Silly Holland!

2009-12-12T12:34:00.000-07:00

time flies with a toddler

2009-03-05T08:23:00.003-07:00

I kick myself for not posting more, mainly because I know I will want to reread this in a year or so myself. Every day I swear that Holland gets more funny and witty, and dare I admit it- even cuter! I realize that I am the most biased person, but she is just the coolest two year old!

One of my favorite sayings that Holland has started saying is "All done, NOT!" It just cracks me up. We have complete conversations all the time and constantly I am amazed at what she knows and can comprehend. (everything!)

Here are two videos from a few weeks ago. My goal is to try to take a video of her today putting puzzles together. I was just amazed the other morning when I watched her put 2 puzzles with interlocking pieces that do not have outlines on the cardboard... I am horrible at puzzles, so it is exciting to see how great she is! Hopefully, those will come later today!

--and these videos are just Holland being a total goofball a few weeks. I admit, she had eated a bit of ice cream before these were taken and was obviously on some sort of sugar rush.

And now January videos

2009-01-28T18:06:00.003-07:00

Well, look at that- exactly a month since my last post. I guess that is better than waiting two months, right?

Here are 4 little videos I took of Holland the other day in the bath. She absolutely loves taking baths and can and will stay in there as long as I let her. We switch back and forth between her normal bath toys and her foam letters and numbers that are a big hit. I know that a lot of what she is saying in these are hard for anyone other than her mother to understand, but hopefully you get the gist of most of what she is saying...

I know that was a lot to share at one time... I liked at least a little something she did in all of them though.

Not a whole lot to share in other news. Holland seriously is getting funnier and more adorable daily. I tell Joe all the time that she is the most genuine person I know. Everyday she tells me the sweetest heart-felt things. From just the sweetest "thank you mama" for everything (never with prompting) to "I love you" or today she even said "bless you mommy" when I sneezed. She is pretty sweet. Generally Holland has been quite the mama's girl, but lately she is requesting that her dad do a lot with her. Yesterday in fact when she woke up (at about 6 am, so Joe was still here) I went in to get her/change her and she said "no mom- go away, I want dad". So, Joe came in and I asked her again if she wanted me or dad to change her diaper and she said "no mom- I want dad, go away" She did say it sweetly at least... This morning she was very sad as Joe left for work because she wanted him to stay and color and draw. Most evenings (including this very second!) Holland and Joe color and draw on her magnadoodle. It is pretty cute!

Oh, and we are finally getting closer on potty training! Holland had just not shown any interest at all, so we kept talking about it, but not pushing it. She had used the potty back in MAY, but nothing since then until last week. Now at least she uses it in the mornings. Usually once or twice. The excitement she shows after using it is so incredible! Hopefully not that long down the road we won't have to pay for diapers anymore!!

December videos

2008-12-28T19:45:00.002-07:00

Here are 4 videos- 3 taken in the last 2 days and then one a few weeks ago. The first two are very blurry- but somewhat depict Holland sledding- but alone and with Joe:

And this one was taken yesterday morning. Holland was in just one of those super goofy moods where you just never know what she is going to do next!

And here is one taken on 12/8- the first real snow we had fall. It was really warm out and felt so nice to just run around in the litle bit of snowfall that was on the ground!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

2008-12-27T18:54:00.002-07:00

And, just like that the year is over. I won't even apologize for not posting in six weeks, yet again- as really this blog is only for me anyway- right?

We had a really nice Christmas here- just the 3 of us for the first time. Granted, it would be really nice to have family nearby- preferably family living close by. As it turned out though- the only options we would have had to visit family would most likely have fallen through anyway as all of the Pacific NW got hit with crazy snowstorms. So, it was just us 3- and that was okay. Totally okay. In fact, normally I after Christmas I always felt that depressing sunken feeling after Christmas, but this year- it is just continuing. I have always felt that the Christmas Spirit should linger on, and maybe just maybe it actually will this year.

Holland truly enjoyed our little Christmas morning, and therefore we truly enjoyed just watching her. We spent hours opening presents as of course she wanted to play with every gift after opening it. (and why wouldn't/shouldn't she?!) So we did that, ate some, took it easy and then went sledding. All in all a very nice day!!

As for recent Holland nuances- as this post is far more wordy than my normal tendencies... She is just a very silly girl! Holland carries her favorite baby (now named Chauncey) everywhere. Chauncey generally sits next to us at the table, rides in the car, you get the picture... Another favorite current silly thing is Holland tells me that she is a "tiny little baby" and likes to "learn" to talk. I ask her to say words like "mama", "dada" "bye-bye" and she uses this little baby voice. It is pretty cute. Hide and go seek is the number one game of choice around here. Holland *loves* the act of finding more than anything. Of course, most of the time barky Modoc is a total spoiler, but that is life in our loud house.

I have many, many videos I might add soon on here. If I ever get around to it that is... Maybe tomorrow as the weekend still lingers on?

