We spent time at Kettletown the past few days for picnics. Claudia likes it a lot. Abby does as well.

We also went to the Beardsley Zoo in Bridgeport for Earth Day. Claudia liked the sheep (BAA! BAA! BAA!) and the tiger the best. They also had an Earth Day concert where should could dance. She also got to show off her bear riding skills.

Claudia and I had a wonderful trip to Florida. The weather was great and the time Claudia spent with all her cousins, Aunt Patty, Uncle Marc and Grandma couldn't have been any better. I think Claudia's favorite part of the trip was the POOL! She would swim and jump from the side and loved playing with the toy turtle. She thought eating lunch poolside with her cousins was cool too. Patty and Marc showed us all the good restaurants in Sanibel.
Claudia was sad to see the Shay's leave on Monday but quickly settled into a quiet routine with Grandma and Mommy. We went for a bike ride every morning and then spent most of the day at the pool and beach. We made some nice trips to Captiva and enjoyed some really good meals. Then a bike ride in the afternoon and a beautiful sunset after dinner. We sure had lots of laughs and lots of fun.
Claudia got to see her first alligator too!!!

All the time Claudia spent barefoot really helped her walking. She now officially walks on her own but ohhhh so carefully! She still prefers holding someone's hand but she can do it! I am sure we will post a video soon.

Claudia's home! Kasey promises to update soon.

I got a call from Florida and Kasey said that everyone got in fine. Claudia had her flight delayed so she didn't get in until 10:45. Kasey says Claudia was very polite to everyone until the last 10 minutes as they were descending. All the passengers said Claudia was a very good girl.

Claudia leaves for Florida today with Kasey. Daddy has to stay home and work.

Claudia has been cranky but she woke up from a late nap today and was ready to go. She talked on the phone with her Grandma in Pennsylvania for a good ten minutes which is a new record. We have been practicing saying Hi and Bye and Meh-Meh (grammy).

She also spent a lot of time working on her composition. Watch her face. Enjoy.

Claudia had her 15 month check-up on Friday. She weighs 23.1 lbs, is 31.5 inches tall, and has a 50cm head circumference. As you can see below she walks all day, but she still won't let go of our hand or her walker. She is close......but just won't do it.

She has been a little cranky lately as we have all been a bit sick, but she is a very patient baby most of the time.

This is a bit wild at the end.

Claudia had fun at her first Easter Egg hunt in Southbury. It was a frenzy. Video to come shortly.

A dangerous trio indeed.

A mid-March storm has stopped the onslaught of spring. We had flowers blooming during the crazy weather of January so I am not sure how vibrant the spring will be. However, we had planned on this being "spring clean-up" weekend.

Claudia spent the morning sledding on the driveway. Big fun. If things clear we look for St. Patricks Day stuff to do. We also have basketball to watch. Mr. Kurt will be coming over tomorrow to watch basketball with Claudia.

OK, I think its time for another clustrmap hunt. Last time we worked for a hit in Africa and we got it. There are plenty of blank spots left in the map (look on the right). If you can send this on to any friends who can get us a hit in Alaska, Hawaii, Central America, or Central Africa that would be really cool.

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Claudia and her friend Taylor have been having big fun!

Claudia had an extra special visit from her godmothers Kerry and Elizabeth this weekend. She was a little shy and wouldnt do her animal noises (seep, lion, pig, horse, duck, dog, and cat we can do, plus the dinosaur Bard).

Claudia is almost walking. She has been walking holding our hands for about 3-4 weeks and is slowly gaining confidence. She wore her running shoes for the first time and is pretty excited about it.

Crazy Girl!

Claudia's vacation to see her family in Pennsylvania was delayed by one day as ALL the highways were closed due to the Valentine's Day ice storm. We took the long way and got there Saturday afternoon.

Claudia has learned how to take pictures. The first picture here is a self-portrait. She took around 30 other pictures that didnt quite turn out as well.

We had big fun with Aunt Susannah (Ne-Ne), Grammy (meh-may), and Uncle Tyler (no name yet, but Claudia likes to kiss him on both cheeks). The entire state seems to be iced over. Abby ran on top of the ice at the farm, which was a little dangerous, but she had a good time.

Claudia was happy to be home. She spent a lot of time riding around the house on her fire truck going "Weeeeeee".

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Claudia enjoys her first tractor ride!!

Claudia votes for the Bears. She was very happy when they took the kickoff for a touchdown, but then decided it was time for bed.

