Don't rush me!

Hannah wakes up like I do....one toe at a time! We were a little over eager for her to experience her first "real" Christmas and forgot to give her time before we started shoving noise makers in her face. :)

Still a little sad, but warming up....
and before long, she was flirting with G-Pa. :)

Christmas morning...

After our traditional IHop breakfast, the adults exchanged gifts while Hannah took a nap. I had high hopes of taking natural light pics, but it was so cloudy I had to break out the flash. Still really need to read that manual! :)

Scary how much they look alike! :)
Can you feel the love?
Not a stellar pic, but I love Nathan playing on his phone in the background. It's SO Nathan!

When she was born...

My new friend Lisa asked me recently what I was planning to do with all my digital photos of Hannah. I hadn't really thought about it...just figured I'd leave them on the computer and blog. I rarely get around to printing them and I sure don't have time to scrapbook (tho' I enjoy that!). She suggested publishing them once a year for Hannah. Love that idea, so I'm working on the first book (3/4 done with what is turning out to be a big project).

Before starting on the big book, it seemed smart to try a small one. So I made a story book titled "When I was Born" using pics from the hospital and ending with Hannah's first monkey pic at home. :) I LOVE how it turned out. Kara caught this moment when I first read it to Hannah...just love it in b/w...love how Hannah's paying attention and how her eyes are framed with the book. (The pic on the back cover is from our pro photographer friend...the tag on the big bow says "from God". :)

Gifts and grandpas...

Typical baby...she had more fun with the wrapping than the gifts themselves. :) And you notice, she never cracked a smile. Smiles are rare for new things...she likes to think about them first! :)

What a cute G-pa...

Let her eat cake...

Sweet girl had no idea what to do with her cupcake....

that is, until Jenny gave her a taste!

Jenny told me all along that there was no need for a smash cake, because Hannah wouldn't smash it. She was right...but once Jenny picked pieces off for her, she would at least feed herself. And yeah... she REALLY liked it! Tried not to make it too sweet. It was actually semi-healthy...applesauce cake with real chopped apples, half whole wheat flour, and cream cheese frosting. The adults liked it too!

mmmmm...
more please...

Curious about her sticky hands...

I stubbornly took the first 2 shots without flash, but Jenny's house is low light and it was dusk...finally broke out my new hot shoe flash. I'm not skilled with it...haven't really had time to play with it yet. Any suggestions welcome! And yes, I'm aware that it's silly to post 6 pictures of cake eating, but I like how they demonstrate Hannah's personality...serious, thoughtful, cautious. :)

Make a wish...

Wonder what she would wish for if she knew what this was all about...

My first time in more than 20 years to decorate a cake. It's far from perfect, but I still thought it turned out cute...
And I know what I would have wished for! ....cleaning fairies to work their magic on my kitchen! How did I make such a colossal mess?????

Today's post is brought to you by the number...

Funny, since today's date is 1/1/11. I didn't even plan that. It just happened to be time to post pics from Hannah's little birthday party. Love how she's pickin' the fuzz off her cupcake above! :) Jenny's friend made the tutu and onesie. So cute! Hannah's not a big fan of tulle though, so we set her free as soon as we got the official birthday girl pics. :)