With the presidents!

On our walk to the concert, we passed George Washington & Abe Lincoln hanging out on the street posing for pictures. You know, typical DC celebs. Fortunately Leila wasn't nearly as scared of these giant imposing men as she was of Santa Claus!

We are here!

Leila and Mom trying to stay warm waiting for the concert to start.

Off to the concert

We heard the Metro would be swamped so we decided to walk the 3 miles to the Lincoln Memorial today. It's a chilly day in DC (30's with a bit of wind), but quite balmy by Wisconsin standards. We just bundled up and headed out the door!

Say CHEEEESE

Good Morning! This is how Leila smiled at me when I pointed the camera towards her at 6:45 this morning. Erica is wishing Leila would go back to bed so she could sleep in.

This is Leila trying to make a phone call with Erica's phone.

And, this is her when the other person was being a jerk and didn't answer the call. Don't tell her, but she forgot to open the phone, so I'm not sure anyone was going to be reached.

Playing with Alex

Leila's friend Alex came over to play with her today. They had a busy afternoon reading books...

Playing in Leila's favorite toy, the laundry basket...

And sharing toys.

First ear infection

Somehow Leila made it until 10 months without an ear infection. We took her to the doctor today because of a red, goopy eye. Turns out she has pink eye and an ear infection. By all accounts she seems to be her normal happy self. Who knew! Here she is hanging out at the doctor's office.

Leila's first steps!

Steppin' out

Leila took a few tentative steps tonight! We stood her up between us and she sort of lunged from one to the other, taking 1 or 2 little steps before toppling over. We tried to get it on video, but by the time we got the camera out, her little legs were tired and she chose the path of least resistance: crawling. We'll catch it tomorrow!!

Baby's got a new pair of shoes

Anyone who knows Leila's Grandma Johnson knows that she is addicted to Keen shoes. She has shown much restraint to this point when encountering adorable baby-size Keens, but the excitement of after-Christmas shopping got the better of her. Here is Leila posing in her two new pairs of Keen shoes. They will fit her perfectly just about the time she starts to walk. Thanks Grandma! Oh, and the tiny shoe boxes are pretty cute, too!

A Message from Leila

Leila is having trouble finding the right thing to say....

In the end, she settles on a BIG CONGRATULATIONS to her mommy & daddy's dear friends Chris & Steph who, after 10 years, got engaged over the weekend. YEA!!! Leila says she can't wait for the wedding and is already looking for the perfect dress.

Self feeding: A tutorial

Leila attempted to eat her cereal by herself yesterday. Here she is giving all of her baby friends a tutorial...

First, grab the spoon away from your parents. Put it in the bowl.

It doesn't seem to matter what part of the spoon you hold as long as there is food on it!

Take aim at your mouth. You might miss a few times, but eventually you'll get there.

Hooray, a successful bite! By the way, be careful when you pull the spoon out of your mouth because there's a good chance you'll fling food across the room. It's best if you have a dog to go looking for the lost morsels.

P.S. After meal time comes bath time!

Welcoming committee!

Leila returned to Washington today and immediately began meeting with her transition team to discuss important matters, namely which book should be read at her first year inauguration next month. Leila, the soon-to-be world traveler that she is, proposed the Global Babies book.

Taji, being a dog, advocated for Snuggle Puppy.

In the end, they agreed to never speak of this matter again. This does not bode well for the future of the household politics.

Little Miss Manners

Leila's new word of the day is THANK YOU. As you can see below, she enjoys saying it over, and over, and over, and over, and over...

Happy New Year!!

Although Leila will likely not make it until midnight to ring in the New Year, chances are her grandparents won't either! Here they are with their horns toasting 2009.Leila's grandma fashioned her this hat just in case she forgot what year it will be. She looks pretty darn cute!

Leila's playdate

Leila had a playdate this morning with Chase Haferman, and Sarah and Ben Hopp. She had lots of fun with them! Here are Ben, Sarah and Leila with Chase's new wagon.Sarah loved hanging out with baby Leila.
All the kids actually sitting still for a quick shot. From left, Ben, Sarah, Leila & Chase.

Swimming

It's a blustery day so we took Leila swimming at the YMCA. She loved playing in the water and didn't even cry when she went all the way under! I think she'll be a swimmer!

Tunnel Vision

Leila loved crawling through the tunnels at the museum!

WHEEEEEEE

Here's Leila enjoying the slide!

Children's Museum

We took Leila to the Stevens Point Children's Museum today. It was a fun place to play. Here she is riding the rocking horse...Crawling through the tunnel...
And driving the car. Watch out drivers, 15 years and counting until Leila gets her drivers license!

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow

We have had snow nearly every day since arriving in Wisconsin last week and the temperature finally got warm enough to take Leila outside to enjoy it. She LOVED being pulled through the yard in her sled and going down the "hills" we built for her. Here she is at the top of the bunny hill.

Posing with Mom & Dad in the front yard.

Queen of the snowbank!

Another family shot.