On the 1st day of Christmas...

It's the first day of Christmas! Christmas is ONLY 12 days away-yikes YAY!!  Like always, we've procrastinated our shopping and now we have a ton to get done in just one short week. It wouldn't be Christmas without having to run all over town with all the other crazies, right?! Hoping to get most of our shopping done this weekend, but the holiday parties are starting this weekend so we'll see what actually gets done. Last year I was 9 weeks pregnant and just about to share our big news with all of our families. Crazy to think that we were pregnant with a little bean and spending our first Christmas together as husband and wife just one short year ago. It has been our favorite Christmas thus far, but we're pretty sure this year will top all others!

Our house was decked with holiday cheer last week and Emerson can't get enough of it! He is completely entranced by the twinkling of the lights and the sparkle of all the glitter. Of course we had to snap a few cliche pictures with him and the lights - don't worry, no babies were harmed in the making of these great pics!

We knew he'd love the lights because the week before last our friends invited us to look at Christmas lights with them and he was in awe. We all went out to dinner and then drove to "Deacon Dave's" to checkout this year's masterpiece. Apparently this is the place to be come Christmas time, but this is the first year I've been. Maybe we started a new tradition with Emerson! The lights were gorgeous, but it was cold and rainy so we didn't get too many great shots. Here's the few we were able to get.

The babes all bundled up!

We're standing on the "Proposal Bridge" and I can see why!

Nice and cozy

Two weeks ago we had Emerson's holiday pictures taken and I'm obsessed! This kid is just too flipping cute! I just want to squeeze his chubby cheeks! These pics made for our best Christmas card yet!

We're getting so excited for our little guy's first Christmas Eve and Christmas morning! Fingers crossed a new camera will be in mama's stocking! I need to start posting top-notch quality pics! I pushed a baby out my hoohah; I think I deserve it! :) 

Our Christmas festivities will be posted soon so until then have a very Merry Christmas! We love you all!

Mid-Month Mugshots - 19 Weeks Holiday style!

Emerson experienced his first Thanksgiving last week! He may have only been able to stuff his tummy with Mommy's milk, but I'm pretty sure his drooling was for all the food he saw and not from teething. We had a nice day with all of our families, but once again we were on the road most of the day. It'll probably be that way for most of our Thanksgivings, but come Christmas time we're going to have to find a new routine. That's a stress headache in the making so let's not even go there yet. 

AJ and I both come from divorced families, which means we have been blessed with twice as many family gatherings! We both feel the more the merrier when it comes to family, but it's always a challenge come holiday time. We are from families with many established traditions, but now that we have our own family we'd like to start making some new traditions of our own. This is easier said then done, but spending more time with our son on the holidays is worth it!

Here's a few snapshots of Emerson during his first holiday season! Can't wait for more Christmas spirit photo shoots!

Our little Turkey!

As you can see, he's in love with his feet.

Passed out from all the shenanigans

This was supposed to be his outfit for xmas pictures, but it's a tad too small.

Giving Gus Gus loves

4 Months

Once again I'm late to post, but here's a little bit about our 4 month old. Emerson is continuing to grow like a weed and his measurements reflect it.  At his 4 month check up Emerson weighed in at 14.3 lbs (21st %); he was 25 inches long (39th %); and had a 16.5 inch round noggin (he's got the Kelley five-head) (54th %). He may not be a big baby, but he's growing steadily. 

Emerson's little body isn't the only thing that's been getting bigger, his personality has grown leaps and bounds over the last month. We have a little character on our hands. He's typically all smiles, but he's started to become a whiny baby when he wants something. In addition to whining, he's also found his voice; he's our little pipsqueak now. 

Another new sound Emerson has been making is a fake cough. He's figured out what it means to cough so now he does it all of the time. It didn't take him long to figure out that coughing gets Mommy's and Daddy's attention right away. Little booger!

This last week Emerson has been one cranky bebe. A few weeks ago we thought he might have been teething because he was drooling like crazy and putting everything in his mouth. At his Dr. appt she said it didn't look like he was teething, but that he'd start in the next month or two, but with this cranky attitude and even more drool I'm still thinking we'll be seeing teeth soon. Fingers crossed this little tude of his will go away soon!

In addition to being a butt head some days, Emerson has also started sleeping really weird. I read that the 4th month is the worst month for sleep in babies. Apparently they start sleeping light like adults, but they haven't mastered falling back to sleep when they startle. Welp, Emerson has proven that theory. Instead of sleeping his 8 to 9+ hours he's only beeing sleeping 5 or 6 hours before waking up throwing a fit. I know I shouldn't be complaining about 5 or 6 hours, but I was just getting used to sleeping full nights again.

AJ and I have experienced so many amazing things in these last four months. Being a parent is the most wonderful job in the world. We both can't believe how much Emerson changes in just a blink of an eye. We can't wait to experience our first Christmas as a family!