I can do it...101

I can do it...

Tamara is doing wonderfully. Every day she continues to amaze us. Yesterday she said "blue" when we were coloring. She of course still has issues staying within the lines but Mommy is happy she's coloring on the page and not on the furniture or walls ;o)

Now that we're pretty confident she feels at home and secure we're allowing her to do more on her own. Encouraging her to feed herself. Usually works best with Mac and cheese & ice cream. She will eat by herself if I'm not in the room as soon as I appear she wants me to feed her. I was told before we went to Georgia that Tamara really "wanted a Mommy" so I guess this is part of it. She still craves the closeness / attention that only a Mommy can give. Truthfully I welcome the opportunity to baby her a bit as I too have craved a baby daughter.

When we first picked up Tamara she brushed her own teeth.. then about 2 weeks ago she wanted me to do it.. which I did. This week I decided to take advantage of the double vanity double sinks in her bathroom. I started Brushing my teeth next to her. She watches me intently and brushes hers the same way. Yay.. as soon as I think her little fingers can handle it we start flossing 101. ;o) In the mean time I end up brushing my teeth 5-6 times a day.

Ah... sweet breath...lol

Tamara is also capable of dressing herself but she again prefers that Mommy do it. All part of the bonding process. For me it will be a bitter sweet day when she doesn't need my help.

She's getting stronger. When we first got her she couldn't walk across the room more then twice without resting. Couldn't do stairs at all. This last week she can climb 13 steps on her own. She also has a tremendous amount of energy now. ;o) Now we just have to teach her how to do steps going down safely.

Tamara loves the pool. Slowly teaching her moves she'll need to swim we have her kicking now. The pool is also a wonderful way for her to gain muscle tone. My biggest challenge is having to keep her out of the direct sun. Tamara hasn't really been exposed to direct sunlight before. Between the sensitive skin and her soft spot we really make an effort to make sure she doesn't get over exposed or over heated. So swimming is after 4 pm when the sun leaves the pool. As a result so far no tan lines for Mom either this year. :o(

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I thought I'd share a few photos from the garden.

Below a patch of Daisies. Tamara often picks one for Mommy on her walks with Daddy.

Too cute!

Day Lillies .. they're going a little crazy this year. We had to pull hundreds just to give the roses some breathing space.

Tamara and Daddy dancing to a large wind chime in the yard. Tamara loves music and will often bop around in a shopping cart or car seat. Very cute .. she has rhythm.

Loves to spin ...
OK.. break time... time to come in.
Tamara also loves to help around the house. She helps with laundry, she can dust and has been eyeing my Dyson. So when we went shopping at Toys R Us and we found the baby Dyson it was a no brain er. Here you can see how serious Tamara is about her vacuuming. She was concentrating so hard I couldn't get her to look up for a picture.


I vacuum first and then she does her thing. She has me move all the rugs, chairs and anything else that moves so she can clean. It's unfortunate that baby Dyson doesn't pick anything up as she would do the entire house if I let her.
Here she's calling me to move an area rug.

FYI: Although cute for her to play... with Baby Dyson does not do what they claim.
Mommy ... I can do it
Tamara enjoying the Hammock she gave Daddy for Father's Day.

Tamara has mastered closing the buckle on her life vest. Luckily it will be a few more years before she can unbuckle it.
Daddy pushes Tamara on the swing at the local park.

Tamara loves the swings and did very well on the slide. Although she does still need help to stay safe.

She's such a peanut... tiny cute little thing. She has a fantastic sense of humor.

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We're still waiting for test results... hopefully we'll have them this week.

So far she's gained about 2-1/2 lbs and it looks like she's about to out grow her size 6 shoe.

It hard to believe we've been home 6 weeks today.. Wow that went fast!

It's also hard to believe I've written a hundred posts. This being #101? WOW. I count 90 something but Blogger insists it's over 100.

I can do it ...101

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Ouch! She said

OK.. We're back... Thanks for hanging in there with us.

Like I said last week... you just can't make this stuff up.

To give bring you all up to speed it has been a rather weird week for us.

