Christmas 2009

Our Christmas was so much fun this year! Christmas is always fun, but with Julie really starting to get the whole thing, it was even more exciting. First words out of her mouth this morning were, "I wanna see if Santa came!" So, here it is, the story of the Hunters Christmas, mostly in pictures.

Kay, Audrey, Julie and I made cookies! Julie was a huge help.....well, for the most part.
We made 25 plates that looked like this. We are very efficient women! And the only mess up was my burned butterscotch. Did you know burnt butterscotch looks like Chili?

Yesterday, Christmas Eve, we celebrated Grandma's birthday. Julie told everyone that she made the cake and that mommy helped a little bit. She did do the decorating and candle placement.

Here is Anne sporting her new Cowgirl BBQ Apron handmade with love from me!

This picture is on here for the sole reason that he is adorable.After a great brunch and some good naps, we went to Anne and Daves for Christmas festivities. The kids LOVE their new picnic table!

Then we went home and set out a cupcake for Santa (he must get tired of cookies, right?) and food for the reindeer.

And Santa came! YAY!

Andy really likes his new cars!

And his meerkat!

But Julie's gift was the one that had us out on the street in the freezing cold, but only after a couple laps around the living room/kitchen.

He is such a boy!

And Mommy and Daddy got a Cornhole Game! So if anyone wants to play, let me know! It is SOOO fun! Memere got the kids a play kitchen that I know is going to be used and abused. Both kids love it and have played with it all day!

John and Julie also went to Grandma Hazels tonight, Andy's teeth were really bugging him, so we stayed home for some 1 on 1 cuddle time. No pictures were taken, but I hear it was a great time.

We are so lucky to have amazing family and friends. The gifts were so perfect, every one of them. But the best part was being together and enjoying eachother.

Andy Check-up

Amidst all the Christmas fun, Andy had his 15 month check up yesterday. It went great, even though he is not as huge a fan of Dr Patterson as Julie is (she actually told him "I love you Dr Patterson!!" at his apt yesterday!).

Andy is weighing in at 26 lbs 4 0z (74th %) and is 32 inches tall (81st %). He seems to be leveling off on his growth a little, which is a good thing considering he was outgrowing clothes in a matter of days.

Dr Patterson asked us if he could say 3-4 words. When we told him he was up to about 10-15, he was VERY surprised. Apparently we are gonna have 2 talkers in the family! Andy's words are:

Mommy

Dada

please

thank you

celery

Elmo

this

that

yummy

mine

up

bang

bam

car

boot

Such a smart little man.

So Andy is good to go, and hopefully won't have to go back for another 3 months!

Festive Fun

Christmas is in full swing at the Hunter house! It all started with going to pick out a tree. We got there bright and early. Julie was really into picking this year. But, she was looking for trees that already had presents underneath!
After the tree was home and set up, we went to see Santa! Julie waited patiently in line.....kinda. Only a few times did she try to sneak up to the front to catch a glimpse. This is her "I am not doing anything wrong" face.

Andy was not much a fan of the big guy! But Julie sat proudly on his lap and told him she wanted a boy dolly. Proof that she had been thinking about exactly what kind of present she wanted since we last talked about it.Andy may not have liked Santa, but he LOVED the candy cane! Can you say STICKY???

This picture doesn't have a whole lot to do with anything, but seriously, does it get any sweeter than a little brother kissing his big sissy??

The next day we went to see Summer, Emmanuel, Joanne and baby Sophia. Andy was all about Sophia and couldn't stop giving her kisses and patting her hands. We had an awesome visit!
Me and my beautiful cousin. She is such a great Mommy. I am so proud of her!
This past weekend, we went to Justin and Audrey's for Latkes to celebrate the start of Hanukkah. This is the second year Audrey has made them for us and it is an awesome new tradition. This year she taught us about the candle lighting and a little about the dradle game too. It will be fun when the kids get older and we can actually play!

So the stockings are hung, next to our pretty tree.
And the lights are up on the house. This picture really does it no justice. John did a great job with the lights this year, even though there are less than previous years, it looks beautiful and festive!
Julie loves the blow up Santa and reindeer! She keeps asking if she can ride him, but settles for a hug and a "high five" every night.
So that will get everyone up to speed on all of the fun happenings around here! Stay tuned, there is much more merriment to come!

