Sickies

I didn't think Harper had a chance of getting a cold until she was in daycare, but here we are with our first bout of the crud. Harper is still smiling though, through her tears when she pauses between breaths. She started off by sleeping a ton and then she pretty much refused to eat for most of the day, She's had a stuffy nose and we hoped it would pass quickly...but it hasn't. Now I'm trying to squirt saline solution up her nose and use the aspirator (aka booger sucker) to get all the gunk out. She is not too thrilled about this process and the second she sees the booger sucker she vigorously swats at anything that comes near her face. Not really how I wanted to spend my day off... but we still got out for a spring hike (read 'mud bog slush') on Powerline. We spent much of the weekend on the couch trying to recover from the sickies, great cuddle time!

Teething.

Exciting times at the Willman household this week, we're pretty sure Harper is teething! Even though it could be weeks/months until her pearly whites make their debut, it is still exciting to think how much Harper is growing (remember, we're first time parents here and every new thing is amazing to us!). Everything within Harper's reach is now a chew toy, and she really like playing with her tongue on her lower gums.

Some recent 'wildlife' photos from our neighborhood...

Moose that Dan chased away from eating our trees

Dug the hole he's in
He is in our neighborhood
Zen bear at the zoo

I yam what I yam

We introduced Harper to homemade pureed yams on Saturday. At first she didn't seem to understand what we were doing, but she soon got she hang of it and figured out how to work the solids around in her mouth. Thank you to Carrie for the great bib!

First taste seemed okay, we still had a happy Harper!

Success!

All done for the first 'meal' (she refused to eat when she was all done)

Meal #2 on Sunday - yamtastic!

It's possible to have yams in the eyes

Yummy!

Thank you to Aunt Michon for sharing the awesome ceramic warming bowl!

Goodbye FJ

We sold Dan's old FJ40 over the weekend - it was bittersweet to say goodbye to it because it was a fun vehicle, but totally not practical with an infant, and we (read me) were really tired of our two car garage being a three car garage for the past few years. The first person who called on the ad came over and bought it right away, so maybe we should have asked for more money? :) We were ready for it to be gone.

"Can I drive Dad?"

"OK sweetie" (riding in the car a la Britney, good thing it didn't start!)

Big wheel for a little one

Playing in the FJ

A great memory from our maiden voyage in the FJ to Girdwood...driving down the Seward Highway on a gorgeous, sunny, August day, with just enough of a headwind hitting at just the perfect angle on the windshield to alert us that there were no bolts holding the hard top down. I screamed and Dan yelled 'Hold it down!'. We couldn't pull over so Dan kept driving with his right hand on the wheel, left hand pulling the hard top down, and I was hanging on to the passenger side of the hard top with all my body weight holding it down. Good times.

Happy Easter

Harper had her first run in with the Easter Bunny last night, how exciting! Even though she's too young for chocolate, he did leave her a special fluffy bunny that she seems to like. The Easter Bunny was gracious enough to leave chocolate bunnies for us too. Harper was dressed to impress at church this morning in her Easter best - I had so much fun shopping with her on my day off last week, looking for the perfect dress. I remember when I was a little girl and got to get a new dress for Easter Sunday, and how much fun it was to get dressed up. It was fun to start the tradition over again with Harper, bringing back many good memories for me.

Guapo wanted in on the photo action

Happy tummy time with her new bunny

Basking in the Easter sun with her bunny

Harper and her tulip

Playing with the tulip, after annihilation

Spring is on its way to Anchorage, we had a number of clear sunny days last week that helped the snow melt. I took Harper for a run yesterday and made it through the barrage of potholes on our road, just to end up running through seven minutes of slush (which, while pushing the chariot was harder than one might think). It was a good upper body work out! We'll be staying on the clear streets for a few more weeks.

We had a great Easter dinner with our dear friends, Mikal and Trude. The meal was fantastic (as always!) and the comapny was spectacular. Entertainment was prime - Harper kept us smiling and laughing all day long.

Some good post Easter dinner wrestling with Sloan, Harper's elephant.

5 months old

We made it out of Seattle and back to Alaska last week in time for Harper's 5 month old birthday milestone! Dan weighed her at a playgroup the hospital hosts, and Harper was 15 lbs 10 oz (with clothes). It is amazing how fast she is growing and changing! Dan is really enjoying being at home with Harper, and even though I'm slightly jealous of them being together all day long, I am enjoying being back at work. The second I get home form the office I pick Harper up and don't put her back down until bedtime. I love play time with Harper after work.

Smiley Harper

Fun in the bumbo

Always chewing something these days...

She loves her elephant

Harper's best pout face