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One day last week Tamara choked on a seedless grape. She's usually very good at chewing one at a time but like they say all it takes is once.
So my dear darling daughter stuffed 2 in her mouth and inhaled one.
So what does a mother do? Well I surprised myself. Staying calm a found myself racking my brain for CPR recall which amazingly I remembered what to do. Within seconds the grape flew out of her and across the kitchen. She was a little freaked but fine. After a few tears and a glass of water she was back to giggling and playing again.
Mom on the other hand got a major wake up call.
Lesson learned.. Never assume your 3 year old can handle anything. Now her grapes are not only seedless but quartered. Thankfully she still loves them.

~

The 4th of July was actually rather quiet for us this year. The weather was horrid in NJ. Raining the day before as well as most of the 4th.

We wanted to do something with Tamara .. after all is was to be her 1st 4th of July.

So we looked up fireworks online.. found them in Blairstown at some school? So we head out early and decide to stop at a local diner for dinner as there weren't too many options open that night holiday and all.

We park and I carry Tamara towards the diner only to have my toe catch on their curb. Remember I have Tamara in my arms. I fall to my knees (on my knees), catch my self with my right hand, Tamara is in my left. Somehow I managed to lower her safely to the ground. You always hear stories about mothers lifting cars off their children and you wonder if you too would be able to find that quick response / strength to protect your child. This week I found out I could. I think ;o) Yay!

Battered and bruised we continued in the restaurant. The wait staff brought some ice water and lots of napkins. Yes at my age I have scabby knees this week. I don't think I've had those in about 35 years? Ouch!

Tamara was adorable as she looked so concerned about Mommy's Boo boo.

Ouch! She said as I cleaned them and applied ice to them.

So anyway we stayed and ate. Although very painful I didn't want it to spoil our night and I especially didn't want Tamara to worry about her Mommy being hurt.

So after dinner we proceed to try and find the fireworks. As we approach Blairstown we see a huge parking lot with tons of cars pulling in. Some people had already set up their lawn chairs anticipating the big event. So we pulled in and positioned our car figuring Tamara could watch from her car seat. The parking lot filed up quickly and soon a huge white van parked between us and the anticipated fire works display. Grrr... On the other side of us a smaller car pulls in a couple with two young girls. One about 4 the other 2-1/2. Seem like nice people?

When the fire works started we got out of our car with Tamara to get a better view. Actually to get a view as the white van towered over my Rav 4. Suddenly the van starts to ROCK and we hear yelling and someone barking, squealing. We then realized that the woman driving the van must have been some sort of a foster mom? The van was filled with teenage boys all of which had many special needs. Tamara is at a stage where she observes and mimics everything she sees so the thought of her watching these boys in action was not appealing to us. So we move to the other side of our car. The young family I mentioned earlier was there. Suddenly the 2-1/2 year old girl starts screaming at the top of her lungs. A piercing high pitch scream that her parents couldn't control. Tamara watched these two groups which surrounded us through out the fire works. In fact at one point we got back in our car hoping she wouldn't get any ideas. Basically trapped, cornered , sandwiched between to insane situations I was starting to wish we had gone home. :o(

That night when we return home and I was putting Tamara to bed she started to scream just like that little angel in the parking lot. She would scream then laugh, scream then laugh. The laughing must have been from reading the expression on Mommy's face.

"Tamara... please don't do that. Surely you picked up something more useful then this tonight?" And with that she said "Ruff...Ruff" and then giggled.

"OMG" I told Bruce later on that night. " That's it from now on no more strangers"

Like that would even be possible?

Afraid she might continue this new behavior I am delighted to say I haven't heard it since.

So that was the worst of our week. Tamara survived two potentially hazardous situations. I think we've all learned a great deal from these experiences.

Tamara now chews everything really well and doesn't play as much during meals and snacks.

Mommy and Daddy cut everything in tiny pieces for her. And never leave her side while she's eating.

