Memorial Day

Relaxing dinner on the deck. Samantha was very into posing with Ginger. Some cute shots.

Updates w/Samantha

So it's been a while since daddy made a posting (laziness, lack of time, whatever you want to call it). Our little one is not so litte anymore, 17+ months and fully walking on her own from room to room. We've now encountered poor sleeping habits once again, as she's finding it quite difficult to fall asleep on her own and sleep through the night. So we're trying to get through it as best as possible. Amazing how little children can cry for almost 2 hours non-stop!

Anyways, we've been taking some day trips here and there; last month we went to Guernsy Farms (local dairy farm) run by some Michiganders. Yummy samples of ice cream, chocolates, and the like. Samantha approved, of course.

Two of Samantha's favorite activties are eating (of course), and bathtime. Mommy whipped up some delicious tuna mac one day which she inhaled. Getting in the water is no longer fearful (thank g-d). Now that we started swim lessons it's become more enjoyable each time.

More videos

Samantha has a new love ... Barney. She can be doing almost anything else with anybody and she wants to switch gears and go into the office to watch Barney at the Farm. It is not like we make a habit of this but it is something we do in EMERGENCY situtations. She's glued for at least 30 minutes which gives us a chance to catch up on ... well...

Farmington Hills Library

One of our favorite weekend activities these days is a playgroup time called Musical Movement for 1s and 2s. It is a fun developmental learning hour with songs and dancing. Samantha is all over it. The last time we went a bunch of other mommies, dadies and babies we knew also were there. Lots of fun each time.

We are having so much fun watching Samantha grow and experience new things. Even better is when she remembers having fun doing an activity and looks forward to doing it again!

We're walking...

Very few parents are not shocked and amazed at their children's first steps. We are no exception. Samantha has been threatening to walk over the past few weeks with a few steps here and there. Over the last few days, though, she has been doing increasingly more on her own and is actually seemingly prefering to walk as opposed to crawling or scooting along on her bottom. This is shocking and scaring the heck out of us. We're constantly trying to make sure she is not falling or at least that we are close-by when she does. We finally remembered to take out the camera and get a little bit on film.
Samantha is 16 months and really starting to enjoy her world. She mimics books and uses a few words here and there. She is very opinionated and not afraid to tell you if she is unhappy or would rather do something another way. She is a little angel.

Passover 2009

This year we had Samantha as an active sedar participant. We were at Larry and Naomi's house for both sedars. The first night was family and relaxation with all the kids. Breaking in, if you will, everybody for the more "formal" sedar the second night. Samantha was very excited about the whole experience... especially the food. :) Naomi and Larry went to great lengths to make these sedars more perfect than even year's past. Bravo!

Some of the best times

Just relaxing and trying to update the blog. I know that we've been delinquent. I took some great Sunday pictures around the house but am having trouble with the SD card and uploading them. These are some of the non Xrated getting ready for bath that I was able to put up. She had even more fun in person. Ginger just had to get into the action.

Samanth's New Spot

Samantha identified her new sitting/hiding spot. After finishing up with dishes, I found her seated on the front foyer table where until now we have placed our "to read" journals. She got herself seated on the shelf and went to town. She even gave Ginger a few to look at. :)

Not high quality

The walking... very high quality. The film making at night with poor lighting... not great.

Our trip to NY and back

We just had a much needed long weekend in NY to visit Justin's family. We had a great time and can't wait to get back to see everybody again soon. Just a few pictures to share.

Samatha's Amusement

We're constantly amazed with Samantha. She's just growing up so quickly and just such a happy little girl. She amuses herself and loves to be around people -- especially her parents. She's really a joy to watch. Her favorite place is the kitchen cupboard where she goes through the boxes of snacks until she finds one she wants to give to one of us (or to Ginger). :)

SNOW DAY!

We took this beautiful day after days of snowing and blowing wind to get Samantha back into her sled. Our friend Asha got Samantha this sled to help her ENJOY her time in the Michigan winter. It worked. She had lots of fun not just in the sled but playing/eating snow on the golf course. Of course we had a great time too.

Snow is yummy. What a perfect day to brave the elements. I'm going to nap well after this while Daddy enjoys the playoffs!

Happy Channukah - visit with Grandma Beth

We had a lovely visit with Grandma Beth from Las Vegas, just in time for a local Chanukah party with cousins Larry & Naomi. Samantha got into the holiday act as well, sucking on some chocolate and making a grand ol' mess to clean up :-) We enjoyed her stay, and look forward to seeing everyone real soon.

It's a snow day!

So if there is going to be snow, let it be fun. Remembering, somewhat fondly, the snowdays of our younger years, we venture out into the cold weather. If 20 degrees is cold what does that make 8 degrees (with wind chill saying, "Feel's like -14 degrees). Anyway, although short lived, our outdoor adventure was fun.

The theme "It's been cold"

For the last few weeks here in Michigan, it has been a bit chilly. Well, a lot chilly. We've passed the evening time bundled up enjoying a relaxing dinner at home. Samantha is a huge helper in the kitchen and knows exactly what to do while I'm getting dinner ready. And Ginger. Well, she's got her own agenda during that time of day. Ginger got a haircut recently and they dressed her up for the holiday's coming up! We're enjoying good health and great times.

new foods -- > CHOCOLATE

I couldn't resist allowing Samantha to partake of Hershey's chocolate. She's a fan. She went from being very talkative to very deep in chocolate heaven. Here's a small piece for you!

My 1st birthday!

We apologize for slackin' on our bloggin'! November kinda flew right by, and into early December we are! Michelle planned a combined birthday party for Samantha (1 year) and myself (31 years) at the house. We had friends over from work and our neighbors, Samantha was overwhelmed with all the delicious food and noise-making presents! We had a great time, Samantha got right into her birthday cake with food galore all over herself. We have a lot to be thankful that she did so well with her surgery, and look forward to many more years of health and happiness.

FUN TIMES IN LAS VEGAS!

We made a trip to Las Vegas with the family (excluding Ginger this time) to attend the annual AOA convention and catch up with family.
Everybody was particularly excited to see Samantha after her recent surgery.
It was a terrific week with perfect weather!!!
We spent time at the park keeping an eye on the birds and dogs and making sure that everybody knew that we thought the Yankees should be playing in the World Series. We rooted for the Rays too! Better luck next year.

"I tried Olive Garden for the first time. Leave an extra trip for Mike the waiter cause it's gonna be messy."

The Great Grandmothers!!! (GGs)

Samantha had a ton of different balls and toys to play with. It was hard for her to make up her mind which to play with first!

Ginger stayed home to guard the fort and keep it safe from "Trick or Treat"ers. :)