Zane

Zane normally hates being in the car, but he toughed through it to come visit you today!

Stair Climber!

You climb stairs! Wow!!

Grandma Dora's Hannukah Concert

You were such a good audience at Grandma Dora's Hannukah concert! You loved the music and even gave her a rose at the end!

Figuring out the World

You are quickly figuring out how the world around you works!
When I dress you in a onesie, I stand you up to pull it over your head and arms, then I sit you down to buckle the bottom. Today, as soon as your head and arms were through, you sat down because you knew the buckling was next!
Daddy hid a toy in the trunk of your walker car and you figured out exactly where it was hiding! You also figured out that you could open the trunk with one hand and reach for the toy with the other! How coordinated of you!

You find Riley's bowl of water very intriguing and go for it every chance you get. Every time you get close, we say "No Scarlette." You are such a good listener - you stop, look at us, and smile!
On our morning walk today, I was eating a banana and you were very interested in it, so we ate the banana together - our first shared meal!

Inna and Dima

Inna and Dima came to visit you today! Immediately you wanted to play only with Inna's sunglasses! You only let go of them to get some dinner!

Ded Moroz

New Year's is coming up so we're off for your first pictures with Santa Claus (or Ded Moroz in Russian). It is a long wait in line and you spend the time smiling at everyone around you and enjoying your animal book. When we get to Santa, you get very upset, and Mommy and Daddy end up being in the picture to keep you calm. (Mommy has a huge cheesy smile on her face trying to make you do the same, but it doesn't exactly work, haha!)

1st Thanksgiving

Today you had your first Thanksgiving dinner! You sat in your high chair and joined in the feast!

Later, you figured out how to stand on your tippy toes to get stuff out of reach!

Kisses

You love Mommy kisses! You lean forward and I give you kisses! And you just can't get enough!

Games and Naps

You were having a hard time falling asleep for your evening nap so I thought it might help if I sat by the crib and sang to you. Instead, you came up with a game - you would reach for me through the crib rails, pet me, and then crack up laughing! After playing this sweet little game of yours for a while, you finally fell asleep on me. There is nothing more precious to me than to be able to hold you so close!

Happy 8 Months!

You are 8 months old today, and I still can't believe you are real and that you are my daughter! The pure joy and bliss you have brought into my life, you will only understand when you have a child of your own!

Happy 8 months, my sweet little girl!

Babbling Baby

You are talking so much! Bub, bub, bub! Your intonation goes up and down and everything, it sounds like you are speaking in whole sentences and only you are privy to this new beautiful language of yours!

Dinner with Jo

Auntie Jo came to hang out with you today! She misses her little Squishy!

And you got to go to dinner with her too and show off how well you eat from a high chair!

Pincer

Gerber baby puffs are delicious! You love to snack on them! Today you figured out you can use a pincer grasp to pick them up by yourself and you even got one in your mouth!

Big Bath

You are getting too big for your infant bath where we have been bathing you in the kitchen sink since you were born, so it is time for a bigger tub! You are NOT a fan. Maybe we'll try again in a few weeks...

Ever so Graceful

Grandma Toma and Grandpa Kostya came to visit you today and when they were saying goodbye to you, you waved!! It was the most graceful wave I have ever seen - you are such a little princess!

I Love to Eat, Eat, Eat, Eat

Today you explored your first finger food and your first fruit - banana! All of your grandparents gathered to watch you play with, and try to feed yourself, this new and very slippery food!

Surreal

When you were first born, you would spend some time in your bouncer each day so that I could use the bathroom, get showered, and get dressed.

Today, at 7 months, you used this toy, where you played since you were a newborn, to pull yourself up to standing! What a surreal moment!

Cruisin'

Now you're really moving! You pulled yourself up using your changing table and then you cruised around it reaching for different toys!
Funny Fact: You love signs! The "pool hours" sign, the "for sale" sign down the street, the "stop" sign - you think they are all hilarious! We love taking you to all the different signs around our neighborhood because they bring you so much joy!

Scarlette Fairies

It is Halloween - and we have matching costumes! You and I are scarlet fairies because your name also means a beautiful shade of red! Happy 1st Halloween!

First Shoes

I put on your very first shoes on your adorable little feet and we went for your first walk outside without me carrying you! You held on to both of my hands with both of your hands and took it step by step! Clara, our neighbor from across the street, was so impressed! She exclaimed, "Isn't she too young to be walking?!"

Thanks Couch!

You used the couch and pulled yourself up today! I am so impressed with your strength and your new skill!

Look Ma, No Hands

You stood on your own for 5 whole seconds today!! You were holding on to your play keyboard and didn't even realize that you had let go! Here you are, barely holding on ...

Happy 7 Months!

You are 7 months old today and in honor of it being October, we did your photo shoot Halloween style with you dressed up as the cutest pink bunny I ever saw!

Happy 7 months, my sweet little bunny!

Crawling!!!

You slept for 10 hours straight last night because you were preparing for your biggest performance yet - CRAWLING!! Yep, you did it baby girl!! What motivated you? Daddy's cell phone of course!

In the evening you tried your first vegetable (squash) and loved it!

So Close

You are so close to figuring out how to crawl - you use your hands to scoot forward and then jump your knees up to your hands! I know you will be crawling any day now!

Tall Enough for the Jumperoo

When we first got the jumperoo for you, your feet were so far off the ground we had to put 3 textbooks! Then there were 2. Then there was 1. And today, your feet reached the floor!

Weeeeh!

Today you swung in the swing at the park for the first time! You loved it so much you even started clapping for the first time too!!