Joey and the Elf on the Shelf

Joey just discovered "Ollie," and he does not like him. "Who is this intruder?" I can hear it in his mean bark! He discovered him yesterday. We found Ollie in our ceiling fan, peeking over the globe, and today, Ollie flew over to sit on the mirror hanging above our love seat. As of now, Joey has been sitting there staring and whining for about 15 minutes. He's not giving up. I hate to tell him, but I don't think Ollie will be going away anytime soon. At least for another 20 days or so.

Surprise!

So, I am a little ecstatic at the moment! Okay, not a "little", a LOT! Mom surprised me with the tree that I have been looking for and its perfect!

Mills just woke up from his nap, and spotted it as soon as we reached the top of the stairs. He pointed, smiled, and said, "tree!" "Yes!" I told him. "Tree!" I love it and am so glad that my hunt is over. I found so many online, but none of them were exactly like this one. Take a look.

WHITE tree...

Colored birds....

and YELLOW star!!

Exactly as I wanted!

Mills' 1st Haircut

I didn't want to do this...yet, but by the looks of our little man's head, he was in need of a trim. The back of his hair was getting long, and the top around his crown looks as if he has permanent "hat head." There's nothing like the combination of hat-head and mullet. So, we took him in for his very first "trim" today. Jaclyn cut the hair that skimmed down his neck as well as the areas around the ears, so that the rest of his layers can catch up. It looks much nicer. Poor Jaclyn! She had a job on her hands. Mills was wiggling everywhere, but she did an awesome (as usual!) job!

Visit with Santa

I was leery this year of how Mills would deal with sitting on Santa's lap. Last year, he was only 4 months old and didn't know what was going on. He just smiled, spit-up on Santa, and made it very easy on the photographer to get a picture.

We arrived at the mall this afternoon around 1:00. There was no line, so we walked right up, sat Mills in Santa's lap and tried our best to get him to smile. At first, he tried to get down. So, Erik slid him back up on to Santa's lap. He didn't dislike Santa, I think he was just confused as to what was going on, which made him a little whiny. Then, he cried. He graciously took his candy cane from Santa, but was in to sitting still and having his picture made. This is what we ended up with. Mills trying his best to get down out of Santa's lap!

Mills is on Strike!

For two days now, my little "wonderful sleeper" is on strike. He sleeps at night just fine, but when it has come down to naps, he will not go to sleep. Yesterday, after rubbing his eyes, I put him down for his usual morning nap, and he would not go to sleep. So, I thought that I would just forget the morning nap and settle for an afternoon nap instead. He was "wired!" After lunch, I attempted to make him take a nap. After 10 minutes, he woke up, and fussed what seemed like forever. I kept telling myself that he would eventually go to sleep, but no luck! So, after an hour (yes, an hour!) I went upstairs, got him out of bed and he was still wired! To whomever filled my child with energizer batteries....thanks a lot! I am wondering if our elf, Ollie, is up to mischief! This whole time I'm thinking that he's just having a hyper day, but now I am thinking quite the contrary.

We attended church with my sisters this morning, as my youngest sister was baptized. This was Mills' first time in "big church." He always goes to Sunday school and stays in the nursery for worship at our church Needless to say, I was nervous about his behavior beforehand, but he did really well considering that it was his nap time. I knew he would be tired, and he fell asleep as soon as I strapped him in his car seat leaving the church, just before lunch, but woke up as soon as we parked at the restaurant. He did not sleep on the way home, so I resorted to taking him upstairs for his nap. I think he may have slept 5-10 minutes before I heard, "Hey!" "Daddy?" Then, I heard him saying "A B C D G C E C G G B....." and so on. Yes, he was saying his alphabet from the top of his lungs and shaking his crib rail. I knew then that there was no hope. Now, it is 7:00, we've been to Walmart, eaten supper, and played, and Mills is still going. I am thinking that I may have to send Ollie back to the North Pole, and am dreading bedtime.

"Ollie" is HERE!

Our Elf has arrived! I was wondering if he would really appear or not, but it looks like our wish came true. Now he's watching to see if our Mills is good or bad, and watch for the nice things we do. This morning as we woke up, I found him sitting so very still in our tree. I'm sure he'll have nothing but good news to report to Santa, but this we soon shall see!

