I don't care how dirty the face is, I still just wanna kiss it!

The "little" cousins

Hannah, Stella, Brynlee, Tatem

My daughter is not the kind who likes to follow the rules...

..so when we went to the COSI Science Center

in Columbus Ohio with her cousins...

Hannah

...she decided she didn't need to wear a rain slicker

like all the other obedient kids.

As you can see below,

she isn't pleased

that I don't let her get away with much!

Still a little ticked.

Aunt Whit, Uncle Tom, Aunt Lindsay, Uncle Miles

Stella, Hannah and Keith

Brynlee

Trying to get a picture of all our little yellow ducks.

Yes, "trying". Obviously not succeeding.

Lindsay is attempting to turn Hannah around and Whitney is hopelessly chasing Tatem.

Stella was left wondering why the crap no one else could stand still for 2 seconds for a simple picture!

"PLEASE REMOVE THE YELLOW RAIN SLICKER

BEFORE PROCEEDING INTO THE PLAY AREA"

I'm telling you. She's a big time rule-breaker!

Motor Boat. Motor Boat. Go so slow.

Motor Boat. Motor Boat. Go so fast!

Motor Boat. Motor Boat. Step on the gas!

Motor Boat. Motor Boat. C R A S H !!

Do Not Distrub. Elmo is on!

Well...that's a load of crap!

I let Tatem play outside right before dinner. Yes, she wasn't wearing pants. Don't judge me. She made her way over to the kids pool, jumped right in, then commenced playing all around the yard. Up and down the slide. On and off the swing. Riding the trike, pushing the trike.

She finally came to the door when she had had enough of that heavy, wet, gross, soggy diaper. And to my surprise, there was also a wet, gross, soggy load of crap in it. I was tempted to turn the hose on and just hose her off out there. But then I realized I'd have to actually blog that as part of the real story and not just the made-up part and then for sure you all would be judging me. So instead, I locked her out.

THE GIRLS

Brynnie Boo Boo Boo

Hannie Banannie

Tater Tot

We are having another "Midwest Summer".

I guess it's becoming tradition!

Tatem and I went to visit Uncle Miles and Uncle Tom in Columbus Ohio, then Keith and Lindsay, and Hannah and Brynlee joined us for some weekend fun in Ohio. Then, as surprise to Lindsay, Tatem and I loaded up in Lindsays...MINIVAN...oops, sorry Lindsay, the secret is out...and drove with them back to Indiana where we are staying for two weeks.

We are loving our summer travels!

I love Tatems cute little voice, although she has currently learned how to scream, but that's for another entry.

Her little jibber jabber sounds are so sweet. She comes up with some funny sounds and combinations. She loves to find my cell phone, (or take it away from me) tuck it in her neck, and then walk around talking in the loudest voice possible. She's one of "those" people, ya know, the kind of people that can't talk quietly even in the grocery store, or in the public restroom stall. Those people drive me crazy. Please, I don't want to hear your one sided conversation! When Ian first witnessed her out loud, very loud, babbeling into the phone, he looked straight at me and said, "She learned it somewhere! I told you you're a loud-cell-phone-talker!" Ya, I guess I'm one of those people. But I swear I never answer the phone while using the bathroom...in public.

So, yesterday at church Tatem was feasting on a bag of gold fish crackers. She was eating so many I thought for sure she'd poop an orange whale by the end of the 3 hour block. So I hid the bag from her when I thought she was distracted. Well, she was onto me, and she saw a glimpse of the bag as I was trying to shove it behind my back. In her "loud-cell-phone-talker" voice she started repeating over and over, "Uh-oh! Uh-oh!" as she climbed over her dad, and over to me, and started digging behind my back. But for all those who know my sweet little Tatem, her little "uh-oh's" are not gentle and dainty like. They are filled with gusto and begin with a huge "Wh"!! They go something like this: WHAAAH-Oh! WHaaah-Oh! WHaAah-OH!! And she kept saying it over and over until I finally gave her the bag of helpless gold fish.

