Bell just brings so much light to our home. She is beautiful, sweet, funny and oh-so-sunny. Even though the boys occasionally say, “I don’t want a sister anymore” when she cries in the car, they are so happy to be big brothers… and I think she’s beginning to realize how lucky she is to be born into this crazy household. It used to be that the squeals they made when I got home from work would frighten her. No more. She now just looks at them and giggles.

She’s not quite walking yet, but SO CLOSE. She’s standing alone and walking holding the wall… any day now. Her first word(s) was “Hi Baby.” She said it for the first time on Christmas when I was reading her a book with a baby. I said, “Hi Baby” and she repeated it perfectly. Chris’ mom and I just about flipped. Since then, she says it to everyone… including grown men. It’s adorable.

She’s still a giant. Over 100% in height and 85% in weight. It’s just been so nice to have a big, healthy baby… so much less to worry about than when we had the boys! Sometimes I worry that I’m TOO laid back about her eating. I remember nearly measuring every meal the boys had (not to mention all the medication), and with her, I rarely pay attention!

More later on her birthday, but here’s a video of our little lady at 1 year old.

Had a great new years with the Appelbaums. Ms. Karin came over to feed us some of her tasty grub (a welcomed break from mom and dad’s!) and her kids – Mason and Cameron – stayed up to ring in the new year until 12:30 am!!! It’s the latest we’ve ever been up, and we probably could have been up for another hour with no problem.

To give you a hint as to the alcohol consumed, Mr. Mark used to be a bartender, and was whipping up the Long Island Iced Teas like it was (still) his job. Needless to say, we had our first family sleepover. Woot.

What a great way to kick off a new year!

Cheers,
Quinn

Again… a lot of buildup, but it was worth it! We had a great Christmas Eve complete with Grammy, Deanna (our fabu nanny), Emma (the best thing out of South Africa), Tia, Uncle Chancey and Baby Stella. Our tradition on Christmas Eve is that we all exchange presents and Christmas day is all about Santa. Mom and dad got us way cool slippers and jimmies – also a tradition.

In addition to a few really fun toys Santa brought (remote controlled robots, batman building, dragon dungeons and star wars transformers), we also got big kid booster seats for the car – which honestly, we were super stoked about. Mom did it as kinda a joke to make the presents under the tree look full, but it ended up being a big hit. Note taken for Santa!

Overall, it was a great Christmas and we feel all our good behavior paid off!

Merry Christmas to all!
Cooper (and family)

P.S. (No mailed Christmas card this year, but here’s our electronic one!)

P.P.S. You gotta check out our response from Quinn on opening a present from Mimi

Mom and dad thought it would be fun for us to take BART into the city (only a 25 minute ride) to see all the lights and go ice skating at Union Square. Fun it was! I was absolutely fearless on the skates, and Cooper impressed me too with his bravery. Bell is another story, but I guess I’ll give her until next Christmas to get her skillz down.

The best part of the whole trip was when we were on our way back on BART waiting for our train. The UC Berkeley band was also waiting for their train with instruments galore. I FREAKED OUT when I saw a tuba and ran up to look at it. The guy was cool enough to put it around my neck (whilst holding some of the weight) to let me see what it felt like. Unbeknownst to him, I laid my germ-ridden lips right on the mouthpiece and gave it a hoot. The ladies went nuts. Literally. There were some really cute women standing around who gave me a huge round of applause. I think this might be the first time I ever flushed with embarrassment. Cooper also got a whack at it, which was way cool for him.

Tis the season!
Quinn

Also had a great time decorating the tree this year – especially the star on top.

Bell is getting really cool. She’s starting to blab – no words, just blabbing. She’s waving now, which we are all overly impressed with. And she laughs. Laughs and laughs and laughs. Particularly at me. She LOVES when I make faces at her and when Cooper talks to her. She loves reaching for our faces and clapping her hands. She’s 9 months now, and according to her doctor, she’s off the charts tall and 85% in weight. How embarrassing it will be if she turns out taller than me in 2 years?!?!

Eating my broccoli like mad to prevent it.
Quinn

Not only did we have our first sleepover, but it was with GIRLS. We don’t mess around, folks.

Our favorite girls, Pier and Piper, moved to Washington State a few months back, and we miss them so. Their mom and dad was at a wedding this weekend, so they got to stay over with us Saturday night. It was nonstop fun from the second they arrived to the second they left. All four of us crashed bigtime upon separation.

We had movie night at home, so we all got to go to BlockBuster and pick out a movie. Then mom and dad invited us to the “candy bar” where we got to pick out our favorite candy to accompany our popcorn and milk. WHAT A TREAT!

After movie night, we all went into our bedroom and made beds on the floor like we were camping out. Four four-year-olds in one room. Needless to say, there was some chaperoning going on.

The next morning, it was all about the plasma cars. For hours and hours and hours. Video below gives you a snapshot of the fun had by all.

But alas, they are now back home. Long distance relationships are tough, but we are committed!

Missing our ladies,
Cooper

Count Quinn