Tamara is walking more since the 4th. Before she always wanted to be carried. Sweet but exhausting after a while. Now she walks more and if I'm carrying her she points out potential tripping hazards to me. So all in all I think we managed to take both situations and turn them into a positive. ;o)

My knees are ok. It was a rough few days. Try giving a toddler a bath with out kneeling. Fun...fun...

~

Below... Tamara with Mommy.

Time to go shopping. OK.. don't laugh.. I dressed Tamara first and then Tamara dug through my wardrobe and picked out my outfit?

She's very good at matching outfits and accessories.

Below a visit to my parent house before their big trip to Croatia.

As soon as Tamara walked in the house Mom.. my Mom was in hot pursuit of Tamara.

Tamara's first time at her Grandparents house started with Grandma giving her a full house tour. I'm not sure I ever got one of those? lol

Here they are in the sewing studio.

As you can see Tamara loves her Grandma.

Dancing with Grandma and Dido

I think they both slept well that night. ;o)

Hold me up Grandma... I'll do the dishes.

A fun visit. My parents were amazed at how much she already understands. Although Tamara speaking is still very limited. A word here... a word there. She doesn't have too much trouble getting her point across.

During dinner she even told my parents about my Boo boo's. Pointing to me and then her knee she said "Ouch!" and then she pointed to her other knee and again said "Ouch!"

When Tamara spilled a glass of water and Grandma got the mop. Tamara insisted on cleaning up her spill. Afterwards she proceeded to try and mop the rest of the house. She became a little annoyed when she couldn't find anything to mop up. That's my Mom. Anyway she then started eating a chocolate chip cookie while mopping. When my mother asked why she was doing that I told her she needs crumbs on the floor or the mopping just isn't much fun. Turns out that's what Tamara was doing. What a trip huh? After she was finished and she handed the mop back to Mom (mine) I asked her if she would put the mop away for Grandma and she did. Amazing little girl. She remembered from the house tour where it belonged. After we picked up Grandma's chin off the floor where it fell in amazement they proceeded to dance and play. Tamara then gave Grandma a house tour remembering all the things that mom pointed to. Cute no?

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Below Tamara opens her gifts from Auntie Chris and her cousins.

As you can see she's getting pretty good at opening them. By Christmas she'll be a pro.

Thank You ... Wisconsin. She especially liked the boxes. This week she loves boxes?

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Tamara is also getting more daring with her mega blocks. You can see in this picture below. The structures are getting taller then her. I laugh when I see this picture as I remember for the Denver Questionnaire she needed to stack 8 blocks and she was distracted and didn't do it. Five months later she's up to 38.

That's my girl. ;o)

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Oh.. Cat Nip Balls

Oh Cat Nip Balls

This has been an especially interesting week around here. One of those weeks where you say... "You just can't make this stuff up".

Today .. Wednesday .. we took Tamara to her Pediatrician. She cried for a few minutes as she did in Tbilisi and then was fine. We will have to take her in for some extensive blood work in a few days. Although we were told in Georgia that she is up to date on all her shots.. they didn't give us the documentation for them. So we're having her anti-bodies checked to see what.. if any shots she actually got. I will need to try and get these through the agency personnel if possible. Here in the USA we must have proof before she can go to school and I really don't want to give them (more shots) to her unless we absolutely have to. The anti body screening will tell us if she received those shots and if so what the quality level was of the shots she received. If the quality was poor it will show up and then she will have to have those redone. Interesting stuff huh?

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Today is also Bruce and I's 14th Wedding Anniversary... Yup.. it's been 14 years.. can you believe it?

Time sure does fly when you're having fun... doesn't it?

After the Doctors visit we took Tamara out to a Anniversary Lunch.

Friendly's... yeah... The Honeymoon must be over...lol

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Yesterday.. Tuesday was Joey's 3 rd Birthday and Tamara was invited over for a play date.

Joey seems to think that Tamara is his girlfriend.. hum.. she has that effect on boys already. Last week while at Walmart a 9 year old boy asked me her name and then said to his Dad.

"Dad.. I think I'll marry Tamara" ??? Weird huh? Didn't even ask for her number.

