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This year was the first time Little Miss D got to celebrate Halloween. This little girl went to two parties and trick-or-treating, what a way to start out. It all started on Friday at school. Dagny had a Halloween party with her friends at day care. This was Craig and I’s first “social event” as parents and I think we enjoyed it more than Dagny. Here is Lil D. I swear saying “Please, Mom you’re embarrassing me with all these photos.” I must admit I took a lot, but I couldn’t help myself. I want to catch every moment of this little girls life. I promised Dagny I would slow down… a little. 
for real, mom?
After a crazy amount of food and trick-or-treating at school, we went home where we took a whole bunch of wonderful photos of Dagny in the backyard (previous post). The following day we headed over to our friend’s (Jamie and Steve) house to celebrate their twin’s (Michael and Gianna) 1st birthday. Unfortunately, we had to leave early and we missed the kids blowing out their candle because Dagny got sick. Little Boo had so much sweets (she doesn’t normally consume) that it did a number on her stomach. It got so bad we weren’t even sure if we were going to go trick-or-treating. Anyhoo, here are a few photos from the party. 
Here is Gianna, opening up some of her gifts.
Here is Mikey aka Yoda.
Here are a couple of Dagny before she got sick. 
my pretty girl
hide and seek
After a nap, Dagny seemed much better. So we decided to take a chance and go trick-or-treating. We weren’t planning to go far, and if we needed to come home we could, but we really wanted Dagny to have this experience. When we got to the first house (our next door neighbors) and she got her first candy, you can tell she was sizing this up. Like, “wait, I go and say “trick-or-treat” and they give me something… hmmm, I like this.” She was so ready to hit the following house. She thoroughly enjoyed herself. 
here she is with her daddy
Ready to go to the next house. 
hurry mom, we got to keep going
Because she was so cute (according to the people we visited and of course us) she got extra candy. We heard this line over and over again “She is so cute, here have one more” and “here is one for Bear”. It got to the point that Dagny didn’t want to carry her pumpkin because it was so heavy. So, I had to carry it, until we got to the next door, where she took it from me. When she was done it came right back to me to hold. 
I’m ready for more… lets go
This was our last stop. My mom was kind enough to hand out candy while Craig and I took Dagny out. Before we went in for the night, Dagny said “Trick-or-Treat” to her Agi Mama. It was so adorable. 
last stop
Here is the load. 
the final count
It was a wonderful experience even with the crazy wind and chilly weather. I think Dagny really had fun, perhaps as much as Craig and I. Barbara … the cutest little ladybug in our backyard. 
it’s a ladybug
what a cutie
“Hi”
cutie
Dagny loves it when we chase her
YAY
pretty profile
Barbara Dear Dagny, A year ago today we met each other and a love affair started. I remember having all sorts of emotions that day, from nervousness to total calmness. I was nervous about the process but totally calm about meeting you. I had this feeling deep inside that without a doubt I was meeting my daughter. Max, our driver, came to pick us up and drove us to the Ministry of Education (MOE) to get our official referral for you. Masha, our translator, met us there. I remember standing in the hallway waiting to be called into the room. We were called in to the room; we were the first of the day. There were two ladies in the room. Imagine the room where there was a desk that the head lady sat at and another table attached off it forming the letter T. Dad and I sat at one side of the rectangle table, Masha to the left of us, across from us was the Assistant, and the head lady to the right of us. They asked us some basic questions and then the head lady pulled out a file and in the file was this little black and white photo of this little girl. I remember feeling a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes. I finally saw my daughter. After giving a brief history about your background, the head lady asked us if we would like to meet you, Dad and I looked at each other and very loudly said “DA, DA, YES!”. The ladies cracked a smile and out we went. From there we went straight to Orphanage #14. We were told that this was one of the best in the city. When we pulled up to the orphanage, my heart started to beat faster than ever. I was so excited to be meeting you. We were taken into the dance room, where Masha got your medical information and we went over it. You weren’t quite ready to meet us, you were busy having lunch. When we were done with Masha she went to get you. Your Dad and I were pacing the room back and forth. We both were so excited, we knew that our lives will forever be changed. Then the door opened and there you were in Masha’s arms. You were wearing a pink sweater. I remember your dark hair and your beautiful eyes looking around. Both your Dad and I teared up. I turned to your dad and said “I now believe in love at first sight!” I fell in love with you that moment. I really did. When Masha put you in my arms, I knew that you were my daughter forever. My dearest Dagny you have made your father and I so happy and we hope we have done the same for you. You are our light, our heart, and our everything. We promise the very best for you. We hope to show you the world through books, travel, fun, and by being a family. We love you so much, now and forever! Here you are the day we met you. 
1st day
Here you are today, one year later. 
1 Year Later
What a difference a year makes. Love, Mom and Dad Last night Dagny carved her first pumpkin. OK, not really, but kind of. She helped with the removal of the insides, which at times she thought was “yucky”, and at other times thinking it was cool. Here is our Picasso designing her pumpkin. 
designing
Here she is getting into it. 
working hard
getting it all out
Then she moved over to Craig where the cute faces started. 
She loves her Daddy
This is yucky… 
yucky
…but, FUN. 
FUN
I think she loved it. 
I love it
The final product! 
pumpkin
Barbara Craig and I switched roles today. I went out with Dagny to rake some leaves while Craig was making Gumbo. Craig came out and joined us after awhile with our new Digital SLR Camera. Here are some photos of the fun we had. 
