Christmas

Rick and I hosted Christmas for both of our families and are so fortunate to be surrounded by so much love.  Palmer's first Christmas was special for everyone and the little boy was beyond spoiled.

We decided to smoke a brisket for the noon meal, which meant the meat went on the fire at midnight.  It was a long night of tending to the fire and checking the temperature gauge and we went into Christmas morning a little sleep-deprived.  Nevertheless, we had a wonderful day.

"I can't wait to go downstairs and check out Santa's loot!"

Rick spent Christmas Eve putting together Palmer's red wagon...only there was one problem.  Can you spot what's wrong with this picture?

One hour later, the wheels were all on the proper side.  

Rick's helper had to weigh in on how to fix the problem.

Palmer and Boston loved their joyful ride around the house.

In addition to the wagon, you might see Palmer driving around in his new car.  It's hilarious how he instinctively knows to hold the steering wheel and make engine sounds when driving:

Other highlights include future grocery shopping trips:

A visit from Santa (aka Grampi):

And a very special quilt from Pops and Marlene:

Merry Christmas to you and yours.

-Bethany

Wordless Wednesday

-Bethany

Nine months

(Palmer's nine month birthday and Christmas happened to coincide this year, so you are going to have to put up with two long posts.)

STATS FROM THE DOCTOR:

HEIGHT: 29.5 inches (90th percentile)
WEIGHT: 22 lbs (65th percentile)
HEAD: 44 cm, (15th percentile)

Likes:
*Eating - Based on the stats above, you can see that Palmer is a big boy (although trending towards the "Tall" side as opposed to the "Big and Tall" like in past months.)  I am regularly told, "Palmer had a big lunch and out-ate all of the other kids today" when I pick him up from school.
And when there's not food around, a hanger will do just fine!

*Balls - Palmer is a big fan of throwing balls (and everything else) and says, "Ba".

*Boston - Boston is still a favorite although Palmer has recently taken to pulling his hair and laughing like crazy.  Boston is not pleased and we've had a lot of talks about "being gentle" and "nice".  Palmer says, "Da" when he is looking for Boston.

*Books (especially Goodnight Moon at night)

*Standing - I think Palmer is able to stand by himself, but when we practice he balances for a second and then falls down and laughs hilariously.  He's missing the point and thinks it's much more fun to fall than to stand.

 

*Pushing trucks and other large objects around the house.  Check out this shopping cart Aunt Samantha got Palmer for Christmas.  She said she wants him to be a foodie!

*Boston's dog food.  (Yes, this continues to be an issue, especially because Boston's vegetarian dog food looks just like puffs.)

Happy nine months, Palmer!

-Bethany

Here Comes Santa Claus

There's something magical about the downtown Neimans this time of year.  If you believe in all things mass-produced for Christmas, go to Neimans.  When you compare the downtown Neimans to the high-end mall up the highway, it's more "Miracle on 34th Street" and less "Jingle All The Way".

Palmer was very curious about the man with the white beard.

And he especially loved the toy section upstairs.  

Rick is convinced we need this:

 I prefer this one instead:

And everybody needs this:

I hear Santa might make his way over to our house on Christmas.

Until then, have a Merry Christmas Eve!

-Bethany

Wordless Wednesday

-Bethany

All. Boy.

We get told often that Palmer is "All Boy".

What does that mean?

Well, for starters everything that moves makes a car sound.  You know,  rrrrrrrrrr.  When Palmer pushes big trucks, he makes a rrrrrrr sound.  When he moves a book across the floor, the book also gets a rrrrrr sound.

Example:

Palmer has also learned how to throw a ball.  In fact, he's quite good and probably has a better arm than either of his parents.  The problem: Palmer also throws remotes, iphones, books, toy airplanes, etc.  I'm struggling with how to teach him to only throw balls when I am praising him one minute for his nice ball throw and then scolding him the next for his nice airplane throw.  

I think there is mischief in these eyes:

Lastly, the boy is already wrestling.  His buddy William may be a bit smaller, but William is scrappy and got Palmer down for the count the other day.

 "Let me out!  I surrender!"

Merry Christmas Week, everyone.

-Bethany

Wordless Wednesday

-Bethany

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

Reason#1: Christmas Jammies

Reason #2: It's gingerbread house decorating time.

Somebody got into the candy...

So, we sent him to bed and the adults got serious.

