12 Months Old!

Ok, ok...  I know, this post is almost 2 weeks late.  Sorry about that!  We've been busy this month, and I just haven't been able to edit pictures like I normally do.  In addition to the following pictures, I also have some from Natalie's birthday party, our trip down the Silverado Trail, and opening Christmas presents!  But you'll have to wait for those.  ;)

On December 11th, our little Natalie turned one year old!  This past year has been such a joy and a blessing!  It went by so fast.....

You know, some months I can think of tons of things to write, but right now I'm drawing a blank...  So without further ado, here are pictures from the day that Natalie turned 1.

{SO many pictures to choose from this month!}

{Her crinkled nose.  I LOVE this expression!}

So that's it for the monthly updates...  Amazing, isn't it?  Just for kicks, here's a side by side look at her at one month and twelve months:

Natalie is 11 Months Old

Today our Natalie is 11 months old.  :)  She is such a sweetheart!  She is very good at sharing her toys and food with us.  She still has the best laugh and the sweetest smile.  She can be a bit dramatic (where in the world did she get that?? - ha!), which is funny to watch.  ;)  She is officially a walker, and has been for almost a full month.  She took her first steps on October 14th, and she hasn't looked back!  It's amazing to think that 2 months ago today she stood unsupported for the first time.  This post is going to be short and sweet, because I'm tired.  :)

I was surprised when I started looking at this month's pictures and realized that I forgot to take close ups of her!  11 months into a year long project and I forgot to take close ups...  Sheesh.  Oh well.  haha  I'll leave you with some of the other pictures we had to choose from for the detailed picture.

{She kept moving around and rolling over!  Silly girl.}

{love that smile}

{She is just the best.  The. Best.}

Only 1 of these left!  Wow.  Until next month.....

Pumpkin Patch 2013

This past weekend was gorgeous!  Sunny with a cool breeze and a high in the mid 70s.  It felt like fall and it was amazing!  We decided that we needed to take Natalie to her first pumpkin patch.  Remember a couple of years ago when Travis and I did the corn maze?  We went to the same place this time, too, but skipped the maze and headed for the pumpkins instead.  :)  Even though we went there 2 years ago, we didn't pick out pumpkins 2 years ago.  As it turns out, this was not only Natalie's, but also Travis' and my first time to pick pumpkins from a pumpkin patch!  It was fun and makes me think this needs to be a tradition.  No more store bought pumpkins.  :)

Of course, this was also a perfect photo op.  Baby and pumpkins!!  Natalie had fallen asleep in the truck on the way out, so she was still sleepy when we got there.  She wasn't so much in the smiling mood, but I got some adorable pictures anyway.  How could I not?!

{Inspecting the hay.}

I just love that sweater and headband!  Yes, I did make them.  ;)  Aren't they perfect for a fall day?  I got the pattern for the sweater here.  I was going to make the little hat that goes with it, but for some reason it was coming out way too small...  So I scrapped it and went for this headband and this flower instead.  (I made the medium flower from that pattern.)

{Those EYES!}

{"Flying Baby" always gets a smile out of her!}

{I was setting up the tripod and testing out the settings... isn't this a good picture of them?}

We started getting some smiles from her after a little while.  :)

{I love my family.  God has blessed us!!!}

{The pumpkin patch at sunset.}

{Natalie and I with our pumpkin haul.}

Fall is my favorite season.  I love the changing leaves and the cooling weather.  I love the sweaters and the hot drinks.  I hope y'all are all having a lovely fall!  We miss you, dear family and friends!

Double Digits

Natalie turned 10 months old 3 days ago.  Amazing, isn't it?  We've had a fun weekend, so I'm just now getting around to writing this post.  More on our weekend in the next post.  :)  

This little girl is still such a happy baby.  She occasionally has her cranky days, but for the most part she's in a good mood.  She's getting so close to walking!  She will take a few steps across her play pen without any help, but any time she's on the floor she just crawls.  Even when we try to help her walk, she just kneels down to crawl instead.  It won't be long before she's running around.  

