Happy Giving!

A little late but we had a pretty busy weekend. We hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. Colby wishes you all a "Happy Giving" as he says.

We had a very nice Thanksgiving. I am amazed at how different I now view each holiday. I always love getting together with family and friends at holidays. But now I can experience each holiday anew through the eyes of my 2 year old. The Thanksgiving Day Parade wasn't the same old thing that I watch to pass time in the morning before we leave for dinner. The prayer of thanks truly this year I had reason to give thanks. Watching the kids play together was a whole new experience. Now I watched my own. What a blessing it is to see these ordinary things turned extraordinary through the eyes of a child.

We spent the morning watching the parade and waiting to see Santa. Mickey Mouse, Kermit, and the drums in the bands were all huge hits, as was the singers. Colby still loves his music. After the parade, we left for my parents' house. This was our first Thanksgiving without Mamie, and that was difficult. Although we have the joy of having Colby with us, knowing Mamie is not here gave the day a slight bittersweet taste. Usually we have dinner with all my mom's family at Mamie's house but each family decided to have their own this year. It made for a somewhat smaller dinner, we all fit at two tables now, but I did miss the fun of seeing everyone. Also, my sister Kristin, Steve, and my nephew Teddy were not there and we did miss them. But, the rest of the family was there. I loved watching Colby play with his cousins Max, Alex, and Keith. They had a blast playing with the toy train and the blocks.

Max reading a Christmas story to Colby.

Grandma and Uncle Chris playing backgammon, with a little help from Keith and Colby.

We left my parents' house to go to Mike's Aunt Karin's house for dessert. Mike's Dad's whole family still get together for each holiday and that meant seeing about 30 or so more people. Colby took a short nap on the ride there and was soon revved up to go play with his cousins. He has a cousin Logan who is just 4 months younger than him and they played the piano together for everyone. I had a wonderful conversation with Christine. She is Mike's cousin Timmy's fiance. They will get married this coming June. Hopefully we will get together soon.

After a long day, Colby was definitely tired. He simply crashed when we put him to bed. So a wonderful first Thanksgiving together. So much to be thankful for this year. And now on to Christmas. Colby is already going crazy over that. We decorated the house yesterday and Mike and I went shopping on Saturday while Colby visited with Mike's parents. We plan to get our Christmas tree this Saturday. And I can't wait. I am always excited about Christmas. It was my Poppy's favorite holiday and mine. This year I am even more excited as I now have the opportunity to teach my son the meaning behind Christmas and the joy of giving.

Big Boy

Well, I guess I must admit it. My little baby boy has truly grown up. I can't believe how much Colby has changed, just within the last month or so. Was it really 9 months ago that we came home? Did we really celebrate his birthday 6 months ago? Amazing! Colby often reminds me that he is a big boy, but I always remind him that he will always and forever be my baby boy.

Here are just a few of the big boy things Colby now does:

1)He puts his own pants and shoes on. He still needs help putting his socks and shirt on but he can take his socks off by himself.

2) He also puts on his own "undies". Yes, that's right. No more diapers, although he wears pull-ups to bed. We started potty training in late August but with so many things going on, we weren't very consistent. Now we took the plug and in the past two weeks Colby has only worn undies except to bed and if we are out all day. Still a few accidents but he is quite proud of himself, as am I.

3) He now sleeps in a big boy bed. We converted his crib in August to a toddler bed.

4) He can count to 11 and will say his ABCs with you.

5) He loves to "read" books. We always read together. Mike or I will read the book to Colby and ask him questions. He will answer them all and when we are done, he likes to read the book back to us. He usually remembers everything that happened in the story.

6) He LOVES puzzles. He can put together puzzles with 4-5 pieces. My Aunt Doone just gave him a puzzle with 12 pieces and he loves to put that together too!

7) He is now showing a great imagination. He loves to play with his cars and often uses my flipflops for the "garage". He loves to play with his animals having them go to bed, eat, and play. It is so cute to watch.

8) Colby loves doing chores. He helps dust, sweep, and vaccuum. He also feeds to dog everynight. What a big helper!

9) If at all possible, he is even more outgoing. Colby always was outgoing but now I see him playing with other kids more and holding conversations with others. Amazing! I can't believe that just 8 months ago he wasn't talking at all. His vocabulary is better than many 2 year olds.

10) He is starting to recognize his shapes and colors. He knows a triangle and the color gray.

11) He shows compassion and caring for others. He doesn't like it if other kids cry or fuss and he will give them a hug and say, "It's ok, no cry."

12) I'm sure there are so many other things. Every day brings something new and Colby is always finding new ways to amaze me. Mike and I are quite lucky to have Colby in our lives. What a wonderful, beautiful, smart big boy!

What's That Hiding in My Trees?

Why, it's a Colby Monkey!

Happy Halloween!

Well, I guess I am behind in updating this. I honestly have no reason, no excuse, except to say that I have just been enjoying the past few fall days. The weather has been holding out and it hasn't been too cold. Colby and I have just been enjoying the days. Mike has also been coming home early so we have been spending a lot of time together as a family.

Colby's first Halloween was hectic but very good. I was very worried how he would react to all the stimulation, being up late, dressing up, and getting lots of candy. We had read many Halloween books and he learned very quickly to say "Trick or Treat" and "Happy Halloween". From our trips to the store I knew that Colby didn't like masks so we stayed clear of them.

We started the night around 4:30 going to Mike's parents' house. His brother and his wife, David and Jocelyn, brought their new baby, Lizzy, over as well and we had a nice visit. Lizzy was the most adorable bumble bee ever! We ate dinner with them, pizza. Then everyone went to Mike's grandparents' house down the road. Colby walked with his grandpa but Mike and I drove since we would be leaving from there to go to my parents' house. On the way, Colby and Grandpa stopped at a neighbor's and got some candy. Mike's grandparents' gave him more candy and some cupcakes too. Enough to share with Mommy and Daddy!

Then off we went to my parents' house. More candy and an apple and lots more hugs and kisses. It was getting late but my Aunt Doone had asked us to stop by so we went there next. More candy and a little play time. I was worried by then because it was getting late and we had now bounced from house to house. I was hoping to have Colby do a little actual "Trick or Treating". Thankfully it worked out great. A few minutes after getting to my Aunt Doone's her oldest daughter, Carmen, knocked on the door with her two kids, Isabel and Julian. They had been trick or treating with her brother, Jason, his wife, Linda, and their 1 year old Jaden. Jaden was done but the kids wanted to go to a few more houses so we went with them. We went to about 5 houses, in the DARK . When we were done we were tired and wet. It had been drizzling but it really started to rain. But Colby loved riding in the wagon with Julian the Pirate and he had a great time trick or treating. He even remembered to say thank you! What a great night it turned out to be!