More firsts

My little baby girl is getting so big! On Wednesday, she had her first haircut! Although my mother has told me (on more than one occasion) that "they" say you shouldn't cut their hair until after they're a year old, I just had to do it. When wet, her hair actually reached past her shoulders, but it was only a this strip of hair across the middle of the back of her head and it was constantly getting all knotty and tangled. So after her bath, I snipped off her adorable curls! She was so fidgety, that Mark had to hold her instead of taking pics, but we did get it on video. I just haven't had the time to download it yet. Although she no longer as the curls in the back (though it was more frizz than curl), she's still a cutie. You'll probably think I'm a nut, but I did save the hair. Now I just have to find one of those little boxes that says "Baby's first curls".

Her other first: she's cutting her first tooth! Yup! On Wednesday night as we were doing our usual pre-bath dance, I noticed a little slit in her gums and the unmistakable whiteness of a little tooth! I've been trying to get a picture, but of course she won't open her mouth now. She's been rubbing her tongue over her gums and cracks me up.

In other news, we've been continuing to sign with her. She has already signed "milk", though never for me (she has her own gesture when I'm with her, can you guess what she does?) and responds with grunts or frantically waving her arms when you sign milk, more, eat, and water. After hanging out with Danielle and Eliza, I can't wait for Alessia to start using signs. Check out Danielle for an adorable video of her daughter signing. She's amazing!

Today we have a snow day, so I'm trying to get some last minute gifts online while Alessia sleeps. Then we're off to a playdate with Eliza!

Fun times

We have been very busy around here lately. Saturday, we went to a baby and toddler expo with Danielle and Eliza. It was fun, but a loooong drive, at least in my world. But the girls were fabulous and slept there and back. One major complaint about the expo: the entrance they told us to use was not stroller accessible! We ended up wearing the girls and lugging the strollers up the stairs. I don't know why we bothered bringing the strollers in...neither girl really stayed in them long. We just never learn! I was really looking forward to Deidre Imus' seminar on "growing up green", but it ended up being a disappointment. She started almost a 1/2 hour late, and spent most of the time just scaring the crap out of me with statistics about childhood chronic illnesses, cancers, etc, etc. (which I already know), then basically was just plugging her products and book. I was hoping for some practical info, like what I could start doing at home. So we bolted - it's not like the girls were really sitting there quietly anyway. Then we made it to the expo floor, and I have to say I was a little disappointed at the lack of freebies or samples. Just mailing lists. Although I did end up winning a discount on a sitting with a professional photographer (which I'll never use) and Eliza was a finalist in the cutest baby contest.

Yesterday we went apple and pumpkin picking with the inlaws and Danielle, Pete and Eliza. Although the weather was yucky, cool and wet in the morning, we had a fun time. Got a few apples (time to learn how to make apple sauce for Alessia - any good recipes?) and a lot of great shots. Here are my faves: