10 Months (and one day) old!

I'm getting soooo big! I can pull up on everthing and cruise around anything, even Sophie. I am a very fast crawler and I can climb over all sorts of obstacles. I am involved in everything my big sister does - if she reads, I read, if she plays with her dolly, I play with her dolly. She taught me two new words - Mine and No!

I hid this from Mommy and Daddy for awhile - I can climb stairs. I probably shouldn't have hidden it since I can't stay on stairs that well, and I got my first bloody nose. Now there are more gates than ever!

I'm still happy as ever, and hungry as ever. I've started eating bananas, goldfish, noodles, and puffed rice in addition to my yogurt, cereal, and baby food. Sometimes I'm so hungry I can't even wait until morning to eat. I still only have two teeth, but one of my top ones is getting close to poking out. Hope it's here soon!

Merry Christmas!

On Christmas Eve, we went to a beautiful service at church with Scott's dad. I was so happy to sing loudly all of my favorite carols. The girls did lots of clapping. Afterwards, we came home and had a nice meal. Before she went to bed, Annabel blew kisses to our 12' inflatable front-yard Santa.

Next year, I think Annabel (and maybe Caroline?) will be able to understand more of the Christmas' true meaning, and I'm looking forward to continuing a tradition I grew up with where we read Luke's account of Jesus' birth.

Christmas morning was fun! Annabel loved tearing open the packages, and Caroline loved eating the wrapping paper. They had great fun with their new piano and blocks.

Christmas took an unexpected turn around 11am. Scott was making waffles, and I was cutting potatoes into 1/4" slices when I remembered I had a mandolin. It was sure to make the job easier. It was also sure to slice off the side of my thumb and top of my index finger. Scott wrapped my wounds in a burp cloth, and I sat on the steps outside the kitchen since I felt woozy. Next thing I know I'm waking up under the Christmas tree with my head in the trash can as Scott's finishing up a frantic call to 911. Since I lost consciousness, I was taken to the ER in style, complete with oxygen in the ambulance and and in the waiting room. The nurse told me I was the third mandolin-related incident that morning.

The Ramsey PD, the Allendale Ambulance Corps, and the Valley Hospital staff and doctors were all great and I was back at home in my new Snuggy before 2pm.

I always wondered who it was eating Chinese food on Christmas evening, and now I know.

Merry Christmas everyone!!

First snow!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I'm 9 months old!

I'm 9 months old today! I'm getting very speedy at crawling, and I'm pretty good at pulling up and standing up. I can say all sorts of things - mamamama, babababa, dadadada. Mommy and Daddy call it babbling, but I know what I'm saying! And speaking of mom and dad, I'm not sure what they think makes a good birthday celebration, but I don't think a trip to the doctor and an H1N1 shot would make most baby's lists. At least I had fun crunching up the exam table paper!

My sister likes to take her shirt off and show off her belly. She didn't wear a shirt all afternoon! Then, tonight, she wanted to put on all sorts of clothes - clothes that are supposed to be mine now. She put on a dress, 4 pairs of socks, and bloomers and shorts over her leggings. Crazy!

Boo!

Caroline's first Halloween was a rainy one, but she still had fun being a pretty flower.



On Friday, we Trunk or Treated at church. Ladybug Annabel liked the cider donuts more than the candy, and she managed to hold onto it while playing on the playground.


On Saturday, the girls braved the rain in a search for candy. After a few houses, they came back inside to play. Annabel likes Junior Mints, M&Ms and lollipops the best.

On Sunday, we went to a local farm for a hayride. The girls also saw a tiny horse, a calf, a ram, some goats, and some pigs (they bite!)

Guess who's crawling?

Motivated by her desire for the Blackberry (the electronic device, not the fruit), Caroline crawled her first three consecutive steps - and repeated it several times. Imagine what she would do for an iPhone!

Eight months old!

Today was the perfect fall day - crisp but not cold, and sunny. And last week's cold snap brought the leaves to their peak colors. Caroline planned to celebrate her 8 month old birthday jamming to some accordian music, noshing on a bratwurst, and leaf peeping at Bear Mountain for Oktoberfest. But apparently all the other infants and toddlers in NY and NJ had the same idea, and we couldn't get close to it or the any of the other Bear Mountain attractions. The drive was beautiful though, and we stopped to enjoy a local nursery's petting zoo instead.

Hi Grandma and Grandpa

Grandma and Grandpa Brooks came for a visit this week. We played a lot and had lots of fun. We sure will miss them, but we'll see them in just 2 months for Christmas!

I love ice cream, and even more when I share it with Grandpa!

Leaf peeping

Last weekend we trekked to Vermont to look at the leaves and enjoy the fall weather. It was brrr cold, but we had a great time. Caroline went to her first Oktoberfest, and Annabel ran through her first corn maze.

On the way up, we stopped at Marcella's and Roger's to meet baby Max. He's 10 months old!

In other news, Caroline got her first tooth about two weeks ago. She's scooching backwards, and has the crawling position down. Now if she could just get those knees to move. Annabel is talking up a storm and finds new things to climb every day. She scaled a toy storage unit at Ikea this weekend.

Grandma and Grandpa have been visiting since Wednesday. Pray for good weather so they can enjoy their last few days with the girls.

Happy 7 month birthday!

Starting 'em young

Sunday was the Giants' second game, and the girls got in the spirit by donning their jerseys.

After a week of everyone in the family being sick, it was nice to get out to go "hiking" at the Ramapo Reservation. It was Caroline's first hike up the beginning of the mountain and around the lake. In the category of not so fun, Caroline's other firsts for the week were first ear infection and first nebulizer treatment.