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Monday, April 02, 2007

Auntie Mary's Visit!

Auntie Mary flew in on Friday night to see Annabelle...well, and Paul and Celeste, too, we think! On Friday night Mary and I joined up with Beth for a girls night dinner in Old Town. On Saturday, everyone went to the cherry blossom festival. We had a great time...the weather was beautiful and the blossoms were gorgeous. The area was bit crowded, but we managed just fine. On Sunday, Mary and I went to a small town south of DC for some shopping. We had afternoon tea at a cute place called "The Pink Bicycle." On Monday, more shopping, but this time to designer stores in Chevy Chase. We had a great time, and as usual, Annabelle is a wonderful baby to take wherever we go. As long as she can see what's going on, she's happy.

On the Annabelle front, she started doing something new this weekend...peek a boo and to a small extent, waving. It is very cute and she gets a big kick out of hiding under something and then bolting out from it. She is ALMOST walking...she has beend standing on her own alot and took a few small steps on her own this weekend..small steps between pieces of furniture. Mary is betting she'll be walking within the week...we shall see.

Here are some pics from the weekend.
Annabelle loves the blossoms


Celeste, Mary, and Annabelle at the Festival

Friday, March 30, 2007

Goofy Girl

Annabelle is developing quite the personality. When awake, she must CONSTANTLY be on the move. She will still sit in the stroller as long as it's moving and she can see things. I absolutely love watching her discover new things. I do patty cake with her. She is beginning to anticipate things. She know nows that at some point I write a "B" on her stomach. So, as we approach that part of the poem, she starts to giggle and push my hands away, knowing I'm about to do that.

She LOVES pushing her little toy around, practicing walking. We think she'll be walking in no time. She also love crawling to the stairs and crawling up them...don't worry...she doesn't do it alone...I watch her and make sure she doesn't fall down.

She has this cookies she loves..but boy oh boy do they make a mess. Here is a picture:

Tuesday, March 27, 2007

Beth Visits

We had a nice visit with Beth this weekend. I picked her up at the airport on Saturday. Since she was on an airplane for so long, we decided to grill out and hang out at our house. On Sunday we went shopping...she wanted to try out some stuff at babies r us and then we went to the maternity store so she could get some clothes. On Sunday night we went to PF Changs for dinner. Then on Monday we got manis and pedis then off to her hotel. We'll see her again this coming weekend. Here is a picture of Beth with Annabelle.

Saturday, March 24, 2007

Annabelle's first trip to Dulles Airport

It's been another busy week in the Crutchfield household. We had Gymboree on Thursday and Skylar's 1st birthday party on Friday. Pictures coming soon.

Today I will go to Dulles to pick up my friend Beth. She is in town from England for a conference. She'll stay with us until Monday. I am very excited to see her 6 month preggo belly and she's excited to meet Annabelle. Paul is outside as we speak working on the yard. We killed off all the grass because it was mostly weeds. We have the whole yard fenced off from Bailey except for a small portion in the mulch for him to do his thing. Paul will aerate and then put down top soil this weekend. Next weekend he'll hopefully be able to get the seed down followed with hay for protection. Hopefully by May we'll have some nice new grass and a cleaned up backyard. I love hanging out back there but it's a mess!

It was raining earlier and now it's dark and dreary....yuck!

Here is a picture of Annabelle and her walker. She is really motoring around with it now.

Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Fun Trip!

This last weekend we went to Virginia Beach. I ran the St. Paddy's Day 8k on Saturday. We left Thursday and stopped in Williamsburg to have dinner with friends Nick and Sarah.
On Friday I checked into my race expo to get my race packet then we headed back up to Williamsburg for Nick's 40th birthday party. We stayed just a bit and headed back to the hotel so I could get some sleep for my race. The race went really well and my pace was quicker than it had been...even with the crazy wind against us the last 2 miles along the boardwalk. I ran with my buddy Kathleen. After the race we checked out of the hotel and headed back up to Williamsburg to hang out with Nick and Sarah the rest of the weekend. Below are some pictures. What's new with Annabelle...well, she's giving kisses. Seriously...if you say "kiss" she'll open her mouth and put it to your cheek. It's so darn cute. She is REALLY getting around now...almost walking. She's becoming a pro at climbing stairs. I teach her how to go down them too...feet first, of course. I'm trying to increase her variety of solids...she likes grilled cheese and macaroni and cheese.

Me and Kathleen before the race:


Crossing the finish line:


Post race breakfast:


Sarah and Annabelle

Sunday, March 11, 2007

Long Week!

