New Camera & talking

I swear Ruby can talk. For the past month or so, whenever one of the cats would walk by, she would stare at them and say "ka, ka." Well, today I was at a friend's house and her cat walked by and Ruby said "kiy" (think "kitty" with no "t" sound). And my friend asked if she said "kitty." So, I'm not the only one that hears it.

Also, Santa visited me early this year and brought me a new digital camera. Here are some of my first shots from it.

Christmas, packing, moving, etc.

So, we bought a house! The Hill family is moving to Oak Ridge, Tennessee. This will be closer to where Jason works and we love the neighborhood. If all goes according to plan, we will close on January 2nd (yes, the day after we get back from vacation). That means we've been spending a good amount of time packing the house back up and really sorting through things. I can't believe how much "stuff" Ruby has already!

We also had to get our house ready for Christmas. This year it meant just putting up a tree. We didn't want to do too much since we will leave on Christmas Eve and really don't want to have too much clean up after we celebrate our family's Christmas this weekend.

We are very much looking forward to coming to Omaha and Des Moines for Christmas. It will be good to see everyone. Now that Ruby's so much more active, flying with her could be interesting.

Oh, Ruby had her six month appointment a couple of weeks ago. She weighed in at 17 pounds, 10 ounces and 27.25 inches long. She's getting so big! She's also eating three "meals" a day and has yet to find a food she doesn't like.

Enjoy the pictures.

Single Dad ...

Jason spent a few days "playing" single dad while I went to Minneapolis for Natalie's Memorial Gathering and to spend some time with my sister. I came back to a happy baby who didn't have any new bumps or bruises. Jason had her napping well and sleeping through the night by the time I got back into town. So, we know he's a good, capable father (not that I had any doubts).

Baby in the bouncer ...

I think Ruby missed me though -- she seemed very excited to have Mommy home. The only "problem" Jason had was that he didn't take any pictures on the regular camera (only cell phone pictures). So, we'll see how they show up on the blog.

Not sure when this photo is from.

We are looking forward to celebrating Ruby's first Christmas. It's so hard to believe that we're only a couple of weeks away from the holiday. Ruby really enjoys grabbing onto the Christmas tree, and the cats love to climb the tree. We will have to get some pictures of Ruby and the tree soon.

Family update -- no pictures

Hi everyone,

I talked to my sister Maggie today and asked her if I could post a link and share her story on this blog. On Thanksgiving morning, she gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, Natalie Ellen Anderson. Natalie weighed in at 8 pounds, 12 ounces. But, things are not going well for them. Natalie is in critical condition in Minneapolis. We know the situation is not good, but Maggie and her husband Dan asked for any prayers and thoughts everyone can give them. So, please, keep my sister and her family in your thoughts and prayers. They are going through a very difficult time and will have a hard road ahead.

If you would like to see pictures of Natalie, or let Maggie & Dan know you are thinking of them, visit their caringbridge site: www.caringbridge.org/visit/natalieanderson

Thank you,

Jessica