New year, new layout

2008-11-08T15:33:00.003-07:00

Maybe this will become more of a quarterly blog. Ha. I am offically going to quit adding a paragraph each infrequent post to apologize for my tardiness. From now on, consider any post one more than there was before. Maybe one day I will report the little things that make me laugh each day. Maybe...

So, as you all (if anyone even reads this?!) know, Holland has now been 2 for a full month! Crazy how the time flies. Her vocabulary is exploding more and more daily. She says the funniest things. A new thing she has started is every single time she falls down, runs into something, etc., the first thing out of her mouth is "Mo Mo did it!" (Mo Mo of course being Modoc, our dog...) Often times Modoc is not even in the same room, but I think she has learned that it is nice to have a scapgoat sometimes.

Another fun Holland-ism is her love for pretend chocolate. She will pick a specific spot and pick "chocolate" from it and then ask Joe and I (and Modoc...) if we would like some "tok-let". This will go on for a very long time often, but it makes me smile. I find it more funny because I honestly do not even believe we have ever had chocolate (minus some cocoa graham crackers, or something of the sort...)

Holland sadly got her first black eye a little over a week ago. She was dancing and spinning so fast in the living room, lost her balance and hit the table. She hit it just right, so that not only did it smack her eye, but her forehead as well. Poor girl looked like she lost a bad fight. There is still a trace of a bruise under her eye, but I think that the frequent doeses of arnica minimized the bruising and swelling.

Holland has developed quite the love for speed! Everything, everywhere she insists to "GO FAST!" She will run around in our living room, yelling "run fast" and then to mix it up will start to "run sssllllooooooow". She gets a kick out of the slow motion movements.

All right. I know that my attention span when reading other blogs stops after a few paragraphs, so better time to call it a day. I be right back to add a recent video of Holland helping me read one of her favorite books. Usually she does this with even more animation, but of course, everything changes with a camera in your face...

urgh- 2nd time here we go

2008-09-18T18:35:00.004-06:00

So, I apologize; but apparently I will never be able to keep up with most blogger's timelines. I am however completely annoyed because I had what was probably my longest blog post ever, but silly me let my laptop overheat on my couch and it was all lost! Very frustrating!

Another frustration is that I have probably at least 10 videos that I have been waiting far too long to upload, but yesterday after uploading the first video my magicwonder camcorder broke :( It was only a small part that came off, and I am certain that it can be repaired after taking it to an electronic repair place nearby this week.

But, on to Holland, since I would imagine that is what most of you care about. She is amazing! Holland truly makes me laugh out loud everyday and amazes me more and more everyday. She is getting a lot better with counting. She now usually says, " one, two, six, eight". Often she will add "ten". She does like to repeat all of the numbers after me, but that is usually what you get when you ask her to count. She does also loves shapes. Holland's fave is probably the octagon, closely followed by the star!

What amazes me more than anything though is Holland's coordination skills. She truly is amazing!! Holland can easily keep up with very coordinated kids from our playgroups that are a year or more older than she is. She can climb anything! Most things are intended for kids much older than she is, and she just climbs and conquers things like there is no problem! I will have to take a video soon because words will simply not do what she does justice! It is so fun to be a proud mom and to constantly hear how amazing my child at something is though :)

Here is the one video that I currenly have to share. I am not sure why the picture is so off! It was taken approx. 3 weeks ago (eek! how time flies!)

And, for anyone that did not know- we just took a small trip to the mountains this week. It was just to a town (McCall) that is only a 2 hour drive from our home and a very beautiful location! Here are a few pictures that we took:

intended video

2008-08-07T07:49:00.002-06:00

This is the video that I thought I included yesterday. It is a little long, so I totally understand if you skip it. I find the the last two minutes the best, if you want to keep it shorter.

no excuses

2008-08-06T07:38:00.004-06:00

I don't know how it happens. Days turn into months, which turn into weeks which turns into an inevitable MONTH before I add another post on here? I don't suppose I really have a following anyway, but it is something that I had wanted to stay with consistent with, but sadly have failed a bit! Maybe I will pick up my second wind now. Who knows!

Anyway- so much has transpired lately. Holland moved to what had been our guest room a little over a week ago. I thought it might take awhile for the transition, but she has done phenomenal. She now loves going to bed with her two favorite babies on her new big bed. (and it really is a BIG bed- a Queen- what had and still will be when necessary- our guest bed) Holland's current favorite thing to watch by far is her Signing Times Videos. She loves them so! She does not even watch any other tv- and requests Signing Times all the time- by singing a cute little song. She has picked up a ton. I just wish I had started being more consistent with signing earlier. If I had only known how easy it could be!!

