Thanksgiving

We went back to Chillicothe for Thanksgiving and Hannah got to see all of her grandparents and great-grandparents. We even tracked down Grandpa Tom out in the fields to see him for a few minutes before he went back to work harvesting soy beans. I didn't get any pictures of Hannah at the table enjoying some mashed potatoes on Thanksgiving, but I did catch her harassing Uncle Justin's cat...

and "driving" Grandpa Tom's combine.

We came back Saturday night and although Hannah enjoyed her time in Chillicothe, she was VERY pleased to be home. When I was carrying her inside she started looking all around and smiling. It was the cutest thing I've ever seen. I took her up to her room to change her diaper and she gave a big sigh as she felt the changing pad cover and then squealed when she saw her crib. She was so excited to be back in familiar surroundings that she was reaching for everything and wanting to play...so we let her play even though it was way past her bedtime.

On Monday she also had some big smiles for Miss Pat.

Turkey Fry 2009

One,

two,

three cheers for Turkey Fry!

The Vroomans hosted the 2nd annual Turkey Fry this year. Nine adults, two kiddos, and plenty of board games. And Steve managed to fry the turkey without setting anything on fire. Success!

Crawling!

Hannah learned to crawl over the weekend! Here's one of her first big crawls while we were at the Vrooman's house for the 2nd annual Turkey Fry.

Hannah Stats- 8 Months

Has another month gone by already? Hannah is babbling now and she said her first "dada" on November 14. No "mama" yet. It's amazing how much she understands. She will look up when people say her name and she pushes the bottle away and reaches for my shoulder when she needs to burp. Her new skills include pushing herself up to a sitting position, army crawling backwards, and feeding herself finger foods. She is not a picky eater at all and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it stays that way! She's working on forward crawling, but she's hasn't quite mastered it yet. Hannah loves to knock down block towers, make sounds with the maraca or drum, and splash in water. But her biggest laughs come from being tickled or surprised. Things that I think would be scary for a baby (like people jumping out from hiding places and yelling "boo!") make her laugh and squeal in delight. Her favorite book is Freight Train....read with choo choo sound effects.

Chillicothe weekend

Last weekend was another Chillicothe trip. Saturday we spent the day with my family. Steve helped my dad, brother, and grandpa break up the concrete porch on my parents' house. Mom, Hannah, and I stayed inside and played. :)

Then we spent Sunday with Steve's family. We went with his parents on their usual Sunday trip to Trenton to see Steve's grandma Alice. Hannah wowed her with her awesome drum skills.

We also saw Steve's grandma Velma and grandpa Fred. Hannah was very intrigued with her great-grandma and kept trying to touch her face and hair.

Spiderhand

Big Tub

Can you believe another first this weekend? Besides sitting up in the crib for the first time, getting her first haircut, and going to the church nursery, Hannah also took her first bath in the big tub! She was getting too big and too squirmy for her baby whale tub so it was officially retired. She loved capturing her rubber ducks in the big tub. It was more of a challenge than in her baby tub. :)

Also some major work got done on the bathroom this weekend: we now have a working toilet and sink! We Steve also installed a new countertop and mirror.  Pictures coming soon...

Church Nursery

Yet another first!  This morning was Hannah's first time in the church nursery.  She is just too squirmy now to sit with us.  I was a little nervous about it.  What if the workers don't pay attention to her?  What if another kid hits her?  What if she hates it and cries the whole time?!?  Yeah, I know.  I'm crazy.  She goes to daycare full-time.  Why would I worry about an hour or so in a nursery?  Well, I interviewed Pat...and called her references...and observed the other kids before she went to daycare.  Who knows what kind of people work in a church nursery or what kind of kids go there!  Yeah, you're right, they are good people and Hannah will have a great time and I have nothing to worry about.  And I didn't.  Hannah was happily flipping through a book when I picked her up.  The nursery workers said they were amazed by how happy and easy-going she was.  She smiled, laughed, and played independently.

I really don't want to be an over-protective parent.  I want to be just-the-right-amount-protective. :)  I know I have to give up some control and let her get out in the world...meet new people, have new experiences, get dirty, and get a few scrapes. And I think for the most part I'm a just-the-right-amount laid back parent....with  only the occasional over-protective panic attack!  Next step: getting a night babysitter so Steve and I can have the occasional date night.  Know anyone? :)

Crib

Another first. When I went to get her Saturday morning she had pulled herself up to a sitting position!  It was the first time she has done that. She did it again after every nap. Once she even got herself into sitting position BEFORE she fell asleep, so when I went in to check on her she was sitting with her head down on the bed in front of her! We lowered the crib. Sigh. It kind of bothers me that it isn't a little baby crib anymore.

Also, I meant to take a picture of her "HANNAH" paintings before but never got around to it. They were painted by Grandma Dorlene and have the same flowers, ladybugs, and butterflies as her bedding. Very cute.

Haircut

I loved Hannah's long hair, but it was getting in her eyes. Plus it was only long in front because she had rubbed off most of the back. So we decided it was time for her first haircut this weekend. I think the hairdresser got a little carried away! Here is her new "pixie" do. I'm still getting used to it...

Magnum

  Thomas Magnum Fetus Hannah.  The last time she wore a 'stache she was still in utero.

Antioch Park

I love spending time with my little family...and going to parks...and beautiful fall leaves. So when all three are combined it is my perfect afternoon.