I'm a Big Kid Now

This afternoon we came home from church, had a snack and Jace went down for a nap. Yesterday we finished re-staining and putting together a toddler bed. Jace took a nap in it yesterday and did well last night. This is what happened at today's nap time: As we laid him down we told him to stay in bed when he wakes up and we will come and get him (this worked yesterday and this morning). He slept for at least two hours and then we heard a noise we did not recognize... As I went to check on him I could not open the door more than 6". It looked like his blanket was in the way but I realized when he got up and ran to his bed that it was his pant leg. When he reached his bed he turned around and said "oh, Hi". I think he made a record for the 8' dash. He had been laying on the floor looking under his door for who knows how long. We thought it was funny but hope he does not make a habit of it. Jace really enjoys his new bed, I think he feels a little more grown up.
Written by Blaine

Our Little Reindeer

Someone in Denver gave us this cute little reindeer costume and I was saving it for a special occasion. I don't know how the tag got misread, but I had it in my mind that it was size 24 months. Much to my disappointment when I got it out, I read 12 months! We decided to give it a shot and this is what we ended up with. It's a little short, a little tight, but still cute as ever. I guess I need to get my eyes checked.

First Name Basis

I supposed Jace and I have developed a close enough relationship to be on a first name basis--at least that is what Jace thinks. It all started a couple of weeks ago when I took a few moments to myself on a Sunday evening and escaped to the front porch. I later found out that Blaine and Jace took some time out and started looking for me. Blaine went throughout the house calling my name, "Ang?" with his little shadow right behind him calling out for me as well, "Ang?" When they finally found me and Blaine relayed the story, we got a good kick out of it. And still to this day, once in a while, a little 2 year old will call out for his mother by her first name, "Ang." We are currently in the process of teaching him that, to him, my name is Mommy.


Last week we watched one of Jace's friends while her mom was on a field trip with another child. I was gone getting a haircut, but Blaine told me that he came into the living room on one occasion to find that both of them had pushed or pulled a present out from under the tree, put it in front of the TV, climbed up on top and were happily watching their movie. Ever since then, that has been Jace's favorite spot to hang out.

Decorating the Christmas Tree

It's that time of year again- break out the lights and tinsel, it's time to decorate! My favorite time of the year and this year was and will be more fun with Jace being old enough to understand and enjoy it. He knows who Santa is and what he says, but also in our defense he also knows who Baby Jesus is. Jace has been pretty good about leaving the tree alone, although he does get some ornaments urges once in a while, but we combat that by putting plastic ornaments and balls on the bottom two feet of the tree. He really enjoyed helping decorate it.

Countdown!!...or up.

Jace is quite the scholar- totally into books, reading, questions, and now counting. After a little work and some number magnets, our little guy not only counts to ten, but can also recognize the numbers in or out of order. We think he is a prodigy, but we may be a little bias.

Slide Fun

One good thing about Tennessee is that you're able to play outside in fairly good weather in the middle of December. That didn't happen very often back home. It does rain quite a bit and our lawn stays pretty soggy so we put Jace's slide on the back porch so he can still go outside and play. I put the rug at the end of the slide after we discovered a sliver in Jace's foot- plus added padding can't hurt for this little daredevil.

Attempt to Dress Himself

Jace was inspired to go solo with putting his pajamas on one night. To say the least, we did have to come to the rescue. But not bad for a little guy- he is on the right track.

Thanksgiving Pies

We had Thanksgiving dinner with some great people in our ward. It was a lot of fun with good food and good friends. We were in charge of pies so we documented our creations. And they tasted good too.