Luck of the Irish

Our camera has been inoperable for the past few weeks, but Dave just got it up and running again this morning. So.......we finally have some new pictures of Bella to share, which is the real reason why you visit this blog anyway. Bella had a nice visit with Grandma and Papa today as they came out our way for a pre St. Patrick's Day visit. Dave came home early from work and we all had a really nice afternoon together. This was my second time at making corned beef and cabbage and my father, the true Irishman that he is, ate it with gusto. My mom even had some and Dave had seconds so it seems it went over pretty well. My mom made a very chocolate-icious cake that we all seemed to have room for at the end of the afternoon. Bella has been cutting some new teeth the past few days and hasn't had much of an appetite. But her visit with Grandma and Papa surely cheered her up as did the time she got to spend with Dave, who has been working a ton of hours lately. Bella visited the park with Papa and shared her extensive jewelry collection with Grandma comprised of many $1 clearance items purchased at Kohl's.

We hope to enjoy a relaxing weekend together, which includes going out for Hackettstown's first ever St. Patrick's Day parade. This is a big event for this town and we can't wait to participate in it with our friends and their little ones. Dave will be marching with the Knights of Columbus and one of us will be 'wearing' Bella in the Ergo. (I'm secretly hoping it will be Dave! And I am also secretly hoping to find a Harp on tap at one of the local venues before St. Patrick's Day week is over). The forecast is looking favorable. Pictures to follow!

In other news, Isabella's vocabulary had expanded immensely and there are simply too many words to keep track of (strawberry, raspberry, cool, car, mail, keys, snow, ice, nice, chick, pig, cow, hands, knee, slide, norning, night, milk, kiwi, park, face, nose, etc). She has been putting some words together as well. Her favorite sayings are "I got it" and "hold it". Her favorite songs currently are "the Hello song" and "Old Joe" which she also likes to sing from her music class. Papa repeatedly sings "A B C's" to her and she now sings along - the sounds that she can, that is, and I have to admit she does the tune quite well. Bella loves to eat cheese, smoothies, yogurt, homemade soups (Mama's or Grandpa's), chicken, beans, potatoes, eggs, kiwi, carrots, broccoli, pasta, Grandma's spinach pie, pancakes, and salmon.