Christmas 2010

We enjoyed a nice quiet and relaxing Christmas at home this year. We missed spending the holiday with extended family but didn't miss traveling during the holiday!

Samuel really got into Christmas this year. He loved counting down the days until Santa came.  He enjoyed the family Christmas Eve service at our church. It had audience participation (or should I say kid participation). They had costumes like shepherds, kings, angels, etc for the kids to dress up as. Samuel said he wanted to be a shepherd but as soon as they tried to put it on him, he threw and fit and that was that - he just watched from the pew and seemed to enjoy that better. We tracked Santa on Norad's website off & on all day long.  He enjoyed leaving cookies & milk for Santa and was surprised to see that Santa only ate 1.5 of the 2 cookies! He is still talking about the half yellow one he left (the one w/ yellow frosting).  He is enjoying his Wii Party game, his plastic golf club set, a castle, a magnetic calendar & many more! Little does he know Christmas will come again next weekend when Mamaw & Papaw Watts visit and bring gifts from my side of the family. Then a little more than a week after that, is his birthday!  I have a feeling he is going to get used to getting gifts...

Olivia didn't open many of her gifts this year but she did enjoy chewing the wrapping paper! I must say she looked pretty darn cute, though! Our latest challenge with her has been to keep her (& her walker) away from the Christmas tree!

We did manage to enjoy a nice Christmas dinner with little effort on my part - yay! Our kind neighbors gave us a half a ham from Honeybaked Ham! It was delicious! I also cooked a very small turkey and a few side dishes. Overall, not too shabby for someone who doesn't like to cook!

Well, hope you and yours had a great holiday celebrating Jesus' birth!

Olivia on the move!

She is now crawling/pulling herself across the floor. Sam is playing the Wii in case you're wondering what he's talking about... :)

Dear Samuel, Month 35

Dear Samuel,


Here's the month in pictures...
These are classic "cheeeeeezzzz" poses for you these days. You typically say "cheeeeezz" and look away from the camera. 

You enjoyed your trip to Washington to see Daddy's family for Thanksgiving but even when we arrived home I could tell how excited you were! You loved seeing Beren and your toys!

Your ears bothered you on the plane so we gave you gum. Now you always say "Sam gum in plane, not in house" when you see your daddy or I eating gum.

You sure pick up on things pretty quickly! You learned about an educational website called starfall from your cousin Addy and now you love to play it.  Your daddy and I used to have to handle the mouse for you but after a few tries, you can now use the mouse all on your own!  It is weird to think that you will grow up with everything at your fingertips from cell phones, to computers, etc. 

I look forward to celebrating your 3rd birthday very SOON! 

Love,

Mommy

Dear Olivia, Month 7

Dear Olivia,

You really enjoy your walker! You love to roam all around the first floor in it. You have figured out that you can reach the letters on the fridge by "walking" up to it. As long as you have some toys on the tray and are moving, you are very content.

Unfortunately you got your first cold this past month. You were such a trooper, though! You tried so hard to act normal. Your nose ran off and on for about 2 weeks - poor thing. At least it was just a head cold. You are all better now and back to normal.  You also got 2 teeth in the middle of it, too!

You are SO close to crawling! When you're playing on the floor, you reach and reach for toys and scoot around. It is only a matter of days before you are really mobile!

You traveled to Washington for the first time over Thanksgiving. You did really well and enjoyed seeing everyone. We took you to all of the usual stops - Zipps, Taco Time, Spudnut Shop, etc. Too bad you were too young yet to enjoy your first Spudnut - next time!

Love,
Mommy

Sam & Olivia Playing

Dear Samuel, Month 34

While at Target one day, I asked you to pick out a costume for Halloween. Of course, without hesitation, you picked Elmo. As soon as we got home,  you said "I want it on" so I took it out of the package and you tried it on. Immediately after you put it on, you said, "I want it off". I was very skeptical that you would actually wear it come Halloween.We decided to take you & Olivia to the Boo at the Zoo. You told us all day that you didn't want to wear the Elmo but we took it with us anyway in hopes that you would change your mind.  Not until you arrived at the zoo and saw the other kids with their costumes on, did you agree to wear it. Ahhh, nothing like good ol' peer pressure!

You traveled to St. Louis with Olivia & I. You sat in your own seat on the plane for the first time and watched Monsters Inc. In St. Louis, Uncle Brad hooked you up the opportunity to ride in the "Black Beauty" car that was used in the new film, "The Green Hornet" which comes out in January. I didn't quite understand what all the fuss was about but evidently the movie is based on some comic book series from the 60's. Your daddy and Uncle Brad know all about that.

You are really enjoying Olivia's presence these days. You have figured out that if you do certain things, she will laugh and so you repeat things over and over. It is great to see you play with your little sister! She just adores you!