Holland often is getting sweeter everyday. She is very generous with her "thank-you's" and "I'm Sorry!" And this is without prodding from Joe and I. It is just genuine sweetness! She also showers me with kisses and hugs daily. The girl is just the sweetest! She is however currently cutting her two year molars (I am pretty certain anyway...) and is having a really hard time with them. I have read that they are incredibly painful as I can only imagine. The last few nights I gave her some teething tablets that seemed to help immensely and she was able to sleep all night. (hey- even getting up at 5:30 is all night in my book!)

As many of you have seen- Holland has definitely turned into a fish in the water! This past Sunday she definitely even stepped it up a notch from where she had been! She was standing up on a raft and jumping and practically diving into the water, often going underwater and would come up laughing and repeat! It is amazing to see how much she loves the water.

Well, that is only a drop in the bucket, but it gives anyone interested a bit of an idea on what our sweet, silly girl is conquering lately.
And, finally- here are three recent videos of Holland. The first two are just primarily Holland in her new room. I still have yet to decorate it, so it is pretty bare bones, but hopefully I will be able to liven it up soon! (you might notice that I did paint a wall though!) The last video is close to a month old, but it just shows one of Holland's favorite activities- stacking blocks. Try to ignore my counting in the beginning, apparently I need a lesson in counting myself as I can't believe how off I was! I will blame it on the camera blocking my view.

EDIT- Apparently one of the videos is not the one I thought it was! I meant to include one of Holland in her room, on her bed, putting babies to sleep, etc- but insead just uploaded one of her reading the same book for a few minutes. So, I will work on still uploading the intended video now, but if you do watch the reading one- just be prepared it is not the fastest moving video :)

another swimming video

2008-07-07T17:02:00.002-06:00

Here is another video of Holland in the pool this weekend. She loves the water so!

50th post!

2008-07-04T14:59:00.003-06:00

... and it has only taken, oh about 8 months.

I thought I would share some videos and pictures of my little water baby. Until about a week and a half ago, Holland had sworn off anything that had to do with water. She was terrified of swimming pools and even baths! I believe this all started because on Father's Day, Joe was going to jump in the pool with Holland and he lifted her over the edge (she was wearing a suit with built in floats) and I think it just really scared her, like she was going to be thrown in and left or something. So, for about 2 weeks, our water-loving baby was in hiding, but I am so happy to report that she is back!

She now does not want out of the water. (which stinks because the water is now filled with green algae and we can't shock it till this evening..) She is totally content to just swim on her own, generally does not even want to be touched. And, she does great! She swims back and forth between Joe and I- swims to the ladder, etc. I need to take a better video of her new swimming skills, but for now I only have one very short one...

So, here is the said video. The first 5 seconds is how Holland generally acts in the pool. But, she got grumpy because she just wanted me to join her.

And, here is another video- it was taken on the downside of take two of filling up our pool. (Had to drain it twice, fill it three times...) Holland had such a great time just jumping and splashing around!

And just to make this 50th post even longer, I thought I would add some swimming pictures as well:

another video...

2008-06-23T15:46:00.002-06:00

Sorry, I haven't changed my slow-posting style. Here is a video taken of Holland this morning before we set out to run an errand to the store. I was hoping to get her saying more things she has started saying- but maybe next time.

I also have a few other videos I need to upload. Maybe I will actually get around to them tonight- don't hold your breath though!

So, for now, this will have to do :)

almost an entire week since we returned from vacation...

2008-06-11T18:15:00.003-06:00

and I am barely getting around to this thing. I don't know why I find it so hard to add new posts.

So, as most of you know, our trip for the most part was a lot of fun. There were just some hard times (the first day for one- almost everything that could go wrong, did- flight longer than planned, horrible traffic, rental car couldn't find our key, had us waiting forever to get our unwanted car, condo key missing, etc...) Some days Holland did excellent, some days were more trying. She had a really great time at the zoo. She really loved the petting zoo. I did realize that it is certainly not necessary to try to do something grand and amazing for little ones, it is just the little things that are so big to Holland- and that is fun also.

Here is a little video of Holland taking on the beach. The first day Holland did manange to get her feet a little wet, but after that, she wanted nowhere near the water. Her favorite aspect by far, was just saying "bye bye" to the ocean. She would just yell GO!!! Bye, water! Funny girl.

yet another video

2008-05-31T20:42:00.002-06:00

I have been meaning to share this video from this Monday I believe. But, I have been a little lackadaisical in my blogging I suppose...

This is just Holland being the silly girl that she is:

We leave tomorrow for our vacation to San Diego!!! I am sure that we will have tons of pictures and videos to share upon our arrival! I can't wait to go to SeaWorld and the San Diego Zoo with Holland! It should be a great time!

Catch up time

2008-05-22T08:28:00.002-06:00

Well, last Tuesday Holland and I got back from visiting my parents, grandparents and some other extended family members. One might think that surely I would have had an update, at least a few pictures or a video to share before now. But, I have been known to procrastinate.

This first video is taken before we left, Holland in our backyard. Most days we spend at least a few hours outside, with the majority of her time spent going up and down our 3 porch steps and then just hanging out on the patio and her little picnic table.

