Lisa: I like you

But...I don't like you the BEST.

Lisa: 30 Day Shred - Level 1

She's shredded.

Lisa: Blow Your House Down

She'll huff, and she'll puff.

Lisa: Trick or Treat

Princess Nora gets the Halloween basics down.

Lisa: High Jump

You would think with all that buildup, there would be a little more height to Nora's hops. You would be mistaken.

Lisa: Elmo walking

Nora has a musical Elmo book, the kind with the buttons you push at certain parts of the story, to add sound effects. It was a gift.

PLUS:

1) Patented 'Elmo's walking music' dance
2) Coy 'I'm ignoring that camera' face
3) Fierce bear roar.

Those three things are my gift to YOU.

Lisa: Watch it again!

Pretty much everything you need to know about the Powerpuff Girls. A beginner's guide, if you will.

Lisa: Craft Lake City

Nora tried out a few new dance moves while listening to an adorable family Rockabilly band at the craft festival. Her face looked happier than this most of the time--I think she's just concentrating really hard on her newest creation, The Hand-Washer.

Lisa: Variations on a Theme

We haven't really been concentrating on the melody yet.

Lisa: Giraffe Pooped

Animals beware: your most private moments may become the highlights of a toddler's zoo trip.

Lisa: Alphabet with Pretzels

Does a mouthful of pretzels stop Nora from sharing her music with the world? No. No, it does not.

Lisa: Next time, won't you sing with me?

When I got home from tour, almost the first thing Nora did was sing the alphabet song. Best welcome back ever.

Ignore that copy of Titanic on the floor next to her.

Lisa: rocking out

Sarah and Blake took Nora to the Arts Festival while I was gone, and on the way out she got so tired that the only thing to do was to lie right down in the rocks and sing a little song.

Lisa: miniature golf

Nora was convinced that this ball channel lined with astroturf was a slippery slide, and she was determined to prove it (at the expense of her pants).

Lisa: mom's shoes

Any baby of taste enjoys walking in a pair of Louboutins now and then.

Lisa: Mommy loves you

Nora's come a long way from answering this question with "Wall-E."

Oh, man. My heart bursts open every time she bites her fist.

Lisa: To dance, or to read?

All the Single-- hey, KNUFFLE BUNNY!

Lisa: pretty fun

This is only a tiny taste of the wheelchair hijinks that ensued while we were waiting at the airport for Jeff's flight to come in. Thank goodness Sarah was on top of things, because I sure didn't film any of it.

Lisa: naughty

What did you do with all the wipes, Nora?

Lisa: single ladies

If only we could all start our days off with a little Single Ladies dance after bathtime.

Lisa: slide

Nora sits down and slides all by herself, while Grandma'am looks on.

Lisa: Happy Birthday, Uncle Jeff!

In just a few weeks, Nora will get to meet her uncle Jeff for the first time. I can't wait!

Lisa: Share with Nora!

I guess Nora thought Alex was hogging the piano.

Lisa: stairs

For the first time, Nora found stairs with a railing low enough that she could go down all by herself. She counts a bit while she's doing it, too.

Urban Planning Exhibition Centre, Shanghai

Lisa: ABCs

As promised, here's a little Chinese boy singing an approximate version of the ABCs for Nora.

Lisa: hello!

Mom and I tried to get Nora to say "Shanghai" on camera, to no avail. She pretended to be very busy talking on the phone instead.

Lisa: Then what DO you like?

I'm not sure why Nora will only be cute and chat her fool head off when the camera isn't on.

This is in the park across from the Hong Kong temple.

Lisa: How old are you?

Unfortunately, "done," "Wall-E," and "Woody" are not the answers to my question.

Lisa: Who loves you?

This is the first joke Nora made up all by herself, and she thinks it's hilarious.

Mom: "Who loves you?"
Nora: "Wall-E."

It kills with the one-year-olds.

Lisa: Telegenic

Some days, I just take a lot of photos. And videos.

1. Nora uses one of the few signs she knows to request that more photos be taken of her. Do not blame me, people.

2. More of Nora referring to her hair elastics as hats.

3. If your daughter said "Ca-Co" in such a cute way, you'd take a video of it and post it to the internet, too.

Lisa: pants

Definition of a doomed plan:

1. Find Mom's pants lying on the floor.
2. Put them on immediately.
3. Insist they not be the slightest bit too long.
4. Walk around the house.

