13 Months!

13 months old!
Harper in her Christmas sled from Great Grandma Berry

This month, Harper turned 13 months old!  She has been a busy girl, in the midst of a busy holiday season.  Here are some of the highlights:

Mac and cheese, please!

Harper continues to explore fun, new foods.  She prefers independence, enjoying feeding herself and often making a mess in the process.  One of her new favorites is macaroni and cheese; I suspect this is genetic, as I'm a huge fan of mac and cheese as well.  In fact, I don't know who loves it more, Harper or me?

Although, Harper has never been a very affectionate baby, only getting into snuggling when she's all tuckered out and ready for bed.  However, she has recently started giving out kisses.  Her favorite person to give kisses to is her Daddy.  It is pretty hilarious to see.  She gets a very focused, serious look on her face, before diving in towards your face.  Harper's kisses are my new favorite thing, but she will only give them when she is in the right mood and will not perform on command!

Movie night?

Harper is more mischievous than ever.  Much to our chagrin, there are two activities that she particularly enjoys: pulling out all the books from the bookshelf in her room and/or pulling out all the DVDs from the storage tower in the living room.  Unlike her mom, Harper seems to feel most at home in a chaotic mess.  This year, instead of a big Christmas tree, we decided to go with a mini version that could sit on a tabletop so that our adventurous babe couldn't pull it down.  It's not quite the same as a big tree, but knowing that it won't come toppling down is definitely reassuring, and Harper still really enjoys the lights on it.

A walk to Starbucks with Mommy and Daddy:
love that toothy little smile!

Harper is such a big girl that she is now brushing her teeth (okay, letting us brush her teeth).  She has a mouth FULL of teeth, so we want to help keep her adorable little gap-toothed smile clean and healthy.  She has her very own Elmo toothbrush and toothpaste, and dental hygiene has become a part of our evening routine.  She doesn't love it, but she is a pretty good sport.

Harper's hair is really coming in, which is very fun for me because it means that we get to experiment with cute new hairstyles.  The key is distracting her while putting her hair up in a clip because once she realizes that she has a pretty hair accessory in her hair, she can't help herself...she simply MUST pull it out!

Harper isn't walking yet, but we are trying to help her gain courage to take those steps.  We practice a lot, holding her hand, and she continues to cruise while holding onto furniture.  Hopefully it will happen in the New Year.

Our little Christmas shepherd
still loves putting things on her head!

As we prepare to celebrate our second Christmas with our sweet little girl, we are reminded of how much she has changed in the last year.  At her first Christmas, she snoozed in our arms, and now she can't be contained!  We are excited for our upcoming trip to Florida for Christmas at Harper's Aunt Kelly and Uncle PJ's house.  She will get to meet some of her cousins for the first time, as well as her Uncle Brandon, and to see her Grandma Annette too.  Plus, it will be her first plane ride...  We have a lot of excitement and fun adventures to look forward to this week with our sweet, spirited little girl.

Happy Birthday, Harper!

A couple of weeks ago, we celebrated a very, very special event: Harper's first birthday!  Her birthday, November 19, was on a Monday this year so we decided to celebrate with some of our family and friends that Sunday evening.

Harper had so much fun!  She completely adored all the love and attention.  I was particularly looking forward to seeing how Harper enjoyed her first cupcake.  As it turns out, maybe she doesn't have quite the same sweet tooth as her mom...yet.  She had a few little bites and then decided that her yummy cupcake belonged on the floor.  Sigh.

What she really DID love was opening her presents!  She would tentatively rip the paper at first and then really go for it.  Harper received so many generous, amazing gifts, but what was most special was seeing the outpouring of love and encouragement for our sweet girl.  She has brought so much joy into our lives this past year.

Remembering Harper's first four months...

5-9 months...

...and months 9-11!

Harper's first batch of birthday cupcakes!

Party favors:
kisses from little H

Here is what our grown-up 1 year-old girl is doing these days...