Claudia hasn't been taking naps. She is very happy to go to bed at night. However, she pretty much shuts down around 5:30pm. We had people over last night and she was very tired.

Aunt KA came over for awhile and had big fun with Claudia. Apparently they played with ALL the toys and climbed on EVERYTHING.

Claudia is learning new words. She says snack now. She can also roar like a lion.

Claudia has been sick and tired this past week. She had the stomach flu and has been fairly miserable. She is shutting down around 6pm each night. However, she has been an excellent patient. Kasey got sick at the beginning of the week as well.

Claudia can walk if I hold both hands now for about 5-10 steps. She is a crawling/climbing maniac when she feels good (see video below).

Claudia and mommy get caught in a tube.

New Haircut.

Claudia got her first haircut today. She isn't nearly as shaggy. Kasey said she did just great at the place.

As you can see by our map we got a click in South Africa (thanks Shelly and Susannah). There are at least 20-30 of you who log in here every day. Lets work on those other blank spots.

We are watching her "language" expand very fast. She has another 5 or so "words" in the past week. She has added 2 more signs, although we can't figure out what they mean yet. She is getting much better with "hot". Or "hhhhhhhhhhhhhhoht". She is doing "all done" with her whole body. We will try to tape it. Its very cute.

Claudia wants to thank all of her friends who came to her party. She had a great time. She was real tired, but she held up. She found the fact that everyone was playing with her toys to be very curious.

Claudia has a friend named Lauren. Lauren likes cake!

Many of you log in here everyday and we really appreciate it. We are also convinced you need something to do. If you look at the clustrmap on the right there are many blank spaces. If we can use our network to get some more red dots that would be fun. Good luck. Anyone who gets Africa gets a prize.

Claudia did great at her one year appointment. She was a trooper for all the shots and blood work. Sat thoughtfully for most of it. Today we went to Fairfield to hear Mr. Kurt and had a great time for lunch. Groovy's in Fairfield. We recommend!

Claudia has her big one year doctor appointment tomorrow. She has been eating much better so we think her weight will be better than last month. Claudia had sushi when we went out last week! It was a sweet potato roll. She loved it. Mommy wouldnt touch it.

Her Winnie the Pooh party is this Sunday. A few little and big friends are coming over for a short party. I think she will have fun. We will probbaly go to see Mr. Kurt play his drums in Fairfield on Saturday. Claudia loves listening to music. And she is starting to play the drum her grammy gave her much more. Uh-oh. Maybe we will bring her little keyboard so she can sit-in with the band.

She loves watching all the videos of people we have on the computer. She would sit on my lap for hours watching them. If you have a digital camera send us a short video clip.

Claudia is one year old!

This time last year Kasey had the same picture, but Claudia wasnt here yet. About this time last year we were going for a walk with Abby, Claudia would start arriving later that night, then stretch it out until noon the next day.

Grammy and Aunt Susannah arrive soon. Judy and Stuart are coming for dinner and then tomorrow is a small family dinner for Claudia. She has invited some wee ones over in Janaury for a Winnie-the-Pooh party.

Claudia had big fun at the Zamary's last night, but got real tired so she wasn't her normally bubbly self. She has been sleeping real good, but is completely overwhelmed. She is saying several new "words". We are pretty sure she is adding "dog" (which she says a lot at the dog park) and "Pooh" for her favorite Winnie.

She absolutely loves watching videos on the computer of her friends and relatives. So if you are a far flung correspondent we'd love you to send us a 20-30 second hello to Claudia on a CD or email. Have your face fill the screen and wave a lot and say your name a few times. We hope this helps her remember some of the people she doesnt see everyday. It seems to work.

Claudia had a great Christmas. She has been very patient with everyone. I think she needs a few days off before her birthday. She is really thankful for all the gifts that she got from around the world. Tomorrow will involve setting up a lot of things and finding a place for everything. Grammy and Aunt Susannah arrive for a second round of Christmas presents and birthday celebration on Wednesday.

Claudia had a great time at the Kopec's for Christmas Eve. She stayed up way late and is in bed, for now. Merry Christmas to everyone!

Claudia's birthday is on Thursday and it has been interesting to look back over the year using this blog. It has worked better than we expected in keeping people informed about Claudia. Its saved a lot of time and money making pictures. And its a great scrapbook. I find in school kids will log on and slowly weave their way backwards or forwards through the year.

