Updates

These are just some recent pictures I've taken of Mary Paul. As you can see she is doing yoga under our chairs and loves hairbows. She pulls them off and asks me to put them in her hair. She loves them.

Dancing with the Stars

Mary Paul is a dancer. It's funny because I am not...but I dance with her all the time. She loves to dance in the car, in the bath, to toys that make music and she loves, loves, loves Regina Spektor. My birthday is on Sunday (I'll be 29) and I got one of the music birthday cards from my sister-in-law, because she knows I love those cards. Well, Mary Paul loves them too and apparently is a Hansen fan.

Houston, we have a talker...

For those of you who know me, it should come as no surprise that my daughter is a talker. She is opinionated and also speaks with a lot of hand and head motions. It is so funny to hear her little voice talking. I can't wait to hear what she's going to say. Also, her new favorite things (besides trying to eat with utensils) is her white blanket and her "car" blanket. Her car blanket is one I made that we keep in the car and stroller. It has taggies and minky material so its super soft and she loves to finger the taggies. Her white blanket came from her Great Aunt Debby and Uncle Randy. She has always loved it but now she likes to carry it around, hugging it and calling it baby. Now, when she is grumpy or seems sleepy I just ask her if she wants to take a nap with her blanket. She says, "Yea" walks to her crib, holds up her arms and says, "Up." She then laughs and smiles as she snuggles with her "baby." Here's hoping the white blanket always holds that kind of power!!! She also loves to sit in her crib, snuggle with her blanket and read. Last night she did that for 40 minutes while I made dinner. Of course, I took a picture.

Hanging Around

This past weekend the weather was beautiful. On Saturday Bryan, Mary Paul, Daisy and I went out to the big field behind the church up the street. I really like the pictures of Bryan with Mary Paul. As you can see, Daisy is feeling much better...despite the fact that tonight she actually pulled a loose sock off of Mary Paul's foot and ate it. In other news, a stomach bug has hit our home, at least it has hit Bryan and Mary Paul. I, as usual, do not get sick and therefore must take care of all the invalids. It has not been pretty. Mary Paul is on the mend while Bryan is just beginning. Here's hoping it doesn't last too long.

Eight Things About My Kid

Okay, so Courtney tagged us...here are eight things about Mary Paul.

1) My first word was not Dada, or Mama...it was Daisy.

2) I love to wrestle with my mama and daddy. I scream and head dive into them.

3) Sometimes, when I wake up from a really good sleep...my hair is a cross between Donald Trump and Albert Einstein.

4) When not walking, I love to sit down and get up. I will sit on Mama's legs, the floor, a small chair, or as you can see, a ball.

5) I am a good eater. I will eat anything, and I love, love, love milk. I drink a gallon a week all by myself.

6) I can squat for hours.

7) I love, love, love my baths.

8) I love books. They are my favorite toys. I also love to read to anyone who will listen.

Now I tag Landon and Addi, Nina and Ethan, and Taylor.

A Huge Christmas Post!!!

Wow!!! We had such a busy holiday. Mary Paul and I slept in three different houses in one week. Plus, our dog, yes...Daisy the Wonder Dog, had to have emergency surgery because a sock that she ate got stuck in her stomach. We started our Christmas the Saturday night before Christmas. My mom was able to come up and join us. Daisy had her surgery at 2:30 am Sunday morning...so we were very tired when we got to church. Mary Paul and I then went to Atlanta with my mom who was kind enough to drop us off at my in-laws. Bryan and a very pitiful, 30 staples in her stomach, Daisy joined us on Monday. We had a great time seeing everyone. Aunt Beth and Uncle Brian made a delicious Christmas Eve dinner and then we all got together again on Christmas day. It was wonderful to see the whole family!!! Bryan headed back home with Daisy and I stayed in Atlanta with my mom before we left for Knoxville to have Christmas with my family. That was a crazy, fun, busy time. I wished I had taken more pictures. With 7 adults, 6 cars, 5 children, 4 bedrooms, 3 dogs, 2 1/2 baths and a partridge in a pair tree...it was a wonderful time.

Mary Paul's Snowflake First Birthday-2nd Post of the Night

Mary Paul is 1 year old!!!! We had a Snowflake Winter Wonderland Party!!! Despite the tear in the first picture, Mary Paul was a huge ham and loved every bit of attention she received!!! She also blew out her candle all by herself (we've been practicing and she now tries to blow out all the Christmas lights). You can't tell by the pictures, but we had snowflakes everywhere... hanging above the table, in the breakfast area, on the bookshelves and the curtains. Mary Paul had a special hat made by my sister, Ashley. She loved her cake and 3-D cookies; and we loved having so much of our family around us for this special day!!! As usual I loved being able to plan an event All in all, it was a great success. We are all tired though and ready for a good night's sleep. Can't wait to see what the next year brings!!!