Beautiful Girl
YEAH
pretty
she loves it when we chase her
Hehehe
YEAH
loving the leaves
leaves are fun
Barbara Today we went to Cobble Creek Farms (Thanks, Maria!) with Grandma Jen and there was tons of stuff to do. We went on yet another hayride. This one was the longest one we have been on yet. 
Craig and Dagny
We took silly photos with silly things. 
yeap.. that’s what that is
Dagny checked out the digs. 
“I just don’t know Mom, I just think its a little small.”
We picked out our pumpkins. 
Where’s Dagny?
And, we checked out the locals. 
pretty girl
Barbara This morning we got up and headed out to ZooBoo. This was Dagny’s first year and we can’t wait to go back in the years to come. What made it even more special is that Grandma Jen came up from Ohio to be a part of Dagny’s first ZooBoo. 
pick me up
checking out the polar bear
Grandma Jen and Dagny
to Dagny its a big stuff animal
another one
Daddy and his girl
us
the bounty
Barbara We packed our car last Friday morning and we headed out to Boston on our first family vacation. We meet my brother, sister-in-law, niece, nephew, and our friend, Eva, there. I am not going to lie, but we were a tad bit concerned on how Dagny was going to react to the long ride, all the sightseeing, and sleeping arrangements. We were so pleasantly surprised at how wonderful she did, I think the fact that we are always taking her places she was up for the adventure. Yay, Dagny! Saturday morning we had some breakfast and headed downtown to do the Freedom Trail. I am happy to say that we were able to do the entire trail. Thanks to Edit for taking the time to print out the history of each stop and sharing it with all of us. She was definitely our tour guide that day. These are the markers at every stop. 
the beginning
Here we are in front on Ben Franklin’s monument. 
us
Here are the other two men in my life. 
Emeric and Emerson
One of the stops on the trail is Paul Revere’s house. This was probably my favorite stop on the trail. I like old, smelly houses that have tons of history. 
Paul Rever’s House
Inside the courtyard we took some photos. 
My brother, Mom, and Sister-in-law
us
The end of the trail is Bunker hill. My brother and his clan walked up it, unfortunately with the stroller that was not an option for us. So we waited outside and made funny faces with Dagny. 
Bunker Hill
my funny girl
Here is Dagny holding my Mom’s hand as we are walking the trail. 
how cute
The following day we went to Plymouth to see the rock and then Plymouth Plantation that duplicates both the Indian and Pilgrims way of living back in the time. It was very interesting to see. What makes it really neat was that the people playing the Indians were actual descents of the Wampanoag tribe. 
Me and the Rock
Us
Here is Dagny and Craig on the Mayflower II. 
Mayflower II
After we said our good-byes to my family, Dagny, Craig, my Mom, and I went to Cape Cod. 
cape cod
Dagny
The following day we started out at the New England Aquarium. This was set aside specifically for Dagny because of her love of fish. 
fish, fish, fish
When we were done we headed to Salem. 
Salem
I promise, I am a good witch. It’s Hungarian goulash I am making. 
good witch
My mom and I toured The House of Seven Gables. I loved it… still like old, smelly houses. 
mom and me
While my mom and I toured the house Craig and Dagny played on the grounds. Here is Captain Dagny. 
captain dagny
From there we headed to Cambridge to check out Dagny’s college, Harvard. 
Harvard? I am going to Yale.
We ended the night by going to Cheers. It was great going back there and this time with Dagny. 
Us
Barbara Dearest Dagny, A month from today you are going to be two-years old! I can’t believe I am going to have a two year old. This year has been the best year of my life and I am sure every year from now will only get better.
my funny girl
You have done so much stuff this past month, I hope I do a good job capturing it for you. As you already know this part of the year is my favorite. I love the fall and I couldn’t wait to introduce you to all the activities it had to offer. You went apple picking for the first time and you loved it. Which is especially important because Apples are your current favorite fruit. We took you on a couple of hayrides (and we aren’t done yet) and you just absolutely love them. When we take off, you start clapping and say (very loud) “YAY!” It’s so cute. You and I baked together for the first time, which was so awesome. You love to see the mixer do its thing. I can’t wait to you get a bit older and we will be doing this more often. Up until now your favorite park accessory was the swing, but I do believe that the slide might of taken over. You just love to go down it saying “weeeee”, over and over again. We went on our first family vacation this month. We went to Boston, Cape Cod, Salem, Cambridge, and Plymouth. I must admit your Daddy and I were a little concerned about how you were going to do with the long drive, all the sightseeing, and sleeping. Well, you blew us away, you were amazing! Your Daddy and I are so very proud of you. You did wonderfully in the car on the long drive there and back. You were amazing as we were out all day, no issues at all. Sleeping was not a problem as well. You are a very bright little girl. Which means your Daddy and I have our work cut out for us to make sure we do our very best to show you the world. You are a sponge and are soaking everything in. You speak two languages, you are able to distinguish numbers and letters by telling us what they are when we show you. I find you at times with your flashcards, going through them saying them out loud to Bear what they are. Dr. P told us at our last appointment that you have not only caught up with kids your own age, but surpassed them. 
no pressure, promise!
You are very affectionate. You run up to us for no reason at all and give us hugs and kisses with a big smile on your face. You make your Daddy and I melt everyday. 
my pretty girl
we love you
I love you. Mama The most wonderful Daugther, Wife, & Mother. 
We love you
Love, Mom, Craig, & Dagny |
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