Santa is my Friend?

Santa was visiting Chick-fil-a for breakfast last weekend, so our playgroup met there. This was Gabby's second time to be near Santa and neither time was very successful. Santa was wonderful; he said hello when we arrived, tried to play peek-a-boo with Gabby and then left her alone when she wasn't showing signs of interest (in reality she was choking Mommy with her death grip). Every once in a while, Santa would walk by and say hello to the kids. She would pout and fuss. Eventually I had to have her sit in his lap so I could get a picture. It is about as pitiful as they get, and Santa felt really guilty! Hopefully next year, we will have more luck!

Busy Day

Today was a busy day! Gabby had playgroup in the morning. We went to see Santa (that didn't go well AT ALL) and then the girls came over to play. We also did a quick craft; handprint ornaments. They are adorable!

After a short nap, Gabby's friend Anna came over to play for a little while. They had a great time playing in the ball pit and making a mess of all the toys! It was a full day of fun and Gabby crashed tonight!

Christmas Outakes

 We decorate the Christmas tree and like usual, Gabby was in the thick of things! She was a HUGE help putting the ornaments on the tree. Unfortunately, we had to start the ornaments about 3 feet off the ground so she wouldn't be able to reach!

A few nights later we tried to take a picture for our Christmas card. What a nightmare that was. Trying to get a 14 mo. old to sit still and look at the camera at the same time is like asking for the Pope to visit our home! Here are a few of our many outtakes! Enjoy!

Thanksgiving

This year Thanksgiving was a lot of fun. We hosted Thanksgiving at our house because (1) I had never used my china. And (2) we have never had a meal in our dining room, so I figured it was time to finally do both of those things! Thankfully our Thanksgivings are small affairs, with my parents, brother, Brian, Gabby and me. It was my second time to prepare a turkey, and really, I have found that as long as you are watching the clock, the turkey is the easy part. It is much more difficult to work on having the sides ready at a time close to the turkey.

I think my favorite part of Thanksgiving are the traditions. Ours aren't anything fancy, but my brother and I always watch the parade and football (of course!) and we eat from breakfast through the turkey dinner. And honestly, we could probably do without the turkey dinner because breakfast and snacks are plenty!

This year, just like every year, we have a lot to be thankful for.
1. Everyone is healthy and happy.

2. Gabby is thriving and becoming more crazy than ever!

3. Brian is a loving husband and father.

4. We have very supportive families.

5. Our warm home.

6. We are employed.

7. Wonderful friends.

8. Even though he hasn't been as included as he used to be, Sam is the most loyal friend a family could ask for.

9. Our freedom and safety.

10. The day after Thanksgiving bargains that you can get just as easily at 10:00am as you can at 4:00am.

Hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

1st Birthday Party

What a day it was! Gabby's birthday turned into a weekend long celebration! She is one very loved little girl by friends and family. We were fortunate to have Uncle Steve, Aunt Tracy, Grandma Mary, my Aunt Carol, and my Grandma Charlotte fly in for the party. The party was a lot of planning and a huge success with lots of friends to help celebrate.

The best part of the day was the cake. Oh boy did Gabby love it! Some little ones gracefully eat the cake; not Gabby. She dug her hands in and shoved it in her mouth! She was quite drunk off of sugar when she was finished!

We had a house full of people and we set up cornhole and other games outside to play. The weather couldn't have been better! Also, Brian's newest project, the kegerator, was up and running in time. Needless to say, that is where we found all the dads hanging out!!! Thanks to everyone who came and helped make it a very special day!

1 year pics

Here are a few of Gabby's one year pictures. She was a little under the weather and uncooperative, but you would never know it from the pictures! They were taken by the lovely and talented Sara Rose of Sara Rose Photography!

Fall!

 Yesterday we went to the pumpkin patch with our friends Jimmy, Erin and their son Hudson. We had a blast! There were farm animals that you could pet and feed, swings, slides and other activities, and of course pumpkins galore!

She almost squeezed the baby chick to death...ooops!

And this is how our day ended!!!

Someone Has a Birthday Coming Up

Agh! Gabby's first birthday is TWO weeks away! How is it possible that an entire year has passed since her birth?!?! I'm not real sure where the time has gone, but boy what a year it has been. Gabby is definitely her father's daughter. It is so funny that she gets that same smile her daddy has when she is getting into trouble! She is mischievous, curious, joyful, and full of surprises. She is one of the busiest little girls I know. Most kids will sit and play. Not Gabby. She gets a toy and then she must circle the house 12 times holding onto said toy!

