Yo Gabba Gabba

We try to limit Sam's time in front of the TV but there is one show that she just can't stay away from. It's Yo Gabba Gabba. Luckily, this is one of the better children's TV shows and both Kirk and I don't mind it too much. And Sam LOVES it. As you can see in these pictures, she likes to watch it from about 6 inches away from the screen and stands there mesmerized the whole 20 minutes. It's the only thing that keeps her attention that long!

Adventures in Pasta

Just some cute pictures of Sam having fun with pasta. Oh the messes she can make!

Unpacking

As you all know, Kirk and I are pretty much experts at moving by this point. Last time I counted it up, I think I've moved something like twenty times since I left my parent's house (and that's probably a conservative estimate). Kirk's background being similar to mine, I would image he's moved at least that many times.

With all that experience, you would think it would be no problem for us to move from Tennessee to Maine. After all, we had successfully moved to and from Alaska more than once and Maine is so much closer than Alaska. Boy was I wrong.

I had no idea how different it would be this time around. The main difference was, of course, Samantha. Having a kid makes moving 1000x more difficult. Putting aside the additional "stuff" that we have acquired along with the kid, having a 1 year old around when you're trying to pack and then unpack throws a huge wrench in even the best-laid plans. Then you have the fact that we have acquired more crap during our 2 years in Chattanooga. The equipment required to be a homeowner is unbelievable. (And will be in storage for at least the next year while we're renting - but that's another story). All told, we were a little overwhelmed when by the move this time. We'll see if that has any future implications....

Here's a picture to illustrate just one of the difficulties we encountered during the move. Somehow I think that Sam didn't mind the move quite as much as we did.

Sam's Actual Birthday

Today was Sam's actual First Birthday! It's amazing to think about all that has happened in one short year...

Anyway, to celebrate Sam's birthday, we all (including Rosco) went out to the Portland Lobster Company to see the Jerks of Grass play. The Jerks were Kirk's favorite band when he lived in Portland 10+ years ago and they are still together (though many of their members have changed). It was my first Jerks concert and I must say that they lived up to the hype.

Here is the usual Sam dancing picture:
And a cute one of me and Sam:

On the way home, we stopped by the corner market and bought Sam a piece of cake for her birthday. Great parents huh? Can't even bake your kids first birthday cake. In our defense, we haven't got around to unpacking the baking stuff yet. So we were without the tools to make our own cake. Sam didn't seem to mind.

I promise these are the last cake photos (until next year at least).

Sam's Second 1st Birthday Party - with the Hubbard family in Hamilton

After Sam's roaring party in Atlanta, I headed up to Maine with my dad and Rosco in the car. Meanwhile, Kirk and Sam flew up to Ohio to spend time with his family and have another birthday party for Sam. Here are some great pictures of her 2nd 1st birthday party!

Excited to open presents!

As always, Sam's favorite presents were the books.

Trying out the birthday cake. Yummmm, chocolate!

That's some good stuff.

Here's Sam reading her favorite new book with Grandma Hubbard.

Sometimes Sam will "read" her books as she turns the pages. Here's a good example of Sam "reading" to Grandma Hubbard.

Sam's First First Birthday Party - with the Hughes Family in Atlanta

My last day at work in Chattanooga was on the 7th. I was sad to leave all the friends that I had made there - the Chattanooga courthouse is a wonderful place to work. There are so many really great people there who were awesome to me during the pregnancy, Kirk's almost redeployment, and everything over the last 2 years. I miss them already!


We stayed in Chattanooga (while my parents had Sam down in Atlanta) the night of the 7th and went out to dinner with our friends. We were supposed to have a big night out (baby-free) but Kirk worked so hard cleaning out the house that he wasn't up for much that night. We did make it to dinner at one of our favorite restaurants and had a few drinks at Rhys's house afterwards. Thanks to Rhys for letting us crash with her as all of our stuff is in transit to Maine!


On the 8th, Kirk and I got up and joined Sam and the rest of the family at Christy's house in Atlanta. My dad had driven up from Florida and my mom had flown down from Kansas City so we could all celebrate Sam's first birthday together. On Sunday, the family threw Sam her first first birthday party (2 others are planned). Here are some great pictures from the event:


Kirk and dad playing with her new puzzle. Sam didn't really get it but she liked chewing on the pieces!


The new books were her favorite by far. Once she opened the Yo Gabba Gabba book from Grandma Hughes, she didn't care what else was going on around her. You can tell she's pissed that I even dared to take her picture while she was reading!

Those of you who know my mom well will understand how funny (and typical) it is that she gave a 1 year old a present in an "Over the Hill" bag. Apparently, 1 is the new 40 :)

We missed Aunt Kimmie at the party but she was nice enough to stay back in KC with my mom's 2 ancient dogs (they're something like 17 and 18). She sent presents for Sam - including her first KU football jersey!

Christy's friend Brad got Sam her first sporting accessory - a Dora baseball glove. So cute!

I think this video is pretty typical of any 1 year old birthday party. Sam liked opening the first few presents but couldn't care less towards the end. You'll see in this video that Sam is blissfully reading her book while we're opening her presents in the background.

After presents, it was time for cake! We tried to put this cute hat on Sam but she wasn't having any part of it!

Here's the video of our girl's first birthday cake! She was a little hesitant at first (we try to avoid giving her much sugar so she had never really had anything like it before) but she dug right in afterwards. The only problem was her hands kept getting all gummed up with too much icing!

The damage wasn't too bad. Nothing a quick bath can't handle.

Family picture!

Sam did a number on the cake. Thanks to Christy and Grandma Hughes for the cake and decorations!

Moving

Well it's official, moving with a baby sucks! We spent the last week or so packing up our stuff inside the house and loading the trailer when it was dropped off. Luckily, Kirk's parents were able to come down for a couple of days to help us watch Sam so both Kirk and I could pack. And then my parents took Sam down to Christy's house in Atlanta so Kirk and I could clean the house. We wanted to leave it nice for the new buyers! Much as it sucked - it's over now and everything is on its way to Portland. New England, get ready for the Hubbards!

Redneck Baby

A few weeks ago we went up to Gatlinburg, Tennessee and explored the Great Smoky Mountains. Unfortunately, we couldn't find the camera before we left so there aren't any pictures. You'll have to take our word that it was beautiful and we had a great time. We did get a picture of our favorite souvenir - an airbrush onesie! It freaking rocks!

Napping with Mom

Kirk took these pictures the other day when Sam and I were taking a nap together. He thinks we look just alike in them. While I certainly agree that there is a family resemblence (the nose for sure), I still think she looks just like Kirk. What do you think?