Shin Nian Kuai le!

Congratulations to those born in the Year of the Ox! Iris is carrying a load of her own with soft stacking donuts in the hood of her sweater. In the background, you'll see the beautiful and fun new play mats the were a gift from Aunt Ruth. There are soft puzzle pieces that Iris has already learned to take out. It's great because she can learn the alphabet, vocabulary, colors and shapes.

In the other picture above, you see that Iris is good at getting around, even getting trapped under a chair. She's just about ready to walk, but we've been thinking that since October! Well, her legs need to be strong enough. Until, she enjoys crawling around the house, especially down the hall to her room.

Iris has one new molar! That may explain the excessive drooling (she's a drooly baby anyway!) lately. Trying to get her to use the spoon is a fun challenge. She mostly likes to lick the food on the spoon like a lollipop. That's when she has the right end in her mouth (see picture below).

The challenge for me is arranging my time (Is there such a thing?) for errands, work, chores around her needs. For example, outings are to one or two places-MAX! It's a time sucker putting her in and out of the car seat. She's fine, but I'm tired. Besides, it's all about Iris right now, right? :) She's had a couple of afternoons with babysitters when her mom is working (part-time). There are so many decisions about daycare that we're a bit like Alice in Wonderland. Well, talking to other moms will get us through a lot of that. More importantly, I give thanks that God watches over us daily. Iris remains healthy and happy. Praise God!