Christmas in Dixie

My little family opened presents the night before we left for Taylor's parents' house. Initially, the plan was to take the presents to Jackson to open on Christmas morning but space is pretty limited in the Kia when it is packed for almost 2 weeks away from our house. So, we had "Baby's First Christmas" in Starkville with just the 3 of us. Henry's reaction to his presents was very unenthusiastic but Taylor and I had fun unwrapping all the presents.

Thank you everyone for all our gifts!!!!

Taylor modeling his new sweater. Notice the shorts -- it was 75 degrees that night.

Henry "holding" a silver cup from Taylor's babyhood. Carla had the cup engraved with Henry's name and birthday. Very sweet keepsake.


I gave this marble mortar and pestle to Taylor. Not quite sure why I felt like he needed a mortar and pestle, but I've been looking for one to give him for some time now.

Modeling my new puffy vest from Lizbeth. On my feet are cute slippers from my mother, but they didn't make the photo.

Taylor had to finish this book before we left town and Henry had to be held. So an easy compromise was met and I packed for our trip in peace.

***More pictures coming soon. I LOVE my new Nikon D40!!!

Henry's thoughts....

"Shhh, I'm sleeping with my Meme...."

"Ooh, Pops! Did you know that's my favorite toy?"

"I'm cute. Everybody look at me!"

Getting Better All The Time

I am constantly reminded how well-planned and much anticipated events rarely work out as expected. David gets sick and misses his first day of work ever. Henry's stuffy nose progresses into an up-all-night coughing and wheezing bonanza. The Meigs Family Christmas is cancelled. Taylor and I leave Foley in the middle of night in order to make the first appointment available at the pediatric clinic in Starkville. Henry is diagnosed with bronchialitis --fever, congestion, wheezing, and coughing. Hooray for clear ears!! It was so sad, sad, sad seeing our little boy struggling through his coughing and breathing.

A week later, we just walked in the door from his 4month well baby check up and shots. He is still wheezing a bit but the doctor was not nearly as concerned as she was last week. His shots went well and he only screamed fussed for a few minutes. As a mama, I prefer to hear only positive things about my child, so I was quite pleased when his doctor said that except for the never ending wheeze, he is perfect! He now weighs 14lbs.10 oz. (50th%), he is 24in. long (25%) and his head circumference is 42.5in. (75%)

This is how our little chicken has been sleeping since his nose has been too stuffy to breathe laying flat. He has really taken to the whole carseat-in-the-crib scheme and is peacefully sleeping in this same getup as I type. No, I do not strap him in to take naps. This nap started post-shots at the doctor's office and went straight to the crib.

On the occasion of our 3rd anniversary...

3 years....a beautiful baby boy.....1 small dog.....1 big dog.....a grumpy cat.....a much loved house filled with family heirlooms....a little red scooter.....trips around the world....fried eggs and grits for breakfast.....family that loves us.....a bright future.

My Favorite Everything

My mother gave this sweet Feltman Brothers bubble to Henry on the occasion of his baptism. I was planning on him wearing it at Easter and a photo shoot on campus amongst the daffodils.

Who knew that it would fit perfectly in the middle of December??

Really.

Who would know??

Who could take such a beautiful picture of my son?

My friend, Hope.

Who else could it be?

questions...

Taylor's immediate reaction to these beautiful pictures of our son?

"Did those lights get hot and burn him?"

What do you think?

Typical Morning

This is what my family looks like in the morning. Although they did not make it into this picture there are always two dogs and a cat lurking about and watiting for food scraps or a bit of attention. Taylor and I can sit at our dining room table for hours on end -- enjoying each other's company, playing with Henry, emailing, internetting, and listening to NPR. I like to think that we are practicing for retirement!

A Published Perspectivist

My father-in-law wrote this article about the terrorist attacks in Mumbai, India. He originally sent the piece to the Madison Herald but he ended up on the front page of the Perspective section in Sunday's Clarion Ledger!

To Meeme and Pots -- Last time you saw me, I.....

...was furry from my head to my toes. Not now.

...stared blankly into space and sometimes the ceiling fan would catch my eyes. Not now.



...fell asleep immediately in your arms. Not now.



...couldn't hold my own head up or stand on my legs. Not now.



...pooped every single time I ate. Not now.



...was still wearing newborn size clothes. Not now.



I can't wait for you to see how I have grown! Love, HMD

Ho Ho Ho

Oh Tannenbaum, Oh Tannenbaum

As a little girl (and still today to a lesser degree) I was plagued by allergy and sinus issues. After several very sick Christmases, my parents realized I was allergic to the Christmas tree. Therefore, fake trees. Problem solved.


Fast forward to Taylor's and my first holiday season as a grown-up (?) couple. He insisted on a real tree. I insisted I would get sick. He "surprised" me with a real tree a few days later. Where did that tree reside? The front porch. I had already decided since we were getting married exactly 1 week before Christmas and we lived in the crappiest apartment you could ever imagine that we would be having a Christmas ottoman for our presents that year. Cute idea, right?


Fast forward to our first Christmas in our much beloved house. I was on a massive search for an aluminum Christmas tree. You see, that's the kind of tree my dad grew up with in this very house and I like that. My search for an aluminum Christmas tree ended when I saw how unChristmas tree like they are. Imagine an aluminum pole with sticks pointing out in opposite directions and tinsel hanging from those sticks. Apparently cute enough to be the rage in the 50's but definitely not cute enough in 2006. So the search transformed into a search for a silver Christmas tree. Not to sound like my mother, but....I was way ahead of everyone with the very fake-looking fake Christmas tree. It was very difficult to find a silver Christmas tree in 2006. Is it a difficult find now? No. I am apparently quite progressive.




After an entirely too long discourse of my Christmas tree, you are now allowed to ooh and ahh over our tree.






Did I know that my fabulous tree would be this skinny? No.
Do I with that it were fatter? Yes.
Do I still love my tree? Yes.

Family

Our little family felt very lucky to be able to spent 5 nights in Foley with my parents. Most of the time was spent admiring my pretty baby...leading me to assume that we must have spent way too much time admiring the dogs before this baby came about. It seemed silly to cook all the Thanksgiving food we wanted for just 4 people, so we ate at The Gift Horse in downtown Foley. Absolutely delicious food -- including fried rolls, ridiculous, huh???

Oops, looks like I forgot about the flash again...

My mother finally allowed me to take a picture of her with Henry. I think it's pretty cute!!!

Henry finally met Taylor's oldest brother and his family. Ashlyn was very enthusiatic about this new 'baby cousin.' It seems that Henry is also interested in his own little "I'm strapped into this carseat and can't really turn around to look" way.