Look Out Mia Hamm

Thanks Aunt Kelly for the coolest outfit and the accompanying soccer ball. We LOVE it and Gwen does, too.

Let it Snow

I'm not sure if Gwen knew what to think about all the snow in Grandma and Grampy's backyard. I'm sure she'll be ready for some sledding next time.

Christmas 2008

We are all enjoying a wonderful holiday break. We were lucky enough to get to see just about everyone in the family this year. Dad and Barb came to Austin before Christmas, and then we spent Christmas in Dallas at Charlie and MaryLynn's house (Megan's parents.) After Christmas, we flew to Minneapolis to my Mom's. This was Gwen's first flight (she did great) and her first time to meet her Aunt Kelly and Uncle Aaron. While in MN, she also got to meet my step-siblings Joy, Reed, Martha, and their families. We really enjoyed spending time with everyone. We're back in Austin now enjoying the sun, warm weather, and all of our great Christmas gifts.

There are so many photos to share from the last week that I don't even know where to begin. Gwen has grown up so much over the holidays. She's crawling now. Thanks to all of you who voted in the poll. It's tricky to determine the exact day she started, but I'm going to say it was Christmas Day. It was slow going, but she was crawling. She really got moving after Christmas, though. Here's a video with Megan and Gwen from December 27th in MN.


A few more pics from MN:

Thanks, Santa!

The Shadow Knows

Hook 'em Horns!

Thanks to Jeff and Katelyn! This towel gets tons of use, and clearly Gwen loves it.

Gearing up for Minnesota

Ready to hit the sledding slopes!


(Jean, you're too kind!)

Crawling (almost)

This was the first time she was able to lift one of her arms while in the crawling position. Not only was she lifting an arm, but she was lifting her right arm and left leg simultaneously! This video was taken Dec 17. Only a few days left to cast your vote!

Blanket

Things have been very busy here lately. Gwen and I put together a surprise party for Megan's 30th birthday this past Saturday. 35 or so friends and family hid in the studio - and Megan never had any idea.
Gwen has been going through tons of changes, and there are a lot of new photos I will post soon. She started clapping, almost crawling, waking up at 4 or 5am (ugh), and vocalizing much louder and higher than ever before. This morning Gwen and I played around on the couch with a blanket. I thought these pictures were hilarious.

B.F.F.

4th annual trip to the Christmas Tree Farm

It was another great trip out to the Elgin Christmas Tree Farm this year. When we first went to the tree farm together a few years ago we were able to take just one car, but both of our families have grown since then. The extra kiddos makes the trip all the more fun. Lucky for us, this year the weather was somewhat seasonable, so we weren't sweating in shorts and t-shirts like some years past. I managed to convince Megan this time around to get a slightly taller tree (a respectable 6-footer.) In previous years we bought shorter trees and put them on a wooden box to make them look taller. Embarrassing - I know. To Megan's credit, our tiny living room can't accommodate too large of a tree, but the 6' one looks great. Maybe next year we can shoot for 6 1/2'.
The trip this year wasn't without drama. The 3 girls all looked so cute, so we just had to get a photo of them together by the trees. Little did we know that we were sitting them down in a burr patch. The kids got all covered in sharp burrs, and let's just say Evie wasn't happy about it. To be honest, I was 50 feet away or so and I thought someone had lost a limb. Evie didn't want to sit down in the photo for good reason, but she would make a fish face.



On the hayride:

Nativity

Not to worry all of you nativity-collecting grandmas, I'll print these out for you.

Yum!

Despite the look in her eyes, this was just water.

Solids!

We fed Gwen solid food for the first time on Saturday. She seemed to really enjoy it, and she was remarkably good at feeding herself with the spoon for her first attempt. We also gave her water for the first time, and she even held the cup by herself!

Happy 6 Months, Gwen!

It makes me sad to think that in 35 more half-years Gwen will be off to college. Here's a few photos from the last couple of days, including one with her cowgirl fringe-jeans and boots.