"This is the time"

I'm a firm believer that God has a sense of humor. Too many things in my life have happened to be followed by a little "wink" from the man upstairs for me NOT to think that.

Take last night for example. We had a marvelous day at Epcot. Lots of smiling and laughing, par for the course when you take a toddler to the Mouse House. But AnnahLilly is getting to that age where she's more engaged than ever. So this was an extra special trip.

Lots of character greetings. Lots of running around. Lots of cranberries (they're giving them away free at the new-this-year cranberry bog). AnnahLilly even won a dance contest at downtown Disney just before we got out of town for the evening. ...

So there we were at the gas station across the street from downtown Disney, about to fill up our tank, when a Billy Joel song came on.

"This is the time to remember
'Cause it will not last forever
These are the days
To hold on to ..."

Such perfect lyrics to give pause and serve as a reminder to cherish each memory made, every precious little moment. These ARE the days to hold on to ... because before we know it, AnnahLilly'll be asking for the keys to the car. No matter. She'll always be our little girl. The little girl giving Duffy the Bear a peck on the nose.

What a day!

AnnahLilly's 8-month birthday sure was an eventful one.

She sat up on her own.

Her fourth tooth (left front top) busted through.

And finally, after much practice, AnnahLilly took her first big crawling steps last night with nanny Erin. Thankfully Erin had her phone video camera at the ready!

We just love the big wind-up with her arm.

Ready to crawl

AnnahLilly has been rocking on her hands and knees for weeks now, but she appears ready to get moving even more.

To wit:

With Mom on Saturday, she took a pair of "crawling" steps. Mom called Dad at work, but AnnahLilly didn't want to duplicate her feat with him on the phone.

Dad and AnnahLilly skyped with her great-nan on Monday and she took another pair of "steps" right toward the computer screen. Ever since, she's been acting like she's ready to shoot across the floor ... but not yet. We have the video camera at the ready for when it happens.

We'll keep y'all updated.

A sneak peek

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Humor at the grocery store

What do Winston Churchill and AnnahLilly have in common?

Well, nothing really, except for a funny line a neighbor dropped on AnnahLilly and I on a recent trip to the grocery store.

Fran -- she's an older lady, probably in her 80s -- hadn't met AnnahLilly yet, so I was happy when we ran into her in the deli department of our local Publix. She came over and was just enthralled. I'll try to sum up what she said:

"Oh, she's just beautiful. With a lot of babies, you say that, but they're not; they look like gnomes. ...

"Some of my kids looked like Winston Churchill!"

Food files

First brown rice cereal.

Then oatmeal cereal.

Green beans, sweet peas and squash -- they've all followed.

AnnahLilly's adventures in eating has been in full swing for a few weeks now. And she's been doing really well, too, with the majority of the food ending up in her belly and not on her face!

Here's a video from the second day of her eating brown rice cereal:

Spinning round and round

AnnahLilly apparently was a helicopter in a past life.

Go into her room at several points during the night and she'll have circled the wagons.

Ninety degrees; a complete 180; 270 ... sure, why not? She's got it all in her repertoire.

And now that she's rolling over, too, we've seen her with her cheek up against the backside of the crib.

Call it extreme sleeping.

Roll over. I'm crowded. So they all rolled over. . .

She did it!

AnnahLilly rolled over for her first time yesterday. She rolled from her back to her tummy. Then she did it again and again and again. Apparently rolling over is great fun and its so cute to see her look of pride and smiles every time we clap for her.

And, as if that wasn't enough, today she rolled from her tummy to her back. Watch out world, AnnahLilly's mobile and she has places to go even if those places aren't very far yet.

Fun at Disney

Four months. Three trips to Disney.

AnnahLilly sure has had her fill of Disney World in her early life. A sign of things to come? Absolutely. It's the happiest place on earth and we'll relish all the trips we can take.

