Head Gear

Now that we have cooler weather, we were excited to break out some new accessories. Leah got this adorable little hat for her birthday. Too bad I was wearing brown - but if you can't see, there are the cutest little ears on the hat.

I found this little gem in Shipshewana this summer. The hood makes her look like a little gnome and it probably just as tall as she is. I can't get enough and giggle every time I put it on. She is thrilled, as you can probably tell.

Leah is officially starting her first full day in the next classroom up at school tomorrow. She has been visiting for a few hours at a time here and there. She is doing quite well and adapting nicely to the new teachers and kids. This is the room they learn to sit in real chairs, eat their meals sitting at a table, and they take naps on little cots. From what I hear, Leah will advance by leaps and bounds during the next year in this new room. We are blessed to be able to send her to such a great place during the day!

Little Helper

Leah has been a bit under the weather and not too smiley in pictures lately....but we're coming out of the worst of it and we're beginning to see the real Leah again...and it's good to have her back! She has recently taken on walking around the house with a bucket on her head. She seems to enjoy running into walls and has the bruises on her forehead to prove it. She giggles from under the bucket after she falls over, so it must be entertaining to her!

She has also started to turn into mommy's little helper and enjoys playing with the dishwasher (or in the dishwasher, rather). She is facinated watching the trays roll in and out. It's amazing how simple things can be mind-blowing to a toddler.

Crane's 09

Saturday afternoon we went with some friends to pick apples at Crane's Orchard. My FAVORITE!

Leah preferred to pick the apples from the ground, she must be an efficiency expert.

Leah was very tired from the family fun and zonked out on the way home.

12 Month Well-baby Checkup

Today, Leah and I got to go to visit her favorite doctor for her 12 month checkup. We are thankful to report Leah is the picture of a healthy little girl and is developing right on track.
The doctor asked if she was gesturing with her hands yet as she asked, Leah blew a kiss to her. Good girl!

The stats are that she is about 30 inches tall, and 21 lbs. She is 75th percentile for her height and 50th for her weight. Very good!

We are still going to stay away from giving her regular cow's milk for now in hopes that she is still outgrowing her dairy sensitivity, but she will be completely done with bottles by the end of this week...(according to my plan). She had 5 shots and 1 finger poke, but she understood that they were for her own good...and even though she screamed and cried, she was able to calm down and was sleeping by the time I dropped her back off at school.

Labor Day Weekend FUN!

What a FUN holiday weekend! Friday, Tracy and I chaperoned an outing for Leah and Deacon for dinner and a romantic sunset stroll on the beach. Leah enjoyed a pickle-on-a-stick for dinner while Deacon preferred a soft pretzel.

Leah had never experienced sand before, so Deacon helped her get a feel for it. It was just too cute!

We also visited Lawrence St. Park on Labor Day. Leah enjoyed the playground equipment, especially the SLIDE!

Peek-a-boo!

Really? A YEAR?

My sister has generously offered to do a photo album of Leah's first year. For those of you who may not know, I am TERRIBLE at stuff like that. I believe that some of my friends had an intervention with me and tried to train me to start taking pictures before Leah was born. I am thankful they did!! I have been going through hundreds of photo's for this album and I seem to be having a hard time believing that a whole year has gone by! I still think of Leah as she is in the first picture, it's unbelievable that she has grown so much and turned into a little person! Thanks Holly for taking on this challenge - I know we will cherish this book FOREVER!!

Random Pics

It was kind of fun earlier this week to break out some of the new fall clothes with the cooler weather. Leah was spoiled for her birthday and got a bunch of REALLY cute new outfits...
Also, one of her favorite toys is her cell phone. She gets pretty excited when she has a call coming in.

Bath time is always lots of fun!

Here is a great example of Leah using BabySigns asking for more. Rick was eating Trix cereal (yes, Trix are for kids) and she was using her signs in the right context while being a bit silly.