I started this photo session by messing around with my camera settings.  Here are a few of those pictures:

This picture was under exposed, but it was so cute that I had to brighten it in Photoshop.  (That's why it's grainy.)

Here are the details from this month:

All 6 teeth!

That dress' sleeves were too loose, and she was able to slip out of them so easily!  I literally got sweaty taking these pictures.  She is such a wiggle worm!  She loves to move and crawl, so I was chasing her all over the room to lay her down next to the bear.  :)  Luckily, I was able to get some decent pictures.  

I can't believe this year is going by so fast!  

Three Quarters of a Year

That's right.  Natalie is 9 months old.  She has been out as long as she was in.  haha!  We are now three fourths of the way through her first year.  In 3 months she will celebrate her first birthday!  That fact amazes me!  I have already started thinking about what we'll do to celebrate her first birthday.  Yikes!

Natalie is still so sweet and fun!  She is very content playing by herself, and is almost always happy.  She has such a great laugh!  Here is a video from September 1st, where she is laughing at Ranger.

Ranger is such a good dog!!  He is really good with Natalie.  :)

Here are the details from this past month:

She was in such a good mood when I took these pictures!  I love it when her super happy moods coincide with these photo shoots.  :)

I'll leave you with a video of Natalie waving to me!

Concert at Cline Cellars Winery

On August 24th, Natalie and I went to listen to one of Travis' concerts.  The USAF Band of the Golden West was performing at the Cline Cellars Winery in Sonoma, which sounded like a great excuse to get outside!  I was expecting it to be hot outside, but it was actually really nice, especially sitting in the shade of a tree.  We didn't have the best view of Travis, but we could hear just fine.  I spread a couple of blankets on the ground, put some of Natalie's toys out, and enjoyed the show.  It was really fun!

Our View of the Band

Yes, it's blurry... but who could resist this face?!?!

Crib Teething Guard

Since Natalie has been pulling up to standing, she has started chewing on the edge of her crib.  I had already read about babies doing that, so I was prepared.  :)  In order to protect the crib from teeth marks, I made a crib teething guard!  I just looked at pictures of other teething guards online and made up a pattern.  I still have some fleece left over from my T-Shirt Quilt, so I used that as the bottom to give it a little padding.  The hardest part of this project was just measuring the crib to make sure everything would line up right.  The sewing itself was simple.  :)

Here's a look at her crib now.  I still think it's weird that her mattress is all the way down!

I do miss the crib skirt.  :(  It just doesn't look as good without it.  But on a happier note, here's the baby!  ;)

Meteors

Earlier this week there was a meteor shower.  August is apparently the month for it.  While I typically go to bed not long after Natalie, I was hoping to venture into our backyard to check it out on one of the nights that was supposed to have a lot of meteors.  Well, last Monday night, Natalie decided that she didn't want to go to bed at her normal time...  So, we bundled up and all went into the backyard for the show!  Our backyard is tiny, but has a pretty nice view of the sky.  We aren't too close to any big bright lights, so you can see the stars fairly well on a clear night.

The nights out here get nice and chilly.  It just so happens that I had been clearing out Natalie's drawers and closets to make room for newer, bigger clothes.  In the process, I came across the flower hat that I had crocheted for her way back in February.  (It's the top hat in this post.)  When I originally made it, the yarn I used made it too large for her head.  I tried it on her when I found it and it fit perfectly!  It was just a little too short, so I added a couple of rows to the bottom.  I was so happy that she actually had an opportunity to wear it!

{The Flower Hat - with 2 extra rows}

{Ready to go watch meteors!}

{So Sweet}

Travis has been learning about taking pictures of the night sky.  Have y'all seen his awesome picture of the moon?  Maybe I'll post about it some time.  Anyway, he made it his goal to capture a meteor, and he got one!  Totally awesome!  Check it out.

I do love a good night under the stars.  :)