You have started pushing the envelope a bit. If I say you have 5 minutes until...you quickly say, "no 10". If I say 10 you say "no 20". Oh boy, this could get interesting!

I love the random moments you give me daily-whether it is a pat on my back or a "I luv you, mommy" for no reason.

Love,
Mommy

Dear Olivia, Month 6

Sweet Olivia,

Six months is such a fun milestone. You can almost sit up on your own now! You just struggle a bit with your balance, but once you get that down you'll have it made! Six months also means that you constantly grab anything in sight.  It doesn't matter what it is, you just go for it - my hair, remote controls, earrings, etc. Over the past month you began to droll a lot. I now know why - you are in the process of getting your first 2 teeth. I wasn't quite prepared to have you go through this at six months since Samuel didn't get his first tooth until he was almost a year old! At least it appears that you are getting more at a time than he did.  So, bring on the teeth! I'm excited that you will be able to eat more food soon.

October was a big month for you! Your daddy took great care of you while mommy was in San Francisco 6 days for work. You went to Dawn's house 4 days in a row and did just fabulous (this was the most you were away from home).  Dawn and her daughter, Hannah, loved on you a lot. Dawn said you are the sweetest and happiest baby. I happen to think so, too!

Soon after I returned from San Francisco, you traveled with Samuel & I to St. Louis. This was your first plane ride and first trip away from home. You did fantastic! You went with the flow when we ran all around town in St. Louis. Your cousin, Addy, was quite the helper. She loved every minute with you. She loves to call you "Olivia Anna".

Finally, you went to the Boo at the Zoo on Halloween and just chilled in your tiger costume while Samuel went "trick-or-treating".  

Love,
Mommy

Boo at the Zoo!

We took the kids to the Boo at the Zoo this year. This was Samuel's first experience to "trick-or-treat". I was unsure if he would actually wear the Elmo costume I bought for him. We talked about it on and off for weeks to prepare him. Yesterday he told us over and over that he didn't want to wear Elmo. We said that is fine but we were taking it with us just in case he changed his mind (we hoped so). Well, once we got to the zoo he put it right on after he saw all of the kids dressed up. The zoo had over 20 tables where the kids could trick-or-treat so after a few, he quickly got the hang of it and really enjoyed himself. We plan to go back again next year, too!

Here are the kiddos in their costumes...

 

Dear Samuel, Month 33

Dear Samuel,

You are turning into such a big boy these days! The biggest change this past month is that we started potty training! It's been almost 4 weeks now and you're doing great! You tell us when you need to go and can stay dry for quite a long time. Of course there are accidents here and there and you really haven't gone much but we know that will eventually come.  Your daddy & I are very proud of you and encouraged by how it's going so far.   

Whenever you take a bath and you had red socks on that day, you gently pick up the red fuzzies & say "Elmo's fur" and put the fuzzies on Elmo (he sits on the top of the toilet for every bath).

Lately you have started saying. "JUST A SECOND BABY!" You hear us say that when she starts to get fussy and so you are just repeating it. :) Your daddy  & I think it is pretty funny although we say Olivia's name and not baby. :)

One day I picked you up at Dawn's house and somehow you didn't have Elmo with you (he goes everywhere with you). As soon as we got to the car you were concerned and said "Oh, Elmo!". We went back inside and as soon as you saw Elmo you told him, "I'm sorry, Elmo."  It was so sweet. You were very apologetic.

You LOVE to play the Wii Sports! Your favorite games are baseball, bowling & golf.

 

You keep your daddy & I on our toes with your random sayings. We love you!

Love,

Mommy

Olivia playing

 

Olivia loves to play in her exersaucer! Whenever she plays, she likes to talk. In the beginning she is watching Samuel and in the end she gets fussy but the rest is one happy baby which makes mommy smile!

Dear Olivia, Month 5

Olivia,

Has it really been 5 months already?!?! Life is passing by at full speed these days. Work has been very busy lately so I feel like I'm running here & there & everywhere.  However, my most favorite time of each day is coming home to you and seeing your bright smiling face! It sure helps me unwind after constant busyness at work.  I love it when I first get home because Samuel is usually still napping and I get to spend some quality time with just you!

You have mastered eating carrots, sweet potatoes, and your most recent favorite - peas! You just started eating in the highchair which is so exciting. Your head barely is above the tray but you don't care...you love to eat and sit up. You will be sitting up on your own in no time at all!

One of your favorite things to do lately is to play in your exersaucer! You love to bounce & play with all the toys. You talk very loudly when you play with this (video to be posted soon).

I love this picture of you. It is a picture of you in your Great Great Grandfather's christening dress. I, too, wore this when I was your age.