Anyway... Tamara and Joey had a great time playing with his water table (gotta get one of those), his bounce castle (gotta get me one of those ;o) and his ride on cars.

Tamara & Joey playing in his bounce castle.

Below.. Water Table Fun.

Below... Joey peeking through one of the bounce castle holes. He was a gracious little host and very much a gentleman. An amazing little boy who doesn't just say Thank You but "Thank you very much". Too cute! He is also the only 3 year old I've ever met that can spell and read. Seriously.. brilliant, cute and a wonderful playmate for Tamara.

Thank You Joey and his Mommy ... we had an awesome time.

As we were leaving Joey said "Bye Tamara.. next time wear a hat"... Ok Joey we will. ;o)

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Monday was a panic day.

I was in a cleaning mode and so when Bruce took Tamara out to play on her swing I decided to vacuum the front half of the house. You know those rooms we hardly use. The formal dining room and living room. They're gated off right now and so Tamara doesn't have access to them. Anyway I noticed what looked like wood pulp in front and side of one of my china cabinets. So I stopped called Bruce in to investigate. We both immediately thought "oh no.. something must be eating the cabinet". This is a china hutch that houses 4 china sets and some spare parts so I wasn't thrilled with the idea of having to empty it out and dispose of the piece.. but I told Bruce. Wait until Tamara takes her nap and I'll do it. :o( He then pulled the cabinet out.. checked all around and found the wood pulp was all along the wall and not under the cabinet. So then we thought.. "oh man they're in our walls". So when Tamara napped instead of my emptying out the china hutch. Bruce was pulling off the trim (baseboard) to see what's going on. Nothing... no evidence of any pest there? Hum... weird. So we move the cabinet back and a yellow ball pops out. An empty cat nip ball. Apparently one of the cats has been playing with the ball under my cabinet. The ball went under hit the wall.. left some cat nip and came back out. The cat would then hit it again and again until all the cat nip was evenly distributed against the wall and the empty ball container got stuck under neath.

Grrr... "oh... Cat Nip Balls"

Like I said you just can't make this stuff up..lol.

Relieved we get to keep the hutch and of course that we aren't infested with some house eating insect Bruce quickly replaced the molding and we back to normal by the time sweet pea woke up. ;o)

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Today.. Tamara also learned how to use mega Lego's. It took her a while and a lesson from Daddy but before long she was building away. She's amazing to watch as she really hasn't seen many toys in her life so everything is a mystery, an adventure and a puzzle to solve.

Later it was time to swing again.

Look Mommy ... Bambi

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Sunday we attended church for the first time with Tamara. She was wonderful. Sitting through about an hour's worth of service. Getting up with Mommy for the children's sermon and finally going up for communion. She walked up with us. Knelled down with her hands in the proper position. Amazing little girl. Considering she went from an orphanage to the foster home and never went to church. Amazing!

Yes... we are very proud of her. ;o)

I'd also like to take this opportunity to say "See Ya" to Pastor Dan and his wife Marsha. This past Sunday was Dan's last day at our church due to a transfer to Tom's River. Many of you may remember Pastor Dan as he was the pastor who renewed Mom and Dad's vows last year at their 50th.

Dan and Marsha will be missed a great deal. We will never forget the silly things Dan did during his sermons. Like during a children's sermon when he asked the kids what did the cows say and the adults said "moo" and of course the time he set the oil lap on fire at the alter almost needing a fire extinguisher to put it out. lol. Yes he has the best props but more importantly he and Marsha have wonderful hearts which they share freely with everyone they meet.

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School's Out

School's Out...

(Put your sound on)

Last night for the first time Tamara woke up at 3:00 am screaming / crying.

I rushed to her side to console her. Still not sure why she did that? I took her to the potty, gave her a drink of water, checked her vitals and back to bed she went. I finally got to sleep around 4:30 am ... Welcome to Motherhood?

This morning Bruce woke me up at 8:00 am to tell me what time it is?

Tamara was still sleeping so I figured I could catch a few more Z's?

Silly Mommy!

Soon after Daddy got Tamara out of bed.. she soon came looking for me.