Well, sorry for the lack of posts. It's been a long week. On Wednesday I watched my friends baby, Parker. Parker and Annabelle get along really well and she is very interested in his walking abilities.
On Thursday we had Gymboree class and then coffee with some of my mom buddies. Doing coffee is starting to get more difficult as the babies are so mobile and don't really want to sit in their strollers or on their mommies laps. Also, they are all eating cheerios, etc so now we are starting to make messes wherever we go. Alas, perhaps the days of coffeehouses are over...maybe we should start having moms coffees at people's houses!
On Friday we had our last day of swimming. The pictures we took last week didn't come out. It was one of those disposable waterproof cameras and I think that it didn't work because it didn't have a flash. Everyone, including me, brought our real cameras on Friday so below are some pictures.

On Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night Annabelle experienced some massive teething issues. Her first 2 teeth on the bottom came in without too many issues and pain. However, this time, she has been miserable. Up at night, all night, mostly crying in pain. On Friday night she even ran a fever...it got all the way up to 102. YIKES! So, we gave her a cool bath and some tylenol and it went away. She woke up Saturday morning with 102 temp again. It went down and she pretty much stayed feverless all day. She did wake up several times Saturday night but didn't seem to get a fever that high. It did get up to 100.5, though. Man, rough times. So, I sit here somewhat exhausted. I hope those teeth come in soon so this stops. I hear that the molars are the worst...not really looking forward to that.

Group Picture:


Mom and Annabelle getting ready to get into the pool


Annabelle chatting with Megan

Monday, March 05, 2007

Weekend Fun.

This past weekend was very nice. The weather on Saturday was spring like so we decided to take in Alexandria's St. Patrick's Day parade. Annabelle really seemed to be interested in the loud bands and dancing girls. Below are some pictures. Sunday we just hung out around the house...it was considerably colder on Sunday. Today I had a babysitting swap with my friend Carolyn. I used my free 2 hours to go to Costco and get my car cleaned. Yes, I know....very exciting.

Family Picture


Irish Dancers


Taking it all in

Friday, March 02, 2007

Time Flies!

I can't believe I haven't posted anything since Monday. Annabelle keeps us so busy.
I guess another reason is that my computer power adapter broke so I haven't been able to get on the computer in a few days.

It's been a normal week here...nothing too out of the ordinary. Thursday we went to Gymboree class and today we had swimming. We had a special treat today...Daddy came along. We have some video that we will upload today some time. I bought a waterproof camera so I hope the pictures from that turn out well. It will be a few days before you all see the pictures because of the fact they aren't digital (gasp!).

Monday, February 26, 2007

Separation Anxiety

Annabelle has reached this point where she is starting to experience separation anxiety. There are times during the day where I cannot step away for a second before she starts crying for me. It would be really sweet if it wasn't so tiring. If I walk into the kitchen and she can no longer see me, she'll start whining and crawl into the kitchen looking for me. Once she sees me she'll book it over to my leg and pull to a stand on it and yank on my pants until I pick her up. It's actually pretty cute...but ask me about it again in a few weeks and I'm sure I'll feel differently.

This weekend we went to Goody and Poppy's weekend house in Kilmarnock, VA. It was a nice weekend away. We did come home to a new brushing of snow.

Friday, February 23, 2007

Pictures from Gymboree

I actually remembered to take my camera to Gymboree yesterday. Here are a few of the pictures (I took a bunch)...


Crawling through the tunnel:


Playing with the balls...

Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Busy, Busy, Busy....

Sorry again for the delay in posts! Annabelle keeps me on my toes during the day. She is a very inquisitive little baby and is pretty much into everything.

Some friends and I have started a babysitting swap. My friend watched Annabelle yesterday for 2 hours. I grocery shopped and went to Babies R Us all by myself. I know it sounds boring, but it was bliss shopping alone in the middle of the week. I don't know what I'll do next week...Today I watched my friends baby. She got a pedicure and went to Target. It was interesting watching 2 babies at once. I got a small glimpse of what having twins could be like. Wow.....maybe 1 baby is enough??? :-)

Tomorrow we have Gymboree and then mom's coffee afterwards. The weather is getting a bit warmer so all of that darn ice is finally melting. I can't wait for spring!

