Christmas

We had a wonderful week of Christmas! After enjoying hosting all of my family the weekend before Christmas, we had Jamie, Matt, Lauren and Sarah over for brunch Christmas Eve morning. That night we went to the always wonderful Christmas Eve service at our church. Mom spends the night with us Christmas Eve, and although John wasn't aware of Santa's visit this year, I'm sure he will be next year! We woke up Christmas morning and enjoyed spending time in our pjs and helping John play with his new toys. Later that morning we headed over to Jamie's for brunch then to New Albany to visit Jason's family. Christmas night was spent at the cabin at Darden, where somehow all 18 of us managed to fit in. After a wonderful dinner and opening gifts, a few of us stayed up watching movies and catching up. It was a perfect first Christmas for John, and we know next year will even be better. We hope you all had a very Merry Christmas, too!

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas!

We hope you have a wonderful, memorable, merry Christmas!

The Rocking Horse

29 Christmases ago, I recieved the rocking horse John is sitting on in this picture. There is a photo of me sitting on it Christmas day with my Uncle Jim holding me, while I am wearing his cowboy hat. We now have the rocking horse and are eagerly awaiting when John can ride it like I did. I wanted to re-create the photo when all of our family was here last weekend. John is now wearing his dad's cowboy hat, with Uncle Jim is holding him. What a special photo!

I Have Feet and Toes!

John found his toes and feet last week and LOVES them! He checks often to make sure they are all still there, and just can't seem to get enough of them. He plays with them, pulls on them and rolls around holding them, thinking they are the grandest toys. Santa really doesn't have to bring him anything this year with how much he likes to play with his feet (but don't worry, he is ;)

On another note, John's first tiny tooth is poking through! You can see the top of it and definitely feel it, especially when he bites down, which he can do HARD! All we want for Christmas is one front tooth!

All Boy

These two were clowning around the other night when I caught this photo. John is 110% boy!

Five Months

John was five months old last Sunday-how time is flying! He can sit up for 2-3 seconds before toppling over and is trying to figure out what to do with his arms and legs for crawling. We're guessing he's about 20 lbs. and 28 inches long, according to what his four month stats were-he's a big boy! He has taken himself to three meals a day; he doesn't eat often, but likes a lot when he eats! In addition to a bottle with each meal, it's usually oatmeal for breakfast, a fruit for lunch and a veggie (sometimes two) at dinner. He especially loves bananas and sweet potatoes. He squeals and laughs all the time and himself and us. He loves his Jump-a-Roo and is still a big fan of his swing. He is teething big time, but no pearly whites yet (maybe for Christmas!) He's all boy, and such a blessing!

I'll Be Home for Christmas

Christmas decorating this year was really different. We moved in our house in March, so this was the first year we've decorated for Christmas in our new home. I was able to put up Christmas decor with my eyes closed at our old house-but not this year. It was so much fun to figure out how and where to arrange everything, but it was a little harder than I thought. I'm so pleased with how it all turned out, though. Here's a few photos of some of my favorite spots around the house. I would love for others to post Christmas decor photos, too-I love getting new ideas!

Jumped Out

Last week, Jason and I were on the front porch finishing up a few last minute details to the outside decor. John was jumping 900 miles an hour in his Jump-a-Roo, squealing and laughing as loud as he could. We were watching him through the breakfast room window, which we were working around. The last time we looked in on him, this is what we saw.

Sugar rush from the bananas he'd had earlier that day-then crash! We especially love how he managed to work one sock off (which he does quite often.) He slept so sound for about 30 minutes!

Happy Birthday, Sarah!

Sweet Sarah turned 1 last Saturday! We celebrated with a fun birthday party at her house. John wanted to be right in the middle of the "big kids." It was a great day!

Indian Chief John

Christmas Card Attempt

A few weeks ago we attempted to get a cute photo for Bo and Big Daddy's Christmas card. Eight grandchildren, many needing naps, did not make for a good photo shoot. As you can see, our attempts were futile.

We ended up doing a headshot of each child, and arranging them Brady Bunch style on the card. It turned out perfect! It may be a few years before we can get a group photo again.