PICTURE POST

Hi there.
Just a quick post with a couple of pictures to show you what I've been up to since my birthday - lots of playing outside with Mummy, Daddy and Johnno, it's definitely my new favourite thing to do.

PARTY! PARTY! PARTY!

You know what? I am such a lucky little girl. To celebrate my first birthday, Mummy and Daddy organised a fantastic party for me (well, Mummy did most of the work). All my family and friends came and I had the best time. Not only was I totally spoilt with all the beautiful pressies, but I got some of the best cuddles ever from so many different people. It's lucky I'm such a little socialite or it could have been overwhelming!

Here I am having a great time walking around the back yard. Mummy says I look beautiful in yellow - even if it was yellow with a tinge of grease and chocolate by the end of the day. (Thanks Aunty Blythe for saving me from a whole body coating of boat grease!)And all us kids were very lucky because Pop Mark let us play on his boat. Here I am with my cousin Jack and one of my best friends Maddison. Then it was time for the cake. Mmmm, cake. I thought the candle was lovely, but I can't figure out why Mummy would freak out whenever I put my hand near it. And she said she wouldn't be one of these overprotective types...
Mummy wasted, oops, I mean took lots of time to put each M&M mini around the outside of the cake - they had to follow the colour pattern or there would have been trouble. And if you can't see it quite clearly in the photos, she even spelled Hannah out in M&Ms on the top.Mummy and Daddy even let me stick my hand into the icing to have a little taste. There's nothing like red food colouring to fire up a little one!Overall, it was a fantastic party and I'm so glad everyone could make it. Thank you all so much for your well wishes and for all the lovely presents - I have many hours of fun and looking good ahead of me!
And all I can say now is.... bring on Christmas!

BIRTHDAY GIRL!

Well, I've made it. I am now officially a one-year-old. Mummy says I am growing up so fast - I'm not sure if she means I can do so many clever things now or if she just means I am literally growing in the upwards direction quickly... She also says she thinks I am becoming a beautiful little girl and Daddy keeps going on about how much personality I have (I'm not sure what personality is but I hope it's a good thing!)

The photos I've posted here were taken on my birthday - September 29th. It also happened to be AFL Grand Final Day (and I should note that Geelong beat Port in the most boring game ever). This first photo is me standing behind my tower of presents - I hope the tower gets taller as I do each year!Here I am after Daddy helped me to open a couple of my presents - he's working on getting my new Little People Plane out of it's box while I do my best Derek Zoolander impersonation.And boy, was I happy with my pressies! If you look carefully, you can see my favourite new toy in my left hand - it's the little red headed pilot from my plane and I haven't put her down since I got her (with the exception of naps and meals - although she has had a bit of a kip with me a couple of times)Mummy's favourite new toy is the zoo - you should see how clever she is. She can even put all the animals in alphabetical order (and yes, she has done that more than once already). I prefer a more random, all-over the house configuration, but that's just me.And this last picture shows what happens when Daddy gets to dress me in the morning. So what does my t-shirt actually say? My Daddy knows how to fix things? No. My Daddy knows about computers? No. My Daddy knows Mummy is the boss? No. It actually says 'My Daddy knows everything'. I am still waiting for the proof on this one!So at one, I am walking, I can feed myself, I am starting talk, I know how to work a crowd and I have lots and lots of admiring fans and friends. It's a pretty good life being one. Stay tuned for party post - very exciting!

I CAN WALK!

Hi there. Welcome to my first attempt at uploading video footage onto my blog page. Given that my mum is helping me with this and the technological nature of it, it could be a complete disaster!

Anyway, the little video I have included shows me stepping out in the family room. I think I only take 3 steps in the footage, but I've made it up to five in a row now. And you should see me when I have my trolley that Grandad made for me to push around! I am a total speed demon.

You'll have to excuse Mum's very bad recorded voice - she gets a little excited when I am walking - hence the giant waaahoooo when I drop down. And you can see I am about to start reading my very favourite book at the end - it's called 'Where is the Green Sheep' and I love to turn the pages for anyone who will read it to me.

Hope you enjoy our little film and I will post again soon,
Hannah

TALIA AND MADDISON

I am just so lucky to have so many excellent friends! This week we had a visit from Talia, Maddison and Sara. As you can tell from my recent posts, I just love spending time and playing with the other kids. Dad says that I am so much like my mum in that respect, I guess he's right but don't tell him I agreed!

