The Red White & Cute

Auntie Lori this is for you!!

Lori and I love the 4th of July, and for the better part of nearly 10 years we have spent it together. This year we are apart again, which stinks, BUT both of us have our 4th of July ipod mixes and will belt out "Proud to be an American" while thinking of the other.

We took Annie's picture today b/c we probably wont have time tomorrow with everyone over. I don't think it gets much more patriotic than this.

Bang!

We are getting ready for our BBQ on the 4th. I made these Red Velvet and Banana (two separate flavors) cupcakes and got my table set today. Can't wait!

Happy Birthday Daddy

Dear Daddy,

Mommy let me borrow her computer to type you a message. Please excuse the typo's as, well, I can't technically read or write yet. I wanted to wish you a very Happy Birthday. I learned all about birthdays from Chica on Sprout (she's my favorite you know).

So you are 31 huh? That's Ooooooooooooooooooooooooold. What was it like when you were a kid? I bet they didn't even have diaper genies or portable DVD players, that must have really stunk. I'm glad I live in a age of modern conveniences, and I am so glad that I get to celebrate your birthday with you!

For your birthday, I made a top 10 list, you know, sort of like Letterman (but I'm way cuter) of all my favorite things I like about you. So lets begin.

Reason number 10 my Daddy is the best Daddy and deserves to have the best B-Day ever:

10. He takes me to all these fabulous Bay Area attractions. Other people think I'm too little, but Daddy knows I'm silently processing all the new information. He has taken me to the Exploratorium, The Golden Gate Academy of Science, The Aquarium, the Zoo, Filoli Gardens...the list goes on. He is setting my standards for life and culture pretty high.

Reason number 9 my Daddy is the best Daddy and deserves to have the best B-Day ever:

9. He knows my routine better than anyone in the world. If I pull my ear, he knows I'm tired, if I blow raspberries he knows I'm relaxed. A girl could wait her whole life to be that in tune with a man.

Reason number 8 my Daddy is the best Daddy and deserves to have the best B-Day ever:

8. He gives the BEST tickles in the whole world. Others try, but I'm a tough nut, I only humor them with a look of curiosity-- but really I'm bored. But when DADDY gives me tickles it's funny, I mean really really funny. How does that guy do that?

Reason number 7 my Daddy is the best Daddy and deserves to have the best B-Day ever:

7. He lets me watch TV. We watch the Sprout channel. My favorites are: Skipper the Dog, Make way for Noddy, Calliou, Sesame Street, and the Berenstain Bears...you know, 'cause they are a lot like people, but only moreso. (If you got that reference you are pretty cool in my book).

Reason number 6 my Daddy is the best Daddy and deserves to have the best B-Day ever:

6. He takes me on great walks during the week. Sometimes we go the the grocery store, sometimes we go walk by the water and look at the geese. But really what I love is working on my tan, in case no one has noticed, I'm pretty white.

Reason number 5 my Daddy is the best Daddy and deserves to have the best B-Day ever:

5. He's strong! He can throw me up in the air and catch me, or make me fly like superman. He is like my very own personal carnival ride.

Reason number 4 my Daddy is the best Daddy and deserves to have the best B-Day ever:
4. He makes all my food from scratch. Basically, he is my personal chef. He really only wants me to have the good stuff. We tried carrots last night. The texture was a bit rough for me, but I liked them! Next up we are going to do sweet potatoes. Grammy Cathy says those were Daddy's favorite as a baby. If they were his favorite I'm sure I will love them...he has got pretty excellent taste.

Reason number 3 my Daddy is the best Daddy and deserves to have the best B-Day ever:
3. He wakes up with me in the middle of the night. I can be kind of a pain sometimes. I'm made to party. 3am is not late...don't be a wuss. I don't think I'm the problem waking up the middle of the night, I think you are all just lazy. But Daddy puts up with me. He wakes up, feeds me my snack, and rocks me to sleep. Next month I'm gonna convince him to hit some clubs with me, I just need a fake ID.

Reason number 2 my Daddy is the best Daddy and deserves to have the best B-Day ever:
2. He gives me these really scratchy kisses. His face grows hair, which I think is a bit like showing off, because I can't even grow it on my head. He goes in to kiss me and his whiskers tickle me and make me laugh. The only person in the world who ever gave me scratchy kisses was my dad.

Reason number 1 my Daddy is the best Daddy and deserves to have the best B-Day ever:

1. He loves me! Simple as that. My Daddy always puts me first, never is selfish, and according to my Mommy, has lived up to all of his wedding vows, and then some.

So, for all these reasons, Daddy, I love you, and HAPPY BIRTHDAY.

Love Annie.

PS, Happy Bday to Uncle Todd too!

Book Store

Today Annie, Adam and I went to the bookstore. It was a blast. Adam and I are really kids at heart. I think we had more fun there than any of the kids. Annie just looked around wide eyed. We walked out with some new ones, and some classics. Adam is a big Seuss fan, and I introduced him to "If You Give A Mouse A Cookie"--good times. Before we went out we put Annie in the dress our good family friend Wendy Carroll bought her in Mexico. I think it's the perfect dress to ramp up to Annie's first 4th of July. Thanks Wendy!

FAME!

What do you get when you mix one part Fred Astaire, one part Lord of the Dance, and one part P.T. Barnum? Annie in her jumperoo of course!

Blurb.com

A lot of people have asked me if there is going to be a way for Annie to read and see all that has gone on here on her blog. The answer is yes! There is a great tool called Blurb (http://www.blurb.com) which will suck all your text entries and photos into a hard cover book, and in addition, let you add more.

We did this for Annie. I am doing her first year in 2 parts. The first part was 406 pages! But, if you are a regular visitor of our blog this should be no surprise.

Here is a link to Annie's book. You can only see a few pages of it, but you can get the idea of the technology, it's pretty slick. I will let you all know how the final product turns out!

http://www.blurb.com/books/742423

Annie's Dr. Visit

Adam took Annie to the Dr. today for her 6 month well check up. She is...well!

She is 17lbs 9oz. She is in the 65% for weight.
She is 2' 3'' tall. She is in the 65% for height.
That puts her in the 50% length for weight %.
and...
She has a big head...90%! ('cause she is so smart of course!)

Dr. says everything is peachy keen, she has hit all of her milestones and then some. Mommy and Daddy are very proud!

It's. All. Over. Now.

I came home from work today, and in one afternoon, THIS became Annie's new favorite position. The pictures speak for themselves.

Annie and Uncle Jon

Hey Uncle Jon, I know I am advanced, but I can't walk yet!
Yeah, okay you seem cool to me Uncle Jon, we can hang out, just don't cramp my style.

See this guy? He is pretty funny, he is trying to sell me a tax savings package...
I know you are a good salesman Uncle Jon, but I don't believe that for a minute...as Gramps would say...horse feathers!