We will miss you Steve.

So long and thanks for all the fish!

Thanks, Ellis Humphres, for your drawing!

Happy 13th Month Birthday!

Little Bit is turning 13 months old today! Woot! She woke up all smiles and giggles. It is Friday and she was surrounded by Mommy and Daddy, so what is not to smile about! It is Hattie-Daddy day! Who knows what goes on during Hattie-Daddy Day, but when I get home from work both Daddy and Hattie seem happy and content.

Hattie is still a-crawling and a-climbing. No walking yet. But the girl can MOVE on all fours when she wants to!

She is learning language (sign and spoken). To date these are the words she can sign:
More
Eat
Fish
Love
Doggie

She can shake her head "yes" and can say "no!"

Words that she is saying:
Momma
Dada
No
Again
Clock
Bite
Chewy
Mailman
Bubbles
Mimi
Bob Bob
Mammie
Outside
On
Off
And I know there are more.... I'll have to add to this list as I remember!

Her birthday party was a great success! The theme "Little Snowflake" was adorable! One of Ellis's co-workers made the most beautiful cake of all time. Peggy and I made pretzel sticks. We had red M&Ms, white wedding cookies, and candy canes! The dessert table was perfect!

The food included a veggie tray, cheese tray, veggie pizza, chicken salad sandwiches, fruit, and sausage balls. Yummo!



Hattie wore an embroidered long sleeved onesie that had her name on it and a big "1." She also wore adorable bloomers with her initial and name on them and a red and blue tutu! She was too too cute!

About 25 people attended the party including Mamaw, Aunt Fay, Mimi, GrandBob, and Mammie flew down from Michigan just for the event! Lots of Mommy & Daddy's friends came, along with other family members.

Hattie had a wonderful day! She was happy and in a grand mood! She opened her gifts with gusto! Although she wasn't very crazy about her cake. She received a slide, a stuffed doggie, a bear Bible, some DVDs, some clothes, some new toys, and the list goes on! The actual gift list will be in her baby book.

Happy Birthday, sweet baby!

Hattie's Birthday Party!

I can't believe that my sweet little snowflake is turning 1 in three little weeks! Every one says that time flies and to enjoy them while they are little. They are right! This fall I keep on thinking about what I was doing last year and how I never knew how my life was going to change. And now, I feel like my baby is gone and there is a little person here instead! Hattie is crawling, babbling, climbing, and just a wonder ball of fun! I looked at her last night while she was playing the floor with her nativity set and I said to Ellis, "We have a baby living in our house!" The truth is, she is nearly a toddler! My, how time flies!

Please join us in our fun in celebrating Hattie's birthday! Please RSVP by December 15th if you will be able to attend!

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Hot Tubs and Yoga Mats

Thanks, Lyons, for providing some fun yesterday! Here is a little something to commemorate the fun!

Don't Bite My Finger!

Over the last few months, a lot has been happening in the Hump Household. Hattie is crawling like crazy! Nothing is safe! Our house is now outfitted with baby gates and plugs for the electrical outlets. I think we have, to some extent, baby-proofed the house. Of course, there are still some areas that need some help (pillows are in front of the hearth and there is that one lamp cord that could easily be grabbed).

Something else Hattie has started is "talking." She has been saying Mama and Dada for a while. But she is working on some other initial sounds. She loves the digital clock on our nightstand. And she knows that a microwave has a clock on it, too. While at the Lyon's house a few weeks ago, she saw their microwave and said, "CLOCK!" But, the rest of the time, it is just "CCCCL." And Chewy the Kitty Cat is "KKKKK." Just this week, she was playing with a balloon and I said, "Don't make it pop!" And she started whispering, "Pop. Pop. Pop." I wracked my brain for other "P" words and came up with "Puffs." Which she loves to eat and now loves to whisper.

About two months ago, GrandBob was feeding Hattie a puff and as he put his finger near her mouth, he yanked her arm back real fast and said, "Ow! Don't bite my finger! Don't bite my finger!" Hattie thought this was hilarious! As a result, GrandBob often plays this little game with her while he feeds her. And sometimes the rest of us do, too.

Two weeks ago, Ellis started asking Hattie to give him a bite of her puffs (we always use these as the last part of her meal so she can have some time of self feeding). She would reach her hand out to give him a bite. Sometimes he would come away with a mushy puff, sometimes it was just a sticky little finger, and sometimes he would just pretend that he was eating something.

Last night, I was feeding my sweet little 10 1/2 month old baby. We had sweet potatoes and oatmeal, followed by peach yogurt. Then, I gave Hattie her favorite puffs. Ellis thinks they are one step away from being cheese puffs, they are that consistency, but not bright orange. Often, I give her the puffs so she can self feed and then I clean the kitchen or work on dinner. But last night, I just sat there and talked to her.

