Here's what we've been doing

Celebrating Christmas has made for such a fun weekend (and several more days it seems). Enjoying the excitement of the season has kept me from updating my loyal blog followers (read with extreme sarcasm) and for that apologize (for both not updating & making that terrible joke!) There are too many pictures to share here, so a good sampling are in my December album.

Jack & I spent early last week with some friends at the new Babyland General in Cleveland. And shame on you if you didn't know that was the birthplace to millions of Cabbage Patch Kids until after clicking the link. Anyway, the new hospital is enormous and was jazzed up for Christmas. I wasn't sure how interested Jack would be in the baby dolls. He seemed to gravitate towards the stuffed animals and loved it when we spotted an Elmo doll. His second favorite part of the tour was probably the giant Cabbage Patch doll, Noel. Her fuzzy outfit was irrestible to him! I also managed to get him to sit on Santa's knee, which was a huge accomplishment! He loves Santa from a distance. As you can see, he wasn't exactly thrilled about it, but there were no tears...so I deemed it a success.

On Christmas Eve, we headed to Athens to celebrate with my parents, brother and sister-in-law. Jack had a great time at Mema & Pop's house. He loved his new camera...he's still learning, but looking forward to keeping up with his mommy and his Pop in the photo department! He was over the moon for his new bubble mower, courtesy of Uncle John & Aunt Lisa. We headed to my grandparents for dinner with my cousins. It was a fun night, and Jack stayed awake all the way home!

When Jack woke up (after 8, which was a nice treat), we saw that Santa had come. He left the most fun surprise for Jack...a shopping cart that he has been pushing around for days! Jack finished the morning with a bubble bath with his new Elmo bubbles, a gift from friends!

That afternoon, Josh's parents and family joined us for dinner and more Christmas fun. He loved his talking Elmo and Little People racecar track. He also got his very own rocking chair. We also enjoyed "sort-of" surprising Josh's parents with their gallery of family photos from our shoot with Sue Ann back in October.

The next day, Josh's aunt & uncle and cousins, as well as my parents, all joined us for lunch and a little gift swaping game...which remained pretty tame. I love Nathan's expression in this photo of Ryan opening a set of TV trays! We don't get to see them as often as we'd like, so it was a real treat to get to spend the better part of the day catching up. The kids had a blast. We are looking forward to ringing in the New Year in a relaxing fashion tonight. See you in 2010!

Basketball Diaries

So, Jack & I headed down to Athens yesterday to take in a UGA women's basketball game with Mema. Jack loves reading his Hairy Dawg book, so we were pretty sure he would enjoy the hoopla and fun that comes along with a college game. Since taking him to a football game is still a little risky...not sure anyone would really enjoy themselves, we opted for the basketball court. We had a great time. They gave away Santa hats, which Jack insisted on wearing right away (despite the fact that it was way too big!) He kept his eyes on Spike (the inflatable volleyball mascot) a.k.a. "BIG Dawg" and of course recognized Hairy Dawg. He had his picture made with both and shared high fives with both Dawg celebrities. He seemed to have a great time. We sat right next to the pep band, so each and every timeout was like an audition for "So You Think You Can Dance." Below is a video of Jack bopping to the beat and yelling "Go Dawgs!"

Yum-O!

Here's what I've been up to in the last week. Yes, I have baked about 20 dozen cookies for 3 different cookie exchanges. I'm afraid I've eaten my fair share of Chocolate Chip S'mores cookies this week too!

Word-free Post (well mostly)

So, here's what we did last week. Celebrated Jack's birthday with his buddies at school. Broke in our new train table (a b-day gift from Jack's great Aunt Cindy & Uncle Roger). Finally, had a complete meltdown at the thought of having to get anywhere near Santa after waiting approximately 20 minutes in the freezing cold outside the Mauldin House. Oh, well! I did manage to get him to give St. Nick a high-five.

How did we get here?

Yes, I'm perplexed. In so many ways, it's hard to remember Jack not being a part of our family. It just seems like he always been around. In other ways, I'm awe-struck to think at how quickly the last two years have flown by. Just over two years ago, Jack was born and so was a brand-new mom! Some days it all comes together...child fed, clothed, a day at the park or trip to the store and dinner on the table. But, most days I still feel like that brand-new mom who is still figuring things out as I go. I'm hoping that's typical!

Anyway, here's a walk down memory lane (whether the lane seems long or short is dependant on the day!)...

How did we get from here*....




to here*...

and finally here*?


Yes, our boy is two and will soon add big brother to his list of accomplishments. Can you believe it? The smallest things these days remind me of what an incredibly fun journey it's been. I remembered the other day that he used to say "coo-coo-key" for cookie. He clearly pronounces it "cookie" these days and I don't even remember when it changed. He still has some pretty cute ones like "Cookie doc-ter" for "cookie monster," "Buff" for "Jeff" and one of my favs "Mom-us" for "Thomas." Before long, those will become crystal clear too...in the meantime this mom will keep figuring it out as I go. But, what a fun learning experience it's been!

*Each of these pictures were captured on November 28.

Cute Little Indian

Jack's preschool hosted their annual Thanksgiving program today at school. All the parents came to watch the kids sing songs, and everyone enjoyed a meal together. I managed to snap a few shots of Jack grinning ear to ear and also shushing a crying classmate. He seemed so proud of his headress.




Once he realized the buggy had passed his mama and he wasn't permitted to get out, it was full blown misery. Here he is wailing in agony to get down and crying for his mommy. It was a bit comical. As soon as he was safe in my arms he was all smiles again...clapping and dancing along to the music. Can't believe this baby of mine will be two in just about 9 days now!!

Scenes from the week

We spent last Monday at the park with Gus, Mack, Davis & Carson. Oh, and their mommies too! It was a great day to be outside. We have been having such wonderful weather these last couple of weeks. Our time at the park was full of play, picnics and laughter. I wanted to pick up a few things at the grocery store while we were out. As you can see, despite the fact that Jack got his standard free cookie from the bakery...it was just too much to stay awake!




We're staying busy getting ready for the holidays, and Jack has a birthday coming up. So, we are gearing up for a Choo Choo Train party.