What's been going on?

Hallie has been a busy girl the past two weeks! Mommy and Daddy have stayed pretty busy, too. So this is a "catch up" post. There are lots of pictures, but I've had to take lots of pictures of everything our sweet girl has been up to lately! First of all, she has really taken off with talking and is frequently using two word phrases. It seems like she says a new word every day! A few new words are: toothpaste, oatmeal, car, and "Hallie". Her favorite phrase right now is "I like that" (which comes out "I-ike-dat". Cute!) Today Jonathan was pointing to himself and me asking who we were. With me, Hallie replied "Mama", with Jonathan she replied "Dada", then he pointed to her and asked "Who is this?" And she replied "Halla"! We were so surprised that she could say her name. Jonathan frequently tries to get her to say her name and she always says "Ha-lalala" (rolling her tongue, babbling)! LOL! She's getting closer. :o) Here are a few pictures from our past couple of weeks. We've all been a little under the weather, but I think we're all beginning to feel 100% better!

Sweet, smiling girl with her new baby doll.

Hallie loves to feed her baby!

Sharing a Smore with Daddy (except
Hallie didn't get any chocolate)

"Num-num" as Hallie would say!

Hallie had an awful diaper rash last week.
She was "airing out" sans diaper in this picture
and insisted upon wearing this little
dress and the socks to bed! It wasn't
a battle we chose to fight, so she "won".
She needs a little victory now and then!

Hallie's going to take after her daddy with having
black eyes as a kid. She was playing too hard and bumped
her sweet 'noggin. She was supposed to have
her 18 months pictures taken the next day.
We cancelled--plus we were all not feeling so great.

Nothing like a fun cup and straw to help
you feel better!

Hallie and I met "Aunt Jen" and Grayson in
Austin for a bit of shopping and lunch. It was fun
to see them both (and to meet Grayson!)!! Hallie loved
rocking Grayson in his carseat (hopefully he doesn't have
whiplash, Jen!) and touching his little feet. :o)

Sweet girl in the bright sunshine. She had a
cute bow in her hair--which she insisted on...
that is until Mommy got out the camera (she
didn't know I had the camera in the above
picture! As soon as she saw the camera, she
threw the bow on the ground. Sigh!

Hallie climbed up to the top of the playground
all by herself!!

AND she slid down without any help!
What a big girl she is!

Giving sweet Grayson kisses

Gramps and Ra-Ra came over this evening. We hadn't
been home from Austin long, but Hallie was ready
to entertain with a bit of "Hallie Hero" (since we
NEVER get to play Guitar Hero) and the
"Hallie Wallie Dance" song! What a way to end a day!

18 months

Hallie had her 18 month check up on Wednesday, and she is doing GREAT! While she has always been a little low on the growth charts, the important thing is that she is consistently growing as she should. He asked all the milestone questions: is she walking backwards: yes; is she saying at least six words: oh yes!; is she asking for some things by name: yes (Mo--her monkey, milk, juice, trash--when she wants to throw something away! lol!). I wanted to blab on and on about all the other wonderful things Hallie was up to, but we had to reschedule our appointment from the week before, and they were double booked...so we didn't spend a whole lot of time with the pediatrician this time. :o/

Quick stats:
Weight: 21.6 lbs
Height: 31.5 in
Head Circum: 18.6 in

I'm hoping, hoping, hoping to have Hallie's 18 month pictures done next weekend. I was hoping to do it this weekend, but with Hurricane Ike, it's going to be raining all weekend. Hopefully soon!

Lilttle Mess Maker

Mommy's little mess maker is also Mommy's little helper! I was putting on oven mitts to take some chicken out of the oven...I turned around and Hallie had taken a mitt out of the cabinet herself and put it on just like Mommy! It was SO cute! :o)

As you can see in the pictures, Hallie enjoyed her supper of rotisserie chicken, mashed potatoes, homemade mac 'n cheese, and green beans. :o) While she's usually a pretty neat eater, she does sometimes like to get a little messy--and how can you not with mashed potatoes?! We were missing a much needed bib, but that's OK...clothes wash! :o)

Doesn't she have the sweetest smile?!