This video is taken just a few minutes later. Holland is fascinated with the number TWO! She seems to show zero interest in pursuing her counting past the number two at this point however. Maybe next week :) Holland also displays some impressive jumping off the steps moves in this clip.

And this one was taken at my parents' house. Holland was dancing around and spinning and making herself dizzy. It makes me dizzy just watching it!!

Rocking with friends

2008-05-04T18:30:00.003-06:00

This weekend we had a great visit with my childhood friend, her husband and their 2 children. Holland really loved having two other children to play with all the time and they all got along so great! You will see that in this little video:

A nice day at the park

2008-04-27T14:08:00.002-06:00

2 posts in a day?! Woah!

Here are 2 short videos of Holland this morning at the park closest to our house. They are a little similar- mostly just her climbing the stairs and sliding... We probably will drive to another park later this afternoon, though I think that posting more than 4 videos in a day would just be overkill!

Silly antics

2008-04-27T11:48:00.002-06:00

Thought I would share a video from yesterday as well as another one taken earlier this week... The one from yesterday unfortunately cut off short because the battery ran dead. But here is the background you didn't get- Holland was playing in the backyard and picked up a rock as she loves to do. She kept playing around and pretending to put it in her rock and sometimes actually putting it in her mouth. So, I threw it in the trash can inside. Then, she thought it would be funny to find other rocks, sticks or just dirt and run inside with them and throw them in the trash. You will also see that she is did not want me following her!!

This one needs no narrative- just Holland being Holland :)

No fear

2008-04-20T15:04:00.003-06:00

Here is a little video of Holland doing something she enjoys- She likes to stand up on her pony and then bounce back in the seat yelling "whee" (when she stands she says wooah) At least in this video she held on all the time, she also likes to stand without holding onto anything, but we are trying to get her to at least always hold on- it seems to be working most of the time :) She truly has no fear in almost anything! (which can be a scary thing for us!!)

New clothes- mostly same tricks

2008-04-14T17:51:00.003-06:00

Here is a video taken this afternoon of Holland once again showing off body parts and more animal noises. I know, a lot of it is repeated, but I thought it was cute and so I thought I would share.

3 videos from the last month

2008-04-12T17:54:00.002-06:00

I finally got the problem fixed (okay, not me so much, but someone came and fixed it) and now I can share videos again! Here are three taken the last month:

Holland showing off some animal sounds with dad. This was nearly a month ago, she now knows many more, but it still gives you an idea...

Holland Easter egg hunting in the kitchen. This was taken a few days before Easter. Holland got the concept of finding eggs and putting them in her basket right away and had so much fun doing this over and over again!

Holland playing with a step stool. This is the sort of thing that Holland does all the time, she is so silly!

18 months old today :)

2008-04-10T07:49:00.006-06:00

Well, I have been wanting to post on here for the last few weeks. But, I hate doing repeat pictures since I send most of those out via email (if you don't get them and want to- just let me know!) and I really have been wanting to add amazing videos of Holland, but I just cannot figure out what is going on! Today I am calling the support staff again and if that does not work going to figure out how to have someone with a lot more know-how to fix my problem between the camcorder and the laptop. But, my apologies to anyone checking this to always find- no new posts!!

So, since I have no videos and most of you have seen all the pictures, I thought maybe you would like a list of words/phrases/sounds Holland is currently saying. Now, there is no way that I can make it inclusive of all she says, but this is the best I can do at this moment from memory:

mama
dada
ball
hair
head
nose
ears
mouth
eyes
belly
toes
sock
shoe
pants
jacket
door
window
light
clock
apple
cracker
cookie
peas
water
juice
milk
more
thank you
all gone
uh-oh
whee!
go!
Go? (I list this separately, because it is basically- where did it go?)
Here it is! (granted sounds like more like heeey iiihh)
outside
nigh-night
bye-bye
I love you
hi
hello
baby
car
tree
book
bed
no
sshhh (telling modoc to be quiet)
stop
stay
two (sometimes she also says one and three, but she loves the #2!)

animal sounds:
cow (moooooo)
horse (neigh neigh!)
lamb (BAAA!)
dog (ruhr ruhr)
kitty kat (meeew)
pig (the cutest snorting sound)
elephant (pushes air between her lips, very cute!)
duck (quaa-aah)
monkey (whispers hahahaha)
bee (ray, ray- don't know why, but this is what she says, and every time we chuckle!)
lion (raaahr)
snake (sssssss)

I know that there is so much that I am forgetting, but that at least gives you an idea... Holland will also mimic almost anything and she is starting to say her own name also- pronounced "haw-ee".

She also is starting to put words together- mama shoes, go bye bye, etc.

Sorry again for my lack of updates! Hopefully I can get the videos to share very soon!

(and a cute picture of Holland with a waste bucket on her head!)

Happy Easter!

