Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas Everybody! It has been a wonderful year. Noble has certainly grown and changed and it's been a lot of fun along the way. One of our favorite things right now is our conversations. He uses a series of main words to convey his message about events that happened or will happen. His favorite toys are sticks he finds in the yard and of course, balls - baseballs, footballs, soccer balls, tennis balls, . . . he's known the names for all of them for months now and just learned what hockey was last night at Brian's company party. Noble is also enjoying his second Christmas; he likes the lights, and more so, the blow-up penguins and polar bears displayed around the neighborhood. He especially enjoys singing Happy Birthday (to Jesus, for Christmas). We hope you are enjoying the holiday festivities as well, wishing you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Early Bird

As is customary, we celebrated an early Thanksgiving at our house with Brian's siblings and parents and a few extra aunts and uncles and great-grandma, etc.! We smoked our 20 lb bird (pictured) and everyone brought a scrumptious dish to round out the meal. Good eatin'!

Treat, Treat!

Brian and Noble (Brian's "meal ticket") ventured out into the neighborhood to hunt down some candy Halloween night while Wing-See and the dog (Adia) guarded the home fort. Noble most enjoyed ringing doorbells. For a quick and simple costume, we painted Noble's face and donned animal ears upon him (not pictured).

Cruise

Brian and Noble posing in front of the Crown Princess Cruise ship in Saint John NB
Noble loved to climb on this duck statue we found in the Boston Public Gardens.
Noble was happy to have his grandparents on board to play with.

We took a one-week cruise to New England and Canada the second week of October. We enjoyed the amenities aboard the ship, including the fabulous food offerings (Brian's favorite), open deck movie theater, heated pools (Wing-See's favorite), basketball and soccer court, and a kids playroom on board (Noble's favorite along with his gong-gong and poh-poh : grandparents). While in port, we'd investigate the cities, just strolling around mostly. The cruise round-tripped from New York City, so Noble took his first subway, bus, plane and ship ride. He was a good little traveler overall.

Vrrooommm...

Wow, it's amazing how fast kids grow up! Noble showed of his skills behind the wheel by operating a stick shift for the first time, and on the highway at that. He's always up for making short runs to the nearby grocery store and blockbuster video. Oh, and not to worry...we always buckle in his car seat before he takes it for a spin. Safety first, you know.

Braves Game

Here's a quick snapshot of Brian and Noble at their first Braves game (Mommy was there, too). We enjoyed pizza and cookies and a suite view (literally, ha-ha) along with the company of his company (the outing was courtesy of GeoLab). Noble cheered the team on with his own clapping when the stadium lit up with applause.

Chasing Chickens and Other Fun (2 Videos)

We spent a weekend at a Farmhouse B&B in Madison, GA. Noble had great fun feeding (and chasing) the chickens (see video) and looking for the barn cat. There were also other creatures to be enjoyed as well as a lake to paddle in and green grass to run around on. It was a nice family getaway.

Coca Cola World

A college friend, Beatrice, visited Atlanta this August. It was great getting to see her for multiple meals and chats and catch-up. We visited the NEW Coca Cola museum together. Here we are bit "fizzy" after trying the myriad of soda flavors the company distributes worldwide.

Airplane

Noble had fun at a little friend's birthday party one Saturday this month. It was at a local airport playground. Noble is pictured here saying, "zhoooommmmm..." and mimicking the airplanes he saw land and take off.

And the Answer is . . .

We had our 19/20 week ultrasound during which the doctor checks all the major parts and organs and the sex of the baby. Everything appeared healthy (thank the Lord!)
So do you want to know boy or girl?
(take time to form your guess)

drum roll please . . .

"It's a girl!" We are all very excited and look forward to welcoming our newest addition (in January) :> :> :>

A Few More Moves (Video)

Noble has been dancing more and more lately, not only to music, but just when he's happy and feels like it. Here he is early one morning, holding the remote to the stereo and standing on his "stage" (see video).

Check out my moves (Video)

It's so fun to watch Noble dance! He breaks out into his signature moves when we play music at home, in the car, and out at the store. He'll dance to almost anything - even a building alarm this morning. (video)

A look back at Baby Noble

When Noble was about ten weeks old, he modeled for a catalog at his grandfather's commercial photo studio. The catalog was published and put online, and now over a year later, we get to see the result. He has changed a lot over a year! (link to website)

Out?

Noble's favorite request all day long is : "Out?" He dons his hard hat, grabs something he'd like to take outside, and goes to the door.

It's quite hot outside and Noble sweats a lot. I ruffled up his hair for these outdoor pics.

Farewell to Judy

Noble's favorite playmate, his Yi Yi Judy, returned home to Hong Kong. Fortunately we can still see her via webcam. Here we are pictured celebrating a farewell meal together at a French restaurant.

Music?

We sometimes stream music while eating dinner. It stops here and there and when it does, Noble flings out his palms face up to ask "Where's the music?" hee hee.

A little one on the way . . .

We have GREAT news!
Noble is a big brother. His little companion will arrive sometime mid-January. We will find out boy/girl late August.

Petting Zoo (video)

We had lots of fun at a petting zoo this Saturday - I think Brian had the most fun of all (see video). Noble threw peanuts at the squirrels and birds (see video: Noble first signs "more" by bringing his hands together and then does a little dance). The deer kept nuzzling me since I had a bag of food on my shoulder. There were also foxes and black bears and buffalo as well as farm animals.

Noble's doing lots these days; his walking is starting to become a fast trot and he's going in circles, backwards, exploring the capabilities of his little leg muscles. You set him down somewhere (like a store or park) and he's gone gone gone . . . He's saying more and more, picking up a word or two a week - his latest is "bay-bay" (baby). He likes playing simple games like hiding things behind his back and then asking us where they are. Balls are a constant favorite and he has developed a good throw. He loves to see new people and go new places. I guess it's all new and exciting through the eyes of a little one. And for us, too :>

Fun on the Floor

Tickle (Video)

Noble gurgles and then giggles as he gets tickled (click to play).

Squealing on the Slide (Video)

The mosquitos are still in hiding, so we're still out and about in the yard a lot. Here's Noble on his little playset Mother's Day weekend (click to play).

Noble Feeds Mommy Feeds Noble (Video)

Watch us spoon feed each other (click to play)

Round and Round we Play (Video)

Noble exercises his throw, his kick, and his lungs as he entertains himself, and me, with an easter egg! (click to play)

Around the Neighborhood

We took a jaunt down to our neighborhood lake and playground on Saturday morning. We enjoyed observing the waterfowl - especially a pair of geese with gosling in tow.
Noble's new thing this week is throwing one-handed, mostly southpaw. He's also figured out how to press buttons to operate toys and he might be starting to experiment with the word, "no," at least the "n" sound coupled with a strong shake of the head.

Brian Turns 30!

We celebrated Brian's birthday this weekend. Pictured here is us at 5 Seasons Brewery in North Atlanta. Good food and tasty beers! (..and yes, Noble is a dark brew kind of guy)

Active Noble

Video featuring Noble's slide tackle (seated kick) and walk (his new means of getting around) (click to play)

Fun at Home

A snippet of Noble playing at home (click to play)


Brian and little Tiger Woods

Little Steps . . .

We witnessed his first five (count 'em, Five!) steps last Saturday. A week later, he's walking (see the video) and boot-scoot crawling when he really wants to get somewhere fast.

Playground Fun

Wow the weather has been GOOOOD. This weekend we went to the playground at Peachtree Dekalb airport where Noble had fun observing the other kiddies, trying out the slide and climbing.