Christmas Cheer!

Christmas is my absolute favorite time of the year! I love the decorations, the music, the lights, the hustle and bustle and the holiday spirit that fills the air. While I love every minute of it, for the last several years Christmas has meant BUSY days at work and a little less time for the things I love about the season. Not only did we get to celebrate our first Christmas with a little one, but I got to savor every moment this year.

 

The first item on the Christmas to-do list was to pick out the perfect tree. We decided to branch out from the usual Home Depot tree excursion and shop local at Green Lake Elementary. Addison wasn't all that into it this year (she loved her nap on the walk!) but something tells me she will be leading the charge soon enough. I think we have a new Christmas tree tradition!

The one!

 

Clearly Addison was very opinionated about her favorite...

Our Christmas decorating dinner -- french onion soup and a yummy salad!
Thanks Grammy for sending Addison her very own tree.

Addison getting into the Christmas spirit (and Christmas jammies!)

Addison was (and is still) OBSESSED with the lights on the tree...
She sat in the Ergo carrier and arched her back so she could see!

Decorating the tree!

And the finishing touch - the star! Well, much like our lights,
our star burned out so we switched it up and now have an angel on the tree



As anyone who has been to our house during the Christmas season can attest, we have a LOT of decorations. In a small condo it basically looks like Christmas threw up, but with a bit more space to spread out, its not quite as overwhelming. I will say I have abstained from buying any new decor this year, but we may have room for a few more things down the road...



The finished product!

And the stockings were hung by the chimney with care...

A few Santas from the collection...

Our card tree which is MUCH fuller now...

Nutcrackers fit PERFECTLY on the picture rail in the dining room!

And to top things off, Bob spent a WET afternoon on the roof hanging our Christmas lights. We had many discussions about what we wanted our lights to look like and Bob was determined to have rows of straight, white lights. After years of practicing at my dad and Robie's house in Bend, Bob ventured onto the roof with his strands of lights, shingle hooks and tie downs in hand. It being December in Seattle, dry weather was not quite in the forecast so Bob strapped himself to the roof and got to work. 

Casa de Kehrli by day...

Casa de Kehrli by night!

On December 6th my client, Pantone, announced the color of the year for 2013 - EMERALD. What is traditionally a very hectic week for me, was pretty laid back. I watched the great coverage the team secured and took photos of Addison in her Emerald pants and Seattle onesie (paying homage to the Emerald city) to send to my team. While I had her dressed and camera ready, we snapped a few 10 week shots too! Mama needs to find this little one some more Emerald ensembles ;)

 

Addison and I made our way downtown on December 14th for lunch with Bob and found the perfect Santa! I had quite the debate about which Santa to go to (pathetic I know), but we found a great one. He and his elves tried their hardest to get the little miss to smile, but she wasn't having it and remained stoic for about 10 pictures! At least this wasn't the year of screaming... we will save that for next year!

Yes, we are aware that the photo we chose for our xmas card looks like
Addison has a spear coming out of her head. We were too focused on finding a
picture of the three of us to notice the background.
To clarify, it is a ski at Santa's photo spot. Whoops!

Posing in front of the Westlake Center Christmas tree!

Kenai always seems to work his way into the weekly photo shoots.
This week he was extra interested :)

 

 

Two months old... ALREADY!

Everyone keeps telling us that time flies by with kiddos and I know they really mean between infancy and teenage years, BUT time with our little peanut is already flying by! I cannot believe that she is already two months old (and we have made it two months as parents - WOW!)

Addison truly is an angel baby. She sleeps - a TON - and is really happy, especially in the mornings. She has been sleeping through the night (defined as 5-6 consecutive hours by all the baby books/websites) since she was about two weeks old. When we told her pediatrician, she said there is no need to wake her up for meals since she is gaining weight and overall very healthy. So the saying "never wake a sleeping baby" has been a motto in this house. We now get at least 7 hours of sleep at night - there was even a night when she slept 10.5 hours! Not bragging - just thrilled!!!

We still don't have a "routine" per se and that's fine with me. I am sure once I go back to work we will have more of a set schedule, but for now Addison just rolls with the punches!

Two month stats (11/26/12):

• Height: 23 inches (72nd percentile)
• Weight: 11 pounds, 14 ounces (62nd percentile) -- Bob guessed this DEAD ON!
• Head circumference: 39.8 cm (88th percentile)

Addison at two months likes/dislikes...

LIKES:
- The Ergo, Moby or any other form of being cuddled up on our chests (especially for naps!)
- Walks in her stroller, carrier, etc., but not shopping in her stroller, just walks
- Silly faces, sounds and anything that makes mommy/daddy look ridiculous in public
- Bath time
- Her activity mat (even with tummy time!)
- Singing (even mine!) - favorite songs are Twinkle Twinkle and Rudolph :)
- Her tummy time mini-boppy pillow (great purchase!)
- Aunts, uncles, grandparents, and especially her cousins (she LOVED all of the action in Portland)
- Bright lights (especially the ones on the Christmas tree and the TV, but we try to avert her eyes ;))
- Sleeping in her crib

DISLIKES:
- Having her picture taken... well, she likes it OK, she just NEVER smiles for pictures!
- The grocery store... takes after her daddy in this department
- Her carseat (most of the time...)
*Dislikes are honestly tough to think of - she is such a happy baby!

