Near Perfect Christmas

Look at my new coat...the paper is WAY more interesting. Grandma O and Grandpa Jim came over on Christmas Eve morning to celebrate. We made breakfast and enjoyed watching Henry open his gifts. What a spoiled little man.

Destroying the creation is SO much more fun than building the creation! Dad likes the fact these blocks are foam...much easier on furniture when they get hurled across the room.

Henry LOVES riding on Daddy's shoulders, hence the big grin. We visited Grandma Sherry and Grandpa Keith on Christmas Eve afternoon. They hosted a very nice party with the extended family. There was lots of good food and company. It is always fun to see Grandpa Keith's HUGE tree, which makes Grandma Sherry crazy, but I think it's fun. Henry enjoyed the dancing stuffed animals and reading books with his cousin Stella. He of course liked all the attention that his many aunties and grown-up cousins gave him. He is a much loved little boy.

Henry still really enjoys banging on anything he can get his hands on. This picture was taken as he was banging on Mommy.

Christmas Day we visited Daddy at the fire station. Henry enjoyed meeting some new people and getting out the house. He has turned out to be quite the social little guy. On Monday we went to visit the Chapman family, including their four kids, in McMinnville. We had a such a good time playing and catching up. Andrew, the Chapman's third in line, LOVES babies...and Henry was no exception. It was SO sweet to watch Andrew play with Henry and show him around the house.

The best part of the weekend was that Mommy didn't have to work. The only downer of the weekend was that Daddy did have to work two of the days. So goes the life of a fire fighter. The trade-off is that he gets lots of other time with Henry that most dad's don't, so I'm not complaining (well, okay, perhaps I just did complain a little).

By way of other Henry updates, he has found the joy of the stairs. He will do anything to climb up them, over...and over...and over again. It makes me a little nervous, but I suppose he will have to learn sometime. He is standing and cruising around furniture better and better every day. He can crawl at lightning speed. Henry now protests every diaper change and wants to play King of the Mountain on the changing table instead. He developed his first fever (low grade) today and got a taste of his first dose of baby Advil. Poor little man (he actually seems fine...it is sad for Mommy though). All in all, he's still a very smiley, giggle little man. I couldn't be happier with his development and easy-going demeanor. It helps that he still adores his Mama...just as his Mama loves him!

Merry Christmas

Mom's stuff is WAY more fun than Baby's stuff. This lint roller was quite the entertainment one evening. It was funny to watch him get his hands stuck to the sticky paper and then try to lint roll Soph...she wasn't amused. : )

Henry reading his FAVORITE Christmas book. He loves the end where Santa says "ho ho ho." He will read this book over and over again, talking to each of the characters.

Look Ma, I can climb up anything. The kitchen stools are one of my favorite.

Henry thinks he is just oh so amusing. He cracks me up! He played with the gladware container pictured for more than 30 minutes straight.

Uh oh! How did that happen!?! Henry had great fun "helping" mom wrap Christmas presents. He climbed up on the wrapping paper box until he reached the box of bows. He shook and shook the box of bows until all the bows fell out and then stared at all the bows on the floor with a confused look. Funny little dude.

Henry is super MOBILE and interactive now. It is so much fun to play with him. Henry climbs to standing with ease now and has starting crusing around furniture. He "talks" all the time, telling all kinds of stories. He recently also found his volume button. He often yells to his toys and books...or simply the cabinet doors. His favorite pastime remains banging objects together. The more noise they make, the better. Henry has begun to feed himself. He often makes a big mess, but surprisingly, much of his food actually makes it to his mouth...eventually. Tonight he even fed himself orange segments and chicken bits. Until today he had only really mastered eating Cheerios and other similar dry foods. Drinking still remains a challenge, but he is getting better and better each day. He actually did pretty well when I tried giving him a few sips out of my water glass. Perhaps it is time to invest in some normal plastic cups.

Christmas is just a few days away. I think we are ready for the most part, I just have a few more gifts to wrap and I need to do some grocery shopping. We are super excited to watch Henry open his Christmas presents. He loves the sound of ripping paper. I think he will be more interested in the wrapping paper and cardboard boxes than the actual toys and books, at least initially. I am also looking forward to watching Henry interact with his cousins on Christmas Eve. Ryan's mom decorates the house to the nines, making it one of the most festive places to celebrated during the season. Ryan's dad has a tradition of getting a HUGE tree, which is always decorated with tons of lights and fun ornaments that they have collected over the years. Best of all, the whole family gets together and brings their favorite snacks. Food and family...can't get much better than that!

I have been blessed with much good fortune this year, including good health, a loving husband, gainful employment, and supportive family and friends. Most of all, I have been blessed with a beautiful, happy, health little boy that I get to call my son. Doesn't get much better than that.

Merry Christmas to all those I love...you know who you are!

Little Man Standing

Henry loves sitting in Daddy's recliner. This is the most recent recliner photo from our last beach trip over Thanksgiving weekend. Mommy took Henry to the tree lighting in downtown Rockaway where we sang carols and he got his first glimpse of Santa. He officially visited Santa last Wednesday and did an amazing job. Even a few smiles.

Giggly boy.

Henry can now stand up. He climbs up EVERYTHING, even the walls, literally. It won't be long before he starts walking around furniture as well. I can't believe how fast kids develop!!!

By way of other updates, his favorite toys these days aren't toys at all. Today, he played with a gladware container for over a half hour straight. He also loves the sound of ripping paper and my metal water bottle. He LOVES his new Santa board book that Grandma Sherry gave him at Thanksgiving. He wants to read it over and over and over again, which I of course oblige. : ) His favorite foods these days include oatmeal (with a little agave nectar), cheese, cheerios, persimmons, clementines, raspberries, and butternut squash. His fourth tooth arrived this last week as well, which made for a few restless nights. He is trying desperately to learn how to drink water from a sippy cup but he still doesn't quite know how to seal his lips, so the water just dribbles down his chin. He is so proud of himself though when he gets the water to flow. Its pretty funny to watch.