As much as I want to start fresh with 2012, I just can't let two Christmases go by without a mention. I'll try to be brief! Have to begin with our now annual family date to see ICE! at the Gaylord. It's two million pounds and 14,000 square feet of sculpted ice, complete with slides, kept at a wintry nine degrees. The crowds can be brutal, but the Gaylord at Christmas is amazing and definitely gets you in the spirit. We love that daddy treats us to this each year and can't wait for Annsley to get in on the fun.

2010 - A Charlie Brown Christmas

2011 - Shrek the Halls

The exit scene (When asked what her favorite part was, Grace replied, "Baby Jesus...it's his birthday!"

Another tradition, of course, is going to see Santa Claus. I keep expecting skepticism and tears and the classic screaming pic, but so far we've been all smiles for the guy. Thanks to GramB for our fun outfits each year!

Excited to introduce Santa to sissy-bo

So, a common occurrence for us leading up to the holidays is a scramble to get Christmas cards out. Not surprisingly, we always wait 'til the very last minute to do our family pics. :) We're blessed to have a very sweet, talented friend take these for us. Don't have a picture of the actual cards sent, but here's a mini-collection of the photos:

2010

2011 (Not to fear, Annabelle is still with us...just did a little wandering that day)

Part II, the actual Christmas celebrations, to follow shortly. I hope. :)

I promise, I have a true post coming soon. In the meantime, though, thought I'd share two posts from real bloggers that I've read (thanks to FB) in the last week and found encouraging:

http://godcenteredmom.com/2012/01/09/that-kid-of-that-mom/

http://momastery.com/blog/2012/01/04/2011-lesson-2-dont-carpe-diem/
*I see both sides of this one overall, but there are days I can definitely appreciate her perspective!

So glad there are people out there much more gifted at putting thoughts together than I am. :)

Okay, after almost a year of blog abandonment, I think I'm ready to get back to it. :) As we know, quite a bit has transpired. Like, Grace is a full blown two-year-old and we have a whole other child! I've given up hopes of going back and filling in all the gaps. Just not gonna happen. Instead, I'll try to sneak them in (on a smaller scale) via throwbacks in my new posts. I'm sure most of you have given up on me by now, so this is really more for my own records than anything. I'd had hopes of turning this blog into a baby book of sorts (someday) and poor Annsley has zero mention.

I have to say, it's pretty humbling reading back through some of my old posts and seeing how Grace-centered they are. I mean, of course I love her to pieces and think she's the sweetest, cutest, smartest thing ever. And feel the same about her sister. I also understand that (1) every parent feels that way and (2) no one else, except maybe grandparents, really cares to know every detail of our children's greatness. First-time-mommyhood is just funny in retrospect. :) Hopefully I am more aware this time around. In any case, here's to better follow-through in 2012!

*Please note our blog address has changed to davidandthedames.blogspot.com.

(Yes, I realize it's been forever since my last post...forgive me. Once I get behind I have a hard time finding the motivation to catch back up. I've got a running list of over twenty posts - including Mexico, Christmas, Breckenridge, Dave's 30th birthday, the cruise, etc. - to go back and do. Eventually. I just hated to get too far away from this milestone and not record it accurately. Thanks for not giving up on me!)

Somehow, our baby girl has become a full blown toddler. She's closer to two years old than one...so unreal! She's into everything. And while she's still sweet as can be most of the time, she's also working on establishing that independence. She's rapidly learning how to communicate and how (or how NOT) to express herself, and there's definitely some testing of boundaries when it doesn't work out her way.

She's always been chatty, just had her own little language going on for a while. Well, the English has clicked...she's now a parrot, repeating everything we say. She's also obsessed with a book she picked out at Borders one day. She brings it to us all the time and could sit there going through it for way longer than we have patience for! It's interesting to see what she understands, though, even if not vocalized. I'd highly recommend it:
Anyway, I'll not try and pinpoint every word she's ever said, so these are the ones we hear on a regular basis:

mommy
daddy
puppy
baby
hi - particularly "hi mommy/daddy/puppy" in the sweetest little voice :)
bye
hot
cold
wet
water
please
help
sit - to the dogs...while shaking her finger
eyes
nose
toes
socks
shoes
cup
ball
yeah
oh no - and just "no" by itself...often :/
uh oh
all gone
i'm sorry
thank you
night night
what's that - she's relentless with this one

This week was our 18 month well visit. As suspected, Grace is a perfectly healthy and happy kid. She weighed 26 lbs 7 oz (80th), measured 33.25 inches (90th), and her head is finally back on the charts at 19.25 inches (95th). Dr. Smith had zero concerns - even regarding our recent battles with meats and veggies - until Grace found her paci in the diaper bag and happily shoved it in her mouth. It was kindly suggested we start thinking about letting that go, but I think we'll get her content in the big girl bed first!

Some other things to note:

- Grace is boycotting shopping carts and restaurant highchairs big time. She can get out of their restraints like you've never seen and is not afraid to lunge out at you if you don't take her willingly. Once she's out of the highchair, she wants to roam around the restaurant and wave at other patrons...especially babies. Once she's out of the shopping cart, she wants to help push it as I carry her awkwardly in one arm and try to push with the other. This is getting increasingly difficult.

- Although Grace can make a mess like you've never seen, she's picked up some of my quirks in regards to putting things back exactly where/how they go. She also loves helping with moving over laundry and loading dishes. She has to be the one to close up the dryer and dishwasher when we're finished. She also closes the pantry door (which David always leaves cracked) every time she passes it, just like I do. I love her for this!