As for the three we've taken already, we went to Hollywood Studios on July 6 with Jackie, Michael and Xander Whitley; Epcot with Drew, Heather and Olivia Conklin on July 27; and Magic Kingdom on Sept. 20 with just us.

Some of her Disney World firsts:

* Resort stay: Pop Century

* Park: Hollywood Studios

* Attraction: Playhouse Disney, Hollywood Studios

* Ride: Spaceship Earth, Epcot

* Restaurant: Hollywood and Vine, Hollywood Studios

* Character photo: Jojo

* Country visited at Epcot: Mexico

But easily one of the highlights was a meeting with Minnie Mouse at Epcot. She was enraptured by those cute ears and nose. We mean AnnahLilly was enraptured by Minnie, although the mouse sure seemed fond of our wee one, too!

Flying

Our Labor Day weekend trip to New Jersey was AnnahLilly's first flights.

How'd she do? Fantastic. She was easily better than some of the grumpy folks around us, that's for sure.

She had a few minor blips. The changing table in the bathroom -- um, not good. We're thinking it had something to do with the vibration.

On takeoff and landing for both flights? Perfect.

So with an expected trip to Italy in the spring, we're thinking she'll be just fine.

Grandmas

When Jen went back to work in August, we were fortunate to have both grandmas stay for extended periods of time.

Brent's mom was first to visit. She came for a week. When she's old enough to talk, AnnahLilly will call her Baba, the Ukrainian term for grandmother.

Jen's mom came a few days after that and was able to stay about two weeks. AnnahLilly will call her Halmoni, the Korean word for grandmother. It's pronounced just like harmony.

It was so special for both grandmothers to get to spend quality time with AnnahLilly at such an early age, and we look forward to the many more visits to come in the future.

Baek-il

Today is AnnahLilly's Baek-il, her 100th day, a much celebrated day in Korea and so, of course, a much celebrated day in our household.

Baek-Il is a Korean tradition celebrating that the infant has survived to this important milestone. Traditionally, the purpose is to give thanks and pray for the child to have many blessings. It also marks the child's first year of life, nine months of pregnancy plus 100 days is about a year. So, in Korea, AnnahLilly would be 1 year old. And at her next birthday she would be 2. And so on.

The day should be celebrated with family and friends and with a bountiful table of auspicious foods. AnnahLilly's Halmoni (grandmother) was here to share the day with us and made us a feast of long noodles (to signify a long life). AnnahLilly's Baek-il table was full of sweet rice cakes (for the sweetness of life), an American cake as well as the traditional bounty of fruits.

Traditionally, 100 white rice cakes are supposed to be sent out and shared with friends. We Americanized this by sending the white cake to work with Brent after the celebration. We think that will do just fine.

The day is also marked by the baby wearing her first Hanbok, a Korean dress. According to tradition, before the 100th day the baby traditionally wears white clothes that were easy to sterilize and keep clean from infection. Baek-il is also the first time people outside of the immediate family are allowed to enter the home and see the baby. Sort of the way we say a baby should stay home for the first six weeks of life to minimize the chance of infection.

We took the traditional Baek-il photos and we also couldn't resist the urge to take a few photos of AnnahLilly in the beautiful white dress that her Halmoni made for her. It's very similar to the one she'll be wearing for her baptism in November.

Good mornings

I've NEVER EVER been a morning person. I flatly enjoy sleep too much. But AnnahLilly sure is changing me.

There's nothing like seeing her wiggling around in her crib early in the morning -- by early, I mean around 8-ish -- with those eyes WIDE open.

Lately, she's been turning on the charm, giving me some precious good morning smiles. As if to say, "I know you're not a morning guy, Dad, but come on, I'm cute."

No worries, Sweetpea, I'd gladly give up some sleep to see you for even just a few minutes more.


This photo was taken before she went to sleep last night:

The sweetest moments

The ceiling fans, picture frames, mommy and daddy. These are a few of AnnahLilly's favorite things.

