santa claus

We took Ada to see Santa again this year. Last year, her reaction was luke warm. This year, well… not so much.  Why do we do this to our children?

happy and thankful

I could never have imagined how much joy Ada would bring to my world.  We spent Thanksgiving with family and friends, surrounded by love and laughter and plenty of good food.  We are blessed, and for that I am happy and thankful… sometimes it takes my breath away.

i heart faces

ok. so when i heard about this challenge, I knew immediately the photo of Miss A that needed to be entered.  head on over to iheartfaces.com to check out the truly talented photographers capture the sun flare….

best. october. ever.

Sorry for the extended absence, but October was action-packed and full of fun!

Papa and Mimi visited us the first weekend and we had such a good time.  We went to the pumpkin patch again this year all together and had a blast!

The following weekend Nana and Poppy flew in from California! We had a great visit and can’t wait to see them again!

Next we were supposed to head to the beach with Fifi and Granddaddy to celebrate John’s birthday and to attend a special party for a friend of Fifi’s but plans were set aside for Ada to suffer through hand/foot/mouth disease. No fun, but luckily only five days of no fun.

Then, the following weekend the incredible Lettieris came to visit us! This was more fun than two families ought to be allowed to have! Mama Dip’s, UNC, Pumpkin Patch and more…

And then, to top it all off, was Halloween!We spent the morning with Fifi and Granddaddy.  In the afternoon, Ada participated in the neighborhood parade (wagon courtesy of Fifi and Granddaddy!) and then roamed the street trick or treating well past her bedtime!

Phew… Best. October. Ever.

just saying

I cannot believe how much and how fast Ada is learning these days.  It blows me away.  More and more, John and I are finding ourselves slack-jawed before some new trick or accomplishment of Ada’s and its SO cool!

• Ada can draw a handful of letters, including writing her name
• Ada can identify most letters of the alphabet by sight, and same with numbers 1-10
• Ada can walk backwards, up steep hills and quickly
• Ada can draw an airplane
• Ada can take her shirt off and, occasionally, put it back on all while she should be napping
• Ada has memorized a dozen or more books and can “read” them to me, or as she prefers, finish the sentences
• Ada has memorized the words to She & Him’s Sentimental Heart and Rilo Kiley’s Silver Lining (known as Hooray Song”) and LOVES to sing them, with or without the CD

Well, that’s the list of tricks I can remember for now… photos to follow soon!

carnival

Yesterday, we went to a carnival near the house with some friends. Ada rode her first rides… and she wanted more! We had a great time, and many many thanks to Jenny for the photos to prove it!

hi there

sweetness

move over

good times

I think I need a fancy camera too…

noise

Ada started back in her preschool program this week and is attending 3 mornings this year. She LOVES it.  We LOVE it. Its good.

On the way home from school on Thursday, Ada and John had the following exchange:

A:  Music. Music please, daddy.  I need music.

J:  Ok, baby.

And John turns on the CD player and plays The Yeah Yeah Yeahs for Ada.

A (over the music, whining): Daddy, I need music. Music please.

J: Sweetheart, I’m playing music for you.  What’s the matter?

A: That’s noise. I need music.

She is a piece of work.

true love

bon bon

yum

mmmmm

so good

who knew?

pinkies up

daddy's gal

so big

Ada is a hoot.

She is talking ALL the time and saying things like “not so much, mommy” and “good work, daddy” and “Ada do it”  and “night night sweetheart” which is my personal fave.

She can say her full name, which is a mouthful for grown folks.  She loves to sing and dance and tumble and put together puzzles and read books.  Lots and lots and lots of books… at bedtime every night, she says “one more book, please” after every book.

She’s swimming almost every day and sleeping and eating well, for the most part.  She likes to talk on the phone to her grandparents and sing along to She & Him in the car.  She is so much fun and it just keeps getting better.

Just a couple of shots that are too cute not to share!

sing a song

puzzling

birthday dress from VN

can't catch me

say cheese