You can see by the map on the right that a lot of people visit Claudia here on her blog. We get about 30-40 different "regulars" visiting each week. We know this blog is read by lots of school children and teachers, former students, and friends and family. But we also have lots of "mystery readers". We can't figure out who is reading us every week in Iowa, for example.

We ask that you all send Claudia a "birthday card" by leaving a comment on this entry. Who are you, where are you from, etc...It will be fun to read them back to her each year. It will also be fun for "the community" to read.

It wont be long until she is typing these entries herself.....

Claudia is becoming quite the active piano player. She likes to play everyday and loves to listen to Mommy play. Abby likes to listen as well.

Claudia says Happy Holidays!

Claudia has been a barrel of laughs lately. She is really enjoying everything. She is starting to "tell" little jokes. Especially at Mommy's expense.

Yesterday Claudia made lots of candy with her Grandma and Kasey. She had lots of fun.

We have finished all the shopping for her birthday as well and I made her special present in the workshop. Grammy and Aunt Susannah are coming for her birthday and we hope to see lots of family and friends over the next few days.

This is one of the funniest videos yet. Claudia loves to count.

Claudia has been quite busy. Friday she went to see Amahl and the Night Visitors where her friend Karolina was singing. She enjoyed it very much. She also saw the holiday show at WCSU which she thought was spectacular.

Claudia also helped put up her christmas tree. She had big fun with this and really enjoyed putting up the lights. We also went out for Mexican food and Claudia really enjoyed listening to the guitar players. I think we should hire them for her birthday party.

Claudia is talking more and more. She definately says hi, bye, and baby. She also probably says whoo, ghost, daddy, and Abby. We think she is signing "more" and I think she signs a few others, but we havent figured it out yet.

She is watching Elmo on the DVD right now. Its the funniest thing she has ever seen. She is a pretty happy kid.

Claudia has had big fun with her grandpa!

Grandpa is here!

Claudia went to get her Christmas tree today. She also called her grammy so she can practice saying hi. She had fun with that. She called and left a message with her godmothers in Boston. Claudia loves the phone. We can definately say hi and baby now. Baby applies to just about any dog or baby. (I think she might be saying baby AND Abby, but I'm not sure). We also say "ghost" and "hi daddy". Or "hidaddie".

This week her grandpa arrives for a few days from Las Vegas. Very exciting.

Claudia likes playing with her friend Winnie.

Claudia is eating much better, but sleeping a bit worse. She is climbing on everything right now. Claudia also says "Gelukkige verjaardag aan Judith en Gelukkige Sinterklaus aan Huib en Nore". Hopefully soon we can all get together.

Claudia had a great thanksgiving seeing all her relatives. She had many fun walks and we think she is eating better after about 8-10 days of not really eating. She was very good at Thanksgiving meal and other meals and had very good manners. She also travelled very well. Of course, Abby was great as well.

Claudia made lots of progress on the steps and was starting to stand up a bit. She's getting a lot stronger.

Claudia is enjoying her Thanksgiving here in Pennsylvania. Her Great Uncle Mark and Aunt Joan came in from Illinois to see her for the first time. Claudia had a great time dancing with Uncle Mark this morning while they watched the parade. Tonight there should be 11 people for dinner.

We arrived last night after a rather difficult and long drive. Claudia actually ate some food (she has not been eating)-- especially when Uncle Tyler helped. She seems to be slowly on the mend.

Claudia climbed stairs today! Video to follow when we get back to broadband connection at home. She is very excited.

Happy Thanksgiving to all. We have been checking the tracker on this and are amazed that this blog is viewed all over the world. If you read regularly please leave Claudia a message. She likes reading mail.

Claudia and Abby worked hard cleaning the yard yesterday. They are a good team. Claudia is having a bit of trouble with a new tooth. We also need to get her back on a good rest schedule. She also enjoying our hikes.

Rainy day....

Claudia is a good eater. Enjoy the video.

While this is kind of a newsletter for friends and family its also a scrapbook. We encourage you to leave comments for Claudia to read in later years.

Claudia enjoyed watching her friend Mr. Jack run in the NYC marathon today (4:13: unoffical time =3:59). She followed his progress on the internet. She also enjoyed watching Lance Armstrong run an amazing 2:59.

She also had a very fun conversation with her Aunt Susannah. Claudia likes talking on the phone.



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Claudia was a big hit at the XC State Open. Claudia also had a great time with her grammy visiting. They had big fun.