But my favorite was when she put together this new combination for all of the congregation to hear, "ahs-ol! ahs-ol! ahs-ol! Now where on earth could she have learned that one?!?! I was waiting for Ian to look over and me and tell me I mumble under my breath louder that I think I do!

Best seat in the house

Just watchin' her favorite show,
PETE'S DRAGON
in her favorite new spot...holding her favorite toy.
She sings along with Nora - she's always singing.
Laughs at Elliot - he's always making funny noises.
And yells with Lampy - he's always in a drunken stoupper yelling at something!
SHE CRACKS ME UP!

I lied.

I took Tatem to get her chicken pox shot.
I asked them to weigh her to verify she weighs 20 pounds.
Well, come to find out...she's not quite there yet.
That was even after a hearty lunch and a sippy cup of milk!
(CUP, not bottle! We're doing good today!)
So, I guess I have to retract that previous post and say
at 15 months she weighs 19 pounds.

two cute little piggy tails
the end result of two cute little piggy tails

It's what a good daddy does

15 month update

Tatem is 15 months old and hit a big milestone.
She finally weighs 20 pounds!
She finally advanced from a rear facing infant seat to a forward facing booster seat and I think she couldn't be more happy about it. We installed it last night and took her for a drive...and I swear the little lady could not stop talking. She turned into a jabber-jaw with all she could see. She was in car seat heaven!

So, now that she's a big girl we decided to try other new things...

It's time to learn how to use utensils. This was her attempt at eating yogurt with a spoon this morning. She ended up a disast but it sure was cute. I'm loving those little (HUGE) teeth! She has three on the top and two on the bottom.
Another milestone: She finally grew out of her 6 month footy pajamas! It seemed like overnight her toes were being forced to grow upward and her shoulders were being pulled down in those footy jammas. So she got new summertime jammies. New pajamas are always fun!

Another milestone attempt: No more bottle.
Result: FAILED!

Monday morning - no bottles! By 3:00 Monday afternoon, I broke down and gave her one. The thing is, she knows how to ask for it so she knows exactly what she wants. And let's just say, SHE RUNS MY LIFE! There's this little thing called a tantrum she's perfected. It's not pretty!

Tuesday morning - no bottles! I put her morning milk in her favorite camelback water bottle. She yelled at me. So I put her milk in a regular sippy cup. More yelling, with tears this time. So I poured her milk into a...a...a...BOTTLE!!!! Yes, I did. I did it. I gave in, and she smiled through her tears and grabbed that bottle right out of my hands like a spoiled brat.

Maybe tomorrow?

Last Year. This Year.

It's all about IAN - Go Team Ian!

First and foremost: Ian passed the Idaho State Bar!See. There he is accepting his certificate after the mass group swearing in chant. Oh, you can't see him?? ME EITHER! Down in front!!!
"Give me that...I wanna see if it's real"
The ceremony was in Boise in early May which was also our 9th wedding anniversary so we went a day early to celebrate.
Then in June, Ian and my brother Adam, ran the Teton Dam half marathon in Rexburg Idaho. They both beat their last years time by at least 13 minutes or more. I always tell people something like, "you don't actually run these races to win them!" Well, Ian also ran with Adams Father-in-law and Sister-in-law - both of which took FIRST PLACE in their age divisions! Look at that. The first time I've ever been wrong!
Fathers Day 2009
At church on Fathers Day Sunday, they handed out these cute gifts to all the Fathers! Ian got his little gift bag, took one look at it, and asked if he could exchange out his Dads Root Beer for a Diet Coke. And then on Monday, it was Ian's birthday.
I hope Ian got enough attention over the last 2 months because I'm all tapped out.

TATEM loves her AUNT MARCI

TRIP TO UTAH.
MAY 2nd, 2009
For the life of me, I can't remember why Tatem and I were in Utah this time around, but we sure had fun. We went to the Hogle Zoo on rainy afternoon after a family trip to IKEA. (We had to "lie" to Karl and convince him IKEA was a computer store in order for him to come with us.)
We were headed towards the giraffes (at the Zoo, not IKEA) when I exclaimed, "OH, I love the giraffes. They are my favorite!" And the whole time we were there, this gross giraffe was liking his own regurgitated spit up off the metal railing. Over...and over...and over again. Well, I guess the giraffes use to be my favorite!
However, there was one giraffe whose neck was sooooo long...he was able to stretch it clear around this building! See! I knew I liked the giraffes!
Tatem and Uncle Bill
Seriously, I don't think they should let the tigers get this close to the humans. Plus, really, is a chain linked fence really going to do the trick in a ravenous moment of hunger?
I think Tatems best friend is her cousin, Karl.
She has so much fun with him every time we get together. They were playing 'chase' under the elephant pavilion while we waited for the rain to go away.

