Happy Holidays!

Welcome winter!
We got about two and a half feet of snow this past weekend and decided to take full advantage of it before the next storm rolls in. Kris did some skiing down Mt Philo and Nora and I watched from the snow banks we were playing in.
Here I am hiking up the mountain with precious cargo on my back:

An apres ski shot:


And just an extra PS picture for everyone. It's from Thanksgiving and I feel like it highlights the "big girl" she's becoming. She really isn't a baby anymore. In fact, she has become VERY aware of babies and whenever we encounter one she urgently lets me know with a loud"MAMA! MAMA!" followed by the sign for baby.

It's Been Awhile!

It was a very busy summer with a FIRST birthday party, trips to the farm, butterfly and eric carle museum, and carousel and pony rides. We are already well into autumn and have enjoyed apple picking, and visits from friends and family. I'll try to be better about posting on this blog but it seems like the more she moves the less I can get done!

We Moved!

We moved to a new house (see picture below) in the country about 3 weeks ago. It has been a lot of fun going on little hikes (starting at our front door), playing in the grass in the meadow and falling asleep to the frogs outside our bedroom window.

PS. Someone got a new dog. We think it's name is "Good" as in "good dog".

There's only one place to be...

There's only one place to be when the temperatures are this high... the beach! We took our first trip to the lake for some swimming on Sunday. It was so much fun! The water was pretty shallow at the beach we went to so the water was warm enough to take a dip in. Nora seemed to enjoy herself with two rocks she found on the beach. Afterwards we went to our friends Bryan and Julie's for a little cookout.

She Must Have Been a Farmer in a Past Life

We visited the Children's Farmyard at Shelburne Farms on Saturday. It was a real thrill to meet and touch (gently) some of the farm animals. We saw chickens, sheep and lambs, goats and the newborn piglets! Nora was so interested in all of the animals and when she was observing the piglets a woman next to us commented that Nora "must have been a farmer in a past life".

Gentle, gentle.

*I just think this goat is particularly interesting.
PS Kris took these photos with his new PDA (we forgot our camera). That's why they're not as sharp.

There's a New Baby in Town!

My cousin Carrie had a baby on Tuesday night so Nora and I went to meet the baby this afternoon. Nora and I think he is very cute! Here's a picture of Carrie and her little boy.

Happy Mother's Day!

This Mother's Day we:

examined blades of grass while keeping the sun out of our eyes, played bocce ball,
crawled around like crazy and then...
passed out with our cousin, Ava.

A Double Dose (or What's So Funny?)

This is for all of The Noodle's fans. I received an email today from a friend wanting "more Noodle" so (Beth) here you go!

She Moves Fast!

It's been awhile since I last posted an entry and there are good reasons why. The main reason is that The Noodle crawls faster each day and I spend a fair portion of my day trying to keep up - no time to blog!

Future Librarian??

One of the things Nora likes to do is pull books out of a basket and sort them into piles. Sometimes she picks up a book that she has already placed in a pile, opens it again, looks at the cover and then places it in another pile. It's her own system for cataloging books... Perhaps, she will someday, just like her Grampa John and Aunt Abby, be a librarian.

PS If you look closely there are two teeth coming in!

Oh, Happy Girl

According to my mom and baby book I named my very first doll "Happy Girl". As uninspired as it sounds it is very coincidental as everyone who meets the little noodle remarks on what a "happy girl" she is. Maybe it's a standard comment for any baby who isn't in tears but I am positive that Nora truly is one very happy girl.
Here's a picture of her in her "Easter bonnet" (it's really just a taggies toy but we like to play pretend).

Ava Grace has arrived!

Nora and I took a little trip to her Mimi and Grandpa John's house to meet her cousin, Ava Grace, who was born on March 5th. She is so adorable with long locks of hair and the sweetest little mouth you've ever seen.
Here's a picture of the little nugget and her mom, Jennie:

I Wear My Badges Proudly

Those who are parents are already in the know. They call them "Badges" not "stains" or "messes". You would think baby clothes would primarily come in orange (sweet potato), green (peas) or black (anything goes including pears - who knew pears could stain clothes??!) instead of white. Ahhhh... innocent in orange.

There's no better way to start Valentine's Day...

than with a ride on the laundry train! Wooo-Hooo!

Cold temperatures and messy sidewalks couldn't keep Nora and I inside today (I have thought about moving to someplace without winter recently). The sun was so bright we had to wear our shades. Thanks for the glasses Jennie!

Snowflakes, Applesauce and an Amaryllis

That's right, more snow. This morning Kris and Nora bundled up to check out the snowflakes...

We took things slowly today because we had a busy weekend with visitors. This weekend Nora tried applesauce for the first time and took full ownership of the spoon! It was a hit!













We had to say goodbye to the Amaryllis today. It had the most blooms and this incredible red color (the photo doesn't do it justice).

Happy Whales

Even a bunch of shots in her thighs didn't keep Nora from enjoying her day after her doctor's appointment on Tuesday. It's heartbreaking for me to see her get the shots (immunizations) and difficult to reassure myself that I'm doing what's best for her. So much of parenting is based on intuition, yet some advice feels counterintuitive. I guess what's important is Nora is a healthy and happy 20lb 14oz and 271/2" baby!
Speaking of Happy...

We (Kris, Nora, and I) LOVE this mobile! It's called "Happy Whales" and it's made by the mobile experts at Flensted Mobiles in Denmark. The whales hang above our dining table so while we eat our meals the whales silently move their bodies around casting a variety of shadows on our walls and ceilings. While the abstract mobiles are pretty cool, I still like the ones of the animals and birds especially the "Wise Owls".

Baby Shower

At the baby shower for Ben, Jen and, of course, Nora's cousin, there were lots of relatives to spend time with.
PS Nora turned 6 months old today! Happy 1/2 year birthday!

Here are a couple of pictures of Nora with Aunt Jen (and Grampa John) from the shower:














Also, Nora and Uncle Jimmy (because we know he looks at this blog!)