All I Want for Christmas

...is my two front teeth, my two front teeth, yeah my two front teeth...

Oh wait! I GOT my two front teeth! The two front bottom teeth, but hey, it's a start. And boy, did I work for those babies! Now I love to show them off every chance I get. The first one finally made its big breakthrough about a week before Christmas, and the second one popped up this weekend. You can see them really well when I'm talking, laughing, and eating.

Ah, yes, eating. Who knew that pureed carrots could be so gloriously delicious? So far, I have gobbled up anything that is spooned into my eager little mouth. I'm up to an entire two-ounce jar of baby food per day, plus four scoops of rice cereal, and about 24 ounces of formula. And to think, I used to get so excited about boring ol' milk. This week, I'll explore a new fruit - maybe bananas or apricots. Bon appetit!

So, back to Christmas... I hope everyone reading this had a wonderful holiday. Most people won't believe it, but we actually had a white Christmas! Mom and Dad said it was in honor of my first Christmas. The snow only lasted for a few hours, but it was so cool! We spent the weekend leading up to Christmas at the beach with Grandma Jan, Auntie Nina, Uncle Chris, Auntie Noelle, Uncle Jeremy, Rubie, and Great-Grandma Z. Aunt Nina made a yummy dinner and everyone opened presents. Rubie and I had a slumber party at Grandma Jan's, and we played nicely together with all our new toys. Then, on Christmas itself, Mommy, Daddy, and I spent a quiet day at home listening to Christmas music, opening more presents, and enjoying the snow.

I've been trying to crawl for awhile now, but on Christmas Eve, I finally did it! It turns out it's a bit over-rated, though. In fact, I can't really get anywhere faster than before when I was scooting and squirming. So, I've moved on to bigger and better things, like pulling myself to a standing position and inching along furniture to get where I need to go. My parents are flabbergasted because they thought they'd have awhile to prepare for this HUGE developmental leap. But... I'm a determined baby, what can I say?

So, this will be my final post for 2007. It has been an excellent year, what with my birth and all, but I have a feeling more good things are in store for 2008. See you then!

I Met Santa!

It was last Sunday - only the second day into December - and The Holidays were in full force. Our whole family was bitten by the Christmas bug, so where better to experience the season than at The Mall. The whole place was decked out in sparkling tinsel, garland, and lights (OK, it's been that way since October), and at the center of it all was Santa! Mommy sat me on his great big, cushy lap, I looked straight into his jolly eyes, and I grabbed a whole fistful of his soft, white beard. It was magical! Daddy explained that he isn't the real Santa, but it was sure neat to meet his likeness.

Today, I'm helping Benji and his moms pick out a Christmas tree for their house. We're going to a u-pick tree farm, and I get to ride on a tractor and everything! It's a pretty day with blue skies and sunshine, so I'm excited to get out there in the fresh, brisk air. Afterwards, Mommy has to do some Christmas shopping, so we'll brave the crowds for awhile.

Since my last post, we got a new camera. We're still mourning the loss of the missing memory cards, which contained pictures of many firsts. For example, my first messy bites of solid food; my first Thanksgiving; my first time sitting up in the big bathtub; the first time I knealed in my crib and peeked out through the slabs while Mommy laughed at how funny I was. Not to mention, there were just lots of great shots of me being 5, 6, 7-months old. Sob. Sniffle. Booooo hoooooooo. :-(

But, I've still got a lot of firsts ahead of me; we're constantly making new memories, and my parents are capturing as much as they can on film. Have I mentioned that I am absolutely itching to crawl? I can bring myself to the crawling position, and I kind of rock back and forth, but I'm just not quite able to move forward yet. It's only a matter of time, though. In the meantime, I scoot and roll all over the place. If I need to get to something, I'll figure out a way.

I'm still talking up a storm. I've increased my vocabulary quite a bit in the last couple of weeks. For example, every time I see Norman the kitty, I delightfully squeal "keeeeeeeeeee!" Mom thinks that's my word for "kitty" but I use it for anything that makes me happy. I am fond of saying "yayayaya" as well as "yiyiyiyiyi" (long i sound, like eye). When I first wake up in the morning, I lay in my crib chattering away.

That's about all I have to report for today. We finally have a few new pictures to share. Aren't I getting big? My hair is almost long enough to put into a barrette. It sticks straight up, all fluffy and chicky-ish. Oh, I'm such a lovable baby girl!