Sic 'em Bears!

Our sweet Hallie finally attended her first college football game! We've been practicing her "Sic 'em Bears" (along with her War Eagle...don't worry!) for some time now and she finally got to give it a try for real tonight! We really enjoyed her watching the football game, clapping with the crowd, and being completely in awe of the marching band! She had a wonderful time! We left during the third quarter, but I believe she could have stayed for the entire game.

She got some popcorn--which she loved! She loved it so much, she only shared it with you if she thought you were worthy of her popcorn. LOL! She got pretty upset when we (read: SHE) spilled half the box. It's a good thing she spilled it, though! Otherwise, she would have wanted to have eaten the entire box. That probably would've left her with a tummy ache!! Back to her sharing (or lack of). Hallie would share her popcorn with Kevin, Mommy, and Christina. Grammy had to steal pieces, and Daddy only got chewed up pieces. Once, Uncle Jeremy got a couple of pieces...but it wasn't very willingly.

Here are some (OK, a bunch of) pictures from Hallie's game night. I am hoping that we can get to an Auburn game at some point in the future! I know Hallie would love it! :o)

On the way to the Baylor game

The bear in the ticket office...Hallie did NOT like him!

Enjoying the game with Grammy and Gramps

One of the bear mascots--he does "tricks"! He was
giving high fives for treats!

Yum! Popcorn!

Do you think Hallie is having fun?

Eating ice...and spilling it on Mommy!

Sharing with Christina, but not with Jeremy!

There was the cutest little boy in front of us, and
Hallie was patting him on the back. Toward the
end, she just sat down right behind him!

Friday afternoon Fun!

Bath time is still a favorite! Whenever she can, she loves to walk around in only a diaper (although she would prefer to be completley nakey-nakey!!). She also climbs up in rocking chair that's in her room with a book quite often. It is such a cute sight to walk in on! Yesterday, I walked in on Hallie reading her nursery rhyme book to her baby doll! I wanted to catch it on video, but wouldn't you know the battery went dead right after my last picture! :o/ Maybe next time!

Afternoon at Mountainview Park

Mommy had a faculty meeting after school on Wednesday, so Grammy (Ra-Ra) picked up Hallie from Miss Pattie's. Hallie was very excited to see her Ra-Ra! They went to the park behind my school until I was finished. This is the day Hallie decided she didn't want to wear what I had laid out for her and Daddy had to pick out something else! He did a great job! :o)

Hallie is now 18 months old, and I hope to get her 18 month picture taken soon (maybe next weekend). I used to take her month milestone pictures on my own, but she has just gotten too busy for me to take them. I can't get her to stay in one spot long enough to snap a good shot (without someone's help, that is). :o)

Sweet girl!

Catch up!

Playing catch up again! You would think not much can happen in two weeks, but that thought could not be farther from the truth! I have now survived the first two weeks of school. I wanted to blog every night, but spending time with Hallie was first on my agenda! Then sleep...then blogging. lol. On going back to teaching...I have a great group of kids, and I think it's going to be a good year. Hallie is adjusting a little more to daycare every day. Jonathan takes her in the mornings, and she's not so keen on the idea at that point, but it doesn't take her long to start playing with the other two kids her age!

