Christmas Time 2010

This was our first year celebrating Christmas as a family of five. It was so neat to be able to see some pink under the tree this year mixed in with all of the boys blue paper and their cars and trucks. Mom came down from Ohio to be with us this year. Next year I would LOVE to be able to make it up there for Christmas so that the kids can have a white Christmas.

We made sure that we made cookies and decorated them for when Santa came and had our reindeer food ready to go for when the reindeer landed on our lawn.

On Christmas Eve we had Chris, Kelli and Hayden over for dinner and to exchange presents for the kids. On Christmas morning we celebrated at home and then headed over to Dad and Kims for Christams at their house.

North Pole 2010

We started off our Christmas break by heading to the North Pole which has become a new tradition for us. The boys love to make the cookies, pick out books and a new stuffed animal and of course tell Santa what they would like for Christmas. I was excited to have them all sit with Santa this year, but I don't think Addison quite shared in my excitement. :) She was terrfied... so we quickly snapped the picture and got her so that the boys could have a quiet time talking to Santa.

The boys at the North Pole


So far so good


Wait a minute...who are you and what have you done with my mommy?


HEEEELLLLLLPPPPPP!


Mommy comes in to save the day!


Blake telling what he wants


Alex telling what he wants


Picking out their new stuffed animal


Cookie decortaing time

Thanksgiving Break 2010

Blake ended up getting his tonsils out about a week before Thanksgiving. I did it this way so that he had a week off from school for Thanksgiving break to heal. He was a trooper and has recovered quite easily and nicely. He has been busy eating ice cream for dinner and popsicles...all the finer things in life. He is now on a soft food diet for three weeks and I will be happy when he is off of that..hard trying to come up with enough soft foods to keep him interested. He is getting bored of eating the same things over and over and I can't blame him. While on break Addison and I ended up getting sick. It was the first time she has ever been sick! :( Made me sad. We are both on antibitoics now though and are feeling much much better. She has also gotten in two teeth at the bottom and is crawling now! All this happened in a week. I keep begging her to slow down and try to grow up a little slower, but it's not working.

So every year we celebrate Thanksgiving at Dad and Kim's the day after Thanksgiving so that everyone can have time with their own families and in-laws if needed. Since Ala's mom lives in New York this allows us time to just have dinner and be with our own little family. On Friday we headed over to dad's house with a car load of baby products and toys to keep Addison entertained. We had a nice dinner and the boys ended up making cookies and decorating them to bring home too. They had fin and had many many helpings of turkey and potatoes!

Checking out the tree at the Grandparents



Making cookies with Hayden and Grandma

Halloween 2010

Our little ladybug, Captain Rex and Mario.

Alex Turns 8!

Alex chose to go to the JW Marriott and stay the night with us as a family in place of a big party. I love it when the boys decide to do things like this. I don't mind spending the money when we get to spend some great family time together celebrating a birthday! We ate at the poolside restaurant and swam in the pool that is heated and the boys rode the waterslides. We made smores by the fire and stayed up late! It was great fun and we had a blast. We still did have a party at the house though with just the family. I can't believe that 8 years ago I became a mommy for the first time. Alex is such an amazing little boy full of love for his family and is so sarcastic and funny. He is our little love bug and cuddler!

Did you shave her head?

On the 18th of this month our little Addison turned 6 months. I cannot believe that she has been here for 6 months already. We have all been truly blessed by her tiny presence. I have seen a side of Alex and Blake that makes me so proud to be their mommy. They show me everyday what great daddies they will be one day. They are so gentle loving and playful with her. We do not have to ask for help from them...they are right there with any whimper that she has and are so attentive with her. She is in love with them and vice versa. She will just sit and stare at them while they are playing. Alex loves for her to be in her highchair while he reads to her and shows her the pictures. :) Such a sweet boy. And Blakers will sing a song and make funny faces to make her laugh. Such a sweet family I have.

Here are some things she is doing now at 6 months:
-She is eating solids now. She started on vegetables and fruits at about 5 1/2 months because the formula alone wasn't cutting it anymore. We have been through all the stage one foods, so this week we are starting her on stage 2.
-She still wakes up a couple times in the middle of the night. All she needs though is her pacifier and she will go right back to sleep.
-She is rolling from back to belly and belly to back.
-She is trying her hardest to sit up on her own. I think that she already would if it weren't for the large melon that she is carrying on her shoulders. Yes she has the Meers large head too. The boys have all grown into theirs so I am sure that she will too. If I just keep putting big bows on it maybe it won't look as big! :)
-She is slightly spoiled, but is getting a little better. She loves to be enteratined all the time. This is all of our fault though. When you have mom, dad and 2 brothers doting over you 24/7 this is what you come to expect all the time!
-She is the happiest baby. I had a lady at the boys school ask me if she is always that happy. YES! She loves people. One of the questions the pediatrician asked me is does she recognize mom and dad....YES! And then is she cautious of strangers....NO! Right now at this point in her life she will pretty much smile at anyone and love to be with anyone that loves on her. She loves to give people smiles and lights up with her big blue eyes!
-She is off of her acid reflux medicine and seems to be doing well. She still spits up what seems like tons, but we know its not. We at this point need to pack extra clothes for us to chnage into when she spits up and not her. She has a great knack of leaning over when she feels something coming up to make sure that she keeps herself dry, but will spew fountains over anyone that is holding her. She learned this quick!
-She weighed in at 18 lbs 15 oz
-She was 25 3/4 inches long
-She can still fit into some of her 3-6 month clothing but is mainly in 6-9 months now.

And the kicker of the day....Addison has no hair. She is starting to get peach fuzz in. The boys were the same way though. They didn't grow hair until about the age of 1and from what I am told I didn't grow hair until about age 2. So we are sitting in there and she just keeps looking at her head. I am sitting there worried that something is not right with her head and she is just trying to find the words to tell me. Then she asks me if I shaved her head! I busted out laughing. The way her hair is growing in it looks like a little crew cut and it is pretty uniform. I told her no, but laughed about it the whole way home.


Making the decision to have a child is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body.
-- Elizabeth Stone


Here are some pics of our cutie patootie Addison!

The First Day of School

I cannot believe that I am the mother to not only a baby, but to a 1st and 2nd grader. Where is the time going? The boys were super excited to start their year. They both loved their teachers, as did we, and we were all excited for the year to start. They have done great so far and are making lots of new friends. Last year Alex was in the cooking club and would make all sorts of cool things. So of course this year when cooking club was offered Blake begged to do it. I prayed that he would get in becuase there are only 20 spots for all of first grade and I am pretty sure atleast half of first grade wanted to to do it. He found out today though that he is in and he can't wait for his first "cooking project." Here are some pics from their first day.