Here we all are posing for a group shot - the only way Mum and Sara could get us all to stay still in the same shot was to turn the TV on! Sad, I know. Hence why it appears Talia and I are doing our best Peter Brock impressions (you remember, from those annoying tyre adds where he would never look directly at the camera).Talia and I also had a great time playing with the magnets from the fridge - "See Talia, this one is cut out in the shape of a person..."And of course their were the usual laughs and lots more fun playing in the tunnel, tent and with the copious quantities of toys I seem to have accumulated.Thanks for coming girls, I can't wait 'til next time. (PS - Talia, make sure you bring your walker again - that was very helpful).

Hannah

POP MARK'S BOAT

Hello there! I am very excited about the new addition to our back yard. I think I already told you that Gran and Pop Mark are less than a month away from both being back in Perth for good. Well, because of this, Pop Mark had to bring his boat back when he first moved and he really needed somewhere for it to live. So for a little while at least it is going to live at our house.

As you can see, I had great fun playing in the boat with Pop - lots of room to crawl, heaps of places to pull to stand... ... and an assortment of new maritime things to try and ingest!Thanks Pop Mark, hanging out on Two Bucks II was lots of fun - I can't wait to hit the waves!

Hannah

TOY BASKETS & WALKING

Mum and Dad have bought some new shelving cubes and they have these great baskets for some of the spaces. Not only do the baskets hold all my toys, but they make great leaning posts. I have learnt though to be careful when using them to pull myself to stand - they can be a little wobbly and I have to admit I did learn that the hard way!

I have also figured out that I almost fit in a basket, but that's a challenge for another day...

Mum says I should also let you know that I am on the verge of walking. I cruise around the furniture and move pretty easily from lounge to lounge to coffee table now. I'll even reach up and use the kitchen bench or table to help me at this point. I will also stand on my own with nothing to hold on to at all. And today I took my first little step (towards Heidi, mum's friend from school) - Mum tried to play it cool, but I could tell how excited she was. I gave it another shot for Daddy too - should be on my feet any day now, look out!

Hannah

TROUBLE X2

Here I am with my best friend Sophie. Mum, Dad and I went to visit her and Aunty Megan the other day and it was great. Sophie can be a little bit shy sometimes, but it doesn't take long for her to relax around me - especially since I am such a peristent little chicken (that's what Mum says anyway). I can see that she and I have many adventures ahead of us.

Mum got a little frustrated with us this day as she couldn't get us both to be still at the same time for the camera. She used the word 'ominous' - I wonder what that means...
And by the way, check out our outfits - pretty interesting from a couple of mums who weren't going to dress their daughters in pink!

Hannah

HANGING OUT WITH DYLAN

Yes, yes. As you can see I am becoming quite the little socialite. Here I am with my good friend Dylan. His mum, Alison, brought him down to our place the other day and we had great fun. The only thing is that when Mum and Alison get together all they seem to do is talk. Blah, blah, blah. Dylan and I ended up resorting to sleep they went for so long!
And what is my secret for the incredible growth rate? A diet rich in iron of course...
Love and kisses,
Hannah

CHLOE AND COHEN

I had the best time the other day. My friends Chloe and Cohen came to visit and we had a fantastic time playing in my Dora tent and tunnel. Daddy's 30th birthday balloons also provided us with hours of entertainment as we chased them around the lounge room.

Chloe and Cohen brought their mum and dad with them. Mum and Dad were very happy to catch up with Natalie and Chris and mum loved the chance to cuddle April and Taj - the 4 month old twins. Daddy says Mummy didn't like babies much before I came along, I can't really see it myself...

Can't wait to see them again,

Hannah

AUSTRALIA ZOO

Let me just start with a quick sorry for not posting for so long - I have a pretty good excuse this time! Daddy had a serious heart arithmia a few weeks ago and to cut a very, very long story short, needed open heart valve replacement surgery. He's almost 4 weeks post surgery now and is doing fantastically well. We walk a couple of times and day and I'm loving having him home. I think he'll even see my first steps...

So, back to Australia Zoo...

While we were in Brisbane, Mum couldn't resist the temptation to drag me off to Australia Zoo. I can see that I have many years ahead of "Oh yeah, Hannah wanted to go there" as a cover for all the things she wants to do but is too embarrassed to admit to! In saying all that, the zoo was pretty good. The show in the Crocoseum was a lot of fun and not nearly as scary as the one at Movieworld (that is if you don't have a snake, bird, elephant or crocodile phobia!). There was a great range of animals and the enclosures were all very well put together. Images of Steve Irwin are everywhere which was a little sad, but it seems he is living on through every thing he has put together there.