We sacrificed my nephew, Alex, to the alligators.
My niece, Alecia, and the groundhogs.

Back-tracking to MAY

TONS happened in MAY so I've gotta some how back up and blog about it. Let's start at the end of the month and work our way back.

Starting at Memorial Day Weekend:

My niece, KAYLA, (also known as "baby Kayla" back in my Ricks College days where a once baby named Kayla would visit our apartment and would do baby somersaults and baby dance moves) married PATRICK, (whom, if I'm not mistaken, was known in his family as "baby Patrick") in the Salt Lake City Temple!




Both families - at a ring ceremony just before the reception started.
From RIGHT to LEFT: BILL and MARCI (Kayals parents...Marci is my sister)
PATRICIA and BILL (Patricia is Patricks mother)
TIM and RAE LYNN (Patricks Father and Step-mom)
The Wedding Party
My beautiful sister, Marci, and her daughter, Alecia

Dancing the night away!

Just checkin' for the breakable things...

***********************************
We then celebrated birthdays for
ADAM (my brother) and BILL (my brother-in-law)
with left over wedding cake. They each got a candle to blow out! It worked!


*************************************
Tatems Memorial Day Dance!
Ian's Grandma and Grandpa always host a Memorial Day breakfast so we made our way out to Ogden to enjoy more food and family.

We finished up our Memorial Day weekend by playing at a park with Marci, Alecia, and Alex. Tatem has so much energy - and she loves playing with her cousins.
Thirsty girl! Always drinking out of MY sippy when her's is close by! Little Stinker!




*******************************************
Then a week later, Kayla and Patrick had a reception in Kimberly, Idaho, which is just on the outside of Twin Falls where we live. So we hosted Tatems other cousins and enjoyed the Western Days Parade (see previous post).

The Kimberly reception was set up beautifully! I usually try to stay away from the food table...but I was so drawn to this one. It was awesome. There were oreo truffles that I couldn't keep my mitts off of. The fruit cascaded down in color with hollowed out pineapples filled with yummy fruit dip. I would just like to add, that although my sister Marci was the mother-of-the-bride, she had time to *make the oreos truffles *make the white mint candies *make all the brides maids dresses *and make her own dress! And if that wasn't enough...
...she made the BRIDE too! Well...with the help of Bill!
And to top off a great night -
THREE OF MY MOST FAVORITE THINGS! (In no particular order!)

And that wraps up the END of May. Now let's see if I can blog about the BEGINNING of it.

Tatem and her own little Hobbs

Tatem got this dog from Scary Santa over Christmas while in Indiana. She loves this dog and takes it with her on all of her adventures. I love to hear her "talk" to this dog, it's so cute, high pitched, and filled with excitement. I'm a fan of Calvin and Hobbs so I can't help but formulate my own "comic strip" when I watch these two interact. It's very entertaining...to me...and my own imagination.

Tatem's first word was "kick"

Tatem's first word was "KICK"So no matter how hard I try...to teach her to spin or twirll...
she always returns to her first love...
kicking the soccer ball!

Western Days Parade in Twin Falls

Newborn - 6 Months - One Year

DARE DEVIL!!!

Should I be worried?
She climbed to the top of this structure
and launched herself down the slide...
ALL BY HERSELF!!!

Little Piggies

This is what we've been up to...

Tatem and I are working on our base tans in Arizona!

LOTS OF POOL TIME...

"The Anderson Girls"

Celebrating our 10th Anniversary 

of moving to sunny ARIZONA!

