Pumpkin Hat

I finished my first knit for Anna!  It is a cute pumpkin hat finished just in time for Fall and heading to NH.  We got some cute pictures outside.  I put a jacket on her even though it was about 80 degrees.  A pumpkin hat without a jacket looked wrong :o)

9 months!

Anna is now 9 months old! It has been going quickly. John and I have fun looking back at earlier pictures and seeing how much she has changed. She has gotten longer, leaner and much more expressive. She loves to smile and now has a look of determination when she is working on walking along the couch.
And practice she does. She will crawl over to the couch or the ottoman and walk along talking as she goes. She will stick her tongue out at times very similar to John in deep concentration. And her brow furrows too. Very cute.
I also like it when she is on the other side of the ottoman then sits. Then I see this hand come up, "Eh?" Then another hand, then the top of her head. It is funny to watch. Busy this week out for walks, visiting with friends and practice, practice, practice!
And if you are wondering, Fenway is still obsessed with the fish tank.  Silly cat!

The ants go marching...

Saturday we spent a beautiful day at Powell Gardens. The garden was hosting a Tomato and Pepper festival with tastings and samples from some local stores. We arrived around 11 a.m. and stayed until about 4 p.m. We grabbed lunch, Anna having a little of everything, and sampled fruits picked fresh from the garden. Anna really liked the fresh cantaloupe and banana melon. The banana melon was good. It taste like a cross between a cantaloupe and a honey dew. John and I tried a Paw paw and agreed it tasted like room temperature brie. Not too appealing in my fruit.
The tomato tasting was fun. We each got a plate and loaded it up with fresh cut heirloom tomatoes, fresh picked basil, fresh bread (Anna loved it), olive oil and homemade salsa. We should have skipped lunch! A local exotic snow cone company had samples of Watermelon/Basil and Pineapple/Serrano Pepper. They were okay, but not my tube of ice. John liked the Pineapple/Serrano Pepper. And there was yet more to taste!
We sampled yummy olive oil and balsamic vinaigrette, a locally made salsa and a chef's homemade sauces. John was having a good time sampling! Our favorite thing after the fresh tomatoes and basil was a local chef's homemade ice cream. He had a strawberry/red pepper sorbet which was nice, but John's jalapeno ice cream was excellent. So very creamy and smooth with a nice little burn in your throat. Unfortunately, he only made it for Saturday.
We then wandered the grounds, watched the butterflies, just missed seeing a snake eating a frog, enjoying the weather and just relaxing. Anna took this as a good opportunity to nap.

We enjoyed looking at the giant bug art through out the Gardens made from wood. A lot of twig bending and shaping. They are so much fun and visit every year. It was a great relaxing day, just what we needed.

We have a crawler!

Anna has been getting around on her own by spinning, belly flopping and sitting up. Today we finally have crawling for distance! She was covering a four foot span in one go! Her technique still has a long way to go, but she has the idea and can now cover more ground. Look out cats! Thanks to Pepper for coming over and giving her tips!
If you notice a pooped Fenway in the background it is because he just realized we have fish in the fish tank and has been staring at them ALL day. They have been there since May. Silly cat.

Time to lower the crib!

John and I were just talking the other day about when it would be time to lower the crib to the lowest level. We figured it would correspond with her pulling herself up. Well...guess what she did this weekend? Guess she was listening to our discussion!

Otherwise we had a quiet long weekend. We went to the dog park on Saturday and hiked around and spent the rest of the weekend getting things done around the house the best you can with an 8 and a half month old baby.

Teething, hiking and baby steps!

So moments after this photo Anna decided to scoot off the rocking chair. I gave her my fingers and she stretched until her toes touched the floor then took a few steps towards me! It was walking holding me, but the first time she had decided to do so, how fun!
We tried homemade sweet potato risotto this week. Anna and John really enjoyed it and I found it good, but needing a little something. I will work on it.
We went hiking at the dog park again this week. The weather was great Friday, mid to high seventies and not a cloud. Had to get out. The dogs had fun and we enjoyed the fresh air.

She is still doing uh-oh. It is funny when she is sitting playing by herself and you hear, "uh-oh" as she had dropped something. She still takes tentative crawls, just no distance. She does get all over the living room by kneeling, moving forward a bit, then sitting up.
She is taking good naps with her teething and eating a lot. She likes cold cucumbers to rub on her teeth (there are two there!) and other cold fruit as finger foods. Not too cold however!