Christmas Day 2010

What a WONDERFUL Christmas! We arrived back to my mom and dad's house around 9pm on Christmas Eve. Stocky was still struggling, but we were able to get him calmed and down to sleep. The next morning came early, but Stocky felt so much better and even pulled out some smiles for us! He was obviously still pretty sick and wanted to be held A LOT, but he was a trooper! Unfortuantely I didn't get too many pictures on Christmas :( Josh was busy helping Annabelle open her presents, then open the boxes, get batteries installed, tags ripped off, dress-ups fastened, etc. And I was busy toting around Baby Stock, bouncing him, opening his presents, etc. Neither Josh nor I had much time to grab the camera for some shots. That's ok though, we still managed to snap a few, and we'll hopefully have more freedom next year when Stocky allows me to put him down for a few minutes at a time :)

Annabelle took a little while to "wake up" and realize that Christmas morning is actually quite fun :) But once she eased into what was happening, she was a doll. Santa aimed for a dress-up theme this year,which stemmed from her constant desire to be someone else. Ha ha. If you know Annabelle, you know that on any given day she can be up to 5 different princesses/barbies/fairies/movie characters, etc. She LOVES to use her imagination, to pretend she's someone else, and to live in imagination land. It's actually quite rare for me to be able to call her Annabelle. So what better way to encourage that love than dress-ups?! Well she loved it and had some cute looks throughout the day. Now she has enough dresses to outfit her posse of 3 dolls ("daughters"), as well as Anna, Cloud, and Summa (imaginary cousins). :) Gotta love her!

The remainder of our day was fun and relaxing. Stocky loved his new bouncy chair and Annabelle loved playing with her cousins. She and Paige both got guitars and had their very 1st Jam Session together--it was quite cute! Daisy danced along to the beat and cheered them on :) It's always so nice to spend such quality time with family, especially when we all sleep over! I love it. My mom always makes the beds so nice and soft for us; there's always plenty of warm, yummy food in the kitchen, and more than enough attention for all the kids. This year we had a soup buffet and every family cooked a different crock-pot soup. Oh my goodness! It was delicious and everyone did an amazing job--I could've eaten soup for days...and orange rolls, but we always run out 2 seconds after they come out of the oven :)

I am so grateful for this Christmas. I am grateful for modern medicine and doctors who take time out of their holidays to care for sick kids. I am grateful for family, for Josh, for Annabelle, for Stocky. I am grateful for amazing parents who show such an abundance of love to their children and grandchildren. I am grateful for the entire Christmas season and the good it brings out in people. I am grateful for Jesus Christ and the most wonderful gift of his life and sacrifice. I am grateful to be on this earth right now, experiencing moments and days like this with the people I love. Merry Christmas!

How sweet is he?

Merry Christmas Stocky! Hope you like the chair Santa chose for you!

Hey Rapunzel! That wig sure is fancy!

and the dress is so glamorous...

Jam Session!

Christmas Eve 2010

Christmas Eve this year was a whirlwind! Stockton woke up so sick! I thought I better take him to the Dr. to make sure everything was ok. Let me begin by saying that having only ONE Insta Care open in 3 cities is NOT a good idea! The waiting room was packed and we had no choice but to sit there and wait. I'd made the mistake of bringing Annabelle with us, and by the end she was absolutely stir craaazzzzyyy. I don't blame her; I was too, just hiding it more than her. Usually she LOVES a trip to the doctor. She loves talking to them, asking all about what they're doing, getting her sticker or sucker, or even cookies if she really turns on the charm :) But this time was NO fun. She was anxious to get to Mimi and Papa's for Christmas Eve fun with Liv; she was thirsty and hungry; she was tired of waiting around; tired of being told what to do and what not to do. Then when the doctor made her wait outside by herself while I went in the Xray room with Stocky, she came close to losing it. And...when the doctor gave Stocky multiple shots and sent the poor little guy into hysterics she really lost it. She hated seeing Stockton so upset and tried everything she could to get him to calm down. I gotta be honest, I was pretty darn close to hysterics myself. No one likes having a sick baby on Christmas, and both Annabelle and I felt so bad for Stockton--he was MISERABLE and worn out to say the least. By the time we were able to leave the office we had been there over three hours! Stocky had pneumonia, had to get 2 shots, and wouldn't be able to come to Mimi and Papa's for his 1st Christmas :(

Rather than make Annabelle wait any longer, I called Josh to come get her and take her to Mimi and Papa's so she could start having some FUN! I decided to take Stocky home and let him get some rest.

My mom and dad were SO AMAZING to watch Stockton for a few hours later that night so I could go have dinner with Josh and Annabelle, and watch Annabelle open her presents. What a blessing! Even though it was short this year, we had so much fun with the Bos family. Annabelle and Liv just love each other and have so much fun; they truly light up the room. We got to see little Brody again, and as always, we were so thankful for the thoughtfulness and kindness of Josh's parents, and we loved the gifts they chose for us. Most importantly, we loved just hanging out and laughing with everyone. I wish it could've lasted longer, but there's always next year! :) Here's to Healthy kids and parents in 2011!!

