It's SNOWING!

Yea! We had so much fun with the snow this week! Natalie was simply giddy running around the house and looking out all the windows! Alex wasn't quite sure what to make of it all, but he knew something was going on. Daddy actually DIDN'T want a snow day because he's on such a tight schedule at school--what an ADULT!! Haha! :)

We went out a few times to play. Alex didn't really like it blowing in his face and his hands kept getting wet and cold. But Mommy fixed that by putting on dry mittens and then putting plastic baggies around his hands--funny looking but it worked! Poor kid was bundled up so much he could barely bend his arms.

Enjoy the pictures and video. Hope you had a great time in the snow too!!

Alex's New Trick

Alex has learned how to open the bathroom door, move the step stool to the sink and turn on the water! He LOVES the water--bathtime, in the sink, or in rain puddles outside. And, as you can see from the second video, he HATES being told that he can't play in it anymore!

Playing around

Pictures from today and yesterday...

Alex playing with the dress up box that Oma gave him for Christmas...




Being cute after a bath...


Trying on Aunt BB's Army gear...

Happy New Year!

Okay, as you might have guessed, one of my New Year's Resolutions was to update our blog more frequently. So grab a LARGE cup of coffee (maybe 2 or 3) because I've updated all the way back to October! You can follow this page all the way down or follow the "archived blogs" link on the right.

We had a great New Year's Eve at home this year. We had planned on going to something with Kevin's friends, and had an invitation from Natalie's friends as well--but I suppose we're getting old because we just wanted to stay at home. :) We invited Kinsley and Nick and their two sons over and had a great multi-course dinner provided by Pop (aka Kevin's dad). (Side note: Pop had previously agreed to drive over and babysit while we partied...but graciously agreed to change roles from babysitter to chef when we changed our plans). We had bruschetta, crab-stuffed shrimp, and kabobs...delicious!! While Pop cooked, we visited, played Wii and passed around baby Andrew--the newest addition to the Eubanks family. The boys even stayed up until 11pm!

On New Years Day, we went over to Oma and Grandpa's house (aka Natalie's parents) for a bring-in-the-new-year dinner with collards, black-eyed peas, corn bread, potatoes au gratin, cole slaw....and more. It was so tasty and guaranteed to bring us wealth, luck and longevity for 2008...thanks Mom!

2007 was a great year for our family, and we hope it was for yours as well. I've gotten teary-eyed more than once thinking about how fast Alex is growing up already--but it's been so much fun and we look forward to the new adventures that 2008 will bring.

Best wishes to you and yours in the coming year!

December 2007

We had a fun, but very busy December. Natalie was kept busy with holiday portraits and finishing up senior pictures. Kevin was busy managing classrooms full of students ready for the break. And even Alex was busy with a very full social calendar. :)

We stayed close to home for most of the month, travelling only for Christmas. On Christmas Eve we went to the Taylor's for dinner and then left for Huntsville to spend Christmas day with the Shivers'. It was a fun holiday getting to experience everything with Alex. Last year he had no clue what was going on, and even this year it was a bit much for him. He is very fond of his nap, and not even shiny wrapped presents could change his mind. He did get lots of great presents though--thank you again to our family and friends for your wonderful generosity. We all received way more than we should have...in fact, most of it is still stashed around the house waiting for the organizing fairy to appear. :)

Highlights for us this month:

• Alex FINALLY calling me "Ma-ma"--my favorite Christmas present!
• Spending time with Kevin's Canadian cousins and the rest of the Shivers clan
• Seeing Nat's highschool girlfriends, and all of their boys (husbands, boyfriends, and sons)
• The arrival of Andrew Joseph--the newest son of Natalie's great friend Kinsley
• Playgroup fun--cookie swaps and Christmas parties, but most special was a trip to a local retirement home to visit the residents and pass out goodies--a very 'warm and fuzzy' way to start the holiday season
• Rest & relaxation during Kevin's break from school and Natalie's sabbatical from photography

Hope you all had a wonderful month and a great Christmas!

Christmas

New York

In November, Kevin and I went to New York on our first real "no Alex" trip. We went to NYC for 4 days to be tourists and because our friend Shannon was having her first big art show. We had a great time seeing the sites and catching up with Shannon. Her show was a big hit and we are very proud of her! It was a nice mini-vacation, but we were glad to get back home to Alex. He had a nice stay with all of his grandparents, even though it ended with a sick baby and a very worried mommy. All was well though, and we are grateful to have such good babysitters for Alex whenever we need to get away.

November 2007

We had a great November this year. Alex is so active--walking, running, and starting to climb--that he's really kept us on the move. Mommy and Alex continue to go to play-group every week and Alex is starting to interact with the other kids more. He's very jealous if mommy holds another baby though--he comes running and says "no-no-no" when he sees it! :) We also are taking another class at the baby gym and Alex loves to climb all over their gym and is learning lots of new songs (so is Mommy).

We enjoyed a visit from Daniel (Kevin's cousin), his wife Rochelle, and their daughter Maia. Alex wasn't too sure how to handle Maia--she's got several months on him--but they made friends by the end and it was fun to watch them around each other.

Alex had a Thanksgiving feast at his preschool and they all dressed up like Little Indians--cute. Mommy and Grandpa attended and had quite a time watching a hundred kids and their parents eat turkey. It was a very noisy room!!

We had Thanksgiving day with the Taylor's this year and enjoyed a delicious meal with lots of family around. Then we drove to Huntsville to have "Friday" Thanksgiving with the Shivers family. So much turkey, so little time. Alex does pretty good in the car since we have a DVD player for him to watch. But 4 hours of Elmo is a lot for any sane adult to handle!!

October 2007

We had a fun October with lots of fall and Halloween things to do. Alex had parties with his preschool and our playgroup, and we went trick-or-treating with our friends Ryan and Kinsley.

Alex was a giraffe for Halloween--an easy choice since he's been collecting the long-necked creatures since birth. We call them "gi-gi"s around here and it was one of the first animals that he recognized when he was younger. His costume started as a one-piece, but as you can see in the photos, had to be altered to just a jacket since he had a growth spurt before Halloween! :)

Fall Candids

October Candids