Battle Wounds

So, with officially walking comes the official first black eye. Yesterday Cassidy almost made it the 10 steps to her wagon, almost. This morning the eye looked a little better, but I think the bruising may be coming on. You can slightly see the discoloration and the outline in the third picture from today. Stay tuned, I'll post the picture if it gets any prettier! She is definitely my daughter, and I'm sure there will be more to come. I have to say though, I'm very proud that she "got back on the horse" and didn't let the fall slow her down or stop trying to walk.

Thanks Grandma and Grandpa!

Cassidy got her Birthday present from Grandma and Grandpa K....I think it's a big hit! She has gotten the hang of taking toys to the couch and playing with them. She likes having her own little space...not to mention one more thing to climb on and over! THANK YOU!!!

Growing Girl

April February

We had our 1 year check up this week. Cassidy is healthy and strong and according to the Dr, "looks fantastic". She now weighs 21lbs 10oz (65%) and 29 1/4 in (50%). and very busy! We didn't have to do shots this go round, we opted to not do the chicken pox vaccine yet and the other shots are at 15 months. We did have to get a blood draw though, to test for anemia. This was her first from a vein in her arm, not the old heel prick method as now her feet are getting tougher. She did much better than I thought she would, but she was not impressed! Here are some of her latest moves..

Happy Feet

Giggle Girl


AND for Cassidy's Finale...

As of last night we are officially saying she has taken her first steps. She was a little wobbly here, she had been walking quite a bit before we thought to get the camera. Such excited first time parents! She is consistently taking a few steps now a few times every day. So look out world, her comes Cassidy!

Cassidy's favorite part about being a year old is her new car seat...She looks like such a big girl, and loves being able to see out better and see us!

Cassidy also got her first helmet, now she can start riding more, once she is able to leave it on. She had dinner in her helmet the first night and it's getting better, but maybe a few more dinners before she accepts the helmet and leaves it alone.

New foods, like Alfredo pasta, are also perks for a one year old .

Cassidy's new toys from her Birthday are a big hit!

Thanks to every one who helped make Cassidy's first year so wonderful and all the support for her crazy parents! It definitely takes a village, and we have a great one!

She's 1 !!!

It's hard to believe, but our baby girl has turned a year old! We had a party on Wednesday with neighbors and friends. Grandma Margie got here just in time to celebrate. Chad and Cassidy were busy blowing up balloons before and once guests started arriving the fun began. Of course they had to get through the "official" welcoming commitee.

When it was time for cake, Cassidy was set at the head of the table and throughly enjoyed the new tastes, as soon as she got over every one staring at her! It's hard to tell, but look closely at her feet. When she's excited, we call it her "happy feet" as they are dancing around like crazy!
After we finished eating all the finger foods and cake, it was time for serious baby fun. Cassidy's good friend Jack (8 1/2 mos) and Maddie (almost 13 mos) played really well together and had lots of fun. It was great for the adults too to see the different stages and how they interact.


Jack and his parents Josh and Stacey stayed the night, so the two babies had their first co-ed bath. They were quite a pair and very cute!


Friday night we had another, much quieter party opening gifts. Cassidy recieved some very sweet gifts from her wonderful friends Auntie Carmen, Bobbe and John, Josh and Stacey, Grandma O, and a home made hat from Kathleen. Thank you all!

Saturday the Bellingham clan came down to party! MacKenzie also came over for the party. Grandma and Grandpa P. brought Cassidy a new wagon which she instantly started climbing in and out of! It will be great for "road trips" over to the horses and this summer.

Cassidy worked the room while we were getting ready to eat. She quickly had Great Grandpa eating out of her hand, and Auntie Lisa and Alexa at her fingertips!

Then came the cake. Cassidy was a little quicker than Mom this go around, now that she is used to the whole party thing, and was drawn to the candles and ready to dive in!

Cassidy got more wonderful gifts and cute clothes. She is definitely getting the hang of this present thing. In fact, she decidewhen we were going to start by going over to the pile and grabbing a bag!

Thank you every one for coming, it was a great day. We missed Caden and Ryan due to a basketball tournament, Great Aunt Mary to Portland, and Lori and Lindsey as Linds wasn't feeling well, but had a good time and our girl has officially survived her first year, and so did I!!!

Christmas Part II

Finally, here are the pictures from our trip to Tucson for Christmas Part II. It was a beautiful trip with lots of new sights and great people. Cassidy did wonderful on the flight despite her stressed out mom. She decided there was too much action for a nap on the plane, but handled it like a pro. Bryce and Meg met us at the airport. It was awesome to finally see them again...it had been since late June, way too long! We drove from Pheonix to Tucson catching up while Cass caught a little nap. When we arrived, the action began!

