At Last...Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Okay...so let me start off by apologizing for not getting this post out sooner. Also, let me forewarn you that this will be long, so be prepared!

Well, I guess the best place to start is where I left off. Thursday, December 22, Brian and I got to go eat dinner with some good friends we haven't seen in a while. We met Jenni and Dustin (Jenni is one of my best friends...we met at East Texas Baptist Univ) and Ben and Katie (they are our good friends from VA...we met them at Jenni and Dustin's wedding) at PF Changs in Sundance Square for dinner! We got to just sit and talk and hang out. It was so much fun. Having friends like that is probably when Brian and I miss the most right now.

Friday was the Christmas party. Thanks to all that came to make it such a fun time for us! We had a blast and we were excited to be able to have a party with our family and friends here.


Saturday we headed to Jacksonville, Tx for Christmas at Brian's grandparent's house. It was a blast to get to see everyone there. We got to see Brian's cousins that don't live in Texas. It was great. We got the prettiest Santa decoration from Brian's grandparents for Christmas. Then we left there and drove to my parents house Saturday night. It was a LONG night as the 2.5 hour nap in the car helped Thomas to then stay awake till almost 3am! FUN, huh!?

Sunday we got up and went to church at my parents church as an entire family (Mom, Dad, Amy, Paul, me, Brian, Thomas, Leanne, Grandmother, and Grandma). It was neat to be able to all be at church together on Christmas Eve. We then went home and ate Turkey, dressing, layered salad, fruit salad, and all the other yummy stuff we always have at my family's Christmas! After lunch (while Thomas was sleeping) we started opening Christmas presents (well, after the 30 minute of pics that we took!). Brian and I got a lot of good stuff! We got a fireplace screen and fireplace tools. I got 2 (practical) belts, some clothes, a charm for my charm bracelet, a book, and a bunch of other great gifts! Brian got a clothes valet, house shoes, shirts, etc. And Thomas (who got to open presents after he finally woke up) got the loot! He got a walker toy, a peek a boo blocks school bus, a race track toy, the weebalot castle, a ball popper, a very cute bib and burp rag (the burp rag he thinks is a blankee), and a board that this Aunt Leanne glued these cute letters on to spell his name. He loves it all. Then we just watched Thomas play until bedtime. His favorite toy was the ball popper. He would squeal with laughter at it! So, finally we put Thomas to bed so that Santa could come!

Monday morning Santa had come. And wow...we thought Thomas had a lot before Santa! From Santa he got a ride on Mickey Mouse Airplane toy and the Little People's Noah's Ark. He also got a play cell phone and a new sippie cup, both of which he loved! He got some books and blocks and other toys from Santa..but way too many to list! After we did Santa, Brian, Thomas, and I loaded up and headed up to Celina to do Christmas with Brian's family. We had a great time up there. Thomas again hit the jackpot! He got the Fisher Price Animal Train (cute toy), a rocking horse, and the roll around balls dinosaur. He was so excited as he opened the dino and is loving playing with that toy every day. He also got a tool bench toy and 2 dvds. One of the dvds is called Baby Faith, and he LOVES it. He is so mesmerized by it. He will sit and watch the entire video. He also got clothes and other such things, but those are the highlights. We had a great meal there too and were able to spend the nite with Brian's parents.

Tuesday we hung out with Brian's parents for most of the day and then Brian took me and Thomas to my parents so we could go shopping together on Wednesday. Brian had to work at the office on Wednesday, so it worked perfectly. Mom and I spent some time at the mall and all I really bought was clothes for Thomas! Brian was supposed to come back on Wednesday afternoon and pick me up, but poor baby ended up sick and was homebound. Therefore I ended up spending Wednesday night at my parent's house again. Thursday mom, Thomas, and I went to my grandmothers to hang out there for a bit. We then met Brian in Arlington and headed home for a night.

Friday Brian and I went to Waco to go to a wedding of a close family friend. It was a beautiful wedding and we had a blast. We were able to see people we hadn't seen since our wedding. We even got to hang out with my friend Marnie for a while at the hotel. We got up Saturday morning and headed back up to Weatherford. Saturday night, Leanne, Amy, and Paul came over to visit. We had a great time eating pizza and hanging out. It was fun for Thomas to get to play with his Aunts and Uncles! Uncle Paul had fun playing with Thomas' toys...except the ball popper! It seems to stress him out! He did teach Thomas to make the window in his little doorway toy go up and down. Thanks a lot Uncle Paul. Uuuup.....Doooown....Uuuuup...Dooown!!!

Sunday, Brian and I took a day off! Well, sorta! We "slept in" as much as Thomas would allow and then we headed back to my grandmother's house to have lunch with her. It was the last time the entire family was going to be able to get together for a while (as grandma was heading back to Arkansas on Sunday and Amy and Paul back to Cali on Monday). Brian and I left from there to head to the Dallas Stars game that night. (We left Thomas in the capable hands of my parents). So, we rode the Dart to the American Airlines Center and went to watch the Stars! We had a great time, however, the Stars lost! The other team scored 4 points in the first period! But, as I said...it was fun! Brian and I actually left early and were back home by 11. We stayed up till Midnight, told everyone Happy New Year, and went to bed! Monday we spent the day at Brian's parents house again with his family (his sisters and their kids). It was a great day and we had a lot of fun! Thomas had a great time with his cousins, aunts, nana, and jpa! We made sure to eat our black eyed peas, so hopefully this will be a year of good luck for us!

That brings us to Tuesday. I think all we did Tuesday was take Thomas to the dr's office and clean up house some. The dr appt was good in that Thomas is now ear infection free for the time being!

Now Wednesday...that was a fun day that was. Our friends Marie, Tyler and Annie came to see us. We hadn't seen Tyler and Annie since our wedding! We were able to have them stay the night at our house. First they came to weatherford and we all went to eat dinner. We went to this hole in the wall Mexican restraunt that was actually pretty good. Leanne actually came over and joined us for dinner. After dinner we all came back to the house to hang out and talk. We ended up staying up past midnight just talking and sharing pictures and other such fun! Thursday they had a funeral to go to, but afterwards, they came back by the house for a while. Tyler and Annie had to leave quickly b/c they had to drive home. However, Marnie was able to hang out with me for a while. She took me to JoAnns to buy fabric so I could practice with my new sewing machine. Then she had to leave to drive home (Waco).

That brings us to today...finally! Today Thomas had his first playdate! Our friend Kim brought her daughter Avery (who I take care of at Parent's Day Out) over to play with Thomas for a little bit. It was fun to watch them play and fun to have some adult conversation! We had a good time.

Thomas is getting more and more mobile! He is now actually walking on his feet behind his walker toy now instead of on his knees. He learns new things every day. Today he said puppy for the first time and he now signs the work please. I am loving our time off work, but next week it all starts again! Well, Thomas is waking up from his nap and starting to fuss to get out of bed. I will have to finish this up later (aka - add pics later!). I will post this soon though! Thanks for taking the time to read my book! Enjoy the pics too (Dad, I hope there are enough!)!









Me and Brian in front of the tree

Cousins Sydney, Hadley, Connor, Bailey, and Abby

Me making faces for mommy ---------------------->>>>>>>>>

Too cute looking at the dogs!