It's Starting to Feel a lot like Christmas

I have felt this way ever since we got back from Maryland. Everywhere we turn there are lights and decorated trees and SNOW! I can't help but look at the glittery snow as it falls and think of how grateful I am to live in such a winter wonderland. I know that the moment Christmas is over the snow will become my most hated of enemies, so I will enjoy it for now!


This is what we have been up to this holiday season!

 Decorating the house with lights and snowflakes...

Connor got caught playing with the lights!

Wrapping presents...

 

Playing in the Snow ...

 

This is a snow sculpture by Broulims, isn't it cool!

 

 

 

 Leaving cookies for Santa ...

Santa wrote Connor a note back :)

 Waiting by the tree to open presents ...

Having fun on Christmas Morning ...

 Playing with our new toys from Santa...

.............................................. 

A Stanger Christmas

Our Christmas this year was a lot of fun, mostly because we have a little Connor to spend it with. Once Shea got done school and I got done work we were really in the Christmas spirit. We have been enjoying the music on the radio which is playing lots of Christmas songs. We have watched bits and pieces of Christmas specials on TV. And we can't wait to have more kids so that Christmas is even more fun. We got to spend Christmas Eve with some friends and their kids and go bowling and the day before we went bowling with Shea's Family. We started off our Christmas with a big breakfast, of omelets and orange rolls and bacon and sausage! Then we took video of Connor opening his presents, and Santa brought us lots of candy, YUM! Connor was excited and a little grumpy so afterward he got to enjoy a nap! Christmas Day we were both excited to talk to our brothers, who are on missions. My brother, Ryan, is in Alabama (waiting for his VISA for Brazil). And Shea's brother Nathan is in Hawaii (with only a few weeks left)! It was so hard to talk to Ryan because I think it made everyone miss him more, and the phone call/skype was a bit of a mess (some missionaries are able to skype with their family but it is still in the works- and the service wasn't all that great). We spent Christmas Day with Shea's family and had lots of fun playing JustDance on the Wii and Connor got to jump around in his new JohnnyJumpUp. Then we went to our friends and had lots of fun playing with their girls and playing on their XBOX! When we got home Christmas Night we read the Christmas story from the scriptures! It was nice to remember the real meaning of Christmas. My family back East sent us a package with lots of toys for Connor and some presents for us! I got a new camera which I am really stoked about! And we got some new movies to enjoy! Life is good! We are so blessed with friends and family that we love so much! 

There are some beautiful messages about Christ if you follow the link below:

First Presidency Christmas Devotional

"That is the spirit of Christmas, which puts in our hearts a desire to give joy to other people. We feel a spirit of giving and gratitude for what we have been given. The celebration of Christmas helps us keep our promise to always remember Him and His gifts to us. And that remembrance creates a desire in us to give gifts to Him." (Henry B. Eyring, "The Gift of a Savior")

"There is no better time than now, this very Christmas season, for all of us to rededicate ourselves to the principles taught by Jesus the Christ. Let it be a time that lights the eyes of children and puts laughter on their lips. Let it be a time for lifting the lives of those who live in loneliness. Let it be a time for calling our families together, for feeling a closeness to those who are near to us and a closeness also to those who are absent.

Let it be a time of prayers for peace, for the preservation of free principles, and for the protection of those who are far from us. Let it be a time of forgetting self and finding time for others. Let it be a time for discarding the meaningless and for stressing the true values. Let it be a time of peace because we have found peace in His teachings.

Most of all, let it be a time to remember the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ, that we may share in the song of the angels, the gladness of the shepherds, and the worship of the Wise Men." (President Thomas S. Monson, "A Bright Shining Star")

Hope everyone had a 

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!

Half a Year Old and Going Strong

Connor had a checkup with the pediatrician on Thursday, 12/9! Everything went great!

