Happy 1st Birthday Monkey!

i can't believe a whole year has gone by. it seems like yesterday that i heard your first cry. you have brought so much joy and love to your daddy and i. when you were born i had an image in my mind that you would be a carbon copy of your brother. you could not have been more different from the second you came out. everyday you prove to be your own person and ironically the exact opposite of your brother. you are constantly smiling and if you aren't then i know something is definitely wrong. you love to cuddle when you are tired but when it is tome to go you want nothing to do with hanging out in my arms. you definitely know what you want and get extremely frustrated when you lack the coordination to accomplish it. don't worry little man that will come with time. you have a total of six teeth on your first birthday, you can walk really well with assistance and can take six to seven steps on your own. you are so proud of yourself when you do. you want to do everything your brother is doing and refuse to play with your toys all you want are cars, trains and anything that is in brady's hand. you get into everything and i mean everything that you are not supposed to. you know how to say harley, dada, momma, this, and you can bark like a dog. you love opening and closing doors and have become a stair master. you can push almost anything including our dining room chairs and you are able to mount your brothers bike by yourself and sit on it like you know just what you are doing. you have started to have a little separation anxiety from your mommy but i will cherish these moments for in a few months you will care less if i am in the room or not. you are quite a little eater as your picture shows. you love anything that is a carbohydrate and we are working on a lot of other things but a few of your favorites are sweet potatoes, yogurt, yogurt melts and graham crackers. i am so excited to see all that you will accomplish this next year. you are such a sweet little boy and i love you so very much.

white christmas mid-west style

i love a white christmas. the flakes yesterday were some of the biggest i may have ever seen in my life. to my dismay as the night progressed the snow turned to rain and now today there are many puddles and lots of soggy and iced over snow. not the fluffy white stuff i am used to, but beggars can't be choosers right? this is one of the many views out of grandma and grandpa's windows. it reminds me of a scene out of a movie. the frosted trees and a beautiful country looking house adorned with christmas wreathes awaiting santa's arrival. the boys have been patiently waiting tonight for santa and looking out the window's to see if they can spy his sleigh and reindeer approaching from the near by woods. can't wait to see the looks on their faces tomorrow. merry christmas to all and to all a good night.

over the hills and through the woods.....

to grandma and grandpa's house we go......

yes you guessed it we are where the snow and cold are abundant. the food is always good. there is a lot of love and happiness and a lot of spoiling for the boys and us! daddy and brady did a little sledding yesterday. brady wanted to spend his time shoveling instead of sledding but we got him to go down a couple of times. good thing it wasn't anymore than that, it looks like daddy is a little tired after carrying the sled and the brady back up that big hill.

logan's walking!

i left to run a few errands tonight and this is what i came home to. daddy finally got to have the pleasure of seeing a first before mommy. i couldn't be happier for him even though i am a little sad. i just knew you would be walking before your first birthday!

our little version of in the night kitchen

and the bakers they mix it, stir it, make it, bake it........

i love how books come to life. here is to your cut out cookies gee gee. your tradition lives on.

Merry Christmas - Courtesy of Taylor and Brady Smith

i just love this, need i say more. thanks auntie for the taylor chirstmas album, we listen to it all of the time.

the most comfortable sleeping position

i must say how adorable this is and that it is how i find Brady sleeping half of the time. i love this little position. i am not sure it would be comfortable for me, but he sure seems to like it. i know, risky taking a picture during sleeping with my kids, i am surprised the little beep of the camera didn't wake him up.

baby jesus

you all know my obsession with little people. we have been doing our advent calendar every day after nap, followed by the baby jesus story from our Egermeier's Bible Story Book. brady has really begun to catch on to the whole meaning of christmas. i thought that the nativity set would be the perfect way for him to put all of the pieces together. it even plays away in the manger. we heard that quite a few times tonight. i love the way he says baby jesus, it is absolutely adorable. i am so glad that he is learning that christmas is so much more than just presents.

i get into everything stage

well, well. here we are again. logan gets into everything. i forgot what it was like with brady but it is starting to come back to me. thank god for baby gates, but they don't block everything. i spend a lot of my day saying uh oh. logan can now repeat that. sad but i think that might be his first word and if memory serves me right it might have been one of brady's first five as well. what can i say. the trace adkins song comes to mind when i get frustrated, "your gonna miss this." and you know what it probably is true.