Clara goes out in the snow!

Unlike most of the country, we here in the Pacific Northwest have "enjoyed" a true winter: wind storms, hail, snow, ice--the whole bit. Usually winter brings lots of rain, but this year, we've gotten a little bit of everything. Greg's already had more snow days this year than he had the entire time we were in Cleveland.

So for the good news: Our roofer repaired the roof enough for it to be water-tight before the big snow fell. Greg had 3 days off from school, so we got to spend a lot of time with him before he went up to Whistler, BC for an annual ski trip with friends. And, it's darn pretty outside.

The bad news: After Greg left for his trip, Clara started to come down with a cold. By Friday night, she was sounding fairly congested. By Saturday morning she had a full-blown nasty cold, and so did I. The Bamfords were so kind as to drop off a care package for us today. Waving at them through the front door has been as much outside human contact we've had this weekend.

However, Clara hasn't seemed to mind being sequestered at home. My usually very defiant napper has gone down oh-so compliantly the last few days, taking 2 naps, one lasting 3 hours and the other lasting about 2. She's also been sleeping for 5-6 hour stretches at night, though I can hear her coughing from her room. I'm reading a good book right now: The Places in Between by Rory Stewart about his walk across Afghanistan, and with Netflix and the New York Times delivery, we've got everything we need. Everything, that is, except for a few more white blood cells. Let's hope tomorrow we'll be feeling more like our old selves and get to enjoy the snow a bit more before it all melts.

Happy Birthday, Great-Grandpa Beckmann!

Clara's Great-grandpa's birthday was yesterday, and we would just like to wish him a happy birthday and a healthy and relaxing year ahead. Eat an extra piece of cake for us!

Above Average, Indeed

Top among my most frequently asked questions has to be: Just how big is she? The answer, in short: very. But to be more specific, at her check-up last week she measured 29 inches long, weighed 19 pounds, and had a head circumference of 19 inches. She is in the 90th percentile for height and head size, and 70th for weight. Really, she is just a very tall girl, which she gets from her dad and her grandmothers. So far, the basketball scholarship is looking very good...

Or perhaps a pole-vaulting scholarship? Clara has figured out how to climb out of her crib by bouncing on the mattress and using her arm strength to "flop" herself over the side of the crib and onto the floor. She did it twice in the middle of the night right before Christmas. The Bamfords gave her a sleep sack which she opened on Christmas Eve, which doesn't allow her to gain as much "altitude" when she bounces, so that seems to work for now. She's also eating a lot more solid food, and her four top teeth have finished cutting through, so she's not waking up as much during the night, thank goodness. Today, however, she figured out how to crawl out of her exersaucer, which means I will have to figure out a new way to keep her occupied while I take a shower (or while Greg is playing video games!--I'm kidding--he only did that once!)