Ah, the warmth of Christmas

Christmas Day, December 25, 2008

Christmas morning came without any hitches. Alex woke up well before Andrew and when coming downstairs, he saw goodies under the tree.

With Alex being so young (and having such a big family), we tried to not go overboard with the gifts. And with all the boy toys (wagons, dump trucks, etc.), would you believe he went right to the books? Granted it was a book about trucks. But still… maybe he’ll be like mommy and enjoy a good book every now and then.

Andrew finally woke up to join us and got right to opening presents.

One of his big presents was RockBand for Wii. Adam gave Amy Wii Fit for Christmas and we’ve all had a good time with that. Here Andrew plays Wii Fit while Alex plays with all his presents.

After we opened presents, we had a yummy breakfast and were able to play with our toys for a little bit. Then Andrew went to spend time with his mother and we headed to Delaware to spend time with our family down there. MomMom Joanne introduced Alex to her horses.

And Jeremy was so excited about Christmas he could barely contain himself!

Merry Christmas everyone! We love you!

Please, Christmas, don’t be late…

December 24, 2008—Christmas Eve

The presents are wrapped. The stockings are hung. But we still have a lot to do before Christmas morning.

We went over to MomMom and PopPop Kendig’s for Christmas Eve. Brandon, Amanda, Chris and their families were all there too. We had a yummy dinner and then proceeded to open our Christmas presents.

Andrew received a cool Nerf gun two-pack to have Nerf wars with someone else. He also was given a ball that starts out flat (kind of like a frisbee) but when you throw it, it shapes into a ball. I’m not sure how it works but it is in this <— picture.

MomMom Kendig made Alex a new knit hat for the winter. It is red so it will match his blue and red jacket nicely. We put it on his head to see how it fit and he was really excited. Just look at him. He was squealing with excitement in this picture. Alex also received a baby baseball set. That should go well with the Phillies cap, right?

After we opened presents, we visited for a few minutes before changing Alex into his pajamas. His Christmas pajamas are adorable. They are from Carter’s  and red fleece pjs with a picture of Santa on them and the words “Santa’s Favorite.” I love them. He is adorable.

When we wake up, it’ll be Christmas day!

Trains, Hay Rides and Christmas lights

December 20, 2008

Today the Christiana Freight Station had its holiday open house. Every year around Christmas they open up the station and serve up some yummy treats.

They have model trains on display and PopPop Glenn takes great pride in this event. Alex really liked the train displays. He was captivated by the trains going by, especially when PopPop made the engine have steam coming out of it.

At the open house we met up with BJ, Cathi and the cousins as well as Amanda and Dave and the girls. The station was offering a hayride pulled by a tractor, going around town to look at all the Christmas lights. It was tight fitting the family on the wagon with the others who were going… but it worked out well being packed in so tightly. It helped to keep warm on a cold night!

Andrew had a good time on the hayride, leading the passengers in singing some Christmas carols through town. Unfortunately I don’t have pictures of the hayride. I do however have pictures of Alex standing next to his “big” cousin, Alexis. Alexis is three months older than Alex but she is a little peanut. Just look!

This next picture is just because my daddy is such a cheese.

Five days ’til Christmas!

And he’s off!

December 19, 2008

Alex took his first steps just over a month ago. Then he came down with a cold and stalled on the progress front. After getting some antibiotics in him, he took off.

Update on January 8, 2009: Now the little man does laps around the house every evening and tries to run across the living room. He’s so funny and so proud of himself.

Alex and Jenna sitting…

on a bench.

Megan came to visit at my mother’s house on Sunday and brought her little girl Jenna with her. Watch out, McKenna! There may be many boyfriends for you at the daycare… but maybe I’ll like older women like my daddy does!

Birthday x 80 and Santa Surprises!

December 13, 2008

Happy 80th Birthday, Grandmom!

Today we went to Smyrna and helped Grandmother celebrate her 80th birthday. There were 75 people expected at my mother’s house for an open house celebration of grandmother’s birthday. Well, open house idea didn’t really pan out as people came and stayed until 7 p.m. Actually it was 6:45 p.m. when a mass exodus occurred.

It was so nice to see so many relatives! Some of them were just meeting Alex for the first time.

