Happy 1st Birthday Sami!

We made it!  Yesterday was not only a celebration of Samantha and her first birthday, but also a celebration for Andrew and I and the fact that we survived our first year as parents - wahoo!  The past year has been unlike any other as we have experienced amazing joy and delight and countless moments that we cherish more than words can describe.  We couldn't be more proud of our little Sami and we thank the Lord each and every day that he has allowed us to be her parents.  Happy Birthday sweet baby!

Dinner time.  One of Sami's favorite food is noodles, so I decided to have chicken and mushroom fettucine alfredo.  She is a real pro at slurping up the noodles :)

Besides my immediate family, we had a few other family friends that joined in on the celebration including Odette Singleton, Jared and Dianne Dodson, and Heather Wallace.

And now for the main event....presents of course!

This gift bag, when opened makes the sound of a baby laughing.  It is the cutest thing and Samantha got the biggest kick out of it and joined right on on the laughs which infected the rest of us as well :)

Reading a card from Uncle Ryan and Uncle Chris.  "Little Lady....You are the queen of cute!" 

A few weeks ago when we were at Macy's with my mom, shopping for Sami's birthday, I had let Sami down so she could run around a bit.  On the floor there were several baskets full of stuffed animals that caught her attention.  She looked them all over and picked out this cute little lamb.  Then she grabbed another lamb just like it proceeded to run around the store with her two little lambs, one under each arm.  She was hugging them and burrying her face in their soft fur.  Of course, I couldn't help but buy one. Then at home, when she wasn't looking, I put it away and she forgot all about it.  When she opened it, she was just as delighted with her little lamb as she was at the store.

Visiting with Odette...for a moment...and then she was off again.

Excited about the bouncy turtle from Auntie Kay!

She hopped right on, knowing exactly what to do.  Giddyup turtle!

First babydoll from Grandma (Mary) - complete with stroller, high chair, and playpen.

And now for cake...

I almost forgot about this hat I bought and once I put it on it lasted for...oh about a half second.

Later I felt guilty about letting her eat so much frosting.  The adults felt a little ill just watching her shovel it in.

Back to the toys....got lots of energy now!!

New outfit from Uncle Ryan and Uncle Chris.

Spiky frosting hairdo!

"Thankyou for the presents!  I love them all!!"

"I sat by the lake. I looked at the sky, and as I looked, a fly went by."

Sami's Grammy and Papa sent this very special book which has been a Herb family favorite since her daddy was a little boy.

Made Specially for Samantha by Grammy

Samantha has a wonderful Grammy who loves to bless her grandchildren with beautiful handmade clothes including dresses, "Grammy Jammies" and other adorable outfits.  In the last few months Grammy has sent several things that I wanted everyone to see so I thought it would be fun to do a little fashion show...

Owning the fashion runway in a spring green baby doll dress.  The bottom hem are finished off with a sweet white scalloped trim.

This time sporting the panty hose...with attitude!

The inner tigress is out and coming for you - rhaaar!

Composure has been regained as Samantha sports her pink and white baby dress and matching bloomers.

A girl in a dress can still play with blocks!

Taking a book break with papa.

This two piece fleece outfit is perfect for this time of year - comfy and warm.

For an extra layer of cold protection, we have added the favorite pink cap.

The butterfly embellishment makes this coat not only adorable, but also versitile and can be worn with coordinating pink sweats.

Playing in the yard with grandpa.

Lovin the outdoors!

My own pair of Grammy Jammies :)

Thank you so much Mama for your thoughtfulness and all the work you put into each beautiful piece of clothing.  You are such a wonderful seamstress not to mention a wonderful mother, grandmother and friend.  We love you very much!

Little Pumpkin

How many adults does it take to take an 11 month old trick or treating?  Well, in this case....four.  My mom picked out the cutest little pumpkin outfit and we (well, I'll speak for myself and mom) had been looking forward to this day for weeks.  Fortunately the rain stopped just long enough for us to take little Samantha out for her first trick or treat adventure.  Of course, it wasn't about the candy, just our excitement in seeing our little pumpkin walking around in her costume.

"I'm all set to get some goodies grandma!"

Scaaarrrry!

She saw some young girls in their costumes and wanted to go in and investigate further.

We stopped in to visit with our good friend Odette.

Hangin' loose with grandpa

Sami enjoying her first sucker.  Boy did she get sticky.

"Over the River and Through the Woods to Grammy and Papa's We Go..."

...quite literally in fact! Last Tuesday morning, we loaded up the Xterra for a trip to Stayton, Oregon to visit Andrew's family.  We packed all the essentials - one small suitcase for me and one for Andrew, reserving all remaining cargo space for our little princess.  You just can't be too prepared when it comes to traveling with a small child.  The amount of books and toys needed for the drive alone (factoring the very small attention span) is something of a wonder.  Thankfully, we made great time, having to stop just once along the way with a minimum amount of baby drama. 

We had a lovely 4 day stay which included romping through Papa Joe's christmas tree farm, a turkey feast that Dan, Kelly and the kids joined us for, and of course a ton of amusement courtesy of the little munchkin.

Samantha was a little shy at first as she became re-aquainted with her grandparents - it had been 11 weeks since their visit to see us back in July.  One of the things that helped her warm up was a reading of her favorite book, "Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes".

Andrew and I loved showing off Sami's ability to find a particular book after hearing us recite a portion of the story. For example, I can say, "Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See?", and she will sift through her stack of books and pull out the right book and bring it to me to read. She can do this with several books including a nursery rhime book when I start singing, "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star", her Dr. Seuss ABC book when I sing the alphabet song, and of course if I say, "Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes".

Finding a toy in grandpa's pocket - a game that Sami tried to play with me later, but my shirt didn't have a pocket :)

I always look forward to the crisp fall air with the fresh scent of the Christmas tree's in Papa's farm.  I was particularily excited about introducing Sami to the farm where she can run around and explore in her daddy's old stomping grounds.

Lots and lots of pine cones and twigs to play with.

Running free! This place is so much bigger than our backyard!

Papa uses different colors of ribbon to mark trees that are for sale or reserved in advance for family. This year we plan to pick out a small tree for Samantha that we will decorate with ornaments that are baby proof. That was I can still have my gourmet tree that love to decorate my way (well, we'll just have to see how that works out).

So happy to be hangin' out with daddy!

Such a lovely backyard. Papa Joe has done a wonderful job on the landscape.

Posing on the backyard water feature

 

This cute little bathrobe was given to Sami by Andrew's sister Mary.

Cousin Brianna being so sweet to Samantha, sharing her apple. Brianna played and played with Sami. They played the piano, read books, danced the tango down the hallway...

Silly Brianna put Sami's Haloween costume on her head!

Cousin Brett and Sami playing with blocks