Easier Said Than Done

Before Cody was even born, I started looking for matching Christmas pj's for the kiddos. It was a little harder than I thought it would be, but I found some really cute ones at BRU. I knew that I wanted Camryn and Cody to wear them Christmas morning (something that will hopefully become a tradition -- not sure how long they'll let me dress them alike!), but I also thought that I would take some pictures of them for the Christmas card and for presents. Easier said than done.

I asked Mom to come over and help me - we dressed them up in their matching pj's. Poor Cody's were still a little wet from being washed so he shivered for a little while (he was fine... beauty has its price) and Camryn had to be bribed with candy for a good part of the photo shoot.

I did get a few good pictures, but for the most part, they just ended up being somewhat of a gag reel. So, for your viewing pleasure I made this slide show:

After taking these myself, I plan to leave it up to the professionals from now on. We are going to have some pictures made of the kids in late January (for Camryn's 2 year and Cody's 3 month) and then hopefully a family picture in the spring when Cody is a little bigger.

Merry Christmas!

We had a great Christmas Day this year - so fun to see it all through a 2 year old's perspective!

Around 7:30 in the morning, Uncle Rich, Grandma and Robby came over to open presents and start cooking our favorite meal of the year: sausage gravy and biscuits!

Here is Camryn checking out the milk and cookies she left out for Santa -- he only left crumbs!



Santa left several things for Camryn this year. The first one was this great kitchen. She loved it! And, best of all, he left it in our kitchen so she can cook dinner while I cook dinner!

Meanwhile, Cody slept through all of the excitement (but he was decked out in his matching pj's):

Camryn looking in her stocking:

After stockings, she opened presents from us, Grandma and Robby, and Uncle Rich. Every time she opened one present, she would hold it up and say, "I do this." And then want to play with that present ignoring the pile of presents to open. It took FOREVER to get her through the presents!

Santa brought Cody a Radio Flyer toy - he is going to love it! He also brought Camryn a table and chairs for her bedroom, since the glider is moving to Cody's room. The finale present was something that Santa left outside - a pink four wheeler! Kevin was very excited about this four wheeler and it's pretty heavy duty - but who is really surprised by that? I kept telling him, don't be upset if she's afraid to ride it. And wouldn't you know it - she couldn't have proved me more wrong. She hopped on that thing (in the freezing weather in just her pj's no less!) and took off across the yard.

I especially like the last two - they look like she is going so fast, but really it was just super windy and cold... but still amusing!

The puppies wore their Christmas collars and had presents too!

Uncle Barney, Nicole, Cara, Fernando and Ethan Noah Herb came over for breakfast, as did Grandma Lo, Pokey, Natalie, Granny and PawPaw. It was a great meal!

After stuffing ourselves more than we should have, we opened presents with Granny and PawPaw. Camryn got this cool art desk and lots of supplies:

This was the fifth Christmas morning without my Dad. This year, Kevin bought me a Texas A&M Santa hat like my Dad used to wear. I was a little hesitant to wear it, but he was right - it was time to continue on with this tradition.

[Cody doesn't look too happy in this picture, but I love it anyway!]

After everyone left, we cleaned up the house and the kiddos hung out in their pj's for just a little longer. Then, we headed over to Glenn and Amanda's for Christmas with Kevin's family. What a great Christmas - we are so blessed and thankful for everything!

Fried Chicken and Santa Claus

On Christmas Eve, it's all about the fried chicken.

This year, Christmas Eve at Darla's included great food, a visit from Santa and Mrs. Claus, and eight kids under 5! A few years ago, Darla had one grandbaby - now, including her extended family (as we have forever adopted her), she has eight!Next year, we will need to make a point to take a picture of all of the kids together - which will be a challenge since they will all be mobile then!

Camryn was a little grumpy on the way over to Darla's (this was during a 5 day stretch of her refusing naptime), but once we arrived, she was a happy girl.

Before leaving for Darla's - see, just a little bit grumpy :). [Funny story about this poor Santa - Camryn was very fond of this Santa and loved playing with him. One day, I hear her talking (which she does ALL DAY LONG!) and then I realized she was talking to the Santa. She said, poo-poo pants (as she was pulling his pants down looking at his bum). Then, she took him and put him on the potty. He was this close to garbage as he almost made it into the water. YUCK. Since she is potty training, she "checks" everyone and everything for "poo-poo". Can't wait for it to be my turn!]

With Carly and Drake at the kids table:



Darla had a great surprise for the kids - she arranged for a very authentic Santa to come and visit with all of the kids. We had been talking about Santa for several weeks and she was very excited about him. (It all sounds a bit creepy when you're explaining the idea of Santa to a 2 year old: well, he's this old man who sees you all of the time - even though you can't see him; he knows if you've been good or bad; he wants you to sit on his lap and tell you what you want for Christmas, then he'll sneak into your house when you're asleep and leave it for you!)

Well, when Camryn saw him walk through the door - she ran straight to Robby and said, 'Bobby - SANTA CLAUS!' Utter amazement! Then, she walked up to him, waved and said hi. That is when fear set in. She then spent a good amount of time sitting on the stairs just staring at him. She did agree to sit on my lap while I sat on Santa, so we got some pictures that way. We did take some video of this visit - we need to watch it and see what we've got.

Camryn sitting on the stairs with Parker and Leslie:



High-five! Drake is brave with Santa (after a little coaching!):



Jennifer and Nicole with the other three kiddos: Ethan Noah Herb, JJ and Lyla:



Camryn's keeping an eye on Santa while snuggling Grandma:



Finally on my lap, on Santa's lap:



Before and after Santa's visit, we spent a lot of time outside so the kids had room to run (Darla's house is filled with pretty (and breakable!) things) - a few pictures of the kiddos outside:

Camryn and Parker:



Posing with Grandma in the front yard:



And with me:



Cody was a great baby as always - woke up long enough to have a bottle, but then fast asleep.



After Santa's visit, we exchanged presents and headed home. It was a great Christmas Eve as always (although we really missed the Hyde family) - many thanks to Darla for hosting and to everyone for all of the presents!

Checkups & Moody Gardens

Today we took the kiddos to the pediatrician for their 2 year and 2 month visits.

Here are their stats:

--Camryn --
Weight: 30 lbs (75-90%)
Height: 33 1/4 inches (50%)
Head Circumference: 50 cm (95%)

--Cody --
Weight: 12 lbs, 10 oz (50-75%)
Height: 24 1/2 inches (90%)
Head Circumference: 42 cm (90%)

Both the kids had great appointments - Cody ran a slight fever following the shots, but overall was still a happy boy!

After the appointments, we went to the Moody Gardens Aquarium. Camryn really enjoyed herself and loved seeing all of the animals. Here are a few pictures from our trip:

Camryn posing with Daddy:





Camryn in the shark tank with me:



Cody snoozing:

Happy Holidays!