Birthday Toy Obession

So, Ada got a TON of amazing gifts from friends and family for her birthday! (Now we see why being the first and only grandchild thus far on all 3 sides of the family is such a major deal!) And she loves them all- but there is one toy she just can't get enough of. She has inspected every inch of it. She knows every song it plays and how to dance to the different beats. She takes it with her where ever she goes. She cries when you try to pull her away from it- even to eat dinner after not eating for 8 hours. The gift: MiMi's baby stroller. It has not been in Ada's possession for more than 24 hours, and she has probably played with it for 23 of them! Here are some video clips of Ada's new favorite thing. We haven't hooked up Pop and Honey's game system yet; nor have we had an official book-before-bedtime yet to try out the Red Reader.... so I will post videos of Ada with those ASAP! :)

PaRtY GiRL!

Here are some pictures of Ada's 1st Birthday Par-tay! We had it at the community park in our neighborhood. She had a blast, and couldn't sleep last night because she was so excited about all of her new toys! I can't believe I forgot to get a video of her eating her cupcake; but Casey did get the video camera out towards the end to capture some of The Bug's cuteness. Happy Birthday, Ada Grace!

Walkin' in my TuTu!

This way to a good time!

Happy Birthday, Cupcake!!!

The Cup Cake Tower- provided by Grams!

For ME!?!?!?

Holy Moly, this is amazing.

Opening The Shilhab's gift- in Ladybug paper!

Playing with the Party Favors- I love pink balls.

TuTus and Nunnies.

Ball Hog!

The Baby Section! From left to right: Mia Schilhab (DJ'ing on her laptop), Bella Boswell, Olivia Atlee, and Ethan Dieter (surrounded by ladies!). We were so sad that Wyatt Moebes and Rory Klemach were unable to make it- stupid Swine Flu! (That's Grandma playing amongst the babies!)

A red reading chair of my very own!

Brent Mia swingin' away!

Ada and Olivia swinging in the afternoon heat- nothing can keep us from having fun!
Ada's very own big girl swing! Now Mom and Dad need a pergola to hang this from... :)

And, here is a little video of Ada chillaxin' on Mommy's lap, experimenting with the endless possibilities of fun you can have with a water bottle. Who needs toys and presents when you've got an empty plastic container!

HaPpY 1sT BiRtHdAy AdA BuG!!!!

Happy 1st Birthday Ada Grace Dowell- you light up our life! I can't believe it's only been a year since your arrival, yet it feels like I've known you a lifetime. I'm so thankful that God chose us to be your family! Your big brown eyes, loving touch, feisty nature, genuine smile, contagious giggle, and beautiful spirit melt my heart every single second of every single day. I love you more than words can describe. (Even more than 251,464,045,640,505,413,297,793!)

This is a video of you on the day you were born. The crazy ladies singing to you are your Mommy and your MiMi!

The Bug's First Steps

Ada has shown no interest what-so-ever in walking anytime soon. She's very content to crawl and cruise around the perimeter of the living room- but she wanted nothing to do with taking steps on her own. Last night, however, she was standing at the windowsill screeching at the birds in the backyard- turned around, and took about 6 perfect steps across the living room to Casey! She was very surprised and proud of herself- and we were just as taken aback by it all!

Here is a video I took of Ada walking today after school. She's in her Birthday Girl shirt and TuTu because we were trying them on- for her BIRTHDAY TOMORROW!! I cannot believe that she's going to be one. I've got whole new post for that one... (The TuTu is too big, I got it a few moinths ago thinking she'd be in 12-18 by now! She'll be in it anway- just wearing it baggy!)

So here are some of Ada's first steps. She's a little cranky and tired, so it takes a while to convince her to show off her new talent- if you don't feel like watching me coax her into walking, forward to about 1:20 into the video!

Having a Ball

We went to Wyatt Moebes's 1st Birthday Party last weekend- and Ada had a BALL! She bounced balloons, threw balls, jumped in the "moonwalk," and even climbed up a slide and slid down (with Daddy's assistance, of course!). I'm so sad I didn't get any photos of Ada and Wyatt together, but he was The Man of the Hour that day and very, very busy! Here are some cute pictures of Ada, though:

Bouncing in the Moonwalk with Coach Darrow's daughter Maddie.


Peekaboo! I think I'll slide down this slide, now.

Catch this!

Fall Football Fans

First of all- I teach at Katy High School. If they haven't won the most 5-A State Football Championships, then they have got to be a close 2nd behind Odessa Permian. It is a blast working there; and this year I have a lot of the stud recievers and a few key defensive line guys in my class. So, they've been on me about coming to more of their games this year (I didn't make it to one last year- I was 9 months pregnant when school started, then had Ada and football was the last thing on my mind!) So I went to the opening game last weekend against Northshore (we won); and took The Bug. She LOVED it! Her favorite part is when the band breaks into song and dance. And she was enamored by the mascot; who I found out Monday is also in my class! (More pictures of those two together to come, I assure you.) Here is a photo of Ada and me sitting in the nosebleed section- Ada is snacking on Animal Crackers, of course!

And, of course, we had to get Ada to an Aggie Football game before she turned 1! There is a picture I need to dig up of my Mom, Dad, and me with a few Aggie football players when I was about Ada's age- as soon as I find that at Gram's, I will scan and post it, too! Ada had a blast at the Aggie game, too. She is such a good sport! She was a little confused when the entire 12th man began to sway in the stands across the field, but loved being able to yell and cuss "sounds like hell!"
We couldn't find any concession stand food that I would allow her to eat that she could chew and swallow- so by half time she was starving and cranky. I took her out to the car to give her her cheese stick and animal crackers; but I was too exhausted to make the trek back to stadium. So unfortunately, Ada missed the Fightin' Texas Aggie Band forming at the North End of Kyle Field..next time! Thanks Rick for sharing your awesome tix!

Walking to Kyle Field.Hanging out by the Reveille's before the game- lots of people to investigate!

We saw Uncle Andy! He's so interesting... Who is having more fun- Ada or MiMi?!?!

What's all this commotion!?!I want to yell some more bad words, Mom!!