This week...

We bathed,

and played before bedtime.

Charlie partied in his crib and tried out a new highchair,

while Abby did a little painting.

Here is our life in iPhoto this week...

Swimming, sleeping, ballet, visiting new babies, and playing outside.

January 2013

Here is what we have been up to so far in 2013:

Charlie is teething like crazy which for a while affected his eating. For about a week he refused any solid foods which is very uncharateristic of our little "tub a lub, Chub." He normally eats anything in front of him and still nurses 5-6 times a day. What's hysterical is that while I was on the phone with the nurse at the Yukon Clinic, Brandon came running in our bedroom to tell me that he finally ate his rice cereal! Luckily, we are back on schedule, but still have not cut a tooth. You wouldn't know it from these pictures, but this was one of the fussiest weeks Charlie has ever had-- still smiling though :)

Another first for Charlie in January 2013 was school. He goes one day a week at Second Pres. I now get one day a week off with no kiddos. It's amazing how much you can get done with an empty house. I did ok when I dropped him, but cried a little later to my mom and sister. He' getting so big!

My nieces came in town after to Christmas and Abby loved every minute of their visit. Shelby got sick with the stomach bug the last day that they were here, so I took Elle and Abby to lunch, and then to get our nails done. After, we ate cupcakes at Muddy's, which is a big treat. Abby started back to school, and was excited to have Charlie go with her. I cannot believe that she will be 3 in just a few weeks. Her only request--a Hello Kitty birthday party! If you didn't know by now, Hello Kitty is everywhere! She is obsessed to say the least.

So right now... Charlie is sitting up, almost crawling, and chowing down on all of his food. His eczema is gone for the moment, so we are going to keep washing everything in free and clear, slather Aveeno lotion on him, and continue to hope for the best. He wears 12 month clothes and a size 3 diaper. We guestimate that he would weigh about 20lbs or so. Wowzers :) Abby is sleeping through the night now (for a few weeks before and after Christmas she was waking up in the middle of the night and having trouble going back to sleep) but is trying to give up her afternoon nap. Right now I have them both napping at relatively the same time which gives me some time to pick up, do laundry, etc, without kids. She is eating a lot, which makes me think that she is about to have a growth spurt. In the mornings, she is usually up by 6;30 or 7, and asleep by 8 or so. She loves her pizza, yogurt, cous-cous, buttered noodles, chicken, and any fruit. Abby loves to watch Max and Ruby, and play on the Wii. We bought Just Dance 4, and we play it like crazy- It's too cold to go outside, so this at least burns off some energy with all the jumping and dancing. Abby is getting so big, and I cannot believe that she will be 3 in a few weeks.

..."And to all a good night."

I cannot believe that it is the middle of January and I am still trying to blog about Christmas! Christmas for us started on Sunday with Grandma and Grandad. Monday was Christmas Eve so we went to church, had dinner, and unwrapped presents with Grams and Gramps. We had to make sure to sprinkle our reindeer food, and tell Ellis, our Elf, bye since he flew away with Santa back to the North Pole. Brandon and I unwrapped our Christmas presents Christmas Eve-- no kids- just the 2 of us, and it was great. Finally around midnight we put our weary selves to bed excited about Christmas morning. Abby woke up early, but not too bad. She laid in bed and watched the Grinch. Once it was over we went to see if Santa came-- he brought Abby and Charlie just what they wanted...a Barbie Jeep and some toys that make noise :) After we unwrapped presents, and played with our new toys, we headed to Granmommy and Pawpaw's house.

Double click on the photo collage to see the pictures in a bigger screen

Thank you all for a wonderful Christmas. We appreciate everything you did for us to make our Holiday so special.

Before Christmas

A lot went on the few weeks before Christmas. I turned 30 on the 14th and celebrated with friends and family. We saw Santa, baked cookies, watched Christmas movies, and fought the dreaded stomach bug. We lost. It was bad. I don't wish it on my worst enemy. Somehow, Brandon managed to stay well and held down the fort for several days. It was a bummer to say the least.

Since my birthday falls so close to Christmas I have never celebrated with a "birthday week," like some people do. But, for the big 3-0, the celebrations went on all week long. It was a blast! Dinner at Circa, Acre, and lunch at Grove Grill with lots of cake and candles. It was a great birthday

If you are wondering why I took a picture of my speedometer, it was to prove to my husband that he is in fact the slowest driver ever! At one point he was driving 25 mph to the restaurant. My husband has MANY endearing qualities and I love him, but it's not for his driving :)

The Tuesday before Christmas Abby and I came down with the stomach bug that eventually spread throughout the whole family. We tried our best to get well fast, but it took a toll on everyone. We played at home a lot, but still managed to see Santa, watch some movies and go to lunch. During our down time Charlie had a chance to practice his crawling. He sits on all fours and rocks back and forth. I love to see him trying so hard, but I am not ready to have a crawler on my hands! It's time to baby proof this house again.

We used these 2 pictures for our Christmas card this year. Sweet Abby and Charlie

Ballet

I have lots to blog about, but first I have to play catch up from the few weeks before Christmas in order to start on the rather large Christmas post. Abby's ballet recital was on December the 8th, and precious to say the least. She has been taking once a week for thirty minutes since last January. We have come leaps and bounds from our first day at ballet. Thankfully, we have a very patient and very sweet teacher that helped Abby become more comfortable. She loves it now, and I love the moms that I have become close to as well. Next semester starts a ballet/tap combo that last 45 minutes instead 30. Here is our little ballerina in training over the past year.

Almost a year ago. Admiring her new ballet shoes.

Abby's first ever ballet class.

This was from our last ballet recital in May where sweet Ms. Janice had to hold Abby and Grandmommy helped coax her into performing

Playing with her friends on the last day of class

For this last recital she did great- went on stage and did the routine just like everyone else. We were so proud of her!

We celebrated at Houston's with a massive plate of french fries and ice cream.

So proud of you Abby!

Christmas Card Pictures-

You may remember from last year, but Abby went through a phase right around Christmas time where she refused to have her picture taken, which in return, created quite a bit of holiday stress trying to find the "perfect" Christmas card picture. Well, the "happy face" is back right around the time to kick of the Holiday season. This face only comes out when she sees me reaching for my camera or when I ask her to hold Charlie. To say she is over it is an absolute understatement. Here are few lovely shots from the many Christmas card photo shoots.

This was from last year...

Just a few attempts from this year...

How funny is this? She is so mad at me!

After lots of begging, pleading, and bribing, we got Abby and Charlie to sit and smile for the camera-- one of the most under estimated task out there. This is NOT our Christmas card picture; however more of a teaser picture. The real one will be out soon.

Merry Christmas Everyone!!!!

Charlie's Baptism

We had Charlie's baptism on December 1st at Immaculate Conception Church. Charlie was baptized in the same church by the same Priest that married me and Brandon, and later baptized Abby; Father Val really is very sweet to us despite our less than perfect church going track record (It's at the top of the list for 2013). The man of the hour did a great job. Not a whimper, whine or tear for the whole event. But really, Charlie just goes with the flow. He wore Abby's Baptismal gown, and to everyone's surprise, fit into it nicely despite his ever expanding waist line. He looked precious on his big day.

What a great day!