Merry Christmas!

We had a wonderful Christmas and were very spoiled by grandma and grandpa (and Santa too!)

Hannah in her church dress on Christmas Eve...stealing gifts...

Christmas morning! What on earth is this? Let's climb on it!!!
This looks neat!
All unwrapped! A red radio flyer wagon!!
A-ha! I did it! (Pictures of Hannah in the wagon to come soon!)
OOOhh this makes animal noises!
Aahhh nice, hair in the face AND not smiling.
Daddy will help with this one...
Over at Aunt Jasmyn's house...new shoes are so fun!
HHmmmmmm sitting on this couch that is just my size...
It's just so fun to get up and down!
We are so thankful for being able to spend Christmas (and Christmas Eve Eve) with family!

Slept in past 8 am...check!

Ate a good breakfast...check!

Played with my toys...check!

Went to the park with my daddy...check!

Came home and ate lunch...check!

Fell asleep immediately after lunch in my highchair...check!

Little Helper

Lately I have been a really good helper. This is me cleaning the table (actually I undid most of the toilet paper roll first, then used it to clean...)This is me getting my shoes ready so mommy can put them on my feet (actually, when I start to get a little fussy and really want to go outside to play, I grab my shoes while simultaneously whining, and bring them over to mommy. This is my clue to her that I want to go out. On this particular day she wouldn't let me go out and play because we were just getting ready to leave, which caused me to whine even more).
This is me helping carry my purse (aka diaper bag thief. Mommy is trying to load the car and can't find my diaper bag loaded with the essentials: diapers, wipes, snacks, sippy cup...)
Please excuse the sideways pic. Mommy turned it around in iphoto and has no idea why it won't show up the right direction on the blog. Anyway...this is me "helping" with the ornaments on the tree. Well...let's be honest...I am trying to remove yet ANOTHER ornament from the tree. What a good little helper...

Funny Stuff

I've decided to take some time to recollect and share all of the CUTE things Hannah has been up to lately. I kept a little journal while I was pregnant, and continuously added information to her baby book during her first year, but haven't done much else since! She does so many things all the time that just make us CRACK UP!!!! First of all, she is obsessed with this one snowman ornament on the tree, and she takes it off, and then tries to put it back on (by setting it on the branch). I was so nervous about putting the tree up because I thought she might rip the entire thing down, but she has been really good, other than her slight obsession with a few of the ornaments. (I tried to bribe her, but she refused to face the camera...)I have added several random pictures. These first few are of her eating a yummy Christmas cookie with green frosting! Messy?
MMMmmmm...look how yummy my cheeks are...Mommy is always kissing them!
Hannah has been showing some serious signs of independence lately! I wish words could explain how cute, touching, funny, etc. she is. I'll do my best to pass it on! One of the things she has really wanted to do lately is feed herself with a spoon/fork! She'll eat mac & cheese/hot dogs almost independently with a fork. She has even been scooping up ice cream and yogurt almost all by herself to eat it. In other words, she doesn't need help from her parents anymore!!! Here she is eating some yogurt.
MMmmmm...did I even get any of this yogurt on the spoon?
Oh yeah, let me slurp it off!!!
Besides eating with a spoon, here are some more cute hi-lights of Hannah's hilarious happenings:

**She loves to read books! She will often go get one of her books, and bring it over to Jim on the couch. He will set her on his lap, read the book, and then when it's over, she will get off his lap, take the book back over to the messy toy area, and get another book. This cycle repeats several times!

**She imitates so many words. She will pick up her toy phone and say what sounds like "LOW" (hello?!??!!!) She also walks around pointing at things and says what sounds like "ut's that?" She purposely throws her sippy cup on the ground while in her high chair and says, "uh oh!"

**Mommy's little helper: she loves to close the pantry door and the dishwasher, and to pull the decorative towel off the oven door and start wiping the floor with it. The funny thing is, I don't scrub the floor on my hands and knees, so I'm not sure where she gets this one!!

**Careful little cookie: One night I made her some Easy Mac for dinner (I know, the most healthy choice out there), and after I took it out of the Microwave it was very hot so I blew on it. Ever since then, whenever I make or reheat mac and cheese, she starts blowing into the air. Sometime she even blows on lunch meat and crackers! That is one of my favorites!

