First Christmas

This year was a little bit different as we spent Christmas here in Hinton. It was nice to spend this time in our own home, but it was also different to be away from extended family. We had a lot going on in our house...not all good. Ava was sick, Shane then got sick followed by Jimmer getting sick. There is nothing worse than having a sick baby as there is absolutely nothing you can do to take it away from them. There were a lot of sleepless nights and Shane took Jimmer to the hospital one night as he was wheezing and not sleeping. We discovered that he had bronchiolitis and he just had to ride it out. There was a blessing in all of this as Jimmer had to get an x-ray. It was discovered that he had bronchiolitis, but they also discovered something else. He has an esophageal abnormality...Jimmer has been having issues pretty much since he was born. I have tried everything to help him from stopping breast feeding, to trying every kind of formula, to trying every kind of drug for acid reflux. Now I find out that it was nothing to do with any of that. It turns out that he has a dilated esophagus and we don't know what is going to happen at this point. He has to meet with a pediatrician to see what the next step will be.

Aside from all of this we had a great Christmas together. Even though it was Ava's Christmas to spend with her mom, she spent the majority of the time with us. I had Ava during the day the week leading up to Christmas as she was out of school and we picked her up on Boxing Day to head down south for Becky and Mike's wedding.

Jimmer was too young to know what was going on, but it was fun regardless. We had some friends over on Christmas Eve and Christmas day was very quiet. Ava was able to be with us for a couple hours to open up presents and we spent a lot of the day skyping with family.

Christmas Jammies

Christmas Eve

Christmas Morning

Getting ready to go to church...not feeling too good!

Ava opening presents on Christmas day.

New Addition

Shane has been wanting to build a garage for as long as I have known him and since happenings as of late he thought that it would be a great time to get it done. They started building the beginning of November and it is looking good. We'll hopefully be parking in it by the end of the winter.

Here Comes Santa Claus

One of the highlights of our year is the Teck Christmas parties. Last night Shane and I had our first date since Jimmer has been born and went to our work Christmas party. As hard as it was to leave my baby at home for the first time it was nice to get out and enjoy good friends and good food. We got one phone call from the baby-sitter, but everything worked out and the kids were both really good.

What was even better than the adult Christmas party was the kids Christmas party today. Santa was there to give the kids their presents and we were standing in line for what seemed like forever. By the time it was our turn Jimmer had fallen asleep, so I missed the reaction from him that I was hoping. When he finally woke up I took him back to get a couple pictures to capture his reaction. Ava was like a kid in a candy store. She was running around grabbing every piece of candy she could get her hands on. It was hilarious because they had a table full of cupcakes and she kept running over to get more and more. Jimmer was the bell of the ball. I take him to St. Gregory school once a month for an anti-bullying program called Roots of Empathy. He goes to the grade four class and there were a couple kids there from the class. They were so excited to see him and so excited to be able to hold him. Such a great time of the year!!

4 MONTHS

Now that Jimmer is 4 months he had to go for his shots last Friday. This is of course something that I do not enjoy, but I make sure to schedule the appointments for when Shane is available to come. I was holding Jimmer in my arms as the nurse was getting the needles ready and he had the biggest smile on his face as he was looking up at his daddy. Then bam...the nurse got him in the leg and broke his little heart. Probably broke mine worse!!

Jimmer is growing like a weed and I've got the measurements to prove it...

Weight - 17 lbs 10 oz - 92%

Height - 25.5" - 82%

Head - 18" - 99%

Tomorrow is our work Christmas party and I'm leaving him with a babysitter for the first time. I'm sure nervous about it, but again I'm sure that it will be harder on me than him. We have an awesome babysitter that will do a great job!

Mo More Movember

The month of November is dedicated to prostate cancer, so Shane decided to join in the cause and grow himself a sweet stash. I am not a big fan of facial hair, but at least it was for a good cause. I was very glad that December arrived and he was all clean shaven this morning. He was able to raise $425 for Movember.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

Ava celebrated her 6th birthday on Saturday, November 26th and I can't believe how fast she is growing up. When Shane and I got married she was only 3 and now she's 6 going on 16. It is hard to believe how time passes so quickly. We were able to spend time with her the night of her birthday for a little family party. She got a DSi that she can't put down and we got her a Rapunzel cake. While she was blowing out her candles she got a little too close to one of the candles and burnt her nose...funniest thing I have seen in a long time. She was pretty offended that Shane and I would be laughing while she was crying in pain. It's a good thing that I caught it all on film.

My baby was 4 months old on Monday and I can't believe how much he has changed and is really getting his own little personality. He is our little chatter box and loves getting all the attention which he doesn't have trouble getting. One of his favorite things is bath time...that is a chance for him and daddy to have some bonding time. He also loves his hands. There will be tons of toys around him to play with and all he wants to do is suck on his fist.

MONKEY AND TINK

We had so much fun this Halloween. With our new little addition and plus it was our year to have Ava for the holiday. Of course Jimmer was too young to understand what was going on, but he sure looked cute. Ava was the happiest and cutest kid around. Her and I ran around to all the houses in the neighborhood, all along the way me asking if she was done yet. She was having way too much fun to stop, so we just kept on trucking until she had more candy then I even got as a kid. She kept saying to me, "daddy is going to be so proud of me." Every time she got a can of pop she would say, "another Root Beer for daddy."