Christmas '09

Christmas '09 was full of wonderful memories! Shelby took off work the entire week of Christmas so we enjoyed spending time together. It was a busy week but a great one. Angie, Joe, Gabe & Will came to town for Christmas...the first Christmas we spent at home with them since Will was born! He was feeling great (despite the fact that he had just been in the hospital the week before)...he's a trooper!

Here are Mom & Dad with all of their grandchildren...(left to right-Will, Mary Katherine, Gabe, Georgia, Caroline & Luke).

Caroline & Mary Katherine with their new "Bitty Babies" and strollers...little mamas already! You think Caroline is excited?! Look at that face!
Typical boys hanging out on Luke's bed watching a movie...couldn't take their eyes off the TV long enough to look at the camera!
Movie time...jammies and lots and lots of popcorn! Georgia will be right in the middle of it next year, I'm sure!
When we were little my Dad used to write out riddles and hide clues to special gifts. It became a tradition that we couldn't wait for each Christmas Eve. Now, he has started doing it for the grandkids...one for the boys and one for the girls. Angie read them the clues and they had a great time running all over the house looking for the next clue!
Andy always gets Will worked up. It's hilarious to watch him wrestle with Andy! Great memories...
Georgia got her first purse and cell phone from Andy, Kathy and the kids and LOVES IT! It's so cute to watch her face light up! Here she is playing with her Daddy...
After Christmas with my family on the 23rd, and finger foods and Candlelight service on the 24th, we left for Shelby's family's Christmas on the 25th. Here we are right before heading out. Georgia was not too happy...working on one of her bottom teeth. We got about an hour down the road and had a "blow out" in her diaper...after about a 20-25 minute wardrobe change and cleaning, we were back on the road! Poor baby...
Heather got Georgia this little puppy called "Scout". It's great...you can program it to say her name and download songs and games. I think it's obvious how much she loves it! She grabbed it and hugged it after it said, "I love you!"...sweet baby!
Barry & Paula bought her "Silly Town" along with other things. Here she is trying to figure it out...I love the looks on Shelby's and Heather's faces as she's checking it out...
Barry is a HUGE HUGE HUGE Edward S. Curtis fan, as we have all become, too. At the Amon Carter Museum in Ft. Worth they are displaying one folio of his Native American photography from now until May 2010. It was truly incredible...wish they had more! His story is really incredible how he took it upon himself to capture and document the dying Native American culture. Heather planned an outing, since Barry loves his work so much, as a surprise to him. It was wonderful and FREE! I HIGHLY recommend it to everyone!
Georgia in her Christmas jammies and Aunt Heather...precious picture!
Hanging out with Granbarry at Cheddar's for lunch...
And hanging out with Mimi...
We went to church this morning with Barry & Paula before heading home. As Barry said, "She did all of her tricks!" She smiled and looked adorable in her first dress from Nordstrom's given to her by Mimi. Being so cute is hard work, as you can see from the picture below...she fell asleep as soon as she got in the car!
I know I have said it time and time again, but we are blessed this year to have Georgia Claire. It's hard to believe that this time last year we were talking about adoption, but not knowing where to start, and now she is 6 months old! God is so good. We are in love and it is better than we could have ever imagined! It just puts things into perspective for Shelby & me...we are SO rich...not in earthly possessions but in the things that truly matter. We have a family that loves, supports, and encourages us. We have a church family that loves, supports, and encourages us. And we have a baby girl, who we love and cannot wait to support and encourage as she grows and is faced with life's challenges that are sure to come her way. God has trusted us with her life and we are humbled with the task of raising her in His ways.