Christmas Pagent

We went to the Christmas Pagent at Lilla's school this morning. It was hilarious. Each class was a particular character. There were the Christmas trees, cows and sheep (from the manger), the wise men, and the angels. Lilla and her toddler friends were angels. When I picked her up from school yesterday, her teachers said she did such a great job at rehersal, because she was dancing and clapping like crazy, that they were going to put her front and center of the toddler group. And they did! And she clapped and danced to all the christmas carols they sang. She had a great time, and didn't cry being in front of all the parents, and let me tell you, some kids were really beside themselves.

Here is a shot of the whole group. It was a little crazy by that point, but so much fun.

Christmas Tree!

We went out to our favorite store and picked up our christmas tree. The selection was great so we took home the first one we looked at because they were all nice and full.

I really like how our tree turned out this year. We decided against oranments, thinking that Lilla B might take them off and I would find them all over the house. So, we went with just white lights and ribbon and it looks really good. I love sitting by it at night.

Lilla really likes the tree. She just gently touches it. I have been making a habit of taking her with me to turn the tree on when we come home, so today when we came home from church, she ran straight to the tree and starting rubbing her chest (which is her "sign" for please) so that I would turn it on. It was pretty cute.

Here is she after church with her lit tree. Notice that she is barefoot. Her favorite activity in the car is taking her shoes and socks off. But it wasn't really a problem today because are enjoying some unseasonably warm weather.

Daisy Dog

Daisy Dog has come home for awhile. We were excited to have her back, but now I am not so sure. She is as sweet and protective as ever, which comforts me a good bit, but I am not used to managing a dog around a toddler. She loves to grab snacks out of Lilla's hand as she is eating, and is always hovering around the table waiting for scraps. It is really annoying, but it is nice to have an animal that will actually clean all the food off the floor that gets dropped. That part is not bad at all.

Lilla and Daisy got used to living together the first couple of days. They are still working out whose space is whose. Below, they were both struggling to sit on the back door mat, which has become Lilla's reading spot. Daisy was laying there, and Lilla climbed over her and wedged herself in by the door until Daisy finally scooted over a little bit.

Daisy accepted sitting together at first, but then Lilla started throwing all her books out of her basket (which she does five times a day) and so Daisy took off. It was a good thing because Lilla made a huge mess and threw her books everywhere.

Golf Lesson

Jay pulled out one of his clubs last weekend and Lilla took a real interest in it, so she received her first golf lesson! Jay is determined that one day she is going to learn to play golf and be able to play with him.

Our Little Lightbulb

Well, yesterday at the grocery store, as we were walking down an aisle, a woman stopped us and starting gushing over Lilla. She said that Lilla was so bright and shiny that she looked like she had swallowed a light bulb. Jay and I hadn't heard that yet, so we thought it was pretty funny. I tried to find a recent picture of her to see if there was the "lightbulb effect." I guess this picture, in which Lilla kept kissing Jay (which I could never quite catch because our camera is too slow), captures it as well as any picture could.

Thanksgiving Weekend

We had a really wonderful Thanksgiving. We realized that everyone is healthy and safe and happy, so we had many blessings to be thankful for.

On Wednesday, as family started to arrive in town, we took Lilla to see the horses near Mike's house. She was a little hesitant at first about such a big animal, but wasn't scared to touch them at all.

Most of the horses had been taken away because of the cold weather, but there were still a few left to pasture. We ran into one of the field hands who said we were more than welcome to go out in the pasture and see all the horses.

So we did, and one horse took a particular like to Jay and Lilla. He kept following them around and trying to nuzzle Lilla's hair. We suspect he thought it was some type of hay.

When Jay got Lilla on his shoulders and away from the horse, the horse calmed down. Lilla was still a little tense, and clutching Jay's hair.

Our Thanksgiving meal was delicious, and because we went out to eat, there was no cooking or clean up, which made it even better! Haynes and Lilla had a fun time at lunch together.

We did try and get some pictures after lunch, but once we got home, and close to naptime, Lilla would have none of it. While I tried to snap a picture, she clung to Jay's leg and cried, which made us all laugh a little.

But then she got over it, and I was able to get this quick picture of her in her cute smocked dress.

Hiking

We had such a fun weekend! The weather is amazingly still rather warm...in the 60's most days. I got Jay an early Christmas of a pack for hiking to carry Lilla in, so we tried it out this weekend.

Jay made us bundle up, because he knows how quickly feeling cold transitions to being unhappy for us two girls. So, we were hot on the way up, and chilly on the way down.

We ate lunch at the top and rested and then got cold.

Lilla loved every minute of it. She was quiet on the way up, just taking it all in and observing, and looking at me with a smile. And then she talked and squealed all the way down. She was so happy the entire time, which made it so enjoyable for us. It was a great family outing.

Reading

I turned around the other day and found Lilla sitting on the back door mat reading. She has a basket of books right there, but my intention was for her to take a book and sit at her little table. I guess leaning against the door suited her better that day.

Happy Halloween

We had a really great Halloween. It is not our favorite holiday, but it was fun this year with Lilla. She loved her costume, and looked so cute in it. I almost could not stand it. She loved the pumpkin carving we did the weekend before.

Then we went a Halloween party with my job. There were about 100 people there, most of whom were under the age of 18, and all dressed up. We were worried that Lilla might be scared of all the costumes, but she did not even flinch. She just watched, took it all in, and even danced.

She was really interested in the kid that came dressed as Mr. Potato Head. I still don't know who was under there, but Lilla liked him. I hope he won best costume.

And trick or treating was really fun. She walked the first bit, and then we mostly carried her. At first, she would take candy out of the bowl and then put it right back. She eventually understood to take the candy out of the bowl and put it in her bag.

At our first house.

