"I did it!"

Tomorrow is Isabelle's 17 month birthday! She'll probably want to celebrate by "clicking" things. Whether in her dining chair, grocery cart or sled, clicking herself in is a new favorite. Here she is in all her glory on the changing table, where every successful click is followed by the proud announcement, "I did it!"

Adventures in Sledding

I was determined to go sledding today. Nevermind that there were lakebeds at the bottom of every hill from the rain. And nevermind that we didn't have a sled! Isabelle had never been sledding, and it was time! After spending a good part of the morning calling every Walmart, Target, Kmart and Sears in a 50 mile radius, Auntie Briana had the answer: the local hardware store! Thanks to Eastman's Hardware on Main Street, we are now the proud owners of three sleds and two giggle sticks (hardware stores really do have everything!).

We hit the hills at the Cape Cod Country Club on Boxberry Hill Road. Daddy jumped in the saucer and Isabelle held on tight for her first run which included a puddle jump. She stayed dry, but Dad didn't!



After several runs with Mom and Dad, Isabelle was ready to tackle a mini-hill on her own! Go, baby, go!

Isabelle sorts by color

Isabelle is sorting by color! She started doing this a few weeks ago, but we didn't catch it on video until this morning. As you can tell from her hair, it was pre shower!

Also this morning, as I was holding her walking down the stairs, she started pointing to the 4th stair down, yelling "Pretty! Pretty!" I looked down, and there was a small hairband we use give her a ponytail. Every time we put her hair in a ponytail we tell her how pretty she looks!

Last night we took Isabelle to Golden Swan, Falmouth's (excellent) Indian restaurant. She could not get enough of the dahl, enjoyed the garlic naan and raita, but the chicken tikka masala was her favorite! The owner's children were there, and Isabelle spent the whole meal playing with the children and running back to us whenever she wanted "more cheeken". Beth tried to squeeze some rice onto the fork, but Isabelle was wise to that, pushing the fork away until we took off the rice and just left the "cheeken".

The Artist Hard at Work

Isabelle has been having a lot of fun with painting (with and without brushes), markers, crayons, etc. Here, she created a masterpiece with finger paint. You can check out the actual creation of the piece, and the final result! Right now everything is treated like fingerpaint--which makes markers a challenge. She writes all over herself, and then tries to make an imprint on the paper.

Happy OH-NINE!

Isabelle rang in the new year at 9pm at her Fairy Godmother's (aka Auntie F's) house in Menauhant -- banging on a metal sauce pot with a serving spoon. Had there not been five inches of freshly fallen snow and whipping winds, we would've gone outside to make all the noise.

Highlights of the night: Isabelle octuple dipping the shrimp cocktail. Shane's gnome recordings. Lucky dog giving lots of kisses and getting lots of hugs (the most comfortable Isabelle has been around a dog). Robbie Knieval's volcano jump in Vegas (the graphics of what could've happened were priceless. Commentator: "Or worse: he lands IN the volcano.") Learning that the town will plow a dirt road if they see a house light on. Having 5 mouths to feed, and enough food for 50 (hence Dennis' lobster salad breakfast). Watching F's horror as her Taboo partner found new and inventive ways to mutilate easy clues. We will never let Dennis live down his Taboo performance. In brief: Uh. Uh. Hmmm. Uhh. Pass. (Repeat) Alternatively: Uh. Uh. Rhymes with chicken.

I was excited to sub Ally's spin class New Year's morning - and expected a packed house. Even though only 3 people showed (what happened to those exercise resolutions??!!), it was still a great way to kick off 2009. We wanted take the polar bear plunge at Old Silver Beach, but decided against it when we drove to the beach and felt the temps (10 degrees in the sun, and negative 7 with wind chill). Now, a day later we're looking at the pictures of kids jumping in and have decided we are total wimps. Next year.

Even going to the pool and coming outside with wet hair seemed like more than we wanted to handle. So, we went to the grocery store. And, there, Isabelle spotted Santa! She was pointing and yelling, "Santa! Santa! Santa!" I looked everywhere - well, mostly up at the decorations - thinking she had her eye on a small Santa picture in the wrapping paper of some presents decorating the top of the cheese aisle. No, she had her eye on the BIG man with the gray beard who was shopping in the cheese aisle!

Isabelle's new evening entertainment is jumping from the ottoman to the couch. We usually count for her: One! Two! Three! For the first time last night, she counted to three on her own. (She has been saying "One, two!" for a little while now - usually in response to our asking, "How old are you?")

Nose blowing has become quite the rage in the house. It's like a switch flipped just before Christmas, and she perfected her nose blowing technique. Between the act of actually blowing and the excitemet involved in throwing away the tissue, there is great joy in Kleenexville!