With the gators

We let Lydia hang out with some alligators in NC. One of the days we were there we went to the NC Aquarium on Roanoke Island since we got in free because of our zoo membership. She liked the fish and turtles, but we aren't sure if she could pick out any of the live alligators.

Out of order

I never posted any Easter pictures, but here is one of my favorite pictures of Lydia on her second Easter.

Lydia hits the beach

We went to NC for Doug's week off and headed first to the Outer Banks for a few days. Lydia loved the beach even though the water was too cold to swim in. She had a great time playing in the sand, chasing birds, walking and getting her feet wet.

Lydia, until a few weeks ago, would eat anything and in large quantities. She has started to get a little more picky and will shake her head "no!" if you try to give her something she doesn't want. Her main favorites of the last 2 weeks are bananas and hard boiled egg. No more cottage cheese loving!

The Real Birthday

For Lydia's actual birthday, we took her to Moe's since kids eat free on Mondays. I know this is a little hypocrtical since I wouldn't give her real cake, but I gave her fast food. She wolfed down an entire kid-sized quesadilla and loved the helium balloon. Then we came home and she ate another entire "cupcake" and some ice cream!

Cousins

Lydia loves to play with Matthew- he makes her laugh all the time!

Lydia turns 1

So my next few posts will probably be highlights from the celebration of Lydia's birthday numero uno. These come from her birthday party with family and friends the Sat. before the real day. Yes, I confess I turned into anti-sugar mom and made Lydia her own special strawberry banana muffins (further confession: I made them with applesauce and whole wheat flour) while all the other guests were allowed to have real chocolate cupcakes with frosting. We did put whipped cream and sugar on top of Lydia's to make it more authentic. She was not so sure about the whole experience partly I think because she had never been given such a large chunk of food to navigate on her own. So she took off all the whipped cream and just ate the muffin in large chunks- the whole thing! She did get to try ice cream too, but we think it was too cold for her the first time since she didn't love it. Doug was a little concerned.

Lydia feeds herself

Well, she can feed herself with a spoon...if she feels like it. If not, she will cry with the spoon an inch from her mouth because she doesn't want to put it in herself. Where does she get this stubbornness?

Winter break

I got to spend the week with Lydia a few weeks ago when I had the week off and we enjoyed looking out the window at the snow one afternoon.

Baby proofing

We still have some work to do on baby proofing. At least this drawer is not full of knives!

Lydia can pull herself up anywhere

However, she cannot brush her own hair yet.

The Cheese Face

Lydia has mastered the cheesy smile and she plasters it on her face whenever she sees the camera.

Lydia gets larger

At the beginning of Janury Lydia, finally and with a lot of grief, got 2 teeth.

And a snotty nose came with them too!

Also, she now knows that she is so big!

And, at the end of January, she finally figured out the whole moving thing- to the chagrin of the dog and cat.

Lydia loves Christmas

And she loves Daru too!

Lydia's first Ikea project

'
We put Lydia to work assembling our new bed frame.

The directions were a little confusing for her at first.

But she quickly caught on.

No, really I can use a screwdriver by myself!

It must only let me post a limited number at one time...

Merry Christmas 2010

We can divide 2010 into two sections pretty easily: before Lydia and after Lydia.

Before Lydia highlights:

• We took a weekend trip to Corning Museum of Glass, made our own blown glass items and spent two days at the museum.
• We had 4 baby showers- one in absentia since we were both sick, one at church and one thrown by Rachel's work. It was fun to get ready for Lydia's arrival with family and friends! Our Houghton friends surprised us with a shower after Lydia was born.

After Lydia highlights:

• 
  Lydia Nancy arrived on Easter Sunday (4/4/10) at 4:59 PM, weighing 7 lbs 11 oz and measuring 19.5” long. She was the 5^th baby born on Easter at Unity and the 4^th born between 3 and 5 PM! Grandma and Grandpa J., Aunt Rebekah and Uncle Ryan, and Aunt Robin and Uncle Steve all came to visit that day followed by various friends and Grandma and Grandpa G. in the next few weeks. Daru and Kina have adjusted well to the new addition.
• We all attended and participated in 3.5 weddings between April and September- 2 Houghton friends {Charles married Sherry then Kristine married Daniel} and 2 of Rachel's cousins {Jason married Bonnie, then Jake married Chelsy}. The ½ wedding was because the wedding was actually on Labor Day so we only went to the pre-party since Rachel had to work on Labor Day!
• We attended two family reunions- Rachel's dad's side in VA in June and Doug's mom's side in NY in July. By the time Lydia was 10 weeks old, she had been to 10 states!
• We flew to CA in August to visit Doug's sister Dawn and Nathan and Lydia's new cousin, Caitlyn, who was born on May 8, 2010. We had a lot of fun with 2 babies!
• 
  We enjoyed two weekends at Delta with the Graham family and Lydia had her first boat ride with Grandpa Graham driving.
• Lydia was dedicated on November 7^th, with members of both sides of the family and many church friends present. We are thankful for all the friends and family who are with us on this journey of parenting which is both delightful and daunting at times.
• We took a five week curling class at the Rochester Curling Club and enjoyed learning the basics of the sport- yes, it does require some athletic effort!
• We spent Lydia's first Thanksgiving in Beaver Falls with Rachel's parents. Even though they have lived there for 6 years, it was the first time we had been there for Thanksgiving.
• We both stayed in the same jobs. Doug still works in the surgery department as a PA at Unity Hospital where Lydia was born and Rachel went back to work at Roberts in the fall after spending most of April-August with Lydia. Grandma and Grandpa J. came to watch Lydia for a week while Rachel taught a summer biology camp. We are incredibly grateful for God's provision in child care as Amanda, a friend from church, watches Lydia at our house. Lydia loves Amanda and she gets to hang out with her friend Evelyn twice a week as well!
• In December, Dawn and Caitlyn and Doug's oldest sister Deanna came to Rochester so we had an early Christmas with the Graham family- what fun to see cousins playing together!

Being parents at Christmas for the first time also gives us a new appreciation for the story of Christmas and a new awe that Jesus came to earth as a human baby. How amazing that He chose to be Emmanuel, God with us, and how thankful we are for that! We pray that you will know the joy and peace that come from knowing that God is with us. Merry Christmas and happy 2011!

With love,

Doug, Rachel, Lydia, Daru and Kina Graham

137 Glenview Lane

Rochester, NY 14609

rmjgraham@gmail.com, doug77@gmail.com

www.rachelanddoug.blogspot.com

Cloning

We like Lydia so much we decided to clone her.

Lydia's Dedication

Lydia was dedicated on November 7th. She was well behaved except for trying to grab the mike from our pastor. She had prepared a short speech of course ;)!

Dear carrots, I don't like you. Love, Lydia

29 weeks

Lydia with Elmo at 29 weeks