The "Rest" of Christmas - Yes I know it's amost February!

Well, these days blogging has takend a back seat to some very crazy days both at work and at home! So, I am finally getting around to posting the rest of Christmas. This is Sarah Katherine's VERY favorite thing she got for Christmas - her first car. My parents got her a Princess Cozy Coupe from Little Tykes and she is completely infatuated with getting in and out of that car. She doesn't even so much care if you drive her around in it, she just wants to be able to open and close the door and climb in and out. So, my living room has officially been taken over with kid's toys (although I do have a closet to shove it all in should my house be required to look like grown ups do live there!).

Another super cute thing my mom found is a book about the "Tickle Monster" that came with Tickle Monster gloves!!! So we of course chase little bit around with our monster hands for a while, and she decided she needed to return the favor - here is SK as the tickle monster... be afraid, very afraid!

Christmas Day

Christmas morning was so much fun!!! David had to work for a few hours that day, so we got Sarah Katherine up early to check out what Santa brought for her... it was a princess's dream! All sorts of dress up stuff, her very own purse (including a phone and lipstick), some pom pom's, etc, etc! Of course her first grab was for the purse (no surprise there since she grabs mine any time I leave it within her little grasp). She toted that thing around the whole weekend - we even had to take it to Nanna and Grandpa's when we went on Christmas afternoon.

The princess and her goodies!

Can I say more?!

This was at Nanna and Grandpa's house (David's parents). We got to spend time with all of David's family - including having cousin time with all 5 cousins! It was so much fun seeing all the kiddos interact and having a great time with all the family. We came home with more goodies, the one SK is now toting everywhere is the blanket Aunt Rachael made for her - from the time she wakes up until the time she goes to sleep, that blanket is not out of her site. I think we may have our first lovey!

What a great Christmas, and it's not even over yet - we get to go see my family this weekend. :) I know some of the goods that are waiting down there, and it is going to be super fun too!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year everyone!!!

Christmas Eve

We had a great Christmas Eve together as a family. We went to the Christmas Eve service at church, which is a great tradition we have been doing since we have been able to stay home for Christmas Eve the past two years. We chose our seats very carefully because everyone goes up as a family to receive the Lord's Supper and there is no nursery, so SK got to be with us. Well, needless to say we wanted to sit where we were sure we got to go up fairly quickly in case SK go a bit rowdy. :) While all of this is going on there are people singing, and David was one of them. Sarah Katherin was so cute when David got up there! She danced and waved and laughed. She even had the preacher eyeing her for a bit. Not too long after David did his song was she ready to go, so we snuck out and went home to open presents. We first read the Christmas story from Luke, had a family prayer, and then let SK go wild with her goodies. :)

So excited to get the present party started!!! Such a cute Santa baby. :)

I love my baby's expressions. She was seriously making some fun faces with her goodies!

Not the best quality picture, but what happened was she pulled her Christmas PJ's out of the box and then immediately held them up to herself like she was seeing if they were going to fit. :0) Is this gir going to be an awesome shopper or what?!

Merry Christmas from SK...

Here is a picture SK took for her teachers and some family that lives out of town. She wanted to be sure and share with everyone to have a very blessed and Merry Christmas!!!

Zoolight Safari

This weekend we bundled up and headed out to see Zoolight Safari at the Birmingham Zoo. Of course Sarah Katherine zonked out in the car before we even got on the interstate, but I am just calling that her power nap so that she could enjoy the fun lights! Sarah Katherine has loved our lights at home and has been so intrigued by them. She will point her finger and just lightly touch them (totally picture ET for the visual!). Well, she was super excited about the big lights at the zoo. Plus they had music playing, so SK took the opportunity to jam out in her stroller while the lights and music were going together. :)

In this area they had the trees and lights in time with the music that was playing, so SK pretended she was the conductor and was waving her hands to make everything go! Note that we even got David in gloves and ear coverings, so you can tell it was chilly.

Here is Sarah Katherine and her buddy Emma enjoying the snow! (They had a snow machine right when you came in the gate - so cool! Except when I figured out it was probably soap flakes and the girls were staring straight up at the "snow". Luckily no eyes were burned out during the process!)

I LOVE this picture! As usual SK got her wind to be super cute when we were getting back in the car. I guess her nose was cold, so she was giving me eskimo kisses. :)

Latest Stats...

We went for Sarah Katherine's 15 month check up last week and the baby girl has definitely gone through a growth spurt:

Height: 31 3/4" (90%)
Weight: 25 lbs - 6 oz (75%)

That means almost 2" and 5lbs in the last 4 months! Luckily her appetite is starting to slow down and her running around is very much increasing, so maybe she won't have another 5lbs in the next few months. :) I promise she is eating fruits and vege's! This girl was just overdue for a growth spurt I guess. She has finally caught up to her friends though and doesn't look like the poor little girl someone should feed!

She did have three shots though, and one of them made her run a fever so she had to miss her Christmas party at daycare - so sad! I guess it's better for her to be puny and miss that and not be sick on Christmas day, but I was so upset for her to miss out on the fun. At least she's little enough to not be permanently scarred from missing cookies and sweets day at school!

Catching Up...

Well, a lot has happened in the past month since I have been able to post! Life always gets busy in November and December and this year is not exception. I guess I'll start with Thanksgiving and work out from there. :)

We had a great Thanksgiving this year! My parents came up and brought with them turkey, dressing, and dumplings. For anyone out there looking for the best way to do Thanksgiving this is it - you "host" but everyone else brings the food. :) I did do some cooking (the sweet potato casserole - of course). Everything was yummy and Sarah Katherine loved every bite.

The next day was the Auburn - Alabama game, so we had to get festive in our outfit. Grandmommy and Granddaddy had to leave that day, so we took some pictures before they had to say goodbye.

Not too long after that a good friend of mine at work had her precious baby. This is a wonderful addition to their family, and it is also a short term addition to my excitement at work while she is out on maternity leave because I am handling her project while she is out. So, the days go by super fast because there is always something happening on one project or another. It is teaching me the need for delegation, and I am always up for new life lessons!

Our weekends have been kind of hectic as well because we have been in full swing practice for our Christmas cantata at church (if anyone lives nearby Pelham - come check it out this Sunday the 13th or Monday the 14th). Even though it is a lot of work to pull this program together, it is such a wonderful way to get re-focused and really remember what the true meaning of Christmas is. Praise God for sending his son to Earth for us!

We have been able to squeeze in a couple of trips to the park next to our house, and Sarah Katherine has been determined to be a daredevil! There is a small playground (for her) and a larger one for bigger kids. Well, she has decided that the small slides aren't nearly as fun as the bigger ones so David gets to play monkey man and climb up there to slide down with her! She absolutely loves it.

In the midst of all of this, Sarah Katherine is growing like a weed. We go to the doctor next week for her 15 month check up and I think we are going to get big changes from the 12 month update. She has been eating and sleeping lots - aka - growth spurt! Some things (like onesies) she has jumped from a 9 month size to an 18 month size in just a month. This is a tall girl! The good thing is, she is still not picky about what she eats, so when she is super hungry I just plot down the vege's and that is what she fills up on. I am trying to ride this wave while I can because I am sure when she starts talking I will get the word NO a lot.