At 5 p.m. a special visitor came to the house! Santa stopped by to speak with all the little ones and to tell them special stories. Alex did really well with Santa. Isn’t he adorable in his little green overalls? I love it!

Jeremy was so cute with Santa. Last year he wouldn’t get anywhere even close to Santa when he dropped by the house. He stared in awe but was a little weary. This year was a completely different story. He could not wait to sit on Santa’s lap and in fact, he was the first one up there!

He told Santa everything that he wanted and after he was through with his extensive list, Santa asked, “Have you been good enough to get all that stuff this year?” Jeremy got a strained look on his face, and quiet for a minute, he looked toward his  mother. She offered, “Well, he certainly is trying to be good now.” The story just gets even more cute.

As Alex was sitting on Santa’s lap, Jeremy stood off to the side next to his mother. He said, wondrously, “Santa, I *know* you’re watching me now.”

A little later, Jeremy was worried because Julia was with her daddy and wasn’t there to tell Santa her wishes. So he went to Santa and asked, “Santa, do you know what Julia wants for Christmas because she’s not here to tell you?” He was so worried that Santa wouldn’t bring anything for Julia. It was so heart-warming.

Santa told Jeremy a story of how he is able to put the presents under the tree of houses that don’t have chimneys. He has a magic key… a magic key that can open any door to let him in. See it in the picture?

Grandmother sat at Santa’s lap too… I wasn’t fast enough with the camera though. I only caught her standing next to him.

Happy Birthday, Gram!

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas

December 7, 2008

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas;
Soon the bells will start,
And the thing that will make them ring is the carol that you sing
Right within your heart.

And at our house, we went and got our tree! It was FREEZING outside and most especially windy. Alex must’ve been thinking, “What in the world are mommy and daddy doing??? It’s cold out here!” We dressed him up in his winter’s warmest with his new LLBean jacket, his hat with earflaps and most importantly his new mittens. We probably should have still had him wrapped up in a blanket too! We go to a tree farm about a mile and a half from our house. We’ve been going there for four years now, I think, and this year was the first year we knew we were allowed to DRIVE to where you cut down the tree. Every year, we hiked across a field, Adam sawed down the tree and we carried/dragged the tree back across the field to where the cashier’s hut is. You bet this year was a lot easier!

Cindy started boxes of ornaments for her children and for Andrew as they were growing up. It is really cool actually. Adam and Andrew have memories associated with a lot of the ornaments on our tree… and they have special boxes of ornaments that they hang themselves.

In this tradition, I started buying ornaments for Alex this year for him to take with him when he has his own home. (As selfish as I am though, I am buying two of each so I still have them when he leaves ) I’m not sure what he thinks of the tree…

…looks a little uncertain, doesn’t he?

Under my tree

December 7, 2008

Yes, under the tree. Interestingly, he hasn’t harassed any of the ornaments… yet.

2008 brought much to be thankful for

November 27, 2008

Blessings I’m thankful for:

• A happy, healthy, beautiful “little turkey”
• A happy, healthy, handsome husband
• A happy, healthy, handsome stepson
• A happy, healthy, wonderful family
• Fabulous Friends
• A homey, lived in house
• A positively inspiring place to work

I don’t know why there is only one day a year where we take the time to reflect on all that we have to be thankful for. I watch the news and think, I’m glad to live in a country where I am free. And I am thankful for those who are fighting for my freedom.  I’m thankful for a husband who loves me and does not abuse me. I am thankful to have a home to live in and job to go to every day.

I am thankful for the miracle of childbirth and for the healthy baby boy it brought me. I am thankful for the wonderful nurses and doctors who helped me through it. And I am thankful for family and friends who helped me transition to the wonder of motherhood.

There is so much more I am thankful for as well. Blessings come in all shapes and sizes.

Ten Kendig family blessings are below.

(l. to r.) Andrew, Alex, Jordyn, Kyle, Jada (standing), Wesley, Alexis, Jenna, Paige and Dylan.

Happiness is a frame of mind…

November 25, 2008

I work at home on Tuesdays and Thursdays, which means I get to work while my little man happily plays in front of me. Yes, Alex needs a haircut. No, I’m not going to cut it. Yet. Would you really be able to cut off those curls???

It’s smiles like these that make me treasure my days at home. Whether working or weekends, who can have a bad day when you see this?