Karis' First Birthday! (a little late)

Ok, I know her first birthday was exactly a month ago today, but at least I'm getting pictures up. I've decided this is just how it's going to be. I always have great plans to blog frequently, and I think of all kinds of things to say, but then there are other things I need to do or I forget.

Karis' first birthday was so great. Her birthday was on a Friday. She and Caleb and I just spent the day playing and then as a family of 4, we headed to Chick fil a for dinner, which she and Caleb both love. The next day we had a family party with all of the grandparents, great-grandparents and aunts and uncles. It was lots of fun, and Karis seriously loved her cake!

It's hard to believe she is already a year old (well, technically 13 months old today). In some ways this year has just flown by, and in other ways it has seemed very long with lots going on. But she is the biggest blessing - such a sweet, sweet girl. I think she just might be as loud as her brother, and she also loves to roar at him and her daddy as a way of saying hello. I really need to get it on video! At her 1 year Dr. appt. Karis weighed in at 18.6 lbs and 28 3/4 inches. She is in the 10-15th percentile for both height and weight - funny after having such a big boy first! My beautiful girl is so close to walking, which is very exciting to me! I can't wait to go to the park this spring and summer when they can both run around and climb and play.




I didn't mean for my fingers to get in the picture, but all I have to do is act like I'm going to tickle her, and she starts giggling. You can also see her teeth, which she now has 8.
Isn't this shirt so cute - made by her Aunt Missy - thank you!
I love making my kids' birthday cakes. My mom always made ours, and I always thought that was so special. I think this one turned out pretty well :)


LOVE this picture. She had such a good time eating that cake.
But it was very clear when she was done! Happy Birthday my sweet, beautiful Karis!

My big girl

Really? My sweet girl turns 1 tomorrow?! It's crazy to me that a year has already gone by. Karis is pretty funny these days. She's still all about her tongue...And she's walking while pushing a toy walker! Today she stood by herself for a couple of seconds, so I know it's not too much longer before I am really chasing her around. I think she's going to be quite a talker - she is constantly babbling. We've heard from lots of people that 2nd children tend to talk later and less, esp if their older sibling is very verbal. Caleb is definitely very verbal, but he didn't babble like this so young. I think in our case, Karis just wants to be like her big brother and will probably be quite the talker, too.

Karis has 7 teeth and has a very healthy appetite! But she still wants to do it all by herself, so she mostly only eats finger foods. My attempt with yogurt ended in a battle of wills, and I finally decided to let her win this one this time :) (see picture below!)

Anyhow, our sweet girl is growing up so fast, and if I think about it too long, it makes me a little sad. But it's also exciting to see grow and watch that personality developing. One of my nicknames for her is "feisty girl." She is just very feisty when she does or does not want something, and is getting the opposite, and she's very determined to do things on her own. As I was telling my parents that I realized this about her, they lovingly laughed and told me I was the same way!
So, that long tongue isn't the only thing she gets from her momma!


Thank you for the shirt, Auntie Jan!

She wanted to hold the spoon and the bowl, dip the spoon in the bowl, and feed herself. I finally relented, though I don't think she actually got any yogurt in her mouth! :)
Love this sweet, feisty girl of mine!

Caleb These Days

He has such a sweet smile, but it's so hard to get a picture of his real smile! Usually we get something like what you see below! Update on Caleb....I often jokingly tell him he's a nut. He has entered this hyper phase of unending energy. We try to run it out of him, but these crazy cold days have made that harder. I am so eager for spring.

Caleb is constantly cracking us up w/the things he says. As he gets older, it's so much fun to watch him playing. Today as he was heading upstairs for a nap, he asked if he could bring his stuffed Handy Manny to bed with him. I told him sure, so he turned to Manny and said "Hey Manny, you wanna take a nap with me?" Then, speaking for Manny: "Yeah, that would be COOL!"

Caleb was so happy to have Marc home almost all of last week due to the weather. So it was much harder for him when his daddy had to go back to work on Monday. When he woke up that morning, he went to his window to check and see if Marc's truck was gone. It was, and Caleb went to sit in his rocking chair by the window and said "Mommy, I'm sad. I don't like it when daddy goes to school and then work. I'm going to sit in the rocking chair until he gets home."
Me: "You're going to sit there all day?"
Caleb: "Yep"
He sat there for a few minutes and then decided it would be more fun to play. I am still just so impressed with his verbal skills.