On Monday we had Annabelle's 9 month appt. She got 2 shots (Hepatitis B and Polio)and they tried to take a urine sample. That is a very interesting endeavor...it's this weird bag that they somehow attached to the vagina. She didn't like it very much. She did not deliver, so they said we'll do it at the 12 mo appt. Annabelle is now 17lbs (25% percentile), is 26.5 inches long (25% percentile) and her head is 17.5 inches around (50% percentile). The doctor was pleased with her progression and was impressed that she was already cruising. She has been in those percentiles pretty steadily since birth. She may be a peanut, but at least she's consistent!

Friday, February 16, 2007

Crappy Week

Well...it's been a pretty crappy week. The snow from Tuesday turned into ice. I mean ice,too. You can't step through the snow..it's frozen solid. Then Tuesday night at around 11pm Paul got really sick. He spent all night Tuesday and most of Wednesday getting sick. Because of things, I didn't feel comfortable taking Annabelle out in case we were carrying germs. So, we skipped Annabelle's friend Megan's Valentines Day Party on Wednesday and then Gymboree on Thursday. It's hard to get out anyway because everything is frozen. Paul has finally recuperated...poor guy. There has been a nasty bug going around...a stomach virus called norovirus. He was back up to fighting speed yesterday morning.

The school system closed for 3 days...including today. Our swim class follows that schedule, so, class was cancelled today. We will be going to Zoe's first birthday party today and it's a Valentine's theme so hopefully Annabelle can still give out her valentines.

Here is a picture from yesterday. We took the sled out.

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

Snowy Day

Today it's snowing...it was supposed to be a big storm. But, it's turned into a smaller storm. Goody and Poppy gave Annabelle a sled for Valentine's day. Here is a picture of her in it. Check out the goofy look on her face.

So, we decided to hunker down and not go anywhere!

Sunday, February 11, 2007

Another milestone reached!

Annabelle has reached another milestone...cruising. She has been doing this for about a week. Crusing is basically pulling oneself up onto furniture and then using that furniture to get around. She moves from one piece of furniture to another with ease. This is usually the from the coffee table to the couch and vice versa. She does this in both the living room and front living room. Another favorite is from the changing table to the leather chair.

Apparently, this milestone is normally reached at 11 months or anywhere between 9-13 months. So, Annabelle doing it at 8 months is really early. Another indication she is a smart girl! I'm not making it up...I promise! :-)

Thursday, February 08, 2007

Frigid Temps

Boy...is it cold out there! We've been reluctant to get out of the house, but finally did it yesterday. Annabelle and I ran a few errands then met up with a friend of mine for lunch. Last night I had mom's night out. A bunch of us went to a wine bar called Tallula's (http://www.tallularestaurant.com). It was nice to get out with just the girls. Paul had a good time playing with Annabelle and gave her a bath.
Here are some pictures from yesterday:

Yes, it's patent pending:


Look at my teeth!

Tuesday, February 06, 2007

Finally, those darn teeth.

I forgot to mention...Annabelle finally has her bottom two teeth. They have been there for about a week. I think that had to be the longest process ever. She started teething around 3 months and it continued off and on until now. Geesh! Some of Annabelle's friends started teething and within a week had 2 teeth. You just never know.

Today we went to playgroup at Heather and Leah's house. Mom forgot the camera, but her friends had some so be on the lookout for some pictures from today. Here is a picture of her taking a nap today. She puts her butt up in the air...it's hilarious.



Also, here is a video from a few days ago. You will have to copy and paste the link.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1600450119010178520&pr=goog-sl

Monday, February 05, 2007

Mac N Cheese

One of THE most confusing aspects of parenthood thus far is when to start solids, how much to give them, etc. This especially applies to finger food...when are you supposed to do this? Most of my friends are further along in this process. I am just so scared that she'll choke. But, I got brave today and gave her some mac n cheese that I made in the meals for munchkins class. It had cauliflower mixed in with it. She seemed to really enjoy it, albeit a lot of it ended up on the floor much to Bailey's enjoyment. Here is a picture:



Our little fashion diva:

Time Flies!

There is a phemonena that occurs when you have a baby...time disappears right before your eyes. I never really experienced this pre-baby, well except while on vacation. I just realized it's been a few days since I posted and thought it had only been one or two days...but man, it's been 4! Where did the time go??? On Thursday we went to Gymboree. We usually have our class on Wednesday but I'm switching to the Thursday class so we can hang out with some friends. On Friday we had swimming. I love swimming! That really poops out Annabelle. I had my team in training run on Saturday. We did 6 miles and boy did I feel it! This was the first time since starting training that I actually was sore after a run. Guess it was a good workout. Then, of course, Sunday we hung out all day at home and watched the Superbowl festivities.
Today is our slow day of no activities. I think we'll run some errands. I've been itching to go to a scrapbook store for a while, so I think we'll do that. Here are a few pictures from yesterday.

