Easton's 1st Thanksgiving!!!

Easton celebrating his first Thanksgiving on November 25, 2010. We decided not to travel to Virginia and instead opted to stay home, take care of some projects, decorate for Christmas and spend time together just the three of us .... as a side note, there are not many occasions that Jason has off from work, so sometimes it's nice to just relax and be at home.

We found out that some of our neighbors had similar plans, so our friends Natalie, Al and Canaan came over to join us for Thanksgiving dinner. I prepared the turkey (my 1st one!), stuffing, gravy, green beans, yeast rolls & sweet tea, and Nat brought the yam souffle, apples with cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie and hot apple cider. We had a delicious meal, then relaxed while the boys played. Later on, our friends Amy, Cory and Sophie stopped in and we all had a drink and watched the kids burn off more energy and play even more. Below are a few pictures from our Thanksgiving Day:

My FIRST Turkey ... everyone said it was tasty, and it didn't kill anyone, so it was a SUCCESS!

Easton sporting his "My First Thanksgiving" bib ... and READY to eat! :-)

Surrounded by good friends....

Posing w/ his Daddy

Showing off his Thanksgiving outfit before bedtime

It was a great day, and we are truly blessed and thankful for so many things this year. We are grateful for our wonderful neighbors who have quickly become some of our dearest friends. We are thankful for our beautiful new home and the delicious meal we were able to enjoy. We are thankful for our friends and family, both near and far away, who are all healthy, happy and mean the world to us. We are thankful for each other - I personally would not want to spend my life with anyone other than Jason as my husband and as a father to my child. But at the top of our "we are thankful" list is our sweet, adorable baby boy --- I cannot imagine life without Easton, and am thankful beyond words for every day that I am able to watch him grow. He is truly a blessing and I love everything about him, from his gorgeous blue eyes to that devilish grin. We are so very thankful that God brought Easton into our lives!

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone, we love each of you!

Surf City Lighting of the Christmas Tree 11-20-10

On Saturday November 10th, Surf City lit up the Christmas tree and other holiday lights at Soundside Park. They had hot chocolate and coffee for the guests, as well as singing and a band. The decorations was gorgeous, and we saw several of our neighbors and friends out at the lighting ceremony.

We of course took advantage of this event and got some photos, which are Easton's FIRST pictures with a Christmas tree! Easton just gazed at the lights in awe, it was actually impossible to get him to smile for pictures because he was staring so much! Below are a few of the photos we managed to capture:

Easton & Jason in front of the Surf City Christmas Tree

Our attempt at a family pic - we couldn't get Easton to stop looking at the tree so I had to hold his head! :-)

Checking out the pretty lights


Easton with his friends, Ruthie and Canaan

His cute Snowman shoes :-)

As a side note - I am OFFICIALLY excited about Christmas .... I do not recall being this excited for many, many years. I've always loved the holidays, but there is something about having a child that re-energizes that "Christmas spirit" .... I just cannot wait to see Easton experience all of the holiday traditions of seeing lights, unwrapping presents, trying holiday foods and of course "telling" Santa what he wants for Christmas.

I also hope we instill a sense of giving & sharing into Easton. We plan to do that by continuing to give to the local shelter, adopting a child from the Angel Tree and showing Easton that it is just as much fun to give as it is to receive. Obviously he's too young to understand this now, but by seeing his parents live this way, our actions should "rub off on him." And one day (that will be here all to soon) he'll be able to participate and experience how it feels to be generous and giving firsthand. At least that is my hope ... we'll see how that works out because he's not so good at sharing yet, just ask his playgroup friends :-)

But most importantly, I want Easton to feel the love and comfort that I vividly recall from growing up, especially during the holidays. I have very fond memories of spending time with family, waking up with my brothers on Christmas morning and racing to the tree to see what "Santa brought us" .... my parents had three kids to buy for, but they always managed to get us what we wanted. I also recall fun traditions that my Mom started, such as having us go on a scavenger hunt to find our gifts and giving us presents Dec 15th through Dec 24th in instead of getting a stocking. The house always smelled of yummy food and we spent time together eating, watching movies, visiting our grandparents and playing with the fun things that we got for Christmas. I hope Easton will look back on the holidays with these same fond memories of his family and the times spent together.....because there is no better gift than being with those that you love!

