Amanda says the colors of the rainbow

 

Make sure your volume is up pretty high, or you won't be able to hear Amanda.

Christmas

Amanda had a fantastic Christmas this year.  Here are a few pictures from Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.  Amanda got to spend time with both sets of grandparents, her Aunt Caroline and Uncle David, and her Great Grandpa, who she was so excited to see, she sprinted straight for him and demanded that he pick her up.  

Christmas Eve playing piano with her dad

Sitting with her great grandpa

After Christmas Eve Dinner

With her Aunt Caroline 

With her new washing machine

With her new baby doll and accessories

In her new hat, which she loves, though you wouldn't know it by  the look on her face.  This kid will not smile for the camera.

Art work created with her new easel and art supplies

Old Favorites

Some of you know that I am in the  midst of a computer transition.  I just got a Mac Book for Christmas (thanks, Brian!) and have been busily transferring all of our photos/videos/etc. to the new machine.  The blog has been neglected in the meantime.  Anyway, the best part of the tedious job of getting all the photos reorganized on the new computer has been taking the time to enjoy some old pictures that I haven't looked at in a while.  Here are a few of my favorites that I think I haven't shared before.

We took this picture at Artisanal, a fabulous restaurant Brian and I frequented when we lived in NYC.  We took Amanda there in November of 2007.  I'm trying to get her to eat lentil soup in this picture.  She is laughing at me.

This one we took immediately following Amanda's first haircut.  I was definitely more emotional about it than she was.

This one is just silly.  I treasure these kinds of pictures of Amanda, because 'silly' is not a dominant feature of her personality most of the time.

This was Amanda's first introduction to a regulation height volleyball net.

Thanks for indulging my nostalgia.  New pics will be up soon.

Amanda's Cousins

How cute are these pictures of my nieces???

Amanda is 2!

Please check out this video my friend created. (Turn up your volume a little because there is a soundtrack.) It is a snippet of the action from Amanda's birthday party. Amanda's friend Miles (or as she calls him - "Mileses") and her Brantley Grandparents and Uncle David helped us celebrate. Unfortunately Amanda decided to get sick on the Sunday night after the party, so I haven't had the time or mommy energy to post more pictures yet. They are on their way, though, because Amanda is feeling much better now.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GxXLOI8XViU

Playing in the Sandbox

Amanda decided to climb in the sandbox at her friend Miles' house.

Minnie Mouse, a Pumpkin, and a Jack in the Box went into a bar...

We got the cousins together for Halloween photos today at Bubbles and Grandpa Ron's house.

Mall Photography

I took Amanda to one of those photo places in the mall. It was pretty fun. Here are a couple of the pictures.

Pumpkin Patch

Murphy's Law: If you take your daughter to the park in a dress, tights, and cute shoes, she will immediately find the closest muddy puddle and splash in it.

Swinging

She can't be bothered to sit in the seat anymore.

Groovin'

Here are some of Amanda's dance moves

First "School" Picture

Amanda has never been one for smiling on cue. I can't quite tell whether she is attempting a smile or trying to tell the photographer where he can stick his camera. She looks so much like her father here; I couldn't resist posting a picture of her dad at around the same age.



And yes, I may have gone a little overboard with this first picture-day outfit, but I wanted to take full advantage of her current hat-loving phase.

Climbing, Part Deux

Here are some better pictures of Amanda climbing the ramp mentioned a couple of posts ago.

New Perspective

Last time Amanda was between stirrups, her view was slightly different. So was mine.

Climbing

Amanda loves to climb. She prefers climbing up slides to sliding down them, and today she conquered the apparatus shown below. This picture doesn't really accurately depict the height or the grade of this climbing wall, because I was afraid to stand far enough away from her to get a wide enough shot to do it justice. She scaled it like a pro, while wearing her hand-me-down Dora the Explorer shoes that are about two sizes too big.

Friday morning with Amanda

Here's a pretty typical Friday morning in our house.

After breakfast Amanda plays dress-up.



"Boots"









Then we walk to the park and play for a while.








Next we go out for lunch.



Just before naptime, we play on the porch and in the front yard - today a puddle makes this activity more fun than usual.

Sea Island, Georgia

We took our summer vacation to an amazing beach resort in Georgia called Sea Island. Brian's family and Will, Caroline's boyfriend, were our travel companions. It was a fun-filled and relaxing vacation. Some pictures are below.

Amanda played at the beach.












Below, she signs "boy" while following a boy she met on the beach.




She loved the swimming pool. We were lucky enough to stay in a house with a pool, so she went swimming many times.









She also had fun getting to know Will and hanging out with Grandma and Grandpa and Aunt Caroline and Uncle David.














She had a great time taking bike rides and exploring the island with mom and dad.






She was a great dinner companion, and she enjoyed eating ice cream after dinner pretty much every night, as this was the only way to keep her happy in her high chair long enough for the rest of us to eat.






Below are pictures of the Sea Island Lodge, the island's golf club, where Brian played golf and we all had dinner one night.









And, of course, she didn't fall asleep on either plane ride until we were on our final descent into Houston.