Mary a.k.a. Maddie

The past two Sundays Maddie's nursery teachers have given me reports on cute/funny things she did:

Two Sundays ago, the nursery leader announced that whoever came and quietly sat on the floor would be able to dress up in nativity costumes. Maddie was the only child to respond; she quickly went and sat down, trying to be as quiet as possible. Her nursery leaders said they'd never seen her so quiet or still and thought they better let her dress up before she passed out from excitement! Maddie discovered the joys of dressing up last month, and her favorite costume this month is Mary. In the picture below, she dressed herself up and found her own baby Jesus.

Last Sunday, the nursery class was talking about Jesus, and Maddie proclaimed, "Jesus put a baby in my mommy's tummy, and it didn't even hurt!" (No, I am not pregnant--she is referring to Kennedy. Although she has told me several times in recent weeks that she wants a baby brother, I have told her she has to wait until she is older. )

Goodbye Grandma & Grandpa

Sunday we said goodbye to Aaron's parents as they prepared to enter the MTC for their two-year LDS mission to Singapore. When leaving the house, Maddie called out, "Have fun on your mission Grandma and Grandpa Hansen!"

December Highlights

Here are some highlights of the first few weeks of December:

Kennedy is learning how to drink from a cup.

She makes a funny face when she tastes the water.

Kennedy loves to bounce in her jumper.

The first two Saturdays of the month brought us lots of snow!
Maddie had fun playing in it.
Unfortunately, we didn't get a picture of Aaron's snow slide
before some passersby knocked it over.
Maddie loves to play in boxes and baskets
with her sister.

Kennedy got sick for the first time. Poor little thing.
Here she is snoozing with her daddy.
She's feeling better now.

Christmas Pictures

We took the girls to get their Christmas pictures taken this week. Maddie had some cute smiles, but poor Kennedy was quite serious since she hasn't been feeling well.

You can see the rest of the pictures by clicking on the link below. Type in "Amanda Hansen" for customer name.

Christmas Pictures

Happy Thanksgiving & Anniversary

We enjoyed celebrating both Thanksgiving and our 6-year anniversary this past week. After bouts of the stomach flu and a miserable cold/cough that have spread throughout our family, we are most grateful for our health. Maddie had lots of fun playing with her cousin Martha, and we enjoyed a few days with Aaron at home with no school or work.

Called To Serve

We were excited to hear today that Aaron's parents received their mission call. They will be serving an LDS mission in Singapore! We never guessed such an exotic location, and they leave so soon--December 10. We love them and will miss them while they are so far away, but we know the family will be blessed from their service.

Six Month Checkup

Kennedy had her six month checkup last week. She weighs 17 lbs 4 ounces and is 26 1/2 inches long. Both her weight and her height put her in the 80th percentile, and her head is in the 70th percentile. She is a healthy, happy baby!

Even though Maddie only had to get one flu shot, she cried more than little Kennedy did with her four vaccinations.

Yo-Ho Yo-Ho

A pirate's life for me! Maddie enjoyed herself at cousin Garrett's pirate birthday party yesterday. She decided to share her fun pirate gear with Kennedy this morning. She dressed Kennedy herself, but was having a little trouble with the eye patch when I found the two of them. I decided to finish the job.

Kennedy didn't seem to mind too much. She discovered the sword is great to chew on since her first tooth broke through her bottom gum yesterday!

Whose Crib Is It Anyway?

Most often these days when either one of the girls wakes up in the morning, she invariably wakes up her sister. If Kennedy is the first to wake, she coos or squeals until Mattie is roused. The video below demonstrates what Maddie does if she is the first to awaken.

A Week Or Two In Review

Hopefully some of these pictures will show all that we've been up to in the week or two since I've been able to update our blog:

Kennedy with Aunts Lisa & Michelle and cousin Avery

First sets of matching jammies

Kennedy discovering herself in the mirror of her saucer

Kennedy always wants to practice sitting up these days.
She's getting quite good!

Maddie loves to use all of Kennedy's baby equipment.
Go Diego go!

A Hansen Halloween

Who's afraid of the big bad wolf? Well, two of the three little pigs had their moments of fright.

And, we are happy to announce that after endless hours of gluing miniscule cotton particles onto a white jumpsuit in attempts to create his "sheep's clothing," Aaron won the grand prize of $100 cash at his company costume contest!

The three little pigs and the big bad wolf in sheep's clothing
at the annual Hansen Halloween Party.

Before trick-or-treating

Kennedy had a little too much fun.
She fell asleep while playing with her toy froggie.
See her hand still holding on to the toy?

Kennedy wanted to try on Aunt Alli's elephant costume.
She preferred to eat the nose.

Maddie LOVED carving pumpkins!

Maddie especially loved the "Jack" one on the far right--
(Thanks to Uncle Adam & Aunt Aujelle she loves
The Nightmare Before Christmas.)

Manicures & Pedicures

I have come to learn that if Maddie is alone and quiet for more than a few minutes at a time, she is definitely getting into some kind of trouble. Today, she managed to climb up to the medicine cabinet in the bathroom, grab some nail polish, and give herself a pedicure. Here are some pictures of the crime.

Do you think she has potential at a nail salon?

She knows she's in trouble!

And here's a picture of my candy corn fingernails.

Peekaboo Kennedy

Kennedy began doing this over a month ago, and at first I couldn't believe she actually knew what she was doing. Since then, she has repeated this form of "Peekaboo" so many times--it is her favorite way of getting my attention. She has become quite the little performer.

When Kennedy is lying on the floor, she grabs the nearest blanket or article of clothing and pulls it over her face. She usually flails her arms and kicks her legs in excitement and anticipation. Then, when the timing is right, she grabs the cloth and pulls it off of her face, displaying a big grin. What a smart little cutie!

Pumpkin Patch

With learning the letter "P" comes a field trip to the pumpkin patch!

Maddie's the one in the trench coat in the middle.

Maddie chose the littlest pumpkin she could find.

Happy Birthday

On Sunday, we celebrated my birthday with my family. My brother-in-law Cory observed that I must be a mom because my birthday presents were bedding, clothing, and a cookbook--and because I was happy about that!

Lagoon Day

Last Saturday was Aaron's company's annual Lagoon Day. Maddie had lots of fun and wasn't afraid of any of the kiddie rides.