e's 1st birthday!

We tried to keep everything simple,

so that our focus would be on Elise

and her first year of life.

We kicked things off 

with a special birthday breakfast.

Hubs made Elise a birthday ring

from a slice of Douglas fir.

I made a timeline of Elise's first year.

(Can you tell I'm a teacher?!)

Friends and family came over

for a picnic lunch.

Elise's birthday treat - 

dirt cake!

I tried to make the recipe healthier

by using organic cookies and pudding

and homemade whipped cream. ;)

 The party favors were

mini wooden spoons and whisks.

My gift to Elise was a doll I made

from a Weir Crafts kit.

Hubs' gift was his childhood wagon

that he slightly modified (of course!).

It was a VERY good day!

looking back at baby elise part 5: a year in photos

Elise turned one a few days ago!!!  Here's my last looking back at baby elise post.  I'm feeling a little behind on things around here... birthday preparation is a lot of work!  Stay tuned for the highlights of Elise's special day sometime later this week.  :)

 newborn

1 month

2 months

3 months

4 months

5 months

6 months

7 months

8 months

9 months

 10 months

11 months

 

12 months

the book nook

 A little hideout,

tucked into a corner of the living room,

is the perfect place for... 

...reading books,

snuggling with stuffies,

or lounging in the sun.

It's just right for a little person

who's about to turn one!

looking back at baby elise part 4: first toys

 

6 weeks old (skwish is hanging from a toy hanger)

When Elise was just a tiny babe, I remember waiting with eager anticipation for her to reach out and grab something - anything!  At 10 weeks, she was able to hold a little rattle that we would put in her hands.  I liked the way the rattle would jingle as she moved, but when she dropped it, there was no way for her to pick it up.  I felt like we weren't really setting her up for success, so I just kept watching and waiting...  

 

12 weeks old

Finally, at 12 weeks, Elise reached out and grabbed the skwish!  I was so excited!  The skwish was large enough that she could pick it up even while lying on her back, and it was light with lots of good places to grab - she could pick it up just by snagging the elastic with her little finger.  I liked that it wasn't made of plastic, and that it made an almost musical sound when moved.  Oh, and the best part - according to Elise?  All the little knobs on the ends were just right for sucking!

 15 weeks old

Although we had a good experience with the skwish, I've heard a few bad stories about it, too.  If your baby plays with a skwish, please check it frequently to make sure all the parts are secure!

 19 weeks old

Here are a few more of Elise's first favorite toys:

teether ball
discoverer's meadow fabric ball
arch toy hanger 
flower fairy dangling figure
puzzle ball
kringelring clutching toy
pingi clutching toy
crinkle book
silicone teether rings
wooden grasping beads
black-and-white rattle
sophie the giraffe

opening and closing hinged boxes

Although the weather has been too nice to spend very much time inside, Elise has been enjoying this new opening and closing lesson.  It's quite a bit more challenging than this one - at first I was concerned I'd missed that balance of not too easy/not too hard, but she figured it out! 

One of the biggest challenges is deciding which side of the box will open.  The interesting objects inside encourage Elise to keep trying until she gets it right!

    open the box

take out the object

 put the object back in

close the box

repeat 

(again and again!)