Lily loves the indoor sandbox...mommy likes it better than the outside one, 'cause Lily tends to eat the sand in the outdoor one.
She also really enjoys painting!!!
Our budding little artist likes to use two paint brushes at once. How avante-garde.
Lily shows Great Grampa Couper what she can do...
...and she shows Great Auntie Mar her balancing act.
"Look Great Grampa! I can make music."
"Hey, Great Auntie Mar, do you want to play with me?"
"If you want to play with my toy, it helps if you stick your tongue out like this."
Lily gets her first taste of Chinese food.
Apparently she likes it!!
One, two, three....Lily practices her counting with kleenexes.
"Do you want one?"
When all the kleenexes are gone, she decides to taste the box. Our child is brilliant!
The Couper clan goes to daycare to pick up Lily.
She is very pleased that so many friendly faces have come to greet her at the end of her "workday".
When we get home, Lily shows everybody her toys...Great Auntie Mar, Grampa Jim, Nana, Matt, Auntie Jill and Great Grampa Couper are very impressed.
Lily opens some gifts from Great Auntie Mar, including a little lunch bag with her name on it.
After standing at the coffee table for awhile entertaining her guests, Lily decides now would be a good time to take her first steps on her own, since she has such a large audience :) Everybody, including mommy, was very surprised, and totally thrilled!
She is VERY proud of herself!!
Lily responds well to the cheers, and just to make sure everybody realizes it was no accident, she takes a few more steps! 
The week following Lily's birthday, she's still trying to figure out the balloons...
...she tries to undo them from the bag that's weighing them down...
...but decides it's not going to happen, and makes peace with it. In fact, she makes friends with the bag.
She does, however, get pretty tangled up in the process.
Eventually some of the balloons lose their helium...
...but Lily likes them when they're softer, cause then she can give them hugs.
The birthday girl has a little snack before her guests arrive. It's going to be a busy day! And she doesn't want to run out of energy.
Lily in her birthday dress. There aren't many pictures of the whole outfit, as the shoes and little sweater soon come off :)
Mommy brings home the balloons for the party.
Happy first birthday, Lily!
A rare picture...Lily doesn't hear the beep of the camera focusing, so we catch her in a contemplative moment.
Lily helps mommy open one of her cards.
"Oooh...what's this?"
"This is awesome!!"
Lily tests out her new musical table. It plays different songs and jazz music, makes instrument sounds, and even counts and says the alphabet.
Lily checks out her new stuffed piggy.
She finds that the best way to really check it out is to shove it into her face :)
Some of the guests at Lily's party...mommy's and daddy's friends Camille, Cecilia, Ron, Bulent, Vince, Nader, Diana and Keith.
Even with all her new toys, Lily is still fascinated by Auntie Camille's Olympic watch.
Lily kisses her new orange fishy.
"Hi Auntie Jill!"
"More presents? For me?"
"I like this present-opening business!"
Lily tests out the equipment in her new doctor's bag.
"Oooh...a new friend!"
"I really like you!"
"You are the best elephant, ever."
Auntie Camille helps Lily put on her fabulous faux fur coat.
Lily strikes a pose...
...and casually checks out the price tag :) We need to work on gift receiving etiquette.
Daddy lights one of Lily's birthday cupcakes and hands it to mommy...
...sparklers aren't just for kids!
They make everyone happy!
Lily's birthday cupcakes! Daddy baked them and mommy and Baba iced them.
"Hi Uncle Bulent!"
"Your sparkler is cool!"
Lily is unsure about her cupcake at first...she tentatively touches the top...
...then starts to pull it apart...
...and eventually gets some into her mouth...
...but mostly on her face :)
She really doesn't like getting her fingers messy. Can you tell?
Finally, she washes it all down with a gulp of water.
Face kisses from Uncle Keith.
And toe kisses from Baba.
Family picture time! Daddy shows Lily what she looks like.
Lily decides it would be nicer to smile...
...and we agree.
Is it any wonder where Lily gets her many faces from?
Daddy imitates Lily again.
She doesn't think that's very funny. So she tells daddy to stop making faces...
...then she playfully hits him in the mouth a few times...
...stretches his mouth into a smile and slobbers on his ear...
...taps him a couple more times...
...pulls on his chin...
..and tugs on his ear. Great fun!!
The party is over, and the guests have gone home..."But why do I have to have a nap? I was having so much fun!!!"