Uh Oh...Santa Claus is Coming...Look Busy!

The reindeers are restless, the elves are working overtime, and Santa is dusting off his sleigh. Must be Christmas time!

But what does this mean? Santa...the man himself...is coming to OUR house? Down OUR chimney? Uh oh...Adalyn realizes that her diapered-tuchas isn't going fast enough to prepare for SANTA CLAUS!! And to add to the preparations, Mommom is coming for an early Christmas! OH NOES!! What is a baby to do??

"You better watch out..." OH NOES!

"You better not cry!" Adalyn holds back a tear...

"You better not pout, I'm telling you why..." Why's that Mom?

"Santa Claus is coming to town!" YAY! SANTA!!

Adalyn's not the only one excited by Santa. Mommy took a trip to see Aunt Holly and Owen! And Owen is SUPER EXCITED about Santa delivering presents in his stocking and under the tree.

Owen puts the finishing touches on the Christmas tree...TADA!

Owen builds towers then knocks them down to get in shape for furiously unwrapping presents from Santa. (Insert 80s montage here)

Adalyn's never seen Santa before (though she's been one), so Adalyn is doing everything she can to prepare for this momentous occasion.

Adalyn has a direct line to the jolly old elf and calls Santa frequently to say "Hi!"

Adalyn practices her super cute expressions to stop Santa in his tracks when he arrives.

Adalyn tries to get on the naughty list the only way that a one year old can....by making silly faces! (Adalyn initiated this game, and it only went downhill from there.)

Adalyn samples all of the candy meant for Santa...to make sure they're good of course.

Time to get back on the nice list - Adalyn shares her hard-stolen candy.

Aaaaand we're back on the naughty list as Adalyn rescinds her offer.

Ever since Adalyn found out that Santa shimmies down the chimney to deliver his loot, Adalyn has taken it upon herself to make sure the chimney is a go for launch.

Adalyn hopes the fire dies down before Santa arrives...no one wants Santa Flambe.

Adalyn learns that fires are hot, hot, hot!

What is Christmas without a Christmas tree? Nothing. And since Adalyn has been petting every tree AND Christmas tree in sight, she's super excited that she can take one home from the shelter.

"I'm a lumberjack, and I'm okay. I sleep all night, and I work all day...I put up...trees??"

Uh oh...here comes Supervisor Baby making sure Daddy puts the tree up right.

Even tiny supervisor babies have to take a break now and then for hugs and kisses.

Supervisor Baby is hard at work directing Daddy. Just don't tell her the instructions are upside down.

Supervisor Baby even puts Mommom to work. No free lunches here!

Now that the tree is up, Adalyn tells Daddy where to place the lights for maximum awesomeness. Only the best for Santa will do.

"A little bit higher...no, no, too high...there you go, Daddy!"

TADA! Our "twee!" as Adalyn calls it, is complete and full of Christmas cheer. Santa would be proud.

There's a reason why most of the ornaments are on the top-half of the tree...

On top of everything else, Adalyn finds out that she needs to go shopping to get OTHER people gifts...WHEW! This Christmas thing can be exhausting!

"Okay, I got my socks...now where are my...AHA...my shoes!"

Adalyn is excited to put her big girl shoes and socks on so that she can toddle around in style.

It's time for a well-deserved break. So Adalyn, Mommy, Daddy, and Mommom go to the River of Lights to enjoy the Christmas festivities.

Adalyn has no time for pictures as she takes in all of the lights and ambiance.

We are greeted to peacocks as we first walk in. Adalyn is no stranger to peacocks.

An outdoors aquarium...

A turtle

Fish

Coral reef with some suspicious looking people...

Stingray

Blue whale

Octopus

Flower garden

Daddy and Adalyn enjoying the view.

We also came across a swarm of bees and hummingbirds ("bir!" as Adalyn says in the background).

Light displays reflecting in the water

Uh oh...looks like Mommom's about to give Adalyn muchas smooches!

Adalyn successfully fends off the attack...for now!

Did Mommom give muchas smooches to Adalyn?? Find out next week on Kiss...That...BABY!

Overview of the park

Looks like the River of Lights has a River of People...whoosh!

Mommy and Adalyn gear up for a tractor picture! (Haha, gear up...)

A "yiyun"

Da birds

Oooh...a fierce scorpion!

Lizard just chillin

My teeth are fierce but my arms say otherwise

Jingle Bells!

Ah yes. Nothing like penguins to remind you of how much the frigid air robbed you of feeling in your fingers and toes!

Bonus kitteh pics:

It's like a cat-shaped heart for an early Valentine's Day.

Adalyn's First Taste of Thanksgiving

Okay, okay, it's not Adalyn's first Thanksgiving.  But it's the first time she's had some Thanksgiving deliciousness. Mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, bread with pumpkin butter...MmmmmMMMM!

But before we get to Thanksgiving, let's check up on Adalyn's progress in the cute department:

She's walking, she's talking, and she's got the shoes to show it! So how is she getting her cute everywhere?
1. Adalyn says "BANG" and points both her fingers. Where'd this come from, you ask? From none other than the opening credits to the Big Bang Theory. Sometimes there is dancing and booty shaking...
2. Adalyn points a finger and says "Stay!" with all of the authority a 1-yr old can muster. So THAT'S what Mommy looks like when she says it...
3. Adalyn can now wave and say "Bye" as a complement to her "Hi" routine. Many unsuspecting victims have been unprepared for this particular onslaught of cuteness.
4. Add the cats to the list of unsuspecting victims...if Adalyn sees Ninja or Peeper, they get a heavy dose of "Hi, Cat!"
5. And add inanimate objects to the list as well. Adalyn picks things up, puts them to her ear, and says, "Hi!" Her favorite object to do this with, of course, is Mommy's phone.
6. Whenever Adalyn sees a dog, not only does she say "dah" for dog, she pants like one, too.
7. Adalyn puts her finger to her mouth and says, "Shhhhh." Especially when we're about to wake up Daddy!
8. Lots of new words have been added to the vocabulary: "ree" for tree, "bay" for baby, "bir" for bird, and of course, all of the other ones listed above.

With Christmas around the corner and a birthday under her belt, Adalyn's quite the pro when it comes to opening presents.

"Is it a hat? No, it doesn't sound like one..."

Daddy's little cupcake/babycake indeed...

"Yay! More presents!" Thanks Grandma Ada!

"Look Mommy! Free shirt included with wrapping paper!"

Adalyn loves her zebra shirts. So does Mommy.

Adalyn eyes the loot and is very pleased.

Uh oh...a game of Hat the Baby is afoot. This time with a real hat.

Adalyn greets her new sock monkey with lots of kisses.

Blocks for Adalyn, tissue paper for the cats. It's a win-win for everybody.

Cat toys, baby toys...it's really all the same thing.

Adalyn sees some animals she's familiar with and new ones she'd like to get to know better.

Adalyn's second birthday cake - thanks Aunt Holly!

Ah yes, the invisible cat trap.

Another victim is claimed...

Yay! Thanksgiving's finally here! Thanksgiving is all about the food, fun, family, and friends - and we had a heaping helping of each. Thanks Mark, Anna, and Anthony for a wonderful and delicious Thanksgiving!

"Oh hai, Mom! Did you see all of these new toys I get to play with?"

"Hey, wait a second! This is just like the one I have back at home!"

Give a baby keys for their birthday, and they take the car out for a spin.

"Vroom, vroom! BEEP BEEP!"

Adalyn shifts it into third. She's a pro!