Still not so much

Maybe she'll change her tune about the big guy after she wakes up tomorrow morning???

School Christmas Party

So what does a school Christmas party for 16 - 21 month olds look like?

Kids being confused as to why their parents are all there early

Eating Chick-fil-a nuggets, fruit and crackers

Hugging on Daddy because its so crazy that he's at school!

Decorating Christmas cookies

Having Mommy micromanage the cookie decorating

Discussing the state of the economy and the effects of holiday spending with her classmates

And eating the icing off of aforementioned Christmas cookie

 Wishing Ms. Julie and Ms. Nelly a very restful holiday break!

Deep Thoughts

by Jack Handy Brooke Meabon

Want to know a surefire way to kill some holiday cheer?  Decide to compare your weight with your husband's whilst six and a half months pregnant.  When your weight is literally the same to the ounce and you realize that within a week you will outweigh him, I guarantee a little bit of that pleasure you experienced as you shoved that extra Christmas cookie down your throat last night will cease to exist.  

Christmas Cards

Do you know how much I love a Christmas card?  I don't know that words can express the joy I have when I open my mailbox throughout the month of December.  The card is a big discussion in the Meabon household each year.  We pour an enormous amount of time and consideration into our card.  Another blogger had this classic posted on her blog.  Do they look familiar?  Perhaps because its the Kardashian family.  Love this!

But I think I've just found my new inspirational website.  Please take some time and admire this beauty.
http://awkwardfamilyphotos.com

But I'll leave you with the Meabon card from 2011.

Do you believe in Santa Claus?

Happy holidays y'all!

Thumbs Up Thursday

It's baaaaccckkk!  After a short hiatus, Thumbs Up Thursday is back this week.  

Thumbs Up for Dillard's children's holiday clothing.  I am cheap....well, let's say thrifty.  I have a very hard time laying down a credit card for clothing over the $25 price range.  And that includes clothing for me as well.  I tell Jared daily how lucky he is but then he likes to remind me that 15 items worth $25 dollars is just the same as one item worth $375.  Um, NO IT'S NOT!  So when it comes to the adorable Christmas outfits for kids, I have to bypass the fabulous smocked holiday wear just for the mere fact that I can't stomach the Squirrel wearing a $70 outfit for one month.  Well, hello Dillards!  I stumbled across their Christmas outfits by chance and realized that almost everything is under $30 and quite festive.  And they carry clothes for newborn - girls sizes.  So get in there and get yourself some holiday goodness before its too late!

via

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I receive no compensation for these reviews - I just like the products!

A Honey Hijacking

Okay Peekers - she's at it again and with some 1980's Christmas pictures to boot.  I feel a little like Ed McMahon but "Heeeerrrrrreeee's Honey!"

I can’t help myself…

The other day Brooke and I were amusing ourselves with something new and fabulous that Harper had learned to do. We were in my kitchen and marveling at the genius of this perfectly normal child, laughing and going on and on about how truly amazing Harper is, sickening actually. But it was at this point that Brooke stopped dead in her tracks and looked me in the eye and asked, “Were you this delighted with Brent and me?”

My answer, “Of course we were, I thought everything you all did was exceptional!”

Brooke’s question has stuck with me like a looming shadow that keeps haunting me because I feel I need to give her a more complete answer. To those of you reading this blog who are young moms, you may not understand my answer as well as those of you older moms will, but to answer you my sweet daughter, did I find you and your brother as delightful, as brilliant, as creative, as endearing, as enjoyable and adorable as we do Harper? The answer is, I have used each and everyone of those adjectives to describe both of you over the last 33 years and will continue to do so until the day I draw my last breath.

It is these adjectives, these feelings of incredible love and devotion to your children that makes life worth living. It’s loving someone this much that enables you to go through those teen years and stay up till all hours waiting for your child to walk safely through the door. Or be tough enough to discipline that child you love so much because you know it will make them better in the long run.

It’s that same love that makes your heart soar when they are recognized for honors, awards, catch a fly ball, take the lead in the Christmas program at church. And it will cause your heart to break when you see their heart’s breaking. Whether it’s over some silly argument with a friend, losing some well-deserved accomplishment, or worse dealing with their health issues that you have no control over.

This motherly love will never end because from the day I held my babies in my arms, I began to be amazed in awe and wonder at their magnificence and I fell in love with two of the most incredible people I will ever know.

Now you can begin to understand how much I love you, because I love you just exactly as much as you love Harper, and as much as you will love your little son. It just doesn't get much better than this!

I love you this much…

Mom

  

16 months

An update for 16 months.  Harper:

- is picking up more signs. Recently started using fish, strawberry, light and dog.  We're working on lots of foods and animals but learning a little at a time.  

- seriously can't get enough of books.  She loves bringing books over to Jared or me, crawling up in our laps and flipping through them.  She can do this for almost 45 minutes.  She'll also disappear into her room and we'll walk in to find her surrounded by her books and she's silently sitting in the middle of them flipping through them one by one.  She can identify over 40 different items in her books when you ask her to point certain things out.  Excuse me, Harvard admissions, are you listening to this???

- likes making animal noises when we talk about the different animals.

- recently started rejecting proteins like chicken, hamburger patties, sausage, turkey sausage, etc.  Tonight we tried dipping her chicken in ketchup.  Bingo!  The chicken was devoured.  I see alot of Heinz in our future...and I'm not just referring to the Steelers' home field.

- still loves her babies and sleeps with Douglass the Monkey as her primary bedfellow.  

- still requires two pacifiers to fall asleep but we've been a crib-only paci household for quite sometime.  Trying to decide when to start fazing these out.  Thoughts anyone?  Before or after Numero Dos?

- really likes nativities.  I collect nativities and have them all set out for Christmas.  I figured I should get Harps a couple of her own so she has a felt nativity and a rubber duck nativity (yes, all of the holy family is represented as rubber ducks - could this be sacrilegious???).  She likes to tote Baby Jesus and the Wise Men around with her.

- has not touched my Christmas tree!  I didn't make any changes this year when putting it up and, sure enough, she'll stand in front of it and say "Oohhhh!" but hasn't had any attempts at attacking it in the week and a half that it's been up.  

- loves having tea parties with Honey and Grandy, as you can see in the pictures.  She has her own nativity to play with at H&G's house and they are, most definitely, invited to the tea party.

- is just starting to get some hair.  She's the only child in her class that's severely lacking in the crinigerous area.  There are a couple of curls (yes, I said curls - hooray!) coming in at the back but still not bow-worthy.  Bald is beautiful!