How cute are they?
Great Friends

A Sweet Angel

Yippee! Prince Charming!

The kids LOVE their Uncle Aaron. Well...we all LOVE Uncle Aaron!

Twinkle Toes! CUTEST SHOES EVER!!!

What a wonderful Christmas Eve. The only things that matter are spending time with the people we love, celebrating what matters most. I can definitely say that sicknesses and all, we had everything that mattered most, and it was PERFECT! Tiring...but perfect :)

Friends Light up the Night

We were so lucky to spend a little Quality Time with our good friends over the holidays! During the summer it's so easy to get out to the playground and hang out while the kids play, but during the winter months it's tough to get everyone together in the same place (other than at church of course) :) I'm so glad we made this night at Thanksgiving Point happen, and are continuing to find opportunities to go out, with the kids and without. Life just feels lighter and better when you have friends and family to share it with.

We all met at Thanksgiving Point to ride through the Holiday Lights together. I swear we had to wait forever for a wagon because they were all reserved, but we killed the time by taking the kids to see the live reindeer and talking inside the barn. Michelle was smart and brought suckers for the kids, which was a good idea because by the end of the night we were all starving! We decided to meet up at Emmitt and Ethel's for some burgers and fries. Annabelle and Brayden had a TON of fun running around being crazy together (it was after bedtime so they were a tad wired), The guys watched the remainder of the Jazz game, and us girls just sat and talked, which is always nice. I love spending time with friends and family, especially during the holiays! I'm grateful we were able to get to know everyone a little bit better, and have some fun with the kids! Thanks for coming everyone!!

Annabelle, Lily, Mercedes and Brayden

Hiding out

Kristy and Aaron

The Stoddard Family

Season, Lily, Carly and Mercedes. We sure missed Kenny, who had a Basketball game

The Bos family

My good-looking boyfriends

Annabelle

Holiday Lights-Christmas 2010

Can't wait until next year (when we'll reserve a wagon before we get there)! Ha ha.

Fun and Laughter with Liv

Annabelle was so excited to have her cute cousin Liv over to play during "Date Nights!" Nikki and Eric, and Josh and I decided it would be fun to alternate Saturday nights and go on more dates. When Nikki and Eric went out, we took Liv, and when Josh and I went out, they took Annabelle and Stocky. It was always nice to go out kid-free, yet we found ourselves looking forward to our visits from Liv as well!

She and Annabelle would oftentimes make each other laugh SO hard they'd go crazy! It makes me happy to see them smiling and making each other laugh. Of course they get frustrated with each other at times, but I think it's great they are learning to get along with others, to work through differences, and to appreciate each other's sense of humor :) At times we'd go out swimming, or to the bounce house, or to get ice cream, but we also had just as much fun staying home, letting the girls dress up...or down (in PJ's), building little movie forts and playing princesses. Can't wait until we can resume this fun little "tradition" when little Brody gets a little older! Here's some cute shots I took when they were laughing hysterically...over absolutely NOTHING :)

"The laughter of a child is the light of the home."

Curl up with a Book

"There are many little ways to enlarge your child's world. Love of books is the best of all."

Stockton 4 Months!

Look out ladies! I'm sending a heartbreaker your way. Stocky is growing up to be one handsome little dude. We tease Josh that Stockton is going to give him a run for his money in the looks department :) Ha ha. What can I say...he's a sweetie pie, a lovey boy, and a wiggle worm to boot! This guy can't sit still and LOVES to be in the middle of the action. And if he's not, you're gonna hear about it! The consolation? Once he is in the middle of the action, he'll plaster on a smile, some serious charm, and as many slobbery open-mouth kisses as you ask for (although beware: Due to the wiggle worm-type tendencies aforementioned, kisses may come with the force of a head butt)! Don't be too concerned though; he's worth it and he'll even say "Ohhhhhhhh" as he's planting one on your cheek. But yes...he'll still be wiggling.

We LOVE watching our little-big Baby Stock grow! Happy 4 months little guy!

4 Months!

Length: 99% (28 1/4 In)

Weight: 93% (19 lbs 2 oz)

Head Circ: 93% (45 cm)

Impromptu Photo Shoot

It was a lonely December morning. Annabelle, Stockton and I were wasting the time away, wondering when Jolly Old Saint Nick would come blazing through our town on his FIRE ENGINE. I decided we needed some new pictures of Stockton, so I dressed him up, spiked his hair, and set up a little backdrop in the front room. Well it didn't take long for Annabelle to get in on the fun. She insisted I curl her hair and pick out some "School Clothes" for her to wear. That is how the following pictures came to be, and I am SO grateful we took these. They turned out adorable! Man I love my kids! And no...you can't have her :)

Hurry outside! Santa is on his way!

He's coming!

Her very own treat bag! What a guy!

What a nice way to break-up the rountine of a normal day! She's just a little bit gorgeous right? Can't wait to post Stockton's pictures as well!