Merry Christmas to all of our friends and family. I think Holden had a great Christmas. Although he was not that into opening the presents, he did love seeing what was inside! But I would have to say that his favorite thing was playing with his family. He is one social little monkey.On Christmas Eve we went to Aunt JoJo and Uncle Steve's new house for a celebration with my side of the family. Holden immediately found Ariana and Alyssa's toys - looking for anything with wheels. I laughed as he dumped the Barbies out of the Barbie car and immediately started driving the car along the floor! And he had fun pushing the baby doll around in it's stroller. Of course he's learning to play rough with his boy cousins, Robbie and Richie, and loving every minute of it. It is great to see him able to keep up with them!
Christmas with my family is always fun, but chaotic with all of the kids running around. But among the chaos, I found myself smiling as I thought about how blessed we are to be surrounded by such a loving family.
We somehow convinced Holden to sleep in a bit on Christmas morning, as Santa was up late. He was so excited when he came downstairs and saw that Santa brought him a John Deer Tractor and Trailer. We had to laugh...Santa forgot that the battery had to charge for a full 24 hours, so the little guy didn't know it was battery-powered until the next day! Fortunately, Daddy pushing was just as good as having it battery-powered.
Christmas afternoon we headed to Rome, GA to celebrate with the Parker side of the family. I was so happy for Holden to get to know Reece's Grannie, Aunts, Uncles and cousins better. He made himself at home rather quickly and had every one of Aunt Marcy's Christmas dolls/toys making noise. It was the perfect evening and a great reminder of what Christmas is all about. Spending time with those you love.
The next morning we packed up and headed to Brevard NC to see Holden's Granma Deda! We were excited to find snow still on the ground, but even more excited to spend a couple days with Granma and Sam!
Holden was thrilled to see the playhouse Granma made for him. He had hours of fun, going in and out and peeking out the windows at us. At one point, he even took a pillow inside, in case he wanted to take a nap! But he was having way too much fun to take time out to sleep.
Although it was pretty cold outside, Granma's house was comfortable, warm and full of love! It was hard having to say goodbye to head back to GA!
Other than losing Alex, 2009 has really been a good year, especially when it comes to Holden! Our little Monkey continues to amaze his doctors as he grows - getting stronger and healthier every day. And while none of us really know what the future holds, I am looking forward to enjoying each day the new year brings with high hopes that it will be a healthy, happy and prosperous 2010! And I wish the same for all of you! Thank you for still reading our blog, but mostly, for all of the wonderful thoughts and prayers you've said for Holden, Reece and I these past 2 years. We are so blessed to have you in our lives! God Bless you!
