Happy 2009!

Another holiday season has come and gone! We had an eventful time visiting family and enjoying our time just the 4 of us. Santa brought way too much stuff. The look on Austin's face was priceless though. We had told him to call out to us instead of just coming downstairs like he sometimes does. Shane went up to get him and immediately he saw a Dora at the Dentist book. (This kid is obsessed with being a dentist!) He came running down and it did not take long for him to discover the many other gifts waiting. He also racked up at the Grandparents house. He has enjoyed his GeoTracks additions and especially his Pirate football outfit. He began jumping up and down when unwrapping the helmet. After seeing that it was an entire outfit, yes including pads and chin strap, he and dad set out to dress up. His entrance would not have been complete without his very excited dad announcing, "Here come the Pirates!" As you are probably imagining, he ran out with his helmet in place and expected everyone to clap along. There has not been a day yet when he has not put on that outfit when he comes home. He also has a special place on his headboard for the helmet at night.

Caleb's Christmas was of course a lot less impressive. He pretty much slept all day long! There were some presents but what does he really need besides diapers and wipes at this point. Watching Austin open his presents for him was the highlight of his day.

It is amazing seeing how fast each of the boys change. Austin is definitely being a 4 year old. He has an independence problem and thinks he can do anything he wants (by himself of course)! He is getting a little attitude and spends some quality time in his room almost daily. Caleb is now smiling and laughing at times. He is at the stage where he is very aware of what is going on around him and wants so desperately to be a part of it all. He likes to sit in the Bumbo seat for about 10 minutes at a stretch. He has such great head control that we will let him try to sit there for a short time each day. He weighed in at a whopping 12 pounds 9 ounces 1 week before Christmas. Yes, that is the 75th percentile! He is almost 23 inches long. We are in the process of weeding out the 0-3 month clothes and going up to 3-6 months. I guess that is good since he is 11 weeks today.

Monday is the first day back at work. I am ready in some ways but not in others. I totally trust the place Caleb is going to and have no worries about him. He had a 3 hour stay on Wednesday and did great. He has no trouble taking the bottle for them! I also know that I need some adult interaction throughout the day and that my patients need me. I am not looking forward to the stress and trying to juggling the nightly routine of dinner, baths, bedtime and then bottle making. I guess I will get back into the hang of it soon enough.

You will notice that I have changed the look of our blog just a bit. I have been looking at others and realized we were "plain!" I have also added several links to others on the right side. The two families there now have extensive blogs. They were both blessed with babies around the time Caleb was born. They, unlike us, were not fortunate enough to have good health on their side. I wanted to include their names here and encourage everyone to keep them and those not as fortunate as we all are in their thoughts and prayers. Both babies are doing great now, but it has been and will continue to be a long road for them both. As we wrap up a wonderful holiday season, I think it is only fitting to be thankful for what we have! Until next time.........