Christmas 2009

Merry Christmas! Today we celebrated our first Christmas with Hope, and what a good morning it has been. Santa came, bringing Hope lots of presents. Here she is opening a few of her gifts.


What did Santa bring me?













My very own Hello Kitty purse!












What could this be?

















Boxes are my favorite












My very own cell phone












Wheeling and Dealing on Christmas morning


















Taking Baby for a stroll















As seen on TV: The Snuggie

Congratulations, Jackie!

Yesterday, Hope's cousin, Jackie, graduated from college. Although Hope couldn't be there to celebrate the occasion in person, she did break out her guitar and did a little celebratory dance in Jackie's honor.

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Baby, it's cold outside!

Yesterday, Hope experienced her first major snow storm and her first tobaghen ride. We weren't sure if she was enjoying herself. She didn't crack a smile throughout the whole experience. However, she did raise a fuss when we brought her back inside. Here are some photos of her day playing in the snow with our neighbors.

All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth!

So my tongue stays in my mouth.




































Shorty has one other Christmas wish...he wants to put an end to puppy mills. If you are planning on adding a pet to your family this holiday season, please go to shelters and rescues, and not pet stores, for your new addition.

Bad Hair Day

Hope woke up with the most amazing hair do this morning. I just had to capture it and share it with everyone. Even with "Bride of Frankenstein" hair, she still looks beautiful.

Halloween

Yesterday was Hope's first Halloween. I'm not sure if she enjoyed it or not. I know that she definitely was not into keeping her duck hat on, and I hardly have any good pictures of her in full costume. Hopefully, she will learn to love this holiday, as it is my favorite. I'm also hoping that she will also learn to love dressing up, just like her brother, Shorty does.

Here are a few pics from trick or treat night.

Happy 21st, Caitlin!

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Country House

I've mentioned a few times how much Evan and I enjoy spending time at my in-laws house, near the Catskills. Well this summer we had the good fortune of finding our very own country house, and our settlement will be this Monday. We are very excited to provide Hope with a city and country life. The house is an old farmhouse, built in the 1870's, and rests on 5 acres in close proximity to the Delaware River. Below are a few pictures of the land. I will post pics of the house once we close and there will be a new blog charting the progress of restoring our little country home.

Way to go Phillies!!

The Phanatic hat isn't perfected, yet, but it will be for when we win the World Series.

Canadian Thanksgiving

This past weekend we had the honor of celebrating our second (and Hope's first) Canadian Thanksgiving with our neighbors, and good friends, the Willsons. We feel very fortunate to live across the street these Canadian transplants. You can't beat two Thanksgiving meals in one year, aye!

Happy Birthday, Pop-pop Kessler!!!!!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Crunchy and Bouncy Time

Every morning between her first bottle of the day, and breakfast, Hope has "Crunchy and Bouncy" time. This is Short stack's favorite time of day because most of the crunchies fall on the floor for him to eat. It is also my favorite time, because for 15 minutes, each day, both my babies co-exist in harmony.

Here is Crunchy and Bouncy time captured on video.

BTW...the grunting and snorting is the dog and not me:)

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Farewell to Summer.

I can't believe that our first summer with Hope is over. The weeks of swimming, barbecuing, and eating watermelon seem to have passed in a flash. And although I'm sad to see summer go, I am super excited to share my favorite time of the year with my daughter. I cannot wait to play in the leaves with her, to see her in her first Halloween costume, to take her trick or treating and watch her take her first bite of Grammy G's Thanksgiving stuffing.

Here are some picture Hope enjoying the last few days of summer.

Hope's first video!

Here she is with her buddy, Noah. Aren't they cute together?

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If you won't blog, I will!

I've been a very bad blogger, and as you can see, Hope is trying to take over for me. Aside from blogging, Hope has many new talents. She is a very good walker, and is working her way up to running. Her vocabulary includes: Hi, Bye, Daddy, and Cat. She loves emptying cabinets, and rearranging furniture. Plus, she is an expert at changing TV channels, muting the TV, and turning it off, when you are trying to watch it.

Hope has noticed that there are a number of frequent visitors to our blog, If you enjoy our blog, please introduce yourself. Don't be shy; we like to know who our friends are.

Funny Face Monday

For the birds.

The birds of Wayne County, PA know that Hope's Pop-pop Kessler has the best bird seed in town. Here are some of his regular visitors.

Pig Tails

I'm so excited! Hope's hair is finally long enough for pig tails. Doesn't she look adorable???