Caleb and Marc going to play in the snow. Like the grocery bags around his shoes?! Brings back fond memories of my childhood.


See what I mean about the silly smile?! Love this sweet boy of mine!

Christmas 2010

We had a great Christmas this year! It was so great to spend time with all of our family members. (sorry you're not all pictured - I didn't get very many pics this year) First we spent the night with the Rose side of the family and had a great time together.
Then we headed to the Richards' side for the next night...also lots of fun!

The best surprise - my sister lives out of state and we didn't think we would get to see her for Christmas, but she showed up at my parents' doorstep Christmas Eve and surprised us all! It was so great to see her.


Caleb is the cutest reindeer I've ever seen :)
That girl and her tongue. Seriously, have you ever seen a baby with such a long tongue? And she loves to stick it out and play with it...too funny!


Marc and I decided that we will not do Santa with the kids. Instead we made a birthday cake for baby Jesus and then Marc read the Christmas story from Caleb's Children's Bible, complete with hand motions. The boys had a great time with it!

Love these Pics

My friend, Kelli, took these pictures for our Christmas card this year. I think they turned out great! My fave is the last one of the kids together. Kelli is starting her own photography business, so if you're in the metroplex and need some great pics, she's wonderful! Check out her website at www.kelliduhaney.com

We're still here

I never realize how long it's been since I last posted pics until someone out of town tells me they need pics of their nephew and niece! Sorry, Janice, I'll try to get better at doing it more often! :)
This is Caleb's special trip to get frozen yogurt for going poo on the potty. Before you get too excited - it has never happened again. He has pooped on the carpet, as well as in the bath tub, but not in the potty again. (yes, so gross) He absolutely refuses to go on the potty again, but I'm hoping that he'll change his mind sometime soon.
The past month has been so much fun with Caleb. He has entered a new phase and just seems like such a big boy. His vocabulary is pretty amazing, and he got a very special compliment at church. His teacher says he has excellent manners. He is so sweet and is constantly telling me thank you for every little thing. He opens the gate for me at the top of the stairs and says "mommy, is it good gentleman to open doors for people?", and I say, "yes, it is!"
We repeat this scenario every morning! Love it.

Caleb is also clearly getting older, as the daily meltdowns/fits are almost non-existent for the past month. And when I tell him to go to time out, he just goes instead of hitting me or running away or pitching a huge fit. It's so much easier and less exhausting, that's for sure. He has also had a huge growth spurt and is now in all 3T clothes and weighs about 34 lbs.

We have some pretty funny conversations with Caleb. Every night we pray with him, and he lists all the people he wants to pray for, which always includes many people. He also asks us to pray that he won't be scared of dinosaurs or lions (though I think it's now a habit and he is not scared of dinosaurs or lions at night - he's been doing a great job of falling asleep by himself lately). Well, the other night Marc was very tired and when he was praying with Caleb he prayed that Caleb would not be scared of dinosaurs or lions or grapes. The grapes part was one of those complete exhaustion/you have no idea where that came from kind of thing. But Caleb thought that was hilarious and just started laughing hysterically. He said "Daddy, did you just pray that I won't be scared of grapes?!" Hahahahaha. He still asks Marc to pray that he won't be scared of grapes and then laughs at his joke!
Thanksgiving cookies at Mimi and Pappi's
We have a tradition that every year after Thanksgiving we turn on the Christmas music, bake cookies, and decorate and put of the Christmas tree. Marc and I both have such fond memories of doing this when we were kids. Caleb had a great time helping me make cookies this year and helping Marc hang lights.
My mom made this a while back, but I have been meaning to put up a picture of this blanket for Karis - I love it!
Karis is getting so big. She weighs a little over 18lbs and is all over the place. She now has 4 teeth. Her top front 2 came in about 2 weeks ago. She loves to sit and eat finger foods and gets really mad when she can't have what we are eating!
She also said her first word, which I am particularly excited about since it was "momma"! Sometimes she'll say it if I ask her to, but usually she says it when I walk away from her and she follows me and clearly says "momma". She also said "dada" that same day when I asked her to. It is the sweetest thing to watch her get excited when her daddy gets home from work. She is also waving hi and bye to people - such a sweetie.



Aunt Janice, I wore this shirt just for you! I love you - Karis