A Little Christmas Spirit

Ann did this with her family--Ry & I were laughing our heads off!

I couldn't resist.

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One Year Older, and Wiser Too!

What a special day it's been! Our little Tessiepie is now officially one year old! I've been dreading this day for some time now. One year old--that's really not a baby anymore.

But then she got sick last week. She was running a temperature for six days straight--not sleeping well at nights and keeping me up. It was a small reminder of what she was like as a newborn. I was so exhausted all the time! I am SO happy we are past that point. I guess I don't really want her to be a baby again. She's much more fun when she sleeps at night (and so am I!).

So today we've been celebrating how grateful we are to have Tessie. It's been a difficult and challenging year in many ways, but Tess has brought so much joy into our lives. It's been a rewarding and immensely fulfilling time in my life. We are so blessed to have our Tess.

Tess was a very good girl at church today. She is a social bug and she loves going to church. Today she wore her special Christmas dress from Nana & Papa. She looks so grown up in it.

After church we took cupcakes to some of her little friends in the ward. The kids in our ward are so good with her. They are patient, gentle and kind to her. Some of the little girls think she's just a big baby doll to play with. Here are some pics from our ward Christmas party last night:

I made her friends monkey cupcakes and we dropped them off with the following poem. They were a big hit!

Maia (in full princess regalia). She also had a birthday this week, so she knows how special December birthdays are!

Sean and Wesley~Sean scarfed down half the cupcake before I could snap a picture.
He took great delight in eating the monkey's face!

Grace~Gracie is so sweet to Tess! Every time she sees Tess, Grace lights up with a huge smile and rushes over to say hi! She'll get right down on the floor to play with Tess and she always shares her toys. Today during sacrament meeting, Grace kept Tess well supplied with Cheerios passed over top of the pew. It's no wonder Tess gets excited when she sees Grace!

After we delivered our cupcakes, Nana and Papa came over for a birthday visit. Tess adores her Nana and Papa!

She got in lots of grandparent hugs and Papa tested her to see if she was ready to take her first steps (not even close!).


She opened her present from Nana & Papa--a baby doll, which she was quite pleased with. She even gave the baby a kiss (She kisses things by licking them. On a good day, my cheeks are soggy.)

Then Tess devoured her own cupcake. She was not shy about it.

Going. . . Going . . .

GONE!

Tess got some other fun presents, too: a couple of snuggly hats my friend Jenny crocheted for her; some stylin' new duds from her Dipsy & Papa Murdock; and a sweet album from her Aunt Maureen.

And now Tess is all comfy, cozy in her bed--ASLEEP! Hallelujah! We made it through a whole year, and she's still alive, and she's ASLEEP! Now that's something to be grateful for!

The tree pic I promised Mom!
Love you, Mom!

Boogie Woogie Bugle Christmas

Wendy wanted to see pics of Mer's RS 1940's Christmas Dinner. My amazingly creative sister was in charge of the Relief Society Christmas Dinner for her ward, and she decided to use a 1940's theme because they have a large number of elderly sisters in her ward.

They dressed up in 40's fashions; put on a Christmas radio show (her husband's radio sound effects were a big hit); had some Christmas musical numbers from the period, and oh yeah, they had dinner too! They decorated the tables with copies of vintage magazine advertisements. She was worried there wasn't going to be enough food; if they ran out, she was going to blame it on rationing.

Isn't everyone so cute, and doesn't it look like everyone had a great time? Mer looks REMARKABLY like pictures of my grandmother from the time. They're both beautiful!

Is There a Dr. Fish in the House?

This is the GROSSEST thing I've seen in a long time!