First Tooth

Wow - my little angel girl has completely disappeared for the last two days and has been replaced by a fussy, runny-nosed child that I'm sure can't be mine ;) Last night was a VERY long one for our family. Me and dad took turns trying to rock you and console you, ourselves exhausted! But this morning it all paid off. We spotted a tiny white bump on the top of your mouth in the very middle. Normally the bottom teeth come first, and that's what we were keeping our eye on. Snuck right up on us. Hopefully we can knock out the rest of these teeth soon so that I can have my happy child back for good :)

Spring Fever!

I am so ready for the snow to leave for good and to bring back out my flip flops and sunscreen. I miss being warm all the time and not having to constantly wear a coat! Today the weather hinted at spring and our little family couldn't help but walk to the park to swing and play on the toys - even bringing our dog to make the celebration official :)

Special Song

Claire and I have 'singing time' every night before she goes to bed. We sing lots of Broadway songs, and for some reason whenever I draw a blank on picking a new song, it turns into one from Mary Poppins....great show, but I've never liked it that much. We also sing hymns and lots of childhood favorites like Popcorn Poppin'. Claire is starting to participate with me, and claps along with each song - so precious! That's my little girl - born to be a star :)

Right before I lay her down, I sing our "Special Song" - Goodnight Sweetheart. I don't even know if that's is the real title to the song, and frankly I don't even think I know all the words. It comes from the movie Three Men and a Baby with all the men surrounding the little one and singing in harmony. When I was a kid and when I would get scared or have leg aches, my parents would let me sleep on the floor next to their bed. That's right, they drew the line on sharing their bed, though I don't blame them. And when I would lay 3 feet below my mom on the floor she would say, "Sing me song." And for some reason, it was always that song. I would repeat the round over and over until I got sick of it or until I fell asleep.

I didn't plan on making it the song that I sing to Claire before bedtime, but it's kind of stuck. The other night I tried to end with "I Am a Child of God" and Kelland threw a fit! "What? That not her song! Let's sing the other one!" and sometimes he'll join in and we'll have a little duet by her bedside. Don't get me wrong - we totally promote hymns and belief in God, but I guess the other song is a little more catchy. Don't judge.

Claire, Grandma and Grandpa Schmidt are taking our whole family to Disneyland this summer! You'll be 15 months old, and we are so excited to see how you'll like it. We know that you won't fully understand what is going on, but we think that you will love that atmosphere! I'm already planning on what "Disney" outfits I can sew for you to look super cute!

Bum Scooter!

Claire, you will be eleven months next week and you still aren't crawling. If you do end up on your tummy you put your head down on the carpet and bawl. However, you do love to stand up against furniture or while holding onto Mommy or Daddy's hands. Though you're still working on the whole mobility thing on hands and knees, you are awesome at scooting on your bum, learning to do it from the slippery bath tub. You travel in a complete circle to reach all the toys around you - which is pretty tricky considering that you are sitting on it!

Splish Splash...

We had the funnest bath tonight! We spent almost a full half hour playing in the water. And your new favorite bath toy is a washcloth. That's right, not any of the colorful water toys off different shapes and textures, but a washcloth. You loved watching it sink to the bottom and then reaching down to grab it, sucking the water out of it. We sang songs and played patty cake. You loved clapping along with me, but not just clapping along but doing it with a HUGE smile and giggling! That's probably one of my favorite things about you - when you do something, you do it all the way and you do it good. It's like with clapping, it took you a long time to do it, but now that you do, it's a game every time accompanied with huge smiles like you have a secret that I don't know.

Beauty and the Beast

We just finished up directing Beauty and the Beast Jr. at Mount Ogden Junior High. People wonder why and how we could possibly keep up with and enjoy a cast of 60 teenagers - but we LOVE it! No, honestly, and I'm not just saying that in case one of their mothers stalks this blog. We love working with this age group. Our job is to make it a fun and positive experience. We want them to love doing shows and have a heck of a time; teaching them theater skills along the way. Easy right? Sure, it comes with struggles of playing quiet games and dealing with the constant flirting, and gossip of who likes who, but we wouldn't have it any other way!

Our show is over, and it's accompanied by bitter-sweet feelings. This was the most difficult show that we have had to deal with. Not only is the show itself hard; it requires intense costumes, a large set, and adult emotions; but there was a lot of junk that happened behind the scenes, making things complicated. Politics, Micro-managing, and losing 9 of our kids including 2 leads a week before the show opened. What a headache!

But at the same time, we also had some of those "bubbly" moments that make it all worth the effort. Watching our Belle come alive with depth once she stepped in front of an audience, seeing the awkward kid nail his lines with confidence, and helping several of them develop comedic timing. What an honor to be apart of and have a chance to make an impact on them!

Here are a few pictures of our show - sadly, my camera battery died and only allowed a few pictures.

A few of our awesome teens! I'm sad that the quality stinks!

Our Belle and Beast - Greg and Hannah. They were awesome!

Claire also grew to love these teenagers - coming with us to every rehearsal and being so patient while we taught the kids. My parents watched her during the performances - making our life and hers so much easier by letting her keep the same bedtime! "Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for watching me so that I could get my beauty sleep during the performances!"