Friday, March 30, 2007

Swiper, No Swiping!

On Wednesday night, we were able to pick up the newest addition to our family, Swiper the dog, a full-blood Doberman Pinscher puppy. I've agitated Charlotte to no end to let us have a Doberman, as my brother, sisters, and I had one named Babe, who we all recollect to be the best family pet in the history of man and petkind. Some people have a negative reaction to Dobermans, but I've long been convinced this is due to either lack of exposure or misplaced trust in media stereotyping of the breed.




Watching Alyse and Swiper play together is about the darn cutest thing I've ever seen, especially since they are both younglings in their own rite.




With Swiper having been recently separated from his family for the first time, his transition into the household has been a tiny bit challenging. He'll whimper when one of us walks out of the room, and occasionally at night both Alyse and he will vie for our attention.




And, of course, the biggest challenge I faced with Swiper coming in was convincing Charlotte to let him be an all-house dog. What I mean by this, is that he have no restrictions where he can go in the house. For those who don't know, Zoe was a kitchen dog and was not allowed on the carpet (I still have a strange feeling this help contribute to her neurotic behavior). Also for those who don't know, Charlotte has a god-like obsession with cleanliness and believes that, even if properly groomed and maintained, dogs have invisible dirt that gets on the carpet. Swiper, seen above, senses that he will have to win over Charlotte's heart to earn this privilege.

Tuesday, March 27, 2007

You Grow Wild in My Heart



My flower child, you grow wild in my heart...

Tuesday, February 20, 2007

Baby Like Beckham

Generally, I try to contain my gushing about Alyse, but we may have uncovered her talent a little early in life. Every time I watch this video I am more and more astonished...

Friday, February 16, 2007

It's a Girl!

We were so thrilled to find out we are having another little baby girl, and Alyse will have a little sister! Here are a few of the sonogram photos:


Little foot.



Again, definitely a girl.



You could almost swear she's posing for the camera.



Another nice capture of the face with her hand above her right eye.


We do have a name picked out, but you'll have to ask to find out what it is.

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

I know a girl, a girl called Party.

Here are a few select pictures from Alyse's big first birthday jamboree on Sunday, Feb. 11, 2007. If you'd like to see all pictures from this event, kindly follow this link to Alyse's Birthday set on Flickr!



Alyse sporting her cool Dora birthday hat.



Alyse & Aubrey are genuine party animals!




The Birthday Girl, mommy, & daddy.



Alyse had quite a time with her birthday cupcake.



Alyse opening a Dora DVD from her aunt Joanna.




Alyse shows how much she loves uncle Marshall's present--a portable play tent with connecting escape tunnel!

Friday, February 09, 2007

Alyse Turns 1!

Alyse & Andy enjoy some pre-ceremony rough-housing.



Alyse is the only one not interested in the time-honored tradition of blowing out the birthday candle.



The unforgettable fire.



Alyse chows down on some birthday cake!



Alyse shows off her sporty new Dora sun shade.

Saturday, February 03, 2007

Monday, January 22, 2007

Out of Control



At a couple of weeks before her first birthday, Alyse has mastered walking; indeed, it is a rarer occasion these days to see her crawl. In the video you will observe this, and also my inability to summon her. (In the third shot we closed the door!)

Monday, January 08, 2007

Advanced Walking 101



Alyse demonstrates some higher level motor skills by walking to a ball and bending down to pick it up without sitting down. Also, her walking is becoming more fluid and less awkward.

Friday, December 29, 2006

Alyse's First Christmas

A few photos from Alyse's first Christmas:

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Christmas at Papa & Grandma's house.



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Uncle Charles shows Alyse the toy he and Aunt Rachel got for her.



Mommy & Lysie
Opening presents Christmas Eve morning at our house.




Unwrapping Daddy's Present
Helping Daddy unwrap one of his stocking presents from mommy.




Christmas Eve Nap
Sacked out Christmas Eve night before our trip to Tyler.




The Poky Little Puppy
Opening presents Christmas morning at Grammy's house.




Cousins in Dora Chairs
Alyse & Aubrey flash their cool Dora chairs.




Present from the Butlers
Opening her present from Aunt Amy, Unky Jeremy, and Jack!

Sunday, December 24, 2006

Two Videos...



After Alyse took her first steps independently on December 13, a few days after her 10-month birthday, we've scarcely had the opportunity to catch her in the act, so fascinated is she with the video camera. Here she is on Christmas Eve eve showing off just a little bit




Alyse plays with a learning toy given to her by her Uncle Charles and Aunt Rachel the night before. At 10 1/2 months old, she displays the depth of her operational cognitive abilities.

Friday, December 22, 2006

¡Alyse Navidad!




Merry Christmas from the Allen family!

Friday, November 24, 2006

Monday, November 13, 2006

Dancing Queen!



Alyse throws down some jive moves to the mono-melodic strains of "Old MacDonald" emitting from her bouncer.

You can dance, you can jive, having the time of your life
See that girl, watch that scene, dig in the dancing queen

Thursday, November 09, 2006

Nanny Heather!



We are so fortunate to have a live-in nanny for Alyse now and got her out of the evil daycare! Heather is wonderful with Alyse and they get along beautifully.

Now we just have to be careful, lest Alyse's first word is "Nanny...."

Saturday, October 28, 2006

It's Official...Moreso...


I suppose every pregnancy seems a little unreal until you get to see that first sonogram, which we did on Wednesday. Shortly before the scheduled sonogram, we had to make an unscheduled appointment with Alyse's pediatrician because Alyse has been very sick for several days (later revealed to be an ear infection). Her emergency appointment (3rd floor of the Diagnostic Clinic) was scheduled for 2:00, and the sonogram (1st floor of the Diagnostic Clinic) was scheduled for 2:30. Needless to say, at 2:29 we were still waiting to see Dr. Hudson. Kindly, his nurses had us go to the sonogram and fit us back in after we were finished. Alyse, being the thoughtful child she is, waited until after we were out of the ultrasound room before vomiting in my jacket.

Friday, October 20, 2006

Thursday, October 19, 2006

Friday, October 13, 2006

All Bundled Up!

As the weather has turned colder, we've had to go shopping for more fashionable winter clothes. Observe:

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Tuesday, October 10, 2006

That Makes Four!

That Makes Four

Alyse is holding the positive pregnancy test if you can't tell.