Well, we are back from a fun trip to Seattle for the fourth of July! Our real purpose for going was to attend the wedding of some close friends, but as a side benefit, Natalie got to spend excellent time with her grandparents.
Here's a picture of someone trying to get packed into our suitcases! Unfortunately, she was not allowed on the plane, but her cat-sitter took excellent care of her.
The night of the wedding, Natalie stayed overnight with her grandparents in Everett, while Tyler and I stayed in Seattle. It was definitely a milestone for us to spend the night away from our girl! She loved the time with her grandparents, and I don't think any of them would have minded if we hadn't returned for several days. Below is a picture of Tyler and I from the wedding. We stayed out until the wee hours, celebrating our friends' nuptials as well as our "freedom" from early-morning baby duty. Unfortunately, I was unable to sleep past 7:15 a.m. and forced Tyler to wake up as well to get back to our girl.
And here is our SOOOO big girl! In the background you can see Uncle Jay (top left corner), and behind Natalie is Great-Grandma Freda.
This trip was the trip of many new things for our girl. She has two new top teeth (and the accompanying parental sleep-deprivation to go along with them). She really liked Tyler's parents "dah" Sierra (a wonderful and well-behaved yellow lab), and ultimately learned to point out other "dahs" when we were out and about. She also called for "mama" and "dada" a lot in the early mornings when she wanted some food. She's finally doing better from her tummy bug and is really packing in the food! It's fun to eat out with her, because increasingly she's able to share food off of our plates. Food = entertainment for our girl!
She also decided to start waving yesterday. Once we returned home today, we were able to catch it on video to share. It's really cute!
Last week she also started clapping, and I will be sure to catch that on video soon!
First, a random shot of Natalie showing off her standing prowess
On Friday, July 25th, we went to the zoo! It was Natalie's first time... she really loved it!
We went with Sarah and Olen... it was a beautiful day in San Francisco.
Sarah and Olen admiring the giraffe!
Natalie really liked them - maybe because they were so big? She could very clearly see them!
Chillin', high chair style.
On Saturday it was about 80 degrees and sunny in San Francisco. We took advantage of the weather to walk around Spreckels Lake, right in Golden Gate Park near our house. 
Sunday July 27th was a day to be remembered. We attended the most fun one-year-old birthday party - for all the babies in our mom/baby group! Dads were invited too.
Natalie and I, Todd and Maya, Natasha and Gabriel, and Olen - all getting ready for photo ops! The babies enjoyed delicious cupcakes (made by Sarah) and the parents enjoyed the leftovers.