3 New Words...TONIGHT!!

Andy is a talking maniac! He says so many words already, but just in the course of an hour, he said 3 new words!

I was making dinner and it was just about ready, so I put him in his chair. He said "Mommy!!" (not new) and I looked at him. He pointed at his tray and said "Please?" (like, get me my dinner!!) So I gave it to him and he took a few bites and said "Yummy" (he has been saying Mmmmm for a long time when he eats, but never yummy). He is so cute.

Then his milk fell and Julie picked it up for him. He thought she was stealing it (wouldn't be the first time) and he yelled, "MINE!" That one really doesn't surprise me since Julie is going through a case of mine-itis right now. She seems to go in spurts, and right now is a spurt!

He enjoyed his dinner and I enjoyed his sweet words....ahhh, my big man!

Christmas Cheer

I am crazy busy trying to get some Christmas gifts completed, so this is just a quickly to get you in the spirit.

Julie: Mommy, sing Rudolph!
Me: Rudolph the red nose reindeer.....
Julie: No Mommy! Sing LOUD!
ME: RUDOLPH THE RED....
Julie: Mommy, shhhh, I am eating right now.

Julie of the Day

First thing this morning, too great not to remember for all time!

JB: Today is Friday??
Me: Yup
JB: Yay! Memere Day! Whoohoo!!
Me: Yay!
JB: Tomorrow is Mommy-Daddy-Julie-Andy Day?
Me: Yup
JB:What are we doing?
Me: We are going to see SANTA!!
JB: Where?
Me: In San Luis! And you can tell him what you want for Christmas!! What do you want from Santa???
JB: (Thinking)
JB: (eyes get HUGE)
JB: A PRESENT!!!!

LOVE IT!!

Thanksgiving and Beyond!

We have been having so much fun since Thanksgiving that I have yet to post pictures! Gasp!!

The Hunters Thanksgiving started out with dinner at the Sommervilles. Much fun, and food, was had by all.
Andy got to meet Sarah, Sean's awesome girlfriend. They walked in and Andy walked right past Sean and wanted Sarah to hold him. The rest of the evening was spent in her arms, on her lap and next to her at the dinner table offering her food and showing off. He was smitten!
Julie's favorite part of dinner was the dessert. Chocolate ice cream! Us adults had delicious pie, but the kids stuck to the cold stuff.
Andy making faces at Sarah. I couldn't even get him to look at me for a picture!
The next day (actual Thanksgiving day) the kids and I went to Mel and Colleens for an early dinner where the kids got to play with their cousins.

The big kid table with Julie and Elliot. They had a lot of fun playing together. They are both so well spoken for such little people!
Andy and Andie had fun too. Andy is so much bigger than baby Andie, even though they are only a month apart. Andy was trying to kiss her head when he was standing up, but he couldn't bend over that far, so he settled for sitting next to her. (Are you noticing a theme of him and the ladies??)
After spending some time there, we headed back over the hill to Christina's in-laws house, Phil and Gion. They made us an amazing dinner and were such wonderful hosts to me and my overly tired children. I didn't get any pictures there because no one was able to sit down long enough! The company was great and the food was awesome!

On Sunday we had dinner with my mom, Justin and Audrey after a day of putting up Christmas lights. We contemplated doing a turkey, but thought pizza was a better idea. We also kicked off into the next holiday by watching Christmas Vacation!

Since then (a whole week), we have been working, perfecting the lights and attempting to get a picture for the Christmas Card. Here is the best one so far.....
I think I will keep working on it.

We also had the chance to see the Arnolds....ALL 4 OF THEM!!! Since baby Audrey Opal was born the Friday before Thanksgiving, she was at the her Mommy's birthday party we went to on Sunday. Julie gave Lina lots of advice on being a big sister....and a few hugs.
And in an effort to neglect all housework, chores and obligations, I have taken up another crafty project!
Mom taught me to knit last week and it has been a fun, challenging change of pace to sewing. I think I'm hooked...or needled...

Well, there you have it, Thanksgiving and Beyond! We have lots of fun planned for this weekend, so stay tuned!!