Happy Halloween!

From October 2008

From October 2008

Bella was a turtle for Halloween. She told us that is what she wanted to be a few months ago when "turtle" became her favorite word. She can pick a turtle out of a crowd no problem. She also thinks that the little TIVO guy on the TV is a turtle. Whenever we are trying to select some fine programs from our TIVO list, she runs toward the TV yelling, "Turtle!" Green peas...turtles too. I guess I can see the resemblance. So, the Halloween costume was an easy choice.

From October 2008

From October 2008

We went to the neighborhood Halloween pot-luck. It was a very good time, and there was tons of yummy food and-of course-candy. Mommy and Daddy dressed up as Salt and Pepper shakers. Not bad for creating costumes in less than an hour. And we also had helmets in case any angry children started throwing candy.

From October 2008

From October 2008

From October 2008

Bella went for her first trick-or-treating adventure with the neighbors. She did carry her own candy, but Daddy had to carry her. She tends to walk opposite of the desired direction of travel, so this was not the year for her to walk herself to the doors. She didn't really say anything except for the occasional "Bye!" at any of the houses. I was hoping that she would announce that she was a turtle, but she got a little shy with the strangers throwing candy into her pumpkin. I guess that's not a bad thing. Her favorite activity was inventorying all of her candy afterwards. She spend at least a half-hour taking candy out and putting it back into her pumpkin. What a cutie! It was a really great Halloween! I can't believe that last Halloween she couldn't even sit up on her own. At this rate, she'll be going to college next Halloween!

Outer Banks 2008

This week we went to the Outer Banks for a week of relaxation and fun with the families of three of Todd's buddies from school. It was an EXCELLENT time. Everyone got along great, and the kids were all fantastic. Todd's friend M found us an awesome house in Corolla, NC. It was right across the street from the beach. We had two good summer days, and the rest were windy fall days. So, it was a nice mix. We never did get to see the mythical Corolla wild horses, but M did hear them neighing. :) Bella had a great time with Lex who is 18 months old. After hanging out with her, Bella decided that walking is cool, so she's been determined that crawling is not for her ever since. The two "older" kids, Liv and Z were best buds and were really great with the younger ones.
There were three families for most of the week. The P's joined us on Thursday with little E. Everybody fit right in and had a great time together. Good job to the S family for bringing the Wii. After the kids went to bed, that thing was responsible for lots of fun nights and tired mornings. Wii Karaoke was definitely the fave.
We figured out that we could definitely handle the beach house lifestyle. Maybe we could all set up an island hopper float-plane company. Any takers? I think I still remember how to fly. :)
Thanks to everyone that was there for making it a fabulous vacation. We are looking forward to another fun-filled week next year!!

Happy 1st Birthday Bella!!!

From August 2008

Wow! We can't believe our precious little baby is one year old. This year has flown by, and it has been amazing!
There was a man who locked himself in the basement of a library for a year, and read the entire Oxford English Dictionary. He found wonderful words that he never knew existed that could describe the indescribable. For example, (I don't remember the word), but there is a word in the English language for the way the street smells right after it rains.
Well, I challenge anyone to invent a word that encapsulates the awesomeness of Bella. This word has to describe a lot of things. Someone who is adorable beyond measure (look at those cheeks). Someone who finds excitement in everything ("wow!" is her favorite word) Someone who gives the best hugs first thing in the morning. Someone who loves music, animals (even Capo), and causing mischief. Someone who always makes us laugh. Someone whose smile can melt your heart. Someone who makes this world seem so much more beautiful every day.
All those words describe little pieces, but, none can quite describe the joy of watching her grow and being with her every day. It is just a constant wonderful miracle to witness her discovering the world in the darned cutest ways.
We love you Bella! We are so blessed to have you in our family!
Thank so much to all those who sent sweet birthday gifts and wishes to Bella. She is a very loved little girl, and she sends big hugs out to all of you.

Birthday Party #3

On the day of her birthday we had a little family party with Mommy, Daddy, G-ma and Gramma. Right during her party Bella got a phone call from Aunt Dawny's Family and Aunt Robin's Family. They both sang her Happy Birthday on speakerphone. She loved it! She was laughing and saying "wow!" the entire time.
As you can all see, by this time, Bella got the hang of the cake and icing thing. No more daintiness for her. She dove right in this time. Since it was her second cupcake of the day, and Mommy wanted her to go to sleep before midnight, Mommy helped her out with her cupcake a little bit. :) Then we opened presents. She is one lucky girl. She got some fun toys, cute clothes, and some amazing books. Thanks to everyone for all of the sweet, thoughtful gifts. She was definitely excited about all of her presents.

