The making of a Christmas card: 2011

We had a lot of fun getting a picture for our Christmas card this year.  And by a lot of fun, I mean us saying "Will! Will! look up here! Will!" only to snap the picture a second too late.  I'm so thankful for the precious pictures we got, though.  And it makes it a little easier that our subject is so darn cute. :)

Here are some of my favorites that didn't make it on the card.

I love his little legs and feet in this one.

The outtakes.

The winners.

The final product.

 Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

Christmas in Sylvester

My dad's mom was the oldest of 7 kids who grew up in a small town in south Georgia called Sylvester.  While only two of my grandmother's siblings are still living, the 17 first cousins still gather their families each year for Christmas.  Since it's about a 4 hour drive for us, we can't always make it, but we got to go this year.  It was an absolutely beautiful day, and we had a great time seeing family that we rarely get to see!  My dad was especially excited to introduce his grandson to everyone.  

This is the Davis Family.  My grandmother's brother in the middle, her sister on his left and his wife on his right.  The rest are the 17 cousins and their spouses (my mom missed the picture). 

My mom helped Will open some of the presents he got.

Will got to meet Uncle Gordon and Aunt Marion, who just celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary.  (They got married the day Pearl Harbor was bombed!) They are an extraordinary couple, and we are incredibly blessed to have them in our lives.  They still drive to every UGA game in Athens, and Aunt Marion is a true survivor.  They are beyond inspirational to us.

I love how Will is looking at Uncle Gordon in this pic.

Will had a lot of fun playing with my dad.  He's at the age now where he likes to be bounced, and he'll make a noise while you're bouncing him so his voice sounds funny.  When my dad would stop, Will would start bouncing up and down on his own for my dad to start up again.  My dad was sore on the drive home!

I love these next few pictures.

We look forward to the next time we get to see the Davis family!

10 Months

Will is 10 months old now!  For some reason, 10 months has felt like a huge milestone for me, and I'm so thankful we've made it!  (Not that I didn't think we'd make it, but I guess I never thought it would come.) 

He started pulling up on Wayne and me last month...

but still hadn't pulled up in his crib or in the pack n play.  Then one day I walked in after his nap, and found him like this.  He's so proud!

Later that day, he realized he could do it here, too!

Now that Will is really mobile, he likes to be near me at all times and doing whatever I'm doing.  He likes helping with the laundry.

And the dishes.

 He's quite the little helper.  He also follows Wayne around whenever he's vacuuming.  (Yep, I'm a lucky one.  My husband vacuums.)

 Wills' personality is really starting to shine.  We haven't really experienced much stranger anxiety with him until the past couple of weeks.  Of course, he's been around more strangers in the past week than ever before from all the family Christmas celebrations we've had.  He's shy at first, but once he warms up to you or his surroundings, he becomes quite the chatterbox.  

One thing I've noticed in my mom group is how observant and curious he is.  He'll find one tiny little speck on the carpet that will keep him occupied more than a blanket full of toys.

 He has 7 teeth now.  Four on top and three on the bottom.  One of his favorite things to do with those teeth is grind them.  Mommy and daddy don't like it so much!  It's a horrible sound.  Makes our skin crawl.  I love his toothy little grin, though!

He loves waving at himself (or whoever is holding him) in the mirror, and he recently learned how to give five.

 He weighs about 17lbs 11oz.  He still nurses 4 to 5 times a day and eats 3 solid meals.  His new favorite food is cheddar cheese!  He also loves yogurt, strawberries, bananas and grapes.  He doesn't love veggies other than sweet potatoes and squash very much, but we're working on it.

We love hearing his laugh.  He thinks the silliest things are hilarious.  For example, Wayne's mom gave this painting to me at my first baby shower last year.  It's a painting Wayne made when he was little and it's hanging on Will's wall behind the glider.

He likes to stand in my lap and look at the painting behind me and laugh!  

I wish I knew what he was thinking because there are so many things like that that will make him laugh for reasons we don't understand.  But we'll do anything to hear that precious laugh! 

Don't you wish you could hear the laughter going on in these pictures?  Daddy was being really funny!

  What a sweet blessing you are to us, Will!  You brighten our days more than you'll ever know!