Annabelle and her first purse:


Dad and Annabelle getting ready to watch the big game:

Wednesday, January 31, 2007

Babyproofing

Well, Paul finally got one gate up...only 3 more to go. I wish we would have done this sooner. We should have babyproofed months ago then we wouldn't have to be worrying about it now. It just crept on us sooner than we thought.

Here is Paul putting in gate.


Also, Annabelle is doing something a little funny. It's a prelude to walking, I think. It looks like she is trying to stand up on all fours but then she starts crawling that way. It's weird...here's a picture.

Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Object Permanence

Object permanence is a baby's ability to realize something still exists even though they can't see it. This on average happens at around 9 months. Annabelle has been demonstrating this for some time. However, today, it was really strong. She likes keys..likes to chew on them. She managed to get a hold of Paul's keys. I thought it was gross for her to be chewing on it. I took them away and she had her first temper tantrum. You would have thought she was writhing in pain by the way she was crying for those keys. Usually, if I take something away, I hide it or move her out of the room. That didn't work this time. She knew those keys were around somewhere and darn it, she wanted them. Wow...that was some crying fit!

Monday, January 29, 2007

Funny Girl

Annabelle is such a cutie. Yes, I know I'm biased. But you should see her get around. I just laugh and laugh as she gets around. It's funny to see such a tiny girl moving around the way she does. Here are some great pics from today. She's crawling all over place getting into everything. I went to Babies R Us today and bought 4 gates, electric outlet plugs and some magnet things to keep her from opening up the cabinets. She is already starting to get into them.

Annabelle knows a good thing when she sees it:




Here is a link to the most recent video. You may need to cut and paste:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4330934155693316855&pr=goog-sl

Tomorrow we are meeting some friends out for coffee.

Friday, January 26, 2007

Busy few days....

Sorry to have not posted in a few days....

Wednesday we had Gymboree class. This class is a workout for mom. Lots of lifting, swinging, etc of Annabelle. But, I think she is really enjoying it. Thursday was a blah day. Mom wasn't feeling all that great so we stayed in and took a nap! It ended up being a very peaceful, quiet day. Today we had swimming lessons. I think Annabelle really enjoys the water. The water was a bit cool today...but Annabelle was warm in her mini wetsuit. Some of the other babies were a bit cold.

Mom and Dad went out to dinner tonight while Goody and Poppy babysat. It's so nice that they are here. I don't know what we would do without them.

I took a good video today of Annabelle...be on the lookout for it tomorrow.

Tuesday, January 23, 2007

Homemade Baby Food

Today I made Annabelle some homemade baby food. I made her some lentils and some butternut squash. It's very easy...just cook the food, puree it and then put it in ice cube trays and freeze. When it's frozen, put into ziplock bags and voila! You are done. You can defrost them one at a time for a quick, healthy, and all natural baby meal!

We also went to our friend Shannon and Allie's house. We had a lot of fun playing with John, Zoe, Lily, Allie, Belle, Urban, and David. Here are some pictures from today. Annabelle is sporting yet another fashionable ensemble from her Auntie Mary.



Monday, January 22, 2007

Getting out...

Annabelle and I had to get out of the house today. We have been cooped up too long. So, we did some simple errand running and grocery shopping. Nothing too exciting. We did venture to the new Harris Teeter store. It's really nice...like a cross between Giant and Whole Foods.

Here are some pictures of Annabelle from today. You can see how well she is standing. That girl is CONSTANTLY on the move. Chasing Bailey is one of her new pasttimes. Bailey fights back by licking her face over and over again. She is so busy during the day that at night she really goes down like a bag of rocks. We are enjoying her new early bedtime of 7pm!



Sunday, January 21, 2007

Snowing....Finally!

Well, it's snowing today! It's been snowing steadily since about 12pm. It is actually starting to accumulate, too. We are planning on going outside for some pictures with Annabelle for her first snow! Update...here are the pictures.

