where has the time gone?

our Ryleigh Marie is now 9 months old & she is already taking steps! she is growing way too fast---how do we slow this down?? at her 9 month appointment she weighed 17lbs 8oz (25%) & is 28.5 inches long (76%)! she's growing like a weed! I've realized I need to hold on to & cherish every little moment. she is learning new things everyday & I can hardly keep up! she loves to eat & some of her favorite foods are: banannas, shredded cheese, yogurt, mandarin oranges & avocado! she makes a big mess but it's so fun watching her explore all these new textures & flavors. I've even caught her trying to feed our pup, Oregon, a few times! but hey, at least she likes to share! she is also into anything & everything including: unfolding the laundry that I just get folded, emptying Ore's food & water bowls, unraveling the toilet paper, throwing our DVDs off their stand & opening our kitchen cabinets! we have done minimal baby-proofing since we are moving in a month. needless to say, I am very busy these days! we are looking forward to moving, getting unpacked & baby-proofing our new home for a soon to be walking toddler!

we had a great Christmas and it was so fun watching Ryleigh open her presents! she definitely did her fair share of eating bows, pulling ornaments off the tree & climbing over gifts. we spent Christmas morning at our home in Raleigh & drove to Durham to spend the rest of the day with Todd, Brooke & their girls. we even got snow on Christmas Day & we ended up with about 7 inches! it was so fun to play in the snow & Ryleigh was definitely all bundled up---she was wearing like 6 layers! we were able to go to Augusta, GA to spend Christmas with family the week after Christmas & we made lots of good memories! Christmas will never be the same for us now that we have Ry. she brings such a new joy & a new understanding for why we celebrate! I'm definitely already looking forward to Christmas next year!

Ethan & I have already begun planning for Ryleigh's first birthday party & it's so fun to think through all of the details. her party is going to be on Saturday, April 9th & we are so excited! I hope your 2011 started off as great as ours---we are definitely looking forward to all that this year holds!

love, Brandy