I'm still here

what a intresting year it has been so far... It started with me getting laid off. It took me a little time to get over that. I had never lost a job before. I remember my first monday of being unemployed, I didn't have anywere to go and that was a strange feeling. Luckily I have my little cliare to keep me busy. We started doing stroller strides 3 times a week. We both loved it. I got a good workout in and Claire got to play with other kids. I think I lost about 5 pounds to! I think I would have lost my mind without my stroller stride friends.
I decided that I couldn't change what happened so I was going to make the best of it. Claire and I got to spend alot of time together which was awesome. She is at such a fun age and we got to have a lot of fun. I applyed for ALOT of jobs over the last few months. I finally found one that seems to be perfect for me. I am the new clinic coodinator for the sleep center in a local hospital. They have great benifits, good pay, and Fridays off! I think its going to be a great fit for me.
but... I have to leave my Claire. Its going to be so hard to leave her 4 days a week. We had our routine and shes mom little side kick. I loved being there for everything. She is just the sweetest little girl and im going to miss all the giggles and smiles.

1 year!

Who hit the fast forward button? were did a year go? My baby is no longer a baby she is now a toddler. sigh... I have to say I really enjoyed her first year! It was a learning experiance for sure but we all made it. We had a wonderful party for claire, lots of family and friends. for some reason my computer won't up loud the photos. Claire was not a big fan of cake. she poked at it and then she was done. We lucked out with this little girl. She is just the sweetest little baby. Her smile melts my heart everytime I see it. I am so excited to watch claire grow up. we have one great year under our parenting belt so bring on year 2!

On Friday the 13th I was laid off. I was in a state of shock over the weekend, I kept feeling like I was going to wake up after a bad dream. I have never lost a job in my life, I have always left on my own terms. Ouch does it hurt! I felt like a failure, and like I should have seen it coming. Now that I look back I feel like an idiot because I didn't see it coming. When I got back from maternity leave I was told my old position was gone and I would be spending half of my time in accounting and was encouraged to come back part time. Hello wake up annie! they never wanted you to come back! When I went on maternity leave they divieded up my jobs and basically elimianted my position. As I was being laid off they told me "well you wanted to spend more time with your daughter anyways". True but I also want to pay the bills! I now am putting bad feelings behind me and spending every minute I can with my daughter. I am looking for a full time job now because I have found part time jobs like to pay minimum wage. I knew the job market was slim but WOW I never relized how bad it is. At this rate i'm going to be picking up dead bodies for a funeral home!
My other worry is adams company might strike in February. Perfect timing! great, in a matter of 2 weeks we could go from having 2 incomes to 0.
Deep breath, moving on, and hoping for the best!

Claires first Christmas

I would have to say Claires first Christmas was a success. She didn't really open presents (mostly like just ripped bows off) But she got lots of fun new toys that she is enjoying. We spent CHristmas ewe with Adams family and Christmas day with my family. I was so tired by the end of Christmas. Claire was not in the mood to be set down. she wanted to be hled non stop which made it hard to get ready for our trip to seattle on Christmas. Now I'm startingto wonder if her ear is bothering her, I have noticed her pulling at it a few times. I guess I will just need to keep an eye on her. tis the season for colds!

It's Christmas Time

Last year at this time...I was 7 months pregnant,we were decorating claires room, and getting everything ready for baby! This year I have been so excited to show Claire how much fun Christmas is. She loves our christmas tree and is a big fan of lights. I have had to hold back on decorating the house because not everything is baby friendly. Her latest discovery is bells. I have some jingle bells hanging on a few door knobs and she loves playing with them. I think claire has caught the Christmas bug!

Cookie making!

Cooking making this year turned into a marathon! Too many cookies not enough time or skill. Haha I included a picture of what we wanted our cookies to look like and what they ended up looking like. You guessed it "cookie fail" I guess we are just not very good decorators. Claire had fun crawling around with all the ladies in her christmas outfit. This last month has been a big one for claire. she started crawling everywere and pulling herself up on EVERYTHING! The highchair, her crib, her walker, the cat. she is also mastering waving hello and good bye. she is so close to saying hi! she waves and says HA. She has even taken a few steps according to grandpa. I missed it of course. I'm so excitied to show her all the fun stuff about Christmas. I put lights up on the house and she loves looking at them. I love everything about christmas and I'm hoping my little claire bear will be the same way.

Thanksgiving

For thanksgiving I ended up doing a lot of driving but we really wanted to see all the family so it was worth it. Adam had to work so Claire and I got up at 6:30 and after a fall with a bloody lip we were off on our thanksgiving adventure. Our first stop was the airport to pick up katy. Then we headed to my dads for a wonderful thanksgiving and visiting. Claire loved playing with her cousin cooper! After a wonderful time we headed out in the POORING rain to Adams family up on Camano Island. After a very long day of food and travel we pulled into home at 9:30. I was so tired but we had a great day.