I'm walking!!

Here is a photo of Danielle walking. She took her first step on Thanksgiving and now she walks across the room! She's still a bit wobbly but that makes it so adorable.

Our Christmas Tree Hunt

Last weekend we hunted for our Christmas tree. It was very cold so we bundled up and finally did find one. There wasn't much snow but just enough so we could take a wintery picture. Danielle was a real trooper.

Being One is Fun

I thought you should know all the things I like about being one year old...so here goes! First of all, Mommy decided she wanted my hair out of my eyes so I got my first haircut. It wasn't too scary. I got to eat animal crackers and look in the mirror. I hardly noticed that a strange lady was using a sharp object near my face! Of course we saved a bit of my hair in an envelope and took a photo. Now that I am one my dog, Duke, seems to tolerate me a lot more. I love to give him hugs and he doesn't seem to mind. He's not sure if he likes me sitting on top of him or not...we're still working that out. I have learned a little more sign language so now I can tell Mommy & Daddy when I want a drink, cracker, cheese, or banana. Usually it's "cracker" or "cheese" those are my two favorites. These days I take a step once in awhile but I don't walk. I like to sit like a big kid on anything Mommy & Daddy will let me sit on. There is one chair at Grammie & Grandpa's house that is short enough for me to get into. I love climbing in and then sitting there so proud of myself. Well, that's about all for now. I'll keep you posted on any new accomplishments!

My 1st Birthday Party

Sunday night we had my 1st birthday celebration (my real birthday is the 29th). It was lots of fun, I was blessed with gifts and my first taste of chocolate cake! At first Daddy got the frosting on his finger and I tasted it, then Mommy got a spoon out and showed me there was chocolate inside. Then I started picking it up by the handfuls and putting it in my mouth. I kept going and Mommy took it away after I ate about half of the mini-cake! I think she didn't want me to get sick. There were so many photos taken that I'm still seeing stars from all the flashes!

Poll results

Hi everyone. For those of you who participated in the poll....I got my first tooth (actually 3 teeth in about a week) and still haven't said "Mommy". It took Mommy quite a few tries but she finally got a good photo of all my new teeth. Yes I'm already getting my 4th tooth. The top one came in first, then the bottom 2 right after that. Now my other top one is working its way out. I still do not say Mama yet but that will probably come in a suprising way like my 4 teeth did. Mommy was so excited today because I signed my first official sign language word. When she feeds me she always does the sign for "more" to see if I want more of something. Well, my favorite food these days are pancakes and this morning we had pancakes and I wanted another bite...I did the sign...and it worked! I got more!

Happy Halloween

For Halloween I was a butterfly! Grandma got the costume for me and it was really cute. Doesn't it look like I'm ready to take off and fly?!

Another wedding!

I can cross another new place off my list of places to see. Last weekend we went to Santa Barbara for our friends wedding. It was beautiful and Mommy & Daddy enjoyed catching up with friends from college. The drive was long but I took lots of naps and played with all of my toys in the backseat. It's nice to be home now where I can safely explore and sleep in my own bed. Here are a few pictures from the weekend. The family photo was taken on the beach right after the ceremony and the other one is me asleep on Daddy at the reception. I was exhausted and the music put me to sleep.

My new hair-do

Hi everyone! Here is a picture Mommy took of my latest hair-do. Finally she was able to get me to hold still and my hair cooperated with the pony-tail. Anyway, it was fun and one way to get all my hair out of my face.

Cross-country traveller

Last week we were in Boston for Daddy's step-sister's wedding. It was a great trip, we saw lots of family and beautiful country. Here is a picture of me in my pretty dress for the wedding. Daddy has always wanted to see Fenway Park so we went to a Red Sox game one night. It was very fun even though they lost. It was great to spend time with my Grandma, Auntie Kay, family members and friends. The travelling was long but Daddy said I did a very good job.

Me & Duke

Here is a picture of me petting Duke. He wasn't really thrilled about it but he was getting pet by Daddy also so he put up with me. These days I'm a fast crawler and I pull up on everything. Today I figured out how to open cabinet doors! This week we are getting ready for our trip to Boston. Daddy's step-sister is getting married next weekend. So, I will take my first 5 hour plane ride. It will be an adventure!

My first trip to the coast

My first "camping" trip was a great success. I have camping in quotations because we really just slept in our tent next to Grammie & Grandpa's motorhome. Still it was a new experience not having the comforts of our own home. The weather was gorgeous, we played games together, took a few walks, and relaxed. It was nice to have special time with my Grammie & Grandpa. Some of their friends were on the trip, too, so they got to introduce me to them. I slept all night long in my Pac 'n Play in the tent and when I woke up at the crack of dawn I snuggled with Mommy & Daddy in their sleeping bags. The only part I didn't like was the 4+ hour ride in my carseat. Next time we will plan to drive during my naptime!

Family Photo Requested

A good suggestion was made to post our family photo. Here we are about a month ago. It isn't too often that we are all in a picture together. Thanks to a wonderful friend/great photographer we have this one!

I love my books!

Today Mommy snapped my picture while I was looking at my book. Every morning Mommy reads a book to me, then during the day I pull all of my books out of the basket and pick one to look at, then later when Daddy gets home he will read to me. My favorite book lately is a counting book with animals. It's easy to tell which is my favorite page (the giraffe page) because I laugh every time I see it.
Not too much else is new. We're going camping this weekend (my first camping trip) so I'll post pictures of our trip next week.

Diaper Derby

Last week was our county fair. There wasn't much exciting for me there but I entered the diaper derby on Sunday afternoon. Daddy set me down at the starting line and Mommy was at the finish line. They said "ready, set, go" and I didn't know what to do. All kinds of people were cheering and making noise. I had never had so many people gathered around me. I started crawling to Mommy and then got distracted and stopped. Then Mommy held up a water bottle (one of my favorite things to play with) and I figured she wanted me to come get it. So, I crawled at medium speed to the finish line and took 3rd place. It was a new experience and I got a pink stuffed kitty so it wasn't all bad.

Me & Frog

4 months old
6 months old
8 months old

Here are photos of me with my stuffed frog. This is a neat way to see how I've changed.

A day in the life of Danielle

6:30 a.m. wake up & eat breakfast, snuggle with Mommy and say "hi" to Daddy before he goes to work.
8-10:00 a.m. morning nap
10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. crawl around and explore, read my books, follow Mommy around, watch for chances to crawl after Duke (my dog), more eating and exploring, etc.
2:00 - 4:00 p.m. afternoon nap
4:00 p.m. wake up happy and start waiting for Daddy to come home from work.
4:15 p.m. crawl over to the door where Daddy will walk in.
4:17 p.m. Daddy's home! He picks me up and gives me a big squeeze. Then he'll put me on his shoulders or toss me in the air (carefully!). I save my biggest smiles for him. I'll wait for him to change his clothes and then he'll read a book with me or give me a puppet show.
5-8:00 p.m. dinner, family time, more exploring. often we'll go for an evening walk (well, I ride in my jogging stroller) and enjoy the outdoors.
8:00 p.m. bath, goodnight kisses, prayer & bedtime

Beginner Blogger

Dear family & friends: I thought I'd give this a try to keep you all updated on Danielle and the fun we are having watching her grow. I love writing from Danielle's perspective so hopefully you enjoy it. That way I don't feel like all I'm saying is "Danielle this" and "Danielle that". I know many of you enjoy seeing new photos and hearing what Danielle is up to so here goes.