Christmas 2012

Frances - 1st quarter report

As can be expected with a second child, I have not found much time to write about her every milestone. It does not mean that we are not enjoying her immensely and wishing that time would SLOW DOWN, even freeze so we could really savor every moment. Frances is 3 months now. She has been an easy and happy baby, with crazy hair and huge blue eyes. I know things won't always be perfect but for right now, they are.

Day two, going home

This bottom picture is the first moment Olive saw Frances.

Day 1

After a few hours of sleep.

Welcome Frances Claire!

Born 9/5/2012 at 10:18 pm, Ms. Frances Claire completes our family. She was four days late and a whopping 9 lbs 3 ozs (though mostly hair :)), 21", with a 14.5" head. She's a mellow little gal, so far (fingers crossed). Olive has welcomed her with all her heart and we are enjoying some nice quiet days of family bonding.

Due date +1

Hiking with Olive la exploradora at Lookout Mountain the day after my due date. Feeling large but clearly Olive is in charge. 

Catching up

We had a busy winter this year, sorry for not posting sooner!  Kate is expecting another girl, due Sept. 1. Olive is thrilled about being a big sister and cleaning poopy diapers. Seriously cleaning poopy diapers, we couldn't be happier! ;) Olive is a kid, no more toddler. She is super chatty, loves meeting new people, and making people laugh. We have enrolled her in a few activities over the past  months (soccer, ballet, and yoga) and she hasn't shown much interest. She is happiest collecting bugs and bossing us around. She also loves playdates with her friends Beezie or Gretchen.

We are in the process of moving to a larger house very close to Sloan's Lake. The house is bigger but not huge. It is mid-century modern architecture with an open floor plan. We are looking forward to more bathrooms and to being so close to the lake. We are a bit sad to leave our little red brick house. It has been a wonderful and cozy home for the past 7 years and we finally got everything to where we want it to be. Wish us luck with moving!

I posted some photos from the past months above. As you can see, Olive is a lovely little girl these days. You can't tell from these photos but she is a real tomboy.

All I want for Christmas is a Magic Wand~

This year Olive decided she wanted a magic wand from Santa. It was the only thing she asked for and she has been turning people and toys into to butterflies and frogs ever since. We had a great Christmas this year, Olive really got into the spirit of the season. Every time we passed holiday decorations she would gasp and say "Mama,,,,, CHRISTMAS!!" We also had an elf, Curtis, join us this year to keep an eye on Olive and report back to Santa. Curtis even traveled to Costa Rica.

Costa Rica 3

Costa Rica 2

Costa Rica 1

This year we went to Costa Rica for Christmas. Molly, Robin, and Everett joined us and we all rented a houese with a pool. Aside from some flight hiccups, we had the perfect trip. Olive LOVED the animals and swiming in the pool and at the beach. Bob and I enjoyed the break and some sunshine.

The Goodman's Christmas Party

For the 2nd year in a row we attended the Goodman's Christmas party. It was great to see all our friends and all the new babies. Lots of Olive's buddies now have younger siblings, all very cute.