Love is patient, love is kind...

Happy Valentines!  The day may have passed a few weeks ago, but the theme was celebrated all month long in our house.  Tori sent out Valentines to her Grammy, and 2 of her Great-Grandmas, her auntie Jenn and Maddie, her Godmother and Uncle Jon.  The cute picture of her in the red dress was the cover for each Valentine.  And for Valentines Day, Mama got Tori a pink heart balloon, which she loves to play with, usually at the changing table.  In these pictures taken today, you can see the balloon isn't quite as full as it used to be, so Tori can grab it and pull it and swing it around.  It makes a neat noise too! 

 

Here she is peeking over the balloon...  what a joy it is watching her discover our world a little bit more each day.

Hooded Bath Towels are Best

When Tori was born, I couldn't wait to swaddle my sweet smelling baby girl in a  fluffy hooded towel after a nice bath.  Instead ,baths turned into quite an ordeal for the first few months, because we had to unhook the oxygen, take the stickies off her face, bathe her quickly so she didn't get chilled....it wasn't exactly what I imagined bathtime would be like.  

Eventually though, she got bigger, and stronger, able to breathe on her own and now enjoys her nightly bath quite a lot.  The first picture is from early August '08, shortly after she came home from the hospital.   The doggy towel is about 2 months later, and the two  pictures after that are Tori and I just after tonight's bath!  So you can see how far she has come- it is really amazing how well she has grown.  That last picture is also an early one, and notice she is barely filling out the hood- now it fits her head almost perfectly.  The doggy hooded towel is almost too small now- but it's still so cute!  One thing hasn't changed in these 8 1/2 months: check out that terrified expression on her face- she is not a fan of the camera flash or the red eye reduction light..... the smiles you see on film are ones not easily caught, so enjoy!  Of course, she is much more relinquishing of her smiles with actual people, as opposed to the camera. Thank Goodness- her smiles are the highlight of my day!

A Snowy Day at Mt. Ashland

We decided to go to Mt. Ashland at the end of January, figuring this would be a fun adventure for Tori.  Well, the snow that was there was pretty old and icy, but we managed to find a little path to walk along where Tori could see some  snow and grab a few handfuls.  Still hoping to have some snow in the Valley that will stick this year, but we'll have to wait and see.  One thing is for sure: much more of this snow play and Tori will need some little mittens!  She seems to really love being outside and experiencing new temperatures, seeing new scenery, and didn't even mind the drive too much.

Oh! You Beautiful Doll!

Mama has refrained from dressing Tori up just for the sake of it, but sometimes it's hard; she's just so darn cute!  Over the holidays, my mom went thru old baby clothes that I grew up in, and I snagged a few of the lesser worn outfits....which was tough since there were 4 of us girls.  So this is the first installment of Tori dressed up like a baby of the 70's:-)  Tori doesn't like getting her clothes changed, so the fact that she is even somewhat cheerful in any of these is miraculous.  Oh, and you can't see them in the pictures, but Tori is starting work on that toothy grin!  She cut her first 2 teeth last week- 2 bottom teeth!  And check out her sitting action- she is really becoming pro.

A Day at the Beach

What a Beautiful Sunny Day!  Tori had her first visit to the beach at the end of December, 2008.  It was one of the few 80 degree days we had during our visit with my parents over the holidays.  It was the perfect day for this girl to get a little natural vitamin D! (although I did put lots of sunblock on her before we left the house)  We went to Torrance Beach, and Tori loved to feel the sand between her fingers and toes, and we even dipped her toes in the water.  She wasn't even scared of the waves, but that might be because Mom was holding her tight.  In March we will take her on her first visit to the Oregon Coast, and that will be an entirely different story....probably cold, wet and rainy.  But I'm sure we will be back to Torrance Beach when she is a little older.

Tori's Baptism

Torrance Elizabeth Horton was baptized on December 28th at St. Francis Episcopal Church in Palos Verdes, California.  This is the same church Mom and Dad were married in 7 1/2 years ago!  She wore the same dress that Mom was baptized in and did very well in the service until about the last hymn.  Pictured below is Tori with her Godmother Katrina.  

This was a very emotional ceremony. With all Tori has been thru up to this point, it's obvious God has a strong presence already in her life and to celebrate her baptism with so many friends and family who prayed for her when she was in the hospital seemed to bring some closure to her rocky start.    At one point during the service, Fr. Jim was holding Tori and was about to put water on her forehead, and she looked up at him with the most trusting eyes.... it was a beautiful moment that I will always remember.  This was a celebration that I had been looking forward to for  a long time.  Tori definitely has a lot of people to support her as she grows in God's love.

Eating all the Time!

Tori has become quite the eating queen this past month.  We got the go-ahead from her pediatrician to start solid foods and she was hesitant at first but has come around- now we are trying 1-2 new foods a week.  We started out feeding her in the bouncer in the beginning of December, which didn't work too well since she can bounce herself.  Now she doesn't fit in the bouncer very well, so we have moved to feeding her in the Bumbo, a useful little thing to help Tori learn to sit up.  As you can see from the pictures, she does get it all over herself and really wants to feed herself- but when she grabs that spoon it gets really messy!  Bananas and her Grandpa's homemade applesauce are the two favorites- but she seems to like squash and peas pretty well too.  And Mom is having a fun time making all sorts of new taste sensations with the babyfood maker she got for Christmas- woo hoo!