Merry Christmas!

We spent a lovely Christmas Eve with Granny Melody and Grandpa Booker. Grandpa made a big hit by setting up his Christmas train.

Christmas Day started with breakfast and presents with Aunt Hannah and Uncle Reagan. Booker got some really cute clothes from Reagan's mom, a giant stuffed dog from Reagan's aunt and a fabulous handmade quilt from Aunt Stephanie in Florida.

But the best gift came in the biggest box...

A play kitchen from Aunt Hannah and Uncle Reagan! The box it came in was a big hit, especially when our cat joined in the fun.

Daddy and Uncle Reagan spent the better part of 2 hours putting it all together. It comes complete with tiny pots and pans, dishes and even a cell phone. Booker loves it, discovering a different feature every time he plays with it.

Boy on-the-move

Booker is all over the place these days. He has a very sweet disposition but voices his preferences often. We work with him daily on being gentle with our animals. He will give a "pat-pat" to the dog, cat, Daddy or stiuffed animal when asked. He is a carnivore at heart, polishing off most of a chicken breast last night at dinner. We go through a box of 365 Cereal Bars and 2 gallons of 2% milk per week! Please send money when he becomes a teenager! Oh, what a joy he is!

Growing so fast...

Booker with his Bouncy at 4 months...

Booker with his Bouncy at 13 months...

Decking those halls...

The new Cherry Family tradition for Christmas is dated ornaments. I purchased a hand-carved wooden ornament from Indonesia for each of us and labeled it with the year. When Booker has his own home and own Christmas tree, he will have an ornament for each year of his youth to take with him. I love looking at the ornaments that my Mom purchased for me as a child, trying to remember when and where we got them.

The other photos below are my efforts to take a photo of Booker in front of the tree in his new Santa hat. He's days away from running...and we're scared!

Go Birds!

Grandma just couldn't wait for Christmas to send this sweatsuit along. It's nice a and toasty with room to grow! We had a nice visit with Aunt Hannah while she was in town this weekend. Only a few weeks until our "rescheduled" Christmas in January in Dallas!

Straggler's Thanksgiving

The folks at our table for Turkey Day this year all had to choose between travelling home for Christmas or Thanksgiving. Kelley, Dex and Iris (pictured below) hail from Indiana.

Brian and Jim moved from Pennsylvania. Drew moved from Colorado just a few months ago. We were happy to have them all at our table. There was more food than necessary, adult beverages and naps for some ( Booker not included, unfortunately!). We are so thankful to have shared our day with great friends while still missing those far away. I hope your day was delicious!

I love Fall!

Turtlenecks and corduroy...ahh!

Here's Booker playing in "his" cabinet. All the plastic containers and baking pans a boy could want!

A Belated Birthday Party...with a surprise!

We had a great belated birthday party for the big boy earlier this evening. Booker himself started things off with a terrific surprise...

We are so lucky that Grandpa Booker and Granny Melody were here to see it!

We a had a great party as well with lots of friends, presents and cake!

Brusha, brusha, brusha!

Booker now has 6 teeth; two on the bottom and 4 on the top. So the toothbrushing has begun! He actually doesn't seem to mind it. I brush first with a bit of non-fluoride Tom's of Maine Silly Strawberry Toothpaste and then he gets to hold the toothbrush and chew on it a bit.

I love these new PJ's! Aunt Hannah commented via web cam last night that they remind her of a pair my Dad has...which makes me like them even more. In case your wondering, that tummy sticking out is full of pot roast. He couldn't get enough!

Belated b-day gifts

Grandma sends the best presents! Booker had a lot of fun unwrapping them as well. The stripped hoodie sweatshirt is my fav and Dad really likes the little vest. We're all set for the cool weather this weekend!

We had our 1 year doctor's appointment this morning. All is well and Booker is growing like a weed! He is 29 inches long and 22 pounds 9 ounces. We're off formula and on to milk! Good thing we have a great eater! After the shots (no fun), we had breakfast at Cracker Barrel. Booker scarfed down biscuits with gravy, turkey sausage, grits and sipped on a carton of milk.