Snow...What Fun!!

Christmas 2009

Scooting around on his new scooter!

Trying out her new tricycle!

Duke Soccer T-Shirt...Does he care about Duke Soccer? I think not...but, he really likes soccer and he likes that the t-shirt has a soccer ball on it!

I think she likes her new bikini...she wanted to try it on immediately!!

They were very proud of their 'present tower!'

A special visit from Santa...Alex spoke of the visit after Santa left..."That is not really Santa. It is just Papa in a Santa suit." He hasn't mentioned anything since...we're hoping he really didn't figure it out!!

Christmas 2009 was a great one!! We had a great time spending time with friends and family! Minus the disgusting illness we spread to all of our family (Meemas, Papas, Aunts, Uncles, and Friends), Christmas was just the way it should have been! :)

Turkey Time

We met this Turkey..."Tom the Turkey," just before Christmas. We headed to a local farm to buy some cheese and we met this gaseous creature (he was having some issues during our visit). The picture does not do him justice...This turkey was HUGE!! There was NO way he would fit in your oven for a Christmas meal, but it was a good thing Daddy didn't join us. He definitely would have thought about finding a way!

"Tom the Turkey" was very curious about Alex and, at first, Alex was very curious about him. But, the more "Tom the Turkey" stared at Alex eye to eye (yes, the turkey was as tall as Alex), the more Alex got freaked out! Alex eventually went running for the tallest man he could find...Uncle Matt. Alex claims he was not "SCARED" of the turkey, but I think this picture shows the fear in his eyes!

After awhile, Alex calmed down enough to feed the cows some hay and spend some nice quality time with his Uncle Matt. Aren't the cows cute??

Duke Game at the United Center

Getting ready for his first Duke game with Mommy, Daddy, Mike,
Stephanie, Meema, and Papa!!

Daddy and Alex...Alex is very proud of the Duke Jersey he got for Christmas! It is now a proud possession...little does he know that I found it on the Marshall's clearance rack for $5! Yes, I am proud of my buy!!

There is Coach K...Just to the right of "Mutual of Omaha." Greg wants our next puppy member of our household to be named 'Little Coach K!' Don't steal it...you know you're jealous!

A blurry shot of Jon Sheyer...This was supposed to be a 'home' game for him since he is from Northbrook.

After the game and getting ready to brave the
snowstorm to head back home!!
Good times!!

Good Times at Open Gym

Alex, after taking a big dive into the foam pit off the big platform!

Jumping...in motion!! How cool does that look?

More jumping in motion...One would think the gym is full of ghosts with all these white spots on the film, but, luckily, I think it is just all the gymnastic dust particles floating around. Actually, when you think about it, it is kind of gross!!

Julia marching around on the mats...

Towards the end of the day, she finally got brave enough to go in the foam pit. Unfortunately, she didn't want to stop jumping in and climbing back out!

Julia's 2 Year Appointment

Once again, Julia was told that she is a wonderful, beautiful, and healthy little girl. She weighed in at 27.2 pounds, which is at the 50% level. Mommy was relieved that she didn't have to listen to more concerns about her weight. Julia is a great eater...she just burns it all off because she is so active!! I didn't tell the doctor that the weight might be a reflection of the all the pumpkin pies and Christmas goodies she has eaten over the past few weeks...I didn't think her doctor would think too kindly of that!!
Julia's height continues to amaze us! She seems so petite and most of her Christmas and birthday pants are both too big around the waist and in length. Several of her pants will probably be put to use in the fall after she has grown a few more inches...but, anyways, because of her 'big pants' it was again surprising to hear that she is 34 inches tall, which is at the 74% level. She obviously did not get this characteristic from me...we'll continue to watch this closely as she grows older!

More Birthday Pictures of the Birthday Girl

On her birthday, Julia celebrated by eating a hot dog with Uncle Adam and Aunt Nett. Afterwards, we stopped at DQ and got Julia one of her favorite foods...ice cream!!

Birthday party fun!! She really got the hang of opening presents between Christmas and her birthday!!

A new mirror for her new bedroom, which Mommy and Daddy are currently working on!! She will have a new bed, dresser, chest of drawers, her mirror, her new Cinderella clock, and new bedding. Mommy also just bought the paint for her room...get ready for some pictures!

Let's Celebrate Some Birthdays!!

Not the greatest picture of Uncle Adam...but, I like that it shows him marching around with the kids on the 4th of July!! Good times with a fun Uncle!!

Celebrating with Daddy's friend Dan and his wife Susan for his birthday!!

Hopefully, Kristine doesn't get too mad at me for posting a picture of her fun on her 30th birthday!!

Meema's birthday this year is a secret...sssshhhhhhhh!!!!!!

Uncle Matt and Aunt Miranda also recently celebrated some birthdays!!

My most favorite birthday girl...Happy 2nd Birthday little Julia!!

Family Resolutions 2010-Part Two

The other evening, as we sat down and enjoyed dinner together, we discusses our actual resolutions for 2010. I made sure to 'plug' my suggested resolutions as I firmly believe that they were quality suggestions, but only Alex seemed to take me seriously!

DADDY

He resolves to miss less Duke basketball action than he did in 2009 (with hopes of additional assistance from Mommy...we'll see about that :).

ALEX

Alex resolves to:
Behave
Be a Good Boy
Be Good to Julia, Mommy, Daddy, and Everyone
(Although he took my suggestions seriously, I do have serious doubts that he will be following through with these resolutions).

JULIA

Julia resolves to eat more corn (part of our meal that evening) and wear as much jewelry as possible in 2010.

DUKE

His eyes said it all as he peered up at me while we ate and discussed...Duke resolves to fit more 'people' food into his diet this coming year.

Family Resolutions 2010-Part One

These are Mommy's suggested resolutions for the family for 2010. Stay tuned to see what each family member's resolutions actually are in the coming days!

DADDY

Daddy plans on listening to Mommy more...meaning not just 'listening,' but actually processing what she is saying!!

MOMMY

Mommy plans on continuing with her exercise and weight loss goals...meaning that she really will be taking it more seriously in 2010. Not that losing 20 pounds in 2009 wasn't bad, but in all honesty, I could have done better!

ALEX

Alex plans to work on not talking back, not whining, and not sticking his tongue out at Mommy and Daddy (my interpretation...Alex's version of giving us the middle finger) when we ask him not to do something...meaning he will start to recognize when he is doing wrong and will immediately say "Sorry Mommy (or Daddy)."

JULIA

Julia plans to make the transition to a big girl bed a smooth one...meaning she will not get in and out of bed after we have put her down for a nap or for night-night.

DUKE

Duke plans on continuing not to bark at other dogs on walks...meaning he will meet each new greeting with anticipation and friendliness.