At one point, I said, "Give Mommy a bite!" She reached her little hand out, sticky fingers and puff, reaching towards me. As I was going in for the bite, she yanked her arms back, fast! I laughed and said, "Ow!" Hattie just squealed with delight! We played this little game for at least 10 minutes. She ate all of her puffs and was a happy little girl!

Letter to Hattie, age 7 months

Dear Hattie,

Wow! You have been a busy girl! So much has happened since you were born a mere 7 months ago. First, you like to eat. A lot. Around the clock, even. But that is ok, so do I! Second, you are a cuddle bug. You like to be held during naps. And you like to cuddle with Mom and Dad when you sleep at night. Last, you like to get moving! Anytime someone (Mom, Dad, Mimi, GrandBob, Mammie or Aunt Cassie) will hold you up, you want to be standing! And if you can't stand, you want to scoot across the floor on your belly! You get the cutest, most intense little look on your face when you are trying to accomplish this movement. And you say, "Whooo!" It is serious business for a little girl!

I just wanted to list all the things you've done in your seven months:

*Traveled to a lot of places! More than some people, even!
- Nashville
- Denver
- Salt Lake City & Park City
- Florida
- Atlanta
- Alabama
*You flew on an airplane at 3 months
*You have three teeth now

*You say "Mamamama," "Dadada," and "Bababababa"
*You recognize and watch Chewy the Cat

*You know how to rock a pair of leg warmers
*You like to play at GrandBob and Mimi's house

*You LOVE to be out side: in your stroller, in your swing, or in your little pool
*You laugh when we play pick-a-boo. I will put a little burp cloth over your head and say,"Where's Hattie?" When I pull it off, I say, "There she is!!!" And you LOVE it!

*You laugh when Daddy holds you up high in the sky

*You like sweet potatoes and squash. The jury is still out on yogurt and peas
*You sip water through a straw! Well, a little bit, most of it ends up on your clothes

*You scoot around the house and play with your letters on the fridge

So far, Hattie, you have been the most wonderful, marvelous little girl. Thank you! And please keep it up! I don't want to have to give you spankings.

Love, Cuddles, and Kisses,
Mom

SQUIRSH

Today's post is from Ellis. Sit back and enjoy. :)

Although I've been a father for 10 weeks now, it wasn't until this past Friday that I became a Parent; one of THOSE people; the 'others' that I've distantly observed scrambling around looking harried and broken.

As I was taking my turn changing a diaper, I reset myself and followed my this-is-what-you-do-to-change-a-baby routine:

1. Lie baby down.
2. Ask baby "are you pee pee, or are you poo poo?"
3. Expect a cry, a laugh, or a confused look; depending on unknown factors.
4. Unsnap exactly 70% of the approximately 75 snaps.
5. Push onesie and footed thingy up to armpits to minimize chance of spontaneous efflux contamination (SEC).
6. Place clean diaper under dirty diaper, in case of SEC after offending diaper removal.
7. Remove diaper sticky/velcroey thingies.
8. Fold down front of diaper, observe.
8a. - #1. Consider myself a winner at the game of Life.
8b. - #2. Call wife, for only she has the finesse to complete this task.
9. Grab feet, lift, clean, apply new diaper, resnap, repeat.
10. Wash hands.

Somewhere in the vicinity of 8b, things went awry. After observing it was only a pee pee diaper, I did the fist pump of victory!

My celebrations were premature as she filled her diaper with sweet liquid brown; an evil Play-Doh fun factory where my child once was. I was prepared, I had the extra diaper underneath! Totally prepared! I'm DADDY! I can handle this. I very carefully got a wipe from the fancy wipe heater and took care of business. BAM! I'm so pro. SO PRO. I set the brown diaper aside when round two hit. Ha! Sneaky girl! I have predicted this would happen, for I have a backup diaper in place! Again, I cleaned and BAM! Pro. Oh, man, so pro. I was made for thi...

SQUIRSH! Another!
It's running down her back.
It's on her clothes.
Her legs are in the air.
No backup!
12 wipes.

MESS!

(Doorbell)

HONEY!

Tam, like a champ, took over, as I ran to open the door for my Mother in Law; she brought us lunch.

Whew. That was a sitch. A real sitch. If I had no Tamara to bail me out, I may not have made it out alive.

Tamara appears from the bedroom with a clean, smiling baby. What a woman. Let's have lunch while the baby is happy, yes?

It was great! A tomato artichoke sandwich from Panera... delicious! The tomato was juicy and the artichoke was perfect. In a few short moments I had devoured it and I was licking bits of tomato and spices from my fingers.

Then... THAT smell. On my hands.

Number 10. I forgot number 10. You never forget number 10.

I still feel kind of sick.

And harried. And broken.