He weighed in at 19 lbs 9 oz

And his height was 26"

His head circumference was 17 3/4"

Connor is growing lots and is officially a big boy! We LOVE it! The nurse was surprised to see how much he weighed and had to ask a few times and check a few times to make sure that the dosage of Tylenol we should give him is correct. She was so funny she just wouldn't believe he weighed that much. Anyway she was also convinced that he was the cutest baby she has ever seen and asked to hold him and then she showed him to a couple nurses as we were leaving saying "Isn't he the cutest baby you have ever seen!" I have to admit I was pretty stinkin proud, I mean I know he is the most adorable boy ever but when other people agree too I just can't help but get a proud little grin. I am so glad that he is all ours! My Mom told me the other day that it is a good thing that we keep our blog private because if other people saw how cute Connor is people would want to steal him, and I agreed. I told her that if he wasn't mine, I would steal him!

It was fun seeing his percentile and how it has changed since birth, we got print outs and these are a few of the stats:

Weight: 06/08 (a couple days after birth) - 6.81 lbs - 15.52 %tile

            12/09 (his most recent checkup) - 19.56 lbs - 81.08% tile

Height: 06/08 - 20 inches - 48.61% tile

           12/09 - 26 inches - 30.57% tile

Head Circumference: 06/08 - 13.5 inches - 16.2% tile

                                 12/09 - 17.75 inches - 82.63% tile 

Connor got 4 shots at the doctor and it wasn't fun. But Connor did very well. That night he did get a little fussy and sensitive but all in all he has been pretty perfect!

Connor Update!

Connor is wearing size 3 diapers. His clothes are all over the place ranging from some tight fitting 3-6 month onesies and 12 month pants/shirts and lots of 6-9 month outfits! The Bumbo has become a lifesaver  so many times to keep him still and in one place, but his little chubby legs are getting stuck every time now so it is always a challenge to get him in and out so the Bumbo wont last much longer. Sad. The swing was our go to device to get Connor to sleep and after being deprived of the swing over thanksgiving break Connor has decided that it is not as miraculously as it once was. Now a warm body holding him is needed for any sleeping to happen. He is still enjoying bath time and doing great at diaper changing time. 

Connor's New Tricks:

- He has started baby food, squash (hated and spit it out) and sweet potatoes (not to fond of but he ate it).

- He scoots! Not the normal way, he pushes off with his feet while he is on his back and arches his back and turns his head to see where he is going. It's is adorable! And he can get pretty far. One time I was on the computer and put Connor down and the next minute he was behind me and the next minute he was gone, he had scooted and then rolled into the dark bathroom. He was so excited when I found him, like it was a game. 

- He is starting to make happy babbling, it is usually when he is at home with Mommy and Daddy but he has done it a few times with others. He used to just babble when he got angry. 

- He moves objects from hand to hand, like his favorite toys. 

- He is starting to reach for and pick up small objects like small pieces of food (like Gerber Puffs). But he can't quite get them to his mouth yet.

- When he is sitting up he will lunge for toys that are close.

Connor Likes:

- Rice Cereal, He eats a bowl for lunch most days now. 

- He is on a left hand kick, who knows maybe he will be left handed. Right now he is favoring that one, although before it was the right hand, so maybe he is just letting the left hand catch up. 

- Toys that make music or anything that makes noise.

-  His cold teething toys and his links

- The mirror, he is starting to make faces and take interest in talking to the man in the mirror
- Holding his bottle all by himself, he is getting much more independent.

Connor Dislikes:

- It is not that he dislikes strangers but he definitely gets shy around an unfamiliar face. But he warms up fast, as many know. 

- Pulling stuff on top of himself, I mean what kid would right? But in the last week he has pulled big headphones, his baby bathtub, a water bottle and a bag of chips down on top of himself. This is usually because he pulls on something that brings something else down. Poor guy it is always a shock and a little comforting is always needed. 

- Getting dried off after his bath.

- Connor's neck gets stinky and gross if we don't clean it out often and he absolutely hates it.

Mommy's Favorites:

- To get attention now he makes noises and blows "raspberries", and we love blowing them back!

- He loves it when Mommy blows raspberries on his tummy after a diaper change.

- Everything is new to Connor so the snow and Christmas lights fascinate him and I love all his little wild looks as he greets something new. 

