A princess even at school

At Hannah's school, they have a dress-up closet and the first thing she does when she gets there is put on her princess clothes. During music time, you'll notice that Hannah is the only one dressed up. More later...

Hannah loves chocolate!

2 Turkeys!

Here are our 2 turkeys from Thanksgiving. More later...

17 Days 'til Christmas!

Hello All!

We are really in the swing of Christmas and we've been busy doing holiday things. Hannah has been to 2 (!) Build-a-Bear parties in the last couple of weeks and she now has a bear named "Hannah" and a moose named "Moose". She finished her swim lessons last week and this week we're going to Disney on Ice to see Tinkerbell and to Pullen Park for the Holiday Express (riding the train, seeing Santa, etc.). Yesterday, our church had the Children's Christmas Cantata. Hannah didn't have any lines. She was supposed to just stand there in front of the congregation with all the other kids and look cute. All was well until they got to the last 30 seconds of the song (The Twelve Days of Christmas). Hannah decided she had had enough of just standing there. "Let's flash the congregation", she thought. So she did. She lifted her dress up all the way to her neck. She didn't have on an undershirt, so yes, she showed everything. At least she had on her underpants. More later...

First Santa visit of 2008!

We went to the Cameron Village Christmas Open House and talked with Santa Claus. Hannah told him she wanted a vacuum cleaner (?). I wonder if the cleaning kick will continue into her teen years... If she's like me, definitely not. More later...

Hello from Homer!

I know this is technically Hannah's blog spot, but Homer wanted to say "Hi".

Happy Birthday to Mommy!

Ballerina pose

Here's Hannah doing her ballerina pose. She'll stop anywhere and strike this pose, even in line at KFC/Taco Bell. It's the only one she knows right now. She seems to like being a ballerina so much that I've signed her up for some ballet classes in 2009. More later...

Jumpin' in!

Here's Hannah jumping into the COLD pool. She doesn't seem to be bothered too much by the water temperature. I'm just glad I don't have to get in. The next swim lessons will be at Pullen Park where the pool is heated! More later...

Playtime with Wade!

Our good friends from Mebane, Wade and his mom Susann, came to visit and play for a while. The kids had fun taking all the toys out and Susann and I got to catch up. We first met them at a library storytime when Hannah was about 6 months old. Then we spent a couple of years walking around Lake Lynn pushing strollers. Then they moved... :( More later...

First trip to the dentist!

Hannah had her first trip to the dentist on November 13th. She had fallen on her mouth a few weeks ago so we just wanted to have her front teeth checked out. Everything was fine and while she was there they did her first cleaning. She was an excellent patient!

Nature Walk

Hannah and I went on a nature walk through Brookhaven Nature Park a few days ago. The park is very close to our house. We picked up leaves, fed ducks, and got "attacked" by a rogue golden retriever. He grabbed Hannah's bag of leaves (which was in her hand) and tried to take it, which of course scared her. But Mommy stepped in and saved the day (or the bag of leaves). He then jumped all over her which scared her even more. He finally ran off after he decided that we were not going to play with him. The owner was no where in sight. More later...

The pool's cold, Mommy!

Hannah started her solo swim lessons earlier this week. She's doing good, but she doesn't want to go under the water yet. Hopefully that will change. The pool water is a bit chilly. The pool is enclosed under a bubble so it's warm inside, but I don't believe the pool itself is heated. I'll make sure to try to get into the lessons at the heated pool next time. Her lips were almost blue yesterday. I feel like a bad mama, but we're going back on Monday! More later...

Halloween!

Eric took Cinderella trick-or-treating with some neighbors the other night. She had lots of fun and got a bucket full of candy. She said that she would share with Mommy and Daddy. We also have a ton of candy left over so we'll have candy at least 'til Easter. And then we'll add the Easter candy to the mix. Hannah's going to her first solo swim class tonight. I hope the pool's heated. More later...

Twirling the pizza dough!

Making Pizza

We took Hannah to Amante's Pizza in Raleigh and she got to make her own pizza. She had a great time and the pizza turned out great too! Look for the video of Hannah "twirling" her pizza dough. More later...

Driving the bumper boats at the State Fair

This was Hannah's first solo State Fair ride and she had a blast!

The State Fair has come and gone...

