Two Birthdays and Ranch Dressing

Well, Spring Break was realllllly busy!

We had family in town, which was really fun! Jim's nephew Ryan, his wife Rebecca, and their daughter Bryn visited from WI. Bryn's first birthday was just a week away, so we celebrated early. Here is Hannah at the park enjoying Bryn's birthday festivities (thanks Tommy for sharin' your wheels,,,)
Ahhh...playin' at the park takes a lot out of ya..Hannah needs a rest...
Later we went to Tailgater's for dinner. I had made the mistake of introducing Hannah to Ranch Dressing...here she is dipping her french fries!
Maybe it would just be easier to drink from it...
Then it was time for cake! Elmo cake that is! When Hannah celebrated her first birthday, she wasn't very interested in cake. She poked at it, but wasn't sure if she REALLY wanted to put it in her mouth. So, to see her so involved in this birthday cake almost brought tears to my eyes! I'm not kidding! It was a bit of a relief to see a 1 1/2 year old devour cake, as quite often she pushes food away, saying, "noooooo".
Hmmmm...do I have food on my face?
Good stuff...
On the 21st it was my mom's (Hannah's grandma's) birthday! We went to Aunt Jaz and Uncle Joel's house. Hannah found Cousin Gavin's shopping cart right away! (Hannah has a shopping cart at home, which she generally chooses NOT to play with. However, the fact that this particular shopping cart isn't hers makes it that much more appealing!) Below is the "I better hurry before he catches me" face!
Just checkin' to make sure she's still "in the clear!"
My mom said that all she really wanted for her birthday was a nice picture with all 4 grandkids...

Sorry mom, these crazy kids aren't cooperating!
Take 2...getting closer...
This is the best one. The girls look FABULOUS. It's not their fault that the boys look a little silly...
Earlier that day... Grandma got a GREAT picture of Hannah and Zoey...girls are usually pretty cooperative!!!
Whew...what a busy week! Happy Birthday to all and to all a good night!!!

18 Months Old!!!

Hi, I'm 18 months old today (actually on the 16th, which is when these pics were taken). That's right it's my half birthday! What? Pose for a picture? OK...First, I need a snack and a drink.
How big am I?
Soooooo BIG!!!

BUSY BUSY BUSY!

We have been pretty busy lately! I really love playing in the sand when we go to the park, so my mom and dad got me my very own sandbox! The weather had been a bit chilly, but I insisted on playing in it anyway!So focused...
Okay, I'll look up for just a second, but gimme a break, I am NOT gonna smile!
Mom loves this look...spoiled?!?!?!
The other day my dad was playing with me in my swing. He does silly things that make me laugh. He was trying to get me to lift my arms and laugh.
Getting closer...
Yeah! I did it! Arms in the air and I'm laughing too!
We had lunch with grandma on Monday. She was makin' me giggle too! She even shared a little bit of ice cream with me!
We have relatives in town. Here is the lowdown: Far left, cousin Tommy, then Luke (hard to see him), Hailey, Bryn (visiting from WI) and me. I am 3 months older than Tommy and 6 months older than Bryn.

Luke, Me, Bryn, Hailey
Me with Bryn. It has been really nice to finally meet her! I think we'll be great friends!
Today I am officially 18 months old! My mom will take some pics of this special day (my half birthday) and post them soon!

Severe Silliness

I sure do love reading books with my daddy! He is a really good reader.He uses funny voices, and he makes me giggle!

Earlier I was busy trying to put on his shoes. They are a little too big for me, but that makes it much easier for me to try to put them on.
Getting closer...
Now, that's just perfect! Boy, these sure are heavy shoes!
I also got a new chair. It is really fun because it is just my size (almost). I need to grow just a little bit more, because when I'm trying to climb up onto it, it can tip over! So for right now, I can only use it on the carpet when mom and dad are watching, even though my mom really bought it for me to use outside.
And then, I found one of Mommy's flip-flops. I even got my toes between the part where they go! So what if it's on the wrong foot!

Share the Love!

I just wanted a nice picture with my daughter...could she please just cooperate for a few seconds?Okay, better.
Here dad...this is for you!
Hannah loves this little Valentine book!
Hmmm, usually I'm NOT supposed to rip paper, but now they want me to???
Ohhhh! Spread the love!
Daddy's little message to Hannah! So sweet!
...And his message to me! Potato Art is what we call it. Awwwww!!!

Randomness

I have been TERRIBLE about keeping up with the blog lately! I think I only took about 6 pictures during the entire month of January, which is so rare for me. I usually have at least a zillion! So, as Jim and I became quite teary-eyed the other night watching home videos of Hannah, and as we cannot believe how big and grown-up she is, I decided to post some pics of how she looked last year at this time...Same cute cheeks, but look how short her hair is!
Little love bug!
And now, a year later...she is trying to walk in mommy's shoes (well...maybe just her slippers!)


Silly eskimo jacket...it was a very cold day!
Just a few more quick notes about Hannah...

Loves to read books

Points to her shoes and says, "soos"--this is the cue that she wants to go out and play!

Loves to repeat things

Every time we drive by the park, she points and says, "side" (slide)

If you say, "What's your name?" she'll say "Anna" (we need to work on the initial /h/ sound)

If you ask her what a lion says, she'll say "raaaaah"

If you ask her what Taylor (the dog) says, she'll say, "uff uff"

Of course, she won't actually do this "on demand." She does this all the time at home, but try to show others what she can do, and she becomes "quiet Hannah!"