Saturday, December 25, 2010

Christmas 2010 (in video)

Haven't gone through pictures yet, but thought we'd go ahead and share some video for those of you (especially family) who weren't able to be with us on Christmas.

Here's LittleBear coming down the hallway to the living room (and Christmas tree) shortly after waking up:


Others for your enjoyment, if you are so inclined:
We'll share pictures at a later date. We're so glad we got to share the day with family; hope those of y'all who weren't here had as joyous a Christmas as we did here!

Monday, December 20, 2010

Merry Christmas!

It's been a crazy, fun year as our little one has gone from BabyBear (take a look back at him from last Christmas) to LittleBear -- a fully mobile 18-month-old with a very distinct personality. He's a blast to be around, and the past year has been all the more fun because of him.

Rather than a traditional Christmas letter, we hope you'll take a minute to browse back through our blog and enjoy (perhaps for a second time) some of the pictures and video from the past year. If you're looking for the abridged version, here are some of our favorites:
Our next post will likely be a recap of Christmas -- our first time to host Christmas as a married couple -- followed by a recap of our trip to see Baylor play in the Texas Bowl (sic 'em, Bears!), so come back soon for those. We hope you enjoy the blog (and @LittleBearB's Twitter account, posted in the top right corner), and we pray you're having a blessed Christmas season as well!




Friday, December 17, 2010

Guess who's 18 months old?

Seriously?! 18 months already? Wow...time sure does fly. LittleBear is officially a year and a half old!



My goodness is he growing up fast! We don't have any official numbers as of today, but at his last dr. appt (which was considered his 18 month appt) a couple of weeks ago, he weighed in at 23 lbs, 4 oz, and was 31 inches tall.

He's been a busy little guy this fall! He loves to run around the house, has learned to be more gentle with Orbit and seems to be better about restraining himself when it comes to pulling Orbit's tail. Conversely, Orbit seems to have gotten a bit more brazen and will now swat whenever he feels necessary (even if that means that LittleBear just walked past where Orbit is sitting).

LittleBear still loves music and will dance to just about anything. He's been playing with his piano, handbells, music cube and beach band toys almost daily. He also enjoys playing with his empty Quaker Oats container, crackling an empty soda can and also crinkling an empty 2-liter bottle. Another favorite toy that he's been loving lately is the Little People Nativity Set (thank you, Grams and Gramps!). He also really loves brooms, particularly our tall red broom and our little broom and dustpan set (similar to this). He also loves to explore our backyard.

He still isn't saying a huge amount of clearly discernable words, but his Dr. is not at all worried. He's picked up quite a few more signs, though, and can now sign for food, water, yogurt (his favorite!), help (mommy loves this one), more, and diaper; he's also got a sort of "shrugging" sign that can mean "where is it?", "what is it?" or other similar questions, and a few more things that might be signs but that we don't quite understand yet.

Mommy also loves the fact that 98% of the time when asked, he will put his clothes in the hamper -- oftentimes without even being asked! She's also had to fish her shoes out of the hamper a few times, but that's a small price to pay. He definitely understands a lot, even if he isn't talking much.

All in all, he's still a lot of fun; there's lots of silliness and giggling around here. Can't wait to celebrate Christmas with our little man!

Sunday, December 12, 2010

LittleBear preparing to join the handbell choir

LittleBear, our future musician, was not content simply learning the (lobster) maracas, piano (Little Tikes and Fisher Price) and drums (octopus and Quaker Oats canister). So, this week Bethany got him a new instrument to learn: handbells!



(Thanks Rainbow Music Bells, Hobby Lobby and your 40% off coupon!)

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Playtime with LittleBear

He really can make any room in the house fun...just watch for yourself...