She can put a hat on!

-H
ps-I will have the cell phone with me while I travel today. :)

Fasten your seat belts...

Here's the update you've been patiently waiting for...
My best friend got married in mid-October. Thanks to my mother-in-law I was able to go to Nashville for 3 nights ALL BY MYSELF. It was my first overnight trip without Ilana since she was born. It was fabulous!
Homecoming weekend was pretty fun. We went to the parade where Ilana enjoyed a great view from Paul's shoulders. Even Baylor's live bear mascots marched in the parade. Ilana really enjoyed that!
Halloween was pretty fun. The plan was for Ilana to go as a superhero (thanks to her amazing superhero cape she got about a year ago from her best friend Ada), but when trick-or-treating time came around she did not want to wear the cape - the wings won out. So, she went as a fairy princess. She was pretty cute all the same. Our good friend Robin walked around with us and in general made the whole thing possible. Thanks, Robin!
This was her in the beginning of the night, She wasn't a huge fan of walking around after a few minutes of this, so I ended up carrying her most of the time...poor thing, she's just so little!
If there weren't a lot of people around she enjoyed walking the halls with Robin.
We're starting to be really silly in the tub.
I could tell it was getting cool when I saw this pile of socks.
On Thanksgiving Day we set up the Christmas tree. She LOVES it!
She also loved the sweet potatoes at dinner that night.
We had a great dinner with friends!
The next day Ilana and I went down to visit the Cogliandro's in Houston for a few days. Besides it being a great time to see great friends, I think something might be starting with Ilana and Makani...


(Sorry this last one is sideways and from a different angle, it was way too cute!)
December has been lots of fun so far. Ilana and I have spent a lot of time in the kitchen (baking with a toddler is...fun!).
Then we bundled Ilana up in her long johns and went to Christmas on 5th Street, Baylor's huge Christmas block party.
She had no fear of the animals in the petting zoo. I actually don't think she knew what the big deal was. They were all smaller than Moses!
Then we saw the pretty lights.
After that Ilana had had just enough partying, so Paul took her home for bed, but I stayed and watched Jon McLaughlin. It was a great concert!
Dad, I think you would have even enjoyed it...

I wish I could have gotten a longer video. I thought it was awesome!
Since then we've been busy in the kitchen. Can you guess what we've been doing?


We've spent the weekend delivering cookie trays. We have some more to deliver to offices tomorrow, then we've got to get packing to head home for Christmas!
Ok, I think you're all caught up. :) Hope you enjoyed our semester. Nothing like drinking from a fire hose, huh? We can't wait to see everyone on the east coast...real soon! Love to you all!!
-H

Another walk around the North Village

This walk actually happened a few weeks ago, before we had days upon days of rain. So, the ground was dry and Ilana was way too cute. We had a good time outside...as always.
She sticks her tongue out all the time now!
One of my recent favorites...
Conquering Moses...
Ilana: 1,864; Moses: 0 (what a good dog!)
And now for your viewing pleasure:

I absolutely LOVE this outfit on her. I've just decided she's going to wear it to church again tomorrow. :)
-H

A Walk Around North Village

I actually did it...I took Ilana outside just to play (without the dog so I could enjoy it too), and it had recently rained, so I figured there would be a little bit of mud involved, so I put her in "play clothes" so I wouldn't freak out if she got a little bit muddy. She had a BLAST!



She was especially enamored by the little girl she saw in the window...

We had such a good time! We've done it a few more times since this...more pictures to come.
The weather has cooled off a bit. Today's high was only in the low 60s. But, we're supposed to get back into the mid-80s by this week...crazy Texas "fall!!"
-H

Baylor Football!!

Well, these pictures are 2 weeks old, but it's still a fun memory. We took Ilana to her second Baylor football game. Last year she went to one, but only made it halfway through the second quarter. This year we made it the whole game. This was Baylor's home season opener. It was hot, but super fun.
We sat at the very top of the visitor's side - it has the best breeze in the whole place. So, this was part of how we kept her cool...
This was the other part of how we kept her cool...
Eventually it was so hot and the game hadn't even started so Paul walked around the concourse with Ilana. Here they are right before the game started, walking back to our seats. We love this view of the field - it's a hike up, but it's worth it!
We had a great time!
It would have been more fun if Baylor had won, but we were still all smiles. SIC 'EM BEARS!!
-H

2 firsts in 1

1. Ilana vomited this afternoon
2. I got thrown up onto today - projectile style

...awesome. :) It'll be awhile before I feed her mandarin oranges again.

This picture was taken a few weeks ago, and has nothing to do with either of these firsts, but isn't it cute?!
Have a great weekend.
-H

A girl and her dog

Ilana LOVES Moses.
I've noticed that she always seems to find him when she's upset or tired...

but lately she finds him when she just wants to hang out...
She's even found it fascinating to watch him eat (which completely grossed me out, so after this one time I've always stopped her - no one likes to be watched while they're eating).
I just turned my head to check on her and she was trying to put her shoes onto Moses' paws. For the most part he takes it just fine. I think he likes the attention. Once he's had enough he'll go to the back room and lay down, but for the most part he's the perfect toddler entertainer. I can't wait for the day that she wants to paint his nails. I'll definitely take pictures of that!
-H