6 Months of Hattie!

Today is Hattie's 6 month birthday.  It was June 5th that Hattie emerged proudly from a hospital room above Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City.  Now she prepares for the brisk Beloit winter.  She's in a little carrier on me right now, and starting to squirm, so I'll...

Okay, It's later now.  Brynn got home from volunteering at the literacy center and we all ate a special birthday meal that Hattie and I had prepared: Trader Joes crab cakes, roasted vegetables and apple pie.  The pie was "baked in a bag." 

The pie came from the Elegant Farmer.  

Please do now go to the website:

http://www.elegantfarmer.com/

If you click on "Farmer Dan's Messages," you'll hear an inspirational message.

The pies were being sold at Williams Tree Farm, where we had a family outing yesterday, complete with  lots of dogs, reindeer, and Santa. 

And this just in:  Hattie's first tooth.  

Also, she now has a crib, thanks to my Dad and Linda.  

We had a nice Thanksgiving with James, Rebecca and Samuel. 

Now we're just trying to keep things together until Christmas, when we can hand Hattie off to Grandparents, siblings and random salvation army bell-ringers 

and run off to the Muppet Movie.  

Picture time, yo.

Insert cliche dual usage of "crib"joke here.

Whatever you feel about patriarchal representations of monotheism,

this is like an effing Norman Rockwell.

Featuring Rumpus as both the lamb of God 

AND the star of Bethlehem!  

 Warming up after picking out our tree

 I can't abide this gul durn city life.  I'm gonna go outside and russell up some CUTE.

 Rumpus has a breaking point.  And Hattie will find it. 

She believes it is somewhere near his shaggy poodle ear.

 Here Hattie gives the illusion of being able to sit up by herself.  

Left alone, she would continue her right-leaning trajectory.

 Hattie's first words were "I got them Duke boys right where I want them!"

It's so cold we replaced her nose with a funny green mustache!

If eyes could say "Help Me," her eyes would be saying "Help Me."

Since they cannot say such things at such a young age, let us make believe that they are saying

"Until next time, my friends.  Goodest of byes.  I shall miss you.

But seriously.  Help me."