Fun Play Groups

In November, we hosted TWO different playgroups that were sponsored by baby companies - one was by Earth's Best & the other by Gerber.

The Earth's Best (EB) playgroup was Thursday November 4th - EB sent a package with bibs, rice cereal, wipes, vouchers for free jarred foods and several coupons for our guests. Below are two photos from our EB party:

Our next event was our Gerber House Party on Thursday November 18th - both my friend/neighbor Amy & I were chosen to do a House Party, so we decided to do a combo-party (since we'd invite the same people anyway). Boy - did we have a TON of stuff..... Gerber sent bibs, lunch bags, plates, cups, napkins, balloons and TONS of free 2nd foods, rice/oats cereal, formula, yogurt and smart sips. We had a house full and everyone was thrilled with the generous giveaways. The kids had a blast in the ball/balloon pit and the moms had a great time hanging out and chatting. And now, for the pics:


It's going to be hard to top all of the fun & excitement that we had at our November playgroups .... I wonder what other baby companies want to sponsor us??? :-)

Easton at 9 months!

We had Easton's 9 month checkup on Thursday October 28th. We changed doctors & visited Dr. Blackstone at Cape Fear Pediatrics for the first time. He was a great doctor, very thorough and really seemed to care about Easton and his well being. I think we have a keeper!

Easton weighed 20 lbs 8 oz (53rd percentile) and was 29.5 inches long (86th percentile). His head measured 47.3 centimeters, which is in the 95th percentile! Dr. Blackstone was happy with Easton's progress and gave him a certificate that highlighted these milestones.

Speaking of progress ..... Easton has developed and grown SO much! He is quite the social butterfly and "talks" constantly. He has said "Mama", "Dadda" and "Bye-Bye". He can clap his hands, wave bye-bye and he scoots, pulls up and moves around the room like a champ! Recently his uncles taught him how to give a "high-five"!! He looks so proud of himself when he performs his "tricks" --- his smile truly lights up the room. He has the cutest expressions as you can see in many of the pictures - he's so full of personality. He eats a ton! He is still breastfeeding and also enjoys jarred foods, Cheerios, Gerber Puffs, bananas, sweet potatoes and his favorite, yogurt! He loves having apple juice in his sippy cup and can pinch most any food given to him & feed himself.

I must admit, Easton has a bit of a temper .... we've learned to not keep him waiting for food - he gets quite angry if he's hungry and waiting. And he definitely has a "devilish" side - when we tell him "no" he'll sometimes give us a little smirk and keep doing whatever it was (usually messing with the entertainment center). We've noticed recently that he does respond to "no" better - or at least he reacts when hearing the word :-)

Easton has several toys that he enjoys playing with - he loves his jumperoo and can stay occupied for 30 minutes just jumping, laughing and squealing. He also has several toys that "make music" .... he really likes the activity table that Martha let us borrow, as well as the "Spin, spin a Letter" toy. Speaking of playing - Easton has tons of friends! He spends a lot of time with his neighborhood friends, Sophie and Canaan. We also get together weekly for playgroup with our former Mom&Baby yoga group.

Easton has cut back on his paci use and only uses it when he's sleeping or confined (such as in a carseat). He has several teeth - 3 on top and 4 on the bottom. My friend Natalie calls them his "Chicklet teeth" because they are tiny and very white. We are so proud of him .... everywhere we go people comment on his good behavior and his gorgeous blue eyes. He is quite the hit with the ladies, both young and old :-) We are truly blessed to have such a sweet and handsome little man in our lives. Here are a few recent pics of Easton where he was "helping" me with laundry. :-)

Easton's 1st Halloween!

We celebrated Easton's 1st Halloween & it was a ton of fun! The celebration began on Thursday with our Halloween themed playgroup. All of the kids dressed up in their costumes to play - Easton was a pirate! Throughout the week Easton was dressed in several different Halloween outfits; you'll see a few of those below. On Halloween night, we took Easton & his friend Sophie out trick or treating in their custom-built pirate ship!!! It truly was a group effort ... Gammy, Pappy, Jason, Sophie's mom Amy and even our neightbor Natalie had a hand in making the ship. Thanks everyone - and we're already thinking of how we'll top the ship next year! Any ideas???

