You say its your birthday...

...its my birthday too, yeah!

Saturday we made a quick trip to Maryland to celebrate Pam's birthday and to our pleasant surprise we also celebrated Isabella's birthday. Here are a few pics of Isabella enjoying her gifts.... Isabella could not wait to try on the shirt from Aunt Meredith
Daddy's Sweetheart
Someone is getting sleepy

The two birthday girls...notice Wills reflection in the back...hehe :)

Sunday we hung around the house and relaxed (as much as you can with an almost 1 year old). The weekends go by way to fast. Can I have a do over?

School Days

Isabella loves "school" (aka daycare). From the moment we arrive she is eager to play with the toys. Here are a few pics that I snapped this week...

She loves to escape to the hallway if the door is open.

But these days she prefers to take a toy with her on a cruise around the center.

Queen of the mountain


Got mail?

Tuesday morning she showed me how she likes to get her toys.
Step 1: Reach

Step 2: Crawl through

Step 3: Grab and Go!

The end of the day with her teacher Ms. Afton

Isabella is sooo close to walking. Any day now I am sure she will debut her new skill.

Another new skill she has unfortunately developed is biting! Ouch! Not good. On Tuesday she bit a classmate on his face then today she bit a classmates hand! Last week she bit her teacher and if you have been reading the posts you can see what she has done to her crib. Will and I are not sure how to curb her frustration that results in biting. I just hope she does not hurt any more of her friends at school.

The Curious Case of Red Cheeks

WANTED

The Culprit

Last seen at 8pm 1/17/09

Mystery: The curious case of the red cheek incident

Yesterday Isabella's cheeks became very red throughout the day which perplexed us. No fever or cold symptoms. No new foods in her diet- so that should rule out 5th disease or an allergic reaction to food. Then this morning ta-da the rash is gone. Hmm...very strange.

Anyway, we can move on from the unsolved case. It is bitter cold outside! Brr. We stayed inside and had fun around the house. Isabella really enjoys looking out the windows and is standing well. No big plans for the weekend, just hanging around the house and keeping warm.

11 months!

Its hard to believe Isabella will be 11 months old in 2 days! To mark the occasion we had a little photo shoot of our princess.Proudly posing with her 1st baby doll

Will was outside organizing the shed and sweet Bell

was looking at him from the window.

Here she is very proud because she

took the crown off of her head

Isabella loves to gaze out the window and take in all the sights of nature. We have lots of birds and squirrels for her to enjoy. She also like to cruise on the window sills since they are in fact the perfect height.





Now its nap time and I hear lots noise coming from her room so I walk in and am greeted by this sweet smile (see below)

Then she proceeds to show off her teeth and all the fine wood work they have done to her beautiful crib

She also thinks its play time

Who me...I did not do it....

Not guilty

GuiltyIsabella might be a woodchuck for Halloween next year since she clearly knows how to chuck wood.

Dalmatians and Leopards oh my!

So Gymoboree is having this huge sale right now...actually it seems like everyone is having a huge sale right now. Anyway, Isabella has outgrown the majority of her wardrobe so I stocked up on a few adorable outfits. It pays to shop ahead if at all possible so I even grabbed her Halloween costume. In case you were wondering she is going to be a cute little fairy, our very own TinkerBELL. Above is a pic of Isabella rockin' her new Dalmatian get up. Pretty much adorable right :) In the pic below she is mesmerized by Sesame Street. Our little laid back baby loves Elmo!

Saturday evening we had Sarah and Thomas over for dinner. We always enjoy spending time with the Shermans we just don't do it often enough. Life does change after a baby and I would not change it for the world but I do miss being able to see my friends as much as before.

Here are a few pics of the Sherman's snuggling up with Bell

Down on the farm

Mommy & Sarah had fun stylin' my hair!

Like Mother, Like Daughter

Our little leopard cub

Happy New Years

Isabella had a New Years Eve celebration at day care and one of her teachers (Ms. Sheree) styled all the girls hair. When I picked her up that afternoon I was surprised she had enough hair to be pulled up but it did look very cute! Isabella spent NYE playing with Daddy while I stopped by a party with friends. Will and Isabella kept their germies at home and enjoyed playing with lots of toys.

Above are a few pick with Isabella enjoying books in her chair from Grammie. Looks like there is no wrong way to sit and read a book.

I hope everyone had a safe and happy NYE. Its hard to believe how fast 2008 went by. It was the best year of my life thus far. Isabella joined our lives and we purchased our 1st home. We are very blessed. I look forward to 2009 and all the excitement it brings!

On an exciting note, Isabella said her 1st word....its "hi"!!! She even has a princess wave that accompanies it!! Very cute.