Party at Pepi's

Bella's second party was at day care on the day of her birthday. Here she is with all of her friends. She is definitely a superstar in Pepi's house. Every morning she gets a hero's welcome when we walk into Pepi's door. Wouldn't it be great if you arrived at work every morning and all of your co-workers ran up to the door yelling you name and holding their arms out to give you a big hug. What a happy little world she lives in.

From August 2008

Here you can see her winding up for a big bite of cupcake. She was definitely into it.

From August 2008

From August 2008

Bella's Birthday Party

Bella had a great party at Mount Trashmore the day before her actual birthday. She invited all of her friends and had daddy grill a bunch of burgers and dogs. It was a lot of fun! It was great to get a bunch of our friends together. Thanks to everyone that came out--and to those that helped. And thanks to Robin and Ricky for driving all the way from Sumerduck. I wish I had been better about taking pictures because I didn't get pictures of everyone that was there. But, don't worry, we got you all on video singing to her. One day I'll figure out how to get videos on this blog. One step at a time.
Bella had a great day. She was very happy to see everyone and to be the center of attention. I expected her to attack her cake, but, she turned down the opportunity to crawl into it. She wasn't sure about getting that icing all over her pretty dress. She loved the icing as long as someone put it directly in her mouth and she didn't have to touch it. After all that excitement and sugar, she passed out within two minutes of getting in the car to go home.

Baby Shower!

Today we had a baby shower for Scratchie Lambie's Momma. We all had a great time together and can't wait until we can meet her new little guy. Thanks to everyone who helped out!!

Congratulations Will and Meg!

We went to Will and Meg's wedding in Charlottesville this weekend. Notice Bella is nowhere to be found in these pictures. Yes, it was Mommy and Daddy's first trip together without our precious little bundle, and it was great! Thanks to Grama for making it possible. We had a great time seeing old friends and enjoying a little extra freedom. The wedding was gorgeous. Congratulations guys!

Todd and His "Mini Me"

You can't deny the resemblance. Look at those cheeks! On both of them! :)

Scary Pete

Bella showed fear for the first time today. Yes, it was Mr. Pete and his giant afro. His outfit did wonders for sales at the squadron basket auction (he was the auctioneer), but was not a hit with Bella. We tried to hand her over to Pete for a photo op, but she was clinging to my shoulder for dear life. She wanted nothing to do with Mr. Pete and all of his bling.

Meeting Brooklyn Bella!

We drove back to Salt Lake City to catch our flight home and met up with my fabulous cousin Chelsea and her family for dinner. That is where Bella and Brooklyn Bella (Chelsea's daughter) got to meet. They were so cute together. Brooklyn got to show Bella all of her big stuff like eating peas and walking. Bella couldn't stop talking about how cool her cousin was. We were so happy that we got to see Chelsea, Dave, and Brooklyn. We would love for them to come out to the East Coast to visit sometime. (hint...hint)

Goodbye Idaho Falls!

Today it was time to say goodbye to Aunt Dawny, Uncle Scott, and the boys. Bella truly bonded with everyone while she was there. If you noticed from the pictures, her cousin, T, was carrying her around every chance he got. All of the boys were just wonderful with her. It was so nice to see everyone, and we were so lucky to be able to spend so much quality time together in such a wonderful place. Thanks for everything! We love you guys and can't wait to see you again!

Dinner in the Bus

Today we spent the day back in Idaho Falls. It was nice to have a day of rest after all of our traveling. We celebrated Mommy and Daddy's birthdays today, since we weren't all together for our birthdays. We had dinner in the taco bus. It was delicious AND fun. What a great idea! A restaurant in a bus. Genius!

