Back to life. . .

We had such a fun Christmas weekend! Why do the good times always have to go sooo fast?! Pete is already back to work and I'm sitting in a very messy house, planning on going to bed right after this :)
This was probably one of the funnest Christmases (sp?) we've had in a long time! First of all Pete had Christmas off for the first time in residency - he actually had the WHOLE weekend off!! (What kind of lottery did I just win??) Having Samuel really made it so exciting for me and Pete. We went a bit overboard with his presents (something we'll have to work on for next year!), but it was so fun to see his face Christmas morning when he walked in and saw everything.
Then at the last minute we decided to drive up to Detroit on Thursday evening and see the area. DETROIT? Ya, well you look at a map of the Cleveland area and tell me where we are supposed to explore? We've already been to Pittsburgh, Columbus, Toledo - so why not Detroit? I was actually pleasantly surprised, however, they don't call this area the rust belt for nothing - more to come. Anyway, Pete has a goal of seeing all the State capitals in his lifetime, so we also drove over to Lansing, MI to see the capital. I'll post some pictures of our trip when I get them developed. Yes, I did say developed. We forgot our camera and had to buy a disposable one ha ha!! We went to 2 different gas stations and when we found a camera, it had an inch of dust on it. Not such a popular item these days. Ahh memories. . .
Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!

MERRY CHRISTMAS

This time of year seems to make us even more painfully aware of the distance between us and our loved ones. We hope you all have a wonderful Christmas day! We miss and love all our dear friends and family.



This cute card was made possible by two of my talented friends, Paperbyrd and Sarah Palfreyman Photography, so go check them out. Thanks ladies!

Ho Ho Ho and Boo Hoo Hoo

This was our attempt at getting a picture of Samuel with Santa. He loves Santa on tv or in pictures. . . not so much in real life! So it turned into an unexpected family picture. Maybe next year it'll just be Samuel and Santa.

Why

does Samuel have to grow up so fast? He will be 18 months this week!! I have realized that in our situation we probably won't have very many children so I have tried my hardest to "find joy in the journey", as President Monson advised, but I haven't figured out how to slow down the clock! There are days (mmm like everyday) I wish for residency to be done, but then I realize that just means Samuel will continue to grow up and I tell myself to stop wishing our lives away.

So why am I on this little soap box? Samuel got his first hair cut yesterday. This was a BIG deal for me. He was practically bald the first 9 months of his life and then when it finally came in, he had perfect blond baby curls in the back. Over the last couple of months the curls have relaxed and he kinda has looked like an old man :) I was holding out though, I knew after this haircut his hair would never be the same soft baby hair. I felt like this was the last thing I had left from him being a baby. However a few harmless remarks from people about his hair and seeing that no matter how much gel I put in those curls just weren't coming back, I decided we could cut it. He was a trooper, only cried a little and within a matter of minutes his hair was cut. I cried a bit on the drive home as I held pieces of his hair in my hands, Pete smiled and said it would be okay. I know it will. I guess it's not so much the hair cut, but what is represents, he's growing up and that realization breaks my heart. Now instead of a baby, I have a darling little boy.

In the second picture he looks SO serious, which was exactly the opposite of how he was acting when I was taking pictures. He says cheese and has the goofiest smile, but when the red eye light comes on, the smile vanishes and he it's like he becomes hypnotized. Funny boy.

Friday Night Date

Nothing to glamorous, but you should give it a try:

Pink Peach Italian Soda

(from none other than Target!)

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Chocolate Ritter Bar

(also found at your local Target)

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Last night's Episodes of Survivor & The Office

(is there anything else better?!)

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The one you LOVE

(awww)

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perfection