The Panda

Did we mention we call her Hannah Panda?  Well, when she was little. . . and Sharon would put her on her shoulder, she (Hannah) would curl up and kinda resemble a little panda bear, at least, in out little minds she did. . .

Anyhow!  As I type she is in her 8th month.  It's still a wonder that anyone gets anything done around here.  Not that she requires so much of our time, but she's just so incredibly adorable!  We just sit there and babble with her and stare at her.  You never know what she's going to do next that could be the cutest thing EVER!

She's beginning to sit up on her own.  She's not getting up by herself, but once she's there she can stay up for quite a while.  She thinks it's grand.  She's now definitely waving hello and goodbye.  A week ago it was more like an arm flap, but now she's got her wrist involved! 

She is in bed at night usually around 8:30 or 9:00 and stays down until 7:30a.m.  Sometimes she calls and asks for a diaper change anywhere from 6a.m. to 7:30a.m.  And there have been these blessed events where, after she gets a diaper change around 7:30a.m., she goes back down till 9 and sometimes 10!!  Sharon loves that.  And I, well, I go off to work.  I have several Hannah pictures at work to remind me of her unfathomable cuteness.

Today, 8-19, she rode in her grocery cart/high chair cover at Kroger.  She was thrilled with a new vantage point of all the groceries and shoppers.  And did I mention that she was cute?  Folks, it really is remarkable!

Hannah's Cross-Stitch by Grandmother

I just hung a beautiful cross-stitched birth announcement in Hannah Noel's room. The story is equally as beautiful... As some of you know, mom was working on Hannah's cross-stitched birth announcement on her death bed. She had done the baby feet portion and Hannah's name. I picked it up about four weeks before she passed away. I did the 'D, e, and c' in December for her birth date. Mom looked at it, didn't like the way I had done the 'D' (admittedly, it was wrong),  and she asked for her glasses, sat up on the side of the bed, and with Brad, Hannah and I watching, she took out my 'D,E and C' and did them over. Needless to say, the 'D' was correct this time!  She got about half-way through the 'c' and became sick and had to lay back down. She never fully sat up again like that on her own to do anything. About a week before mom's death, Hospice was asking if there was anything that was incomplete that mom would want finished.  I pointed to Hannah's cross-stitch laying on mom's dresser. On Thursday, March 6, I picked up the cross-stitch, sat by mom's hospital bed in her bedroom and told her what I was doing. I walked her through every stitch I was making.  "mom, I'm finishing the 'c' in December."  "mom, I'm putting the '3' in for Hannah's birth date." etc.  While I was talking, Mom's right hand slowly went up and down to show me that SHE was cross-stitching.  So she DID finish Hannah's piece! That was on Thursday. As you know, mom passed away the following Tuesday. I have just gotten the picture matted & framed. It hangs in Hannah's room and she LOVES it.  She really does reach out for it, touch it, smile at it. It's wonderful.  Thanks mom!