2008-03-23T11:59:00.002-06:00

Okay; so I think that it has been almost 3 weeks since I have added an entry in here! Eek! I have been a little frustrated because I have some really cute videos that I want to share, but am having constant problems uploading them. I am sure that there is an easy fix to figure out why Microsoft is all of a sudden overriding the necessary software that I need to use, but I can't figure it out!! Hopefully I find a way to get someone here or fix it myself sometime soon....

Holland has picked up more and more words and animal sounds lately. She now also likes to give Modoc commands- Stay, Go, NO! I think it is funny. I also like that Holland rarely uses the word no as we rarely us it also, so she does not say it all the time like a lot of toddlers seem to.

Holland has really enjoyed egg hunting the past few days. I thought that I would at least share a few pictures of her on this Easter weekend since sadly I am unable to share the videos that I have. But, hope you enjoy these just the same. We have mostly just done a lot of hiding eggs inside. But, Friday a friend of Holland's came over and they both hunted for eggs in our backyard. It is just so fun to watch little ones interact, especially at this age!

And this one was taken this morning after opening up her Easter basket. She loved the little chick that we gave her:

a glimpse into an ordinary Monday

2008-03-03T18:07:00.003-07:00

I took 3 videos of Holland today. I realized that I really have not taken of her talking or doing so many of the things that she now does on a daily basis.

Holland talking! I will have to take another video of her saying her other words!

This is just a video of Holland being her usual silly self. Joe said that the chair looked tacky because it is facing directly towards the tv. Haha. So, just in case anyone was wondering, I had only moved it there today while I was cleaning up the living room and we never even have the tv during on the day (other than to listen to music!)

Dad coming home!
Holland gets so excited when Joe comes home from work. Often she points and yells, "dada" as she sees him drive up, while watching him through the window. Today, she was a little more reserved with her excitement, but I know it was there all the same.

Weee!

2008-03-01T15:41:00.002-07:00

Here is a little video taken of Holland in our backyard this afternoon. There is an elevation change on one section in the grass and Holland loves to run down it saying "weee!" I really don't know where she picked this up. I guess that either Joe or I must have said it to begin with though neither of us really recall doing that.

You might notice that we got a new fence!!! It so nice to finally have a private backyard! Of course, now the back section of the fence looks horrible, but we plan to have that done also in the next month or so.

Growing vocabulary

2008-02-22T13:34:00.002-07:00

Recently, Holland has been picking up more and more words and phrases. She is so proud of herself when she adds a new word to her ever-growing vocabulary- so am I though! I have never sat down and written the words that she currently knows. I am sure that there are many other words and phrases that she says that we are not even aware of, but these are recognizable- (at least to Joe and I!)

Night-night
Bye-bye
thank you
Uh-oh
ball
light
more
ruhr, ruhr (imitates the way Modoc barks, this is her "dog")
cracker
baby
mama
dada
blue-blues (blueberries)
water
milk

She also will imitate "moo" and snorting for a pig if we do it first. I am sure I am forgetting a few other words and or phrases, but I will try to add them if I think of them later!

And, what is a post without at least one new picture???

Home for good

2008-02-17T16:42:00.005-07:00

So, now not only will I be home with Holland for 5 full days a week- but now on Thursdays and Saturdays as well! I was actually "laid off" this past Thursday. As it turns out, I was already looking into other part-time options. It is a blessing, although still a bit shocking! But, at least I have a few months or so to figure something else out!

Not a whole lot else transpired this week. Here are pictures of Holland (and Joe and Modoc) at a park we went to yesterday. (not our usual neighborhood park- Holland had never played here before..)

(and I apologize- these pictures are now not of the infamous "yesterday". I had complete intent to publish this blog on Sunday, but alas, it is now Wednedsday night and it has yet to be published. I think that means, I better do something else tomorrow!!!)

It DIDN'T snow today!

2008-02-09T18:12:00.000-07:00

We have had far too much snow and extreme winter weather lately- which means we
have been indoors way more than we would like. We are accustomed to going on a long walk at least both Saturday and Sunday, but for several weeks that has been out of the question with the icy roads and sidewalks. BUT, today the sun came out; it warmed up to around FIFTY DEGREES and was just an all- around nice day. As soon as I came home from work, we went on our favorite walk to the park nearby.

Even though it was so nice out, there was still a lot of snow at the playground. Holland still walked very well around it all though. She also now is focused on walking up and down stairs. She is able to go down the stairs without sitting down first- just walking down like you or I might. It is rather impressive. She is always learning new things though!!!

Here are pictures taken at the park today:

Video time!

2008-02-05T20:18:00.000-07:00

Apparently, recently I only get on here to post recent videos of my silly girl. I guess I am not deviating from the norm again tonight. These were all taken about a week ago. I will try to take at least one more tomorrow. Holland is seriously getting funnier everyday! I am so blessed to actually be home with her almost all of the time now. It is so fulfilling getting to see all these little antics she does- I would never trade it for anything now!!

