A Little Personality...

Wow! I am amazed everyday to watch Anna develop into her own person. We are so blessed to have been given this little life to raise and teach. She is so perfect and definitely the best part of our days. We cannot get enough of her precious little smile and laugh and the more days that pass, the more she is growing into such a vibrant, happy, little baby girl who is full of so much life. These pics and video were taken last night when Matt was changing her for bedtime. It's these simple moments that make our life so complete and wonderful. Enjoy!

Our Baby-fied House

It's official. Our house will never be the same again. No longer will we have "adult" furniture or cleanliness (not that we really had that too much) or space of our own. Anna has taken over...and it's the greatest! I have to say that seeing her toys all over make me so proud to be a mommy. I love seeing little baby stuff all over and knowing that this is the house where our daughter (and other kids) will grow up and make memories. I love seeing her learn about all the fun things going on around her. Her favorite toy is still probably her real life doggy, Indi, but her new play-yard is closely battling for second.

We ordered "Anna's Kennel" online after a recommendation from a friend and it is one of our best purchases. We can put Anna in there and feel safe that she won't go anywhere --Which actually she really can't since she can't crawl yet - Although she IS scooting on her belly and in a seated position. We just have the play-yard in the corner of the couches with lots of toys thrown in. It's a sure bet that she will be entertained if we just pile up the toys and make her think that her space is so much fun she never wants to leave. Inevitably, the fun doesn't last for too long, because she quickly remembers mommy or daddy isn't holding her and then she wants out in order to explore from the big-people's-eye-view. This new "permanent" fixture will be sure to bring lots of great times to our household and we even have a few extra extensions for Anna's friends and brothers and sisters one day. Let the fun begin!

March comes in like a lion....

The beginning of March was definitely a handful for our household. It started with Anna sick with a stomach virus and then mommy and daddy caught it a few days later. First, there is nothing worse than seeing your baby sick. Sweet little Anna was so helpless and groggy and kept getting sick all day. She wouldn't eat and then would just fade in and out of sleep all day - usually on Daddy which he of course loved! Thankfully, her "bug" only lasted about 24 hours. We never even had to take her to the doctor. To date, she has only gone for her scheduled well visits and one random time when she was 2 weeks old for a clogged tear duct. We hope that she will keep the streak alive! Can you believe mommy and daddy have held off and handled things on our own?!

It was sad to watch Anna sick, but I think it would have been even more pathetic if you had seen me and Matt. Ours started one evening - fortunately after Anna went to sleep - and lasted through the night and then we recovered for a few days. I had our bed and bathroom and Matt had the couch and the other bathroom. Our darling daughter was wonderful and slept so soundly through all of it that first night. I don't know how we'll do it when we have more kids. We know this was the first of many long nights ahead of us and surely this was probably the easiest. We just love being parents!

This experience reminded me of something my friend Carri said when their house was sick with the flu this year. She too has a 7 month old and she said that she was trying to convince Josie that snuggling all day in bed watching movies is fun. Ha, ha! Yeah right. I quickly realized that my being sick means nothing to Anna. Recovery time for mommy has to be super quick these days, but that's okay; I wouldn't trade it for anything.

A "Flipbook" of Pictures

Is there anything cuter than bath pictures? And now how about bath videos for today's babies? Talk about incriminating evidence for future dates.... (oh and don't call 241-kids because Indi is in the last scene. Anna doesn't bathe with her.)

Anna Loves Hoops!

It's in her blood....this girl loves basketball! She attended her first basketball game last week as she watched the lady Crusaders beat the Bluebirds. Anna's getting to the age where she doesn't really like to sit still (ie, on your lap) for more than about 10 minutes, but she definitely loved the action on the hardwood that night and sat for the entire game. (She attended with her maybe-future-NDA-soccer-coach "Coach Raaker") Here are some pictures of her getting comfortable with the "feel" of the ball in her palm....

I was reading my preganancy journal and thought I'd post what I wrote almost one year ago: February 26, 2007. Anna was only 19 weeks old in my belly. It really helps you to see what kind of miracle took place in such a short amount of time.

"We got our ultrasound last Wednesday! Like a proud parent, I took your pics into work to show you off. I thought our ultrasound experience would be so special and so much different. Don't get me wrong, it was such a neat moment shared between me and Matt but I guess I thought it would feel like I was really looking at you. Instead I felt like I was staring at an optical illusion and that I was the only one in the room who couldn't "see it."

Daddy was really good at recognizing things. I could hardly recognize anything. We saw your little heart, brain stem, kidneys, legs, arms, fingers, toes, eyes, and mouth. You are such an amazing miracle! We are so thankful that God chose us to have you! What a blessing you already are!

I was so excited to have your little foot, arm and face captured on film. Unfortunately we see your bones on the picture. So daddy called your picture "Skelator." We have to admit that it's a bit creepy. Sorry baby, it's just that we can only see bone.

The ultrasound tech said you look very healthy - 10 ounces! You were so cute because you were moving so much. You even grabbed your feet while we were watching you! What a precious moment to witness! You are so amazing and growing and developing so much and so quickly. Now when I feel you move, I keep thinking you're grabbing your toes and exploring. Daddy was excited because he thought you were stretching and so you must be a runner!!"

Hope you enjoyed a glimpse into our little now-17-pound Anna's life one year ago....it's TRULY a miracle, isn't it?

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow....

With about three inches on the ground outside, Indi thought she'd try to recreate the scenery inside. She has a love-hate relationship with squeaky toys. She tears them apart until she literally gets the squeak out. It's so funny to watch because she can have the thing torn apart in less than 5 minutes. This particular toy is a doggy that uncle Jonathan gave her for Christmas. We saved it for a special occasion - tonight was it. Basically, I just wanted to keep Indi occupied for a little while. As you can see, it worked. Thanks Jonathan.

On Monday, Anna and I had a meeting (not a "date" Daddy) with Courtney and Hudson. They were very cute together and it was so funny to see them interacting. Anna's not quite ready to "play" but Hudson was defintely interested in Anna's toys she brought. He kept crawling over and taking them and then Anna would pick up one of his toys and chew on it. Then Hudson would crawl over and take that one away and the afternoon continued the same way. We can't wait for the "mine" phase - combined with walking - won't that be great? =) (These pictures would be so much better with captions attached!)

Look At Our Big Girl!!!

From two new toophers to sitting to jabbering all the time, this little girl is growing so fast! Her first tooth broke through in the beginning of January and then the second a few weeks later, but it seems now that little Anna has some real teeth. Those teeth are no indication of her readiness to eat solids though. Although the banana-eating video is quite adorable, we haven't had many more moments like that. She just doesn't seem too interested anymore. Oh well, we'll keep trying!