Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Birthday- Take 1

While we were at the beach we celebrated Haley's birthday for the first time. The first of 4 celebrations.
Why 4 celebrations? The first was with Zachs family; since we saw them at the beach 3 days before Haley's birthday we figured we would celebrate there instead of people traveling to the mountians for her actual brthday. The second celebration was her birthday party, where her friends came as well as my mom. Part 3 was on her actual birthday. We were at work but some of our kids were gone so we had ice cream and saved the cake for celebration number 4, which occured after the rest of the boys got home.
Our beach celebration was small, just some cake and opening presents. Haley had a mini-cake to destroy. A chocolate cupcake covered in berries. I think she likes this birthday business.










Friday, August 20, 2010

The Beach- A Photo Story

2 weeks ago we went to the beach with Haley's grandpa. Her 2 uncles, great aunt and uncle, grandma, and British grandpa also joined in the fun. It was a great week :)

Haley got an early birthday present. We turned her car seat around and let her ride to the beach like a big girl.

When we arrived we went straight to the sand to play.

Haley was happy to see her grandpa! (aka papa, aka OPA!)

She was much less timid about the waves this time around.



After playing in the sand we stripped her down and hosed her off. She was a bit unsure of the hose.

Haley spent a lot of time on the stairs and she learned to turn around and go down feet first.

Grapes, seashells, and the ocean!


I love the sweat bubbles on her nose. Irresistible!

New beach toys. Another early birthday gift.






While we were there Haley learned a new trick. I gave her a bite of my cereal, she looked at me and signed "more". Someone has been paying attention.

Playing in the waves with uncle Josh.


More playtime with the uncles. We followed her as she crawled up the beach along the edge of the waves. It was a blast to watch her entertain groups of people watching the ocean from their lawn chairs.

Sweet shades!

Polka dot girls

Little Swim suites out to dry.

I love how she folds up her legs when the waves come in.


Always the entertainer.

Yellow polka dots courtesy of my mama.

An adventure with the grandparents.

All snuggled after getting wet.


My Fresca!



Bocci at the beach.


Giggling at Grabby

Playing in the sunset and "I want my momma"

Discovering the bocci balls. She was very disappointed that they were not easy to pick up.

This girl loves the sand.

Our little Family

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Happy Birthday Baby

Happy Birthday Haley Kate!
Here is a preview of Haley's big Birthday party. There are lots of Birthday and beach pictures to come' when I have a chance to upload, sort, and edit them all. Work, three birthday celebrations, a beach trip, and a move have put me a little behind again.
And, we still have one cake left to eat when the rest of our boys get home from their retreat. I think this baby's first birthday week has been well celebrated. Our waistlines will all agree!

Monday, August 9, 2010

Mommy and Me Monday: Slip 'n' slide



Here are 2 recent pictures of haley and I.
The first is not a great photo but it's from a wonderful day. Our bums are both very wet from going down the giant slip 'n' slide they set up at work. It's over 100 feet of tarp stretching down a fairly steep hill. I took one of my kids to a meeting and returned just as they were finishing up. Since the slide had pretty much cleared off I got to take Haley down the lower half 3 times. The first time we ended up going a little too slow and it was more of a scooting trip. But the next 2 times Haley had a big smile on her face as she sped down the hill. It is definitely something she'll want to do again.
The second is from dinner with Zach and my mom. After an afternoon of packing boxes we went out for a nice meal. Haley was very cheerful and we enjoyed laughing together over noting in particular. She is delightful.

Saturday, August 7, 2010

11 Month Update

11 Month Update and the month in photos- Finally caught up

Stats
Height: 30 1/4
Weight: 20.3 lbs.

Booster Seat: Haley got a new booster seat. She modeled it well. The purple polka dots with the yellow and orange booster seat make me smile!

Riding with Style: At the beach she got to ride in the bus without her seat belt. We probably should not have let her, but look at that girls toothy grin. Don't worry it was a one time thing, every other time she travels, even a short distance, she is buckled safely into her car seat. She had a blast looking out the window and giggling with mommy and daddy.
I think she will be quite pleased when she turns to face the front.

