Special Guests and a Special Birthday

This past weekend we had a special visit from my Grandma Rhilda and Aunt Kay who flew in from San Francisco to be a part of my dad's 60th birthday celebration. Grandma and Kay arrived on Friday afternoon which was a surprise to my dad, well....let's call it half a surprise. He knew they were coming for his birthday, he just didn't know that it was on this particular weekend since his actual birthday isn't until November 8th. (long story so won't go into that here).  So, I had invited dad over for a visit while my brother Chris went to get our guests at the airport.  Then, as we were finishing up a snack, there was a knock at the door and since I had just received an important phone call (wink, wink), I asked dad to answer the door. It was a great surprise and a wonderful start to a very fun packed weekend. 

My Grandma, Sami's Great Grandma

I was so proud of Sami, who quickly warmed up to her Great Grandma who she hadn't seen in several months and Auntie Kay who she met for the first time. She spent lots of quality time with both of them and, thankfully, was very well behaved.

Breakfast at our house.  Andrew made a delicious breakfast casserole.

On Saturday the rain stopped long enough for us to take a stroll through downtown Snohomish.  We arrived just in time to see the great Pumpkin River Race and, of course, we couldn't pass up the opportunity to enjoy a tasty ice cream.

Ryan enjoying the Pumpkin River Race.

Sami petting a tree

Enjoying a view of the Snohomish River below

Yummy good ice cream!

Ice cream is the secret to a long and healthy life!

Sunday was the surprise party and once again, despite all our efforts, it wasn't exactly a suprise to dad (he's just too smart) but he didn't let on that he knew what we were planning so we still had a lot of fun sneeking and planning for the big event.

Dad got lots of comments about how difficult it was going to be to blow out all the candles.....that is....until he pulled out his trusty air compressor.  Blew those suckers out in a split second. Never underestimate a general contractor and the gadgets he has in his garage!

Our good friend, Doug Beck

Auntie Tracie and Auntie Claire

Uncle John

Happy Birthday Grandpa!

11 Months Today!

I can hardly believe we are now only a month away from Samantha's first birthday! Andrew and I are amazed at how quickly our little baby has transitioned into a little toddler with an endless supply of energy and quite a little personality too!

Every month, on Samantha's birth date, Andrew and I have a special tradition where we take a few moments to recall a few of our favorite moments from the past month and talk about the new things she is doing that we are so proud of. I thought I would share a few of these with you.  (Recently, Sami had an unfortunate spill and got quite a bump on her forehead - just thought I should explain the big bruise on some of the photos)

One of Andrew's favorite moments was dancing with his little girl to "A Wink and a Smile".  When we turn music on Samantha loves to be picked up to dance cheek to cheek or with her head on our shoulder as we do steps and twirls.  Often she will sing along in a sweet little girl voice (as opposed to her very loud rapter-like screech she is so famous for).

Also, Sami has never been known as being a "snuggly" baby, she's just way too busy and curious for that, but lately she has been giving a lot of hugs, a few kisses, and takes time out (for about 10 seconds - but that's like an hour in Sami time) to just sit on our lap and snuggle. Andrew and I both just melt during these precious moments.

One of the things that cracks me up is how she flirts with Uncle Ryan. For the past several weeks, Ryan has been spending hours and hours studying for the Principle Engineer License exam and he has been using our dining room table. Sami will walk by the table, look at Ryan to see if he notices her and if he does, she will haunch her shoulders, putting her cheek against one shoulder, and give him this coy little smile. And if he doesn't notice her right away, she will make sure to get his attention with a laugh or a yell.

Sami is starting the copy-everything-I-do phase and it is so cute. She'll go into the pantry and grab my Swiffer mop or broom and help me clean. One day I was wiping down some cabinets and Sami came up next to me with her own wash cloth and started scrubbing away.

 Mommy's little helper

This is harder than it looks!

Calling it a day!

More fun pictures from this past month:

First steak bone.  This kept her busy for about a half hour!

She just crawled right in and made herself comfortable.

Sharing Cheerios with Grandma.  Grandma is such a good sport :)

Driving her first car!

Getting friendly with Willie who's not feeling too friendly

"Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes"

"There was one little baby who was born far away. And another who was born on the very next day.  And both of these babies, as everyone knows...has ten little fingers and ten little toes."

Mem Fox

I started reading books to Samantha when she was just a tiny little thing, not even 3 months old.  Back then, I had control over what books we would read, how fast I would turn each page, and how many times I would read them.  Now things are a little different...sometimes, I get to do the reading...I never get to choose the book...and often I find myself hiding certain books because I just cannot bear to read it for the 11th time in a single sitting.  But despite all this, what gets me every time, is my little girl waddling her way towards me carrying a book almost as big as she is, and plopping herself into my lap to settle in for a read.  It is then that nothing else matters. Chores can wait and I can make that phone call later.  I wouldn't miss this for anything.

Reading Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes

"I'm taking over now mom"

A cozy Ten Little Fingers reading with dad on a Sunday morning before church.

Sitting so calm!

Taking a break from Ten Little Fingers to read a classic, Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown.

It was the sweetest thing...Samantha would turn a page and then rest her head against Nana to listen, turn another page and then rest her head again.

A kiss on the nose for Nana

Back to Ten Little Fingers with Grandpa!

Helping turn pages.

Fall Fun at Flower World

This morning I decided that Samantha and I needed to go on a little adventure to enjoy the crisp air and the beautiful colors of fall.  So we got dressed in our comfies, jumped in the car and headed for Flower World which is a retail nursery just a few miles from where we live and has beautifully landscaped grounds with walking trails, ponds, water features, and as it turned out...a flock of geese and a few farm animals as well. 

I'm almost ready to go mom!  Just doing a little stretch first.

Can we go now!

We finally made it!

We started out by heading toward the pond where the geese were grazing. I wasn't sure if Sami would be afraid of the loud honking or not so we approached them slowly.  Then as we got closer to them, Sami just started laughing and wanted me to put her down so she could join in on their fun. 

The flight away from the intruders!

Our next stop was across the street to the farm animals.  Andrew and I have spent hours reading books to Samantha that are about farm animals so I was looking forward to her seeing the real live animals for the first time.  Hopefully she will have a better understanding of why mommy and daddy are always making strange noises when they read to her. :)

"Maa! Maa!" said the goat.

"Cheep! Cheep!" said the little chicks.

"Baa! Baa!"

We also saw hens, roosters, and peacocks, but unfortunately no pigs. :(

More beautiful fall colors!