Well, we had a fun time at the State Fair. We took Hannah 3 (!) times and she loved every minute of it. She rode rides, ate BBQ sandwiches, drank a root beer float, saw animals, got stickers, walked and so much more. Eric and I had fun too. We actually went 2 additional times by ourselves to see bands in Dorton Arena (TobyMac & Skillet). Now we start saving our money again! (I'm going to put a State Fair album in her "Picture Album" so look for that in the next day or two.) In addition to the State Fair, we also went to Magnolia Glen's Fall Festival (where my mom lives) and our church's Fall Festival. She did "Trunk or Treat" and dressed up as a princess/ballerina. Then yesterday we had the neighborhood Halloween Parade. More dressing up and goodies. And it's not even Halloween yet! Oh well, I think we're gonna be busy like this 'til after Christmas. More later...

Busy week!

We've had lots to do this past week. We started the week out at the Quail Ridge books storytime. Hannah learned that she had a brain inside her head (who knew?) and how to not hurt it by wearing a bicycle helmet when riding a bike. She doesn't have one of those yet. After that we went to the Farmer's Market and picked out a pumpkin for Halloween. On Wednesday, we went to the Kazoom puppet show with Miss Polly and Miss Esther. Hannah got to dress up and she chose to be a butterfly. Sorry - no good pictures of that. On Thursday we went back to Quail Ridge where "The Queen" (actually the woman who illustrates the Fancy Nancy books) read Sarah Ferguson's new children's book about a tea party with the Queen. She was dressed in full queen regalia as were most of the little girls who were there. I left my camera at home so I have no pictures of that either. We had planned on going to the State Fair tonight (Friday) but we're watching the weather right now. It may rain us out. More later...

A couple more pictures...

Here's a picture of Hannah dressed up in her tu-tu, tu-tu shoes and crown. This is her favorite outfit lately. The other picture is a field of flowers on the side of the road. They were so pretty that we decided to stop and take a picture. More later...

Washing Clothes, Old School

We went to Heritage Day at a local park recently and Hannah got to try out a washboard. Of course I did more than she did. We had lots of fun - a hayride, petting some animals, running through a cotton field, watching a dog show. More later...

Not much going on...

There's not too much going on right now. Hannah's gotten in the groove of going to school. She loves it and her teachers are great! We're currently counting down the days until the NC State Fair starts. We're planning on going on October 17th so Hannah's very excited. She's only been talking about it for 11 months! I've posted the September 2008 pictures in her picture album. There are quite a few and I noticed there may be a few duplicates from her birthday party album. Anyway, enjoy them! More later...

Hanna the Hurricane

This picture is a little late. This paper (9/5/08) is from the day before Hannah's birthday and the day before Hurricane Hanna hit. I thought the headline said it all. :) More later...

USPCA Demonstration

We went to the USPCA (United States Police Canine Association) demonstration at a local high school last night. There were about 80 dogs and their handlers from all over the eastern US there. They had been in Raleigh all week for the trials. We watched them do an obstacle course, chase the bad guys and then they had an "actual" police chase come onto the field - complete with lights & sirens, SWAT teams, and a helicopter! Pretty exciting! The night would have been even more exciting if we had won the German Shepherd puppy that the USPCA was raffling off. We came within 2 (!) numbers of winning. In other words, had I bought my ticket 2 people sooner we'd have a dog today. Eric would say we dodged a bullet there. More later...

Sliding at Laurel Hills Park

Here's Hannah sliding at Laurel Hills Park. The shots at the end of the tape aren't real gunshots. The police dogs are training on a field at the park and the shots are blanks. We watched them practice apprehension before coming over to the playground. More later...

Kazoom Puppet Theatre

Hannah and I went to Kazoom Puppet Theatre in Raleigh and Hannah had lots of fun. There was singing, dancing, marching, bears & puppets. The ladies also told the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Hannah wasn't interested in going on stage for that but she loved the bubbles! She also hugged her new bear friend good-bye. More later...

Hannah's 3!

Hannah turned 3 on September 6th right as Hurricane Hanna was coming through North Carolina. That's the radar on the screen behind Hannah in the picture. We didn't do too much on her actual birthday due to the weather that morning. We opened some presents (puzzles, red sparkly shoes) and had some cake. She wanted to eat at Jason's Deli (?) for her birthday so we did. She ordered a PB&J. Nothing special there since she eats that about 3-4 days out of the week anyway. Oh well, that's what she wanted. That evening we went to another friend's house (Melinda) because it was her birthday too. Melinda happens to collect My Little Pony items so Hannah and her new friend, Fiona, had a grand time playing with those. We had a birthday party for Hannah on September 13th at a local park. We invited some friends & neighbors to that. There were about 12 friends there and fun was had by all! Check Hannah's picture album on the left in a couple of days and I'll have more birthday pictures up there. School's going well. She never wants to leave! More later...