I mustered enough energy to go through the morning routine of washing, brushing and dressing. Daddy was downstairs making her scrambled eggs. I put her in her chair and heard myself saying " Daddy will feed you today .. Mommy needs 5 minutes to become human again." She protested for a minute and then ate not only her eggs but half of Daddy's. When I returned from my 5 minute coffee break on the front porch she wanted me to sit by her and she proceeded to eat most of my eggs too. Where does she put it?

This morning reminded me of what Sondra keeps reminding me. She told me to try and always get that first cup of coffee in before they wake up. Very good advice.

What I discovered last night while taking Tamara's temperature is that hers is normal.. but mine was not. After taking hers I thought I'd take mine just to see if the ear thermometer really works. I guess I need to take better care of Mommy? A fist full of vitamins, two Tylenol and I 'm back to normal. If you can call this normal? ;o)

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This week Bruce started to take Tamara to our pond to feed the fish. Her throw has greatly improved (actually hitting the water now) and she enjoys feeding the fishies.

Here she is in the yard getting ready.

Tamara with the fish food container. At one point she sat on it.

Coming back with Daddy. You can tell I haven't had much time to garden this year. The Wisteria & Grape vine are taking over. Really need to do some pruning this week.

OK.. Tamara hold Daddy's hand.

Later on we went to Brandon's High School graduation party.

Congratulations Brandon!!!

Below Cousin Katie plays with Tamara blowing Bubbles for her.

Tamara really enjoys her cousins. And Katie has shown an enormous amount of patience and understanding towards her new little cousin. I think it's starting to pay off as Tamara is really enjoying her company. ;o)
I've been a photo buff for years and have had several cameras.. usually have one with me. Therefore I literally have thousands of photos from years gone by. But I realized this week that once again it's time to update. As Tamara gains strength and energy at a very rapid pace it's getting more difficult to get "the shot". Even worse yet is trying to get "the shot" when she's with other children as they never seem to move in the same direction. lol. So it's time to think about an equipment upgrade. Bruce... are you reading this? Mommy needs a new camera. ;o)

This would have been a very cute photo... if my darling daughter had not turned. Tamara decided she needed a pet ball so she dragged this thing around for at least half an hour.

All in all it was a fun gathering. It was nice to see everyone and meet some of Brandon's friends. Nice kids... oops I mean young adults. ;o) . We're all very proud of you Brandon. You've always been a sweetheart and you've grown into a very special young man. Tamara was so exhausted from playing when she got home. After a quick snack she went right to bed. No fussing tonight. When I said Good Night Tamara she blew me a kiss and waved nite nite.

What a sweetheart!

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This week was also the last week of school around here.