Belle and Dad


Bailey enjoying the snow too

On Friday we had our second swimming class. We had a ton of fun. Annabelle slept very well after that. She was very active in the water with kicking her legs and chasing after rubber duckies. Our little stinker is very very mobile now. I've been reading a book about things you can do to stimulate your baby. According to the book, babies that do things early tend be very bright babies. I guess Annabelle is a bright baby! She is doing lots of things early. Plus her head just keeps getting bigger! hehehe...gotta keep stimulating that brain. The book also says that brains grow with activity. I know you can't take everything in every book word for word...ther are just too many differing opinions out there. BUT, I'll believe our baby is bright!

Here is a recent video. You may have to cut and paste the link.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-101890179469305494

Thursday, January 18, 2007

What to do about the dog food.

Ok, so now that she's crawling, Annabelle is obsessed with Bailey's food dishes. I turned my back for 1 second and she had a piece of his food in her hand, about 2 inches from her mouth. Yikes!


Today she pulled herself to a stand for the first time. That's scary too. We put her in a sleepsack while in the crib, and she even managed to stand in that. Yesterday we had Gymboree and as always it was loads of fun. Today we stayed in...the weather was gloomy and mom didn't feel like going anywhere. We did a nice long walk today, though. Tomorrow is swimming! Wahooooo

Tuesday, January 16, 2007

Time to Babyproof

Annabelle is getting around way too easily these days. We think it's time to babyproof. Here are some pictures of her getting into the entertainment center. We have a large open space in it where there is a large vase. She is very interested in this vase. Babyproofing is #1 on the priority list.



Sunday, January 14, 2007

Busy weekend....

Paul and I spent the whole weekend cleaning out our basement. Very exciting, I know. It was a mess...I am quite the packrat. We also borrowed a shopvac and did a huge cleanup. That kept us really busy.

I think we can say that Annabelle is officially crawling. She got about 3 feet today. Here is a video of her crawling a little bit. She is doing really well and transitions well from sitting to crawling back to sitting. You may need to cut and paste the link.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=620246930253461513&pr=goog-sl

Picture of crawling:



I fed Annabelle some of the homemade baby food. It was a carrot apple puree with brown rice. I don't think she likes the brown rice very much...probably just the texture. I kept her in the highchair a bit so I could straighten up the kitchen. The next thing I knew, I turned around and she was asleep. She has never fallen asleep in anything other than the carseat, the pack n play, and the crib.

Saturday, January 13, 2007

Cooking class

Last night I took a cooking class to teach us how to make nutrious and all natural baby food and toddler meals. It was a lot of fun...we turned it into a mom's night out. Here is a website for more information: www.meals4munchkins.com

We finally had to lower the crib ALL the way down to the bottom. Annabelle was getting way too good at pulling herself up. In fact, she has pulled herself up to a full stand. This has only happened in the crib, though. On the crawling front I would lean towards saying she took her first "crawls" today...but, I won't. She only got about 3 or 4 inches before she plopped down.

Friday, January 12, 2007

Swim Time!

We started swimming lessons today. They start at 10am. Unfortunately, that's right in the middle of Annabelle's morning nap. That's the only nap I can count on her taking during the day. Well, she wasn't too pleased with getting up early. However, once we drove to the pool and got in the water, she had a good time. Here is a picture of her in her wetsuit. Uncle Jack and Aunt Christina gave her a swimsuit, however, it was too big so we'll have to save it for next year.



The swimming was a lot of fun and didn't present the logisitical challenge I was expecting. We did lots of fun things in the pool. Annabelle instinctively knew to kick when I pulled her along in the water. We both enjoyed it very much.

Thursday, January 11, 2007

Almost crawling and almost first tooth!

Well, I think Annabelle will be crawling any day now. She is very good at getting on all fours and rocking back and forth. She has figured out how to move her hands and feet to move forward but will only do it for a second before plopping down. She is very good at the "combat crawl" which consists of scooting along her tummy. She really gets around well this way.

Almost Crawling:


Also, her first tooth is just about out. You can see the teeth...they are about half way thru. She's actually been pretty good natured during the whole teething affair. By the way, I'm a little annoyed by the whole process...she's been teething for about 3 months now. It takes FOREVER.

Tomorrow we have our first swimming lesson. I bought her a mini wetsuit to keep her warm. We heard the pool wasn't all that warm. Should be interesting to say the least.

Wednesday, January 10, 2007

Playtime!

On Tuesday Annabelle and I went over to Heather's house. We had a blast playing with John, Lily, and Belle. Here is a picture from yesterday. Annabelle is playing with John.


