Brace Yourself...

It's time to play catch-up.
December was a busy month for us, so I am a little behind
with the blog. Enjoy some of the moments from our crazy
Christmas season. We hope everyone else had a good holiday.

Here is Seth at 4 months. At his check-up, they told us he was

in the 90-something-th percentile for both weight and height.
The boy loves to eat... what can I say.

Grandpa had a birthday, which made Ellie very happy.
Yay for candles and "bur-day-dis"!

Ellie got potty trained.... and apparently so did
Buzz. Ellie took to it well and learned in about a day.
She's a little pro by now.

 We've enjoyed a few snowfalls already.

Seth and Tucker have grown close. Tucker frequently gives
kisses or lays a ball in front of Seth, hoping for some play time.
They are funny together. 

Sometime's Seth's hair looks red... but most the time, it looks
medium brown.. we'll see what it decides on in the end.

Ellie was excited to get her own mail from her
Great Grandma Garner before Christmas and is
still playing with the card she got. 

Adam does PT work on poor, gimpy Tucker. 

It's a good thing Seth loves kisses... cause he gets
a lot of them... I can't resist him... at all.

Ellie LOVES horses (or "ridin's", as she calls them).

Cousin Jensen and family came to play for Christmas week,
and we loved having them here!

Unfortunately, as they arrived, Seth was getting sick. He ended
up being hospitalized for 5 days over Christmas (which of course
means that I was too). He had Flu A and B, as well as pneumonia.
Luckily, he is pretty much recovered now. Poor little man.

While he and I were away bonding, Ellie got to open new jammies
on Christmas Eve. YAY!

I got to come home for Christmas morning to join the
festivities, and the two toddler cousins were super
excited to get going.

 Ellie has taken up photography with my poor, outdated
camera from high school. She's a goof.

Ellie got lots of wonderful gifts... too many to mention.
Adam and I were well cared for too.. with new duds,
new running shoes, and lots of other wonderful things.

She loved her new "pretties"... Jessie and Rapunzel. 

And her new horsie... She LOVES.

Plus, some Cinderella jewelry... such a girl... and yet,
such  a little ruffian. 

Meanwhile, on Christmas, Seth was finally free
of his IV's and monitors, and would return home the
next day. Finally.

Also, while Seth and I were partying with nurses, there
was a wienie roast out in the backfield at the homestead.
Apparently Ellie loved the idea of having her foods on a
stick, but didn't see the need to cook them.

Then we came home! Seth spent over an hour bouncing in his
jumper the evening we came home. He was so happy to be
back and to be feeling so much better. Sweet little man.

Then he got to have his own special Christmas. He liked taking
his new toys out of their boxes. 

His Captain Awesome pj's. Love them!
Chuck fans can truly appreciate that love.

Ellie was a good big sis and helped him with some of his
new gifts.

Ellie being cute and resting with Gma.

We are happy to say that over the last month, Ellie has
become a real eater again. She went through a fussy phase,
but is finally eating real dinners and things again. She discovered
she likes corndogs. 

Of course, she never stopped liking French Fries.

We even had a pizza/stromboli night and let her make
her very own pizza. She did a great job and ate the
entire thing.

The stromboli was... perfection. 

Ellie is so good at being a big sis. And Seth just ADORES
her. He gets the biggest smile whenever she gives him any
kind of attention. 

He loves his big sis.

But who could resist this adorable little she-devil?

Cue another birthday! Adam is 26!... and I made him
a monstrous banana nut cake with butter pecan frosting.
It was to-die-for... if I do say so, myself. 

Ellie was excited for more bur-day-dis!

The man of the hour.

And Ellie's turn with the candles, of course.

But then she say ice cream, so that was all she ate that night.

The girl got to have a craft night with Gma. She saw Gma
making a journal jar for achievement days at church and needed
one for herself. So, we got some scraps, washed a honey jar,
and let her have at it. 

The ladies' and their finished products.

Gpa (or Pa) got Ellie some cute Nike's like forever ago, but
she would never wear them... till one day last week... when
she had an epiphany... "RUNNIN SHOES"! When she realized
they were like Mama and Daddy's running shoes, she was
hooked. She even did a workout in the house that night.

Pumpin herself up.

Warming up and stretching.

On your mark... get set....

GO!

Then she practiced on the treadmill the next day.

She also likes to steal Dad's hats. 

Adam took some cute pics of Seth and his glow worm toy
that was given to him by some sweet nurses at the hospital
on Christmas.

and FINALLY...

THE BIG REVEAL....

Yep, I chopped my hair off. My loving husband earned a big
Visa gift card  at work and donated it to me to "go to a salon
and do WHATEVER [I] wanted... get the hook up!" 

So I did... and I am loving it. Thanks, Adam. You are the best.