Harper loves pulling things down from shelves, tables, and anything she can get her hands on.  She especially likes tearing up magazines.  We generally have magazines on our coffee table in the living room, and on any given day, Harper makes a beeline to the table, where she starts to systematically toss everything on the floor.  She throws them on the floor, we pick them up, and so it goes.

Harper is working up the courage and the ability to walk.  Right now, she will pull up to standing, and she will cruise along, holding on to the edge of tables, chairs, whatever.  She can stand on her own too, before she realizes that she is actually doing it...at which point she reaches out for a helping hand.  We are thinking that she will be walking soon.  Stay tuned!

Harper loves baking.  For her birthday, she received her very own cupcake kitchen from her Aunt Kelly, Uncle PJ, and cousins Brynn, Tyler, Dylan, and Kate in Florida.  She spends a large chunk of everyday baking cupcakes and washing dishes.  A girl after my own heart!  Well, the cupcake part at least.

Cupcakes for breakfast?  Yes, please!

Harper has such a fun sense of humor.  She smiles and laughs constantly.  Harper received some blocks for her birthday from our friend, Talyn, and she loves building towers with her daddy. More accurately, she thinks it is hilarious when her daddy builds a tower, and she knocks it down.

Harper has become very tech-savvy.  Ever since she was a tiny baby, she's been a huge fan of the iPad and iPhone, but she has recently discovered how to "unlock" the phone.  What's especially funny though is when we are in church, and she spots someone with a phone or iPad; you can watch the wheels turning in her brain, and she will make a beeline towards them.  They might think the lock will keep her out; little do they know!  

Our little Harper is also slightly obsessed with putting things on her head.  She is partial to my headbands, but she has recently become more creative with items from my drawer.  Yes, that means she has also figured out how to open and close drawers--and how to empty the contents inside...  But when the outcome is so hilarious, how can I be mad about the mess?

Playing dress-up

Harper loves playing with keys.  She is a big fan of the "panic" button.  Somehow she always manages to find that pesky button.  I'm sure our neighbors love the new soundtrack.

Having fun with our friend, Talyn--and her keys!

 Harper continues to love playing in and under things.  Her Grandma Annette gave her a play tunnel for her birthday, and she loves scooting through it.  After we received a new big-kid carseat from her Grammy Sue the other day, we discovered her playing in the cardboard box.  She was too cute, crouching down and hiding, and then springing up again...surprise!  Her toothy little smile melts my heart every time.

Baby's First Halloween

Last week, we were excited to celebrate Harper's first Halloween.    Our sweet girl dressed up as a ladybug, which was the perfect outfit for her.  I was a ladybug for one of my first Halloweens too so it felt right.

Harper is still too little for trick-or-treating so, instead, Dallin and I took a walk through the town center, where local businesses handed out candy to kids.  It was fun to see all the children in costume, and since Harper is quite the observer, she enjoyed taking in the festive sights and fun costumes.  Of course, her costume was the best--and she was the cutest little ladybug ever.  Here's our sweet ladybug girl in action...

11 Months Old!

11 months old!

Last month, Harper turned 11 months old!  It has been an exciting time for Harper, whose new talent--the precursor to walking--is pulling herself up on anything and everything and holding on while she takes some steps.  She is VERY proud of herself, of course, which has been a joy to see.
  

All bundled up for a fall walk

Her personality and sense of humor have also continued to grow.  She loves playing her version of peek-a-boo, putting her head down until you ask, "Where's Harper???" and then popping her head back up, triumphantly.

Earlier in the month, Harper got to hang out with her baby bestie, Amelia.  Harper, Mommy, cousin Em, Amelia, and Amelia's mommy all packed into the car for a visit to Marblehead to see our good friend, Talyn for a festive fall field trip.  We had lunch at Talyn's house and then explored some of the little shops in Talyn's neighborhood.  With Halloween just around the corner, Harper got two new Halloween books so that we could prep for her very first Halloween.

Amelia and Harper, buckled up for a Halloween field trip 

Baby besties

Our 11-month-old girl has become curiouser and curiouser.  With her increasing motor skills, she's off in the blink of an eye.  We have found her under tables and chairs, inside of things, and getting into mischief wherever she can find it.  She has been a busy girl, and it a toss-up as to who is most exhausted at the end of the day: Harper...or mommy and daddy!  Either way, we're all having fun and anticipating the next big milestone: Harper's first birthday!