**She loves to draw on her Magna Doodle toy. Today I looked over, and she was LAYING on the ground, coloring. I couldn't even believe how grown-up she looked while doing this!!!
Creating a masterpiece!
This is comfy!
I just can't believe how much she has changed since she turned one, which was just a few months ago!!!

Hannah we love you so much! Thank you for making us laugh each day! xoxoxoxoxoxo

Go Vikings!

Just getting ready for the Vikings game! I wore my purple to bed the night before, just for good luck!
Dad, leave me alone! I'm not a toy!
It looks like I'm smiling, but I'm throwing a little fit here...
Is this how it goes?
Oh, now that's perfect! The Vikings lost, but there's always next time!!!

New Swing

I really love my new swing! Thanks Aunt Jaz and Uncle Joel for getting this for me for my birthday! Thanks Uncle Joel for helping to hang it. I go in it everyday!I rotated this picture in i photo--not sure why it wouldn't upload the right direction. Oh well.

Jim, Hannah, and Mandy (the doll) snuggling on Thanksgiving morning.
Yo yo yo. I'm so cool. I think I'll start a new trend: jammies and sideways baseball cap. Feel free to copy me.

Hannah loves Taylor so much! She thinks Taylor is her very own giant toy. Taylor puts up with a lot. This picture would have been even better if Taylor were wearing reindeer antlers...hmmm..

Cute Little Stinker

It occurred to me the other day that not only have I not blogged since Halloween, but I hadn't even taken ANY pictures this month! It's been one crazy month.

First of all, Jim started coaching basketball, which almost makes me a single mom during the week. He works so hard, and I respect and appreciate all the time he puts into it! Sometimes he leaves the house at 6:30 a.m. and doesn't get home until 8:30 p.m. This makes me really unmotivated to make dinner! Plus, it's nearly impossible with a 14 month old. She really prefers to have me all to herself once we are home and isn't so big on me spending time in the kitchen! (Although, on a side note, she has been crying and throwing little fits lately when I pick her up from her sitter--apparently she is having so much fun that she doesn't want to stop! This, by the way, does wonders for my mom self-esteem...) Anyway, on the days he gets home earlier (6:00), I still have the same problem of trying to have dinner ready. It's practically impossible. The key is to whip something up while she's safely strapped into her highchair, chomping away (that is, when she chooses to chomp rather than throw everything on the floor).

It's really tiring for Jim as well, but he never complains. His glass is half-full..."basketball season is only for a few months".

So, as I realized that picture taking was essential, trying to get a good picture was a whole other story. Hannah is very smiley. She walks around giggling and smiling non-stop, until the camera comes out. Then she just manages to ever so slightly turn her head or pout for the camera.

Here she is learning how to color. She's really good at it. I noticed after uploading this one that her nose is really runny, so please just ignore the snot!
Not smiling or looking at the camera.
Oh hey...I got a smile! Of course it just had to be blurry!
Hmmm...Nice profile. Oh, and this is why we have a pool gate!
Oh this would have been so cute if it weren't blurry!
Smiling! But also looking down...
Playing peek-a-boo by hiding behind the chair. She had the best smile a few seconds prior to this picture, but my camera ran out of batteries and I had to run and get more (of course). So this one is just so-so.
Ahhhhh finally... Jim came home and is teaching Hannah how to talk on the phone. She always holds the phone to the back of her head instead of by her ear! Oh and it's upside down. However, it sounded like she said, "bye!"
Oh clapping and smiling!! Yeah!!!

Little Ballerina for Halloween

Hannah really enjoyed twirling around in her tutu!Magic wand...check! Cute shoes...check! Tutu that is slightly too big...check! Pumpkin bucket to use for candy collection...check! Why exactly does a ballerina need a magic wand?

Stir, stir, stir...
You can't tell in this picture, but the cat is on the other side of the gate, and Hannah was laughing hysterically at her. I was just glad to capture the entire outfit, even though she's facing the wrong direction!
A smile would have been nice here! Oh well!!!