- I also love her for being my soulmate when it comes to sleeping. Grace generally sleeps 13 hours at night (8:30 - 9:30) and takes one 2-3 hour nap in the afternoon. I get more sleep now than I did before I had her, which is much appreciated given my current condition! I just hope it lasts once we take her cozy little crib away. Either way, my days are numbered.

- We are constantly amazed by this child's personality, intelligence, and love for life...and us. It's hard to believe that in a short time she won't be our one and only anymore. We'll have had 21 months with her that we'll never have again or even be able to remember what they were like, I'm sure. Thank you, Lord, for this sweet time with this sweet little girl!

Our friends, BT and Ashley, came over to eat wings and watch the Big 12 Championship last night. We love them. Mostly because they're just super neat people, but also because they're so wonderful with Grace. She has a ball playing with her Auntie Ashley and last night even ended up with her first little ponytail. It was too cute...I only wish I'd gotten a picture of the both of them with their matching 'dos. :) David's not a fan of the look just yet, but he'll come around!

David and I put up our tree and decorations after Grace went to sleep last night. We were so excited to see her reaction when she discovered it this morning and, God love her, she didn't disappoint. She noticed the tree before even entering the room and leaned over to peek at it without actually walking in. She was totally in awe...just looked it up and down, staring at all the sparkly lights and ornaments. She also started whispering "whoa", which I'm thinking Dave and I must've been doing unknowingly. These are the little moments that bring so much joy.

It's no news that holidays can be tricky. Particularly when you have multiple families to consider and not in the same area. It's easy to get so caught up in trying to "fit it all in" that you aren't truly able to sit back and enjoy the time (or any one family) for what it is. Take last year, for example...we saw all three families on Christmas Day! We spent the morning in Dallas with Dave's family, then left for Huntsville to spend the afternoon with my dad, then spent that night with my mom. It was a whirlwind, as always.

So, David and I have since decided to try and travel for just Thanksgiving or Christmas, but not both. We spent several days in Huntsville over Thanksgiving break and, while we missed seeing David's side of the family, it was nice to get there and settle in and stay for a while. (Now for Christmas we'll stay in Dallas and spend it with the Dercks, although we're sure to sneak in a celebration with my side before or after.) Plus, we had even more than the obvious to be thankful for this year...as most everyone knows by now.

I was feeling much better during this trip home than last. You see, my visit in early October was actually an "I just found out I'm pregnant again and I'm sick and kinda overwhelmed and my husband is out of town and I just need my mom" sort of visit. Yes, that's right, we're expecting a little sibling for Grace beginning of June! And lucky for me, Thanksgiving ended up being a nice turning point in the pregnancy...it marked the end of the first trimester, fading of the nausea, and the return of my appetite. Hallelujah!

I'll be blogging more about Baby #2 later. (And I still have yet to blog about our Mexican vacation, which I can now do without feeling like I'm withholding the fact that we came home with more than just memories.) We're really excited, though, and so thankful to the Lord for blessing/trusting us with something we didn't even realize we were ready for. We're also beyond thankful for the sweet little girl we already have, each other, and our wonderful (and flexible) families! Here's a little summary of our Thanksgiving:

Grace took many a walk with Papa John

The dogs lounged between runs on the golf course

Our daredevil learned she could go really fast down hills

Someone experienced her first Thanksgiving meal

Cousin Natalie found herself with a new friend

Uncle Charles enjoyed a belated birthday celebration

Grace was stylin' in her outfit from Aunt Kimmie

GramB got a suitable picture for her Christmas Card

Grace showed off her pretty, new holiday dress

Somehow we managed to get a shot of the whole crew

Our little fam got some much needed R&R together

Daddy attempted fishing in Grandpa's pond

The dogs acted like lunatics on the farm

Uncle Kyle and Uncle Kody bonded with their niece

Gracelyn took a liking to Grandpa's antique potty chair

My little Kyle turned 21 years old...still can't believe it

No big story here, just wanted to share some cute pics. Here's Grace modeling an outfit from her Great-Aunt Candy:



And showing off an outfit from Aunt Christine (complete with a dog toy prop):



She's something else.

Today hasn't exactly been one of our usual quiet Sundays...and I'm most certainly not complaining. David and I got to enjoy a Cowboys game in the flesh and spend time with my sweet friend, Sarah. Sarah was my little sis in ZTA and a bridesmaid in our wedding, who for the last few years has lived across the country. Now she's back in Texas (yay!) and frequenting Dallas (yay!) thanks in part to her family's love of Cowboys football. Today's game they had a suite for, which they very kindly and generously invited us to sit in. This was my first time to JerryWorld and I think I've pretty much been ruined for any future experiences there. It was fantastic. A perfect view of the action, yummy food and drinks galore, and a fancy private restroom. We even saw Jerry himself stop by the suite next door. Oh, and we won...which is always good. Thank you much, Williams family, for letting us be part of your clan today! And thanks to DeeDee for coming to spend time with Grace in our absence!

Well, looks like I lied when I said Grace had her last bottle. She's not been feeling good and last night even fell asleep in my arms as I rocked her, which hasn't happened in forever. She woke up just as pitiful this morning and the sippy cup got her extra agitated. I felt bad, so I pulled out a good old faithful bottle...then I wrapped her up in a snuggie. Oh well. :)