And, I doubt anyone really knows about how difficult sleeping has been for us lately, but... I am so excited!!! I found something that really works for both Holland and I and I am able to put her down at night and she is as happy as could be. I just lay down next to her bed and sing to her, the first night she protested for maybe a minute, the next night about 7 seconds and tonight, nothing! And, by protest, I mean grunting, she never even was upset :) Naps have been amazing also. I am so happy that we have finally found something that works for us!

Enjoy the videos!!

10 seconds of Holland spinning and dancing with her baby

2 silly minutes of Holland's life (same background music!)

(don't mind the laundry- I was in the middle of folding it, when I thought I should take this!)

Holland tired, but trying to find her 2nd wind...
Holland was obviously tired in this video (before how I figured out how to adequately put her down) but she still wanted to play!

Ride that pony!

2008-01-28T20:39:00.000-07:00

I know that posting another video might be just "taking the easy way out" of adding a blog entry- but I never claimed to be a notable blogger :) Here is a video taken last night of Holland riding her Radio Flyer pony. She is quite fearless, as always, luckily this video does not completely show her standing up on the pony. She really is my baby stunt artist!

It has been far too long since my last post! But, I FINALLY have videos that I have uploaded

2008-01-26T15:59:00.000-07:00

Here is Holland playing with a musical toy that she enjoys. You will see she likes to dance and spin and spin around to the point where she makes herself very dizzy! Pay no attention to the clothes she is wearing! I guess that Joe threw them on her in a hurry while I was gone...\

This video somewhat broadcasts one of Holland's newest tricks- flinging herself into her playpen. She usually does it with much better precision, but you get the idea. I am always right behind or next to her, so I could catch her or help her- even though I never need to- that girl has amazing balance!!!

This is just a very short clip of Holland saying a new word- "baby". She knows that almost all pictures and videos are of herself, the baby, so she often will say "baby" when she sees the camcorder or camera (as shown here...)

I had a few other older videos that I considered uploading and sharing, but I think that I will stop here, at least for now. Maybe I will add another video or two later this weekend.

Another busy week

2008-01-13T16:30:00.000-07:00

Well, this past week marked my first week as not working full-time anymore! In fact, due to my work making a simple mistake, I actually stayed home every day this week. (minus the half day yesterday) It was so nice to be able to capture all of Holland's little moments. I know that she has been in perfectly capable hands while I was working, but it has made me realize that I missed a lot. Oh, nothing catastrophic like learning the alphabet all of a sudden, but it is just all the little things. Like, when she so methodically runs to the bookshelf, grabs a book, sits down in her little wagon and begins to read out loud to herself. It is those moments that I am so thankful that I won't have to miss anymore. (at least not nearly as often)

In addition to just enjoying each other's company, Holland and I also made it to three open gyms playgroups. It was so much fun just watching her little energetic, lithe body run around, playing with toys and grabbing as much attention as possible.

I did not take any pictures at the open gyms that we attended, but here are some other random pictures that I took this week. Maybe this week I won't wait another 7 days until I make another post!

Like mother, like daughter? (Holland loves to get her hands on the laptop given the opportunity!)

Being silly as usual

She loves to stand on a basket behind the couch and talk to Joe. She gets so proud of herself!

Telling her big bird something very meaningful

Looking outside- when we still had a yard covered with snow (she carries the little stool there herself)

Even more snow and a 70 foot tree in our yard!

2008-01-06T19:48:00.000-07:00

Well it looks as if another week has come and gone! We woke up to over 4 inches of snow this morning. It was a fun surprise, because it totally came unexpected. But, I guess that this is a week for surprises! On Friday we had a very strong windstorm. I knew it was strong, but never expected our 70 foot blue spruce tree to fall down! ...but, it did! It looks so surreal uprooted and in the middle of our yard. We are so fortunant that it did not hit our house!

Here is another video to share. It really is not amazing, but I guess better than nothing? (or maybe not...) You can see that we tried to make a sled for Holland, and although the video only gives a glimpse of it- Holland HATED it! I really thought that she would love it, but you never know with little ones! You also get a few glimpses of the tree that now takes up our backyard. (now we have to work on getting it removed this week- not looking forward to that ordeal!)

If a picture says a thousand words, how many words does a video say?

2007-12-30T17:13:00.000-07:00

At the risk of ruining a good thing, I have yet another "nostalgic" video to share. I just love it so! I promise not to use this style for at least another week. Haha.

I'm on a roll! Another video...

2007-12-29T11:14:00.001-07:00

Now that I have my amazing little flip video camcorder I will most likely be uploading many more videos. It is just so handy! Too bad I am such a bad video taker- maybe I will get better with practice!

This is just a little video of Holland this morning. She had been walking around in Joe's shoes when I grabbed the video, but then of course stopped right away. My favorite part of the video is when she changed the radio station on the tv to a blues song. I guess my baby likes blues?!

a silly little snow video

2007-12-28T18:15:00.000-07:00

It's a winter wonderland outside!!!

