Andi and her friend Allie - we had a great time with our community group and loved just hanging out!
Its hard to believe that Andi is already 8 months old! She has grown so much in the last few months and its amazing to see her change from day to day. So, here are some Andi-isms:
1. Andi is sleeping from 7 to 7 - Yippee - I'm so excited. She probably could have done it earlier, but we decided we didn't really need to rush her so we patiently waited for her until she was ready.
2. She is a gummy bear - no teeth - and no signs of teeth - we keep thinking she's teething but nothing is coming through...hmmm, maybe in a few weeks? Months?
3. She's still a tiny thing weighing in at the 5th percentile and a whoping 16 lbs.
4. She LOVES her daddy and will laugh for him in a way that makes my heart melt!
5. No Crawling and not much of a need to - she's definately not in a hurry to get moving. We can tell that she's thinking about it, but no signs yet. Also, she turns over only rarely and still gets stuck on her tummy every once in a while.
6. She's getting pretty good at sitting up and our favorite family time is in the morning. Usually after I nurse her, we'll have some play time before Ryan gets up to shower.
7. She doesn't make much noise - like her Daddy she really only "talks" when she has something worth saying.
8. She's got a great temperment - rarely crying and on a tight schedule. Probably because she's with Nanny Edna all day, she lets us know what her needs are!
I'm so excited to see how she grows from here! I can't imagine her crawling or walking yet, to me she's still my little baby Andi. I'm also looking forward to this summer and swimming in the pool - I'm sure she will be a water baby like her Mama.
Aunt Kristen also stoped by for a quick visit and tucked Andi in bed -- 
Well, the other day I was laying in bed when I had this dream that there was a duck in my house. I kept hearing it quack really loud. After a while I thought "Hmm, that duck sounds real", I immediately opened my eyes, sat up really fast, and excitedly shouted "we have ducks". I then proceeded to throw off the covers and run into the living room towards the back door. Sure enough there was Mr. and Mrs. Duck in my pool swimming around enjoying the crisp morning air. YIPPEE! I felt like a child discovering Santa for the first time. I was so excited to have 'wildlife' in my backyard! So what if they were 25 lb lake fed ducks that live in the middle of Dallas and hop pools. Today, they were in my pool and I felt special!
So I forced Ryan, Mr. Sound Sleeper Dodd, to get out of bed to sneak up on them. I tried to take some pictures but after all it was 5AM, freezing, and way too dark. I hoped they would be there at 7 so we could show Andi our new guests, but sadly they moved on. Maybe they'll make a return visit.
Here are some pics of Andi and my parents and my grandmother at lunch after church. She looks so funny in that hat, my little french baby! I never thought I'd be the type to "dress up" my daughter, but it's almost impossible to resist!
Andi with her Gigi (Great-Grandmother)
This next picture has all the elements of a good hunting picture: camo, gun, boat, dog, baby?
Here are some pics of Andi and her first friend Grace - we've loved getting to know Annie and Sean and are so sad to see them go... here are a few of our favorite pic's.
Well, I resisted the whole facebook thing for a while and finally buckled when I realized that there were a lot of friends I would love to reconnect with - so I recently signed up and OMG - I cannot get off. This is rediculous - I'm usually not an obsessive person, but I am embarassed to even tell you how many hours I've spent on facebook this past week. So, I've decided this will just need to be part of my New Years resolution - maybe I'll get a timer and set it for 20 minutes so 20 doesn't become 120 so quickly. I also think Ryan is feeling a bit neglected. Poor guy.
Yes, I happen to have 4 legs, a wet nose, and sometimes I can clear a room when I have gas; but I am part of the family! These past few months have been a bit rough. I wish I could say I've been the best best friend, but the truth is I have been a bit jealous. 
Oh well, I'll just lay here and look at it. I love the way it smells. It also has the softest skin. I know I have to be gentle, so I'll be careful. I'll just inch my way as close as I can and wait. For as long as it takes, I'll wait. One day maybe it will love me as much as I love it. Oh I hope so.
Not quite sure about this snowman! We had a great time walking the mall. It's croweded but Northpark is a pretty great place to visit during the holidays - it definately can get you in the holiday spirit - that or it will just make you grumpy.Well, I am not one to give up on important tasks, but yesterday's attempt to visit Santa for Andi's first Christmas came very close! It took us all day, we started at 10:00 AM and after a trip to Petco (we didn't know this Santa was for pet's - I couldn't put Andi in the line between the Schnauzer and the Poodle - it just seemed wrong) and Santa's Village in Richardson (the wait was 2 hours) we ended up at Northpark at 6:00 PM - exactly where we started the day off. It's amazing how much money that place makes - WOW - it's also amazing that I contributed!
One of my best friends and roommate from college came for a visit and everyone, including Andi was so sad when she had to leave. Andi was like putty in her hands. Amazing! We love you Whitney!
Well I had a great time this week - the big event of the week was having some of the girls over to the house from my Square 1: ( http://www.watermark.org/ministries/care/square-one/ )
So it has been a while since I last posted anything. I recently went to a Materna-tea at the Birth Center. It was so nice to see the other babies and hear all of their unique birth stories! As I shared my own story I realized how grateful I am to have had such a wonderful birthing experience. It was truly one of the best experiences of my life and I would not have done it any other way! Here's a reflection of some of the high points:
