Christmas 2010

Christmas was really laid back this year at our house.  Knowing that I would be having a baby this year, I did most of my shopping online in October.  I even had over 20 gifts wrapped and stowed away in the basement by Halloween!  I worked on my Christmas cards and a few other things that I could before Jacob was born.  It was really nice not to have all of that to do on top of everything else.  In the weeks before, we just laid around, watched Christnas movies, and made yummy snacks.  Josh's mom got us a gingerbread house kit, so we worked on that and had fun.

I was really glad we didn't have much to get done the actual week of Christmas because we all came down with the stomach flu.  The four of us had gone to Champaign so I could go to my postpartum check-up, and then we were going to shop and go out to eat.  As we were pulling into the doctor's office, Hannah got sick in the car.  Ugh, it was awful!  Needless to say, we did not go anywhere after my appointment.  The next day, Josh and I came down with it as well.  Luckily, we were all better in time to enjoy Christmas with our families.

We celebrated with Josh's mom's family on the 23rd.  We went for dinner and then opened gifts. 

Hannah's favorite gift was a pink V-Tech Mobigo computer with a Cinderella game.

 

Jacob got some toys and cute clothes, including a shirt that says "My dad plays Pro (Fantasy) Football." 

On the 24th, we celebrated with my parents and brothers and sisters.  Talk about a lot of people and presents in one room!!!  All of my siblings have a significant other now, so we had 15 people! 

Hannah got lots of neat gifts, but Grandma Teresa was most excited to give Hannah her first Barbie dolls!

On Christmas Eve night, we went to both services at church, and we got to play Mary, Joseph, and Jesus, just as we had in our Christmas program.  It was a special moment for our family that I'll always remember. 

The next day, we had Christmas morning at our house, just the four of us. 

Santa brought Hannah a Disney princess backpack full of new books, and Jacob got a Christmas train that lights up and goes.

Josh and I got Hannah a set of Disney princess dolls, which included Cinderella (Sa-ra-ra), Ariel, Jasmine, Sleeping Beauty, Tiana, Snow White, and Belle. 

After doing Christmas at home, we headed to Josh's dad's family Christmas in Champaign.  Hannah and Jacob got way too many presents. 

 Hannah's big presents were a dancing Elmo, a few LeapFrog toys, and dollhouse furniture.

Jacob's big presents were a bouncy chair (which we love!), diapers, and a humidifier.  Josh's dad spoiled us pretty good as well, and he surprised us with a double stroller which we love!

Here Hannah is sporting her cute pajamas and house slippers from Aunt Courtney and Uncle Jordan:



I loved having a toddler and baby this Christmas and how the excitement just continues to grow each year!

Jacob's 1st Month

Jacob's first month has been great. There is nothing better than having a new baby to snuggle with all day long! I have really been enjoying him. We have had a pretty low-key month. Besides The Festival of Trees, we have pretty much only been to the doctor, church, and to see family... oh and one crazy shopping trip!

Lots of people have brought us meals. I didn't have to cook for several weeks, and I still have a few more freezer meals from Jenn & Kris. We have had lots of visitors, but it has been spread out, so it has not been overwhelming.







The sleep front has been going ok, about as well as you can expect with a new baby. We get up every 2-3 hours. We've had a few 4 hour stretches and one 6 hour stretch... and also some 1 hour stretches. Thankfully, Jacob usually goes back to bed very easily after feeding. There have been a few nights where he fed every hour for a few hours in a row which is really hard on me!

Hannah has continued to do well with "Baby Jake" for the most part. She has pushed or pulled on him a little too hard a few times. I'm not sure why she does it, but we're working on it. She still kisses him a ton, especially if she thinks he's going to start crying. And, whenever he makes any sound, she says, "baby k?" And I say, "yes, he's ok." Then she goes on with whatever she was doing, but she has to know that he is ok. It is really sweet.

I did get a little crazy and take both kids shopping in Champaign when Jacob was only two weeks old. There were a couple of presents I wanted to get Hannah for Christmas that were just too good of a deal for me to pass up! It was a little bit of an adventure. The cart was full with both kids before I even started shopping at Target! Then, Jacob decided he wanted to be held and Hannah had a slight meltdown. I got her m&m's to distract her, and she spilled them which made it even worse. Then, we went to the mall and I fed Jacob before going in. I put him in his carseat in the double stroller but didn't buckle him back in since we were going inside. I apparently didn't have the stroller locked in place and it started to fold up in the parking lot, and Jacob's carseat was way too close to flipping over. It really scared me. I was a little shaken after that, but I was thankful that God protected him! Other than that, we had a successful shopping day and got lots of good deals and had fun just getting out. It may be awhile before I try that again!

Josh and I both have found that we are a lot more relaxed this time (especially Josh)! We don't worry about nearly as many things as we did with Hannah. We are just thankful that Jacob is healthy and doing so well. I would say the transition from one to two has been pretty easy and felt pretty natural so far. I love being a mom of two, and I love my baby boy!

Family Photo Shoot