2007-12-28T14:40:00.000-07:00

Last night, we had a significant amount of snowfall and now it is completely white outside!! Holland and I (and Modoc, of course!) all went out today to enjoy it. It is a nice day and it was barely still snowing when we went out. (I thought it would never stop!) Holland thought that it was pretty cool. Granted, she saw the little snow we had a few weeks ago, but that really was little more than a dusting on the ground. This time it crunches when you walk and has taken over everything. I love it! Holland got a little frustrated a few times when she fell down and had a hard time getting back up. But, once I stood her up again, she was off trying to run and play in it. She wasn't thrilled about having to wear mittens, but kept them on. She looked so cute in her little snow pants trekking around.

I would have liked to have made a little snowman, but anytime I tried to start, Modoc would attack the snow pile that I made, pounce at it and then eat it. Maybe after Joe gets home we can all make one in the front yard. (well, everyone but Modoc that is!)

Christmas has left the building.... well, almost

2007-12-28T14:14:00.000-07:00

So, as expected, I did not post again before Christmas. We had a very nice visit in Seattle. It was nice to be around family during the holidays. Here are a few pictures taken during our trip.

I think this is a very sweet picture- Holland watching The Nutcracker Suite with her Gram

Opening a present

Enjoying being the center of attention!

Now I suppose that we will soon have to take down our little Christmas tree. I imagine that we will put that off until around New Year's. Sad how depressing it is to admit that Christmas is officially over.

Time is running short!

2007-12-20T21:20:00.000-07:00

This might be the last post I make before Christmas... On Saturday we leave to go to Seattle to visit Holland's grandparents and Joe's family. We of course are looking forward to it, but I am feeling like we still have a million things to do! (which is pretty standard for me prior to leaving for any trip!, but especially this time of year...)

I am sure that we will take many pictures to share. Holland gets excited over the silliest things, but it is always entertaining. Unfortunately, no pictures were taken tonight as she went to sleep as soon as I got home from work. I can't wait until my schedule changes and we don't have to do this anymore. I feel like I am missing too much of my little girl's life!

On a lighter note, I just realized this weekend that Holland has no problem with me fixing her hair as long as I sit her in the sink and let her brush her teeth. (the girl loves to brush her teeth!) So, for the first time in her life, she has had little pony tails a few days this week. It is so adorable!

Well, Merry Christmas to all! Sorry for my random thoughts right now. That is just how my brain is currently working...

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

2007-12-18T18:54:00.000-07:00

I can't believe how fast this season has creeped up on us! Christmas will be here a week from today. I am a little excited about Holland's first "real" Christmas. Last year, being only 2 months old, she obviously did not have any understanding of anything going on. Granted, she is still very young, but she amazes me at how much she does grasp.

Holland has not shown much interest in the presents under the tree, except for occasionally picking up the biggest present, moving it, then trying to step and sit on it. She has a fascination with trying to stand on anything new right now. Silly girl!

Little things that can be such very big things

2007-12-12T20:32:00.000-07:00

It is difficult to imagine what everything would be like through the eyes of a fourteen month old. Sometimes I am just amazed at the little things that are perceived as so amazing to Holland. It really is such a wonderful thing to experience.

For instance, tonight. Holland was taking a bath and just mesmerized with the water coming out of the faucet. She obviously loved the way that her hands felt while she attempted to clap under the running water or just holding her hands there and letting the water fall off her hands. It makes you think- that does feel good! And she is just now realizing that, for the first time in her life. How cool is that?!

Holland also has recently discovered how much fun it is for her to walk around the house in my clogs. She has such an amazing balance, I can't believe it. I love the way she squeals with excitement after placing both shoes next to each other in the same direction so she can easily place her feet inside them. She is learning so much all the time and putting pieces together in her little head. I am so lucky to be her mama!

Another week- eek!

2007-12-08T16:47:00.000-07:00

Apparently, my blogging skills will not be winning any awards anytime soon. Somehow the weeks just go by entirely too fast. I am hoping that things are a little more calm and that we have more time to stop and smell the roses once I am only working on Thursdays and Saturdays. Only a month away! And I only have 2 regular work weeks left. Woo hoo!

Holland, of course, is changing more and more. I am so amazed how well she has done with our Christmas tree! She has not even attempted to grab any ornaments or anything. She loves looking at the lights though and gets excited when we turn them on.

She got to play in the snow a little today for the first time. We did not have a ton of snow, but enough to substantially cover the backyard (until it started raining later in the afternoon anyway...) I wish I had more pictures documenting that, but my only word of advice is when you buy batteries for $1, don't expect to be able to take more than 3 pictures :(

Well, let me dig and see if I can find any halfway decent pictures to add here. Sorry for my disappointing posts!

Just another week...

