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