Last Day in Yellowstone

This morning we got up and said goodbye to Mammoth Hot Springs. We headed up to the North Gate to see the famous entrance to the park and we also heard that we could see mountain goats up there. Sure enough, we saw them. AND babies to boot. Those little guys could hope around those mountains like nobody's business. So cute! That left only one more animal for us to see on our trip. Bears. And thanks to our good luck from Mr. Moose (the one we saw on the first day), we not only saw one bear, but we saw four. Uncle Scott got his wish. I couldn't get a great picture, because they were a little far away, but I promise that we saw them. First we saw an adult bear. Then, after some other tourists gave us some tips, we went a little further and saw a Momma bear with her two cubs. It was so adorable seeing them wrestle and play with each other. It was like watching the boys wrestle and play.
After our breakthrough bear find, we decided it was time to head home.
We had a wonderful time in Yellowstone together. The company was great fun, the scenery was glorious, and the animals were plentiful. What more could you ask for in a vacation? Thanks to Aunt Dawny for planning such a wonderful trip!!! Bella was absolutely awesome the entire time. I knew she was going to be an outdoorsy girl!

Yellowstone Day 3

Today we had the best weather so far, so we got to do a lot less driving and a lot more exploring. The boys started off the day by building a fort behind our cabins. Then, we went to see Old Faithful erupt. Everyone got geared up because it was pretty cold. We were missing a pair of gloves, so Todd improvised with some socks. Old Faithful erupted as promised (I guess that's why they call is Old Faithful) and it was amazing! After that we went through the Norris Geyser Basin on our way to our next night's stop an Mammoth Hot Springs. It was incredible seeing how the landscape went from beautiful, lush mountains to a wasteland of sulphur, hot springs and geysers. The Prismatic Spring was my favorite. On our way to see that spring Bella fell asleep while riding on Todd's shoulders. That takes real talent to be able to sleep through riding on someone's shoulders while walking on a small wooden walkway just inches above steaming hot magma. That's my girl!
Mammoth Hot Springs was our favorite overnight spot. The area around our cabins was teeming with prairie dogs. The boys wasted no time in completely terrorizing the poor things. Those little varmits made for hours of entertainment for them while we had a chance to just sit on the porch and enjoy the view--and the cries of distress from the prairie dogs. That night while Aunt Dawny napped with Bella, we went on a great hike with Uncle Scott and the boys. We were so grateful to be able to have nice weather to be able to get out and stretch our legs. It was a beautiful day and everyone slept great after all of our adventures.

Yellowstone Day 2

Today we traveled from Lake Yellowstone to Old Faithful where we stayed in some other cabins. It rained all day today, so we spent a lot of time in our trusty Suburban. You would think that eight people spending extended amounts of time together in a car would be a recipe for disaster, but everyone did really well. We had no big fights or major breakdowns during the entire trip. Everyone really got along and enjoyed each other.
This was our first day seeing Buffalo, and we saw a ton of them. We even witnessed a street migration. One of these pictures that Todd got was of a Buffalo that was right next to our car. We also got to see some baby buffalo. The "red dogs" were adorable. We also got to see some elk.
That night we stayed at Old Faithful and Bella hung out with her cousins while Mommy and Daddy had a nice dinner alone. It was really nice having a little time to ourselves. Thanks Aunt Dawny and Uncle Scott!

On our Way to Yellowstone

Today we set out for Yellowstone National Park. All 8 of us piled into the Suburban (I was skeptical, but we fit comfortably, even with all of our gear) and headed on our way. We drove through the Teton pass, and stopped in Jackson Hole, WY for lunch. That was an amazing drive! It was so incredibly beautiful. Jackson Hole is an adorable town. We will definitely have to plan a trip back there. Unfortunately, it started to rain, but that didn't stop us from snapping some great pictures. Here Bella began blazing her trail of blowouts throughout the wild west. She was going through about three outfits a day during our entire trip. Poor thing set herself up for several freezing cold wardrobe changes on the back seat of the Suburban.
After Jackson Hole, we drove through the Grand Teton National Forest and saw a moose. I think that moose gave us good luck because we saw just about every animal you can possibly see while we were in Yellowstone. We finally made it to our destination, Lake Yellowstone Lodge. We stayed in some cabins there, and went to dinner in the restaurant. That place looked like something out of the Great Gatsby. It was full of people from all different places and had a very 1920s style.
It was a fantastic day. It felt so good to finally get out and breath some fresh air. The majesty of the West is not like anything else, and it just made us all feel a little more free being out there.

