Happy Halloween!

Katy had opportunity to wear her costume several times this season. The weekend before last one of her little friends had a 1st birthday costume party. Once I decided Katy would be Little Red Riding Hood, I thought... Benji could go along as the Wolf while I'd be Grandma. We had a fun time at the party, and our costumes won us "Best Dressed Family" and a $30 gift card to Barnes & Noble.






























Katy with 3 of her good friends, and us mommies, from Las Madres.





Yesterday I took Katy trick or treating at Santana Row (an outdoor shopping center whose stores were handing out candy as well as holding fun activities and puppet shows). I finally gave in, when Katy was sucking on one with wrapper, and let her have a lollipop. One very satisfied little girl!

Today, we went to Benji's work for their annual Halloween lunch and costume competition. Benji entered the race for Scariest costume, and also entered for Best couple as Wolf & Riding Hood. And won both!!... so our prizes included a $50 gift card to Macys and 2nd $50 giftcard to a really good Italian restaurant. So in case you aren't keeping track, that's $130 worth of winnings from our costumes! And I thought all you got at Halloween was mini-chocolate bars! :) We spent a fun evening with our friends from our small group at one of their homes, enjoying a yummy dinner, wine & dessert, while all the kids helped hand out candy to the trick or treaters. Hope all of you had a Happy Halloween too!!

Katy at the Pumpkin Patch

Last week our Las Madres group did a special outing to a local Pumpkin Patch. Katy totally had a blast crawling all around the pumpkins, which she points to and calls "Ba" (balls). She thinks she's surrounded by hundreds of orange balls... what could be more fun??

Hurricane Katy!

Today Katy turned 14 months old, and over this last month our little tropical storm has been growing into a hurricane! Katy may not yet be walking on her own, but it hardly slows her down. She has no trouble maneuvering into anything & everything, and she does it in the blink of an eye! I now go though daily trade-offs, such as "I need 5 min to blowdry my hair, so if pulling EVERY last piece of tissue off of the toilet paper roll keeps her happy, so be it."

Katy not only creates a storm, she talks up one! Yesterday, as we left the children's section at Barnes & Noble, an employee who'd been laughing as she listened to Katy's fast, non-stop talking, came over and said to Katy, "Bye-bye Gabby!" She really is quite comical to listen to. And while Katy has always been social, the degree seems to be ever-increasing. Wherever we go, she makes a new friend, whether it be the park, the library, the coffeeshop, the bookstore... it doesn't matter. Katy is beside herself with joy if another child comes over to her and gives her a hug, or as a little 4yr old girl did today at the park, picks her up! The only problem is she wants to hug and kiss non-stop, and lately she cries like her little heart is broken when a newest friend has to leave, or we have to go home.




Katy is getting better & better at mimicking sounds and words. She has mastered "Hi" and "Bye", and says it pretty much to everyone she sees. She barks whenever she hears a dog, and is becoming more & more adept at sign language. She just added "cold" today! It is just so much fun watching our little baby girl growing & learning & socializing.

I'll conclude this month's update with a couple of photos from a Saturday morning about 2 weeks ago. Just like her daddy, Katy is a gadget-girl, and apparently decided it was time for Daddy to move on over and let her get to work!

Ready for some video fun?

There have been rumours of some cute video clips of Katy, and several requests for their addition here. We do have some clips taken over the past month, now that Katy is becoming more & more active and able! As for the cute part, I am obviously a biased party, so I'll let you be the judge. First clip was taken in our living room, where Daddy & Katy go for a ride just before bathtime. So... all aboard!

Look at Katy go!

These two clips were taken just 2 wks ago. In the first, Katy was thrilled to find a toy that enabled her to enjoy a walk around the park! We were enjoying an end-of-summer picnic with our Las Madres group on a Sunday afternoon. The next day, Benji took care of Katy for a few hours in the afternoon while I covered for another doctor. Katy showed off for her Daddy, proudly pushing the little train we brought back from Canada (thanks Lauren & Jackson!).

Happy Hollow Thrills

When Jackson was visiting back in August, we all went to Happy Hollow Amusement Park & Zoo. Since it's only 5 min from our house, we got an annual pass, and I've continued to take Katy back as she loves it! I discovered she liked the rides, and seems to have no fear. So when we returned with Daddy the weekend before last, we made sure to bring along the camera. Quite a few of the parents were astonished to see this tiny little girl going bravely on the rides and having fun!

Katy infects the North...

The 3 of us spent a week over Labour Day weekend with all of my family in Moose Jaw. While Katy and I have been a couple times already this year, it's the first time Benji has been able to go with us since last October. Katy decided to share a little more than just her good looks & charm on this trip... 24 hrs before our flight was set to depart, she came down with a VERY virulent stomach flu. It was a rough night as we tried to pack while taking care of a very sick little girl, but thankfully Katy was tired but on the mend by departure time. However, I woke up in the middle of our first night in MJ with it, and the stubborn bug proceeded to pass to Benji, then Jackson, Lauren, my dad, and Samantha. It was one person after the next, everyone sick for exactly 24 hrs and then back to 100% normal, ready to reassure the next poor victim it would be over soon!! In spite of Katy infecting the Great White North, we enjoyed our time with everyone. We had a combined birthday party for Katy & Jackson (who turned 4 Sept 9th!), and I had the rare opportunity to celebrate my own birthday with family. Of course, we can't go on a trip and not bring back lots of photos to post... the first one being my mom greeting Katy as we arrived at the airport. So here's some more - enjoy!



Katy & Jackson enjoy some water play at Nanna & Papa's house.









Katy very much enjoys her first ice-cream cone, courtesy of Nanna, generously sharing a lick with Papa!

While I took my turn with the stomach flu, Benji & Katy were treated to dinner at Brad & Samantha's home.


Katy gives a thirsty Papa a sip from the hose while playing out in their front yard on a gorgeous day.












All dried and back indoors, Katy enjoys silly kisses from her Nanna.

The joint birthday party...

I wonder who picked what kind of cake they would have for their birthday party... Jackson or Katy??? :)






























Katy appears quite content with Jackson's choice of cake.

























Katy was one happy little girl with all her new toys!

Thanks everyone!

My birthday dinner

Daddy's girl










Lauren & Ferlan

And finally... Katy offers her passport for inspection as it's time to head back to San Jose