First Day at School

Today was Savannah Kate's first day at Claire's Christian Day School.  She is going to a mother's day out program one day a week from 9am - 3pm.  It's a school at a church nearby with small classes so I think we're going to be happy there.  I couldn't believe I was packing a lunch box for Savannah Kate this morning!  Yes, it mostly had baby food in it, but it was more fun to pack it in a lunch box.  (I'm really trying to get her to eat more table foods, but she's just not very interested yet.) 

When I dropped SK off in her class she puckered her little lip out for a few seconds, but quickly noticed all the other babies and all the new toys to play with.  I kissed her goodbye and snapped a few pictures.  Honestly, I was a little sad to leave her, but I knew she would be fine. 

I picked her up a little early because I didn't want her to be the last kid to be picked up, although I'm not sure if they even notice that at this age yet.  When Savannah Kate saw me at the door she gave me a big smile as if she was saying hello, and then she turned back around and continued playing.  I couldn't believe it - she didn't even seem to care that I was there to pick her up!  Her teachers said that she did great, even took a long nap.  I had been praying that her first day would go well, so obviously my prayers were answered!  I was so worried, and it turned out that it was harder for me than it was for her.  I'm so lucky and thankful that SK seems to adjust well to her surroundings.  Here's some of the pictures I took today.  You can see why we were 30 minutes late, I couldn't stop taking pictures!

Loving her new lunchbox - even though it's almost as big as she is

On the way!

 Meeting her new friends and toys

 The last photo I snapped as I was leaving - she didn't even watch me leave

This is the first time I've ever seen her fall asleep while eating dinner and sitting up in her highchair.  I think she had fun at school today and is now exhausted!

I love Oreos

Savannah Kate has recently discovered Oreos and I think she is in love!  It of course made a huge mess, but she was so happy and made me laugh the entire time.  I've learned that sometimes I just have to sit back and let her make a mess.  Yes, it may mean that I spend an extra 20 minutes cleaning, but look at these adorable pictures I would have missed out on.  I love watching her discover new things - it really makes me appreciate the small things in life.

Yes, all of this was from just one Oreo!

Church Dedication

Last Sunday was a very special day because Savannah Kate was dedicated at our church.  The dedication is a ceremony practiced at our church, Northwest Bible Church, and is a promise entered into by the parents and the church family.  This means that we, as parents, are publicly confessing that we have committed our lives to Christ and that we are dedicating ourselves to do all we can to bring Savannah Kate up to know and love Christ.  This was a special moment for us because we were able to give Savannah Kate back to the Lord and recognize that she is His gift to us. 

Also during the dedication, the church family pledged itself to the care and education of each child.  For the church, this ceremony is a reminder that all of our children belong to God and are our mutual responsibility.  Our Senior Pastor, Neil Tomba, prayed for blessings upon the life of each of the children and wisdom for the parents.  We were reminded of Hannah's words in 1 Samuel 1:27-28 "I prayed for this child and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him.  So now I give him to the Lord.  For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord."

We have been so blessed to be a part of a church that has pledged to share in the responsibility of raising Savannah Kate to know the Lord.  We knew from our very first visit that this church was exactly where God wanted us to be right now.  We've been fortunate enough to now have a great community group and several other great families that I've met through bible studies and MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) that we are sharing our lives with.  Actually, three other families that were in the dedication are all good friends of ours so it was fun to share the dedication with them.

 Slide show pictures of all the babies - SK is on bottom left

 Neil Tomba praying over Savannah Kate during the dedication

 Family pictures after church

10 Months

Weight: 15 pounds 15 ounces
Height: 27 1/4 inches
Diapers: Size 3
Clothes: 6 months 
Sleep: 10-12 hours at night with 2 naps during the day.  She typically goes to bed at 8 and gets up around 8
Current loves: chasing after Belle, new clothes because she loves to chew on tags, and dancing to silly songs I make up
Dislikes: having her face wiped off after eating and hearing the word "no", especially when she tries to play with the electrical cords followed by being moved to a different place in the room
Teeth: Still only has her 2 bottom teeth, but I guess she doesn't need them because she chews with her gums

Between 9 and 10 months we've seen the most changes in Savannah Kate yet.  The biggest news is that she is now crawling!  This started a few weeks ago and she has been busy exploring ever since.  I learned the hard way that Belle's dog bones can no longer be left out on the floor anywhere - SK will find them.  Yuck!  It's amazing how fast she can get from room to room.  It's a good thing that this old house has an abnormal amount of doors, we can confide her to an area if we need to.  When I'm cooking, I can close both doors off and Savannah Kate will do circles around the island.  Poor thing never gives up trying to catch Belle.

Another new trick is that she can give a high five, which is so cute!  I was so proud to have taught her this trick, but then realized it was now probably going to be harder to get her to wave.  I've probably confused her a bit. 

Savannah Kate has also learned how to pick up food and feed herself.  It has to be something small, like a cheerio, puff or piece of fruit.  This has made eating and snack times much easier on me.  Giving her a handful of cheerios can keep her busy and very happy :)

One last big new thing is that Savannah Kate took a swim class a couple weeks ago at Dolphin Swim School.  She learned how to properly get in and out of the pool, how to monkey walk on the sides of the pool, and most importantly how to hold her breath UNDER the water.  That's right, she swam under the water!  SK always kept her eyes open, but never fussed or cried one time while diving her under.  It's amazing what you can teach these little kiddos to do.  I'm so glad we took the swim class when we did, because all the toddlers in her class were screaming the entire time because they were scared of the water.  I highly recommend doing this early before they know that it's scary.  We practice having her hold her breath in the bathtub every night by pouring water over her head.  When she knows it's coming, she looks down and holds her breath - smart baby!

Savannah Kate is still just as happy as ever.  She's starting to reach for me, which I love.  And she's starting to try and pull up on things, especially on my legs.  SK always wakes up in the morning in a great mood and immediately starts playing with her toys.  She plays so hard all day.  Sometimes she even falls asleep laying on top of them :)

Loving my first snowcone at the pool

Loves standing up - but not sure how to get back down after I've put her there

 My little helper while cooking

 She fell asleep on top of Teddy

After graduating from swim class, wish I had pictures of the

class but I was in the water with SK everyday

It's too hot to be outside for very long, so they like to look out and see what's going on

This new toy has been the only reason I've been able to cook lately. The only bad thing is that it puts songs like "She'll be coming around the mountain" in our heads for the rest of the night :)