merry christmas.

I have to say, we are so blessed! I've been reflecting on the last year and even back to 2010 -- let me tell you, it is incredible how life changes so much.  It has been an amazing experience to watch Nathan grow over the last year.  Being a mommy is truly the best and most rewarding thing! We have seen Nate learn how to walk, how to talk, how to give hugs and kisses, and grow from a darling baby into a sweet little boy.

I think that if 2011 has taught us anything, it's taught us how important family is.  From helping out with Chris's care after back surgery to babysitting Nathan each week so we don't have to indulge in daycare, we have been reminded time and time again how steadfast and loving our families are to us. It means the world to me!

This weekend was our yuletide marathon: three Christmases and our 4th annual Christmas lunch. Whew! Am I tired!  I had a really great time and I was so happy that everyone enjoyed our gifts. I'm not going to lie -- I'm a little overwhelmed because Nate got so many toys!

I hope that everyone had an amazing Christmas celebrating with their families and friends. Here's a very picture heavy account of our holiday, enjoy!

santa.

My million dollar question this week has been whether or not to take Nathan to see Santa this year. On one hand, he won't remember it and on the other, I like to have pictures of him.  We decided to bite the bullet and took him tonight. Instead of going to Fair Oaks, where we waited for two hours last year, we ended up going to our in-town mall.

Oh boy, am I glad that we did not make a bigger trip out of it. Nate wanted NOTHING to do with Santa.  He sobbed from the second that I put him on Santa's lap until I picked him back up.  I'm sure we'll all look back at this and have a good laugh one day.

Check out the during the terror during the Santa encounter and the how happy Nate was running around the mall a few minutes later. What a goober! :)

Merry Christmas! 

sixteen months.

Nate is sixteen months now and is getting so big! I have really noticed that he is a little sponge lately -- he absorbs everything and learns new words in minutes. I like to write down his most recent developments, so here goes:

• LOVES Sesame Street, in particular Elmo, Big Bird, and Ernie 
• Knows where his nose, mouth, ears, teeth, eyes, and hair are
• Climbs on EVERYTHING -- to include our dining room table. Constant supervision is a must! 
• Knows how to open the door of our freezer 
• Loves telling people 'hi' and 'bye' or 'bye now' 
• Gives the sweetest hugs and kisses 
• Not a fan of people wearing glasses. Watch out, he will throw them!

Doing our monthly picture just gets more and more challenging. This little boy has places to go and does not want to sit still. Luckily, he thinks that his grandparents are hilarious so I got a few cute ones:

second christmas.

As we gear up for the holiday season, I just can't seem to wrap my head around the fact that this will be Nate's second Christmas. Where has the time gone?! Our tree is up and decorated -- it makes me so happy!  I hope that Nate's curiosity doesn't get the best of him. I wouldn't be at all surprised if he tried to climb the tree this year (so it is behind closed doors in our sunroom). To think that last year he couldn't even sit up by himself yet...

thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving for our family was a bit different this year. Unfortunately, Chris's back has been acting up and he didn't think he could endure a 3+ hour car ride.  This year we took a 'divide and conquer' approach -- my family for me and Nate, Chris's family for him.

I definitely think that our Alabama trip was a good warm for this one. Nate did great in the car coming and going, slept well in the hotel, and I think he had a lot of fun seeing all of our relatives.  I have so much to be thankful for this year: an amazing baby boy who is so sweet and funny that words cannot adequately express, a husband who is a terrific father and keeps me on my toes, a family that is always there for me and loves me unconditionally, and good friends to talk about it all with. Yup, I'm a pretty lucky girl!

Here are some pictures to help recount the trip that Nate and I made :)