Christmas with Friends

Every year our "extended" Community Group (bible study) has a Christmas party with a white elephant gift exchange. This year we had the party at our house and had a blast! We decided to do a "regift" exchange and bring only things that we had been given and didn't want. There were some hilarious gifts, including a conch shell vase/sculpture that has returned for the third year.

Sweet and Smiley

I can't believe how quickly Kinley seems to be growing and changing. She has been wearing size 2 diapers for a couple weeks and weighs around 13 pounds. Clothing size 3-6 months is what she wears most of the time. She is opposite of Ava in that area. Ava was a smaller baby and usually fit into something when she was at the end of the size range. For example, she couldn't wear a 3-6 month outfit until she was 6 months. She is still that way. She is 22 months and is just now fitting into 18-24 month clothing. Some pants she still wears 12-18month. I realize I just rambled on and most of you don't care what sizes my children wear! Anyway...Kinley is such a smiley baby. It really doesn't take much to get her to smile at you! She is so sweet and I made her promise that she will stay that way always...no tantrums! Haha! We are really settling into being a family of four now and I couldn't imagine it any other way!

A visit with fam

You may or may not know that I was born in New York and the majority of my extended family lives there. When I was young I visited during the summers and even stayed for a month at a time. I spent lots of time at my aunt Marcia and uncle Len's house with them and my cousins Lynn and Kelly (I know... it is not gramatically correct to have so many ands in a sentence). They had a big house with a pool that seemed like a mansion when I was small. My uncle Len teased me when I would come by saying, "Welcome to America!", implying that Arkansas isn't America. They finally came for their first visit to Arkansas a week ago and I asked Uncle Len if he needed a passport to get here. It was so good to see them and Ava really took to them quickly! In the first two pictures Ava is opening gifts that they brought. Of course she got to open Kinley's too! The last picture is aunt Marcia with the girls at Catfish Hole. We thought those Northerners needed to try some good southern cooking!
.

Christmas Pics

This year our neighbor took our Christmas pictures. She really did a great job! I love the location where we took them. We were all FREEZING , but it was worth it. Here are a few previews. We put our favorites on our Christmas cards. And yes...I have made a ton of blog posts tonight. We got our situation worked out to get our pics uploaded again, so I am trying to catch up. Enjoy!

Lights of the Ozarks

We met up with some friends last week (almost 20 of us to be exact) to eat at Tim's and take a walk around the square. Ava really enjoyed it and REALLY wanted to ride the fake carousel made of lights. She didn't understand why she couldn't ride those flat horses. We were able to get a picture of some of the girls on a bench. None of them are looking at the camera, but at this age it is considered success if no one is screaming! Sorry there are no pics of Kinley here, she was bundled up in the stroller.

Trimming the tree

We started decorating for Christmas the week before Thanksgiving. We usually do it the day after Thanksgiving, but with a new baby and a toddler I figured it would take us longer than usual. And besides, when it takes so long to decorate I want to enjoy it for as long as possible. Ava loved to "help" me add ornaments. Look how proud she is after she hangs one! She liked to hang them all in one place, so I had to move them when she went to bed ;)

Ava's 1st Haircut

Ava had her first haircut the week before Thanksgiving. Her aunt Lari came down to cut it. Ava was not in a great mood that day and I did not end up getting an "after" picture. But it looks cute! I was trying to wait as long as possible to get it cut, but it was starting to look mullety. She had one sweet little lock of hair that was an inch or two longer than the rest. Lari cut that piece first for me to put in Ava's baby book.

Bathtub Painting

Ava is enjoying some fun painting in the bathtub. This occupied her for quite a while and the best part is when she is done we just wash her down right there!

6 weeks...

Can you believe Kinley is already 6 weeks old? She is such a sweet baby and generally content. She is getting to be quite a little chunker. Right now she still wakes up twice in the middle of the night to nurse. This creates a tired momma, but I know that soon enough I won't have that alone time with just her. After Ava started sleeping through the night I sort of missed that time with her so sometimes I would just get her out of her crib at night and hold her. Ava is not almost 22 months! It's about time to start planning her second birthday party! Ava loves Dora, the moon (she wants to go outside every night to see it), and the song B-I-N-G-O. She is becoming a picky eater. I cannot tell you the last time she ate a vegetable. She goes to "school" one day a week and really enjoys it. The teachers always have lots of praises for her :) Sorry the pics are not showing up lately. We figured out that it is because we exceeded our Picassa storage. SO...when we figure that out we will add some pics. I know it is boring without them!

Halloween!

Halloween was a lot of fun this year since Ava could actually enjoy trick or treating. It was the first time since I had Kinley that I got ready and put make up on! I pushed Kinley in the stroller while Daddy and Ava walked (or he carried her). We just made the loop around our small neighborhood but Ava got plenty of candy. Both of my little princesses were cats this year!


In the above picture Ava is doing a fake smile while she is crying. She did not want to be taking a picture, she wanted chocolate!

Our family of four!

First Few Days at Home

We have been home for a few days now and so far so good. I hate to jinx myself by saying this, but Kinley has really been a good baby. She wants to eat almost every 3 hours like clockwork and she sleeps in her crib. We struggled with both of those things with Ava. Now my biggest worry is how in the world I am going to take care of both girls when I am all alone. I know we will get into a routine at some point, but I think it will be rough in the beginning. Here are a few more pics. You can see how excited Ava is about Kinley. She likes to sit by her, lay with her, and give her kisses. She calles her Nee-Nee. So cute!