Flamingos?

Yeah, flamingos.

Here is Lily at Zoo Atlanta. We’ll have many more photos of our holiday trip soon. But in the meantime…flamingos!

I bet they were cold

 

Lily Likes the Bath

We took a bubble bath the other night, and Lily was smacking herself around. It was pretty funny. Here, watch:

 

Playdate

My friend Maria is so much fun!  We go to the playground together from time to time and it’s always a blast.  I like to hold hands with Lily and go down the slide, so we had Maria join us for this fun little game.

1-2-3 Go!

 

After Dinner Antics

Enjoy this goofy video of me and my sister dancing to Octopus’ Garden.

 

Happy Halloween

I have been waiting for Halloween since November 1, 2010. It’s my favorite holiday by far. So many magical things happen in the month of October, and I’m just now starting to remember them from one year to the next. So even though this is my fourth Halloween, it’s the first year I’ve gotten excited. Because I remember. I remember what happens.

There’s candy. Lots and lots of candy.

But it’s more than just the candy. This year, I got to go to a Halloween party at Nanny’s house and I marched in a Halloween parade. But I must admit, the highlight was the trick or treating. I continued in the tradition that has been going on every year for my entire life– all three years– of trick or treating with my cousin Lucas, Uncle Jonathan, and Auntie Amy.

This year, I showed Lily the ropes. Did Lily love trick or treating? I’ll let you be the judge of that.

Here we are getting ready to march in the parade. Lily insisted on getting whiskers to be like me. She doesn't realize that pumpkins don't have whiskers, but that's okay.

She's still the cutest pumpkin of all time. By the way, check out the pumpkin hat grandma knit for her. Grandma rocks!

A little love between sisters, then we're off to the parade

I found my friend Eamon and marched with him. Lily was mocking us. Stinker.

Here I am with all my friends from Nanny's. She throws killer parties!

On to the main event. Meow!

What did I tell you? Cutest Pumpkin ever. And yes, that's my cousin Lucas giving me the business end of his weapon in the background.

So okay. The video quality isn’t great on this (I blame daddy– his “smart” phone really isn’t that smart).  However, you can get a glimpse into our Halloween night, however grainy and dark.

 

It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Mommy and daddy took us out to Butler’s Orchard for the fall festival, which includes a hayride to the pumpkin patch.  This year was extra special because we got to bring my cousin Savannah with us. Butler’s Orchard is super fun, and the day we went was amazing because it wasn’t too hot or too cold.

But it sure was crowded.

Fortunately, daddy is a genius and knew exactly when to arrive and take off, so the crowds weren’t much of an issue for us. We found two perfect pumpkins and had an amazing day. Check it out.

I took a nice stroll through the pumpkin patch with Lily. She's too young to remember being here last year.

Lily found a good pumpkin...

...while I took a load off.

Lily frolicked amongst the pumpkins

And she made some funny faces

She obviously had a good time

I tried to pose with mommy for a picture, but Lily snuck into the shot.

It was a perfect day to be out enjoying the harvest season

I loved riding this giant slide on a burlap sack. (What's burlap?)

But the best part by far was the haystack

We jumped and laughed and payed for a long time in the hay.

Lily in particular loved the hay

I mean, she REALLY loved the hay

 

Apple Picking

I am learning about healthy foods and where they come from. Apples come from trees!  Mommy and daddy took Lily and me to see the trees where apples grow, and we got to pull the apples off by ourselves!  Then we ate the apples. I love apples, but only when I can eat them whole.  Check out some pics from our adventure.

Mommy helped me reach this apple

Daddy helped Lily

Apples are delicious!

Yum Yum Yum Yum Yum....Deliciouso!

Daddy posed for this one. He's so silly.

Mommy likes the green apples best

 

The Beach

This summer, Mommy, Daddy, Lily and I went to the beach.  We joined Uncle David, Uncle Jonathan, Auntie Amy, Uncle Matthew, Grandma, Grandpa, Lucas, Violet, Joseph, and Savannah for a really fun time! Here are some pictures from the week.

Funland was one of the highlights of the trip. Check us out! We're driving!

I flew a kite!

Lily played with her friend Kingston

Mommy and Lily had a little cuddle on the beach

Lucas pretended he was surfing! He's so brave. I didn't go in the ocean this year.

We had fun on the beach even though the ocean was too scary. Lily really liked this inner tube.