So enjoy your summer little ones.

~~~

Georgian Bean Bread

I see spots..

Tamara checks her Blog every morning to see what's going on.

She giggles, points and tries to take over the key board and mouse pad.

Guess she wants to contribute?

One morning soon I may let her.

Here she is wearing my poka doted cheaters.

It's amazing how once you hit 40 .. parts start to wear out a bit?

Hopefully she'll keep us young?

I'll let you know how that works out. lol

We went to the local Carnival tonight. Opening night and it was busy.

Met our good friends Sharon and Jim and their children and grandchildren there.

It was nice to see them and their many, many children.

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Also met our neighbors there.

Little Zach 2-1/2 is one of Tamara's play mates. Unfortunately Zach and Tamara were too little for most rides. Most having a 36 inch requirement.. Tamara is just 34 inches tall.

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Here is Tamara with her cotton candy. She refused to try it. She thought we were crazy for eating what appears to be cotton.

Oh well maybe we'll try it again at the State Fair this summer?

Tamara... hang on
Tamara really loved this ride. Once it started.

Really .. she did.

Mommy holds her in place.

Zachary and his Mommy's horse was ahead of us... no matter how hard we tried we couldn't catch them.

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After the Carnival Tamara was a good little girl and was sound asleep by 9:15. A late night for her but I let her sleep in this morning and she's back to her 1pm nap schedule.

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Today I also made my first attempt at making Georgian Bean Bread one of her favorites while in country. I of course changed the recipe some adding whipped roasted chicken and shredded cheese to the mix. It was a huge hit with Tamara & Daddy each eating two pieces. I think this one is a keeper. Getting your toddler to enjoy chicken, beans and cheese in one bite ... yeah we'll make this one again. ;o) Wonder how it would taste with broccoli? LOL.. Am I pushing my luck?

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Georgian Bean Bread A La Lee

OK... real recipe which I got verbally from Anna involved Filo dough and boiling beans? I needed to find a short cut so here's what I did.

1 cup de-boned / skinned roasted chicken

1/2 can red kidney beans

1/2 can white beans

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Salt / pepper / dash of olive oil and apple cider vinegar (to taste)

*Whip in food processor everything but the cheese. Set aside or place in frig (chill for later use.. can be done a day a head)

1 - 8pk crescent roll Pillsbury

**I'm a huge fan of Parchment paper. Place a sheet on your cookie sheet before rolling out the dough on it.

*Split crescent roll pk in two - 4pc sections. Roll out 1st 4 into a square. Use a rolling pin. Not too thin but make sure the seams seal.

Place filling on bottom layer dough. Spread evenly about 1/2 inch thick. Add layer of shredded cheese. Cover with 4 remaining crescent dough sheet. No need to use roller and seams add interest when baked. Turn up lower layer dough and seal around edges. Bake in Preheated over 375 F for about 15 minutes or until it looks done to you. ;o) If a richer look is desired give it an egg wash before baking. If you're neat about it no one will believe you just whipped this one up. Great when you have a cup of chicken left over from dinner. Usually not enough to do anything with but it really works in this.

Yields 4 servings.

Enjoy!

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Pretty in Pink

Pretty in Pink

Tamara loves wearing pink... definitely a Girly Girl. ;o)

Yeah... Mommy is pleased.

Thank goodness for my years of makeup artistry experience. These days I have Tamara in my lap while doing my makeup.

She sits on my left knee, looks in one light up makeup mirror while I use the other.

Left arm holds her as she pretends to put on powder (clean new make up sponge). Mommy uses her right hand to apply base, liner, mascara (which Tamara now hands to me), blush and finally lipstick. When it's time to do lips she puckers up. Mommy applies a little lip color and she jumps off my lap grabs my pinkie and drags me to the master bath where she gets a tiny squirt of perfume. Rubs her tiny wrists together and I get a huge smile.

OK... ready Mommy where are we going?

Sunday I had to run out and do a few errands during nap time. I left Daddy in charge. When I returned I found Tamara and Daddy on the back deck playing. Tamara woke up crying.. first time. Bruce tells me she dragged him around the house looking for me. They even checked under the bed? One of my favorite hang outs apparently? lol Once she was satisfied that I wasn't home she then took him back to her room and he let her pick out her own outfit. This is the look she chose. Red sweat pants, a navy poka doted top, ped socks and sandals? Her hair needed brushing and she forget to go tinkle... so did Daddy. lol

Thank Goodness I came home when I did. It was time to change and get ready for a party.

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Happy 60th cousin Tony!

Great Party Anna! I have your hostess gift here... forgot to bring it...lol. I'll try to mail it? A challenge these days as I do have several packages I need to get out before Tamara goes to college. ;o)

At the party Tamara had fun with her many cousins, Aunts & Uncles and of course Grandparents. It took her over 2 hours to feel comfortable enough to freely interact. Once she did she once again became a social butterfly. We probably stayed a little too long as she was over stimulated and very tired when we got home. She slept on the way home and went right to sleep at 11pm for Mommy. Good girl.

I let her sleep in and extra few hours and it took 2 days to get her back to her 8pm bed time, 8 am wake up, nap 1-3 pm schedule. She's a trooper!

Below cousin Alan blows bubbles for Tamara at the party. Cousin Amanda takes pictures and Nicky cheers her on.

Below Grandma and Tamara play on the steps. Tamara is gaining strength and muscle tone quickly. I'd say it's probably doubled since we got her.

~~~