Santa Came!

Cade was thrilled that Santa came! When, we went downstairs Friday morning we found many goodies for the whole family! We has SO much fun playing with Cade!!!

"CHRRRRIISSSSTMASSSS!"

Helping Auntie Jen put chocolate in her socks :)

After the smell of coffee took effect, we nibbled on yummy breakfast. The rest of the day progressed in a bit of a blur... We got dressed and headed over to Grandma's house for more Family Christmas :) After we opened some very special presents we had a delicious dinner. G'ma added a few new recipes that were the perfect touch to a wonderful meal.

Ride 'em cowboy!

Coloring with our new colors!

One of Cade's favorite games is to place silly objects on his head and say, "Is is a hat?"

So sweet even when she's angry.

A holiday just isn't a holiday without at least one outfit change...

Charlotte's onesie says, "All I want for Christmas is my AUNTIE!"

Wishing you and yours a wonderful rest of 2009! Merry, Merry Christmas!

Twas the Night Before Christmas

On Christmas Eve we stopped by the local mall to see Santa Claus before he made travels around the world. While, Charli Kate put him to sleep... Cade wasn't sure about sitting in Santa's lap!

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  We spent the rest of the day preparing for Santa's visit to the house and spending time together. We made a lot of yummy Christmas cookies :) Later, we attended the Candle Light service at our church, pictured below. They did a great job of including the kids in the service. Finally, we headed back home to enjoy our Tex-Mex dinner and more family holiday traditions.
  
  
  

Welcome Audra

Our friends Vanette and Howard welcomed their second daughter on Monday! What luck - she arrived on her due date! Baby Audra weighed 7 lbs 2 ozs (same as her friend Charli Kate) and is 20 in long. She is just precious :) We can't wait to hang out as soon as things settle down :) All our love to your sweet family of 4!

Annual PB

This year's Pajama Breakfast was super-fun! The company was especially entertaining, as we visited about our Mommyhood experiences. Ashley's food and decor was full of Christmas Merriments - the menu consisted of all my favorite ingredients, coincidentally. Thanks Ashley for inviting us :) You are such a great hostess!!!

I thought this was a sweet picture of Mommies :)

Fast Paced Life and Loving it!

Cade loves HIS "Cha Cha." So much, that we often have to intervene with his cuddling. But he is very good with using what he calls"sofffff" (soft) touches. He is also getting better with kissing her cheeks as opposed to gently knocking forheads with Charli Kate. He is 18 months old and in a super-busy stage. We are calling him Motor Baby these days. Charli Kate is so big... I can hardly believe she is 2 months old on Monday and over 12 lbs! I cried last week when we dressed her in her 3-6 mos. clothing...
She adores Daddy and always looks for him. She smiles when we cluck our tongues at her and touch her nose or chin! Her baby acne is almost completely gone - what a beauty. Charlotte is quite the observer, always taking in her surroundings and company. She is content just being cuddled and she LOVES being sung to.

Candy Cane Lane

We met our sweet friends The Kessner's at HFBC's Candy Cane Lane on Saturday. Matt and Lindy's Cade and our Cade attempted the bouncy house with some success! We also saw many animals at the petting zoo and enjoyed a good old fashioned holiday hay ride. As many days go, we had to cut the fun short since we were overdue for nap time! Thanks for meeting us!

"BOUNCE!"

Sister is 22

Ryan woke up on Thursday morning saying, "My baby sister is 22 years young." Talking about time passing by fast... We celebrated with Auntie Jen and family that evening at her cute apartment. Aunt Cathy provided the fancy and quite delicious cake (though in the pic you'd think Cade thought it was for him!). Had fun with you Sister!

Handmade with Love

Recently, with the help of Mom and Sandra, I have completed Charlotte's stocking. Let me tell you, it is so hard to do meticulous activities with babies! But it is finished in time to enjoy it before Christmas and for that I am thankful. Thank you so much for your help, Mimi and Aunt Sandra! I could not have done this one with out you both. And thank you to my sweet husband for watching the kiddos while we worked diligently. Your help was most appreciated!

Snow Day

Snow! For Cade's second Christmas in a row, he has been able to play in the snow. It began snowing early this morning on our way to a dr's exam. By the time we arrived home in Spring, Ryan's surprised us by coming home early. He and Cade and Auntie Jen had so much fun playing in the snow! But it got cold very quickly. We came inside for hot cocoa in front of the fireplace :)

Tree Time!

"CHRISTMAS!" was the first exclamation from Caden's mouth when he came downstairs after his nap and found the Christmas lights out for decorating. It took some convincing for Cade to finally agree that the ornaments were not balls but he finally got on board and hung several himself :) Love, love, love this time of year!

Thankful for Travelers

Boy did we have a wonderful houseful for Thanksgiving! Nothing is more fun than hosting the holidays :) Mimi and Granddaddy drove in from CO while Uncle James arrived by plane. Cousin Lauren, Aunt Bobbye and Lloyd arrived from Dallas. Aunt Sandra and Pete came in from College Station. We were hoping to learn how to cook a turkey, though my dad has tried to teach me before. One year, Ryan and I did a turkey breast but that was only because we didn't have counsel present to teach us how to cook the real thing. This time, they ended up selecting the smoked turkey which is the easier pre-cooked option. It was delicious! I may never do anything but pre-cooked again. We had such fun and are thankful for ALL of our travelers who came many miles to share this special holiday!

Babies Coming Out of Our Ears

I am a bit behind on my blogging due to time management. But I have to comment about our fun visitors last week! Our sweet friends Lindy and Ashley came over to visit Charli Kate, Caden and myself. They brought lunch. This was so appreciated since we haven't been able to get out much while Charlotte awaits her immunizations. We had babies coming out of our ears but "everything seemed sain" (to borrow Lindy's phrase). Lindy's son, Cade and my Caden had so much fun playing together. They had little conversations about taking the "trash out" and watched the "pup-pups" play in the backyard through the window. Aren't they such cute buddies?!

Lindy, below, holding a sleepy Charli Kate. You wouldn't know it to look at her because she is so tiny but she is expecting a baby girl in April - so exciting!!! We could already see that Lindy's Cade will be such a good big brother to sweet Ella Brooke!

Ashley and little Jemma Grace, below. It was the first time that I was able to hold Jemma though we visited her in the hospital on the day she was born. When we arrived that day, she was swept away by the nurse for her first wellness exam with the pediatrician. Jemma is eight weeks old here. See the family resemblance... such beauties!

What a special visit! It really meant so much to us :) Miss and love you guys!

Beary Cute!

What was left of Charlotte's umbilical cord fell off this morning (5 weeks later!). We were thrilled to be able to give her her first bath tonight. When Caden received his first bath, Ryan recorded the event and took pictures. Meanwhile, I bathed Cade. This time, Ryan bathed Charli Kate and I recorded the event. She loved it and it was very special bonding moment for Daddy and Daughter :)

We dressed her in a super-cute bear outfit after the bath. She wouldn't leave Ryan's arms for the rest of the night!

One Month Flies By!

In this picture, Caden and Charlotte had so much fun playing together on their play mat. Cade taught Charli Kate about all of the attached toys. Such a precious pair!

Charlotte is so big, now! She weighs slightly under 10 pounds - what a good eater!!! Charli Kate smiled twice at her mama this morning (not during her sleep). Her little personality peeks through from time to time. She is an angel, so calm and sweet. She is close to sleeping through the night. For several weeks, she has only been waking once during the middle of the night. She is so perfect! We are so happy :)