Love,
Mommy

Olivia

Breckenridge

Every fall we do a day trip to somewhere in Colorado. Last year we went to Buena Vista and the year before that, Breckenridge. We enjoyed Breckenridge so much that we decided to go back this year & show Olivia how beautiful it is in the fall. It is so nice to live so close to amazing places like Breckenridge.  We wanted to go before the end of September this year so we could see more of the golden aspens before they were gone.

Once we arrived in town we strolled along Main Street and scoped out a place to eat. We decided on Quandary Grille and sat at a table that has spectacular views of Maggie Pond, the ski slopes of Breckenridge and a TV with College Football on (can't get too far away from the TV on a Saturday in the fall).  

After lunch we walked around Maggie Pond and Samuel enjoyed throwing rocks in it. Seriously we must have spent about an hour just walking around the pond. Once we successfully got Samuel to leave the pond and the rocks, we walked a bit more around town and found a cute little ice cream/coffee shop. 

 

 

On the way we drove through Hoosier Pass which is at the Continental Divide. I love the name of the pass...a little bit of Indiana here in Colorado. :)

Finally we just drove around town, came across an overlook spot and then left. It was a nice and relaxing fall day. The kids did great in the car. Olivia didn't make more than one peep the entire day in the car and Samuel enjoyed "Monsters" and "Cars".

Videos!

I'm a bit behind on uploading my videos. The first one is of Samuel counting before bedtime. He likes to count to 20. Of course, as soon as I got the video camera out he didn't want to count at all. He finally decided to count to 13 and then got distracted with a rock. Ah, the life of a 2 yr old...


Olivia rolling over! She is constantly rolling over these days. As soon as you put her on her back she almost instantly rolls to her stomach.

Here is of Samuel and his cousins (Kyra is next to him) from when Ben's family visited a month ago. Samuel enjoyed being the center of attention for a little bit.  

Here's an old one of Olivia talking which is just too darn cute not to put on here...

Dear Samuel, Month 32

Dear Samuel,

The past month was a month of firsts for you:
-You touched a snake at the zoo
-You rode your first water slide with Uncle Brad
-You rode your first roller coaster with Mommy

Here are some of your most common sayings lately:
-"Red means stop, Green go, yellow wait". You say this over & over during any car ride.
-"Wow, that was quick"
-"Play exercise" (Wii Fit Balance games)

-"That's crazy"

You love for us to repeat everything you say. I must admit it does get a bit annoying at times, but you like it. 

 Lately, I've been struggling with how you prefer to do things in a certain way and then get upset when something doesn't go exactly how you imagined or planned.  Somedays it bothers me more than others (interesting that this bothers me because I'm much the same at times). However, it would be wrong for me to tell you about this without telling you how much there is to love about you! You're so kind, loving & thoughful! When I picked you up at the sitter's house the other day, I heard you say to one of the little girls, "Thank you, Charlotte" (after she handed you your bag). No one prompted you, you just said it and really meant it. You always say "Bless you..."when anyone sneezes (or coughs - it's cute).  A few weeks ago Olivia was crying and you went upstairs got a binky for her and gave it to her - all on your own. You recognized that she was fussy knew that she'd like her binky and got it for her!


I'm excited to see more of your kindness as you grow. You have such a good heart!

Love,
Mommy

Labor Day Weekend

The kids & I spent Labor Day weekend with my family. My parents, brother & niece drove from St. Louis to visit us. We had a great time and crammed A LOT in just 2.5 days! (Ben spent the weekend in Vail with college friends)
Our first stop was the Focus On The Family Kid Center. Samuel & Addy enjoyed running around, climbing & playing with puppets!

Playing on the stage with Addy

Playing puppets with Papaw

 Then we went to the pool at my parents hotel. It had an indoor water slide! Samuel went down his first water slide with Uncle Brad! He LOVED it!! He isn't showing much fear about anything these days!

At the top of the slide!

At the bottom...check out his smile!

Saturday we went to the zoo. Samuel has been there many, many times but this time was neat - he got to do some things for the first time! He touched a ball python, got to hide snacks in the elephant exhibit & watched the elephants find them!

Ball Python

Hiding the snacks

Samuel hid one of his under this big stick

There is the elephant that found Samuel's hiding spot!

 We went to see the balanced rock at Garden of the Gods Saturday night.

 After we left Garden of the Gods, we headed to Manitou Springs to play at the Penny Arcade! Brad & dad really enjoyed playing old video games like Centipede! Samuel & Addy rode a bunch of the quarter kid rides!

Dad playing Centipede!

Sunday morning we went to The North Pole Amusement Park. Samuel & Addy enjoyed riding many rides & we did a bit, too!

You can barely see him, but Samuel is in the middle!

Samuel's 1st roller coaster ride!

It was super fun weekend! We were all exhausted by the end of it!