Aria and her friend

The young boy in this photo with Aria is Brendan. Every week Brendan and his mom come over to our house. Brendan and Aria have fun playing together while Karen and his mom make music, Karen on piano and Robin on violin. Last weekend both of Brendan's parents came over and we four adults made music together (playing piano, violin, guitar and whistles) while Brendan and Aria played, danced, and had a great time. I especially like this photo because it shows how they enjoy each other's company. Photo taken March 22, 2009.

New photos - sneak peek

Our friend and very talented photographer, Pavlina Ortiz, did a second photo session with Aria on Friday. She posted some of the new photos, as well as a couple from a year ago, on her blog here: http://pavlinaortiz.com/blog/?p=430 Check them out! Aria is just beautiful! Soon she'll be sending us more, so stay tuned. Photos taken March 20, 2009.

Baby Einstein in the bath

We don't know if she's got Einstein's brains yet, but she's definitely got the hair! Photo taken March 15, 2009.

First Birthday Party

Aria had her first birthday party today, two days before her actual birthday. Birthmom Amber and Birthdad Charlie came over to join in opening presents and sharing cake and ice cream. Aria had lots of fun playing with a colorful balloon and having her first taste of chocolate cake. We are so grateful that both of Aria's birth parents are such a loving presence in her life.

How did Aria become a Little Mermaid?

We captured Aria's transformation into a little mermaid in case you wondered how it happened.

Aria is a Little Mermaid

At last, here is the long awaited video of Aria swimming. The first part of the video was taken in early January before she got her cool new swim suit. The second part of the video was taken at the end of February on the last day of Aria's four week swim class. Aria now has a progress report that says that she did great on the Parent Child Level A swim class. One thing that we are still working on is having her put her mouth under water and blowing bubbles. She's starting to be able to do it in the bath tub and we will see when she masters it in the swimming pool. By the way, it's Aria squeeling in delight many times near the end of the video. Videos taken Jan. 2 and Feb. 26, 2009.