Since I still haven't grown eyes in the back of my head...

This could very well be my last blog entry. At least for a good six months. I'm figuring that now that Juliette has learned to crawl, and after that comes walking, she'll require constant supervision. I'm not even sure how I'm going to cook dinner when we get back to France.

The morning after we arrived here we set her down on my sister's carpeted office and away she went on those dimpled knees. I think she'd been pre-crawling for a while, but now it's official. I've been utterly spoiled here with so many willing babysitters to keep an eye on her for me if I want to eat in peace or nap or take a stroll without a stroller. Don't get me wrong, I still love spending time with my little darling, but nearly a year without a bit of help (weekday care with Tata Marie aside), and I'm grateful for a hand. Before we left I could count on her being calm in her playpen for part of the time if I needed to do the dishes or just leave the room for a moment. Those days are over. I doubt she'll go willingly to her playpen now that she's discovered all the floor has to offer.

In other news, she's celebrated her first birthday. She must have wondered, What are all these people staring and clapping at me?! She had a taste of icing and ice cream. And some more cute outfits to be photographed in, touchy feely books and stuffed animals to snuggle. We might be mailing some of that back as the airline does have a weight restriction on the suitcases! Anyway, a year has gone by so fast and she's changed so much, just as my own mom kept telling me she would. Now she'll pat Remi and say "papa" and knows what to do on each page of Pat the Bunny. She shakes her shoulders when she hears a rocky song and claps when she hears applause on TV. What a wondrous little muffin she has become! Happy 31st birthday to Remi, too, who enjoyed American style festivities like cheese cake and Mylar balloons.

Here's another new game she's developed, this time with Grandma the Great, who understands that you can have lots of fun with a few pieces of paper and a bouncy bed.