Gotta love Grandparents

... because they sure love me! Taylor is so fortunate to have so many people who love her. She just loves to cuddle up to her Grandma and play with all the new toys at Grandma's house! Taylor also continues to love puppy dogs. She met Grandma&pa's new dog, Gracie, on our last trip and of course, met Vader. Although not pictured here, both dogs were great around Taylor... and she behaved around them. It won't be long before she's crawling, though, so puppies, guard your tails! She's got a thing for wagging tails.

Baby's 1st Thanksgiving

Over the river and through the woods, to Grandmother's house we go! Taylor spent her first thanksgiving in good company... aunts, uncles, even great grandparents! She had real sweet 'taties and turkey, too! (Her first meat!) She enjoyed Grandma and Grandpa's house... especially the new jumperoo she spent quite a bit of time in. She entertained everyone with lots of bouncing, laughing, and sleep-bouncing. She was even a big girl and took good baths with grandma in her mini-tub. It's so nice to be with family for the holidays!

Bathtime

Taylor is enjoying baths these days. She works so hard on grabbing her bath toys! And she gets excited when we take her clothes off and she gets to be a nakey-butt. We like it too, she's so much fun these days. Her 6 month check up this week was superb! 18 lbs, 10 oz and another 2 inches! She's in the 90th percentile now for height and weight. Her doctor is pretty confident her crawling days are not far off, nor are 4 more teeth. We also got the go-ahead to start cheerios and puffs! Today we tried sweet potato puffs. She likes them, but she's got her work cut out for her on coordinating grabbing a puff, getting it to her mouth, and keeping it in her mouth, all before Riley swoops in and gobbles them up. Right now it's a lot of getting a few puffs stuck to her slobbery hand, licking them off, and flicking them back out of her mouth again. It'll be fun to see her master this new task!

First bad hair day

This one's just for giggles. Taylor woke up with crazy hair today, and she rocked it! There were tufts going to the left, tufts going the right, some matted down, some sticking up... it was adorable. Taylor, every girl has a bad hair day once in a while. Don't let it get you down, it's only hair. You're a beautiful girl inside and out. I hope as you grow up I can teach you to value the beautiful girl you are on the inside. "...Let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious."

A daddy/daughter moment

Taylor loves her daddy.... really, really loves her daddy. I mean, she has fun hanging out with mommy every day, but when daddy is home, her focus goes straight to him. She will lock her eyes on daddy and just stare and stare with a big toothy smile plastered across her face. Playing with daddy is such a special time for Taylor. Her favorite is to grab daddy's nose, cheeks, and eyeballs.

Thomas shared a story with me about a month ago that was so precious: Taylor woke up for a bottle one night as she often does. He got the bottle ready and rocked her gently while she ate. When she was done, he put her up to his chest and started to pat her on the back for a burp. She was not fully awake, and in her sleepiness she reached up with both arms and wrapped them around his neck and nuzzled her head into his shoulder, eyes closed. It was a sweet baby hug. Right then he understood what all fathers of daughters had been telling him: "That little girl will steal your heart and have you wrapped around her little finger." Just wait till she can crawl to him and say "daddy"... he's doesn't stand a chance!

At the zoo

Taylor had her first trip to the zoo! She was accompanied by her buddies Jack, Drew, and Jayden (and their mommies of course!) Although she spent the majority of the time asleep in her stroller, she did get to see monkeys, giraffes, and goats at the petting zoo. We can't wait to go back when she's a little older! Oh, and wearing a leopard print onesie to the zoo... no accident!

So, this is fall weather

Taylor got to visit her entire family during our Ohio trip in early October. All the Goodsons made it from around the country, and Taylor got to spend some time wither her cousins! What a special time. Because it's still blazing hot for us, I had to buy Taylor some warm clothes for this trip. Ohio is BEAUTIFUL in the fall!

Happy Halloween!

Taylor's first Halloween... and ours too since we've lived in Arizona. This was the first year neither of us had to work on the 31st. Note to Ohioans, in Arizona trick or treating is always on the 31st no matter what day of the week it falls on, and there's no set times. Growing up Thomas and I remember these two stipulations on trick-or-treating, so naturally people out here thought we were crazy asking what day and what time is trick-or-treating.

New Toys & Puppy Love

Taylor had her 6-month birthday this weekend! Wow, does time fly! I can't believe she is already 6 months old! It's bittersweet, really, because while I'm so proud of her and her accomplishments everyday, well, it's just going by too fast! I find myself looking at pictures of her when she was a newborn and just a couple of months old and I think, "was she really ever that little!?" To celebrate the occasion Taylor got to go to the store and pick out a new 6 month toy! She gravitated toward a stuffed puppy dog that sings and talks. No surprise there... her favorite toy remains her real puppy dog, Riley. She loves to watch Riley walk around the house. Seeing Riley makes her giggle and coo. Sometimes they lay next to each other and she babbles at Riley. One of her favorite games is when Riley licks her feet and hands (I know, I know, it's gross, but I wash her hands afterwards!).