Bella Meets Her Cousins

We woke up this morning and started the trek from Salt Lake City to Idaho Falls where Aunt Dawny's lives. We made a stop at some hot springs, which was great. The water was a little hot for Bella, so we took turns holding her while she sat by the springs and modeled her bathing suit. When we got to Aunt Dawny's house, Bella was immediately excited and entertained by the buzz of activity. Watching her cousins run around the house must have been the most hilarious thing she has ever seen because she couldn't stop laughing. She was very excited to meet her Uncle and her cousins, and we were very excited to see everyone again.

Going to Visit Aunt Dawnie

Today Bella embarked on her first cross country trip and first airplane ride. She was wonderful on the plane after she got her Starbucks fix. (not really, but she really enjoyed chewing on and drooling all over Mommy Starbucks cup) She actually slept for 2 1/2 hours of the 4 hour flight from Atlanta to Salt Lake City (draped accross Mommy and Daddy's laps)which allowed Mommy to watch the entire in flight movie. Good job Bella!
Once in Salt Lake, Aunt Dawnie met us at the airport and the four of us stayed the night in downtown Salt Lake City. It was Aunt Dawnie's first time meeting Bella, and Bella knew right away that Aunt Dawnie was one of her people. She hugged her right away.
That night we went out for Thai food with Aunt Dawnie's best friend, Cherish, and we had a great time. Bella had a small issue at dinner. She exploded poo all over herself, and, for the first time ever, Mommy was caught without a change of clothes for Bella. Doh! So Mommy wrapped her up in her nursing cover, and tried to play it off that she was in a traditional Thai dress while Daddy ran to the hotel to get another outfit. She looked like the "Dalai Bella". And, I swear this happened: We were laughing and Cherish said, "I bet you are like the Dalai Bella," and Bella winked at her. It was like something out of one of those baby animation commercials. I have a witness.
It was a great night, and it was wonderful to see Aunt Dawnie again.

Bella's Bonnet

The bonnet is this picture is actually Mommy's from when she was a baby. Grama put it on Bella for fun. It's funny to see it on her because I used to have it on my baby doll growing up. She is much cuter than my baby doll though. It had those baby doll hair plugs and those scary eyes that open and close (remember those?).

Listening to the Rain

Bella and Mommy sat on the porch with Daddy and listened to the rain. It was nice to be able to relax together after Daddy FINALLY got his paper finished. Yay!
I also have to report that Bella officially messed with me tonight--on purpose. I'm discovering fun new parts of her personality all the time now. I was rocking her to sleep tonight, and she was a little hyper from the fun family day we had together. She had a pacifier in her mouth while I was singing her a lullabye and rocking her. She kept taking the pacifier out of her mouth and sticking it in my mouth. Everytime she pushing the paci towards my mouth she just started cracking up. I finally broke down and started laughing too.

Fun with Carrots!

We took these pics of Bella eating some carrots (carrot mush). She really gets into it, as you can see. She really wants to use the spoon herself. The problem is that she grabs onto the part of the spoon that the food is on. This causes two problems. 1: The food goes on her hands instead of her mouth and 2: There is food on her hands which immediately start flailing. Her favorite thing to do once the food is on her hands is to check and make sure her hair is still looking good--she does this by grabbing her little antenna on her head. Which leads us directly to bathtime. Mommy usually needs a nap after Bella eats.

Get Me Out of My Bumbo Chair Mr. Elephant!

Sometimes we sit Bella in her bumbo chair to keep her in one spot while fixing dinner, etc. She was getting a little frustrated and took it out on her elephant's foot. That's better than crying! :)

Arts Festival

We went to a local arts festival today. It was a gorgeous day, and we had a great time--thanks to Bella being so good. She got LOTS of attention, so she had a good time too.

Silpada Girl

Bella loves Grama's Silpada jewelry. Grama is trying to get her to throw a Silpada party. Bella is definitely into the free jewelry idea. :)

Child Prodigy

One of Bella's favorite toys is this little piano that she inherited from her cousin, Noah. She's really awesome at playing B-I-N-G-O, which is great background music while we're eating dinner. I'm going to start her on learning some Mozart next.

Happy Birthday to Me!

I had a fun birthday this year. Thanks to Grama, me and Todd got to go out to a nice dinner. Then, we came home and had some cake and present time. Todd got me one of those Garmin running watches with a GPS and heart monitor. So, I guess I better get movin! :) Thanks to everyone that thought of me on my birthday! It was great hearing from you, and I had a wonderful day!

Happy Mother's Day!

