1st Time Playing in the Snow

Ollie experienced snow for the very first time ever & he loves it! I've had to drag him in the house each time.





Ollie & his cousin, Bella


Ollie & his cousin, Lilah





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Minnesota!

I'm home! Ollie & I landed in good ole Minnesota around 9 am central time this morning. We left our house around 4 am. Ick. Ollie did really well on the plane. He didn't cry much just when he wanted to run around & I wouldn't let him. We got stuck on the plane for an hour before take off because the belt was broken that moves the baggage. Bah! Ollie was not happy but he slept after take off for almost the entire 2 1/2 hour flight. Woohoo!

My dad picked us up at the airport & after we headed to the Mall of America so Ollie could run off some steam. Our original plan was the children's museum but it was closed:-( Ollie had so much fun walking around looking at things. We also went to the aquarium. He loved it! We were in there for over an hour. Ollie was truly mesmorized!















We are currently on the ride to my mom & dad's house. We should be there in about 2 1/2 hours.




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Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas! Our dear, sweet son has been a mess the last few days as he has a bad cold. Nonetheless, we have tried our hardest to still enjoy the season. Bob had Christmas Eve off and we planned to go to a candlelight service at a nearby church to celebrate (our church doesn't have one). Unfortunately, as I said earlier, Ollie is sick & I didn't think the church would appreciate him coughing and snotting everything so we stayed home. It was still a nice evening. We had a ham dinner and opened gifts from one another. I made Bob a leather guitar strap and he created a passport that was really a day out for a haircut, manicure and cheesecake along with dinner he's made! Yay! We gave Ollie his rody, which he adored in the store but of course, the first time he got on it, it toppled over and off he fell. He hasn't wanted to ride him since:-(

Bob built Ollie a train table for the train set my parents sent him for Christmas. After, Ollie went to bed, we spent time together painting. For those of you who don't really know us well, we are polar opposites. I'm a bit of a willy nilly however it turns out works and Bob's a bit of a control freak. We had a little holiday arguing! LOL

The next morning, we were super excited for him to see the train set and table. Here was his reaction.

As you can see, his initial reaction wasn't as we , however, as the day went on he started to really enjoy it. He also got some other cool stuff from his other grandparents. His favorites included a baby laptop from his Nana and Papa & a farm set from his Grandpa and Grandma Gray. After Ollie's afternoon nap we headed to our friend's, Julianne and Andy, house for dinner. We enjoyed a pesto pasta and a peppermint cheesecake. It was a lot of fun!

Merry Christmas to all! I hope you all enjoyed a wonderful Christmas. Don't forget the true reason for the season. God sent his one and only son because he loves you!

Isaiah 9:6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

I swear I have the cutest kid in the world:-)

Here's my proof:














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15 month appointment

Ollie had his 15 month appointment last week. I can't believe he is that old already! Anyway, all is well; he is on track physically & developmentally. He currently can run & climb. He is trying to jump (lol. It is so cute). He knows his body parts, can make many animal sounds & says about 20 words or so (maybe more! Who knows; the kid will randomly say something I've never heard him say.)

He was 33 1/2 inches long which is the 97%. He weighs 26lbs 8oz, 75% & his head is 18 3/4 inches around, 80%.






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Busy, busy, busy...

Today, Ollie & I had a very busy day. We had to deliver presents our congregation donated to an area school & then we drove over an hour to go to a speciality shop. We finished up our Christmas shopping & then found time for a yummy lunch at chic-fil-a & fun at the park.
















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Christmas Production

Last night, Bob was in our church Christmas musical. Now this probably doesn't surprise those of you who know him since he's very musical, however; he didn't sing or play an instrument, he was an actor! He did a great job playing an old man who was watching the hustle & bustle of Christmas & remembering an year of an amazing miracle. It was a great night of celebrating the birth of our Savior & the power he still has!


My dear sweet husband playing Frank.




Ollie & I enjoying the show. He made it through about 20 minutes. Everytime Bob spoke Ollie starting clapping & yelling! Too sweet!

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New Pics

Here are some new pics we had taken by Emily Skolozynski.

I love this hat!

Wait! Where'd my hat go?

ooh!

Sweet picture of my two men.

Here we all are!

Daddy just couldn't resist...

As many of you know, my dear, sweet husband (DSH) is a musician. He plays guitar and leads our church praise team. The musical training of our dear, sweet baby never ends. So last night, while we were out, we stumbled across an awesome little drum set. I was very fortunate to have the DSH with me who insisted that we purchase this awesome drum set for our DSB. I asked DSH if this was a Christmas present or if it was a tomorrow present...

I guess you can see which kind of a present it was!

This toy is really nice. It's made of wood and is a green toy made by Plan toys. Check out more at Plan Toys or Green Pea Nursery. Green Pea nursery also has clothes and other baby goods.

Christmas on Salem Street

We had the best time last night. A nearby town has a quaint little Christmas celebration. It includes a horse drawn sleigh ride, visits from Mr and Mrs Claus, hot cocoa, cider and a scavenger hunt. We met a few friends at the celebration. Bob, Ollie and I arrived before the rest of our group so we walked down the street to check out the Christmas lights. On our way back up to meet our friends, we saw an awesome little toys store. Of course, Bob couldn't resist and Ollie got an awesome gift. You can check that out in another post!


We met the soon to be Haire family and the Stewarts at a pizzeria. It was quite a wait even though Lindsey had called ahead but the food was well worth it. While we were there, Santa made an appearance! Ollie was too frightened to be held by Santa but he did pose for a picture while I held him.


After dinner, we headed back down the street to get pictures by the tree and to try to get a sleigh ride. Unfortunately, the sleigh ride tickets were sold out! Boo! I tried to take ollie up to pet the horses since he had been so infatuated with them all night but he screamed bloody murder. Poor, traumatized baby!

As the picture poising began with Lindsey and Justin, Justin got down on his knee in front of the dazzling Christmas tree and asked Lindsey to spend the rest of her life with him! It was such a perfect moment. I am so very excited for them. Click on Lindsey's name to hear her rendition of the evening.

We finished the evening with hot cocoa and cookies before heading home. We will definitely be back next year.

Just Pics

A New Christmas Tradition

The day after Thanksgiving, Ollie got a new gift--his very own nativity scene! He loves it. We had him open it and then his daddy read the Christmas story from the Bible while he played with it.

A neat sighting

As usual, we went for our morning walk & then went to the back yard to check out the cows in pasture behind us. We just happened upon a mama with her brand new calf. The baby was still wet. We watched for several minutes as the mama cleaned her calf & persuaded it to its feet. We watched the calf take it's first steps!! It was incredible. One minute it couldn't even stand up & the next it was walking! So cool.











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Thanksgiving 2009

We had a fantastic day! I cooked a turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, augratin califlower & a couple cheesecakes. We brought them to our church which was having a community outreach dinner. There was quite a spread. We stuffed ourselves full. Ollie really loved the cheesecake. After lunch, Bob took Ollie home while I stayed to help with deliveries. It was a really neat experience. We were able to deliver meals to families who weren't able to otherwise enjoy one. Please keep those families in your prayers this holiday season.









After I got home, we went to our friends, Randy & Sandy, for a bit more dessert. It was fun to visit with them. Ollie loved Sandy's cat pillows!






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