Happy first birthday!!!

Wow, we have reached a milestone! Yes, believe it or not, Sarah turned 1 year old last week. I still have to get used to the idea...it's like she was just born the other day, and here she is turning 1. She is so smart for her young age. Although she can't talk yet, she understands everything I say. If I ask her to bring me a specific book or a toy, she has no trouble doing so. When we go out, she brings me her shoes, and when we get home, she puts them back in the closet. She can put her own dirty diaper in the garbage. Potty training is going OK, sometimes she refuses to sit on her little potty, she wants to sit on the toilet like a big girl.
We had a birthday party for her last Saturday. Mom and Dad took her the night before, so Peter and I could decorate the house and prepare for the party. When Sarah came home she couldn't stop staring at the pretty balloons and ribbons.
Peter baked a chocolate cake for her the night before since I forgot to tell him that I'd already ordered an ice cream cake. We served the guests my cake, and we used his to let Sarah make a mess. We let her open her gifts after. She got a lot of clothes and toys. Her absolute favourite gift was a princess chair from uncle Jeff. She loves sitting in it. After the party, Peter held a poker night with the boys.

Sarah's first Halloween

For Sarah's first Halloween we invited Dwayne and Kelly and their kids to spend the night at our house. They only brought 4 of the kids with them, so with Sarah, there were 5 little ones running around. It was very different for me. Our house has never been so busy. It seemed like there were kids everywhere. Around 7pm, we got them all dressed up in their costumes, and hit the road.
They looked adorable. Chelsea (witch), David (Mike Myers), and Chance (bumblebee) were ahead of the group, running from house to house, Chaelyn (ladybug) sat in the wagon, and the Missy tried to follow on foot. She didn't have a problem walking in her bunny costume, but she had no interest in staying with the group. She wanted to go her own way...on the road...through the grass.
She didn't care much about the candy that people were handing out, she just wanted to run around and have fun in the dark. After visiting about 20 houses, she got tired and cranky, so I put her in the stroller and we finished trick or treating that way.
Kelly and I came home with the 3 youngest ones early, so they could go to bed, while Dwayne and Peter took the other 2 kids around the block. They collected so much candy, it was unbelievable. When they got back, Peter cooked us all a big and juicy steak dinner on the BBQ. The rest of the kids went to bed shortly after dinner, and the 4 of us sat in the rec room and talked the night away. It was a great Halloween night for us all. I'm happy we were able to share it with our friends!

Viva Las Vegas

3 days after moving into our new house we took a trip to Las Vegas. Peter, Jackie, Drew and I drove to the Buffalo airport very early Tuesday morning, in case we got held up at the border. Luckily, we passed it without any issues, and we made it to the airport 4 hours before our scheduled flight.
An awesome surprise waited for us at the check-in counter. The lady offered to put us on an different flight, since we got there so early. That way, we arrived to Vegas 3 hours sooner. The Nevada desert, the casinos, the lights and sounds were just like in the movies. We spent the afternoon and the next day walking up and down the Vegas strip, checking out all the famous hotels and casinos like the Caesar's Palace, the Venetian, the MGM Grand, etc...
we had supper at the Stratosphere and later that night we attended the "Dance of the Fountains" in front of the Bellagio. It was breathtaking! The next day we took a drive in a huge Jeep to the Grand Canyon.
On the way there we drove across the gigantic Hoover Damn, we seen the endless desert with millions of cacti trees. Once there, we got into a helicopter and descended into the Canyon. The helicopter ride was an adventure in itself. It feels nothing like riding on an airplane.
When we lifted off, I felt like I was weightless. When I was little, I used to have dreams of being able to fly. That's exactly what it felt like. Like I was just floating in the air. I can't describe it, it's something you have to feel for yourself.
We took many beautiful pictures on our way down. We landed on the rocks, then got onto a small boat to cruise down the Colorado River, where we took more fascinating pictures. After the chopper took us back up to the surface of the Canyon we drove to an Indian reserve, where we had lunch.
We drove back to our hotel and relaxed for a short time, then took a cab to Freemont street to attend a hilarious comedy show at the Golden Nugget. Jackie and I somehow managed to find time to do a little shopping while the boys played poker at the Sahara Casino.
We purchased some souvenirs and we got a little black dress for Jackie to wear at the company Christmas party this year. The next day we took an early flight back home. I couldn't wait to see Sarah. She stayed at my parents' house while we were gone.
This was the longest time I've ever left her with someone. She took it well, however, Mom really needed some time off from watching her. I think Mom slept for 2 day straight after we took Sarah home. Welcome to my life!