Zane!

We have a neighborhood friend named Zane who spends a lot of time at our house. We invited him for a sleepover about a month ago and he has been counting down the days till the special night. We wanted to give him a pre-Christmas special evening. Here we are before heading to Hamilton for dinner. 

 Mamma and Lyddi all gussied up for the night out.

 We figured we would try to get a quick family shot before leaving, since we had Zane to take the picture. Taking a family picture is a bit more difficult than in the past. You would think Lyddi would be the hardest to cooperate, but as you'll see, she is not the only one.
Lyddi, it's okay.

 Why so serious Zach?

Mamma on the Move!

 Must...eat...necklace...

Ta-Da!!! There we go... Lyddi's blocking my head a bit, but we'll take it!

 We had a fabulously filling dinner at a Chinese buffet restaurant, The Mandarin (per Zane's request). (We were thinking of you Hannah!)

 Stuffed silly...I think it was the third dessert that did him in.

 When we arrived home and gave Zane some early Christmas presents!

 A very excited young man.

What a fun night. It is always fun to get away for an evening and make fun memories.

Lately...

In a previous post I mentioned my Lyddi-loads. Well, here is another one...too cute to pass up.

 We have a neighborhood friend named Zane. He comes over quite often to hang out. One of his favorite things to do is pick out Lydia's outfit for the day. Below he displayed it for the camera.

 And here it is on!

 Lydia has a friend named Delia who comes over to play from time to time. We got to spend all day together while Delia's mom went Christmas shopping. They are only one week apart in age.

 Just hanging out...

 Below are a couple videos of our little lady. As you can see, she loves the camera.

 As I've said earlier, Lyddi is my little Magellan. She loves to explore, and gets into some mischief from time to time...

Caught in the act.

Lydia...9 months!

Wow, our little girl is 9 months old already! Lydia is quite an explorer. I often call her my little Magellan. She loves to explore the cupboards and often pitches in and helps us empty the dishwasher. She likes to give things her own taste test to ensure they've been thoroughly cleaned. 

 She is becoming more and more interested in our food. Here Zach is breaking up some of his ham sandwich for her to try.

 It is incredible how being a mom teaches you new ways to be creative in keeping up the house while watching your little one. The other day I wanted to bring the laundry upstairs to fold, and I couldn't carry both the basket and Lydia. So.....I made a Lyddi-load...problem solved! This led to laundry basket rides, which were a hit.

Lyddi is such a character. Her latest thing is swinging her head to the side. We then mimic her and it has become a little game we call The Lyddi-Lean. Here she is playing...

 Below is a short video of her playing The Lyddi-Lean. As you can see, she gets so into it you have to cushion her head fall. (This one's for you Uncle Cal)

Lydia Stats:
Recent Developments- These days she continues to climb up onto everything and anything she can. She will walk across the floor while holding onto a table. She also started clapping a couple days ago and is super proud of her clapping abilities (as are we).

Current Likes- All baby food except green beans, Mum-Mums, snowmen, Christmas trees, drawers, touch and feel books, peek-a-boo, making messes, the keyboard, unfolding laundry, eyes, earrings
Current Dislikes- morning diaper changes, being told "no," the vacuum, sitting still, clothing changes, green beans

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

We got our decorations out to set the mood for the coming Christmas season. Lyddi is very excited about the new decorations, colors, and sounds. She especially enjoys reaching up and ringing the door bells.

Got it!

The Christmas tree is also very fascinating. Here Lydia is checking it out with Daddy.

"Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree...How Lovely are Your Branches..."

It will be fun to watch Lydia experience her first Christmas with the gifts, get-togethers, and celebrations. But it will be even more exciting to teach her about Jesus and His love for her! What a gift it is to know and be in relationship with our glorious King!

Lyddi and her yellow balloon...

Lydia received a balloon from a neighborhood friend. She was quite enthralled with this balloon immediately. As you will see, she became quite attached to her yellow balloon.

She brought it with her for her morning snack...

...and evening snack.
                            

