"First" Haircut

Leah had her first haircut in America today.... poor thing thought she was going to my brother's for Thanksgiving dinner which she was, but she also had Aunt Sue give her a trim while the whole Brehaut/Porter clan watched! She was less than impressed- and I am sure she does not have pleasant memories from the "buzz cut" she had at Bal Asha. Anyhow she has more of a bob now and less of a mullett!

Thanksgiving

Leah's first Thanksgiving was a lot of fun. She kept us all entertained and our progressive dinner worked out wonderful. We even lived on the edge and kept her up until 7:30 pm at the Michauds for dessert, although as you can see she came in her camo pj's to inspire the hunters! Her 2nd Thanksgiving with the Porter/Brehaut clan will be on Sunday so she is really getting to see what this American holiday is all about.

Conar and Whitney sharing their dessert with Leah

Skyping with Uncle Anthony and Grammie Carla in Arizona, while I sit on Great Grammie's Lap

I played football while others were watching it....

Getting ready to walk over to the Moores for round one!

26/11

Daddy and Leah on Marine Drive where the terrorists came ashore...

The Taj Hotel, one of the Hotels under attack last year at this time...

A year ago today we were glued to CNN watching the terrorist attacks on Mumbai unfold and waiting to hear from our contacts in India that our daughter, whom we had yet to meet, was safe and sound in her orphanage in Mumbai. Thankfully before our meal was served we heard back from Minal and Sunil that Leah Aasawari was fine and that Bal Asha was not near the attacks.

Today Leah is here watching the Macy's parade with me and disrupting my Black Friday sale flyer reading while Daddy is of course, out hunting.

What a year... we have never had so much to be THANKFUL for

Leah's first Thanksgiving will be later today when the men are home from hunting. We are doing a progressive meal with drinks and appetizers at the Moores, main meal at our house and dessert and coffee at the Michauds. Stay tuned for pictures.

Confidence

Leah has no lack of self confidence, infact, she may even be a bit cocky... this video demonstrates a bit of this... we did not teach her this, we were trying to teach her how to say I LOVE YOU, but instead this "habit" has developed....

A True Maine Girl...

Yes, we are rednecks. "Uncle" Rick shot a buck this morning and so Leah got to "meet" her first dead deer. We hurried over with the camera and with Michelle and Megan who are on Thanksgiving vacation. Here are a few pics... mostly so Grammie Carla in Arizona can see it and Daddy who is working away. Leah kept "petting the dog"!

Hampden Basketball!

Wrong sport Leah... soccer season is over!
Playing in "the stable" post game...

My first tootsie pop... as you can see more went on her shirt than in her mouth!

Brent and his ladies!

The biggest Hamlin great grandchild and the smallest!

Winter sports have begun here and so begins our last season of watching "BIG" cousin Jacob (he's 6' 6") play basketball for the Broncos- next year we will have to become Bentley fans to watch him play! He did a great job- he had 2 dunks on Saturday afternoon!
On Saturday we went to the first scrimmage of the season- Leah had a blast playing with fellow H.A. fans Maggie and Brent and visiting with Anna and Whitney! We are not sure how many games Leah will make it to since they tend to start at 7 and as we know Leah is usually fast asleep by then!

Pictures courtesy of Jacob W. Metzler

17lbs!

My first size 12-18 month jeans! I am getting big!
Notice this gorgeous sweater, our close friend Jane York, knitted it for Leah- what talent!

The Good Night Moon room at the Children's museum...

Planting a garden at the museum... the best part of this exhibit- it plays "The Garden Song" by Maine's own Dave Mallett!

Let me out of here!

Leah did it! She is finally over 17lbs and she is 30" tall! We had her 2 year well check up and the doctor was impressed with how she is doing not only with growing but developmentally as well. We will go back in January for another weight check and in March for the rest of her immunizations. At that point she will be all caught up with "regular" kids with her shots. Here are some pictures from this week.

M-A-I-N-E Go Blue!

Leah went to her first UMaine hockey game on Sunday. We went with the Metzlers and she and Maggie had almost as fun watching the games as they did playing in the bleachers! Maine beat BU (the defending National Champs) for the first time in almost 5 years at the Alfond. Pat's Pizza and a Sam Adams tasted pretty good after as well! Here are some pics.. thanks Jake! Leah also went to UMaine on Saturday afternoon with my Mom and I to attend Culturefest, a great program put on by the International Students Association. She "talked" to a student in Marathi, ate some chicken curry and saw some neat exhibits. Later Leah experienced some more "culture" when we went to Papa's hunting camp to check to see if he, Daddy or Uncle John had any luck hunting.

A busy week...

A great day for a wagon ride with Lilly Edwards..
Patty cakes?

ahh... holding hands...

Madison and Lillian came over to play and they have matching jackets!

I am less than impressed that my parents made us go outside in our PJ's to see the first snow of the year!

"Um, Mom there is a giant bear in our living room"

Which makes a great reading corner... thanks Uncle John!

The morning after my birthday... I love my new shopping cart and stove!

This first week as a 2 year old has been very busy! We have voted, had our first cold/bug of some sort, which was VERY scary for Mom and Dad, we had friends over to play, saw our first snow on the ground and we lost another dear family friend. Mom and Dad are heading to Lincoln this afternoon to bury Pat Ludden. We are so saddened by all of these recent untimely deaths and it makes us cherish each moment we have with those we care about.

Here is a video of Leah and Lilly playing with Bella... for about ten minutes the dog let them "dress her" in Mr./Mrs. Potato head hats and other accessories...

Happy Election Day!

Leah and I walked to the voting polls today. We got to Vote for "Uncle" Rick for the School board and NO on Question 1... we do not want to reject a law that protects ANYONE from discrimination!

I'm 2!

A new book!
Will taught me how to unwrap presents...

Daddy opening my card...

Using the Happy Birthday pick as a utensil to eat the frosting

A roomful of new toys, but Leah and Will have the most fun with the kitchen set I got at a yard sale!

Leah turned 2 today! We had a wonderful afternoon celebraring her special day. The day is a bit bittersweet in that we wish we had been with her on the day she was born and in all the months since not just the past 6. It is also a time to reflect on her birth parents and to think of what a wonderful gift they gave to us when they made the hard decision to take her to Bal Asha Trust. Adoption is amazing and Leah Aasawari Harmon is equally amazing.