Playground: Just a typical day at the local playground. We love that the playground is just about 3 blocks away and we can walk down to it often. What do we do there: eat some snacks, go down the slide, swing, and fly with daddy.

Tupperware: Haley's favorite drawer in the kitchen at the home is the one full of tupperware. She makes a bee line for it every time I'm in the kitchen. .

Food glorious food: Trying watermelon, eating berries, and getting fed. Haley's meal time is never dull. The guys at the home love trying her snacks and replenishing her tray when it gets low. They also like to sneak her their food, which I have to get onto them about sometimes. "Marshmallows and Mountain Dew are not for babies"

First Beach Trip: Playing with mommy and daddy at the beach; almost as good as playing with the bucket.

Baptism and A Visit: One of Haley's "Big brothers" was bastised in a lake near the home. We went to Ichiban to celebrate and start our huse vacation a day early. Haley liked watching them ocook the food in front of her on the Hibachi grill. She also got to meet some of the girls I used to coach on one of our days off.

My little water baby: She loves to splash in the water. The town pool or her packyard seal pool, it makes no difference to her. She also likes watching the boys play in the lake when we took them all camping. Unfortunately she never got to go in because some trouble brewed before she had the chancee But, there was a nice beach she got to crawl around on.

Baby Toys: Haley likes playing with her toys. Some of her current favorites are her shopping cart, her wiggle ball, her table, her bath toys, and her stacking and nesting balls.

Unexpected toys: mommy's old cell phone, a ball, a marker, and a fossil.

Celebrations: The 4th of July, The parade, and her first closing ceremonies at camp. Seminoles of course won!!

At Home: Trying to climb over her barricade, Sleeping soundly, and grimacing from her glider.

Shenanigans: Climbing stairs and giggling with gramma and grandpa, visiting with Montana, riding around in the bus.

More Shenanigans: A birthday party at the beach. Playing with Daddy. Watching a 3D movie at the Imax.

More Developments and Habits

You went to the beach and went camping for the first time.

Your hair is still looking like it might turn red.

You still stick out your tongue some and make the “haley face” I haven’t heard you razz in a few months but you love to make a “lala” type sound while you stick your tongue in and out.

You can stand up petty well but do it best when you’re distracted by a toy. When you realize your standing alone you tend to get scared and sit down. I think you could walk, you just aren’t interested. You know you’re faster if you crawl.

You took one step, but it was in a pool so it didn’t fully count. You like to walk with the shopping cart.

You are a quick crawler and we practice crawling up the stairs several times a week. You always get to the top and want to go down head first.

You are very clingy when you want your parents. When mom and dad are silly it makes you smile and do your silent giggle. You get shy around new people but you do well going to them if the time is right and it’s on your terms. (it’s better if I put you down and let you go to them instead of placing you in their arms)

You love your big brothers from Watkins, especially AW and JL. You especially like it when Big Red calls you booger butt.

You are our little ladybug. The kids at the home all adore you, you are their Haley bug.

You are a little explorer. You love to go off on your own, and eat dirt. Even if no one is following you. You are not one to stay in the lines or be held back by boundaries. You are clever at finding your way around things, even if it means climbing on tables, over your parents, or under chairs. You are also developing a great memory, you know right where to go for the Tupperware, the checker boards and more.

You love toys that light up and make noise.

You started sleeping with a sound machine, which was a big improvement on most nights. You slept through the night some more but you also had several nights where you would wake up 3 times screaming until I fed you and gave you Tylenol. Sometimes circumstances don’t allow for crying it out. Plus growing teeth is tough work, you should know, you have 6; with an adorable gap between the front 2.

Your binky is almost always clipped to you as you crawl around dragging it in the dirt. You don’t seem to mind and you like having it handy. You love having one finger in the side of your mouth, in your ear, or even up your nose. It’s pretty cute and funny.