Here are some pics that highlight the celebration - enjoy! :-)

"My 1st Halloween!"

BOO!

At playgroup ... What a precious little Pirate (but he refused to wear his hat)!

The infamous pirate ship ... complete with flag, parrot and a treasure chest for their candy!

What a good Pappy - he rolled them around the whole neighborhood!

Easton's 1st "treat"! :-)

Check out the name plate & the cannon!

Easton's good friend Sophie

So sweet ....

October was a whirlwind!

Oh my goodness - I think this is the first time in years I went a complete month and did not update my blog. Shame on me! But in my defense, Jason has been gone for a 3 week training in Arizona so I've been flying solo here. Plus Easton & I went on a 10 day road trip, then we had a week's worth of guests, so things have been quite busy to say the least. All that, plus I still have to find time to coupon - we all know how much time that takes. And oh yeah, I have a job too! Whew, I am just exhausted thinking about it all! But it was a great month for us, we had tons of fun and spent a lot of time with our friends and family. Here are the highlights:

Gammy & Pappy Visit - my parents visited October 1st through 3rd. The highlight of the weekend was the construction of our pirate ship! Easton and his friend Sophie dressed as pirates so we decided to turn a wagon into a pirate ship :-) Here's a pic of my Dad and Easton hanging out:


Martha & Anne Rylee Visit - Martha & AR were in for a visit the weekend of October 8th through 10th. We spent time at the park, did a lot of "playing" (well, the kids did anyway) and just relaxed and caught up on things. Unfortunately, I did not get any pictures .... oops!

Bathtime w/ Daddy (before he left for training) - Jason was in Arizona for training October 15th through November 2nd .... before Jason left I got some photos of Easton and him together at bathtime.

October Roadtrip (10/15 through 10/25) - Easton & I packed up the car and headed to Danville on Oct 15th. While in town Martha treated me to a pedicure (thanks!), we had a Bday lunch for my friend Steph, celebrated my Dad's birthday and spent a lot of time with friends and family. We also took Easton's 9 month photos with my friend Chrystal. You can check them out by visiting http://www.chrystalsimpson.smugmug.com/and clicking on the "Easton 9 month" album.

On Friday 10/22 we loaded up the car, headed to Burlington and spent the night w/ Mayhan. The next morning we packed up again and drove to Asheboro where my college friend Kat was getting married. On Sunday we dropped off Mayhan at home and drove to Durham where we saw Bryce, Jake, Ashley and Prul. Monday it was time to load up (yet again - are you getting tired yet?) and we headed home to get ready for a week's worth of guests! Here are some pics of our Roadtrip adventures.

Celebrating Pappy's Birthday!

At the wedding .... what a face!

My handsome little man in the suit Gammy got him!

Dancing w/ the bride

Getting smooches from "Aunt" Mayhan

Hanging out w/ Uncle Jake & Auntie AshPlaying "Spin, Spin a Letter!" w/ Uncle Bryce

Easton loves his "Aunt" Prul!

Taking a nap w/ Uncle Bryce before we head home ...

Steph & Brayden visit - My friend Stephenie and her son Brayden visited us 10/26 through 10/28. We had a few playdates and the kids even had a chance to get in the kiddie pool because it was so warm! On Thursday, we had a Halloween playdate @ my friend Amy's house & the kids all wore their Halloween costumes. Here is a pic of Steph & Brayden in his adorable Mickey Mouse costume:

Gammy & Pappy visit again, this time w/ Vickie & Keith - On Halloween weekend my parents headed back to our house ... they brought their friends Vickie & Keith as well. The guys tried to have a fishing trip on Saturday; however, the boat was not cooperating so they ended up hanging out and watching TV instead. The girls headed out for lunch and shopping. On Saturday night we had a yummy crab leg dinner. Sunday was Halloween and I thought everyone had to head home to work the next day .... but my parents surprised us and stayed an extra night. This was really special, especially since Jason could not be here for Easton's 1st Halloween. I'll do a separate post with Halloween pics - there are just so many cute ones to share of Easton's 1st Halloween!!!!