Sucker!

Our Christmas Gift

Lucas turns 1 today at 11:46a.m. Last year was a whirlwind of his birth and Christmas and snowskiing within the first 2 weeks of his life. He was a wonderful newborn then and is a joyful toddler today. We feel like he makes our lives complete!

Lucas @ 12 months:

- walks alone

- no more bottles!

- waves bye-bye

- shakes his head for "yes" and "no"

- has discovered lasagna, cookies, and suckers

- still hates diaper changes

- stubborn and strong willed

- still taking 2 naps a day

- gives a "high five"

- likes to play catch with any ball

- likes cats and dogs

- has 8 teeth (4 on top, 4 on bottom)

Christmas #1

We celebrated our first Christmas of the season at Grandma Joyce and Granddad Ernest's house Sat. night. We enjoyed a wonderful dinner and spent time visiting and playing with babies. Of course, my camera was trained on Lucas trying to get a picture of him walking. I never had the camera ready at the right moment and/or he wouldn't oblige. He is taking 8-10 steps at a time and is getting very sure on his feet. Here are some of his antics while waiting for Lillian to let him in the bedroom to play:

"If you won't let me in, I'll wait here until you come out!"

"I think I'll try a somersault while I'm waiting.""That didn't go quite like I'd planned."
"After all that waiting, she comes out to tickle me!"

And Just Like That...

...it has been a week since I've made a post!

I wish I could say we've been relaxing and playing, but that is simply not the case. In this busy holiday season, we have had many things to occupy our time. One event was my school Christmas party last Friday night. Brent and I always enjoy this because of the awesome gifts we get and the fun of playing "Dirty Santa." On Saturday, I spent the morning shopping with my mom. It has been years since we have been able to shop without kids or other people in tow! I enjoyed taking my time and getting to ride the escalator. (Any of you without kids may not understand the simplicity of that but you will one day!) That afternoon, we took family pictures. I included one of the proofs here for your viewing enjoyment. It was a challenge to get 1 picture with 4 people looking nice; I can't imagine doing it with any more faces.

So Cute!

My sis-in-law, Lindsey, started an etsy business at www.shopsweetsimplicity.etsy.com. She is making adorable onesie designs for our little ones and I think they are awesome! Give her some support and check out her site.

Putting Up The Tree

The finished product

Since moving to our new house 3 years ago, we have decorated 2 trees. One went in our formal living area, as you see in this picture, and one in the family room. The formal tree had the matching ornaments and could be seen from the street through the front door. It is a "show" tree. The family room tree held the memory ornaments. My mother-in-law, Charlotte, purchased an ornament or decoration for each of her boys every year so they would have a collection when they left home. Those ornaments adorned the tree as well as ornaments I have purchased for Lillian and now Lucas. When we vacation, I buy an ornament from that city or state to remember the trip.

This year, we only decorated one tree. All reasons come back to safety for Lucas and the trees. I figured keeping him away from one tree would be tricky enough. The baby gate is only a distraction. He can sneak between the legs of the piano bench and get back there if he wants to.

There is something magical about the lights of a Christmas tree.

"It's a Great Cookie Swap, Charlie Brown!"

Head on over to Bloggin it from the 'Burbs to participate in this awesome cookie swap today!

Here's my contribution:

Peanut Butter Chocolate Kisses

(I copied this recipe from my mom when I was much, much younger. It is still one of my favorite cookies.)

1 C margarine

2/3 C creamy peanut butter

1 C sugar

1 C brown sugar

2 2/3 C flour

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp salt

2 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

5 dozen chocolate kisses

Mix margarine and peanut butter, add sugars. Beat until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat until smooth. Sift dry ingredients and add. Shape into balls. Roll in sugar. Place on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake @375 degrees for 8 min. Place (unwrapped) chocolate kiss in middle of each cookie. Bake 2 min. longer.

Happy Holidays!