Christmas Morning

We slept in until 6:00am this year! We decided not to wake Sampson while we scurried out to the tree to open presents. I called my family to say good morning and merry Christmas only to find they were still sleeping! My how times have changed... we used to be knocking on their door at 5am!

Jimmy got a new pair of slippers! (Note the flexibility due to yoga practice!) He also received a cashmere sweater, a Henley, and some new polo shirts. And some chocolate. SK got a new pair of ass-kickin' boots and a beautiful new jacket (compete with suede elbow pads!). It was a great Christmas! Sampson woke up around 7 and we all packed up and headed down to Smyrna where the festivities continued. Jimmy probably consumed an entire pound of monkey bread this year. If you do not know what monkey bread is, just imagine butter and brown sugar melted all over little biscuit bits. It's downright delish. And no one makes it like Mom Vee!

When we got down to Smyrna, the family came over to see Sampson experience his first Christmas. He was very excited to rip the paper and so grateful for all his gifts! He got lots of wonderful books and some fun new toys.

What do we have here?


This is so exciting!


Wait, which book is this?


Ah yes, History of the World Part I. I perused this one in the book store. I can't wait to read it later.

Sampson also received this really awesome hat which proved to be the perfect reading accessory. Unfortunately, he did not receive cheek warmers! Look at those things! They're perfect for kissing!
Thank you so much to all who gave Sampson gifts. This Christmas was a very special one for our family and Sampson is so blessed to have such generous friends and family.

Riiiice!

My goal was to exclusively breastfeed Sampson for his first six months of life. Research shows that this is hugely beneficial to his immune system. But Sampson is the size of an average 6 month old baby even though he is only 4 months old. Thus, I am having a hard time keeping the boy fed! He actually started waking up again in the middle of the night to eat. He's been showing other signs as well... like grabbing food off our plates and watching us eat very intently. So we made the decision to begin feeding him some solids (Not salads as Nouno thought we said). We gave him some rice cereal mixed with breast milk for a few days and then we tried bananas. So far, he has snubbed the cereal but will enjoy a nibble of banana here and there. Here are the pictures of his very first taste of cereal. Can you imagine eating only one food your entire life, and then suddenly having some foreign texture and taste shoved into your mouth?! Sampson couldn't...

Snow!

Hello from up north! Sampson and I ventured up to Averill Park on our own this weekend for a Christmas surprise. This surprise has been in the works for two weeks and I'm very pleased that the beans were not spilled! We surprised Nana Jo at work on Friday afternoon when she thought she would not see us until after Christmas. Santa called her in her office (as Papa told him to) and told her she had an early Christmas present in the main office. She headed down thinking that he would be there with flowers. But it was us! Boy was she surprised! Nice work to everyone who kept the secret! We were going to come up on Thursday but they were in the middle of a blizzard so we waited. This is the beautiful northeastern winter wonderland I grew up playing in... (and by "playing" I mean looking at from indoors with a book and some hot cocoa)...





This cold weather is something new for Sampson since it's actually been quite balmy down in Delaware so far this season. We bundled him all up and took extra care to warm up the car. "They" say not to use winter jackets on the little ones in car seats because the puffy jackets leave too much space between the straps and his little body. In an accident, the jacket compresses and his head can be jostled around too much or he could slip right out! So! Instead we have a Bundle Me so he stays nice and snuggly and safe. Here he is all ready to go out.




And today we went to visit a special certain jolly old elf. I think you know who I mean. Sampson was not screaming or upset (like I was for my first Santa photo), but he was not terribly impressed either. I think it will take a few years until he understands the magic that Santa brings this time of year! (PS: The only place we could find a Santa today was at a hardware store! Ha! It was rather strange walking into the store just to see Santa. And this Santa didn't even have a chair to sit in... he was just standing around next to the dogfood and lawn ornaments.)

Tree!

Last weekend we put up Sampson's first Christmas tree. We had the entire Vennard family over to help us decorate. Sammy loved his Pooh Bear Baby's First Christmas ornament from Nana Jo and Papa. We upsized this year! The tree was almost to our ceiling! We are so lucky that my mother was so diligent about saving our ornaments. I have a collection large enough to cover the entire tree.

The stocking on the mantle is the one Grammy made for Sampson. It's a big large for his foot, but it will be just perfect for presents!

Sampson was in high spirits for the decorating. He especially likes the lights! He is currently an EIT- Elf in Trainning.

Musical Interlude

Enjoy the holiday cheer!

Snow!

It's snowing! First real snow of the season! Sampson and I went outside to check it out. He was unsure at first. White stuff floating around him must have looked very strange. He took his time and looked around and eventually decided that he liked it!

So much news to share! Jimmy and I have both found new jobs! Jimmy started his new job at W.L. Gore & Associates working in their biotech department. He is working on hernia patches. He said that when he tells people this, everyone tells him a hernia story. Feel free to share yours here! So far he's moved into his office and started meeting his co-workers. We were sad to say good-bye to ACE but we will old friends often enough... like Thursday night at volleyball... and Friday night at the Holiday Party... and Saturday night at the Leftovers Party.

And I am teaching dance at Stage Lights Dance Studio in Newark! I am teaching two Kinderdance classes and six ballet classes to students ages 4-17. I am thrilled to be teaching again and I adore my new students. The studio is a very close-knit dance family and reminds me of my days at the Isabelle School of Dance. Thanks to my sister-in-law-to-be Danielle for taking my new headshot!

So our days are busier now that we are both working. Some days Jimmy gets home just in time for me to leave. Other nights, I bring Sampson to the studio and my co-workers watch him until Jimmy picks him up. It works out well because I'm right in the next room in case something goes wrong. So on these evenings, Sammy and his Dad spend the time reading George R. R. Martin books. Sampson is especially enjoying A Game of Thrones.