Tooth!

Leia hit a major milestone on Christmas and got her first tooth. It is still working it's way through the gums and though she won't let me feel around much I bet the second bottom tooth will arrive shortly. Once it has popped through completely I will pry open her jaw for a picture (documentation has a price). For now it is just a blurry pink bump. Hope your holidays were less painful than Leia's!

Pine Cones and Goats

Kate has come a long way this holiday season figuring out what the heck is going on. The neighbors put up a big Christmas light display including reindeer. Kate thought they were goats, she is well informed now. When we got our Christmas tree the tree people wrapped it in netting. Kate thought it looked like a pine cone and kept asking what we were doing with it.

You can see why she thought it was a pinecone.

On with the first ornament.

Helping dad with the lights.

Helping daddy with the up high ornaments.

Leia participating in the ornament fun.

Kate has also learned to sing Jingle Bells and part of Jingle Bell Rock. Her two advent calendars have been a BIG hit and nothing beats seeing Christmas lights every night. We went to a big Christmas light display a few nights ago and will be going to another one tomorrow night. Both kids love the warming glowing warming glow of the pretty lights =)

10 Months Old

Leia is soooo close to being 1 year old it is scary. She turned 10 Months a few days ago and has been having a great month. She is still a cuddly kid but she loves her independence. She has started climbing on everything and is toying with the stairs. When she is in a really goofy mood she makes the best scrunchy face. One of her favorite games is mimicking Kate. They do a lot of squealing and can get pretty loud. It's fun to watch Leia learn how to play and interact with Kate. I anticipate a lot more squealing (happy and mad!) in our future.

Holiday Treats

Kate helped me do a little baking this week. When the cookies were done she wanted to continue her work in the kitchen so I set her up with some ingredients and let her mix away. Her favorite part was adding sprinkles and them picking them out one by one to eat them.





To entertain herself while we cooked Leia did some rhythm work using all the boxes she could reach. She'll either grow up to be a drummer or a demolition expert. Either way she was quite pleased with herself.

24 Hours with the BFF!

What does 24 hours or Kate and Willow look like? Here's a taste:

Exercising their brains playing Blokus.

And now onto dress up and dancing. This lasted quite a while.



Leia is of course trying to read (eat) the Alice the Fairy book while wearing a tutu.

Off to look at Christmas light. The girls walked a half mile to see all of 4 houses with lights.

Kate wanted to make sure Willow didn't slip.

Breakfast!

This was followed by more dress up and dancing and then Willow headed home. It was a great 24 hours!

I can do it!

Leia is on the path to becoming self sufficient. She is quite forceful at grabbing the spoon while eating and sometimes it is easier to give it then play tug-o-war. I have to laugh at her though when the bowl is empty and she is upset because she is still hungry. This is the immediate consequence of smearing your food all over your face, the bowl, and the chair instead of getting it in the belly!

Trying to load up the spoon.

Success! (At least the spoon went in her mouth, the yogurt...not so much.)

This is a pleasing sensory experience.

What if I just use my fingers?

See mom? I got this!

Let the adventing begin!

Kate has two advent calendars to help her celebrate the season. She is super excited about both and was even more super excited when I told her she could open something from both today! (They have both been sitting in plain sight taunting her).

This is Kate's new favorite spot. She climbs up on the speaker and turns the santas around, and around, and around... She is a bit untrustworthy though and we have to keep a close eye to make sure she doesn't sneak a treat while rotating the santas. She's a wily one. Thanks Aunt Michelle!

Here is a video of the Playmobil calendar from Gigi, Aunt Skyann, and Papa Scott. It is sure to provide lots of smiles.

Gymnastics Princess

Kate insisted on wearing her tutu to gymnastics. The pictures speak for themselves.




Thanks for capturing the moments Michelle! (I must admit the somersaulting tutu is my favorite!)