First Real Bike!!

Mia has quickly outgrown her tricycle and begun asking for a bike for her birthday! That and a pony... Yikes! So Grammy & Papa were very generous this past weekend and bought Mia her very own flamed hot rod bike!! Daddy was beyond pleased when she didn't pick out the flowered pink version. It was so cute at the store when the sales woman told Mia that this bike was too big for her, and tried to stear her towards a midget size feminine bicycle. Mia promptly ignored her, hopped on this bike and proceeded to ride circles around the other bikes! That's our girl. We figure the training wheels come off by fall, and by next winter she's on her first dirt bike! Note that Mary Bear got to join in on the inaugural bike ride... Mia can't go anywhere without her!

Look Ma, No Hands!!

Of course Daddy had to teach the midget to ride with no hands! Mommy loves that move, especially without a helmet... A few good falls, maybe some stitches, and she learns not to do that again! Ooooooh.

Night, Night Gerdie!

Mia is becoming quite the Mommy in preparation for her brother & sister's arrival... It is so cute to hear her talk about being a big sister and to call Brandon & Aubrey by name! Especially her cute pronunciation of Aubrey's name. She inserts an extra vowel and calls her AubErey. Amazingly cute! Here she is putting her six foot giraffe, Gerdie, down for a nap... Aw, what a good Mommy!

Daddy's Big Lover!

This past week we went with our neighbors, Dave, Lindsey & Easton, to see 'Disney on Ice'. Boy, it's a whole different show than what I remember as a child... The costumes and skating were truly amazing! When Mia saw all of the vehicles from 'Cars' come out on the rink she was blown away. Then they performed the entire 'Lion King' act and she was mesmerized by all the characters. The highlight of the night was absolutely when Donald Duck, her hands down favorite character of the moment, skated right up to her and was within arms distance... To see the joy in her face during these experiences instantly washes away any of the daily struggles of life and brings endless joy! It's amazing, and so great, to feel such deep love...

Feeding the Giraffe!

Sometimes I feel like I'm writing a book that should be titled, "The Adventures of Mia!". It truly is amazing all of the activities and adventures that Stacy puts together each week for our midget. She is one lucky child... This past week included a visit to the zoo, along with the requisite giraffe feeding! Mia absolutely loves giraffes, and got such a kick out of their tongues wrapping around her entire hand to take the cucumbers and carrots. I'm pretty sure she's on a first name basis with most of the animals at the zoo!

Crazy Wagon Ride!

Mia is definitely into a more rambuncious phase as of late. Her play, which used to be quiet and self contained, now constantly involves Mommy, Daddy, Sofia the cat, or any other available warm body! She's into running, diving, jumping and tumbling... Here is a photo of her after she climbed into her wagon and made Daddy pull her through the house running as fast as we could possibly run, and then swinging the wagon around so that she slid half way across the living room, and yes, occasionally flipped out onto the floor! Mommy loves that game... Ok, not so much!

Breakfast in bed...

The imagination certainly isn't slowing down! Mia is very into building herself what she calls her 'nest', at the foot of Mommy & Daddy's bed. This morning she took her breakfast, along with all of her bears, and had breakfast in bed! Too cute...

Say Cheese!

I may have mentioned that Grammy & Papa got the midget her very own camera for Hannukah! What I didn't mention is that this is about as much as we get to see of Mia's beautiful face these days... She's obsessed with taking photos and couldn't be happier to have a camera like Mommy & Daddy's! What a sweetie.

Almost 3!!!!

Guess who is almost 3 years old?!?! That's right, it's hard to believe, but our midget will be turning 3 later this month! Wow, how time flies... In just on short year Mia's vocabulary grew from an infant to that of an average adult, she became fully potty trained, and she learned that Mommy & Daddy are totally neurotic and were put on this planet to serve her!

Every day is such an amazing adventure with our sweet angel... Every time we think Mia is headed into some horrible phase that we hear children go through, a week or two later we realize that the phase has passed and our angel has returned. Don't get us wrong, we realize we're probably being set up for the longest and most torturous teenage years a child can have, but hey, let us have our fantasy that our child is perfect!! We couldn't be luckier, or love her more...

Teddy Bear Tea!

Mommy has made it a tradition to take Mia to 'Teddy Bear Tea' at the Ritz each Christmas. This year was no exception... A whole group of Mom's brought along some of Mia's friends, and of course Mia insisted on bringing her Mary Bear! They had wonderful snacks and got pictures taken with Santa. What an incredible holiday season we had...