Happy New Year

2008 was a dichotomy. As Dickens would say, "[i]t was the best of times, it was the worst of times." After eight years of feeling shame and disgust with our government, my spirits were lifted when our country elected Barak Obama. His message of change and hope resonated with so many who, until now, felt that our government could and would not represent them. Then, of course there was the crash of the housing market and the recession that followed. For much of the year, we felt pretty insulated here in San Francisco, but as the year drew to a close, the job security both Dave and I had taken for granted suddenly seemed less, well, secure. We watched on helplessly as our own retirement accounts, and more frighteningly those of our parents plummeted in value. Poor Paige's 529 plan is now worth less than our initial deposit into it despite our continued deposits.

Despite all of the chaos that seems to best describe the year, 2008 will always be one of the happiest years of my life. Paige has brought us more joy and happiness than I ever knew was possible. She is an amazing person, and I cannot wait to see what the coming year has in store for all of us

On the Paige front, my very big girl decided that she could not end the year without a single tooth; and so, I am pleased to announce, that at 9.5 months old, Paige cut her first tooth. The timing wasn't great. We were in Maine, and after spending three days with my family where Paige (for the most part) was her funny and charming self, she started to be fussy and cranky just in time to spend the last couple of days of our trip with Dave's family.

Paige continues to work on walking. She now virtually runs when she is holding onto our fingers. She can stand unassisted for a second or two before beginning to wobble. She also will balance herself on furniture. A month ago, Paige would fall to one side or another within a few moments of me taking my hands away. Now, she stands holding on to the couch or other pieces of furniture for several minutes before losing her balance.

She is beginning to "jabber" and imitate our vocal inflections as well. It seems her first words may be right around the corner...