On the move. . .

Harper is doing great and moving around like crazy. She has crawling down pat and is pulling up on everything in sight. She will walk if you hold her hands, or if she has something to hold onto she'll shuffle her feet until she can get around to whatever she wants. She has four teeth and is working on two more. She seems to get them in pairs, and each time it's been a little easier for her. She's waving now and sometimes will mimic Kevin or I when we say, "da-da" "ma-ma" or "uh-oh". She has no idea what any of those "words" mean right now, but I'm sure it's only a matter of time! Her nine month check up was great. On February 2nd, she weighed 19 lbs. 10 oz., and was 27.5" tall.

She and Bailey are really starting to play together now and it's a blast to watch! Most of the time Harper will crawl all over her or just sit and pet her - Bailey just soaks it all in with the occasional licking of the face. Sometimes Bailey walks by and (possibly intentionally) knocks Harper over, but she usually just gets right back up and keeps playing. The more tense times in their relationship are when Harper will poke at Bailey, Bailey will lick Harper, Harper cries, I separate the two, and within 10 seconds the cycle begins again. I've learned to stop separating them because sooner or later Harper's going to have to learn not to mess with her if she doesn't want to be messed with back! I'm sure this is foreshadowing the day of Harper with a sibling (no that is not a hint that I am pregnant. I am not). All that to say, Bailey is a FANTASTIC dog (annoying at times yes, but great with Harper).

Harper really surprises me with how much she can eat! Each day I think she just keeps eating more and more. She'll go for anything I give her and has started with some real food (not pureed). She LOVES bananas, peaches, blueberries, carrots, peas, and avocado.

We had a big snow storm (BIG is relative, like 8 inches) awhile ago and Harper helped Kevin and I build a snowman. She didn't do too much, but as soon as she learned she could eat the snow her day was made!

Gearing up for some time outside

You can tell by the banana nose and toy shape smile

that we aren't prepared for snowmen around here

Rosy cheeks after playing outside

We really love the time we have with her!! She's such a happy go lucky, easy-going little girl. The past few months have moved by so quickly. It's hard to believe that she'll be a year old in two months!

All I want for Christmas. . .

Two front teeth!! That's right, Harper got them. Sure, it was a couple days after Christmas and they're on the bottom rather than the top, but this has introduced a whole new world of food to her. She now LOVES bananas, carrots, peas, and other sorts of mashable goodness that does not come pre-chewed. We're certainly moving up in the world!

As for Christmas, it was great! We spent Christmas Eve and day here (due to some bad weather), and then spent a week plus a few extra days (again the weather) in WV. We went skiing, played in the snow, opened presents, and really just spent time together. Harper loved all of her gifts and we did take some pictures. Here are a few, but they are all on my picasa site if you're interested!

Harper is in awe of her magical cookie jar from Grandi.

Her first teddy from my grandparents.

Playing in her Grandad's boots.

Lounging with Bailey during the Gator Bowl. You can tell this is near the end of the week because Bailey is calmly sleeping on a dogbed. One benefit of having 3 other labs around is that she gets VERY tired and manageable!

Harper is (as usual) growing like crazy and doing new things daily. She is almost crawling and finding other ways to get around until she gets the hang of it. Most days you can set her in one place and by the time you turn around sit down, she's in a completely different location, so I'm not sure how she's getting there, but she's managing to roll around and sit back up all on her own.