Happy New Year!

We are back from our whirlwind tour of Texas over the Christmas holiday. After visiting Lubbock and San Antonio via lots of driving and a long flight experience for Anderson and I in the middle, we were ready to be home! Although, unpacking all those suitcases and finding room for all of our fabulous new gifts was a challenge! Our goal was to be completely finished by the 4th, when Reese goes back to work, and I think we'll do it! We had so many wonderful times over the Christmas season- too many to recap! However, I will post some of my favorite pictures from this past month.


This is one of those shots that you could never capture if you were actually trying. :) Riley and Anderson love each other so much- it's adorable.

I love the look of determination on Anderson's face as he decorates his Christmas cookie. After we made these, we had to continually hide the cookie tin because asking for a cookie became a multiple-times-per-day occurrence!

We had some friends over to play one day and they brought their newest addition. Anderson immediately took interest in saying hello to the baby and bringing her his trucks to play with. I just hope this friendliness towards babies continues over the next 6 months!

This year we put this Santa out in the front yard with the lights. Anderson began asking daily to go "ou-side" to see "Ho Ho Ho". He would go out and give him five, stand by him, wave, etc. We were a little worried to put him away once Christmas was over!

Anderson is in that stage where he is beginning to enjoy posing for pictures. In fact, he became so used to posing in front of various Christmas trees that whenever we would tell him that we wanted to take a picture, he would immediately go stand in front of whatever Christmas tree was around!

This picture captures what happens multiple times per day around here. Anderson is a typical toddler who gets frustrated easily. Hence, the frustrated expression. The hand raised is Anderson's adaptation of the sign for "help". We're trying to teach him that when he's frustrated to just ask for "help please" instead of crying, so it seems we are making some progress.

This is Reese with our niece, Kate, and Anderson at the bowling alley. I think this is such a cute picture of the kids, both old and young!

Our family on Christmas morning!

On our first morning in San Antonio, Anderson promptly walked straight over to one of the presents with Thomas the Train paper on it and just started opening it. He knew by now that those wrapped things had fun stuff inside and that he wasn't waiting on everyone else to take their places in the living room!

Anderson was a present passing-out pro! He loved delivering the presents to whoever Mommy and Daddy told him it was for. If it was a big one, his new expression was "Heavy!"

Overall, we had a memory-filled Christmas this year! Thanks to all of our family for making Christmas so wonderful for us all!