Merry Christmas 2014!

Christmas tree and ornaments 2014

We loved cutting down our first real Christmas tree last year, so we have decided to make it a tradition. The weekend before Thanksgiving, we ventured out in search of our perfect tree. The weather was perfect for the occasion-- it was snowing and the boys had a blast playing in the snow!

We learned a few things from our adventure last year-- one of them being to bring a sled to pull the boys in while on the hunt.

We went to a new spot this year and it was awesome! We loved hiking around and checking out the trees. We found a few pretty good contenders, but decided on this beauty:

We weren't quite sure how it would look when we cut it down because it was wedged between a few other trees, but took our chances. We like to keep things exciting ;) 

Cutting it down with a hand saw was no small feat!

All loaded up and ready to go.

It really was such a fun day. Sean and I talked on the way home how it couldn't have gone better. It was so picturesque with the snow and it really put me in the Christmas spirit. 

Here she is all decorated!

We all really love the tree. It makes our house so cheery!

The night we decorated the tree, the boys got new Christmas pajamas and slippers. They also each got their new ornament.

Jackson:

When we saw the build-your-own ornaments at the Lego store, we knew we'd found Jackson's ornament. He LOVES Legos right now and is so excited about it.

Bode:

Bo still loves "Cars" and Lightning McQueen, so we thought this was a good fit. He got to meet Lightning first last February when we went to Disneyland and it was one of my favorite moments as a parent thus far. 

Davis:

With Davis turning one on Thanksgiving Day, we thought it would be cute for him to have a turkey ornament. I was going to order one, but most I found were pretty ugly and not very baby friendly. I found a cute felt one online and decided to try and copy it and make one for him-- I thought it turned out really cute!

Davis turns one

Davis turned one on Thanksgiving Day this year! I thought it was perfect that it happened to fall on Thanksgiving because we truly are so grateful for this sweet boy. 

Chocolate milk for breakfast! It was his first time drinking regular milk.

We ate Thanksgiving dinner with Sean's two sisters and spent most of the day with them. He loved all of the attention from his cousins.

Eating dinner-- he was a big fan of the cranberry salad his aunt Rachel made.

He was also a big fan of their cat.

Post dinner nap :)

We did most of the celebrating for his birthday the day after Thanksgiving and had a little family pizza party at my parents' house.

He enjoyed his pizza :)

On to presents! There were lots of cousins to help unwrap!

 I love the side eye he is giving Phoebe.

Sean looked very festive in his party hats :)

Time for cake!

Davis got his own giant cupcake and I made turkey cupcakes for the kids.

He got a big grin on his face when we gave him his cake. He wasn't sure what to do!

He took small bites at first...

And then he just went for it!

Davis brings so much happiness to our family. He's only one, but I feel like I learn from his example. He is quick to smile and find joy in anything. He's sweet and loving and mild-mannered. He giggles all the time and his laugh is infectious. He draws people to him like a magnet and makes you feel like a million bucks. That's probably part of the reason there are several ladies at church who fight over him! I tell Sean all the time that his giant smile and hugs recharge my batteries. Needless to say, we're grateful for this little guy.

Some notes on Davis at one:
-Height: 31.3" (92%)
-Weight: 25.7 lbs (95%)
-Started crawling 4 days before his birthday and curious about everything
-Loves attention
-Has a sweet tooth and is sort of picky about food right now. He enjoys dropping what he doesn't want to eat off of the side of his high chair. Often eats without his hands!
-Loves Mickey Mouse
-Says "Dada", "Mama", "wow", and "ooooh" along with lots of baby babbles
-Loves baths
-Loves being held upside down

Happy birthday, Davis! We love you!!!

Davis's one-year pictures

I took Davis in to get his 1-year pictures taken last week and they turned out so cute! When they showed them to me in the studio, I actually started choking up. I am so grateful to have them! Oh how I love this handsome boy.