Baby in a bag!

Got Cheerios?

Story time with Grammy Sue

Can you spot the spoon?

Baby girl, getting resourceful

Furniture blockade?
Challenge accepted.

Fall Fun

We spent this past Columbus Day weekend at Harper's Grammy Sue's house.  With the leaves turning red, orange, and yellow and the air festively chilly, it was a true fall weekend, and we had the chance to enjoy it with family and friends.  

Since Halloween is coming up in just a couple of weeks, we spent time in the pumpkin patch, picking out pumpkins that we will eventually carve into jack-o-lanterns.  Harper hasn't seen her Daddy in action yet, but he is quite the master pumpkin carver.  This Halloween will be Harper's first; so exciting!  We already have a costume for her, thanks to a hand-me-down from our good friend, Jen, whose daughter is a couple of years older than Harper.  She's going to be a ladybug, and I'm pretty sure that she will be the cutest lady bug I have ever seen.  

Harper really enjoyed rolling around in the dirt in the garden and getting her hands on the pumpkins.  She has started to pull up to a standing position, and she clearly enjoyed showing off her new skills.  It was a chilly weekend, but Grammy kept Harper warm with a new fleece poncho.  It was funny watching Harper trying to maneuver with a fluffy extra layer, but she managed.    

We also had the opportunity to show Harper the tree that we planted last year in memory of her big brother, Rex.  We buried his ashes when we planted the tree, and so it is a special place for our family.  Harper is still too little to understand, but it was touching for us to see our sweet, smiley baby crawling around Rex's tree, a bittersweet reminder of the little boy we lost and the little girl we have welcomed into our hearts.  We feel blessed to have a place that we can go to be together and to feel close to him.

Having been born in the fall, it wasn't surprising to see Harper totally in her element this weekend, all bundled up outside.  She even had her first drink of apple cider in her sippy cup and her first taste of mashed potatoes; maybe it goes without saying, but she loved both, of course.  Something tells me that she is going to really love Thanksgiving... 

Pretty In the Park

The weekend before last was the last weekend of the summer, and so we took our sweet babe to the park to enjoy the end of our first summer together as a family.  Here is our pretty girl in the park...

NICU Reunion

This past weekend, we had the very special opportunity to attend Harper's NICU reunion at Kimball Farms in Westford.  Kimball Farms is an amazing spot for homemade ice cream, but there is also mini-golf, a driving range, pony rides, paddle boats, batting cages, and animals.  It was a HUGE event!  The Beth Israel took over, with NICU graduates and their families and also the NICU nursing staff.

Harper's Auntie Annie came with us to the reunion, and we all had a great time eating ice cream and enjoying the attractions.  The weather couldn't have been more gorgeous.  Harper and I cheered for Auntie and Daddy at the driving range.  Perhaps what I enjoyed the most though was a slide show, with photos of the NICU babies when they were there and current pictures too.  Not surprisingly, many of the NICU graduates were multiples, twins and triplets.  I don't think I have ever seen so many sets of twins in one place.  The oldest NICU graduate in attendance was 18 years old!  It was great to see so many NICU graduates, grown up and healthy thanks to the efforts of some incredible doctors and nurses.  

We had the chance to say hello to one the nurses who took such great care of Harper during her time in the NICU.  This particular nurse was actually the one who was there on the day we left the NICU so it was fun to be able to catch up with her.  We are so very grateful to the amazing nurses who watched over our sweet girl until she was strong enough to come home with us, and to help us throughout the process.  This event was a profound reminder of how far Harper has come in the last ten months and the countless ways in which she has blessed our lives.  We couldn't be happier.


*To make a donation to the NICU at Beth Israel, click here or visit www.gratefulnation.org and click the "donate now" button in the top right corner.  In the field marked "Please designate my gift," use the drop-down menu to select the NICU (Newborn Intensive Care Unit).