Boppy!

Anabelle's just hangin' out & chillin' in the guest bedroom.

Baby Beauty in Black & White

Bonus Black & White Pic!

Your Inspirational Poster Image of The Day

"Keep on striving for what's just out of reach!"

Anksiebanks and Obi

What could be cuter than a picture of a baby? How about a picture of a baby talking to a dog? More pictures from this weekend can be found here. (Thanks to Michael and Mandy for the pictures.)

Wet Baby

I know I've been slacking with updates lately, but here's a series of cute bathtime pictures to make up for it. (I've also uploaded the pictures to Snapfish if you want to order any but you need to be registered to see the album.)

All Growns Up

I can't believe how fast Anabelle is getting so big! Compare how much space Anabelle used to take up in her little rocker chair. And it looks like she's outgrowing that top, too...

Anabelle's Bath

"I don't want to tell you how to do things, Grandma Mai, but I think I'm getting a little too big to take a bath in this blue bowl."


"Ah, that's much better! Now I can stretch out a bit!"

Miss Mohawk

Surrounded by flowers (or at least floral prints). And another great shot of her hair.

Happy Father's Day!

[More pictures from this weekend are available at either Shutterfly or Snapfish.]

I've been having a great Father's Day weekend. First, I was able to leave work early on Friday and went to get a haircut. I got there early but it turned out the appointment ahead of me had to cancel, so I got to go right away! Things were off to a good start already, and the weekend had hardly begun!

Then I got a new tank of gas and cooked some brats on the grill -- the first use of the grill this season. Afterwards Binh and I took Anabelle out shopping to Galleria where we got a couple items for my dad for Father's Day. We also bumped into Sarita and her husband, Rob, and were amazed at how their son, Kirin, had grown. I think the last time I'd seen him he was only one or two months old and now he's 17 months! He looked so different!! It'll be interesting to see how Anabelle changes when she's that old. Good thing I have this blog so I can track her growth.

Saturday was a very busy and very fun day. First we went over to Becky and Aaron's house for a Father's Day brunch. My parents brought an amazing fruit salad with a delicious assortment of fruit, including our favorite -- organic bananas! Becky and Aaron took care of everything else: An egg bake; cheesy potatoes; and a fabulous Baked Apple French Toast dish. Everything was so good, but I was especially fond of the French toast: I think I ate 3 pieces with syrup and homemade whipped cream on top!! Before brunch we opened gifts. My parents gave me a spiffy blue golf shirt that makes my way-blue eyes look even bluer. We all went in together and gave my dad a gift certificate to Best Buy so he could buy whatever movies or games he wants, although my mom says what he really wants is a new digital camera. Then Anabelle gave Grandpa his gifts: The baby book Grandfather Remembers: Memories for My Grandchild and a picture frame filled with pictures of Grandma and Grandpa holding Anabelle.

Next we headed over to Grandma Mai's house (AKA, "Buckingham" or "Ba's") . We dropped off Anabelle and did a little shopping at Eden Prairie Center. Then we went back for a delicious Vietnamese barbecue. I was still so full from the big brunch that I couldn't eat anything until 7pm! Luckily I still managed to find room for the half-dozen desserts that people had brought: Apple pie and ice cream; cookies and candies; watermelon and other fruits; and a homemade berry torte with homemade whipped cream. Anabelle slept most of the time she was there so everyone was very excited whenever she woke up. At one point I was burping her on my lap and she went into her "active alert" stage so everyone crowded around to watch her.

Finally, there's today, which is actually Father's Day. Binh and Anabelle surprised me with a Father's Day gift bag. Lots of good dad gifts, including cookies, new underwear, and Burnout 3: Takedown! I've been wanting this game for a while now, so it was the perfect gift. I even got a chance to play a couple races and rounds of Crash Mode (my favorite: I love smashing up a ton of cars in a big pileup) while Anabelle slept this morning. Then later today Binh plans to make this the perfect Geek Father's Day by taking me to see Batman Begins. As I said, what a busy, fun weekend. If I knew Father's Day was this much fun, I would have had kids a long time ago!

And for all of you who want more pictures, here are links to pictures from both celebrations yesterday. I've uploaded the pictures to two services, Shutterfly and Snapfish. I've never used either, so I don't know how good they are but Snapfish gives you 20 free prints when you first sign up (Shutterfly gives 15) and their prices seem cheaper: 12 cents per print versus 29 cents at Shutterfly, and the shipping seems cheaper. But if you sign up you can try both for free!

Thanks to everyone who helped make my first Father's Day so memorable, especially little miss Anabelle herself: She's the best gift of all and I'm so lucky she's come into my life.

Surprise!

Caught in the act!

Anabelle's Theory of Recollection

I think she's playing the piano in her sleep. Our little girl is so talented! Although she'll probably forget as she gets older.

Happy Feet!

Or: "Gotta Dance!"

Trapped!

Will Anabelle be able to escape this diabolical trap? Tune in tomorrow to find out -- same Bat-time, same Bat-channel!

Anabelle Playing

Anabelle's latest toy: The colorful play mat!

Hello, Grandma & Grandpa!

I love Anabelle's profile in this picture. It really accentuates her chubby generous healthy cheeks!

Storytime Sundays: Attack of The Giant Hand!!

What a gorgeous day for a short stroll!


Suddenly, a giant hand appears out of nowhere!!


At first Anabelle panics, frightened by the giant hand!


But then Anabelle remembers she commands the power of...THRUSH!!! (AKA, "Fungus Tongue")


No match for Anabelle's mighty tongue, the giant hand slinks away in defeat, vowing to return one day when Anabelle least suspects it.


The threat averted, mother and daughter take a well-deserved break. It's tough work battling giant, evil hands!

Sleepy Saturday

Anabelle and Daddy were exhausted today. Time for some sleep!

The Many Poses of Anabelle

She looks like she's bustin' a move in the picture above, and I swear she's reenacting a Spider-Man pose below:

You Want Pictures? We Got Pictures!!

Lately I've been hearing complaints that I'm not posting enough pictures of Anabelle. Not enough? What do you people want from me??? Luckily when I came home today Binh had taken several pictures of Anabelle and it was too hard to pick just one to post today so here are six more pictures of Anabelle, each more adorable than the last!!

Father & Daughter

Not the best picture of me (Good grief! Look at those jowls!!) but it's a rare picture of me with Anabelle so I suppose I'll post it despite the blow to my ego. (Besides, Binh said it was only fair after I posted this picture without warning her.)

Shhhhhhh!

I think Anabelle has the right idea: I'm calling it a night and heading to bed.

BURPPPP!!!

"Oh, excuse me! It must have been something I ate!"

Rapt Attention

Anabelle listens intently to Aunt Fawn's stories of Flight Attendant Horror.

Finally! A Baby Shower for Me (I mean, for Anabelle, of course)

That's me cutting cake at a surprise baby shower my co-workers threw for me yesterday. Not only did they catch me off guard (I thought shower season was over, and I wasn't expecting a shower since I'm the dad) but they were extremely generous, getting me a lot of great gifts, including the high chair from our registry that Binh thought was out of stock since no one else could find it. (In the background you can also make out Bhuvana holding up an adorable denim outfit they got for Anabelle.) Click the link for more pictures (and thanks to Joe for taking these pics so I could post them to the blog!)

Anabelle and Grandma

Anabelle with Grandma Bunny.