Yes, you probably guessed it. Brittain is now saying “Dada.” The timing of this new word was great. Dan left on a ski trip to Utah on February 28th for the bachelor party of Matthew DeAngelis (Cecilia’s fiance). The morning he left, he had to leave VERY early to catch his flight. Although Brittain doesn’t usually wake up until close to 8:00, she woke up shortly after he left, which was around 5:30 a.m. I got her up and put her in bed with me for her to drink her morning bottle. I dozed off while she was drinking, but was coherent enough to notice her talking. The word that I heard? DADA. I raised my head up immediately and said, “What did you just say?” She didn’t repeat it immediately, but during the 5 days that Dan was gone, she said it many times. I finally was able to record a video on my phone of her saying this and I sent it to Dan while he was away. It was priceless and he loved it. It was the perfect message to send to him while he was away from his little girl.

I know that some of you (those of you who check the blog regularly) have noticed that I haven’t updated the blog in quite some time. The boring truth is that I have been so busy spending time with my precious little girl that I just haven’t had the time for much else. I promise to TRY to be better.

Here are some of the most recent pictures of Brittain. She continues to enrich all of our lives in ways that none of us could ever imagine. It’s amazing to me how this little person, who measures less than 2 feet tall can effect our lives the way that she has and continues to do. I thank God every day for blessing us with her life.

Take a look at the picture below. This is still posted at the church, outside the choir room door, over the water fountains. Yes, 5 babies. Can you believe it? The most recent baby that has blessed us with her arrival is Gracie. Hayden Grace Mulder, daughter of Steve and Erin Mulder, was born on January 16, 2007. She has joined the ranks with the 4 other choir babies. What fun!

Here are a few pictures from the baby shower some of us threw for Erin. The shower was supposed to happen before Gracie’s birth, but Gracie came early. The shower turned into a “Welcome, Gracie” party and it was great! Just a few days old, attendees got to get a glimpse of the new little life!

Right now I’m sitting in the chair in my bedroom. Brittain is sitting on our bed playing with her toys and watching Baby Einstein on the tv. As she plays, every once in a while she looks up at me and gives me a big smile. I smile back and make sure to say, “Yay!” in my most exciting, high-pitched, albeit obnoxious voice. Just now I clapped for her and she mimicked my movements with her own hands. Yes, I know. She’s a genius. 🙂

Brittain continues to grow and thrive. She is well into eating baby food now and loves peas, squash, applesauce, prunes and bananas. She’s 18 pounds now!

I can’t help but stare at her for long periods of time…just realizing what a miracle she is and all that she has brought to my life. Every day when I get dressed I see my “battle wound” that I have. I look at that, and then at her and can’t believe that it was just 6 1/2 months ago when they pulled her out of that place on my belly. Each moment with her is special, every new thing she does makes my heart happy. We are all so fortunate to have her in our lives. It’s hard to ever break away from her because I don’t want to miss a thing. Her smile makes all of us better people. Each day I know that I’ve won the prize. This little person who everyone wants to see and be a part of belongs to Dan and me. What a rewarding job I have!

I’ve gotten a little behind on updates. Here are some pictures taken over the last few weeks.

Aunt CC came for a visit today and Brittain was beyond thrilled. All Brittain wants to do when she’s with Cecilia is soak her up and enjoy every moment. It was a special day:

 

Aunt CC came bearing gifts (surprise, surprise). Brittain got her very own crown. But, don’t worry, Cecilia isn’t handing her’s down quite yet. This is just a baby version until she’s old enough to really prove herself worthy of the real thing! 🙂

Aunt CC felt it was important to go ahead and teach Brittain how to use a cell phone so she’d have a head start on the rest of the 7 month olds:

“Uh, yeah! Of course I want to play with that toy!”

“Anything you say, Aunt CC. Anything you say.”

“Can you believe this little green round thing that goes on this yellow thing?”

“I don’t really understand it either. It’s just fun.”

Mimi joins in the fun:

Brittain visits Mama and Daddy “B”, her friend Kyla Rose, and Kyla’s mommy.

Brittain models her bathrobe while hanging out with Mommy in the bathroom while she gets ready:

Showing off her horsie (her Christmas gift from Uncle Doug):

Brittain’s very first Super Bowl party. Hanging out with Dana:

And with Ned:

Should I switch to this kind of bottle?:

Brittain and Evie talk about how great it is to be alive:

Playing with her Aunt Susan. She finds that looking at her in a mirror is almost as good as looking at her in person:

Loving Tuesdays and Thursdays:

Brittain got a visit from Jessica Chunn, from Ohio:

Quickly talking to Amanda before we all headed out for Dave and Busters:

A few pictures taken at Pappy’s house after church one Sunday:

Getting excited because she’s about to eat her baby food:

Ava Parker came by with her parents to show how fast she’s growing:

Mommies and their daughters:

Daddies and their girls:

Brittain dressed up for a very special day–Emma Kate’s baptism: