Choo choo, Jack is 2!

Taking a moment to write about Jack's party. This boy is so lucky and loved! What a special day. His birthday was on Thanksgiving this year and who was the first balloon in the Macy's parade that we saw?? None other than Thomas the Train, of course!! Can you believe Macys had a parade JUST for Jack?!? :) On Thanksgiving, we went to have dinner with Justin's aunt and uncle, Sherry and Whit, on Folly Beach. They rent a beautiful beach house every Thanksgiving and have lots of friends and family. This year was a treat b/c we got to see Caroline, Jeffry, and Jen. They live in TN and it was a real treat to see them.

Jack is such an affectionate boy. People immediately fall in love with him. There's just something about his sweet personality, eagerness to please, and gentle spirit. As my mom says, "He's just a special one." Jack's party was the Saturday following Thanksgiving.  Sherry was a huge help in getting everything ready and as soon as my family got into town, we put them to work too. More about the party later, but first a few recent pics.

Jack has gotten into hiding lately. He loves to hide. He giggles and gives himself away...or sometimes he leaves his feet hanging out. But we always pretend, "where's Jack, I haven't seen him." And he just loves it. Jack loves getting into our bed to "hide! hide!" and he gets under the covers or buries himself in the pillows.

Ella girl started pulling up a few weeks ago! This pic was taken on 11/26/14. The first time I caught her standing up on the toy basket. She's sneaky and we've already caught her on the stairs a few times this week. She is great at it and is getting fast!

The night before Jack's birthday, Justin and I decorated a little downstairs. I made these pom poms for the dining room. They turned out cute but took a little longer to make them than I expected, probably a good 45 minutes. We put streamers over his door and 2 balloons in the hallway.

A few streamers downstairs and the chalkboard finished it up. The morning of his birthday, he was thrilled to see it all.

Here is princess on Thanksgiving. She and Jack had matching outfits. Her hair bow was a turkey. It was precious. I hope we can use it next year too.

 Jack had a few presents to open. He accidentally poked Justin in the eye with the pole to his railroad crossing signal. We have it on video and it was hilarious.

We sang happy birthday and let him tear into a cupcake or two.

What a precious face. Hard to believe he's 2. I can still remember the exact feeling when they handed him to me the day he was born. The weight of him on my chest. The way his foot kept getting caught on the blanket when Dr. Stickler was handing him to me. How warm he was. I snuggled him later that evening, just smelling him. He smelled so sweet. That's what heaven smells like, I think. Now look at him. A head full of golden curls, pouty lips, and a heart of gold. His great love is trains. His favorite food is pizza. He loves to drink "SPITE!" (Sprite)

We had a few outside decorations. I had the yard flag made. Sherry made the wreath.

Shannon and her crew were sweet enough to come down! Such a long drive! We had a great time together that evening. We watched the Clemson-Carolina game and then went to see the lights on James Island. 

Emma came too!

Oh, and Aunt Katie came too *sarcasm*...like duh, the guest of honor in Jack's eyes :) He loves his Aunt Katie so much!

 One of Jack's favorite party gifts was a ride on Thomas. I didn't even know this was in existence but it's something special. He rode it around the block and still climbs on it everyday.

Jack and Julianne played well together. He gave her a ride on Thomas!

 Ella took him for a spin too.

The cookies were made by a coworker. The cake was a lady in Mount Pleasant. The cake. OMGoodness the CAKE! It was delicious. The top layer was red velvet. And it was so moist and delicious! The bottom layer though, that was to die for. It was chocolate chip cookie dough with cookies and cream icing. Justin and I ate off that thing for a week. I don't want to even consider the calories!

The party was a hit. It was a lot of work, but it was all worth it. The balloon arch nearly did me in. Haha, it turned out okay, despite the pattern getting messed up in the end.  Jack really enjoyed himself, even though the train didn't show up at the end. We were honestly, perfectly fine with that! It had been a long day. Look at my handsome hubby. I couldn't imagine spending life, decorating for birthday parties, and raising babies with anyone else. Thanks for such cute babies honey :)

Below is our beloved BB and her husband, our pastor, Kevin.

The bottom left is the Halloween costume Thomas, repurposed as a coal toss. It was fun.

Bottom right is a pic of Jack tearing into the balls that Meghan, Daniel, and Emma got for Jack. They get lots of use everyday! Who wouldn't want a ball pit in their house??

Jack is a lucky boy. He has so many wonderful people who love him dearly and came to celebrate his birthday with him. I really am amazed at the love that surrounds him and all of us. We are so incredibly blessed and I don't take that for granted. There are so many people in the world that would give anything for a family. For babies. And I have two of the best. ;) Thanks for everyone who made his party so special!

Merry Christmas!

This was the best Christmas yet! Justin and I got to be a kid all over again. Jack had a blast and he's at that perfect age where he is willing to share, let others help him open presents, he is so grateful and excited no matter what the gift, and it was just such  joy to experience Christmas with him. Ella, she was a doll! My sweet baby girl's very first Christmas was so special. She enjoyed crawling all over the boxes, tearing up wrapping paper, and playing with her baby dolls. I was a little emotional, putting them to bed on Christmas night. There is such magic in Christmas, and it was sad that I had to wait until next year to experience it again. That, and I just can't believe how quickly this life is going by. I try to be actively engaged in my daily experiences as possible, but that's not always possible, so I feel like we get busy, I blink, and it's bed time for everyone. Either way, it was a wonderful Christmas! Look at my sweet boy pulling his baby sister in the wagon! He insists on doing this every night. It is precious and he has to struggle to do it but refuses help. I melt!

Every year, we get lots of new ornaments. This was one of my favorite this year :)

Us having breakfast at Eli's table one day in December.

Since Jack's party was the first weekend in December, our decorating had to wait until we got back from Nana's cookie swap the next weekend. Ella was very helpful.

Jack piled several ornaments on the same brach...just his height. ;) Ella is pulling up on everything and follows her mommy around all over the house!

I didn't do as much for decorating this year as I usually do. I was glad I didn't. We did three trees, which I realize is a bit ridiculous, but I love them! We had a little Christmas in the kids rooms, bathrooms, and a snow village. That was it. Not much outside, no lights, no wreaths, and that was just fine with me. It seemed to be a lot more work putting this all up this year for some reason. The house was beautiful though!

We also did reindeer T-shirts. Ella did great putting ghee hand down on them. Jack liked to add a little extra to his T-shirt. Unfortunately for mine, the handprints looked a bit obscene when I put the shirt on and everyone at my mom's house though it was hysterical. Which is usually a good indicator that I should wear it ;)

This was the sweetest dress on Ella! I wish I could have put her in it more!

Dressing up a girl in seasonal clothes is such fun!

We had a great time at Granna and Papa's Christmas too. We spent a few extra days there this year. Above, Jack is helping make chocolate pretzels. I'll have to post more pics from Granna's Christmas. She always does such a fabulous job! I can only image how much work she puts into everything to make it all come together so perfectly! Sherry was even Justin's elf this year when it came to shopping for me...I was on to him when I saw the gifts were wrapped so beautifully. :)

Shannon made Jack and Ella these adorable snowman embroidered shirt/outfit. I wish I had such talent! I'm absolutely making it a point to figure my embroidery machine out this month!

Jack had so much fun making cookies with me for Santa. He loved to poke the dough with the end of the rolling pin.

On Christmas Eve, we went to pick up a few last minute things at the mall, some food items for dinner, and to visit the big guy. This picture is kind of amazing. It went as expected. Ella freaked out when I put her down and Jack just sat there with a huge grin on his face. I about die laughing every time I look at the expression on Santas face. He's like, "We've got a crier. Get her off of me." Haha!

 Jack was such a prince with Santa. He was mesmerized by his beard and answered questions appropriately. He told Santa he wanted a choo-choo for Christmas. It was precious. That night, after church, we ordered pizza and watched Christmas movies. We saw Polar Express, such a sweet story, and, of course, my absolute favorite, It's a Wonderful Life.

 Jack and Daddy made this ornament garland too. It was very cute in the doorway of the playroom.

Below is the loot from the big guy. :)

Jack was so happy to see his car that morning. He ran right too it throwing himself across the hood. "Help, help!" he said, trying to climb into it. It only took a half a drive around the park before I began questioning whether or not Santa had lost his mind bringing this car to my house. My poor toe got crushed!

 Look at this sweet Santa baby. Just waking up Christmas morning with a big smile, cooking up something sweet in the kitchen. Jack has enjoyed playing with the kitchen as much as Ella. He makes food for everyone. He was chasing Sadie around Christmas morning with plastic food demanding, "Eat, EAT!" He makes food for us, Ella, the animals in the playroom, you name it.

Ella got a ball pit too! I would have loved these toys when I was a kid! I have to admit, I really buy these things for me :) Kidding. But I do love to play with them!

 Never too busy to take a call.

They got lots of bath toys too!

This sweet baby has really started figuring things out. She picked up Sadie's toy the other day and tried to get her to play. Sadie obliged her for a little while.

Our neighbors got us gorgeous pottery that Daniel's sister made. How beautiful!

The night of Christmas Eve, we went to church for service, and it was so nice to really put Jesus at the center of the evening. His blessings abound today and always and I hope we teach Jack and Ella that we serve a mighty, powerful, and loving God. Presents, cookies, and decorations are great, but the birth of our savior is the true purpose of celebration. Hope everyone had a wonderful and memory-making Christmas!