Thanks for making our job easy, Addison! We love you.

Couldn't pick just one! Love this little smirk ;)

Stretched out!

Warm and cozy after a tubby...

Warm and cozy after a tubby...

LOVING the mirror these days!

LOVING the mirror these days!

Such a big girl holding my bottle ;)

Such a big girl holding my bottle ;)

Time to play...

And some tummy time...

Too much playing...

I couldn't resist ;) She will hate me for this someday...

I couldn't resist ;) She will hate me for this someday...

Already expressing how much she hates the grocery store (taking after her dad!)

Already expressing how much she hates the grocery store (taking after her dad!)

So very thankful...

On our drive to and from Portland last week for Thanksgiving, Bob and I had a lot of time to reflect on what we are thankful for this year. Despite a handful of challenges and tough moments, 2012 was a great year and we have plenty to be thankful for!

1. Addison (of course) - she is the light of our lives and we are so blessed that she is ours. She is an amazing baby (knock on wood!) and we cannot wait to see what the future holds for our family. We love you sweet girl!

2. Our new house - we love it and it will always be the most special place we ever live. (Honestly, not sure we will ever leave!) Not only was it our first house, it is the place we brought our daughter home and began the story of our family.

3. Each other - I am so very lucky to be married to my best friend. We have traveled the world together and run races side by side, but I am thrilled to be starting our biggest adventure yet... raising a family and being called "mom" and "dad" (WILD!)

4. Our pup - Even though Kenai has taken a bit of a backseat lately, he will always be top dog. While he may have a few bad habits, overall, he is a GREAT pup (especially for an 18 month old!) He loves Addison so much. He whines or comes to find us when she is crying and always wants to help her with tummy time. I cannot wait to see the two of them in the years to come :) Get ready Kenai, you better rest up!

5. Being in the Northwest - The saying "absence makes the heart grow fonder" could not be more true. After our 11 year break from the NW we are so glad to be home. Every time we drive into downtown Seattle, over the water, with the mountains in the distance, we realize how blessed we are to be "home" for the first time in a long time.

6. Our families - we are so lucky to be surrounded by the most supportive, loving families. Having a c-section meant a longer recovery, but thanks to our families, we were able to have someone here for the entire 6 week recovery. "Baby Addison" as she was so sweetly named by her cousins in Portland is lucky to be surrounded by so many loving grandparents, great grandparents (she has a ton!), aunts, uncles and cousins.

7. Modern medicine - after his surgery in February we called my dad "daddy 2.0." He is new and improved and we are so thankful to have another 30+ years of a healthy heart. The little girls (who aren't so little anymore!) said that "Daddy is having heart surgery because his heart is filled with so much love, he wore out his valves" -- could not be more true! Love you daddoo :)

8. And for all the little things we often take for granted... warm fires; long walks around Green Lake; sunny, crisp fall days; lazy mornings; Addison smiles; not having to fly during the holidays (boy does that feel good!); Addison cuddles; Kenai cuddles; a nice glass of wine (loving this again!); my uber-long maternity leave; CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS (that post is coming soon!) and soooo many other things that I know I am forgetting ;)

And now a bit of photo evidence from our trip to Portland...

Kate, Jack and Johnny with "Baby Addison"

Kate LOVING up Addison :)

LOVING Aunt Catherine and her crazy faces/sounds :)

Elliot LOVES Kenai (as do Paige and Owen).
The kids have had some run-ins with mean dogs so
all three of them loving Kenai makes me sooo very happy!

Rhiana with the two littlest Kehrlis! Two months apart to the day :)

The Saturday after Turkey Day we took a big group outing to the Oregon Zoo to check out Zoo Lights! I have always wanted to go to the one at Point Defiance in Tacoma so was thrilled with this outing. It was AMAZING! The amount of time and energy that must go into the entire display is unreal. We decided to hit up the train first and foremost - it was as much fun for the adults as it was for the kids! So cool :)

Best seat in the house! Skipping strollers was a BRILLIANT idea :)

 

Three generations of John Casper Kehrli (III, IV and V!)

Kate loves unicorns!

Semi-group shot on the train. The Kehrli family took up FIVE rows on the train :)
We don't mess around.

So fun to see the joy in kids at Christmas! Thanks for putting up with all the little kids
and being such a good example for them, Paige!

Uncle Bob is a fan favorite (at least for Kate and Owen!) Kate remembered how much she loves
spending time with Uncle Bob and would not leave his side!

Addison loved Zoo Lights... she didn't see ANY of the lights, but she took a nice long nap on me :)

We had a great weekend in Portland! We almost made a trade with Kate... she offered ALL of her dolls in exchange for Baby Addison and Baby Patrice. She had it ALL planned out and even knew what she was going to feed them... "baby sauce" from the store. Sorry Kate, we love this little peanut too much for that trade! Maybe in 13 years ;)