When I got home from work yesterday, Kyle asked me if I would like to see something Payton did that day. I of course said sure! My jaw dropped in amazement when this is what I saw:



Payton has not been able to walk by herself like that before! Usually when she tries to push that thing she pushes too hard with her upper body and then her legs can't keep up, but she all of a sudden was able to balance and walk around like it was no big deal! Makes me wonder if walking could be just around the corner, a little sooner than I thought...

My little baby seems like such a big girl these days. She has been doing a lot of pointing lately; I'm not sure when she figured that one out, it seems like everyday she's doing something new! She points to things she likes, things she is curious about, etc. She has been LOVING this weather, I definitely think we have an outdoor girl on our hands. She will crawl up to the sliding glass door and point outside, especially to this fish pond that Sue has in her backyard. When I came home from work yesterday I found Kyle and Payton outside on a bench staring at the fish in the pond. Kyle has also been taking her on walks when it's nice, and she gets a big grin on her face when you put her up in the backpack carrier. She's imitating us a LOT more too. When my dad asked her if she could say Grandpa she said something that sounded like "grambob" and when Kyle's aunt Pam asked her to say Pam, she said something that sounded just like it! She can also say "uh-oh", which is really, really cute. It seems like she understands more and more everyday!

Hope everyone is enjoying these nice few days of sunshine!

Congrats Mr. and Mrs. Bryan Hall!

Bryan and Lindsey are officially hitched! It was a crazy weekend, but so much fun. We had a blast, and my parents came down to be on official Payton duty, which meant that we could have fun dancing the night away (which we did - it is a Hall wedding after all!) We definitely appreciated it!

I unfortunately don't really have any pictures yet, because they used my camera for the guest book pictures. For the guest book they had Kyle's cousins take pictures of the guests, then the guests wrote on this little card. We're going to print all the pictures and put it with the corresponding card in a book! Pretty cool idea, but that's why my camera was MIA during the reception. I did, however, find this little gem on Facebook today:

How many people does it take to help the bride go to the bathroom? :)

I have known Bryan for five years now, and love him like a brother. It was so awesome yesterday to see him so happy, and to marry his best friend and the love of his life. They are perfect for eachother, and I was so honored to be a part of their special day :) As soon as I have access to some more pictures (that don't include toilets... lol) I will definitely post them!

We had Payton stay the night at the hotel with us Friday night, but she was not sleeping or napping well at all, so the night of the wedding my mom and dad offered to take her back to Albany so she could get some sleep in her crib. She's getting to the point now where she's much more aware of her surroundings, and it's a little bit harder to travel without it affecting her at all. She did great during the wedding though, in fact during one of the prayers I looked over at where she was sitting and she was staring straight at me, smiling and waving. Such a cutie! :)

I got a new camera, an "actual" camera with a lens, not just a point and shoot. I've really been enjoying taking pictures of Payton, and I can definitely tell the difference in quality already.

Playing with mommy's scarf...

...and chewing on my glasses, lovely.

Hi mommy



Hanging with Uncle Tanner!





Grandma Jo helping me with bathtime

I'm doing chores already... loading the dishwasher! :)

Silly time with daddy

I love being up high! Thanks Grandma Sue!

Reading a book...

Kyle, Payton and I have the Hall household to ourselves this week. Bryan and Lindsey are off on their honeymoon in Puerto Rico, and Rick, Sue and Tanner are in Arizona with Tanner's baseball team. Kyle is on spring break, but we've got plenty around here to do to keep him busy :) Hope you all have a great week (and for those of you who have this week off, enjoy!)

First year pics

Kyle and I went and had Payton's first year pictures taken yesterday. Usually when we do professional pictures she sits there and stares wide eyed at the photographer. I don't know if the glasses made the difference, or just the fact that she is older now, but we sat her down and she was like a baby model! It was awesome.













She did a great job. My baby looks so big! *tear*

I wanted to mention a special moment for Kyle and I... Tomorrow we have officially been together for 5 years. Five years ago, on March 15th, Kyle and I went on our first date to Coldstone Creamery (we didn't have enough money to go to dinner, so we went out for ice cream). When we got back to Kyle's house, he asked me to be his girlfriend... and the rest is history! :) The last five years have been the best of my life, and I am very very blessed. I love you Kyle!

You know what I realized today is? One year ago was Payton's due date. I used to dream a lot of this day when I was pregnant, thinking of the little girl I was going to welcome into the world, what she would be like, who she would look like, etc. One year later, I have a fun, cute, sweet, loud, spirited little girl who looks like the perfect mix between me and Kyle. We're pretty darn blessed :) Payton is getting reaaaaally close to talking these days. In fact, she's starting to repeat me! When I ask "can you say mommy?" she will say "momma", and if I ask her to say "daddy", she will say "dada". She's fascinated with books lately, she loves staring at them and talking to them as she turns the pages. She's doing really well with switching to whole milk, we're glad she hasn't had any problems. We're brushing her teeth every night now, but she's mostly interested in just chewing on the toothbrush :) Every day is something new, a new adventure!

I love books!

Hello?

My mom tried to put my hair into a ponytail. It turned out pretty cute!

On Sunday I'm going to get Payton's one year pictures done (just a couple weeks late... oops) I'm hoping they turn out well! And then... it's wedding week! :) Gonna be busy, but I promise to blog!

12 month check up!

Payton's official 1 year stats are in:

Weight: 24Ib 11oz (92nd percentile)
Height: 31.5" (Greater than 95th percentile)
Head circumference: 19" (100th percentile!)

He said she looks great, very healthy. He gave us the ok to start whole milk, so we've started mixing it into her bottles, about 50% formula and 50% milk. Our plan is to get her used to whole milk, and then we will be slowly taking the bottle away. She's doing really great with her glasses, she rarely tries to mess with them, and if she does, it's usually to chew on them. We've had countless people tell us how adorable they look, and we would have to agree!





I took this video this morning, lately Payton has been playing "phone" a lot. She will do it with her cell phone, a remote control, her sippy cup... she's pretty funny :) She holds it up to her ear and answers!