Furniture

I found Lilla today in our living room moving all the furniture around. Before I know it all those chairs will be in the foyer or other rooms.

In other news, Lilla was pushed down and bitten by another kid at school today, right on her face. The preschool handled it great, and called to tell me it happend so I didn't freak out when I picked her up. They said she cried pretty hard, definitely because it hurt, but also because it hurt her feelings. I felt so bad for the little baby.

My Very Own Table

We pulled out my toddler table, gave it a fresh coat of paint, and placed it in our kitchen. It is now Lilla's favorite spot in the house. The chairs are still a little high for her, but she manages to get up there by herself. She really loves having her own little place.

Family Reunion

We had a fun family reunion last weekend to celebrate my grandmother's 84th birthday. It was quite an event, and she was completely surprised. Four years have passed since we have all gotten together, and it was a delight to catch up and meet children and see where everyone's lives have taken them.

Lilla was the only baby there, and was as always a hit with the whole crowd. We had a little trouble with the camera, so our pictures are a little dark. Here she is with her uncle Haynes and Great Grandmother Anne.

She loved this toddler rocking chair, and the fact that my uncle sat behind her and kept her rocking back and forth.

Rain

We finally got some rain. We were starting to wonder if it was ever going to rain here again, it has been so long since we have seen even a drop. I pulled out Lilla's new rain jacket, and she was really happy to wear it, especially when I pulled the hood up. We have quite a clothing/accessories theme going here.

Lilla wanting to play peek-a-boo with me as we were leaving the house.

Shoes

Well, if purses and headbands weren't enough, Lilla now loves shoes. She has a whole shoe drawer that she loves to go to and take them all out and then put them back in. She even cries when I take them off her when she needs to, you know, do an activity that doesn't require shoes, like naps and baths.

The Big 3-0

We celebrated Jay's big birthday, and had a weekend packed full of activites. But the best part was when Jay's cake appeared...as you can see below, Lilla is riveted. Jay shared his piece with her, and finally had to make it into a game, saying "one bite for you, and one for me," because she was eating all of it. Afterward, when the sugar kicked in, she was practically spinning in circles. She was literally bouncing off the walls.

Jay thought it would be fun to tease her by seeing how far she would strain and stretch to have another bite of cake.

More Accessories

Lilla is fascinated with all my accessories. She has discovered my LV purse, and walks around with it over her shoulder. I didn't even show her how to do it, she just figured it out. But she also walks with her arm up in the air so it doesn't fall off, which is hilarious when she is cruising around.

Hair Accessories

It is amazing what a girl Lilla already is. She loves my hair accessories, particularly headbands and hair clips. Sometimes they are the only things that will entertain her if she is bored with other toys. She puts them on by herself and walks around the house showing them off to us, which is pretty cute.

Crackers

Lilla had some crackers last night with dinner, and when I turned around, she was trying to eat them all at once. She loves crackers, and is pretty happy with having so many to eat.

Getting Dressed

One of the funnest parts of having a girl is picking out the outfits. Lilla and I were out and about today, so we got a bit more dressed up today, and I loved her in this little outfit, especially the denim skirt. The cutest part was her shoes, which she wore for the first time today. Before we got in the car, she walked around kicking her feet out in front of her so she could look at her new shoes. With every new thing her personality comes out more and more.

Wise Family Reunion

We had a small family reunion at the lake this weekend. The weather was great, although very hot, and we stayed at a wonderful house with a boat and jet ski. It was so fun to be there all together, and Jay and I were able to have some time to ourselves and a lot of fun together racing around on the jet ski.

Lilla had a lot of new experiences, and spent some quality time with her cousins. Here she is on her first boat ride, in her cute life jacket, taking it all in.

The smile on her face was so big when we were out on the water.

Hanging out with cousin Spencer, who is 3 months older than Lilla, but who also has a lot more hair.

All the young'uns (except me!) in the lake.

Lilla, Jay, Ben, Henry, Alston, and Spencer.

The kids loved the noodles they were all floating on.

My Own Piano

Lately Lilla has been wandering into the living room and trying to play the big piano. So today I pulled out my baby piano, which just sounds rough and terribly out of tune, for Lilla to play with. She just loves it and after she banged on the keys for awhile, she banged on the top of it, which somehow set off our house alarm to both of our complete shock at the unexpected noise (I think because her piano is near the glass-break sensor and the alarm got confused). But she is very happy with the new addition to her toy collection.

M&M's

We all shared a pack of M&M's on the way home last night. Lilla really liked them, and here is what she looked like after she was all done.

Orange Everywhere...

Moving Furniture

Lilla's new favortie activity: moving furniture around. It is really hilarious to watch her push chairs and stools around the house. But then they get stuck because of a wall or a column and she cries because she can't get them going again. She loves to go in circles around the house with these new "toys."

Off to the Kitchen...

Heading into the living room.

Board Books

Nothing entertains Lilla quite like board books. She loves them, and we have them in every location: car and crib and toy box, for her to play with. The ones in her crib are the best, because when she wakes in the morning or after a nap, she will occupy herself with her books for a good while, sometimes up to 30 or 45 minutes before she gets fussy and wants out. It is wonderful to have that extra time to get some things done while she is happily "reading" in her bed. Hopefully this means she will really enjoy reading when the time comes.

Reading at bedtime with Daddy.

Stuffed Animals

Lilla has a Moses basket full of stuffed animals in her room that she loves to get in and play with. It is pretty amazing that she used to sleep in that basket a year ago. I was able to snap this picture before she was off again...

She got in and out of the basket numerous times before she finally just started taking all the stuffed animals out.

Most of the time I see Jay when I look at her, but she looks like my baby pictures in the shot above, with all that curly hair and those round cheeks and full lips. It is funny how babies can look so different depending on the angle.