Myla's First Christmas

This year had to be the best Christmas yet. Of course, it has taken on whole new meaning now that Myla is in our lives. (And it snowed!!) With Christmas being a time to remember and celebrate the birth of Jesus, it has always been special to me. But now, after having Myla, I can only begin to fathom how much God loved his Son. Wow!
Seeing Myla completely enamored by the bows, ribbons, and wrapping paper was awesome. True, she could care less about what was inside those neatly wrapped gifts. One day she will...but for now it's nice to have her so easily entertained!


On Christmas Eve, we went out to Jeff's parents' house in McKinney. Granny and Papa had gifts waiting for Myla!


Myla thought her Daddy's old Fisher Price train was pretty neat. ;)


We took Myla to her first Christmas Eve service. She was a perfect angel. She only "spoke" when the pastor asked the congregation to bow their head in prayer.


When we got home from church, it was time to open gifts. Myla really seemed to like the books from Granny.
Myla definitely got some cool new toys. After spending some good family time with Jeff's parents, we drove home s-l-o-w-l-y on the icy roads (a little scary, but Jeff did a good job driving.)

The next morning, we woke up to see what Santa brought us in our stockings, had breakfast and waited for the ice to melt so we could go to Mom's for the day. We couldn't leave until noon but had such a great time once we got there.

Our little Christmas angels



More presents...

Yea! Mega blocks from Auny Kimmy and Uncle Clay. ;)

Myla loves her Rock and Bounce Pony from Jido and Nona!



Nana B got Myla this walker since she is so intent on going places these days.


As you can see, she is still needing a little more practice!



All presents aside, this was the best Christmas because of the little angel we received in April this year. She is such a blessing and continues to enrich our lives each day. I cannot even remember Christmas without her.

Ahhh....

..Christmas Break! Just one of the many reasons why I LOVE being a teacher. I am so happy to spend the next week and a half with my husband and baby girl. We've been having a relaxing time so far, although I've been very motivated to check off things from my growing "to-do" list. With this time off, I am hoping to get some things done around the house. But we'll see. I really just want to relax with the family so I should just know now that the list will have to wait.

Anyway, here are Myla's 8 month pics and a few more from December.



Myla is wondering who this guy is.

HELP!


Myla with Daddy at Jeff's b-ball tourney
Jeff's team won the championship!

Myla says, "Way to go coach!"

We are off to McKinney tomorrow to spend time with Jeff's parents and then to my mom's for Christmas Day. Hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas!

Thankful

Myla and I had a great time visiting Dad and Cindy in Steamboat for Thanksgiving! We missed Jeff, since he had to stay home for basketball. But, as promised, I took a lot of pictures! The weather was absolutely beautiful and the food & fellowship was even better. The first morning we were there, Dad and Cindy had a gift for Myla. She was mesmerized by the wrapping paper and ribbon. They got her some cold weather gear: fleece pullover, snow pants, mittens, shoes, long johns etc. Thank you Jido and Nona!


It had been snowing the night we arrived and was just gorgeous!


I could not wait to get Myla all bundled up for her first snow adventure!


She loved tubing with cousin Olivia!


Here is a video that captured the fun. More fun for us, really. Myla was slouched down in the tube and Olivia was not all that excited.



Our little snow bunny.


Really trying not to slide down the mountain here.


The next day, Dad and Cindy watched the girls while we all went skiing! It was Opening Day with $20 lift tickets. We discovered that there was only 1 lift open with access to just a few runs, which explains the discounted price. We still had a blast!





Cousin Aaron, Kim, and Clay on the way up!

I didn't really take that many pictures. I was too busy following my sister skiing through trees and deep snow. Needless to say, I fell once and twisted my knee. I was fine though, after Advil and a glass of wine. ;)

That evening, we enjoyed a delicious meal and relaxed while Myla and Olivia provided some entertainment. You just have to watch this video...Myla is trying to eat Olivia, but in the end, Olivia is too quick!


The next day was Thanksgiving. I decided to take Myla out in the snow again since she was such a fan the first time.




Myla hanging out on Jido and Nona's Bed



I love this picture. ;)


Myla and Mommy
We miss you Daddy!


The next morning, we said our goodbyes as it was time to head back to Texas. Although it was a short trip it was so worth the time spent with family. We love you! I am so thankful for our family, our health, our jobs, our happiness, and our Lord and Savior. This time of the year is a good time for us all to be reminded of how truly blessed we are.

Better late than never, right?

That seems to be my motto these days. But here are Myla's 7 month pics, now that she is 7 1/2 months old as well as some other pics from this month. It's a little scattered and a bit random but it sums up our life right now. :)


It's getting harder and harder to have Myla hold the sign...


...since all she wants to do is eat it.




She is such a happy baby, although she did cut her first tooth last week and has been a little cranky lately.

Last Saturday, Jeff, mom, Myla and I went to the new Cowboys stadium to watch the Marcus playoff game. Again, Myla was a trooper and loved "watching" the game.


TOUCHDOWN!




The next day, we drove out to McKinney to Jeff's parents house for Jeff's birthday. We did a little shopping and went to dinner.


This pic was taken right before I noticed her first tooth!!

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Jeff's basketball season has officially started. Myla and I will be attending at least 1 game a week beginning now until end of February. His first game was this past Tuesday against Duncanville. They played a great game and won 62-54! Myla watched in amazement as the ball went back and forth across the court and was even amused at the Duncanville coach stomping his feet in frustration when his players
missed a shot. We were so proud of Daddy for coaching such a good game! ;)

Myla with Papa watching the game...



Lastly, we watched Texas Tech beat OU on Saturday! Myla was supposed to be in her Tech gear for the first half (to support my alma mater) and in her OU gear after half time to support Jeff's team. For some reason, she stayed in her Tech outfit. ;) The way that OU was playing, Jeff agreed that she could keep cheering on Tech. I'm working on teaching her how to get her guns up. She'll have it before too long. ;)




It has been a busy month and it's not over yet. Tomorrow, Myla and I fly out to Steamboat Springs to visit Dad and Cindy for Thanksgiving. Jeff has basketball games this week and cannot join us. So sad he won't be with us but I have promised to take lots of pictures, especially of Myla in her first snow! I'm a bit nervous to fly alone with Myla. Just hoping she is a perfect angel like she was when we flew there this summer. I'm sure she will be. ;) So excited to see the family. I'll post some more pics soon!

Pumpkin Patch and Halloween

Here are a few pics from our Pumpkin Patch adventure...
Our Little Pumpkin

Myla was more interested in the grass and Olivia was not impressed.

Sweet kisses from Daddy

We'll call this one "Pumpkin Butt"



Even with the missed naptimes and the pure craziness of picture-taking, it was still a fun time. ;)More pics on Facebook!

HALLOWEEN

On Friday night, Myla and I went over to my sister's for a Halloween Party. Myla was an adorable caterpillar and I was a butterfly, kinda. I really just threw on some butterfly wings.


Cousin Olivia was a cute little lobster. The girls enjoyed playing while we all ate dinner. Such good girls!!

On Halloween day, we watched the Tech game. Once Tech got their act together, Myla was excited to cheer them on. We have a video of her attempting to clap that I will try and post later. Of course she was squealing too.


Wreck 'em Tech!

Halloween night, we went back over to Kim's to pass out candy and take cute pics of the girls in their costumes.


Since Myla was soooo laid-back, as seen below...

we decided to break out the costume box and have a little fun playing dress-up!

So she became a lobster..


a scary old man...

Bob Marley...

a rock star...

a hula dancer in her coconut bra...

a clown with a gigantic bow...

and then back to a lobster for a crazy family pic!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!