Nothing makes my heart melt more than watching AnnahLilly smile and gurgle at a ceiling fan. Every time she sees it, it's like she's found a long lost friend.

Our little wonder has turned into quite the charmer. I often pass an hour just watching her giggle and coo. I laugh when she laughs. Smile when she smiles. Coo when she coos. It's the most rewarding achievement of my life.

Graduated from the Executive Leadership Program. Check.

Attended Harvard. Check.

Promoted into management in my 20s. Check.

Bringing AnnahLilly into this world surpasses all of those in bringing me a sense of true accomplishment. She is the greatest thing I've ever done, and I can't wait to watch her surpass all of my achievements.

Our little girl is going to charm and conquer.

And I can't wait to watch every moment.

Bye-bye bassinet

Tuesday was a big day in the life of AnnahLilly. Daddy disassembled her bassinet, her very first bed. Time for it to go in the attic for if and when she gets a brother or sister.

First words! Well, sorta

OK, sure, they're not the official first words, but we heard 'em. Yesterday AnnahLilly said "la" and "gooey" -- as clear as day! Then today came the most distinctive "coo" to date.

The little things

The milestones are great and memorable, but its the myriad little things that make up the bulk of each day. Thanks to cameras, its easy to capture all of those tiny moments.

Case in point: AnnahLilly's sock came off perfectly and sat nicely on her car seat, just like our little one had placed it there. It's funny how the littlest of things are so cute!

To sleep we go

A late night feeding with mom.

The past two nights we've been transitioning AnnahLilly from a bassinet in our room to a crib in her room. Such a big move for a tiny girl.

Last night we wheeled her bassinet into her room and tonight she moved into her crib. She looks so small in that great big crib. Just like she once looked so small in her bassinet.

I can't say that she seems to have cared one way or another where she sleeps, but the transition has been tough on mom. I miss having her near me and being able to easily peek in on her whenever the urge strikes. She's so lovely and peaceful when she sleeps.

Our compromise has been to move into the guest room temporarily so that we're closer to her. Logically I know it makes no difference where we sleep since we have a monitor. But I like the idea of being near at hand.

So, another big life step accomplished for our little one. She's growing so fast. And, I have to admit it's nice to see a baby finally sleeping in that crib.

A Disney pro already

In line, contemplating her first ride: Spaceship Earth.

AnnahLilly is starting to hit her Disney groove.

We all knew that was coming, given that her parents are Disney annual passholders, aka Disney addicts.

Trip No. 1 was with her godparents Michael and Jackie, and godbrother Xander, July 5-6. We stayed overnight at Pop Century and spent the first day relaxing and having a nice lunch at Sanaa.

We decided to hit Disney's Hollywood Studios on July 6. Highlights of the day included the Playhouse Disney show, followed by a character lunch with the Playhouse Disney characters. The sky was overcast: perfect weather for AnnahLilly's first Disney outing.

Trip No. 2 was with Uncle Drew, Aunt Heather and Cousin Olivia. We arrived at EPCOT in the afternoon and stayed until the fireworks, which we tried to avoid. (Oh, AnnahLilly did NOT enjoy those big booming sounds!) Highlights of the day included her first ride: Spaceship Earth.

The two-month mark

It's one thing to say, "Oh, she's getting so big." It's another to actually see it.

In AnnahLilly's early days, Daddy so wanted to put her in this cute pair of butterfly pajamas. No doing -- too big.

But just this past week, the week she turned two months, AnnahLilly fit perfectly into those butterfly pajamas. Oh, she's getting so big.

Some other signs: She seems like a giant in her bassinet these days. Then there's the increased alertness, smiling and cooing. Nighttime is getting a little easier, too. And we're also seeing a little sliver of brown in her lower left eye, a sign of the color to come.

Oh, our little one is becoming her own little person, that's for sure. We can't help but smile when we look at her.