Miss January

I feel like I have SO much to blog about and so little time.  But I had to start with these photos of Clara that we took on January 2nd.  She was given this blue coat with snowflakes from her great aunts Judy & Renita for Christmas.  We don't have snow around here, but the warm jacket was perfect for a photo shoot in the park.

I love how the little girl on the shirt looks just like Clara with her dark hair.

I kept getting caught in the photo shoot though because Clarabelle is so mobile these days that she doesn't sit still for more than a few seconds at a time.  The ground was muddy and if I didn't grab her quick she would stick her fingers into the wet dirt and make a mess (it happened a time or two). 

Last night we decided to try something new and let Clara feed herself.  Actually, I was feeding her and turned away for just a second, only to turn back to a very messy little miss who had grabbed ahold of her green beans and was desperately trying to get them into her mouth on her own.  Since I had overcooked the broccoli that went with our dinner and it was mushy and gross, I gave Clara small clumps of the soggy, limp vegetable.  She was in heaven, which just shows how discriminating her palate currently is.  Incidentally, don't try the beef stroganoff from Our Best Bites - it is the first recipe of theirs that I actually don't like and I am even a fan of beef stroganoff.  By the end of the meal, she had green beans and broccoli everywhere.  Her look was priceless too: her little shrug and worried eyes suggest the words "I'm sorry about the mess mom?"

She managed to get the spoon in going the right direction a couple of times, but more often than not she just gnawed on the opposite end.  We think she is teething with the way she has been chomping down on absolutely anything and everything all the time lately.  Tonight she got to try tiny pieces of chicken that I cooked in the crockpot all day (the Our Best Bites Fauxtisserie Chicken was a hit with Mom, Dad, and Clara alike, unlike the stroganoff), mango (dessert) and steamed carrots (for Paul - I had broccoli that I cooked much better tonight.