2007-12-01T21:22:00.000-07:00

New tricks

2007-11-24T20:46:00.000-07:00

Here are a few of Holland's newest "tricks" that she has recently mastered (or at least trying to anyway...):

Eating with a spoon

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Walking Modoc around the house

Riding her pony like a bucking bronco

Going "nigh-night" anywhere, even on her changing table!

And... trying on mama's glasses!

(there are a lot of other little things that she comes up with daily, I'll try to think of at least a few everyweek)

another week (or more!) and more changes!

2007-11-20T18:48:00.000-07:00

Goodness, I suppose I could do a better job keeping this updated! I guess that life just flies by far too quickly....

Well, much has happened in the last 10 days. Holland's Granny (my mom) came for a visit. I think that they both had a lot of fun spending time together. It is too bad that we live way in the middle of nowhere and get so infrequent visits from family!

We had a little scare- we were worried that Holland might have gotten lead poisoning. A week ago on Sunday Holland decided that she would try to eat the window sill while watching Modoc play outside. So, we had to had a lead test (since our house is so old!), which luckily came back negative. But, since hospitals are a breeding ground for viruses, Holland unfortunately caught a cold while we were there for the testing. She is getting better, but still has the runny nose and bad cough at night. We are doing all the homeopathic remedies we know of and think that the end is near!

It is amazing how quickly she is learning new things and changing daily! She now often signs for "more" (we should have been more pro-active in teaching her so many more signs!) and just obviously understands so much more. I can ask her to go grab anything and she will bring it back proudly. It is so entertaining to watch her decide what she wants. She will go over to her little pony and grab it and try to move it and look up at me telling me, "hey mom- I think I want to ride this"..., or she will pick up her little piano and walk over to a spot that looks nice and sit down and play it. She really is just so amazing! I know that everyone says how exciting having a baby/toddler is, but now we are actually understanding it. (and also starting to understand the sleep deprivation thing, but that is another post entirely!!)

My silly block-handed baby!

2007-11-10T20:41:00.000-07:00

So, yesterday Holland realized how she can scrunch her fingers into a fist and fit them into the circles and triangles that are in the middle of her foam blocks... She has found comfort having her hands in blocks over the last few days. It is the cutest thing! She does everything with her hands in blocks now- eat, push her wagon, read books, play with a ball- you get the picture! So, of course I need to post pictures because how can you ever picture in your head a block-handed baby without the real thing?! I wonder how long this fascination will last?! I am afraid I am going to get some strange looks at the grocery store- but she does NOT want you to take them off!!

Bathtime fun!

2007-11-06T20:25:00.000-07:00

Lately, Holland just LOVES taking a bath. I think that she would stay in there for hours if we would let her, but I am too afraid! That girl is just wild in the tub! She loves to stand up and then splash as hard as she can as she slams herself into a sitting position. We have lots of bath toys, but her favorites are usually just the cup we use to pour water on her and a washcloth. Go figure!! And what would a little post be without at least a few pictures??!

A fun day at the park...

2007-11-05T20:27:00.000-07:00

We have a park about a half mile from out house... Most weekends (and some weeknights!) we walk there. Holland really loves just exploring, going down the slides, climbing the stairs and swinging. Here are a few pictures from this past Saturday.

where has the time gone?

2007-11-02T18:09:00.000-06:00

Well, as with most things, I got so excited to start something new and then apparently have let my enthusiasm dwindle. I apologize for being so slow to add new posts!

Holland amazes us more and more daily! She learns so many things each day. Right now she is rolling the ball to me and now she is trying to crawl IN the box that is used to keep her from going into the hallway. Wait, that has changed, now she came back over here, trying to add her own blogging and is doing her back and forth "hi" with me. Each time we say it with more and more gusto. A favorite game around here! I just asked her to go get the book and of course, she happily walks over and starts "reading" the book to herself. So much fun! Well, I don't want to do play by plays all night long! I think I will add a picture or two now. Sorry again for taking so long to post anything on here! I'll try to be more consistent!!

pictures from the last week

2007-10-20T21:53:00.001-06:00

a visit to the zoo....

2007-10-20T21:34:00.000-06:00

pictures...

2007-10-13T18:09:00.000-06:00

Holland's blog!

2007-10-13T17:43:00.001-06:00

Well, I decided to start a little blog for Holland to periodically upload videos and photos. I will still most likely still send out my numerous emails on Kodak because I don't think that there is room for me to upload 5o pictures at a time on here. I guess we have a photo addiction over here. But, I will try to keep this updated frequently- at least that is the plan.

Holland has just changed so much lately, that I figure that it would be fun to start something like this for her. Even in the last week, she has really taken walking to a new level. She even runs a little now sometimes! She is definitely growing up and changing daily; not a tiny little baby anymore!! I hope you enjoy the video that I added on here and the few pictures I will add for now. Hope everyone is having a nice weekend!

She's really walking now!

2007-10-13T15:55:00.000-06:00

Here is a video of Holland walking all around the living room. She is quite the pro now!