General Conference

I love General Conference weekend for a variety of reasons. First, and most important, a weekend of listening to the counsel of the church leaders is uplifting and strengthening. Second, I get an influx of family who stay with me for the weekend. This time I got to spend time with Caitlynn and Elizabeth. Third, my friend Maleen and I have a tradition of cross-stitching over conference, and usually one session we get together. This time I also had the privilege to host her mom and dad.

I am grateful for the spiritual enlightenment and time with family and friends I experienced this weekend.

Mutterings

Annalise has this new habit of muttering/whispering while she plays. I think she is just moving her tounge and listening to the sounds that are made when air runs over it, but it really sounds like she is whispering to herself. I love it!

Elizabeth reminded me that doing in the Cooper family it is a joke to do this when you are mock angry (or sometimes for real, especially as a teenager). Good to know the next generation is already picking up on the joke.

Impromptu Photoshoot

My mother is an avid photographer, so I was excited when she asked to have a photoshoot with Annalise. Here are some of my favorites.

A Visit from Nana

On Wednesday I got a call from my mom to let me know that she would be in town the next day. She is always a welcome suprise. She spent a few days with us and a day up in Idaho with my sister.

Not only were we blessed with her company, but she also babysat, helped can chicken, made mango curd, and brought Annalise adorable new outfits, including an Easter dress. Thanks Mom!

Annalise especially enjoyed her time with Nana.

A New Toy from Generous Friends

Annalise is a long awaited baby, so many of my friends have children much older than her. In the case of my wonderful friend Maleen, she is done having children, just as I'm starting my family. It makes me a little sad, because I wanted to have my children play with hers. Fortunately, we managed one set the same age. However, the consolation to starting late is that we get gently used baby items. Maleen was nice enough to gift us with a bouncer, an exer-saucer, and most recently, a table toy.

At Maleen's house, Annalise repeatedly went for the toy table. So, Maleen generously sent it home with us. It was a sacrafice for her girls who have made up a luck game using one of the spinners. Annalise (and I) are very grateful. It is the only toy she wants right now. Look at how happy she is playing with her new toy.


Thanks Caziers!

Spider Baby

Cloudy with a mist of peas

Annalise, like most babies, has learned to get attention by being cute and funny. A few days ago she burped and laughed at the sound. I laughed with her because she was so cute and delighted. Now anytime she burps she laughs, looks at me, and waits for me to join in. She has realized that being funny is a great way to connect. In fact, she gave up fake coughing and took up fake laughing, because she got more of a reaction from us.

However her latest ploy has not gone over very well. She thinks it is funny to pool all of her baby food in the front of her mouth and then blow it out through a raspberry. I think the sensation feels funny and novel, and she looks to us to join in the fun. Instead of laughing, we are frowning though a mist of peas. She seems a little baffled by the disapproval, so she demonstrates again how funny it is, just to be met with more frowns.

When we see this expression we know to duck and cover.

Anything within a 10 foot radius gets slimed

Poor Troy is taking it the hardest. Not only does he abhor messes, but his glasses are covered after every feeding. Good thing she has him wrapped around his finger.

Don't be fooled by the cute face. She is a mess monster!

Spring Fever

We are so ready for spring. February was a very dreary month and March has only been marginally better. So we all were excited to go for a walk on a blustery, spring day. We weren't able to go out for long due to the wind, but we are excited for more family walks as the weather continures to improve.

Annalise loves being outside, especially when there is wind.

An Important First

Annalise has accomplished a lot of "firsts" lately. First time crawling, first time pulling herself up, first tooth, etc. I decided it was high time for her first PIGTAILS!

She looked so adorable! I've loved all of her different baby phases (well, most of them), but lately it has been fun, because she has been becoming more of a little girl. The pigtails really emphasized that.

Also, seeing her in pigtails has answered a lifelong question: Why are they called pigtails? In general, a girl's pigtail looks nothing like an actual pig's tail. Plus pigs only have one tail, not two. So, why? Well, if you look at the next picture I think the answer is evident. Baby hair really does curl to look like a pig's tail. Amazing.


One last picture, just because I can't resist her cuteness.

Happy 9 months!

I'm loving the stage Annalise is in right now. She is very curious and interactive. She is movin' and groovin' and absolutely reveling in her new independence.

Our Beautiful, Happy Baby

First tooth

Annalise has been sick this last weekend. As you can see from the picture above, so it came as a huge suprise when she bit me and I realized that her crankiness came not only from being sick, but also from her very first tooth. I took a picture to post on the blog, much to Annalise's dismay.


It is a little hard to see, but it is there and very cute. I loved her toothless smile, but her one tooth is adorable too.

She rolled into her crib, honestly!

Annalise is becoming more mobile everyday. A few days ago she became frustrated with learning to crawl and reverted to rolling around. She rolled right into the corner of the crib, where she received her first black eye. That is how it happened! Honestly!

Daddy's Little Girl

Funny Face

Annalise has decided to liven up mealtimes for herself and her parents by making funny faces as we feed her. Her favorite is to scrunch up her nose, sqeeze her eyes shut, and clench her gums together. It might look like a war face except it is so silly. Despite trying to get it on camara numerous times, I've yet to be able to capture it. (The picture above was the beginning of the look, but doesn't catch the full effect.) So, I'm instead going to show you the other various looks she entertains us with.


This last one can only be called a sneer. I've thought that if I ever teach sixth grade again this is the picture I would use to teach the vocabulary word sneer.


The best part is that with all of these funny faces, she eventually learned to snort. That's right, our seven month old snorts. We decided to capture it on video so we could blackmail her later.