The Wonder Year

July 15th will be Hannah's first birthday. It certainly doesn't seem like a year has gone by, but that's probably because half of it was a blur. We're having a couple of informal get-togethers Saturday the 12th from 1pm-4pm at Karl's mom's house in Bossier, and Tuesday the 15th from 6pm-9pm at our house in Plano, to let Hannah meet more of the folks that helped us through the past year. If you're going to be in the area, we'd love for you to stop by. Email us if you need directions or more information.

These won't be parties, and we have nothing planned, so you can stop by for five minutes or three hours, late or early, whatever fits your schedule. And please don't bring gifts, because you've all been too generous already. Just be prepared to let Hannah grab your glasses off your face, pull your hair, and untie your shoes.

Here's a picture of Hannah's tiny kimono that Kenji and Yukiko brought from Japan a few weeks ago. It ties in front and on the sides just like a real one, but still has snaps at the bottom for quick diaper changes. Very cool.


She's still trying to find a way into the coffee table. She still checks the knobs occasionally, but has moved on to plan B, which is apparently to chew her way in.


Realizing that chewing through might take a while, and having noticed that most of her toys can be toppled over pretty easily, she tried that with the coffee table, too.

The sunbeam through the skylight is always fascinating, and provides some interesting photo ops.


Her Easter Bunny from Aunt Rosemary seems to be infested with sleepybugs, because it sees a lot of use as an impromptu floor pillow.


Carla's parents were here for a couple days on their way back from Alaska. Hannah was starving for attention the whole time they were here, of course.



She knows enough to pick up her pacifier and put it in her mouth, but the details of exactly which part goes where are still a bit unclear, apparently.


These may only be of interest to grandparents, aunts, and uncles, but you can click these links to see some videos of Hannah laughing and crawling.

I've added a couple links to the "Friends" section to the right: another of Hannah's NICU-mates (Ashley) and our friends the Conlys, from whom Hannah inherited a bunch of toys, clothes, and equipment. Check them out for an extra dose of cuteness. If you have a blog for your kiddos, please send me the address so I can include it here.

Carter is having some problems with his kidneys that are delaying his release from the hospital, but it's something that will heal completely, given time. He just needs a bit more time to recover than we were hoping for. Please keep him and Avery in your prayers, as they heal.