World's biggest sandbox? Whoa.

Catch that tube!

Smile! You're on vacation!

 

Memorial Day– Hello Pool

We got out to the pool for the first time this year on Memorial Day.  We had a great time visiting with our friends Gianna, Bobby, Josie, and Carlin. Mommy and daddy had some fun with the grownups, too. It was super duper hot, so the pool was a perfect activity. We put on lots of lotion to stay safe, but mommy overlooked her own shoulders and now has a funny sunburn.  That’ll teach her.

Yes! I approve of this activity.

 

Now, how does this wet noodle work?

 

I dare you not to smile back at me.

 

Big girl

 

 

Goodbye, Winter. Hello Spring!

This winter was long and cold.  Lily and I wore socks and shoes for a long time. But now, it’s time to break out the Crocs and shorts.

We’ve done some pretty cool stuff this Spring so far. We went to the Lake House with Marlo (and Angela, Jason, Caroline, and Jimmy). We went to the Flower Mart.  And of course, we go to the playground all the time. Lily is braving ever-more-dangerous playground apparati and learning more and more complicated words.  I am adjusting to my big girl bed and thinking about the potty.

Here are some Spring pics– enjoy!

Lake House. Chill.

I've loved boats since I was born

...And Lily does too.

Proud Face

Sisters in the hammock

We've been to lots of playgrounds

Sometimes we play together

We take our sandbox very seriously

I'm planting some flowers here

We rode the merry-go-round at the Flower Mart. Lily sang "Weeeeeeeee" the whole time

I dug it too

Love getting dirty

Love helping mommy in the garden

Love daddy

Born to run

Don't mind me. Just eatin' a little sand.

 

We’re Baaaaaaaack!

Mommy and daddy talk about how busy they are, but  I don’t see what the big deal is. Yeah, we play a lot, we go places, we hang out, but seriously. How come I haven’t had a chance to update you on our awesomeness in, like, three months? It’s a little ridiculous. So I’m back to give you the lowdown on 2011 so far.

I’m talking now. A lot. I tell mommy and daddy everything, and I have some of the greatest expressions in the whole world. For instance, when daddy tries to feed me something gross, I tell him, “I can’t like it! I can’t WANT it!”  But he doesn’t feed me yucky-yuck stuff very often. Usually, I help him cook the food by sitting on the counter and “stiggering it up.” For dessert, I love “pocksicles.” One of my favorite toys right now is my white whale, which I have named “Baby Abruga.”  (Mommy keeps trying to tell me ‘beluga,’ but I know what his name is.)

I am excited for the Spring because I am a total playground junky now. Swings, slides, climbing, and especially getting down near and/or into the creek. I am drawing and painting a lot, and I can write most of my letters…remarkably neatly. I can write my name and Lily’s name. I am learning to use the potty and I can’t wait to wear my Dora underwear everyday like a big girl. I’ve already taken my first step toward this elusive “big girl” notion…I am on day eight of NO BOBBI, even when I go to sleep! It was hard at first, but I still have my bahnken, Elmo, and Baby Abruga to sleep with. Mommy and daddy are proud of me. Lily still gets a paci, though.

Speaking of big girls, Lily is getting HUGE! She is almost 14 months old! Sometimes mommy calls her Godzilly.  But usually, just Puff or Puffin.  She is walking…I mean, running. Her hair is finally growing, too.  She loves necklaces and mommy fears she will be a real girly girl. But she sure is cute, and she loves to laugh.  She says a lot of words now, too.  Some things she can say: I did it, up, Hannah,  nanny, again, no, happy birthday to you, all done, hello, hi, buh bye, nite nite, apple,  baby, and of course, mommy and daddy.

She had an awesome first birthday party. Sorry, not a lot of pictures, but it’s out of our control. Mommy plans to make up for the lost pictures this spring by keeping our growth and fun well-documented. So sit back and enjoy these pictures taken with mommy’s new camera yesterday and today.  More  coming- we promise.

Loving Sunday with the family

Lily is learning to climb

She's already figured out the tunnel

This is a bizarre piece of playground equiptment, but I'll master it

Ridin' this horse is serious business

So is hugging Lily

Goofing around with Mommy

Being sweet with Grandma

 

Peek-A-Boo

 

Harvest Season

Autumn is great. There’s so much to do and see.  This fall, I learned that I love having my face painted and I love Trick-or-Treating!  My cousin Lucas taught me the word candy and I think I’m in love.  My favorites are Kit Kat and Skittles.  I like to remind Lily that she’s too young for candy. I’m a big girl so I get to have it!