Hallie is becoming so independent! Each morning I lay her clothes out for her. The other morning, she did not approve of my choice and let her daddy know it! She loves cleaning things up, reading, and just playing in general. She enjoys pretending to feed her animals, Mommy, and Daddy. It is really cute to watch! She is mastering several words now, too. But, she is also having some tantrums when she feels she isn't being understood. It's not fun. Mommy and Daddy are reading Happiest Toddler on the Block (Dr. Harvey Karp), and we are already seeing a difference. We really liked the techniques in Happiest Baby on the Block and thought we'd give the second one a chance. I only wish I had read it before now! :o)

Below are some pictures from the past couple of weeks. Grammy, Ra-Ra, and Uncle Jeremy joined us Labor Day for some hamburgers and hotdogs on the grill. Hallie was SO excited to get to go swimming--we haven't been in a long time. She loves the water so much! And Hallie loves playing with her blocks. She's wearing one shoe...she loves wearing Mommy's shoes!

Playing with Uncle Jeremy

Hallie loves her blocks!

Knocking over the tower! So much fun!

Hallie-Wallie Dance

Hallie loves, loves, loves singing. Her new favorite thing is to sing songs that have motions to them. She does such a great (read: cute!) job of doing the motions. This song is one of her favorites. She had been "singing" it with me probably 4-5 times before I asked Jonathan to get the camera...of course, this shot is cute, but nothing like the times before!

Hallie Pictures

Our sweet Hallie is 17 months old...and she hasn't been still long enough for me to do my usual month-a-birthday photo shoot. It doesn't help that we have been super busy! So...since updating hasn't been my forte lately, here are some of our favorite pictures of our little girl from the past month (since she'll be 18 months old next week!). Hopefully I can get some good pictures for her 18 month mark.

Hallie loves to climb on top of the end tables. And she loves
"talking" on the phone. So here she is doing her two faves!

War Eagle!!

Our little Hallie fairy princess

"Show us your teethies, Hal!"

While Hallie hasn't actually used the potty, she loves
to sit on it before she gets in the bathtub.
She is getting so big!

Sweet girl!

Embroidery Hobby

Here's my lastest embroidery attempt. I had so much fun with it! You can see, I embroidered Hallie's name and then a little flower coming up from the bottom.

Hallie Highlights

I know...I have done an awful job of updating lately! I apologize! To say I've been busy would be an understatement. I have several pictures and several videos to put up, but I'll have to commit to doing that tomorrow (maybe!). Let me just give a few Hallie Highlights from the past couple of weeks. Just picture her cute little face as you read! :o)

*Kendra started back to school with new teacher orientation and then pre-planning.
*Jonathan took over the job of getting Hallie ready in the mornings--and he is doing a great job!
*Hallie started "school" herself. To say she enjoys it would be lying. We're hoping and praying that she will grow to love it. Sadly, she cries and screams when Daddy leaves her with Miss Pattie. Thankfully, she calms down and plays with the other kids her age for the rest of the day. She has even taken naps there! She'll get into the swing of things! She is in a highly recommended in-home daycare. Miss Pattie absolutely loves the children, and you can see it in her eyes! There are only about 10-12 kids there from day to day. There are about 3-4 toddlers Hallie's age and the rest are baby-babies who stay in a different part of the house. Hallie loves playing with the babies, though!
*Hallie is talking up a storm. She is the cutest little talker ever!
*New words from Hallie: "this"--referring to which car she wants to ride in, "this" means Daddy's car! :o); she said "I need this" the other day referring to some Wheat Thins; "appa joose"--apple juice.
*Hallie helps us keep things in order now more than ever. She loves to help with the dishes, putting the groceries away, laundry, and getting our shoes for us!
*Shoes...the girl loves shoes and I'm not sure this will change any time soon!
*Hallie has started hitting--uh oh! Yep. And we're trying to figure out how to stop this behavior (any ideas?!). But she's just so cute (which gets us in trouble) because she'll hit us (not hard, mind you) and then as soon as we say "Hallie, no no. No hitting. Don't hit Mommy/Daddy/whoever" she puckers up and goes in for the kiss and then, as sweet as you please, she throws her tiny little arms around your neck and gives the biggest hug...while patting your back.
*Hallie loves to go to Mommy's new school. There's just too much fun to be had there. We have a bunny, two school cats--Hattie and Maggie--and lots of fun math manipulatives for Hallie to drag out. She LOVES the bunny and cats! It's so sweet to see her loving on them. :o)
*Hallie still loves reading! Her favorites right now are: The 7 Days of Creation, The Belly Button Book, Night Night Sleep Tight, and Goodnight Moon. Every now and then she'll throw in Where is Baby's Belly Button and The Tale of Peter Rabbit. She has such a wonderful love for reading! That makes Mommy, Daddy, Nonna, Pop, Grammy and Gramps extremely happy! :o) We catch her from time to time "reading" to herself. It is SO precious!

