The 12 Outfits of Christmas

So obviously I'm going to do a blog about Christmas and share all the fun we had with Finn, but as I was looking through all the pictures this morning, I couldn't help but notice that we had an obscene number of Christmas outfits for this child. Bless his heart, he almost had to wear 2 a day every day in December to get through all of them!

#1 

 #2

 #3

#4

#5

Here's a close-up of those socks, just in case you couldn't tell that this IS a Christmas outfit...

 #6

 #7

#8

 #9

 He's not too crazy about #10

 #11


Ok, well there are only 11....but I'd say that's still a lot! Stay tuned for more Christmas pics!

A Baby in a Box and a Run-away Granny

I know it probably seems like all I do is dress my baby up and take pictures of him, but I also work sometimes, tend to his basic needs, take care of the dogs, and clean the house. Well, everything except that last part....

In my defense this latest idea was my assistant's who saw it on Pinterest (If you don't know what pinterest.com is, drop what you doing and go there now. It will change your life. You will neglect your job, spouse, and even your children just to spend a few more minutes on this addicting website.) She even wrapped the box for me and brought it to the office! I think the pictures are hilarious. Enjoy!

 Santa left us the best gift of all!

 He wouldn't actually smile. He just gave me this exact look the whole time. 

And here some funny out-takes:

 Finn: "How much longer can this craziness last???"

Harvey: "Oh Finn, you poor thing. It's only gonna get worse."

Help meeeeeee.....I'm drowning in tissue paper! 

This past weekend my mom, Granny, and Dody came to visit. While I was baking on Friday, Granny (Finn refers to her as Gigi) decided she wanted to take Finn on a little ride. We set him up in the stroller and off they went! 

Here they are ready to go.

 Going....

 Going....

Gone!

Before I knew it, I looked out the window and they were nowhere in sight! But don't worry, they returned safe and sound about 10 minutes later. Granny said once they got around the corner she came back so she wouldn't get lost. :) Good idea! It was a great weekend and it is now very clear that Finn has his hooks in all of us (including his aunt Dody). He is definitely the boss!

The Christmas Crazies

I've got 'em! The Christmas Crazies. I know the date of Christmas. It's the same every year. But it always sneaks up on me anyway. And as usual I decided to take on a little too much....too much baking, too much shopping, too much crafting. When I get it all done I'll step back and look at everything and smile and I LOVE giving things away that make others happy, but I just need a few more hours in each day from now until the 25th. I'll get it all done. I always do! And I am SO excited about spending the holidays with friends and family.

Finn has developed quite the little personality. He is almost always in a good mood (especially after he has just eaten...he likes a full tummy...his mother's child) and it's easy to make him smile. He thinks we are real comedians and laughs at almost anything we say to him. He thinks pat-a-cake is a real hoot and his favorite song right now is Rudolph the red nosed reindeer. Luckily I know all the words to that one. :) My mom came last weekend and we took him to The Journey at church (an interactive story of Christmas) and he did great. He loved looking at the big screen inside the sanctuary and listening to the music. When it was time for us to begin our "journey" to Bethlehem, I wore him in his carrier and he was a champ. The Roman soldiers tried to buy him from me but I told them he was priceless. He had his first boat ride when we crossed the Sea of Galilee (on a pontoon boat, probably not what they used in Jesus' day). By the time we made it into the "city" where Mary and Joseph tried to find an inn he was asleep so he missed the camels, goats, cows, donkeys, tigers, lions, and panthers (YES, reeeeeaaaalllll ones.....it was sort of scary!). Anyway, I was so proud of my big boy for behaving so well.

The weekend before last we were in Augusta and Cleo and Lucy came to visit. It is funny how much more you get to see your parents once you have children. :) But I'm not complaining! We had a lot of fun and celebrated Matt's birthday with a yummy pound cake Kim had made. Here are some pictures:

 Finn and C.C. (and Lucy of course!)

 Finn is definitely already a "dog person"

 Billy Crank has a picture of all the grandkids in this Michelin shirt

Matt's usual spot in Augusta. Except he's usually studying instead of texting!

Oh and one last update. Those of you who were waiting with bated breath to see how I would do in the 5K in January may have to wait a while. I developed tendonitis in my right achilles tendon after doing just about everything wrong.....not stretching properly, going too far too quickly, not resting when it started bothering me. Anyway, it was REALLY killing me for over a week and I couldn't do anyway so I feel like I'm back to square one. Add that to my busy holiday life and my general hate of exercising and it's just a lethal combination. Oh well, maybe next month I'll get motivated again. Maybe not....

Happy Birthday to Lily!

Today is Lily's 4th birthday! What a big girl! We just love her to pieces. Even though Matt got her for me, she is really his dog. She adores him and they do have a special bond. Of course I think all my dogs are perfect but Lily truly is the sweetest dog I've ever known. She also has the most beautiful white fur I've ever seen which she LOVES to dirty up with mud, trash, dead bugs, or anything else gross really. She is definitely the smartest of our dogs and loves to use Myrtle to do her dirty work. She'll tell Myrtle "knock over that trash can so we can see what's in there." So happy birthday sweet Lil....we love you!!!

 Baby Lily

 Her favorite place to be

Where Matt is, there you will find Lily!

 Lily the dirtball

 She's not too crazy about costumes much to my dismay

 Such a fast runner for a little dog!

She can FLY!

 Can you spot Lily in this picture? She got going and ran all the way to the other side of the lake. Then she wasn't sure how to get back!

 You can dress me up, but you can't make me be nice to my siblings!

Sweet girl

Finn's Two month check-up and pictures

Finn turned two months old on November 26th! Wow, where has the time gone???

He had his two month check-up this past Monday. Dr. Shelley said Finn looks great. He is doing a good job holding his head up and tracking with his eyes. He now weighs 10 pounds 8 ounces....only the 10th percentile! I was worried but the doctor said he is perfectly fine and is eating enough and growing like he should be. He's almost 24 inches long which puts him in the 60th percentile for height. So, he's just a little string bean! The not-fun part of the appointment was the shots. There were tears all around (well, not from the nurse, but certainly from Finn and I). It was hard to watch, but he calmed down pretty quickly and then looked at me like "let's get the heck out of here before they try to do something else crazy!"

Here are some of the "2" pictures. He already looks different than last month.

Still has those skinny legs!

 But his belly is bigger I think

 So sweet

 Bless you!!!

Myrtle wanted to join in the fun

He is getting to be so much fun. He readily smiles and even laughs at us when we talk to him and play with him. When we got to Augusta last night, he cracked the biggest smile when he saw Matt. I really think he knows who we are. Love this baby!!!