We were greeted in Tucson at Mule Power Farms http://www.mulepowerfarms.com/ with lots of familar faces and a very excited Grandma and Grandpa. Cassidy quickly made herself at home and successfully wrapped all around her cute little finger. Grandpa and Grandma gave up their beautiful trailer and moved into the bunkhouse with Bryce and Meg so that Cass, Chad, and I could make ourselves comfortable and have more room. I'm not sure you can call their trailer "roughing it". It was wondeful and spacious and when Cassidy was inside she had lots of room to romp!
She was outside a lot though. Here Uncle Bryce and Cassidy are spending some quality time with Grandpa looking on...

Cassidy had lots of great things to play with thanks to the owners of the ranch, including this great piano, high chair, pack n play, and two totes full of little toys. Their generosity was greatly appreciated, made packing much easier, and Mom a little less stressed out! THANK YOU!!Grandma Ileen keeping a close watch...and getting her baby fix Friday while Chad, Dad, Benell, John, Bobbe, and myself went for a ride in the close by Saguaro Nathional Park. Grandma Margie was more than happy to babysit and get her quality time in with Cassidy while we rode. The Saguaro was beautiful in it's unique way. Some of the barrel cactus and prickly pear cactus were just budding out, along with the cholla, but you sure didn't want to stray off the trail! Bobbe checking in on Arizona before she was off on a little ride. It's a great set-up as guests can ride into the Saguaro National Park right from camp and the neighborhood is very horse, excuse me, mule friendly with many trails and washes that are easily accessed so it's super easy to go for either a short or long ride without ever loading into a trailer.Friday night Jo and Gail invited the whole camp up to their beautiful home for a pot-luck social hosted by them and the other co-owners Brent and Rosemary. They wanted to give us time to spend just visiting and being together. It's a little tough to get every one together in one trailer and supposedly 60 degrees is still a little cool for evening dinners outside at camp. It was a wonderful night and great to finally be able to put faces to all the wonderful people Mom and Dad have met there. Cassidy was very popular and quite entertaining of course, Chad and I saw very little of her!During the dinner we were given a framed edition of Cassidy's new found fame as cover girl for Western Mule Magazine. Mom and Dad had sent in a picture for a photo contest and it was chosen as the January cover....it's great and very cute as Cassidy is sucking on Gidget's ear. We had no idea, thinking at most it would be a little picture inside with others. It was a great surprise and a wonderfully thoughtful gift. Rosemary is holding Cassidy. You can go to their website to get a better look at the cover: http://www.westernmulemagazine.com/That night when we got back to camp it was time for Christmas! Cassidy had a hard time for pictures as it was already past her bedtime, but once she was able to start opening she was good to go. She got some more great gifts on top of the trip to Arizona.Saturday Dad, Bryce, Meg, Chad, and I along with the rest of the camp headed to the Chiricahua Mountains about 2 1/2 hours east of Tucson. Mom and Ileen stayed back with Cassidy so that Chad and I could experience this amazing area. Apache chiefs Cochise and Geronimo chose this area to make their strongholds and it was obvious why. It was a very neat experience to be riding through this area with so much history, mythology, and strength, not to mention the spectacular rock formations that looked like sentrys standing gaurd over the canyon. We even saw some deer and the bottom of the canyon held many alligator juniper and hickory trees, along with some grassy areas. It was beautiful!Yep, that's Chad on a mule!Sunday started off with Dad and I getting in a quick ride before heading to cousin Joel and Sandy's home in town. Aunt Sue and Uncle Wayne were also there. It was great getting to spend some time with them. Chad hasn't seen them in over a year and they had only met Cassidy once back in early September. Maya kept Cassidy, and us, entertained and it was a very nice afternoon.That evening back at camp we just kinda hung out and relaxed, well all except Cassidy. She throughly enjoyed crawling between Benell and Grandpa on the bunkhouse porch and then discovering the grass courtyard and working on her standing skills. She also discovered leaves and even though they may taste good (?) they aren't easily swallowed....She got pretty good at standing, up to at least 45-60 seconds and you could tell she wanted to take a step...that grass was pretty lush and made a good crash pad.Monday morning, before heading back to Pheonix and Seattle, Dad treated us to a wagon ride though the neighborhood. It was a beautiful morning, a beautiful team, and a wonderful time. I love the picture of Cassidy helping Grandpa drive...
This is my favorite...
Time for one last bottle before hitting the road...Benell and Grandpa looking on, trying not to look too sad.

Every one came by to say good bye with hugs and well wishes. The weather and setting are beautiful, but it is the wonderful group of people that made it obvious why Mom and Dad choose to spend months "on the farm". I'm already trying to figure out how to get Tucker down there for a week next winter! Thank you every one for the great trip and an unforgettable Christmas Part II!