Beatle turns 8 months

Beckett, Beck, B, Beatle...

I have a lot of nicknames.

And I've been really busy this last month!

I spent some quality time with Grandpa

I'm really good at sitting up

I roll EVERYWHERE--

it's my favorite way to get around

I babble lots, 

smile even more.

I LOVE to eat--

baby food, bits of table food.

I'm getting pretty good at feeding myself.

Sleep is hard.

I wake up a lot and fight to stay awake.

 I want to play with my brothers!!!

Mom and Dad say I'm getting evicted from their room

and moving into my own room this month. 

There may even be some "crying it out."

I think it will be okay though.

More sleep may just give me more energy

to figure out this crawling thing...

Getting' ready!

There is lots to get ready before Christmas!

Get our Santa disguise

Make our first ever batch

of chocolate dipped treats

Finish the world's most difficult

foam gingerbread house

I think we are just about done!

How many days left 'til Christmas???

Jack the warrior

Ethan's birthday party was today,

so we braved the freezing rain

to celebrate with him.

It was worth it!

It was both mom's and my

first time to play laser tag.

Let's just say

we had so much fun,

we'll be looking for a day to play again

really soon!

Pancakes with Santa

We had so much fun last year,

we decided to make Powell Gardens

our new Christmas tradition.

We started out with Chris Cakes pancakes and sausage

Beckett, as usual,

was happy to be a part of the action

And then it was time to meet

the Big Guy.

I had a lot to talk to him about.

I want a bike with pedals,

a tractor, an 18-wheeler, a helicopter,

and a new puppy.

Say cheese!

Beckett wasn't too sure about this.

He looks like he's smiling,

but he's seconds away from crying...

Jack was a bit skittish as well

With that important conversation out of the way,

we headed to the craft room

Snowmen,

reindeer candy canes,

and fingerpainting,

oh my!

We did a pretty great job

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Happy Birthday Water Bear!

Nothing says "birthday"

like family,

Stroud's chicken,

and sparklers in cheesecake.

Happy Birthday, Grandpa!

A day with Grandma J

Jack had a half-day today,

so we all decided to play hooky from preschool and work

to have some fun with Grandma Janice.

I was really excited to have my own time,

just me and her!

We had a picnic lunch

And spent A LOT of time

trying to get this foam house together

Finally,

it was time to get Jack from school

and get on to the main event...

the MOVIES!

Even B and Mom came!

We saw Frozen.

It was REALLY good!

Thanks for a fun day, Grandma!

Beautiful family

Molly "retired" from the photo taking business,

so Mom hired a friend from work.

They turned out BEAUTIFUL!!!

Here are a few:

It's easy to take good pictures,

when you are this good looking!

Family tradition

I was excited to go to my first

Christmas in the Park this year!

We donned our Christmas jams,

and headed out!

By the glow of the taillights,

we watched Rudolph as we waited

I was impressed

It's a bit blurry,

but as you can see,

Jack thought they looked best shirtless,

hanging out of the van window

Oooo!  Aaaah!

Weston said

the snowmen, the skier, the race car,

the sledders, the gingerbread men, the soldiers,

the dragon, the frog, and the reindeer were his favorite.

Oh, and the train.

Ok, now we are ready...

Bring on Christmas!

Grumpy

I'm not going to lie,

you can't tell by this happy picture with my brother,

but I've been pretty grumpy lately,

waking up at night, not taking naps

Whether or not it is the cause,

getting my 4 top teeth all at the same time

sure isn't helping

It's just a phase, right?

The good, the bad--

it's always a phase

Crafty

We got a couple of cool projects in the last few weeks

that we finally had time to try out.

My favorite?

My new Marker Maker

from my birthday

We made all sorts of colors

including Burning Sun, Ornament Red,

and John Deere Green (that was Weston's)

We made a few Christmas decorations too, 

clay handprints

and these nifty Santa and Christmas Tree

We like to get our hands dirty

Beckett's Baptism

Today was my big day.

Everyone gathered for my baptism.

I listened intently to what Deacon Don had to say

And I smiled as the water washed over me

Aunt Mandy and Cousin Tim are my Godparents 

It was a happy occasion!

Look at everyone who came!

Afterwards,

we headed back to our house 

for some celebratory bar-b-q and cookie cake

Happy Baptism to me!