The Isgett Christmas Dinner

We have had so many things going on lately and I'm making an attempt to TRY to get some pictures posted from them. This was Ms. Carol Ann's (my SWEET mother in law's) annual Christmas Dinner for her side of the family. She fed 75 people shrimp and grits and it was delicious! I stand in awe of how gracefully she does this, when I stress out to get my house straight for a dinner party of 6! Anyhow, it was a great time! She had us all introduce ourselves and take group pictures with each generation of cousins... The challenge... getting Gabe to sit still for a picture! I'm going to try to make flashcards of these pictures to study the names for next year!

Handmade Soap

So, I had this grand idea of trying to make teacher gifts this year for our nursery workers and SS workers at church... I decided that rather than doing the standard christmas cookies, I would do something different, like soap! So, I picked out fun scents and stamps to personalize them and Jayce and I got to work on soapmaking last night... After we finished our first set, Jayce looked at me and said "Why are we making my teachers soap mommy? I said, for a Christmas gift... He said, "But mom, we already have soap at school and church, they don't need that." So much for my great idea!

Trimming the Tree

I got a few quick snapshots of the boys BEFORE we decorated our tree...I never managed to get any of the finished product but will post some later... maybe due to my frustrated hubby saying "baby, does everything we do have to be a photo session?" So, I took it easy on them... and what I got was not great, but you can at least see their Christmas pj's and hats!

I started the tradition last year of letting them wear their Christmas pj's early to decorate the tree and we all wear our Santa hats too! Jayce was very into decorating this year and loved to hang his own ornaments especially... Last year, I tried to only use ornaments which complemented my colors in the den, and while it looked pretty, I must admit it just wasn't as fun that way... So many of the ornaments I love and wanted to tell Jayce about just sat in our attic and I felt kind of sad about that... So this year, I decided to do my "boring" tree in the dining room and I pulled all the other fun ornaments out for our big tree and had the best time telling Jayce all about them! We drank hot chocolate, had soup and sandwiches and watched Rudolph... Decorating the tree has always been one of my favorite activities because my mom always made it so fun when I was young... I hope that Jayce and Gabe will feel the same way some day...

Christina Grissett Photography

Here are some pictures from our Christmas card session the other day.
I have had several people ask who has taken the "good pictures" on my blog l... Somehow they could tell a difference between these and my snapshots... imagine that! Anyhow, just in case you missed by "advertisement" for her earlier, and you are in need of some new fun photos of your angels, her website is www.christinagrissett.blogspot.com... give her a call or email her,she is so sweet and really fun! She is a mother of three and really knows how to make the kids laugh! And obviously,she is a great photographer... check her out!

Gabe at 16 months

Gabe is HUGE! The boy weighed in at a hefty 27 lbs,4 ozs and was 33 and 3/8 inches at his 15 (which ended up being his 16 month) appointment. His height was off the charts percentile wise and weight was in the 95th... Last time weight was in the 50th... When I asked Dr. Whitehead if I needed to start my sweet boy on a diet and maybe switch to 2 percent he said absolutely not, that for Gabe's height he was exactly where he ought to be weight wise... The famous comment these days when folks see Gabe is "wow Christyn, you don't need to workout when you carry him around all day... and it is true that he really is a workout! my 27 pound dumbbell... big ole boy!

Here's what Gabe is into these days... EVERYTHING!!!!

Still loves outlets and stairs( if they are not blocked)

We now have to give him a bath in our jet tub(because it is deeper) because he has climbed out of the boys regular bath tub...

He loves to hum... the boy can carry a tune very well... he picks up whatever Jayce is singing...twinkle twinkle, the abc song, God Our Father prayer song, and Happy Birthday to you!

He is beginning to become more difficult to shop with and since he will not take a pacifier anymore, my new trick is to carry apples or orange slices to quiet him down when he starts to fuss... or bank lollipops if in a pinch...

THUS FAR, he has not bothered the tree...but it has only been decorated one day...we shall see...

Starting to express his opinion when he does not like something by lying down on the floor and screaming... isn't this a little early?? The good thing is, I just ignore him and he stops pretty quickly... and I know this too shall pass...

Overall, Gabe is a joy to be with each day! I am loving him at this age and especially love watching the boys play so well together!

Park Pics

These are a few pictures from our park playgroup we have been having once a week. The boys love going and always have a blast! Our biggest hurdle lately has been keeping Gabe from eating all the acorns and rocks on the ground!

Dollywood, Tennessee

I'm finally getting around to downloading our pics from Dollywood, Tennessee or "Tennessee Dollywood" as Jayce called it the whole way there... and it was a LONG way there I must say... We were driving for 8 hours... on the way there, Gabe slept one and on the way home, he slept half of one... so, 7 hours with a one year old awake seems like an eternity I must say! But, he really did better than I expected... Gabe is wonderful in every way but the boy does not like to travel... he normally cries the whole way to and from Columbia so I was a little concerned about our sanity on this trip... but the crying would cease for a few minutes at a time, long enough for a little quiet.. at least it wasn't constant... Jayce did great on the trip, he is finally at a great age to travel. Our biggest problem was him knowing when we would be arriving to see his "friends" ... actually his cousins but he calls them friends, it's so cute!

This was a McLaughlin family trip... all of Jay's sisters and husbands and all the children...7 of them were in attendance... We really had a great time! Dollywood is a neat place, one I would like to go back to, maybe in a few more years... I loved the country feel to it, and the smell of freshly popped kettlecorn was especially nice! Jayce and I got to ride the ferris wheel with his cousin Tucker who was extremely afraid of heights, as I discovered at the top of the ride... Jayce rode the scrambler and some car ride with Jay... Jay and I both anxiously await the day that Gabe can ride with him as both of us tend to get sick these days on rides... I used to be the craziest roller coaster rider in my family, and now I just can't stomach them... so pathetic! Anyhow, thank goodness he will have a partner in crime to accompany him soon!

One thing I am glad we did was request a joining room... for Gabe... Yes, I did take some heat for this arrangement... being called high maintenance and such but I told Jay it is not that, it is about being practical... when you have a baby who is used to going to bed at 7 and being able to nap in a quiet room, he is not going to sleep with 3 people staring at him... So, I thought it was pretty smart... we actually got to sleep at night! Definitely worth the ridicule I endured from the fam!

I posted several pictures from the park... My favorite one is the one of all the kids on the truck right before we went in... I added one of Jayce taking pictures with his digital camera Nanny and Grandaddy gave him (they gave all the grandkids their own for the trip which I thought was so neat). Jayce is SO into dinosaurs currently and there were about 3 dinosaur museums within walking distance of where we were staying we stopped by one on our way out and he was in awe!