Some Christmas Highlights

Only a week so far in VA and already so many wonderful memories!


Here's David and Traci (my brother and sister-in-law) starring in the live nativity at the Washington, D.C. Temple Visitors' Center. They make a wonderful Joseph and Mary! So proud of you guys. :) They had lots of practice holding a baby this week.




Best quote: "This is retirement," says Dad as he holds little Aaron. He has yet to retire. :)


My friend Meghan gave Aaron this sweet yellow Winnie the Pooh outfit.


And here he is with Paige -- both Meghan and Paige are good friends from high school.

Stay tuned for more pics!

Getting To Know You ...

Here's little man Aaron with big man Steve. Aaron's getting to know his grandparents better. He is so friendly with everyone. (And I just thought it was me he liked cuddle with ... apparently not!)


Here he is with his lovely Aunt Traci, who loves him. ;)




And his new friend, Alison, who was so tender with him.

Best Weekend

The weekend kicked off with a visit with Santa at our church's Christmas party. We then enjoyed an authentic German meal with friends before hitting the road. We made the trek to Portland Friday evening.



Wedding bells chimed on Saturday when my dear friend, Laura, married her sweetheart, Ron, in the Portland LDS Temple. (Pictured above is Laura with her sister, Joy, and two of Laura's adorable nieces.) It was such a beautiful wedding and reception. Congratulations, Laura and Ron. We are so thrilled for the two of you. Loved the winter wonderland theme! So appropriate. :) Not only did I get to see the lovely bride but also our other former roommates, Mindy and Stephanie. We had such a blast! I loved every minute of catching up with these sweet friends. So wonderful to visit with such great friends. I miss you guys already!! My sister once called us the "wedding groupies" because we always have mini roommate reunions at people's wedding receptions. Now that we're all hitched, we'll just have to think of another reason to get together (not that we need a reason!) ... so, here's to two more years, guys!! (Or did we say a year-and-a-half?) :)

To top off an already fantastic weekend, I flew back east to be with the fam for Christmas. Doesn't get much better than this! Mike, Mel and fam, and Jon and fam, come soon! We miss you guys already!!

Truly a wonderful time of year.



Here's me with Stephanie; Laura's brother, Aaron; and Mindy. Aaron's wife, Alisa, gave birth to the twin girls nine months ago. So cute! I'm so into babies now ... it's ridiculous. ;)

This Old Chair

You've all heard the phrase "If mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy." How true! But what if the baby ain't happy? That's cause for serious disharmony in the house. Thank goodness for this old chair. It was given to us by one of Mike's patients who was moving. Then our friend Kelly, an amazing interior designer, supplied these beautiful new, updated cushions. We love this chair. Aaron's always so happy lounging or sleeping in it, and it fits him so well. What will we do when he outgrows it? Mike's already come up with some creative ideas. ;)



P.S. The baby's starting to coo and smile more. Such a fun stage!

Five Times The Fun

Last night was a blast! We have some friends who all had babies within a few months of each other (how does this happen?), and we all got together for a baby fest. The youngest baby in the group is three weeks old and the oldest, four months. So great to have the support of other new parents. We had a great time swapping stories and tidbits of advice ... although of course we're all still learning and getting the hang of things. We had a lot of fun. And we think the babies did too. I mean, look at them! All so happy! :) (Can you guess which babe is ours?) ;) Special thanks to Carl and Mia for opening their home and hosting the whole gang.