Here's our whole family on a hayride at Butler's Orchard

Lily helped us pick out a good pumpkin

I got a really cool sun and moon painted on my face. I have been talking about this non-stop ever since it happened.

Lily loved the fall festival

And I got to ride a pony again.

After I selected a pumpkin...

...I opted to do some calisthenics

I dressed up like a panda bear for Halloween. My grandma made my costume and I loved it

Even though Lily couldn't trick-or-treat this year, she dressed up like a Kitty cat and had fun at Nanny's Halloween party.

I went trick-or-treating with very little help from mommy and daddy.

But I did have some help from my cousin Lucas.

Out of all my loot, I chose "scarrots" to eat first. Mommy and daddy think I'm so weird sometimes.

Lily is growing so fast. Here she is at her 9-month check-up.

 

Playing Together At Last

Not only can Lily crawl, she’s becoming more fun to hang out with. We play together a lot. I like to do peek-a-boo with her because it makes her laugh, and she’s cute when she laughs. Mommy and daddy are so happy when we play– I don’t know what the big deal is, but they seem to think it’s the most awesome thing in the world. Yeah, Lily’s alright.

 

Football time!

The story of how Mommy and Daddy met is complicated, I’m told.  But I do know that they both went to college at a place called Georgia.  I’ve been there!

Well, Georgia’s football team has its first game this weekend, and Daddy is really excited. Mommy is lukewarm on the whole thing. But I really like playing with my football, so I think I’ll support Daddy on this one (plus, check out the super-sweet Georgia outfits Grandmama got for me and Lily):

 

Six Months Already?!?

So, Lily just turned six months old.  She is really getting big. She and I are sleeping in the same room now, and sometimes mommy and daddy wake up to the sound of us laughing at each other. She laughs at everything I do. She is much more fun to play with now that she can sit up… she’s really happy about it, too. Here’s a video of Lily that tells about a lot of parts of her day.

 

Redskins Season Has Started

I don't know about football because I was born after this "Superbowl" thing, but I'm excited anyway

 

I can dance

I'm a dancing machine.

 

Where have we been?!?

Mommy and Daddy keep taking us all over the place.  We’ve been out of our routine and on vacation in Georgia, so it has been a long time since we’ve updated our blog. Over the past month, we have seen all our grandparents, all our great-grandparents, all our aunts and uncles, and more cousins that we can count! Of course, Hannah is the only one who can count…and she can only count to three.

Enjoy some photos from the month of June.

I'm laughing because it's funny. Really funny.

Now that's it's warm enough, we can play at the fountain in downtown Silver Spring. Here I am rocking my surfer girl look.

Our trip to Georgia included a few firsts- for us and for mommy. Check it out:

We went on the boat at Brannon's lake house. Mommy caught her first fish on this trip. I just liked throwing crickets into the water.

They finally gave me real food. Here I am taking my first bite of rice cereal. Yum!

We also had a great time with family.

Here we are with Daddy, Aunt Claire and Adam, and Aunt Julien

Here I am at Aunt Julien's stables.

I have a lot of hair

Back home, we had fun, too. Mommy took us to the zoo:

Check it out- I saw alpacas

The month of June ended with Hannah’s second birthday.  She got TWO parties! One with daddy’s family in Georgia, and one with mommy’s family at home. Lucky!

This was taken the morning of my actual birthday. It was on a Wednesday.

It tasted even better than it looked

Elmo cake!

Thank you to everyone who celebrated my birthday with me– in Georgia and here at home. I got some really neat birthday presents:

Mommy helped me open my presents

See that dress? It's from my grandmama. See that sandbox? It's from my pop.

This chair from grandma has my name on it, but I like to share it with Lily.

 

Mommy and Daddy’s special day

Today is Mommy and Daddy’s anniversary. They’ve been married five years!

Daddy bought Mommy a new camera to commemorate the occasion. So we’ve been taking lots of pictures today. As you can see, Lily and I are pretty happy today.

Grandma is coming over later to watch us while Mommy and Daddy go out together. I don’t know why…we’re the only things that matter right?