Bangs, a tooth, and walking..

I feel like within the last week or so, this girl has grown up. Her first tooth finally broke through, I cut bangs so her hairstyle actually has some purpose, and she started walking. (not like, running through our house or anything) She is so determined and can take several steps completely alone. I'm not quite sure how I feel about it. I love seeing her chubby legs being put to good use, but I miss my newborn who used to cuddle and fall asleep in my arms. However, she is at a fun age because she is learning to much and I can't wait to see what she will do next!

Sometimes...

this guy thinks he is a cat

and as I was going through my pictures I remembered I had taken this to post, but never did. So, here is our home we bought in April...

yay!

Happy Happy Birthday...to me!!

The big 23....dun dun dun. Just kidding. 23 doesn't sound old to me. Perhaps that is because I still feel like I am 16. Who knows. This year was great! Josh told me he wanted to surprise me about where we were going to dinner. Now, for a brief explanation, one of my favorite TV channels is the food network. (yup, I admitted it. Josh makes fun of me because he doesn't understand why I like to spend all day watching other people make food) anyway, a show I love is Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives. So he did some research online and found the address to Moochies, and funny little dive we had seen on an episode awhile ago. We headed downtown for one of the best Philly cheese steaks ever. Delicious. While we were there we snapped some pictures of me and baby girl to document this momentous occasion, (my birthday, not Moochies) and Payton is just too cute not to take pictures of

Josh's photog stills aren't too bad if I don't say so myself........

Later we had family/friends over for some cake and ice cream. Good times!

9 months, a little late

Miss Payton turned 9 months on Oct 28th. She weights 18.5 pounds and is 28.5 inches tall. She is such a busy girl, which she totally gets from her daddy. She has way more energy than me, but I love to watch her learn about everything around her. She is so curious about everything, mostly Sergeant, and crawls as fast as she can to explore. She has been standing on her own now, and tries really hard to take a step, but loses her balance and falls. Still no teeth, but there are 2 bumps on her bottom gum that look quite promising. She babbles all the time, but doesn't really say words yet. She always had her own way of showing her excitement, and this week when she sees something she really likes, she starts flapping her arms as fast as she can. I love it. The Halloween photos I took of her were supposed to be for her 9 months, but I snapped the above one of her today cuz I think she is so cute. (and cuz I have a new lens that I absolutely LOVE)

Now I also have to mention a little man who turned 3 on Oct 25th. I can't believe we have had Sergeant for almost 3 years. (we got him in January 2007) He is such a part of the family and so patient with Payton. I was so worried about how he would be with a baby, but he really is great. Most of you know how I am about dogs. I don't know how I would have been able to get through the passing of Lacey if I had not had this little guy. He has is behavioral problems, but he has the funniest personality.

(In this picture, his head is resting on my knee because I was eating a cookie and he really wanted me to share)

Party!

We had our own celebration this Halloween at our house to prevent us from doing absolutely nothing on this holiday. Josh was a creepy clown (a costume he put together about an hour before the party) and I went as a 50's girl. We had lots of food, sat by the fire, and then watched a movie. Fun!

So proud...