Keep checking back...

Sorry there haven't been any posts in the last few days. We've been busy around here - birthday, school, etc. I just haven't had a chance to post any pictures. It's on my weekend "to do list". More later...

The first day of school!

Hannah started school today! I think she's gonna have a fun year. She talked with her teacher, Mrs. Prather, and played with the kitchen and puzzles. The kids were only there for 15 minutes today, just to get them used to the idea of school. This is the first year of school for most of her classmates. I don't think Hannah will have any problems getting back into the school groove. More pictures have been posted to the picture album on the left, so make sure you look at those. More later...

Labor Day Fun

We took Hannah to Lake Lynn since Eric was off work. It was very crowded. The lake was actually full since it had rained recently. We fed ducks, geese and lots of turtles. Then she played for a while in the playground. Other than this outing, our Labor Day was pretty low-key. I washed windows and Eric mowed the lawn. Exciting times. More later...

Hannah, the photographer.

Hannah took our camera and decided to take some pictures. Do you think she has a career in photography?

The putt-put pro in action!

Putt-Putt!

We went to play putt-putt with some friends this past Sunday. It was Hannah's first time. She would hit the ball a couple of times and then pick it up and put it in the hole. She actually lasted through 16 holes, but on the 17th she decided she'd had enough. It was really hot outside, too. All in all, she was a very good sport! More later...

The Wiggles!!

Hannah and I went to see the Wiggles at the RBC Center last Friday night. There were lots of people and lots of wiggling. Unfortunately, we were unable to wiggle because we were sitting in the press row seats. Our seats were comfortable and they swiveled, but Hannah couldn't see over the press row desk unless she sat on her knees or in my lap. Oh well, we still had fun with the Wiggles, Capt. Feathersword, Dorothy the Dinosaur, Wags the Dog and lots of acrobats and ballerinas. Even I was entertained by the show. More later...

Ronald McDonald and a race car!

Hannah and her dad went to a festival at the NC State Fairgrounds and ran into Ronald McDonald and a race car. Unfortunately, I have no idea whose race car that is or even if it's a real one. They had a good time, but said there were lots of people there. I stayed home and cleaned the house. Who do you think had more fun? Tonight, Hannah and I are going to go to the Wiggles concert and Hannah is quite excited about it. I'm not sure if I am or not. More later...

It's almost the end of Summer

Not too much has happened in the last week or so. Hannah had a get-together with her new classmates last Sunday. School starts on September 2nd and there are 10 kids in her class (5 girls & 5 boys). Hannah will be the oldest in her class but their birthdays are all within 6 months of each other. We went for a walk at Lake Lynn a couple of days ago and Hannah fed the geese. She enjoys throwing the bread, crackers, etc. to them. I can't imagine that the Lake Lynn geese are ever really hungry. There are always kids throwing food to them. She's been under the weather for the last day or two with a cough, but she seems to be feeling better. By the way, new pictures have been added to Hannah's picture album. That's all for now. More later...

Art Class

Here's the budding artist at work at Sertoma Park in Raleigh. She's already scheduled to have her work shown in her first art show later this month. Her class was selected and their work will be at the Block Art Gallery in the Municipal Building in downtown Raleigh. I haven't figured out where it is yet, but I will. More later...

Hannah at the pool.

Just one more night of swim lessons to go!

Swim Lessons

Hannah has taken a week of swim lessons (parent & child) and she's doing really well. She loves to under the water! She's not swimming on her own yet, but she's not far from it. She has one more week of lessons left and then in her next swim class she will be taking the lessons by herself. That won't be until later in the fall. I can't believe it's already August. School's right around the corner. More later!

Hannah in a bubble!

This is Hannah at Vacation Bible School. She actually stood still for this experiment.

We just got back from the beach (Nag's Head, NC) last Sunday. Hannah had a great time! There was a tropical storm out over the ocean while we were there, so we didn't get to get into the ocean very much. We went over to the sound side instead and the water was great. The water wasn't deep and there were no waves, so Hannah could play as much as she wanted. We also visited 2 lighthouses (Corolla and Bodie Island), Nag's Head Fishing Pier, the NC Aquarium in Manteo and we climbed to the top of Jockey's Ridge (the big sand dune). Whew! We're in the middle of Vacation Bible School this week and we're all exhausted. Keep watching "Hannah's Picture Album" and we'll be posting some more beach pictures soon. More later!