Finding Your Voice

Anna has officially discovered her voice. We've had a fun weekend hanging out, just the three of us, provoking Anna to squeal as much as possible. I have a bunch of other pictures to load from the rest of our Cincy trip, Melissa and Jed's wedding, and the past week, but this video will have to suffice for now. Enjoy!

Cincinnati Visit, Part One

Anna and I have been having so much fun visiting friends and family in Cincinnati. We are trying to see everyone before Aunt Melissa and Uncle Jed's wedding on Saturday! Within an hour of arriving in Cincinnati on Saturday night, Anna's great grandma (Mama) and grandpa (Old Pa) came over to hold her while my mom, dad, and I ate dinner. They had fun talking to her and were shocked at how much bigger she was (they came down to Nashville for her birth).

Then Uncle Evan and Amanda came over for a visit!

Anna has been increasingly more alert and awake (I think it helps that her Grandma and Papa provide LOTS more stimulation) and has been sleeping more through the night - yeah! Here she is kicking and smiling at Grandma:

Anna helped cheer the Bengals to victory on Sunday in her cute onesie from Grandma Patty and Aunt Jess:

We also got to spend time with some dear college friends, Emily, Jane, and Melody. Jane was in town from Tuscon, so it was quite a treat to be all together!

Here is Jane with her almost-twelve-week-old Collette:

Anna remembered Emily and got quite comfy in her arms again:

Melody's eighteen-month-old, Cate, looked cute in her Halloween outfit:

Here's a group shot:

(Emily with Anna, me, Jane with Collette, and Melody with Cate)

I just had to take a picture to show off Anna's cute new polka-dot coat - I love it!

Monday included driving my mom to and from work (so I could have a car and show her off to my mom's friends at work), running some wedding errands, and hanging with Anna and my parents' pets. Darby was fascinated and sat by Anna the whole afternoon:

She even gave Anna a few kisses:

Cooper also enjoyed Anna. He kept grabbing at the toys in Anna's hands and wanted to be with her in the pack and play every time I changed her diaper:

A cute shot with Grandma and Papa:

More trip updates to come!

All Dressed Up

Here Anna is all dressed up to go to her friend Josiah's first birthday party. Enjoy!

Long-Overdue Update

To all concerned grandparents, aunts, uncles, and friends, I apologize for the lapse in picture-posting! Here's what Anna was up to last week:

On Wednesday Jimmy and I hosted LifeGroup at our house for the first time since Anna was born. Aunika (our friends' almost-three-year-old) and Josiah (our other friends' almost-one-year-old) had fun hanging out with Anna while she was in her swing (which actually used to be Josiah's). They were both very "concerned" about her pacifier.

Anna has really been focusing on things lately, and I decided to see if she could see herself in the mirror. Here she is reacting to her reflection:

This is our attempt at a family portrait. Anna was totally staring at Jimmy!

My dear friend Emily came to visit on Friday. We had a great time exploring Nashville. Friday we girls went to Historic Downtown Franklin and ate lunch at Merridee's Breadbasket (where I think I ate the most divine chocolate merangue pie I've ever tasted). Saturday we all went to Opry Mills to shop and see our friend Justin's band, Sidewalk Prophets, play (they were great!) and went to dinner at the Mellow Mushroom. Emily was great with Anna ... we can't wait for her next visit!

I don't exactly know what to say about this picture, except that I think it's funny:

Here's another one of Anna's odd sleeping poses captured on film:

A cute sleeping pic, featuring a new pacifier:

Anna loves having her diaper changed. Jimmy and I usually take advantage of a few minutes of smiley time afer diaper changes.

Anna also likes hanging out in her baby sling or Baby Bjorn. It helps me get a lot done around the house!

Can't wait to see all our Cincinnati friends and family soon --- love you all!

Grabbing Her Ear

When I was a little girl, I always grabbed my earlobe and held on to it ... kind of a security blanket type of thing, I guess. Well, last night Jimmy and I were sitting on the couch listening to a Rob Bell sermon in preparation for this week's LifeGroup, and we noticed Anna doing something a little odd. Check it out:

She was hanging on to that ear for dear life! While it wasn't her earlobe, the gesture was close enough to my childhood pose for me to take notice and get a good laugh. In the last few days, Anna has also grabbed her hair and my hair (not fun). I don't think she understands what she's doing just yet, but it's fun to see her explore with her hands.

Eventually, she chilled out:

And minutes later, looked like this:

One-Month Update

Anna had her one-month check-up last week, and her doctor gave her glowing reviews! Anna weighs 9 pounds, 11 ounces and is 21 and 1/2 inches long. She's in the 6oth-75th percentile for both (I can't find the little sheet that tells me the exact percentiles). Her left arm is moving perfectly, so Jimmy and I don't have to take her to physical therapy anymore - yeah! Overall, she's just a happy, healthy little girl --- we're thankful!

Here is a video taken on her one-month birthday ... she gets fussy towards the end, but it's cute to hear her coos and baby sounds:

Anna got her first shot at her doctor's visit along with her first bandaid. It was the same size as her thigh!




Jimmy was out of town all last week, and, in desperate need of adult interaction, I spent a lot of time out of the house with friends. Saturday I hung out all day with my friend Emily and her almost-three-year-old daughter, Aunika. We had so much fun!

This is how Anna napped while we were there:



Aunika loved getting to hang out with Anna, who she has dubbed "Baby Anda." She kept bringing me toys, Dora the Explorer juice cups, and strawberries and grapes for Baby Anda ... it was adorable! Here she is helping burp Baby Anda:



Jimmy came home late Saturday night and was amazed at how much Anna had changed in one week. She was all smiles for him! We had fun last night giving her a bath together and cuddling with her in bed (while watching season ten of Friends). Enjoy the pictures!

Here she is with Daddy pre-bath:
(I'm an idiot and can't figure out how to format the picture vertically.)


Jimmy captured this HILARIOUS picture of our chubby, cross-eyed sumo-baby:


All wrapped up with Mommy:


So cute! Bath time was a blast!