Lisa: Shark

Nora's shark costume in all its glory. Ah, Halloween.

Lisa: sharing

I tend my friend Molly's daughter Sabrina once a week, and Nora has a love-hate relationship with her. Here's one of the nicer moments.

Nora just can't understand why Sabrina won't hold that book.

Lisa: snap for the kids

Breakfast time is a noisy time. What, it's not like that at your house?

Lisa: macaroni

Luckily, Nora's enthusiasm for mac and cheese is matched by her inability to get any of the noodles into her mouth.

Lisa: She walks!

Nora made it all the way down the hallway by herself. It's not graceful, but she gets there.

Lisa: but a fleeting moment in the history of time

As predicted, Nora pretty much only crawls until she gets to something she can pull herself up on--then she walks.

Lisa: we're rolling

Before Nora forgets how to roll her arms and moves on to another trick, I thought I'd better capture it on film.

Lisa: how old are you?

Nothing like mealtime captivity for practicing a little of the old "how old are you" trick. Got to get her ready for her birthday!

Lisa: it don't mean a thing...

We rode our bikes to the park so that Nora could swing. I think she likes it.

Lisa: biker gals

My first ride on my cruiser was also Nora's first bike ride, ever. Thank goodness it was properly documented.

Blake didn't realize he was in movie mode when he took this, but I kept it because of how well it captures Nora's initial feelings about her helmet.

Watch for the look of terror on my face as I negotiate the bike past Blake and into the driveway.

Lisa: piano man

We get to keep David's piano while he's in New York, and he came over and gave it an inaugural playing. Nora loved it, of course.

Lisa: her sweet escape

Sometimes the only thing that will calm Nora down or hold her attention is a little Gwen Stefani. Who am I to begrudge her that?

Actually, I'm glad it's not Barney. Or even Baby Einstein. Or...Insane Clown Posse.

Lisa: uh oh!

In a rare instance of performing on demand, Nora does a half-hearted version of her sniffing face, and then says "uh oh." I smell an Emmy nomination...

Lisa: zoom, zoom, zoom

I was going to post just one of these, but I couldn't fight the cuteness.

I think we might need to clear everything out of our living room and turn it into a roller rink.

Lisa: snake charmer

My mom bought Nora this extremely realistic pink rubber snake at the zoo. Who knew it would become her favorite toy?

Lisa: This is what she likes.

My little Nora, someday you will be glad you have this video of you and Great Grandma Gorgeous. Between now and then, I'll just enjoy how cute you are, banging on your high chair tray.

Lisa: she's coming to get you, Barbara

Nora doesn't want to go anywhere unless it's walking with Dad.

Here's more of the same--except more awesome, because she says "mama" and then comes out of the screen and kills you, like on The Ring.

Lisa: toothbrush

Lisa: teeth and hair (It's cuter than it sounds.)

I finally got Nora to show off her two bottom teeth for you:

Sarah distracted her with Lulu so I could get a picture of Nora's crazy swoopy hair--just like Uncle Dave's!

Lisa: mama

Nora said mama for the first time about a week ago, and now she's getting pretty good at saying it on demand. She was starting to get mad by the time I finally pulled the camera out, but what a smarty, right?

Lisa: You take the lime and the cucumber, and eat them both together.

As I inadvertently discovered when I was trying to distract Nora from grabbing my salad at the Crown, she loves chewing on slices of cucumber. I was about to cut a piece for her, when I noticed the lime sitting right next to the cucumber on the shelf of the fridge. I got thinking about how similar a slice of lime would look to a cucumber slice, and about how awesome Nora's sour face would be, and I just couldn't help myself.

It might be sour, but she doesn't stop trying it! OK, I know, it was mean. Anyway, it looks like there were no hard feelings.

She does seem a little hesitant to tear into the cucumber now, though...

Lisa: Dancing Bean

Nora and Sarah were just dancing along with a music video until Blake came in and provided an audience.

(Don't make fun of me because I took this video in portrait mode--that's why it's all wonky.)

Lisa: whistler

Lisa: rolling over

The better to see the camera, my dear!