They went exploring around the house together...

The two were partners in crime...

Just hanging out...

Play time...

Unfortunately, Lyddi and her balloon had to part ways. The balloon was no match for her razor-sharp incisors. So long yellow balloon!

Grandpa and Grandma Visit!

Mom and Dad M came out for a pre-Thanksgiving weekend visit! Lydia was very excited for their arrival.

Daddy tossing Lyddi into the air.

Grandma, Lydia and me all ready for church.

A brisk Sunday afternoon walk together.

Lydia enjoyed playing peek-a-boo with Grandpa...and climbing over him during his nap.

Grandma and Lyddi singing Pat-a-cake.

We went to Home Depot and they had a fake Santa outside to greet us. As you can see, Lyddi wasn't too sure about her first sighting of ole' St. Nick.

Below are a few shots of Mom and Dad.

Lydia loved her time with Grandma and Grandpa.

Uh....what's going on Zach...

Lydia especially had fun going to Coldstone for dessert one night. 

Below is her first ice-cream experience.

"I want some more!!"

Thank you so much for coming to visit Mom and Dad! We enjoyed our time with you so much and look back fondly on the memories and laughs. Already looking forward to our next visit together. 

Love and hugs!!

Lydia...8 months.

Lydia is 8 months old! Wow, our girl is growing fast. We do our best to keep her baby book updated and jot down cute stories as they happen. We thought it would be fun to share a few of her interests. She is one curious little lady. She is on the move more every day. Lately she has been standing on her own for a couple seconds at a time, before falling over. It is so fun to watch her discover new places and objects. 

Likes: peas, sweet potatoes, mixed veggies, sweet potatoes and turkey, carrots (to name a few), any and all Gerber desserts, mum-mums, puffs, yogurt puffs (can you tell she's a great eater?), tags, chords, dogs, babies, leaves blowing in the wind, i pads, remotes, mirrors, peek-a-boo, zerberts, watches

Dislikes: diaper changes, waiting, green beans, her car seat, cold milk, cilantro

Lydia, you continue to enrich our lives each day. We delight in watching you learn and grow and thank God every day for you! Love and kisses sweet girl. ..Momma and Daddy.

Cougar-Bee!

My aunt Cindy, Mom, Lydia and I traveled to beautiful Fort Myers, Florida to visit my cousin Lindsey and her handsome new baby, Hudson. We named our trip the "Cougar-Bee" (long story).  Here is the  awesome Mamma Lindsey with her sweet little man.

                        Lyddi riding in a cart for the first time.

 We spent most of our time lounging by the pool. Not quite sure what's happening in this picture...basking in the wind of Hurricane Sandy maybe?

In the airport I had Lydia strapped to me in a sling, her diaper bag and my purse over my shoulder, my carry-on in one hand and I was lifting my big suitcase with the other. I felt like a mule. The big suitcase was pretty heavy and it kept banging against my leg. This was the result.

Lydia loved the pool.

Lydia also loved her new buddy, Hudson.

A few cute shots of Lydia all dolled up for dinner.

                                     

                    All ready for a lovely morning walk to the ocean.

We made it!

We celebrated Lindsey's birthday while we were there. 

Happy 29th Birthday (again)!!

                                      More pool shots.

Little buddies.

Mooooo! Happy Halloween! Lydia was a little cow for her first Halloween.

                                     Superman!! ...and the cow.

She's on the Mooooove!

Lyddi thoroughly enjoyed the day after Halloween....candy time!

Arg! Wrappers! 

Future candy lover, just like her parents.

Going back for more.

The whole troop on our final night together.

We stopped at the beach to catch the sunset. Unfortunately we missed it by about 5 minutes, but we still got some fun photos. 

Lydia's first time touching sand!

Three super sweet ladies.

Three generations. Two of my favorite girls.

Lydia did very well on the plane, as long as we kept her entertained and eating puffs.

What an awesome trip! Many, many laughs and great memories to look back on. Thanks for having us Linds. Love and miss you already!