9 YEARS! But only 5 years of computer picture documentation. And Ian claims we don't kiss anymore!!!

2005

20062007200820082009

TEETHING bites!

Poor little Tatem is so miserable! Her top teeth are coming in... and she has a cold! She can't breath so she's drooling like a faucet! I've tried and I can't find anything to help sooth her!
Oh! I guess she doesn't need my help!

If you know Tatem, then you know she has never been bitten by the cuddle bug! Ever. However, she been feeling a little under the weather and it's amazing how much she wants to cuddle. I'll be honest, I'm really sad she is sick, but I'm LOVING this cuddle time with her! She has never fallen asleep in my arms, but yesterday, she crawled up on me, tucked herself into all my padding, and fell right asleep! Oh I just love her! We are going the the doctor today for her One Year visit. I started to think, maybe she's faking sick so she doesn't have to get her shots today! Oh, she's smart! Real smart!

Mom, I'm pretty sure you're supposed to celebrate my birthday ALL month long... so, could you get on that?!

Our friends, Wendi and Spencer, suggested we go to The Upper Crust Bakery and Grill for Tatems birthday. So we loaded up and drove out to Heyburn for some yummy dinner.
We brought along our party hats, and as we were all sitting there looking like over zealous birthday idiots, one of the waitresses walked by and asked cheerfully, "Is it someones birthday?" (Here's yur sign!)
So they brought out some dessert for Tatem...and the cheese head hat. Oh did I forget to mention The Upper Crust Grill is the 2nd floor above a Cheese Factory Outlet? (We're in Idaho here people!)
Ohhhhh, sheee loooooks ta-ticked! But I think she's actually ticked they took the cheese hat off! (And I'm the germ-a-phobe mom who's grossed out that they even put it on her!)

Making her FIRST BIRTHDAY WISH!
She's wishing for her own cell phone or an iPod...because she can't leave mine alone!

Oh what a difference a day can make...

Remember these two chicken nuggets?

Well, here they are now!

We got to stay with Cash and his mommy, Nalani, for a weekend while we were in Utah for the month of February.
Just trying to keep the love alive!
We are sad we didn't get to see Cameron! (Just keeping the options open!)

EASTER AFTERNOON

Happy Easter Morning!

It's my BABYS BIRTHDAY!!!

We celebrated TATEM'S BIRTHDAY a week early with the family in Bear Lake. I think she loved her party! And it was obvious she LOVED her cake. (That cake was a disaster until my cousin Christine came in to save the day! If you ever need a cake saved...may I recommend her!) Tatem usually loves her bath time but I think she was just a bit offended that we cut her opportunity to devour as much sugar as possible short. She looks totally put out in her bath pictures. I love my sweet baby!!

Tatem has some GREAT news!!!

We went to daddy's work to pick him up and bring him some congratulatory PEEPS (Ian's favorite! Barf!) and found his office all decorated with balloons and streamers!
I'm not sure who was more excited he passed;
his boss and co-workers... or ME?!?

unwillingly handing over the PEEPS...deleting a few client records...and showing daddy a few suggested responses to repeat clients...CONGRATULATIONS IAN!!!
We knew you could pass the bar...someday!
WE LOVE YOU!

There are 3 things in life EVERY girl needs!

#1 Someone to walk with...

#2 Someone to dance with...

#3 And someone to take a bath with!!

WATCH! And be inspired.

This is a MUST SEE ladies!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhLlnq5yY7k

Seriously, is this not the answer as to
why making hair bows is so addicting?

Just a little journaling...

