Happy New Year!

Christmas 2009

We had a wonderful Christmas this year, and Hannah gave us the best gift ever. She took her first steps on Christmas Day! The push/ride toy that Grandma got her was a big hit, and by the end of the evening she had taken several steps on her own. At one point we actually counted 6 steps! :) Of course by the time I got the camera out we had a hard time getting her to do it again. But, we still got some fun video clips.

The best part?

We celebrated with Shawn's family a little early this year since some of us are going out of town for Christmas. It was fun watching Hannah open her presents. She got several nice baby toys but she was more excited about the various "balls" that the older boys got. You know, for having two very un-athletic parents, she sure seems to like watching people play catch, soccer, etc. It's like she just can't wait until she's big enough to run around and play, too. At the doctor's office the other day, they had cartoons playing in the waiting room. Hannah even got all worked up when the cartoon characters started playing baseball! I couldn't believe it. Hmmm... Santa may have to bring this girl her own ball! In the meantime, she'll settle for the wrapping paper and bows. After all, that's the best part, right? :)

Bed-Head

Hannah woke up this morning with her first cold. :( She's doing well, but not really in the mood for pictures today. Maybe later this week... Meanwhile, I found this funny picture from about a week ago. It's Hannah practicing standing and trying to walk first thing in the morning. Don't you love the bed head? She still hasn't managed a first step without falling immediately afterward, but I don't think it will be much longer. She's so close...

Who needs TV?

Hannah gains more personality everyday, and with each new challenge we also find more and more reasons to laugh. She especially likes playing with the dog. And if Daddy joins the fun... even better!


:)

'Tis the Season

The days following Thanksgiving have become our favorite time to begin looking forward to Christmas. Shawn usually takes me out shopping for a tree, and then I get to spend the next day or two decorating. This year was a little different partly because we are in a smaller apartment and partly because we now have a 9-month-old in the house. I decided to skip most of the decorations this year, but we did still get a live tree. We just got a small one that could stand on top of an end table (a little more out of reach), and I left off any glass ornaments. Every year Shawn and I get one new ornament that represents the year. This year's ornament was a silver spoon that says "Baby's first Christmas." Hannah seemed to like it, only she thought the spoon would be better if it had food in it! :) Also, instead of our normal nativity scene, this year we got out a Veggie Tales nativity that Hannah can play with. I just had to convince her that the toy was more fun than the cardboard packaging it came in. (Preview of Christmas?) :)

Thanksgiving with Hannah

This was Hannah's first Thanksgiving, and we spent the day with Shawn's family. Hannah had fun playing with all of her cousins and showing off some of her new skills. At dinner, we passed around a stuffed turkey doll and listed some of the things we were thankful for. Of course Hannah and baby #2 were both high on our lists. As for Hannah, she mostly liked trying to eat the turkey's head. When we asked playfully what she was thankful for, her response was "dah" which generally means "dog," "rubber duck," "Dad," or "that" (which pretty much covers everything else). LOL.