Time to try a fork

So, we decided it was time to give Natalie a spoon or fork to eat with her meals. The thought of food flying all over the place made me cringe, but Natalie has to learn eventually. One night, we gave Natalie a fork to eat her dinner. Right away, she began to dip her fork into the mashed potatoes and ate off of it. It was so cute to see! Daddy even showed Natalie how to use her fork to spear some meat and broccoli. Later, she began to try it on her own. How awesome is that?! It was messy towards the end, but not too bad. Now, as I sit and type this, I am thinking of various foods for Natalie to try with her new tool--Ha!

As you can see from the pictures, the start and end result of Natalie's dinner ;)

Stacking toys

Natalie has had these stack cups for a while. When she was a few months old, she loved to put them in her mouth and play with the dark blue one. (Blue became her favorite color early on.) She liked knocking the cups down after we stacked them up high for her (and still does). Well, Natalie finally figured how to stack some of the cups on her own. I couldn't believe it! At 16 months, she is one smart cookie!

Natalie's first haircut

A few weeks ago, I had Natalie's 16-month portraits done. When I picked up her pictures, I realized that Natalie's hair needed a trim. The back side was so uneven and wispy strands everywhere. So, Mommy decided it was time to trim Natalie's first locks.

Natalie's hair before. A little kiss to Elmo before we start...

Here we go! First off, we had her favorite things around her: 1) most importantly, her "woobie" (security blanket), 2) Elmo, and 3) her favorite book (at the moment, she loves "Good Night, Gorilla"). Mommy wets and combs Natalie's hair back.

I measure carefully, then snip, snip! I decided not to cut any bangs, because Natalie always sweeps her hair out of her face. Also, her hair is so fine and has some curls/waves that bangs may not work.

Natalie did so well; she was busy playing with her woobie, Elmo and book. A few times, she was wondering what I was doing to the back of her hair.

Mommy finishing up, making sure it is straight.

After we were done, Natalie gives Mommy a kiss and then a kiss to herself in the mirror. Aww...how sweet!

Then, it was bath time. Notice the back side of Natalie's hair is straight--Ha! Afterwards, Natalie brushes her teeth before bed time, which she does so well by herself.

Here is a photo of Natalie the next day. I really did not trim much off but Natalie is now sporting a short bob. Hopefully, one day, her hair will grow out thick and long just like Mommy's ;)

Natalie's new play tent

We got this cute little red tent for Natalie at IKEA. She loves to play and put her toys inside. Natalie is about 31 inches tall and it is a perfect size for her. IKEA has some cool and inexpensive toys for children. Definitely worth checking out!

Shopping trip to IKEA

Saturday, we went to IKEA to buy some storage and organizers for Natalie's closet and our son's nursery (we are trying to get his room ready :-)). Natalie enjoyed playing around the children's area with all the toys, furniture, and even with her own stroller.

Two videos below: Natalie loves to push and move things around! Of course, Daddy encourages her to do so!

Later, we ate some Swedish meatballs at IKEA's cafeteria. Natalie ate a few bites of the meat and mashed potatoes. She does not seem to like french fries--thank goodness! She did like the cherry tomatoes from Mommy's salad. She pointed for some more...

Mmm, cherry tomatoes!

Bubbles and Cart Driver

Sunday, we played in our backyard with Natalie while the weather was still nice. When she was not crawling or walking yet, we sat her on the grass in our backyard and blew bubbles around her. Now that she is walking, she loves to chase the bubbles and pop them. She walks a little wobbly on grass, but she is getting used to it. She also likes to play and kick the ball around.

Afterwards, we went to the grocery store. Alain could not wait until Natalie was old enough to ride inside one of these kiddie carts you see at the grocery stores. Well, here was our chance to try it now. After we sanitized one thoroughly, we put Natalie in the little car. She really liked it and we thought it was hilarious to see her in it.

BEEP BEEP!

Happy Birthday to me!

First of all, I will not post how old I turned--Ha! What can I say--kids help you stay young, right?!

I had a day off from work and Natalie was off from daycare. My day started out great with lots of hugs and kisses from Natalie. We ate breakfast and later watched her favorite show, Sesame Street. She loves Elmo (she says "melmo")! There was a little song and dance skit on the show and Natalie started to do a little dance in front of the TV. Here are a few pictures of Natalie acting goofy. Too bad I did not record a video.

We spent the day hanging out at home. We read some books and played with her puzzles and toys. She was such a sweetheart all day! What a great birthday gift!

When Alain came home from work, he surprised me with a dozen multi-colored roses, two cards, and a couple of gifts. And a fruit tart! Overall, I had a great day!

24 Weeks!

I am officially 24 weeks! We got to see our son today via sonogram-YAY! He has grown so much since we last saw him. He was active and moving a lot. His heartbeat was normal at 146-150 bpm. We also got confirmation that our baby is 100 percent boy, just to be sure--Ha! Other than feeling the occasional tiredness, I am also experiencing some aches and pains with this second pregnancy. Not complaining, because I am glad that everything is okay with baby and me.  My doctor said it should get better and to take it easy. Of course, that is not easy to do running after an active toddler.

Here is a sono pic of our son. His profile looks exactly like Natalie's when she was in my belly. So cute! They both have the same shaped head!

Rainforest Cafe and Trains

Here are some photos of our shopping day at Grapevine Mills Mall on Sunday. Natalie was enamored by all the jungle animals at the Rainforest Cafe.

She was fascintated by the fish in the aquariums. Daddy gave her a lift to touch this strange-looking "sucker" fish.

There was a store that sells model trains and had mini-train rides for the kids. Natalie was more interested in playing with the rail cars around the tables.

Mommy and Natalie were tired and ready to go home...