Author: Marie Haigh

On Saturday, I took Elly shoe shopping for the first time.

I learned that my neighbor’s advice was right on the money: Payless Shoes has an excellent selection of kids shoes.

The first shoe I picked out for Elly to try on gave me a good idea of what not to get. She fussed over the snugness of the shoe. It was clear why when I took them back off; the straps had left red marks.

I needed a shoe that wasn’t too tight width-wise. Elly still has her baby fat on her feet … and elsewhere. Her feet are so fat they look swollen. ha!

I ended up buying her sandals in size 6-wide. The best thing about them is that I can just drop her foot into the sandal and then strap her in. The section over her toes is held together with velcro. Velcro is also used in the strap around her ankle. It’s so easy to put them on her. Plus they provide her a bit more protection than the moccasins she was wearing without slowing her down. I couldn’t be happier.

Elly seems pleased too. It’s like having toys on your feet. Who doesn’t love playing with velcro? Thankfully, she hasn’t figured out how to undo the ankle strap, but I’m sure it’s just a matter of time.

The vast majority of my picture shoots end with Elly standing in front of me vying for my camera.

Yesterday rather than put the camera away, I opted to sit Elly down and teach her how to push the button.

These were her first shots.

She clapped after taking each one.

Though she is still a bit young for it, I might have to buy her the VTech camera for Christmas.

Elly is 14 months old. Despite promises from family, friends and even her pediatrician, she hasn’t thinned out or slowed down her growth. She remains tall for her age and adorably chubby.

Recently, I had to pack away all of her clothes labeled 24 months or smaller. Sizes 3T-4T fit her best now.

Though I typically store our off-season clothes along with Elly’s baby clothes from newborn to 12 months in plastic bins, Dan requested that I not store any more of her clothes that way. The bin was a bear to get up the narrow attic stairs. Dan suggested that I simply store them in trash bags.

The thought of black, unlabeled trash bags storing clothes made me twitch. Trash bags are for trash – not for storing outgrown clothes that will one day be handed down and most certainly not for organizing. Unwilling to take a stance on something trivial, I searched for a compromise and found these bags.

I love them!

I can see the contents at a glance. Additionally, I can write notes on the bag, such as the recommended age of the clothes.

Though Dan thought my objection of the trash bags was silly, he too was impressed with my find.

I almost didn’t publish this post. It makes me sound anal retentive. I’m not really. I just love to organize.

Well, maybe sometimes I go overboard like when I organized all my buttons by color.

Or when I bought pin cushions for each type of pin I owned: metal, large and small.

It drives me nuts when things are out of order. Even though I had pictures of Elly in a cute pink photo album, I took them all out. I hated them not being in chronological order. Yeah, it sounds a bit crazy to me too.

It took an afternoon of sorting, but I’m thrilled with the results. Not only is it in order from birth to present day, but I even added little notes like when she played with her first toy and when she applied for her first passport.