Our Christmas Tree

Sophie loves our Christmas Tree, she wont leave it alone. It started out decorated all over, most of the ornaments on the bottom are now in a bowl on the table. We have tried pretty much unsuccessfully to teach her that the lights are hot. Unfortunately for us she is a lot smarter than we are. She says "hot, hot" then proceeds to touch them. She also likes to put her tongue on the prickly needles?!? Thankfully our tree has stayed upright, not like Grammy and Bampas. Sophie has pulled theirs over. She holds onto the lights and then runs. She shattered a glass ball tonight on their wood floor. I feel so happy that she is so in love with Christmas. She loves lights, trees, elves, Santa and Christmas carols. Her favorites are Jingle Bells, Deck the Halls and Rudolf she sings along to them and occasionally runs over to the door to jingle the bells we have dangling on our door knob. When asked what Santa says she proudly says "Ho Ho Ho". I am so excited to see her reaction Christmas morning.

17 months

Here are some of Sophie's favorite things at 17 months......

Cookies, she has been calling them cooks until a couple of days ago now she says cookie. Her Mickey and Minnie stuffed animals are still her favorite toys to play with. she sleeps with them now and has to take them everywhere we go. She also loves any doll or baby. She has just started showing interest in Cinderella. she finds the movie everyday and brings it to me. She says "rella". She loves to play hide and go seek with Corey and I. There are a couple of places she always hides, one is between the dresser and the wall and the other is behind the door. She whispers "hide" then runs out screaming. She has started to play well by herself with her toys and moves and talks for all her dolls. Occasionally you can make out what she is saying. Okay candy and this are a few of the words that come up in her conversations with her toys. I love seeing her imagination come to life. Right now as I am writing this, she has put her doll, Mickey and Minnie in her stroller and is reading them a book. She is a definite princess and likes to have her hair done, and her princess shoes on. I bought her red shoes for her Christmas outfit, she loves to wear then around. when I tell her that she is beautiful, she puts her hands behind her back and struts around. She loves to get in the bath and play with the bubbles. She loves to color and read books. She loves her silk (blanket) and her guckks (binky). She loves to give us big squeezes and kisses. She says Amen at the end of prayers. Sophie mommy loves you! I cant believe how fast you are growing. You are so smart, you are constantly learning and trying new things. You are so special to me. You bring sunshine and joy into my life and the lives of all who meet you!

Little Miss Sophie....

Little Miss Sophie put two words together...

"No Way", she says.

Its the cutest thing you have ever heard.

Little Miss Sophie also loves to drive around at night and look at Christmas lights. Whenever we she sees them,"Wow" she exclaims as loud as she can "wow"!
The past few nights she has had to fall asleep holding Mickey, Minnie, Bear and Baby.

What a silly duck you are!

Forgotten Carols

Forgotten Carols is one of my most favorite Christmas traditions. We get together at my Mom and Dads and read the book. We have delicious food and desserts. Sophie was entertained the whole night by Tom and Corey in her princess castle. Corey got inside with her. It was really funny. Grandma Webb was able to be there, I love spending time with her. The Blancks were also able to come right towards the end. I love the story of the Forgotten Carols, it really gets me in the "right" Christmas spirit. I am grateful for things like this that help me remember why we really celebrate, I feel that I often get lost in the hustle and bustle of everything Christmas brings. It is nice to have beautiful music about the Savior to slow me down.

Sophie Meets Santa...

Saturday was our ward Christmas party.

We had breakfast and all of the kids came in their pajamas.

Sophie got to see Santa Claus. She was so excited when he came into the room....

We put her on his lap not really knowing what to expect. There were no tears just a "thank you for my candy cane, your beard is really bugging me look". We were laughing. All of the other kids her age cried.

Are we done yet?

We have been so sick at our house this past week.

Tuesday afternoon Sophie came down with a cold and had a high fever. It lasted all through the night and the next day. Wednesday night she feel asleep but woke up 5 minutes later and threw up. She was up on and off the rest of the night with a really high fever. Thankfully she didn't throw up again. Thursday she acted a little bit better but didn't really eat anything the whole day. By the end of the day all three of us were so tired, I wanted to cry and I prayed for a good night sleep. We all slept pretty good. Friday morning I woke up to go shopping and had a really bad sore throat. By the end of the day it had turned into a nasty cold. Saturday was even worse for me, but Sophie was finally feeling better. Sunday I stayed home from church. Monday I was feeling better and Sophie seemed to be completely over her cold. Corey had a little bit of a sore throat but that was all. I thought we were in the clear. At 2:00 Tuesday morning Sophie woke up and threw up all over our bed. We got up and changed her and the sheets. She threw up three more times that hour. We got her settled and just about asleep when Corey ran to the bathroom. He spent all night in the bathroom. He got the 12 hour stomach flu. He was SO sick. He has only had the stomach flu 1 other time since I have known him. He finally stopped throwing up Tuesday afternoon. All day Tuesday I had the worst stomach ache I felt like I was being stabbed with a knife. I just kept praying to not get the flu. Last night I almost lost it but I hurried and went to bed. Today we are all feeling good, knock on wood. I am still praying I don't get it. If you are thinking what a weird post this is I have a point, I promise. The point is that I am SO grateful for my health and the health of my Family. It is something that is taken for granted on a daily basis. Corey said he couldn't imagine being his Dad and having to deal with all the sicknesses he has had. He said he would have been a complainer. Mike we are so grateful for your example. We did not once hear you complain. I feel so grateful we are all healthy again. Now hopefully I can get my Christmas tree put up!

Sophie and her Stuffed Animals

Sophie's favorite toys in the world are all stuffed. We set them all up on the stairs, she thought it was the greatest thing in the whole world and played with them on the stairs most of the day. She knows the difference between a baby and a doll, she calls her baby dolls "baby" and all of her other dolls "dolls". She also says Minnie, Mickey, Woody, Dog, and bear.