i'm not one for much change. . . "if it's not broken, why fix it. . ." i guess it's safe, but not always a good thing. today was a good friend's last day at the office. my coffee buddy, wedding buddy, pregnancy buddy and most recently mommy buddy. We seemed to some how be on the same schedule the past 3 years at least and have spent many of hours chatting about everything 'new' in our worlds. change can totally be good and i'm certain it will be for her. congrats on your new path. . . i wish you all the luck in the world!

. . . too cute for words

by far the most difficult thing i've had to deal with since having isabella has been having someone else take care of her during my hours at work. when we found mona life became much easier. i knew the moment i met her that she would be perfect & she was. . . she loves isabella like her own and we felt so comfortable with her. fortunately for her, but unfortunately for us, mona is having a little one of her own. i selfishly so wish she could stay with us . . . last thursday was mona's last day with isabella and jon was able to capture some great shots of them. we plan to stay in touch with her, visit with her and can't wait to meet her new baby boy.

our new nanny, kelley, started this week & is doing great.

we met the family for dinner at tijuana joe's saturday night to celebrate our niece julia's 9th birthday. we enjoyed the company and of course the margarita's were a nice touch too!

bella & aunt pam

isabella sneaking a peak at julia's present. . .

. . . a very sweet pic of emilie & aunt pam

isabella keeping herself busy

uncle david stealing a kiss . . .

julia very excited about her birthday present!

uncle david & bella

isabella with her balloon

isabella spending time with her sweet cousin emilie

emilie sharing her balloon with bella

in between the sun & clouds, we enjoyed some time at the pool on Friday afternoon.

isabella seems to have no fear, which i guess is good & bad. i'm so afraid she's going to just walk right in on her own.

Emotions . . .

this mother thing makes me so emotional. not to mention i was already more emotional than the average joe before I.G.N. now that isabella's over a year old, it seems to be getting worse. i love watching her grow up, but i'm often sad that every new adventure takes her farther away from the 'baby' she once was. i've shed several tears this week alone over random things. i imagine i'm in for many more years of this . . .

saturday afternoon we thought we'd check out the duluth art festival and hoped the weather would hold out. it turned out to be a comfortable nice afternoon. there was also some live music and dancing that isabella really loved.

a favorite from the weekend. . .

grandma & bella just strolling around. . .

getting ready to dance with grandpa . . .

believe it or not, isabella actually loves wearing her sunglasses & kept them on for most of the afternoon. . .

what a fantastic mother's day. . . started off by a great breakfast cooked by my wonderful husband. . . went for a nice walk with my daughter & then spent the rest of the morning just playing outside. after isabella's nap we had a late mother's day lunch at 'lola's' with grandma & grandpa nitto.

my child has always been a really good eater. i haven't found a food she doesn't like. so i shouldn't be surprised that she seems to love mcdonald's french fries. while out shopping for baby gifts today, i thought i'd try their new 'iced coffee' & also grabbed some fries. i let isabella have one and spent the rest of the car ride home listening to "mo, mo, mo", while she made the more sign language sign. yes, mommy's been holding out on you and no, you will not be getting them on a regular basis. . .

all set for a ride in her car.

spending some time out on the porch.