Packing Palooza

I've now learned what goes into planning a vacation in which the family is driving instead of flying. I've also learned that I have no idea what families do with multiple children and all their stuff. Lastly, I've learned that no matter how much stuff we have to pack (and despite a freezing cold weather forecast), Randall will find a way to fit his golf clubs. Here's the car so far:

And here's what still needs to go in:

I have a very confident husband, so I'll just go along and believe it will all fit. I'm quite proud we're able to leave the back seat clear in case we need to sit with Syd. We are hitting the road as soon as Randall can leave work. Sydney is napping right now, but I won't let her nap too long. We need some sleepy time on the road! Merry Christmas!

1st Christmas!!

Since we are traveling to Virginia next week, we decided to have our small family Christmas at our house a week early. Here are three videos...longer than usual, but we wanted to capture this special morning! And a few photos follow.

 

 

 

Santa didn't forget about mommy and daddy, so don't worry :-) We wanted new bedding for our room, and are thrilled with the outcome!

Here is the before:

And here is the after:

The rest of our gift is being able to travel home to be with our families for Christmas and Sydney's 1st Birthday!!! What an exciting time of year :-)

Lights and Sights of Christmas

Last night was a fun holiday-themed evening! We had a delicious dinner with our friends Kenny & Amanda, who always spoil Sydney with goodies. Sydney loves them, and I'm sure it has nothing to do with the gifts ;-)

 

After the fabulous dinner at their house, we all went to the Fayetteville Square where the beautiful display of the Lights of the Ozarks draws lots of people each night during the season. Sydney was fascinated, and she looked so cute all bundled up.

 

There was an option to take photos of your child with Santa, so we took advantage of the opportunity, which also helped us to avoid the mall crowd and crazy Santa line. Her immediate death grip on my arm told me this was going to be a family photo. Call me crazy, but I just couldn't force her onto his lap in the middle of our lovely evening. We are happy with this photo to commemorate her first Santa experience :)

Last but not least, we took a photo on the bench where we got engaged in August of 2006. It's so fun (and emotional!) to think about everything that has happened in our lives since that moment!

Messy, but Toothy

Black beans + yams + pears made for a really messy dinner last night, but we loved the first of these photos especially because you see her two chompers!

Milling Around

This past Sunday was a great day! After grocery shopping, Randall had the idea to go out to War Eagle, the grist mill not far from our house that has gorgeous surroundings. I had only been during Craft Fair time, when the grounds are covered with people and booths. It was wonderful to walk around, take pictures, look around in the gift shops and just hang out. I can see doing this much more often now, and maybe bringing a picnic next time.

 

 

11 months old!

It is very hard to believe our little girl is 11 months old today! She is such a fun little girl, with a her own sweet personality and an adorable sense of humor.

After shopping on Black Friday, in her precious outfit from her Auntie Brandy!

Just this morning, bundled up about to leave for school. It's a cold day today, and I loved using her new pea coat (irresistible from Baby Gap) and winter hat (from our local Farmer's Market) today!

 At 11 months, Sydney:

•  can stand independently for quite awhile, but hasn't taken steps yet
• LOVES music. She moves and dances every time she hears a song
• shows real preferences in people now - adults and other kids
• appears to really thrive in the Montessori setting, and her teachers say she is very smart!
• gets so excited to see her mama and daddy - we love that!
• loves to sleep! We have to wake her up every morning, and she takes marathon naps on the weekends to catch up from all the interrupted sleep at her school.
• is an easy giggle. It doesn't take much and she is falling apart in laughter. What a great trait!
• eats like a champion. Her current favorites are any fruit, green beans, yogurt, yams, any pasta, peas, cheese and whole wheat waffles.
• uses a sippy cup pretty well, but we anticipate a slow transition away from bottles entirely, especially her last bottle before bed. She loves it.
• is the sweetest little baby we could have ever asked for, and our lives get better every day she's in it!

Decking the Halls

We've been busy this weekend! Here's a peek at the Strickland home all ready for Christmas. I got this gold ornament wreath last Black Friday and I love it!

Cute bunny shirt, a gift from Grandma :) Can't wait to start wearing all her Christmas outfits in December!

Pardon the appearance - it was early!

Holding Syd and her grabby hands is safer around gifts and ornaments.

Love the new addition to our stockings in the middle! I plan to have our names monogrammed soon.

Lots of gifts already wrapped and ready to go to Virginia!

Not-so-small Thanksgiving for three

As our first Thanksgiving as a family of three, we decided to keep it small. But if you know Randall, you know it turned into a feast!! On the menu: ham, dressing, maple cranberry yams, macaroni and cheese, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes and gravy, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie for dessert! Sydney had a sampling of most of the items, and she was quite pleased with her first Thanksgiving. The leftovers are a bit insane, and Randall will take a lot of it to work tomorrow (yes, he has to work- so sad!!). Our kitchen looks like we were expecting our entire families and no one showed up! Here's a photo re-cap :-)

29 years and counting

Yesterday was my 29th birthday! Although it was a Monday and I had to work, it turned out to be a really great day. I got lots of cards from friends and family, and we met up with some of our dearest friends for a sushi dinner, my favorite! Sydney had not napped much during the day, so she was fidgety during dinner, but between feeding her, passing her around to different laps, and entertaining her with somewhat safe "toys" from the table, we had a wonderful time! :) Here are a few pictures from dinner with our friends. This was the best shot I could get of Sydney who was constantly moving! Randall surprised me with petit fours for dessert - YUM. I brought a few to work today so the leftovers aren't staring at us in our kitchen!!! (The necklace I'm wearing is from my trip to NYC --- an early birthday gift that I saved to wear until yesterday. It is jade and pearl, and I absolutely love it!)

Monday fun

I was out of town this weekend at my dear friend Wendy's wedding. If you're a friend of mine on Facebook, you can find more pictures there. Here I am at the gorgeous Veritas Vineyards, a lovely wedding location! And here is the happy couple, Wendy and Jason! I am so happy for them. It's always a good day when a friend finds her perfect match :)

It was a wonderful celebration, and I also got to see family during the quick weekend trip east. As is the case with time away, I was excited to get back to Sydney and Randall, and I picked Sydney up as soon as my flight landed! She took a long nap and then woke up to play with mama. Here are just a few cute pictures from our fun play time, waiting for daddy to get home from work.