Like a Little Grape Jelly Bean

Something about Annabeth in these purple Baby Legs melts my heart.



She also just looks so adorable in that clip.



I later learned that it was a choking hazard. Stink!



We got this Pottery Barn "Anywhere Chair" for Jackson's first birthday. We've gotten so much use out of this thing and now it's getting another chance at life! It even matches my couches now.



This picture does me in. Look at those squishy arms! I love her so much!











Annabeth, you are ten and a half months old. You started pulling up about a week ago and now you're cruising along the furniture. You're finally getting a second tooth on your bottom gums. You've had two colds in the last two weeks, which stinks. When you get a cold we call you Crusted Beaut. Beaut is short for beautiful. Today you slipped backwards in the bathtub and the water covered you. I sat you up quickly and you didn't even cry. Your favorite thing is Cheerios. You just realized how fun it is to throw food off of your high chair. Not so fun for Mommy! You're loving the table food we give you and aside from the throwing, you're very good at feeding yourself. You love to wave and say "Bye bye bye." You clap any time you hear music. You clapped throughout Jackson's Christmas program. Sometimes you clasp your hands together and "flex your muscles" like Jackson used to do. Oh my gosh, I cannot believe I have another child who does that! You love your brother so much and he loves you back. I always wanted an older brother and I'm glad you get to have one - and a great one at that. Tomorrow is Christmas Eve. I'm so glad you're here with us this year. It's going to be a special year! I love you.
-Mom

My Angelic Three-Year-Old

Both of my kids were given party favor bags at the end of a birthday party we attended on Saturday. Jackson has come to realize that when this happens, Annabeth won't get to have most of what's in her bag and instead she will "share" her toys or trinkets with him.

Both of the kids had matchbox cars in their bag. Jackson got to play with Annabeth's car but every time he called it his, Curtis reminded him that it was Annabeth's and she was letting him play with it. Annabeth loves Matchbox cars, too. This little dialogue continued throughout the day as Jackson tried to convince his daddy that Annabeth's car was his. Mind you, he was getting to play with it regardless.

That night Curtis told Jackson the Christmas story for the twentieth night in a row before he went to bed, quizzing him on various points like the Angel Gabriel's name or where baby Jesus was born.

The next morning, Jackson couldn't wait to tell his daddy that during the night he had seen an angel! And behold, the angel had told him that Annabeth's car could be his now.

Thanksgiving Rewind

We - and by "we" I mean my sister - took tons of pictures over Thanksgiving. I just now got around to stealing them from Melissa, so here they are!

Annual Pre-Thanksgiving Girls Trip

The three Moore girls.



Santa Monica, how we love thee.





Mom and Lis. Melissa fits in very well in LA.



Me, not so much. I like visiting though.



Beautiful evenings.



Thanksgiving Day





Dad and Colin.



Mom and Aunt Gay.



Jacks and Aunt Lissa.







Annabeth and Uncle Colin.







Jackson and my cousin Joe.




I love these two pictures of Curtis with the kids.






Day trip to Round Top

Jackson making the most of a big field and a football.







Stephanie and Annabeth





Royers Round Top Cafe





Jackson and Steve and their bonding mechanism.



Lots of love between these two.



Mom and our adopted sister Amy.





Pies!!!



They're so good, they deserve two pictures.







Me, Stephanie, Amy, and Melissa



Friends-like-family = Framily

Call Me Curious

Are any of my Houston area readers interior decorators or party planners?

Long Week

Where to begin? A lot has gone on since my last post.

My mom had surgery last Monday. I wrote about it here.

The surgery has consumed my thoughts for the last 6 weeks. My nerves are very slowly unwinding from the stress. I'm so thankful it's over and that my sweet mama is okay.

I'm still a bit wonky from those nights in the hospital. It feels like those early days with a baby when you get woken up every three hours. Tonight will be my third night at home and I bet that will do it for me.

I know I should be having a spiritually meaningful time since it's Christmas, but I'm in total manager mode. I hope I can snap out of it soon.

Curtis and I are doing laundry right now. Five years ago on a night like this we would have been out seeing a movie and then driving around looking at Christmas lights.

Earlier tonight, after watching A Charlie Brown Christmas in our living room, we loaded up the kids and drove out to River Oaks for our annual Christmas light gawking ritual. I felt so blessed that we had two precious ones - little extensions of us - sitting in the back seat. Our drive through River Oaks always begins with this confession by me: The mansions are beautiful, but none of the people who live in them are any happier than we are.

I just realized Curtis got confused and folded a whole basket full of dirty clothes. Bless his heart. He was such a champ with the kids this week. I really lucked out when he fell in love with me.

Sometimes I long for my husband to sweep me off my feet and take me where we can forget about domesticity and just think about each other. We've been talking about a Curtis and Amanda-only vacation for 2010.

I cannot wait.

Nieve