As I'm sure you can tell, we love our sweet Hallie SO very much! We are so thankful to be close to family now. We just wish we got to see Nonna and Pop more often! We're hoping for a visit from them soon, though!! :o)

I'll post pictures soon!

First Day...

I had my first day "back to school", sort of. All the new teachers (new to the district and first year teachers) have New Teacher Induction this week. While I headed out the door this morning at 7:45, Jonathan was getting ready for work and Hallie was still snoozing. After Hallie woke up, Jonathan got her ready for a day with Grammy...complete with her new butterfly backpack Nonna sent her. I called to check on her this morning and Jonathan said that when Hallie woke up, she called out for me in our bedroom. Then went into the living room and called for me again. (Break a mommy's heart why don't you?!) He said he told her that I was already gone, but that I'd be home soon. That answer seemed to satisfy her and she began playing happily. Jonathan told me that she was the cutest little thing, walking down the steps with her butterfly backpack on! She wore it into Grammy's, too! Of course, we don't have a picture from the morning--the camera battery is dead. (Isn't that how it always happens?!) But I did get a cute one with Grammy's camera this evening. I'll have to post it soon.

As for Hallie's day with Grammy--she had a ball! She is such a mess, I tell you! I called to check on her and got to talk to Hallie for just a minute--she was entirely too busy gazing at the fish in a fishtank at Grammy's school to chat with Mommy! Grammy needed to work in her classroom, so she took Hallie (and doll stroller) with her. Long hallways to push her doll stroller up and down...Hallie could stay there all day! After their school visit, they ran a few errands and then headed back home. Hallie got a little bump on her noggin (surprise, surprise) from falling off the porch steps. Well, she didn't fall completely off. See, she was holding a prized rock and lost her balance. She caught herself, but bumped her head before falling completely. It helped a whole lot that Grammy saw what was about to happen and rushed to Hallie's aid! Had she not, Hallie could have taken a serious tumble! The little stinker is just fine...but she has a beautiful little red goose-egg on her cute little noggin. Gramps and Grammy say that she is just like her daddy...that he walked around with a knot on his head for two years! HA!

Hopefully I'll have pictures soon!

New Shoes

Hallie got a special delivery--a few "fun happies" from Nonna and Pop! I opened the box, and before I could pull the tissue paper out, Hallie had spotted the shoe boxes (yes, boxes!). She immediately wanted the new shoes on--she has a bit of a thing for shoes. Miss Hallie sat down, took her play shoes off and took the new shoes to daddy. She wanted them on right then! I asked Jonathan to grab the camera to try to get a quick video showing Hallie's excitement to share with Nonna and Pop...Hallie nearly had a meltdown waiting the 30 seconds he took! The video is shaky and kinda blurry...it's not perfect, but it does capture a bit of the excitement Hallie displayed. Of course, nothing is ever as good as the first initial reaction!