I managed to get all of the decorating done and am very relieved. I found the large C9 bulbs that I was wanting to add to our garlands and tree, and they turned out very pretty.
As a child, I wanted colored lights, and so I only thought that it would be more appealing to Mills as well. Kids like color, and it's all about him now. I must admit that the past few Christmases haven't been as "exciting" as they used to be, but when you reach a certain age, all of the magic and excitement tends to decrease. This year, I feel like a kid again. I am reliving my childhood Christmas memories and traditions through Mills. It feels good to finally have it back. I know now, that each year, I will look forward to Christmas and celebrating the magic and remembering the birth of Christ with our Mills. By the way, he has done great with the tree. He has been waving at it and saying "Hey tree!" I expected him to be a little destructive, but actually he has only tried to touch it a few times.

Happy Thanksgiving!

From our family to yours!

...give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you,

1 Thessalonians 5:18

This is one of my very favorite verses in the Bible. We have so much to be thankful for each and every day of the year, not only on Thanksgiving Day. I am thankful that I know Jesus as my Savior. I am thankful for my wonderful family and that we have been blessed with our miraculous creation of God, our Mills. I don't know what I would do with out my parents, friends, my church family, and the blessings of good health, a roof over my head, and food to fill our table. I am thankful for God's grace, forgiveness, and mercy. I am thankful for my "raising." As a pastor at our most recent revival stated, "As I was growing up, I had a "drug" problem....I was "drug" to church every Sunday morning, every Sunday night, and every time the doors were open." So, with that being said, I am also thankful that as I was growing up, I had a "drug" problem-ha!

As we leave the Thanksgiving Day holiday and approach Christmas and New Years, may we continue to be thankful for everything in all circumstances each and every day of the year.

15 Months Check-up

This morning, we went for Mills' 15 month check-up. This time was a little different than our previous visits, as Mills did not want to get on the scales, and he wasn't happy to be there. Its as if he knew he was getting his shots. He was good, just a little more stubborn than usual. I guess he has hit "that phase."

He finally reached the 50th percentile in height, measuring 31" long, and he weighed 24lbs. 4oz. which was also in the 50th percentile.

So Much For Suctioned Bowls!

Mills is all about sticking storage containers on his head and wearing them around the house, especially the Country Crock tub that I washed and saved. This time, he decided to try his bowl of salad. Looks like I need to find a different set of bowls.

15 Months

Mills,

Today, you are 15 months old! Wow! Here you are one year ago...

and here you are now!
You've got to love the wind-blown look!

You are growing by leaps and bounds, and you do something new every day!
Here are your "stats."

1. Weight...we don't know exactly, but will see Dr. O next week.

2. You are still in a size 4 diaper, wear clothes in 12-18m, and are a size 4-5 shoe. Right now, you take after your mommy, as most of your pants are too long.

3. Food likes: Everything! Especially macaroni and cheese, vegetables, and fish.

4. Favorite Books: "Things that Go," "Brown Bear, Brown Bear", "The Very Hungry Caterpillar," "How Many Kisses Do You Want Tonight?"

5. Vocabulary: Daddy, Mama, Joey, Night-night, Tree, Book, Go, Kitty-Kitty, That, Dog, Duck, Cool!, Doing?, Eat, Hey!, You attempt your ABCs but it sounds more like "A B C D E G G G B D", but you recognize the alphabet when you see it, because you always say it. Where's ____? (and you hold your hands out). I'm sure there's more, but mommy's mind is blank.

6. You are still going to bed between 7:30 and 8:00, waking between 6:00 and 7:30, and sometimes still take two naps a day. You love your crib, and your bedtimes are super easy!

7. You are good at putting things where they belong, and good at putting things where they DON'T belong. I am always finding things in the most random places. Just this week, I found plastic containers in the dryer. You love wearing them on your head, especially the empty Country Crock tub. You are quick to put Joey's toys in his toy bucket. You are such a big help. Now, if we can get you to put YOUR things back where they belong, we'll be good!

8. Favorites: telephones, remotes, Mickey Mouse, Moose and Zee!