Before (notice that Boston had a little Christmas snack):

After:

(We invited some of our most artistic friends to help.)

Raise your hand if you've already eaten too much sugar this Christmas.  

*Raising hand*

Great!  Well, let's not stop now...

WHAT'S FOR DINNER (HOLIDAY FAVORITES EDITION):

SWEET POTATO PIE: Here's a traditional southern pie that I made over Thanksgiving and plan to make at least once more before 2012. Sweet Potato Pie 

INA'S APPLESAUCE: The smell of the apples and citrus in the oven reminds me of the holidays.  Barefoot Contessa sure knows how to make a good applesauce.

MASHED POTATOES:  Last year, my company held a potluck lunch.  One guy brought mashed potatoes, which sounds easy enough.  Turns out, these taters were the bomb-diggidy and everyone in the company now has a killer recipe.  And now, you do too:

Ingredients:

1 bag red potatoes

Sea salt (to taste)

1/2 Qt. heavy whipping cream

1 stick unsalted butter

4 Tblsp. sour cream

Chives

1.  Boil water in stock pot.

2.  Peel and wash potatoes.  Cut into cubes.  Boil for 30-35 minutes.

3.  Use potato ricer to mash potatoes.  Much less work.

4.  Mix in butter, cream, salt, sour cream, chives.

-Bethany

Working From Home

Palmer's been sick the past few days, which means I've been doing a lot of work like this.

It's tough.  For both of us.

And don't get me started on Palmer repeating "Dada" all day long to further the situation.  I'm like, "I'M the one here helping you, little buddy.  MAMA."

But, I digress.

-Bethany

Wordless Wednesday

-Bethany

Annual Holiday Newsletter

I grew up in a household that sent an annual newsletter with our Christmas card.  When I graduated college, I decided to continue that tradition into my adult years.  This year, I am taking advantage of this blog and sending a traditional card with a link to our digital letter.

Admittedly, other years have been much more glamorous with fabulous vacation spots and interesting work assignments.  This year has been very different...we stayed at home a ton and found joys in very simple activities.  And we've loved every minute of 2011 because we welcomed a new addition to the family.


On March 25th, Rick and I met our son, Mr. Palmer Thomas Jordan.

Palmer was the sweetest newborn and is such a fun baby.  He's quite mobile these days and keeps us on our toes.  His current obsessions are stairs and electrical cords, so we are constantly chasing after the little guy.

We did manage to squeeze in a little bit of travel this year.  Rick went on a boys golfing weekend in North Carolina and I went with the ladies to Vegas to celebrate an upcoming wedding.  Rick and I also got away for a stint without Palmer and spent Labor Day Weekend in Key West for a wedding.  

Our trip to Key West inspired a spur-of-the-moment moped purchase.  (Yes, of course the family with a newborn needs a moped!  That makes perfect sense.)

The moped has served as convenient transportation for quick trips to the neighborhood yogurt shop, especially during this past summer's record-breaking temperatures.  We saw 70 days over 100 degrees.  It was a loong summer, especially with a young baby who was too young to wear sunscreen and sensitive to sun and heat.  

Since we stayed home a lot this year, we watched a ton of baseball.  So, it goes without saying that we were thrilled about the Texas Rangers' second consecutive appearance at the World Series.  Rick and I snuck away for one of the winning home games during the series.

Rick continues to enjoy work as a corporate attorney at Gardere Wynne Sewell.  His days got a little longer with Palmer's daycare drop off, but he tries hard to get home for bath time.  Rick's week typically culminates with a father and son "man breakfast" on Saturday mornings.  I think he's taken Palmer to just about every dingy cafe in Dallas...

I returned from maternity leave to my political advertising firm at the end of the summer.  Recently, I moved to part-time with the company so that I can have more flexibility and be able to produce freelance.  I've been doing some work for NBC again and some of the other news networks.  It's been nice to get a taste for the work I love without traveling non-stop like I used to in years past.

We still have Boston, our maltipoo, and Palmer loves him dearly.  Rick and I sometimes joke that Palmer likes Boston more than us.  Boston is a great sport and endures the constant chasing, tugging and ear-pulling in exchange for the chance scraps that fall under Palmer's high chair during meal time.

2011 has been a year of new beginnings and we look forward to all that 2012 will bring.

-Bethany, Rick and Palmer Jordan