November & December

The holidays were full of joy! It is more fun than ever celebrating events now that we have children. There is nothing like experiencing things through the eyes of babies.
Parker is starting to really get into holidays. Since his birthday in October, he keeps asking me "whose birthday is it now?" He basically wants to know when he will next get a cupcake.  He got to celebrate Duke's 2nd birthday and Jericho's 3rd birthday. He was excited about Thanksgiving and getting to eat a "special dinner" at Gramma and Pop's house. Then as Christmas approached he really got excited! We started some new holiday traditions this year that we hope to carry through as our children grow up. Here are some highlights:
Visiting Santa: We visited Santa and Parker was really excited. We had talked about it beforehand so when Parker saw him, he walked right up to him and sat in his lap (much improved from the freak out last year!). Parker told Santa he wanted a screwdriver! Hadley didn't cry but she didn't smile either. I think she was trying to figure out what the heck was going on!
Elf on the Shelf: Santa's crazy helper came to our house with pajamas for the kids on December 1st. He was in a new spot of the house each morning when they woke up.
Christmas Lights: Parker liked looking at the window at our neighbor's houses. We went to zoo lights with Gramma & Pop and then again with The Vreeburgs and Grandma & Grandpa. So much fun! Parker even rode on a camel!
Gingerbread cookies and houses: Parker made gingerbread cookies with Grandma and Grandpa. He make Hadley a special cookie but then ate the head off before he gave it to her. We decorated a gingerbread house but took a bite of the roof before even getting started. Then he just sat at the table shoving candy in his mouth before actually decorating anything. This kid needs some self control! We also made gingerbread houses with the Bluhms. So fun!
Jesus' Birthday: When we tried to tell Parker the true meaning of Christmas, Parker got excited because to him Jesus' birthday means cupcakes. We got a cupcake and sang happy birthday to Jesus Christmas morning.
Presents: Santa brought Parker a screwdriver along with a whole set of tools. Parker was thrilled! Hadley received a big, pink Teddy along with several books.
Decorations/Advent Calendar: Parker loved the decorations. Hadley loved looking at the tree. Parker looked forward to the advent calendar each night with his dad.
Christmas Eve/Day: We spend two days at each set of grandparents houses so we had lots of fun family time. We got to relax and enjoy ourselves with a wonderful holiday!


About Hadley:
*She started sitting up! She is much happier because she can reach toys and see what is going on around her. She LOVES watching her brother play!
*Hadley started baby food. She eats Mum Mums (a rice cracker) and pureed pears, peaches, sweet potatoes, bananas and squash. She loves to eat!
*She's (finally) sleeping through the night, 8pm-8am. She usually only wakes up at 10pm for a quick feeding.
*She's not a great napper. She naps about an hour and a half at 10:30am but it's hard to get her to take more than a cat nap in the afternoon unless she's in the carseat or in the front pack.
*Hadley loves bath time. She likes to splash and play with her ducks.
*Hadley had her 6 month appointment. She's 13lbs 5oz (6%), 2' 1.5" tall (29%), 15.9" head circumference (10%).

About Parker:
*Parker has bee potty training. He's wearing pull-ups full time. He goes on the potty several times per day but still has wet diapers throughout. Hopefully he'll have it consistent in the next couple months.
*Parker really loves Thomas the Train. It's his favorite show, his favorite book and he plays with the trains every day.  He also likes playing with his tools and play food.
*Parker is very sweet towards his sister. He likes to help get her from naps, to bring her toys and to make her laugh.