Meeting Henry!

 We had SO much fun with Matt, Manda & our new little nephew Henry the other night. They came over to hang out, eat dinner & receive a nice present from us - pink eye. Just kidding, I don't think any of them got it. Thank goodness, since we've all been sharing it this week! Henry (& his hair :) is adorable & we are so excited to be an aunt & uncle! 

 Aunt Manda & David, who is stylin' some super cool hair!

 "Hi Henry, I'm your cousin David. I'll show you the ropes."

 "But first I'll scratch your face."

Studio Practice - Jan2012

Yesterday we met our friends, Jon & Tracy, at a local photography learning center where they teach classes & have a studio to rent. Jon is learning a lot about photography & I am wanting to - so he helped me set my camera settings & then we had fun taking pictures of our kids. This studio had some great props along with the backdrops, lighting, etc. It was a lot of fun. I haven't done anything to these photos except crop them but I hope to purchase some kind of photo editing program soon - I keep going back & forth on which one to buy - PS Elements...Aperture...Lightroom - any suggestions? :)

Super Michael

Michael has been big into dressing up lately - he often changes clothes throughout the day or adds to his outfits - capes, masks, jewelry...etc. It's fun to hear him explain who he is & what his outfit is. The other day he came out of his room wearing the outfit in the below picture & told me, "I am a workman. I am here to work on your radar system, your water system and your refrigerator system." Hmmm. I think he has been hearing his Daddy talk about radars & systems :)

Michael knows to stay in his room in the mornings & play until his clock says 7:45. When I got up the other morning he had formed this line of cars - he told me they were going on a big vacation & had special jobs to do. 

Kate Singing

David is 8 Months Old! 1-11-12

David has been on the move this month. He rolls EVERYWHERE. Sometimes he will roll all the way to the kitchen or dining room tile. He loves the exersaucer & still plays very contently for quite some time. He smiles all the time. The most exciting thing is that he said his first word this week! And guess what word it is! Mama!! Hooray! This is a month earlier than Michael & Kate both said their first word. And their first word was Dada. So I was really excited about this :) At first Andy gave me a hard time & pretended he couldn't hear David saying it :) But I have it on video!! David, you are such a sweet, sweet baby & we love you!!

Special Christmas Gifts

Mommom (my mom) made Kate this adorable bedding for her doll bed. 

    And she made Michael this car pillow for his bed.  

Po (my dad) made us this beautiful cross for our collection. These gifts are priceless :) 

Miss K is 2 1/2 - January 2, 2012

As I write this post Kate is in her bed for a nap (that she never actually took) & she is singing at the top of her lungs - and has been for the last 2 hours. She also talks to her 10+ "friends" that she insists on being in her bed. At least on the days she decides not to nap she is content :) Yesterday & the day before she took 3 hour naps! So who knows :) Kate is keeping us on our toes with her little personality that is developing daily but we sure do love her! Some of our favorite things she says -

"No, I do it!" "I do it by. my. self. !!" She talks about her stuffed animals - "Let me get all my friends!" or "Let me get all my stuff!" One sad thing is she is not really calling Michael "Guycul" anymore. On Dec 28th I noticed that she said Michael instead & she has been doing this since. It's so bittersweet when kids lose their funny, childhood pronunciations of words :( 

 We love how she calls socks "hocks" & a snack "nack." The few times I've gotten the glue out for her to do an art project she has called it lotion. She is our sweet, funny lady - We love you Kate :)

Christmas with BB & Papa

BB, Papa & Uncle Steven came to visit & celebrate Christmas on New Year's weekend. We had a great time! We enjoyed lots of visiting, playing & eating :) 

BB & Kate

David liked his new outfit :)

Michael loves his Lightening McQueen clock from Uncle Matt & Aunt Amanda...

& Kate loves her Cabbage Patch doll :)

 Kate was a big helper with unwrapping gifts.

We got Michael a Lightening McQueen bike - he is doing great riding it! Fortunately this week we have had gorgeous weather for bike riding. We got Kate a tricycle - she likes to sit on it but hasn't quite figured out how to ride it without us pushing her :)

Christmas 2011

Texas for Christmas --- 8 hour drive + 3 children + everything but the kitchen sink = A very fun but crazy time! We celebrated Christmas with a Christmas Eve service at church, a delicious meal, opening presents & spending time with family. On Tuesday after Christmas my Mom kept the kids for the day while Andy & I drove to San Antonio. We enjoyed seeing friends, eating out & shopping for curtains for our house. My mom & I also had fun going to downtown Fredericksburg to go in & out of shops & art galleries. It was fun to see my dad's sculptures in the Fredericksburg Art Gallery. Andy enjoyed the gorgeous weather to fly his remote control helicopter - his favorite gift :)

It was a wonderful trip!

Michael & Kate enjoyed opening their stockings.

 Kate loved her play jewelry & her princess watch.

 

 Love this one of M. He wore the Santa hat to help pass out gifts.

 Michael with my sweet cousin Teal

  

 Happy David - wearing his "Baby's First Christmas" bib. Kate wore this too :)

 Michael's favorite gift - Lightening McQueen light-up shoes. He has been asking for these for quite some time, so I gave Mommom & Papa George a little hint :) 

 My Aunt Fran helping Kate open a present. 

 Michael wearing his superhero cape & mask.