Partying with Boys

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

We spent a really fun New Year's Eve with the Noggles

and the Shea-McCrackens!

Gavin and Chase were really sweet to Kate and

she had so much fun watching them play!

We are so thankful for good friends to celebrate with

and look forward to all the joys anticipated in the next year.

See you in '09!

First Gingerbread House

Between parties this weekend,

Uncle Jon and Aunt Loren helped us decorate Kate's very first gingerbread house.

So, it wasn't exactly structurally sound...

and it definitely wouldn't make the cover of Southern Living...

but it was made with love...

and that's all that matters...

right???

More Holiday Cheer!

We thought it would be sad to end the holiday festivities on Christmas... so we decided to keep the party going through the weekend! Here are some of the highlights: Great Aunt Lynn drove in from South Carolina to meet Kate

and share some holiday cheer with us!

It was wonderful for all of us to spend time together -

and Kate fell completely in love with her Aunt Lynnie!

On Friday evening, we got out the wedding china and put together a holiday feast,

complete with a 3-rib roast, Yorkshire pudding, sweet potatoes,

green beans, cranberry sauce, and salad! Yummy!

(Please ignore the gravy in a Pyrex measuring cup...

we couldn't find the gravy boat!)

Here Kate is acting goofy with Uncle Jon on Saturday morning...

While we all worked together to make another holiday feast...
this time a big brunch on Saturday morning!
(We forgot to take a picture of the actual feast before it was consumed!)
This time we got to celebrate with
Mom & Dad, Gran & Pop, Uncle Jon & Aunt Loren,
Great Aunt Lynn and the NoVA Gleasons!

Here Kate is acting goofy again...
this time with Aunt Loren and Cousin Erika
trying to help make Great Aunts Ingrid and Karin feel tall!
(Did it work???)

We are so thankful for all of our family who helped make Kate's first Christmas so very special!
We love you guys!

Christmas Afternoon in Springfield

After spending Christmas morning at our house,

we enjoyed spending the afternoon in Springfield with the NoVA Gleasons.

It was a fun filled day!

Adorable in her Christmas dress!

Watching a second round of opening presents
and plotting how to get her hands on some more pretty wrapping paper!

4 Generations!
Kate hanging out with
Nana & Great Pop,
Gran & Pop and
Mom & Dad.

Kate holding court once again -
but this time she's sitting in the beautiful Egyptian throne
TJ and Great Pop made for a school project!

Opening Christmas Presents

Kate enjoyed her first time opening Christmas presents more than we thought she would!

She loved examining her gifts and watching everyone opening their gifts.

By the end, she was actually trying to pull boxes open

because she knew she would find something fun inside.

Playing "Jingle Bells" on the new piano from Gran and Pop.

Eating yummy wrapping paper.

"Can you believe it's my very own book?!? Yippieeee!"

Exploring a tugboat from Uncle Jon and Aunt Loren!

Christmas Morning

We enjoyed a leisurely Christmas morning.

First, Kate drank her bottle with Daddy.

Next, we explored Kate's Christmas presents that had been lovingly assembled the night before.

(Check out Kate's expression - she's not sure what to make of Christmas!)

Then, Kate played with Uncle Jon and Aunt Loren
while Mommy and Daddy made a wonderful breakfast
of French toast with strawberries and sausage!

Kate guarded the Christmas loot while we waited for Gran and Pop's airplane to arrive.

Pooh keeps Kate entertained with stories from Pooh's Corner.

Christmas Eve

Our Christmas Eve was filled with all the appropriate joy and anticipation! Tim and I really couldn't wait to celebrate Kate's first Christmas and to start our own family holiday traditions. On Christmas Eve, we were joined by Grandma, Papa, Uncle Jon and Aunt Loren for a lasagna dinner followed by birthday cake for Jesus. Here are some of the highlights:

Daddy and Papa

Daddy and Uncle Jon assembled Kate's new toys
(Mommy made a rookie mistake and forgot the batteries!!!)

The toys assembled and ready for Christmas morning

Uncle Jon and Aunt Loren waiting up for Santa

Adorable in Black & White

Here are some favorite black and white photos from Kate's 3-month photo shoot. Enjoy!

Yummy Rice Cereal!

Kate ate her first solid food on Sunday! (Well, to the extent rice cereal can be called a solid!) She thought the texture was strange and she ate her meal with a perpetual grimace. But, she got the hang of it and, by the end, she insisted on being the one to put the spoon in her mouth. When that didn't work, she would shovel the cereal into her mouth with her hands. We ended up with cereal EVERYWHERE and everyone and everything had to be washed.

All in all, I would call it a success!

Jumperoo!

Kate's friend, Gavin, was kind enough to loan his Jumperoo toy to her! She thinks it's SUPER fun! Check out these smiles!

The Jumperoo is fun but exhausting! Here she is taking a break with Daddy:

Whew!

Holiday Brunch

We had so much fun celebrating Christmas with our friends on Saturday morning! It's amazing to see how our families have grown over the last year! One of these days, we'll get a picture with the Dads!

Duct Tape

Several of you have made good natured comments about the fact that I haven't posted anything to the blog since I went back to work two weeks ago! Sorry about that! I am learning that the life of a working mom is really tough! It's hard to keep everything at home and the office hanging together... especially with the extra responsibilities of the holiday season! Do you think it's too late to ask Santa for some duct tape???

Back to Work

We opened a new chapter in our family life today. I headed back to work! I enjoyed my first day back at the office and, although I missed Kate, I was relieved to know that she was hanging out with her grandparents!

Exploring National Harbor

On Saturday, we enjoyed an outing with Tim's parents to explore the new National Harbor development in DC. We had a nice lunch and enjoyed exploring the river walk and shops. It's going to be a great place for us to hang out with Kate in the spring! Kate's favorite part of the day was the water fountains in the atrium of the Gaylord hotel. She was mesmerized watching the water spurt up and kept talking to the fountain. I guess we shouldn't have been suprised considering how much Kate loves her bath every night!

Home from College

Tim, Kate and I had a fun lunch in Old Town this afternoon with our cousins, Erika and Brendan. It's great to have them home from college this weekend. We love you guys!

Happy Thanksgiving!

We spent a wonderful Thanksgiving at Uncle Chris and Aunt Ingrid's house

with the NoVA Gleasons and Tim's parents!

In keeping with the holiday tradition, we ate WAY too much yummy food!

As you can see, the turkey was bigger than Kate!

Nice to Meet You, Santa Claus!

Kate and I had a lovely play date with Jessica and Lillie this morning. We met at Tyson's Corner and you would never guess who we ran into... Santa Claus! I overheard Kate tell him that all she wants for Christmas is world peace... a bail-out for Citibank... and her two front teeth.

Sounds reasonable to me!