HA PA!!!!Doug's birthday is Tuesday.....yep, the big 28. The only thing he requested for his birthday was Ha Pa!!! (that is how we say hot pot, with excitement of course, hence the exclamation marks;) Doug learned of ha pa while in China and has been in love ever since. Let me tell you a little about ha pa, first of all it is awesome. It is kinda like fondue. We have a little burner on the table that heats the soup. There is a savory broth and a spicy broth, then we cook all kinds of good stuff, like green onions, bok choy, mushrooms, tofu, fish balls (well, not actual fish balls. They are balls made out of fish), pork, and beef, whatever really. All the stuff goes in a little metal net. The chinese call these nets spiders. We aren't real sure why, but we go along anyway. Then, just hold the spider in the broth and let it do "its thing". Eating is at least a 2 hour ordeal and if you happen to be Doug, it is about a 3-4 hour ordeal. You might even catch Doug in the middle of the night chowin down on ha pa and wiping the sweat off his brow (he likes it painfully hot). This actually happened the first time we had it, so I had to add it in there. We still tease him about it all the time.
Levi, Aly, Chloe, and "The Uncle Leroy Doll". My mom got this doll for Chloe and he looks pretty much just like Leves. Of course, we are getting quite a kick out of Chloe hugging it up and slobbering all over Uncle Leroy's face.
Doug introducing Chloe to Ha Pa!!! You can see the excitement in his face. Chloe definitely could feel her Poppa's excitement, she was screaming during the whole dinner. 
Mom and Uncle Mart........and I am not sure what is going on here.
Mama and Chloe on Thanksgiving morn
I know I blog quite a bit about the relationship between Doug and Chloe. I just love watching them together and how much they adore each other. My Poppa and I have always had this special love for one another. I think that is why I enojoy it so much with Doug and Chloe. It is kind of like living it all over again. My Poppa has always been my hero and no matter what happened, as long as my Pops was there, I knew everything would be okay. I know that Doug will forever be Chloe's hero too.
Doug and I have had this wooden egg for a few years and all the kids that come over have always really liked it (I know it is just an egg, but sometimes it seems that the most simple toys are the favs). We got it out for Chloe on Saturday morning. It is so crazy that our little baby is now playing with these toys!! I still cannot believe she is here. Every morning we wake up and look over and see Chloe smiling at us and ready to go (lately it has been a little too early). We call her "Rip Roarin Rodney" in the morning, because she is so excited. On another note, on occasion I lay down for a nap and Chloe and Poppa hang out. When I wake up he usually has changed her clothes and has put her in a little nightgown. He really loves nighties on her and I think it is just the cutest thing that he cares. 
HA PA!!!!
Levi, Aly, Chloe, and "The Uncle Leroy Doll". My mom got this doll for Chloe and he looks pretty much just like Leves. Of course, we are getting quite a kick out of Chloe hugging it up and slobbering all over Uncle Leroy's face. 
We recently started reading to Chloe. Even though she in only 4 1/2 months old, she seems to really enjoy it. She especially likes the pop-up-books. Doug makes all the voices for the different characters and she smiles and coos back at him. It is so much fun introducing her to all these new things and experiences. Everyday holds so much for us.