On a "not so side note": Hallie is so incredibly blessed to have two sets of grandparents who love to buy necessities for her. She will be clothed until next winter! :o) She has some of the cutest outfits from Gramps & Grammy and Nonna & Pop. Thanks to all of them for getting such cute outfits and accessories for her! :o)

Let me explain the picture below...Hallie got a gingham outfit that the hat goes with, the lime green shoes (which are really hard to get off her b/c she loves them so much!), and the butterfly snack bag that matches her cute little backpack--she was modeling for me. I asked her to stand still in "this spot" (and pointed). She would stand there for about 3 seconds ( just long enough for me to get the camera focused) and then she was off doing her own thing. We did this probably five times before she figured out she needed to stand still until I took the picture (of which she immediately wanted to see after I snapped it!) Hallie loved all her little goodies in her box! I must say, though, that the lime green shoes were the favorite treat in the box! The bag of marshmallows...well, she found those in her diaper bag and helped herself to them. LOL!

Miss Priss

As I said before, the quality isn't so great, but the subject
being filmed is the cutest we know! :o)

Hallie Update

So...I'm falling behind on updating Hallie's blog. :o/ I have been super busy trying to get my classroom ready to start school. Thankfully, Grammy has been gracious enough to watch Hallie the past couple of days so I could work in my classroom. Thanks, Grammy!

Now for an update on Hallie...she is getting so big and so independent! She is now 17 months old and thinks she can do absolutely everything by herself. When we're going down the stairs, we reach out to help her and she pushes our hand away and shakes her head "no". She is very steady going up and down the stairs, but we're close by in case she stumbles. :o) Hallie is at such a fun age right now! She follows directions with things we ask her to do and has the sweetest sense of curiosity about the things around her. She is quickly developing her own little personality now more than ever! She likes things done a certain way every time--of course, I know all kids love routine and repetition! :o)

Some of Hallie's LOVES:
*Giving hugs and kisses (this is SO incredibly sweet!)
*Mr. Moe-Dangles (her stuffed monkey)
*Talking (several words along with her own little language!)
*Playing in the water--inside or outside
*Pushing all her "treasures" around in her baby doll stroller
*Guitars--real, fake, pictures of them...everything!
*Ranch flavored Rice Cakes
*Bath time
*Brushing her teeth
*Entertaining her public (LOL!)
*Bouncy balls
*Music--she claps and dances to the beat
*Balloons
*Reading--her favorites right now are "Goodnight Moon" and "The Belly Button Book". She requests them..."Moon" and "Bee-bo"
*Cleaning up the messes she makes! She does not like for things to be out of order
*Throwing things in the trash can (She holds it up and asks "tash?" to see if it's OK to throw away...although we did find Mr. Moe in the trashcan a couple of weeks ago. He quickly got a bath!)
*Helping Mommy with laundry (I hand her the clothes piece by piece from the washer and she puts them into the dryer--it is SO cute!)

So...you can see that we are just completely smitten by our little monkey on a daily basis, so excited with the things she learns by the minute! A few of Hallie's spoken words are: moon, ball, bottle ("ba-ba"), thank you ("chank ooh"), Mama, Dada, Nonna, Pop, Grammy ("Ra-Ra"), Gramps ("Grafs"), apple ("app-uh"), shoes ("soos"), Abby ("Abb-uh"), this ("dis"), trash ("tash"), bubbles ("buh-buhs"...and always whispered), bless you ("bess"), dog ("dug"), hot ("haa")...and she will attempt just about any word you ask her to say. :o) Some of Hallie's sign language words are: again (which she has also assigned to "music" when we're in the car...otherwise she just brings us the PS3 controller and TV remote to turn the music on!), down, hurt, more, please, all done. She can also tell you the sounds of several animals: dog, cat, cow, sheep, and she makes a fish face for the fish. heehee. Another thing she loves is to put her hands together to say the blessing when we sit down to eat. Too cute!

As you can tell, we are quite proud of our little sweetie pie! :o)

I can do it myself, Mommy!

Look, Mommy and Daddy! No hands!

Future Auburn Tiger!

Sharing a drumstick with Daddy (I didn't get ANY
of the chocolate, though! Such a bummer!)

Pretending to play with the Guitar Hero guitar.
Although, Hallie doesn't actually like for the game
to be on...it is a little scary. So we haven't played
it in a long time! :o/