Finger Painting

It was a rainy afternoon so Alia and I decided to give finger painting a try. She wasn't exactly sure what to think at first, but seemed to catch on quickly and really enjoy herself. Her favorite part was sitting on the newspaper. It made a great noises!

Here is a little clip of Alia enjoying the newspaper after we finished painting.

Happy Friday!

Alia and I had a fun morning playing and taking pictures. She knew to smile when she saw the little orange light on my camera go on. She has a big cheesy smile in every picture! Silly bean! We played under the table, stood up next to the chair and played peek-a-boo. We have had a very busy week and it felt good to hang out in our pj's and just play at home.

Swim Class

Alia just completed her first set of swim classes. We had a lot of fun! I was surprised by how much she seem to enjoyed it. At our last class we got to go down the big water slide. It was actually pretty scary! We went much faster than I thought we would. I was trying to stay upright and hold on to her and completely forgot to hold my breath at the end. It seemed to go by too fast for Alia to have much of a reaction. The good news is that Jason was finally able to come watch, so we have some video of the big event to share with you.

One of Alia's favorite things to do at swim class is to stand up and hold onto the side of the pool. The shallowest part is only 1.5 feet deep, so it is perfect for the little ones.

Here is a very brief little clip for you!

Night, Night

New Place to Play

Alia has discovered that she can roll under the coffee table and she thinks its hysterical. I think that she thinks she's being sneaky or something. It's so stinking cute!! As you can tell in the video, I'm afraid she's going to bonk her head one of these times, but it hasn't happened YET.

8 Month Update

Not much new to report from here. I just thought I would put up some new (and super cute) pictures of Alia. We have spent the last 7-10 days feeling under the weather around here. I had a cold and ear infection, Alia got a little virus and now Jason has a cold. So, we have been laying pretty low, just trying to feel better. Enjoy the pictures of our growing bean!

Alia loves to play with the remote control.

She's already stretching and preparing for her first dance class.
Center splits are looking pretty good so far.

Every Sunday, Alia helps Mommy look through the ads in the paper.

Just being cheesy and cute!

On a beautiful Saturday afternoon, we decided to go to Stanfords and sit on the patio and have a drink and an appetizer. Mommy and Daddy had calamari and wine. Alia had puffs and water.

Sometimes it can be a litte tricky feeding Alia her dinner. She's a moving target.

Cuddling with Daddy

Hiking

Jason and I finally purchased a backpack carrier that we can use to take Alia hiking. We got very lucky and found this super one on Craig's List for a fraction of the price that we would have paid for it at a sporting goods store. It was brand new with the tags on it and everything. We decided to do a short little hike to test it out and see how Alia felt about it. Alia loved it! She giggled the whole way! We had a great time. We are really looking forward to doing more family hikes and getting a lot of use out of the new backpack.

Getting in the pack and getting ready!

Alia enjoying the view from way up high!

Taking a break with Mommy.

Just hanging out

This is Pittock Mansion. We took a short hike up here and walked around and checked it out. It's a Portland landmark. If you are ever in town, you should check it out. The view from here is gorgeous, even on a cloudy day!

Dinner

Alia's newest trick is feeding herself. She still isn't 100% accurate, but she can definitely tell the difference between bread and cheese and everything else. Here is a video clip of Alia picking through the peaches and carrots on her tray and just eating the bread. Silly little bean! I would like to add that she will eat just about anything you put in her mouth, but will only feed herself bread and cheese. I don't want you all to think that I don't give her fruits and veggies. I do, but she makes me work for it :-)

After Alia ate dinner last night I was looking for a way to keep her happy and occupied as I made dinner for Jason and I (yes, I made dinner, don't laugh). So, I handed her a spoon and some Tupperware and Alia enjoyed a delicious imaginative meal! It was so cute!

In other news, I took Alia in for a weight check on Tuesday. She is a VERY healthy little girl.

28 inches long - 91%

18 pounds, 3.5 ounces - 67%

Bath Time Fun

As I mentioned before, Alia is now taking baths in the big tub. She seems to really enjoy it.

Here is a little clip of her "playing" with her rubber ducky!