Daddy's Favorites:

- His snoring as he sleeps on Daddy's chest.
- He is such a fan of Daddy one of the things Daddy likes most is when Connor is being held by someone and lunges for Daddy to hold him.
- When he puts his hands up in front of his face to fend off Daddy's kissing attacks.

Mr. Independent

He loves the yummy links!

Connor likes to get his daily exercises in.

I love this little guy's laugh. His whole body gets into it.

Happy Holidays!

So we just had a fantastic time in Maryland and are sad to come back to the monotonous trials of daily life. Work, school, bills, budget, chores, and on the list goes. I am missing my family back east terribly. But Shea has been amazing at cheering me up, I am so thankful for all his support and for his constant happy face (even though I know that he is not thrilled with being back either). He has got us all set up for the Christmas season and we are trying our hardest to enjoy the crazy winter that has already started here in Rexburg.

Anyway back to our Thanksgiving Adventure in Maryland...
It was Connor's first time flying on an airplane, he did relatively well. He had his moments of outbursts but considering the cramped quarters we were pleased with how happy he was. 

Connor was very social right from the start, going to my Mom right off the plane. He was all smiles and was thrilled with all the attention. He had constant playmates and was held every waking and sleeping moment. He showed off his rolling and sitting up and eating skills. He was adored every second and my Mom couldn't help getting him a few new toys.

Over Thanksgiving break we doubled with my brother and his date, played a little pool. Daniel couldn't resist showing off his skills :)

Joseph and I got to play some and color lots. And Joseph and Connor were the best of friends. I have never seen Connor smile so much.

Connor learned to roll over, back to stomach! He was pretty proud!

 Connor got to snuggle into lots of blankets!

 We all went to church! And had fun afterwards.

Connor and his Grandpa got to play lots! And Grandpa had just the right touch to get him to fall asleep when he was fussy. He would sing him to sleep, so sweet!

Joseph and I got to build Monsters out of Playdoh!

Connor got addicted to lime pops!

Joseph couldn't resist having some fun with all of Connor's fun gadgets. He watched TV in his carseat and played with all of connor's toys just to make sure they were perfect. And my favorite was after we gave Connor a bath everytime Joseph would ask to play in the water afterwards with Connors links and bath toys. I loved it!

Joseph and I had a Kung Fu battle in honor of Kung Fu Pandaness. Connor joined in at the end and beat us both!

It was Connor's first Thanksgiving! We ate a wonderful Thanksgiving Dinner and enjoyed laughing together and sharing what we were thankful for. We shared some stories about Ryan and couldn't resist having some laughs about his blonde moments.

Joseph got tired of waiting for dinner... he was
 so cute he set the table and got all ready.

After dinner we went on a walk around the neighborhood. And had fun being silly!

The day after Thanksgiving we went Christmas Tree Shopping! SO FUN! I haven't been able to do that for years. WE had so much fun goofing off and enjoying the fresh pine smelling air. I LOVE Christmas and all that comes with it!

That night we put the lights on and decorated it. We pulled out the Christmas music and started singing all our favorite Christmas carols. Connor tried to get in on the action, and was fascinated by the prickly tree. He would lunge for it and touch it and lunge back because he didn't like the feeling of the prickles on his skin. It was so cute because he coudn't resist doing it again and again.

We had bowling adventures. Shea won scoring 150! He was dang good!

Amberlee and I had some girl time!

It was SO hard to say goodbye. But we all kept the tears back till after we separated, which was an improvement from last time. My family is SO close so we struggle with distance. But we have skype and the phone which we will be using multiple times a day for a while.

When we were in Salt Lake we had a special chance to visit with my Grandpa. He got to meet his great-grandson for the first time. It was precious, to see them together smiling at each other. We also got a chance to visit with my Aunt Nola and the Wheatley Family. Connor was the life of the party, but he was sure wiped out after such a long day with little sleep. 

We are spending Christmas with Shea's family this year and we are planning on making it as special as possible for Connor! The Christmas music on the radio keeps me smiling!