New Bed

Natie's bedroom furniture came in last week! You might recall we got the mattress several weeks ago but its been sitting on the floor until now. Daddy and Papa put the bed frame together for her and Mimi came over to see it too. She was so excited! She loves to jump on it and be silly. I just pray the result won't be a head injury. She already tripped just walking by it and rammed her head into the footboard, so we'll see. Coordination is not her middle name. Anyway, here's our big girl in her big bed!

This is what I get when I say "Smile!"...

Now we just need to finish decorating the room!

Snowy Morning

Surprise! It actually snowed this morning! Natalie has never experienced snow before, at least not any accumulation. This morning, I heard her wake up and when I walked into the room, she was looking out the window in wonder. In a soft voice I heard her say "snow!". It was so sweet. She couldn't wait to put on her snow boots and go outside!

She ran right out into it. THIS was her first reaction.

All bundled up

She immediately wanted to build a snowman so this was our first attempt. HERE is a video.

Here, she was "putting on the eyes" (which were little clumps of snow).

Checking out the backyard.

Here's snowman #2 in the backyard.

Unfortunately, they started melting and both fell over within a few minutes. Natie was adjusting the scarf...

...when his head fell off. Oops.

And here was our final attempt. Pretty sad. By this time, the snow wasn't sticking together very well.

Putting Practice

We got a sunny day yesterday so we took Natalie out for some putting practice at the golf course.

Here's Daddy giving her some instruction on proper grip and stance...with a tiny putter just her size.

This was her interpretation...

A little more instruction...

Surprisingly, even with this swing, she actually made a couple in the hole. She was so proud of herself!

She had fun pulling the balls out (and dragging the stick around the green...oops, don't tell).

She was having lots of fun!

Even though it was sunny and beautiful, it was pretty cold and breezy.

Natie was collecting sticks while Daddy practiced some more.

And here are the golfers!

Chef Natalie

Natie was busy making cookies and a birthday cake today. Here she is all geared up in her apron and chef's hat. Let's hope she turns out to be a better cook than her mother. I ruined a flank steak dinner last night and narrowly avoided burning down the kitchen. Bon Appetit!

Turning on the oven.

Oh no...her hat went flat!

Originally she had some trouble putting on the hat herself.

She wore it like this for a while. Reminded me of Strawberry Shortcake's hat. Or a pioneer woman.

Make a Silly Face

I took these today...

I said "make a silly face". This was the first attempt.

And this was the second. :)

Baby Bunny

My cousin Kara came to visit this weekend. How cute is her little family?

That's Kara, her daughter Brynnly, and her husband Bryan.

Here's Natalie and Brynn "playing" Barbies. Aren't they cute? I think they actually look a little bit alike.

How cute is this? I wish it wasn't blurry.

Natie kept calling her little cousin "Baby Brynnly" but it sounded

just like "Baby Bunny" :)

Such a sweet baby girl

This is the face I get when I ask Natie to smile for the camera. Beautiful. She told me that picture she drew on her tablet was a pineapple. Pretty good, eh?

Experimenting

I started a beginner photography class last week so I took Natalie outside this weekend to do some experimenting with my camera. These are a couple pictures I thought were cute....

At home, still in her jammies

She said she was trying to keep the ducks dry with her umbrella :)

Here, she was talking to them..."hi ducks!"

It was windy and not very warm

Its hard to see in this small size, but the expression on her face made me laugh.

Tiny Dancer

Natalie started a dance class last week!

Here she is wearing the blue leotard she picked out. How adorable is that? It's even cuter with the black patent leather tap shoes! I've posted a few videos below....for your amusement. Let's keep our fingers crossed that this class teaches her a little coordination and grace. :)

The first part of class is BALLET. She keeps turning to me and saying "Me needs trains, Mom". She saw some wooden trains in a toy basket in the lobby that she wanted to play with. Just took a few minutes to refocus. :)

Here she is "dancing" with a "SPARKLE". She's a darn good scooter. :)

Here she is TAPPING. Her teacher is one patient lady.

Did I say tapping? I meant STOMPING.