Don't worry, she went straight to the bath after this lunch! Tatem loves pasta! Her favorite is shells with Alfredo sauce! She is such a great eater! She eats everything by herself except for her beloved sweet potatoes. She still loves her baby food sweet pa-tots! Other foods she loves: bananas, strawberries, blueberries, oatmeal, puffs, carrots, green beans, black beans, the veggies and noddles from Progresso Chicken Noddle soup, cheese, Mac n cheese, apple sauce, pears, and anything we are eating. It always tastes better off the mom or dads fork for some reason, right? Seriously, do I have to put a baby-gate around the toys? She's crazy! She thinks everything needs to be climbed. She still loves climbing up and running on the couch. She's really quite the dare devil. Not a thrill-seeker so much, just a dare devil. There's a small difference between the two! Tatem is confidant in everything she does! Ian thinks she has a cocky strut to her walk. And, she's gotten pretty good a running. When she's just walking around the house minding her own business, I love to sneak up behind her and scare the crap out of her. In her attempt to run away from me with her fast feet, she becomes paralyzed with giggles and fright and will sometimes lose her balance. Ever seen those mini-billy goats that fall over stiff when they get scared? Legs straight out! Yeah! That's TOTALLY what happens to Tatem, so of course it makes me want to do it over and over. I'm like a 5 year old who keeps yelling BOO over and over and, really, after the first two times, it's just not that funny any more! But I can't stop!At first, Tatem wanted nothing to do with this hat her Grandma Service made her for Christmas. It's been sitting in her toy box (the ottoman) unused and lonely. I caught her the other day trying to put it on her head, which looked like she was just throwing it over her shoulder, over and over. It was so cute! I went over to offer my assistance and now it's one of her favorite toys right now. If it falls off, she will attempt to put it back on by herself. The other night, she brought the hat over to Ian and then tucked her chin into her chest and leaned toward him. She wore it around the house for a good 10 or 15 minutes! She is so independent! And she is very observant! I love that she tried to put that hat on by herself. The other day, I caught her rolling around on the floor, wrestling with my slipper, trying to put it on her foot. She also tries to put on her own socks. SHE MAKES ME LAUGH SO HARD. And of course, I think she's so dang cute and smart. (She's got her Daddy's looks. She's got her Mommy's smarts.) She loves it when Daddy comes home for lunch! If she's in her highchair, she kicks her legs in delight as she hears the door from the garage into the house open and shut. She says "hhhhhhiiiiieeeeeeee" (extra emphasis on the "H" and the "E") in her sweet little voice before she even sees him! If she's playing and hears that door open and shut, she instantly stops all play, looks up at me with those huge eyes like "did you hear that?" and then goes running toward the door saying her sweet "hhhhhhiieeeeee", again, before she even sees him.
Daddy took her outside to kick her pink little soccer ball around in the grass. Daddy made her work really hard on building her technique and skill as an 11 month old soccer champ! Running drills. Up-downs at the blow of a whistle. Relentless wind sprints. They came back into the house smelling like the outside. Ya know what smell I'm talking about. That smell when your kids have been playing outside, sweating, and getting dirty...ya know? Well, a girl can only sweat so much before she needs to feel like a princess again! A tutu is like a white tank top. You can wear it with just about anything!

What you guys, what?

What's wrong with my Daughter?

She eats her bath bubbles!!!

My happy little Bubble Eater!
Tatem loves bath time. She will stop whatever she is doing if she hears the water running. She's not a big spasher even though I encourage it! However, she loves to lay on her tummy and look back at her kicking legs. While on her tummy, her daddy helps her with a few tidal waves. Every kid needs to master the art of a good tidal wave in the tub! Why not start early!?

Tatem has found a new love! She LOVES walking the length of the couch! We have taken out one of the cushions so she can climb up onto the couch by herself. She knows she has to turn around backwards if she wants to get down off of something, but she spent hours last night practicing getting off the cushion going forwards. She was real proud of herself (and whacked out crazy) by bedtime last night. I swear she dreamed of walking the couch all night long, because as soon as she woke up, she was out on the couch! She is a crazy monkey! Then Daddy came home for lunch again and chased her around. She loves to be scared! It's really funny to me!

In this video I love how she gets angry as she is forced to dismount the couch because of a pillow. She is one determined little girl. And I do mean LITTLE. She is sporting a new 9 month outfit today and it's still a little big on her. She'll be one next month!

Hey, look what I found!

Almost from birth Tatem has been know to hunt for the corners of her favorite blankie and slowly rub it on her face. Well, she found a "new corner" today when Dad came home for lunch!

tippy toes

or should it be titled...sweet sideburns!

Feelin' a little like SPRING!

Helping Dad wash the car She was having a very intense conversation with the grass!