A cousin of mine sent some dress-up clothes for the girls. We got them out and played with them en masse one day. Emily was in heaven! Julia seemed to really enjoy herself, too. Emily’s favorite costume was a Cinderella dress, “glass” slippers, jewels and purse. To that she enjoyed adding cheerleading pompoms and a Blues Clues hat. Julia spent most of the time in a little pink tutu chewing on purse handles or pompom madness.

We finally talked Emily into trying other costumes on like a Snow White and Sleeping Beauty dress. But in the end she was most interested in the oversized blue Cinderella dress. She wore it to dinner after we talked her into leaving the shoes off. The shoes had become a slipping hazzard. For bedtime, we were able to revert back to a nightgown.

For Halloween, Julia is going to be a lion and with the addition of these dress-up clothes she is going to be a tutu wearing lion. I think it will be adorable. The jury is still out on Emily for Halloween. I was thinking originally about a pirate, but maybe it will be Cinderella.

Emily discovered that she liked to play with a cold pack. This is somewhat problematic because it warms up pretty quickly, takes a while to re-cool, and we only have one. In a moment of inspiration I discovered some frozen colored ice treats in the freezer.

We didn’t open them, but each girl got a colored frozen stick to play with and chew on. I’m going to keep them handy for days filled with teething pain. The girls seemed to really enjoy playing the same game together and swapped them at one point.

How sweet is this? The girls were playing with their bears and posing for a photo together.

We dedicated Julia on August 23, 2009 at our church Christ Chapel. The act of dedication a child is not a requirement, but an outgrowth of our absolute reliance upon God to help in the raising of a child. We are so grateful and humbled that God gave us the wonderful gift of Julia. While she is made of pieces of her father and mother, she is her own unique creation. She is already a blessing to her family and will be one to the others she meets in her life.

We surrender her to God. In our own strength we can not be her best parents, we can not protect her from all dangers, we can not teach her heart to love, nor can we order her steps. With God’s strength and wisdom we will nurture, teach, comfort, counsel, direct, discipline, and love Julia. We thank God for making a path for her in the world. For being her companion and never leaving her side, we are eternally grateful.

We commit to remember that Julia is a gift from God and teach her of her Heavenly Father, of the love and salvation of Jesus, and the companionship of the Holy Spirit. We pray that God will give us the strength to do this and that our friends and family will encourage us in our lifelong effort to do so.

Sometimes it is hard to decide what you want to do – play or sleep. While Emily was napping, Julia was playing with Emily’s giant lego blocks. She had so much fun playing with them she decided to take a quick nap. How cute is this? Well, cute enough for me to snap some photos and then move her to a safe, dark, quiet location. I didn’t want her to roll onto a block in her sleep.

I took Julia for her 9 month checkup today. She is actually almost 10 months, but that is what happens with vacations and busy doctor offices. She was really good and only gave the doctor a hard time when he tried to look in her mouth. He came up with the same observation that I had – no teeth yet. As soon as I sat her back on the exam table she clapped and giggled. The giggling stopped for the flu shot, but even after that she was quick to calm down.

The doctor and I discussed allergies, given a reaction she had to either yogurt or strawberries. He said to wait on strawberries until one year and try yogurt again at any point. Other things still on the do-not-eat-yet list are nuts, egg, wheat, and chocolate. Too bad for her, those are some of my favorite foods. Her next visit will be at 12 months.

At this visit she weighed 15 lbs 3.5 oz. This is a 1 lb 7.5 oz increase since the 6 month visit. She also measured 27 1/4 inches long, an increase of an inch and a quarter. She has fallen to the 3rd percentile for weight and 25 percentile for length. The doctor said it was common for kids to have periods of faster growth followed by slower growth. In general, Julia is smaller than Emily was at this point Given the weight loss that Emily had between her 9 and 12 month visit I’m betting that Julia will catch up in compairson.

No really funny stories from this visit, but our nurse’s name was Emily which was interesting for our Emily who came for the visit. Emily not only snagged a sticker today, but a measuring tape for her doctor kit. There are perks for hanging out with your sister.