So much blogging to do!

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas, we sure did!! We just got home from visiting with our families; we always love spending time with them. As I sat down to upload some pics to our computer, I realized I haven't blogged much lately. There are some fun pics to post, so I think I'll make up for some lost time and post some fun pics. I'll start with some cute Christmas pics...Noah sure was spoiled this year (which means that mommy was spoiled! :)) And I was spoiled on my own too....how blessed we are to have so much. Here is my favorite Christmas present (I know, he's 6 months old, but still..)

Noah's still at the age where the wrapping paper and tissue paper are way more exciting than the gifts...here are a few pics of Noah unwrapping his presents:

Luckily he has two older cousins that just LOVE getting and opening gifts...they helped him out. Noah actually took a nap during most of the gift exchanging so when he woke up there was still a big pile of presents that hadn't been unwrapped...the girls were so excited that the festivities weren't over. Even if the gifts were for their baby cousin, they were just as happy helping unwrap!! I'm sure glad we got an SUV this year...we were packed full both ways and that's with the 3rd row flat.

We took Noah to get Christmas pics taken with his cousins...well, that didn't go quite as planned. Isabella was great, she had no problems, and Noah was as happy as could be...Lily, sweet Lily, was not at all interested in getting her pics taken. That's the sweet way of saying that she screamed at the top of her lungs and wouldn't even let us attempt a "cousins" portrait. We ended up just having Noah's pics taken...they turned out sooo cute:

We got a family portrait taken later that week:

We had Noah's pics taken at the beginning of last month...they turned out so cute! I didn't post them b/c they were Christmas gifts for grandparents and great-grandparents (and they check this blog for updates) so I thought I'd post a couple now.

Well, I should probably get back to my unpacking. I can't imagine what it's like to travel with 2 or 3 children...It seems like we've doubled or tripled our load with just Noah!! Happy New Year (a couple days early) to all!

Santa Baby

Noah is our "santa baby" this year! It has been so much fun having Noah wear this santa hat. Believe it or not, he doesn't mind having it on, at all! He has never tried taking it off. I love putting it on him when we go out...people think it's the cutest thing (and it is) but it also seems to bring some holiday cheer...who can resist smiling at this sweet boy with his Santa hat, right?? I know that this will probably be the last Christmas that Noah will be happy to wear the santa hat all over, so I'm going to take advantage of it while I can.

My 6 month old

I really can't believe that Noah is 6 months old. People always told me that the time would fly...they were so right! :) The craziest thing to think is that he is closer to being a year old than being 1 day old (only by a couple days, but still!) Turning 6 months is a big deal! Our sweet Noah has given us so much joy this past 6 months. I knew I'd love being a mommy, but this is far greater than I could have imagined. Each little stage that he goes through is so wonderful. I remember thinking that I did not want him to grow out of that newborn baby stage, but then came the big smiles, then the laughing, the talking, the excitement of seeing mommy and daddy, the playing, the sitting...each different stage has been awesome. Thank you Lord for such a wonderful gift you've given us! May we be the best parents we can be each and every day! Sweet Noah, I can hardly believe that you are 6 months (and 2 days) old! We can't wait for what's in store for us!! We love you!

Noah James 1 week old:

Noah James 6 months old:

My Stocking Dilema Update

After going back and forth on what to do, and even getting some wonderful advice from you all, I decided to go ahead and order the matching stocking for Noah and hope for the best. My friend Julie told me that she has the same stockings and ordered her youngest son's stocking this year and it matched perfectly with ones she had ordered 4 years ago. I did like some of the other stockings, but when I held the pictures next to each other it was like lime green next to hunter green...not very nice!

I am happy to report that Noah's stocking came in yesterday and it is a perfect match! YAY! I went online and ordered a couple more today (with no personalization) so that we have them if our family expands....and if I don't use them, there's always ebay. :) They are a great price and free shipping...I just couldn't pass it up. Now, if the tree skirt would just go on sale, I'd be a REALLY happy camper.

happy decorating,
Jodie