Gabby's vocabulary is expanding quickly! Her first word was Hi, followed by Mama, Dada, woof (yes she barks like a dog), dog, shoes, uh-oh and bus. I'm looking forward to hearing what her next word will be!

The next couple of weeks will be busy for us as we prepare for Gabby's party! We can't wait to post pictures!

Far Too Long

It has been too many months since I last updated the blog. Life has been busy for us and we have been enjoying each day as it comes. A lot of things in life took a backseat to Gabby and her constant movement. But that's okay and how we feel it should be. So, I apologize for the long blogging break and promise to try my best to do better!

In the last few months we have travelled, explored and played a lot! So far in Gabby's first year she has been to Denver, Houston, Philadelphia, Chicago, Florida, Chattanooga and we are headed to San Antonio soon to visit Uncle Steve! Gabby has done awesome on road trips and in the air!

Gabby has reached many milestones this summer. She started crawling at 7.5 mo. The day after she started crawling, she started pulling up. Around 9 mo. she started taking a few unassisted steps and just 3 days after she turned 10 mo. she started walking. She has been walking for a couple of weeks now and she is fast! 

We weren't sure if Gabby was ever going to get teeth. She got along just fine without them having rejected purees around 7.5 mo. But finally, 3 teeth emerged last month, 2 on top and 1 on the bottom. Teething wasn't much fun, so we were glad to get 3 teeth out of the way at once!

Gabby is still a little peanut. She went to the doctor around her 10 mo. monthday and she weighed 19.5 lbs and was 27 in. tall (30th & 45th%). There are many of Gabby's friends who are younger than her and are taller and weigh more, so it is cute to see her standing next to them!

Daddy was home for 2 months again this summer. Gabby and Daddy spent a lot of time together and we were all very sad to see him go. Wouldn't you know that the day he left for work was the day she took off walking?!?!? That's the way it always happens!

Gabby's vocabulary has been growing. Her first word was "Hi" and she will say it as she is walking in and out of the door. It has become apparent that we all talk on the phone too much because one of her "things" is to put her hand to her ear and say "Hi" when the phone rings. It is super cute! She will also say "hot", "dog", and she will woof when she hears a dog barking. 

One of the most exciting things is that Gabby has made friends with a family next door to my parents. They have 4 kiddos, with the youngest being almost exactly one year older than Gabby. I tell you what, Gabby is one tough cookie. She plays and keeps up with the boys and the girls! She will climb the ladder up to the slide by herself (has been since the first of July) and will go down the slide with a little assistance.  She will also climb the wrong way up the slide, just like the big kids! She is constantly on the go and it is so funny to watch her playing!

All in all we have had a wonderful summer enjoying our little girl. Life would be boring without her and she is definitely our little princess. I have begun working on her 1st birthday, as much as it pains me to type out those words. Our little peanut is growing and exploring and making friends and it is a joy to watch her everyday!

Best Friends

Gabby and I recently traveled to Houston to visit Ryan, Katie and Avery and to help celebrate Avery's 1st birthday. I cannot believe she is 1 already! Time has flown by! Even though it was a very short weekend and we would have loved to have stayed longer, we are so glad we were able to spend time together and to celebrate. Avery and Gabby 'played' nicely together and I am sure they will be life long friends.

We took the girls in search of a bluebonnet patch to snap a few pictures. 200 pictures later, I think we got 20 or so good ones. During the process, poor Gabby face planted twice, but she was a great sport! She is a great sitter, but Gabby reaching for flowers +Hill = Face Plant.

And I must share a moment that I am sure Gabby will one day hope I forget. Katie took us to the airport and usually we both are in tears as we say good bye, but as I pulled Gabby out of the carseat, I noticed her pant leg was wet. I look at the back of her shirt and sure enough, it was wet and stinky too. She had a blowout! So, in the airport drop off lane, we strip her down in the back of the car, give her a bath with wipes and change her clothes. Poor kiddo! The best part was that Katie and I were laughing so hard that we didn't cry saying good bye! We had a great weekend together and can't wait to see them again soon!