From Our Family to Yours...

Santa & Me

Today was the last time that Parker had to sit on Santa's lap before Christmas so Bryan got him up before the sun came up so they could stand it line to see Santa. We have seen, talked and waved at Santa but wanted nothing to do with sitting in his lap. Last night Parker "promised" that he would sit on Santa's lap (and if he didn't, it would still be ok). By the time that Bryan got Parker to Stonebriar there were already a few people in line but it wasn't that bad. Parker did fulfill his promise by sitting on Santa's lap and told him that he wanted a "big kitchen".

Afterwards, Bryan gave Parker a special treat....at 9:30am....yes, AM!!!
Santa gave Parker a free pass to ride the Merry-Go-Round but Parker has never been a fan. However, on this day, he wanted to give it a try. By the time they got home, either the sugar was kicking in or he was truly excited because he had a lot to say :)

{{{MERRY CHRISTMAS EVE, EVERYONE}}}

The Christmas Trees of Angleton

While in Angleton to celebrate Christmas, I took some pictures of the BEAUTIFUL Christmas trees that our families put up this year!

Jimmie & Helen's:
The Campos Family:

My Mom's:Don't you love them??? All three of them made me smile :)

Ryan Turns TEN & Parker BOWLS

Ryan turned 10 today! And we are home to join in the birthday festivities...YAY!!! We were invited to join the birthday boy and his entourage at Main Event for bowling and laser tag. This also marks Parker's first bowling experience. It.was.fun.
The birthday boy:

Parker's first hand at bowling:

And his cousins, who love Parker to pieces, give him high-fives for doing a good job:

I cannot believe that Ryan is 10. When I met Bryan's family, Ryan was a year old and still in a high chair. In the past nine years, he has turned into a game-loving, technology-driven, handsome, cool dude. It's been so fun to watch him grow-up and I can't wait to see what another 10 years brings his way!

Christmas with the Girls

Michelle & Rachel were two (out of four) of my best friends while in middle and high school. They know me inside and out and so it is ALWAYS nice to get together with them. It's nice to be myself, be honest about things and not have to worry about offending them and I never have to worry where we stand....we are always standing together! I LOVE THAT!!!

Tonight we decided to meet at The Grape Taste to have dinner and exchange Christmas gifts. And we also....{my favorite part}....had some girl talk. We discussed a wide variety of different topics, from Michelle telling us about her teenage-kids shenanigans to Rachel asking us to be her surrogate since she can't have kids. Yep, it was just that good! I loved every minute of it and can't wait for our annual girls weekend this summer :)

P.S. - the tapas-style menu was fun and the food was delicious!!!

Guess WHO Drove to Angleton?

We are headed home today for some Christmas-Graduation-Birthday fun! We are all so excited to see everyone back home but we could do without the driving part. There are only so many Christmas songs, I Spy games and books you can read before you are itching to get out of the car and get some fresh air. About three hours into our five hour drive, we all get a little silly and Parker is no exception. He requested that Sid drive. So, as any good Daddy would do, Bryan obliged (with Millie already sleeping in his lap). I am happy to report that Sid is a very good driver :)

Finally, THE Two Year Photos

Since I am trying to play catch-up on blogging, you will have to look back at September to see the actual photos {once I get around to that post} but I wanted to share this one photo. It makes me smile. We met Tom at a park in McKinney for the photo-shoot and since it was cold outside AND during naptime, I took some candy along so that we could get at least a few good pictures of Parker. What I wasn't expecting was for an entire colony of birds to join us. And I really wasn't expecting Parker to share all of his candy with the birds either :) However, the birds were just not interested in the jelly beans that Parker offered. Once they figured out we only had candy, the started disappearing. We had a good session and as always, it was good to see Tom.