A Year In The Life Of A Ya Ya...

I cannot believe that on the 28th of this month, Parker Ann will be 1 YEAR OLD!  It seems like only yesterday I was so very impatiently waiting for her arrival.  I can remember being excited but also somewhat anxious at the same time.  Was I grandmother (Ya-Ya...) material?  What would my role in her life be?  Would I be good at my new job?  Would she like me?  Would she love me?  Would we bond to the point that she would eventually recognize me and smile at that recognition?  This grandparent thing was new to me and I desperately wanted to be good at it!

I have found that people adjust to change.  It is often times not easily done...but they DO eventually adjust.  Just like Parker Ann was adjusting to being out of the womb and in a new world, I was adjusting to a new chapter in my life.  Lots of my friends were already grandparents and they seemed so at ease with this.  "Perfection" is what it looked like to me.  However, Robby always says that my expectations tend to far exceed reality.

As a parent, I have observed others and thought many times that their lives were straight out of a fairy tale.  Mine had been chocked full of "real" stuff...like pure chaos to be exact!  Where most people had organized photo albums chronicling their childrens' entire childhood and completely filled in baby books, I had a box full of scattered photos that I was STILL attempting to get organized to go into a set of empty albums.  And those baby books?  Well, I HAD one for each child...with their name in it; didn't that count for at least something?  With my first grandchild I had determined that things would be different.  And so I pulled out my camera...dusted it off...and began this journey into "Blogland".  THIS would be a study in discipline where I was concerned.  I had always WANTED to keep those photo albums and a "life journal" as well.  I was gonna do this thing!

So, I have blogged about Parker Ann since well before she was born.  And now that she is about to turn one year old, I have decided to re-share a few of her pictorial journey of her first year of life...

Welcome to our world, Parker Ann!

1st Parish Fair

First Halloween Carving Contest

1st Christmas Festival

1st "Rogenmoser Cookie Cook-Off"

1st Christmas season of parties

1st Christmas Eve church service

1st Christmas morning at Poppi and Ya Ya's house

Snoozing in Ya Ya's lap...

Getting on my feet!

Eating...one of my FAVORITE activities!

"Sleeping Beauty"...Is there ANYTHING sweeter than THIS?

I LOVE my stroller rides!

Ready for church

Playing with my toy...

1st summer to swim

I'm a FAST crawler!

Helping check out groceries

Loving on my panda that I got at the San Diego Zoo

On the beach in California...Already a "Beach Babe"!

"Just give me my Puffs and nobody will get hurt"!

I'm a BIG girl now...I get to sit in a highchair at restaurants

1st 4th of July celebration on Cane River

Cooling off in the pool Ya Ya bought me for her house

1st family wedding...I'm second cutest to the bride!

Hey!  I'm a DIVA...They LET me sit in the middle of the table!

1st trip to a water park

1st visit to The American Doll store

Ready for my 1st rodeo!

I'm on my feet and WALKING now!

Well, Parker Ann's 1st year has flown by...and now it is time for a celebration!  Her 1st Birthday Party has been planned out to a tee.  The invitations have been sent, decorations bought and gifts have been purchased.  However, NOTHING could ever compare to the gift of joy that this precious little girl has brought to our lives!