You will eat almost any vegetable or cereal, even if you don’t like it, as long as it’s drizzled with fruit or I alternate with fruit every bite or two. You love ice cream and will fuss loudly for more. You have expanded your palate with very few rashes as a reaction. I think you just weren’t ready yet in the past when food gave you a rash.

You love pulling books off the shelf, toys out of the box, clothes out of the drawer, night light out of the wall, and Maggy Monster off of the top shelf and into your crib.

You like pushing the buttons on your mobile when you wake up and playing with your toys contentedly until we come to get you.

You are a happy baby, and people often brag about how god you are. You are observant and sweet. You love to snuggle and place your head on our shoulders. You love to go back and forth: from mom to dad and back again. You love to get down and crawl around, in movies and at church, whenever it’s most inconvenient to track you down.

You watch TV by standing in front of the screen. You love the computer even though we try to keep you away from it, especially after you ruined the cord twice. You are Giga Byte because you love to sink your teeth into anything electronic.

You like pulling on the filing cabinets at work and rocking back and forth. You open doors when they’re ajar. You are blocked from our dining room by a chair stuffed with a body pillow, you like to stand up by it and peer into the forbidden abyss.

You clap so well and you figured out how to clap with the crowd while we were at the beach, although it still startles you when there’s a loud round of applause. You did a great job of clapping at closing. You would get startled, look around, and then join n every time. You also wave, give high fives, and blow kisses.

You started dancing a little to the beat of music. You like to shake your shoulders.

You love holding books and exploring the pages. Of course that means we can only really read you a story if another book is in your hands. You still find great joy in going to the bookshelf outside of the office and pulling as many books down as possible.

You love baths, unless you have a fever. Then you scream like a banshee. You hate having your clothes put on. You would rather be in your birthday suit. It’s a fight to get your diaper on, but you do ok if you’re on your changing table. I seriously have never seen a baby scream and squirm so much when they needed to get dressed.

You like talking and singing, especially at church and when you’re in the back seat of the car. You just want to make sure your voice is heard too. and make sure that you are the center of attention.

You have a phone of your own that you love to turn on and chew on.

You get along well with other babies. You like dogs, even big dogs like pacer, you even let them lick your face. You are also fascinated by cats; You like to pet tigger, the kitten next door who runs into our house, but you haven’t really figure out how to be gentle yet.

You understand much more than “let go” but you don’t always listen. You are starting to understand commands like “come here” and you will follow mom around most of the house. The tops of your feet and your knees are always caked in dirt, and sometimes even bruised up. But you have no problems crawling over rough surfaces and paved paths. You are not that easily deterred.

You still hate when long dresses get under your knees and make it difficult to crawl quickly.

You charm everyone you meet with your sweet smile and they all agree that you are a beautiful baby.

You nod yes and no at the funniest times. And you head-butt me all the time, especially in the jaw, ouch!

You have an incredible ability to find things on the floor, that seem to be invisible to the naked eye, and then stick them straight into your mouth.

You love swinging on big swings and baby swings. I thing we will try to get you one soon.

I love flipping you around, on and over my shoulders, and than placing you on the floor to crawl around. You tuck your head perfectly to lead to where you want to go, on your back or tummy. You love to wrestle with mommy and daddy.

You always look for things even if I try to hide them. You reach for things when they drop, even if it means lunging for the floor. But you also have a neat sense of when you are in danger of losing you balance and falling.

You like playing the piano.

You like to try to unroll the TP and pick little pieces of it off.

You have been practicing saying momma, daddy, and up. You’ve kind of said other things, but none have really counted. You are good at the “ba” sound.

Your pincer fingers are still so cute, although you’ve started pinching yourself a lot, and pinching me too. You make the milk sign, but not really on purpose. The awkwardness of your hands is about my favorite thing in the world.

You throw fits when you don’t get your way, especially if you’re sleepy, hungry or teething.

You usually just nurse 3-4 times a day you. You can eat 2 containers of gerber food plus some puffs in one sitting. You have also almost figured out how to drink from a sippy cup, but only if we feed it to you.


You laugh when I say boogitty boogity boo. And when you hang upside down.