Here I am hanging out at lunch time - Pop Mark thought his sunnies would look cool on me and he was right! Either I've adopted an instant attitude problem or I can smell something a little suspect.
Pop Mark also had a lovely time explaining the elephants to me - I liked the way they could break big branches with their trunks and then just eat them. And the giant soccer ball was pretty cool too.
Then it was on to my favourite part of the day - patting the kangaroos. Now we have heaps of kangaroos round our place. We see them every time we go walking near the golf course, but patting these kangas was fantastic. I had such a big smile - absolutely loved it!
The koalas were also very cute - Mum was surprised to discover a couple of them were even awake. Not bad seeing they tend to sleep for 20 hours a day!
And here we are posing for the compulsory cheesy tourist pic - I'm going to let you all think that this is a real crocodile and I am the bravest baby in the whole world. (If you are buying that then you should give me a call so I can hook you up with some professional help.) All the other people who were around when we were taking these photos commented on how cute I was - sometimes it's just hard work being this adorable!
And at the end of the day, what else is there to do but to give your fans a smile and a wave.
Overall, it's a great place and well worth a visit if you are ever in that part of the world.

Hannah

MOVIEWORLD

Mum and Dad thought it was a good idea to take me to Movieworld while we were in Brisbane. Hang on, who are we kidding, Mum and Dad wanted to go to Movieworld and they dragged me along for the ride. Luckily Gran came too so I had someone sensible to talk to!

We started the day with a quick walk to decide what we were keen to do. We decided it would be good to start with the Police Academy Stunt Show. There were lots of explosions, burn outs and generally loud noises. As you can see in the first picture, I wasn't so sure about the quality of the acting presented in the show... I did like the exploding helicopter though!
From here, Mum and Dad decided they would chance their luck on the Superman Escape rollercoaster. If you look carefully at this picture, you can see Mummy sitting in the far seat four rows from the front (in a white shirt). If you look really carefully, you can see that she is sitting next to an empty seat. Apparently Daddy is too tall for the Superman Escape. Needless to say, Daddy is no longer a Superman fan. (But Mum really loved it - it was the best ride she's been on and now she thinks she's pretty tough).
So fresh from the rejection of one rollercoaster, we headed for another - the Lethal Weapon ride. Daddy was pleased to discover that he was allowed on this one, although he was questioning his decision about 5 minutes after the ride had stopped and he was pale and sweaty! Mum didn't fare too well after this one either... You can see them in the picture, third car from the back.
Not to be outdone by my incredibly soft parents, I thought it was time to give my first ever ride a go. Gran isn't a big fan of the rollercoasters so she jumped at the chance to take me on the Loony Toons train. I liked the ride, but wasn't too keen on being strapped in, especially when they decided to go around a second time.
After the ride, Mum and I posed for the compulsory Movieworld shot - you can see she is still looking a little pale after her Lethal Weapon encounter! But Daffy and I are pretty cute.
And after a big day at a theme park, testing all the rides, eating dodgy cafeteria food and compulsory souvenir shopping what else is there to do other than a well earned nap. Next step, Australia Zoo...
Hannah.

LOOK OUT BRISBANE!

Hello again. Usual apologies for the delay in posting - this time I have a pretty good excuse. I've been a little busy traveling interstate. Mum, Dad and I went to Brisbane to visit Gran and Pop before they move back to Perth for good. We had a fabulous time - so much so that I won't be able to include it all in one post, so get ready for a couple of BrisVegas installments.
Mum was pretty nervous about the holiday. Well, not so much the holiday itself, but she was worried about how I would go my first time on a plane. I mean 4 hours is a long time for an active tike like myself to spend cooped up mid air. She needn't have worried. I slept for the first couple of hours and played happily for the second half of the flight. If only the return trip had been so good...
Gran came and collected us from the airport and from that time on, she and Pop were fantastic. They took me to some cool places, had a room especially set up for me, had lots of new friends for me to meet and even looked after me so Mum and Dad could go to the movies and go shopping (Daddy was just stoked about that!) I think my big grins in these pics shows just how good I thought they were. I think they were pretty impressed with me too.








I even learnt some new tricks while we were staying at their place. They had a picnic basket in the family room that was just the right height for me to practise my pulling to stand. I was so good at it by the end of our visit. We'll just forget about the couple of massive stacks I had while honing my skills - let's just say it's a good thing I don't really bruise...

This is what I was doing my first day in Brisbane...Then I was up and their was no stopping me...I even gave the one hand off a shot!

Stay tuned for the next Brisbane update...

Hannah.