Avery's Christmas Program

On December 6, the students at Avery's school put on a Christmas variety show. The kindergarteners sang "Merry Christmas Jesus" and did a phenomenal job! They all knew exactly where to stand, they all faced forward, and they all seemed to know the words and hand motions. It was a very sweet song sung by a sweet bunch of kids!

Half a Year

It has now been 6 months since Judson entered the world and what a precious half a year it has been! We all love our little "Jud man" and he brings so much joy to our family. The girls are constantly talking to him, loving on him, and fighting over who can make him smile or laugh the most. He continues to be a happy, easy-going baby, although he is definitely not without his own little quirks and dislikes. For instance, if I try to change his diaper before I feed him when he wakes up in the morning, he goes through the roof! This boy is starving first thing and he wants his milk pronto! Another one of his quirks that is challenging for me as a busy, on-the-go Mom is that car rides put him to sleep pretty easily, but he wakes up whenever we get out, even if we leave him in his car seat. So during the week, he ends up having way too many short naps in the car on the way to drop off or pick up his sisters from school and activities rather than nice long naps in his cozy crib. But life goes on when you have other kids and we do the best we can! At his 6 month check up he weighed 17 lbs 15 oz (50%), and was 27.5 in long (84%). Judson is wearing size 3 diapers, size 6-9 or 6-12 month clothes, and size 3 shoes. He nurses 5 times a day, eats cereal 2 times a day, and will soon be getting to try some veggies and fruits. We had a bit of a rough start with the cereal because he would get frustrated and cry, but I think we've just about got it figured out now. He is sitting up well on his own and has several methods of moving now, including rolling across the floor, scooting on his back, and scooting forward a little on his bottom while he's sitting up. Since we just put out the Christmas decorations yesterday, I am glad that he is now trying to crawl yet! He is sleeping well at night- from 7:30 or 8:00 PM until 6:30 or 7:00 AM and naps 3 or 4 times a day (usually 2-3 hrs total). Occasionally he fights gong to sleep at nap time, but most of the time he goes to sleep easily and quickly and wakes up smiling. In the past month he has started going to Bible class regularly, and so far seems happy to stay in the nursery to play and have class. I am dreading the day when separation anxiety hits and I have to see him cry when I leave him, but that's all part of growing up I guess! We are looking forward to Judson's first Christmas in a few weeks, as well as seeing how he grows and changes in the second half of his first year.

Hanging out with Daddy after dinner. All the kids got baths before dinner that evening, so they ate in their PJ's.

this was when he first started sitting up well on his own, about a week before Thanksgiving

ready for lunch

playing with toys at Mimi and Poppi's house on Thanksgiving Day

He loved playing with this photo book, which was Kendall's. It kept him entertained all day.

Judson and his cousin Eva. They were so cute taking turns grabbing each other.

Turkey Day 2011

We spent Thanksgiving this year with my family at my parents' house in Coppell. Were we so excited that my sister and her husband were able to fly in from Tennessee and spend several days here visiting. My Mom did almost all of the cooking this year and everything was delicious. We spent Thanksgiving day eating, watching the Cowboys, playing with the kids, and talking. It was a very relaxing day and just what we all needed I think. On Friday we all met at a park in Southlake to take family pictures for Christmas cards and then went to lunch at Bucca di Beppo for my brother-in-law's birthday. That afternoon my parents and Amy and Chris hung out with Judson at the house while Scott and I took the girls to see The Muppets at the movies. The girls were really excited since they have only been to the movies a couple of times before. Saturday we went over and had lunch at my parents' house and spent a little more time visiting with my sister and Chris. We finished off our holiday weekend by inviting Scott's parents over for pizza on Saturday night. It was a great holiday filled with those whom we are most thankful for!

Amy and Kendall

Judson and his Poppi having some guy time

Avery enjoyed spending some extra time with her little brother over Thanksgiving week

the girls (and Judson!)

my beautiful sister and her nephew

Kendall had a little down-time watching PBS videos on my iPad

Avery and I took a little walk to get some fresh air. This made me think of how when I was a little girl we used to always go take a walk around my grandparents farm after Thanksgiving lunch. Sweet memories!

Miami Beach- Part Two

Scott and I at the rooftop pool at our hotel before going to the OU reception

Besides spending time at the beach in Miami, we managed to break away from the beautiful sand and water and do a few other things as well. My parents and the kids and I spent one morning at the Miami Children's Museum, which was a lot of fun. They had some beach themed things like a huge boat with kid-sized fishing poles and magnetic fish to catch, and a really neat mosaic sand castle in the lobby that the kids could climb on and slide down. Some of Avery and Kendall's favorites were the bank area, the grocery store, the doctor and dentist area, the fire and police area, and the exhibit where they got to see themselves on TV. We also spent a morning at one of the local malls so that I could get a dress and shoes to wear to the OU reception that they had one night at one of the hotels. I guess Scott didn't know if my parents would be up to babysitting at the hotel and he didn't mention anything about the reception to me, so i did not come prepared for such an event! The girls came into the dressing room with me and then wanted me to go out and model each dress for my parents. So for each dress, they would go out before me and announce me, saying things like, "Presenting, Mommy the beautiful!" It was really cute and will be something I always remember. On Sunday night, Scott and I did get to go to the OU reception at the Lowe's hotel. We had a good time talking with his old professors and the other periodontists and their wives. Afterwards, we hopped in a cab (I felt like I was in a movie or something) and went to dinner with some people from the reception at Joe's Stone Crab, a locally famous restaurant. Despite the VERY long wait and the fact that we did not eat until 10:00, it was amazingly delicious and well worth it. It was so fun to dress up, have adult conversation, eat great food, and stay out late for a change!

family pic before heading out for our date

the kids and I in front of the mosaic sandcastle at the Children's Museum

my cute little firefighter

the girls had a lot of fun dressing up and pretending to be firefighters

Avery was so proud that she figured out how to slide down the pole

shopping for groceries in the pretend market

watching themselves on TV

pretending to be bank tellers

a picture for Daddy

giving their Poppi an exam

"Look Mom, I caught one!"