I had a very nice first Mother's Day. I'm so grateful to be the Mother of such a wonderful little girl. And I'm so happy that I get to share her with her Grama and G-ma. Happy Mother's Day to all of you lucky moms out there!

Bella's First Cell Phone

When Bella gets really excited about something she throws her hands out, like she's going to give you a hug, and she tenses up her entire body until her face turns red and she starts trembling. It's pretty hilarious when it happens. She's got some intensity, this one. Well, that was the reaction that I got from her in Target when I first showed her this toy cell phone. I had no choice but to buy it immediately. Oh boy, I'm in trouble.

Hangin Out With Winnie the Pooh

Bella's Aunt Robin gave her this great Winnie the Pooh set that Kaylee and Jimmy played with when they were little. She loves it! It sits right next to my desk, so she can play while I'm blogging (which I don't do often enough) or downloading pictures (which is mostly all I do on the computer--okay and maybe a little online shopping too).

Happy Mornings!

We can't be grumpy in the morning anymore. As soon as Bella wakes up, it's all smiles in our house. I love how crazy her hair gets in the morning. Her and Daddy both have fantastic morning hair.

Pampered Baby

What a life! Wouldn't it be great if you got to take a bubble bath every night, and then I friendly giant would wrap you up in a giant fluffy towel and carry you to your room. Being a baby rules. I don't know what Bella complains about sometimes. :)

Snuggle Bug

Bella and I babysit for my friend when she goes to class on Wednesdays. After C goes to bed, me and Bella just get to hang out by ourselves. It's always nice and quiet there (no dogs or people awake) and she usually snuggles on my shoulder while I read a book. We like our quiet time. I set up the camera and took a picture of us because she was being so cute and snuggly.

Mini Barbecue

We had some friends over for dinner today and decided to barbecue some burgers and buffalo hot dogs (yes, made from buffalo) that I got from the farmer's market. Well, we don't have a grill, so we barbecued on one of those stove-top grills. Actually, our friend Evan, who happens to be one of Bella's favorite people, did all of the grilling while Todd mowed the lawn so we could play bocce ball. It was a fun day that made me decide that we need to have people over more often(normally I get scared about entertaining). So, this summer maybe we'll actually have a big barbecue with a real grill. Bella also got to hang out with her friend Emma. They were so cute together! Emma was fascinated with Bella. What an adorable pair!

Organic Baby

Today was the grand opening of the Farmer's Market in Ghent, so Bella got dressed up in her "organically grown" T-shirt and we went food shopping. That was our big activity of the day. The rest of our Saturday was spent vegging around the house. Everybody wants to spend time with Bella on the weekends because we miss her all day during the week.

Visiting Jeff and Kim

We had a great time visiting Jeff and Kim this weekend. They're expecting their own little bundle VERY soon. We can't wait to meet him!

Happy Eight Month Birthday!

For Bella's eight month birthday we loaded up the car and took a drive down to visit Jeff and Kim in Winston-Salem. She wasn't too excited about the long car ride, but she had fun once we got there.

Happy 7 Month Birthday!!

Can you believe it!? Bella is 7 months old! She had a fun, happy day. Here she is with Daddy, playing with "Little Bunny Fu-Fu" that Aunt Dawny's family sent her for Easter. Gramma brought her the wooden toy from her cousin Noah's house. She loved it! She was so quiet all during dinner because she was concentrating so hard on moving the little wooden blocks. Sometimes she got so excite she just started shaking. She provides us with so much entertainment. We were cracking up watching her.

Easter with Crazy Crumbs

We went over to Crazy Crumbs' house for a fantastic Easter feast. We all had a great time. Bella joined every conversation with her loud babbling at dinner. She's taking after Daddy. :) (maybe Mommy too with that one) CC and Bella were so cute together. CC was all over the place--she was crawling everywhere! Bella was very impressed with all of CC's new baby moves. She was so tired that she passed out on Daddy's shoulder when we were leaving. Thanks for such a great time and the great company Nutz and Crackers!

Happy Easter!!

Bella had a great first Easter. She got an Easter basket from Mommy and Daddy--they had to help her eat the candy, and an adorable Easter bunny from G-ma. She also got to put on her favorite dress and go to church. It was a great morning, and we are so thankful for our wonderful little family. Big hugs to all of our family and friends that we can't be with today! We love you!