Guess who's almost 1!!

It really is hard to imagine nearly a year has gone by. And it seems things are busier than ever these days - marathon training for Craig, new job for Nicole, and Allison is more mobile than ever! As with any 11 month old, Allison is into everything! She's a pro at climbing stairs, loves to open & shut doors/cabinets, and cruises on everything. I've caught her standing a few times but I don't think she realizes she's doing it! When you try and praise her she sits down. If you try and walk with her, she sits down. Typical Allison, wants to do it on her own time :) She's denying baby food too, and wants a little of everything we eat. Hopefully that will make eliminating bottles a little easier especially since she's no longer nursing (I made it 11.5 months, woo hoo!!).

We recently enrolled Allison in swim classes too. It's actually a parent tot class all about survival skills and brain development. I still can't get over how quickly she's picking it up and she loves all the songs and pool toys. What freaked me out was seeing her go underwater for the first time! Turns out blowing in their face instinctually makes babies hold their breath so it was actually scarier for me than it was for her. It's been fun having a "mommy and me" activity with our good friends Landell and Warner. Now we get to see them every week!

On January 17th, Craig ran and finished the PF Changs Rock & Roll Full Marathon. He said it would be his first and last marathon and he did great! Unofficial time was 3 hours 52 minutes! Allison and I were there cheering him on. I made her some signs so Craig could find us in the crowd. You can't read it but it says "Over Here Daddy!"

Craig has also been Mr. Mom to a much greater extent these days. He's been picking up the slack while I work my tush off. I recently got a promotion so it has been insanely busy. Craig has been so supportive and I honestly don't know what I'd do without him (props to all you single moms out there!!). So what about this new role? Well I've been selling Purina pet food to Costco for the past 4 years and now I have more of an internal role with the company as a Category Development Manager on our PetSmart business. It's great because PetSmart is based on Phoenix so I shouldn't have to travel as much. The bad part is that it's been much more demanding than I expected and I still have a lot to learn. Transitions are tough but I know we'll manage. The first few months of any new job are always the most challenging...

Craig and I are also working on party planning for Allison's first birthday :) Naturally its going to be a Valentine's theme. I think were going to corral the babies inside and then setup a craft table for the bigger kids outside. Craig is going to make cupcakes from scratch, yum!! and then the rest of the time I'm sure we'll be chasing kiddos. Oh what a difference a year makes!!