Today we had our 2nd Gymboree class. Here is a video from the class. I think Annabelle is getting more out of this class than she did from the 0-6 month class. This class is 6-10 months. She'll turn 10 months at the end of March. We may move into the 10-16 month class after that. We'll see. Here is a video from last week from the birthday playgroup. After a few minutes, there is video from today's gymboree. You may have to copy and paste the link.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3927183295099119659&pr=goog-sl

Monday, January 08, 2007

Rainy Day

Annabelle and I were going to run some errands today. However, it's been raining all morning so I don't know if we will end up doing that. We have a post office, grocery store and CVS (drugstore) all within walking distance to our house. One of my favorite things to do is to get Annabelle in the stroller and take a nice long walk and take care of small errands at the same time. I was planning on doing that today too. Oh well...darn rain. Mondays are errand running or cleaning days (yes, I know..my life is so exciting! :-)). Tuesdays and Thursdays are moms coffees (I usually go to at least one), Wednesdays we have Gymboree and Fridays are full: mornings are swimming lessons and afternoons are playgroups. Swimming lessons only run for 8 weeks starting this Friday. I HAVE to stay busy or else I go insane.


Annabelle has this funny habit of "doing her hair" while she is taking a bottle. She will hold her own bottle about half the time, but when she doesn't, she does her hair. She'll rub her hands back and forth on her head, smoothing out her hair then pulling it then smoothing it out again. It's pretty funny. Blanka got a picture of it this weekend:

Sunday, January 07, 2007

Busy Friday and Saturday

In my mom's group we have a wide variety of ages. We all met at the new moms group at the hospital and quickly became friends. The babies range from birthdays in Dec 05 to July 06. Thus, we are starting to celebrate 1st birthdays...where in the world does the time go? On Friday we went to Harpers first birthday playgroup/party. It really is funny how crazy things get when babies start to crawl and walk. We have one walker and a bunch of crawlers. The party was pure chaos, but so much fun. Here is a video from the party:

On Saturday we went to stay the night with Todd, Blanka, and Julia. Aunt Jill and Cousin Scott along with Craig were there too. These are some pictures that Blanka took. We also got some fantastic pictures, but unfortunately they were all wiped when the memory card was removed to download the pics at Todd's house. Annabelle was quite funny when put next to Julia. She tried to hold her hand and touched her face....she came dangerously close to poking Julia's eye out too. Yikes!
Julia and Annabelle:


Todd and Paul (holding Julia)


Tonight we had to lower the crib. Annabelle ALMOST pulled herself into a stand and it scared mom to death. SO, down the mattress went. We just can't believe how quickly our little girl is growing. It goes by so quickly.

Thursday, January 04, 2007

Gymboree Again

Yesterday we started Gymboree again. Annabelle is now in the 6-10 month class. It was a great class and really wore her out...it also wore me out a bit as it required a bit more physical activity than the 0-6 month class did. It will be every Wednesday from now until April. Next week we start swimming lessons.
Annabelle is starting to get such a little personality. We just love it. She is definitely a girl who knows what she likes! As for her teeth, I am starting to see two white buds pop thru on the bottom. They are almost out, thank God.
Today we had coffee with some other moms. Annabelle and Allie played together a while...I took a video. I'll have it posted tomorrow night. Not only do you get my mommy voice, you get the voice of several other moms!


Here are a few pics from the last few days...


Post Bath Mohawk...


Monday, January 01, 2007

Happy New Year!

Hope everyone had a wonderful New Year's Eve! Ours was low key...just the way we like it! Our friends Tim and Sheila came over. We made fondue...we started with a swiss cheese fondue, then did a coq au vin (broth) fondue with meats and dipping sauces. Then we played a little bit of Taboo. Paul and I don't own any board games...it was a lot of fun. I think we need to get a few. Then about 1/2 hour before midnight we fired up the chocolate fondue, complete with cheesecake, marshmellow, and various fruits for dipping. Annabelle was a doll the whole night, sleeping away in her crib.

Miss Belle is very active these days. She is easily bored and needs to be constantly stimulated. This afternoon after mom and Annabelle both had a nap, we tried to have a family snuggle, but Annabelle wouldn't hear of it. She needed to be doing SOMETHING! She got a couple of pianos for Christmas. Below is a link to a new video...it's a combination of a few different video from the last few days.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3729224788618210950&pr=goog-sl
She is also starting to perfect her pincer grasp. She sees tiny things on the carpet and tries to pick them up. I guess that's a reminder to me to vacuum on a daily basis.

We just can't get over how much she changes everyday and how she is truly the joy of our life.