Christmas 2010

We had so much fun over the holidays this year. We went up to Portland for the week of Christmas and it was the perfect vacation - rest, relaxation, fun, family, food - I am currently having vacation withdrawals and am already looking forward to next year!

It was so cute to watch Amelia on Christmas morning. She was so excited. And you're probably thinking she was really excited about the presents, but that turned out to be only a minor part of it. She was most excited for all the candy that kept popping up all day. She has eyes, ears and a nose for treats in any shape or form. In the middle of opening a very exciting gift, you'll see that she had to take a break and grab some more yogurt covered raisins from Uncle Joe. After a few presents, she even decided to stop participating in the unwrapping so that she could better focus on eating, drooling, and spilling yogurt covered raisins.

Here she is confiscating the bag of yogurt covered raisins from Grandpa.

Amelia loved hanging out with her Uncle Joe. Especially when he had a granola bar in his lap.

And she thought she was pretty fancy when she got to wear his hat.

This is how she reacted to our singing Christmas carols in the morning before opening presents...she never holds still like this, but apparently our singing was cause for cuddling (or is she burying her head so she couldn't hear it as well?)
Little drummer girl. She loved playing with Grandma's drum set from the 1970's. I grew up with this toy too and I always love seeing all the toys Edy kept from when Andrew was little.
Oh, and I forgot to mention, we got plenty of exercise on our vacation as well. Here's a video of Andrew and me kayaking...on the couch...

This was my very first time playing Wii, and I was surprised with how much fun I had playing it (and watching others play it...)

And for those of you who have never played Wii who are wondering what in the world we are doing, here is a view of the screen. We're kayaking, obviously.

A few DC photos

These photos are from our trip to New York and DC for our Asay family reunion. It was so fun and I hope someday we can all live close.

In New York we got to go to the Children's Museum and Amelia loved every second of it - all sorts of interesting things to touch and it was all allowed!

We had Thanksgiving dinner (a couple weeks early) while we were out there and Amelia wouldn't eat anything except the cranberry sauce. I just kept giving it to her and she probably ate at least a 1/2 cup in cranberry sauce...and wiped 1/2 cup on her face

Riding the escalator and the metro with dad and Uncle Scott

Me and Amelia (eating a chocolate cookie which right after this picture ended up on both of our white shirts) with my sister Lisa holding perfect baby Natalie

We did lots of sight seeing and had fun being in the nation's capital.

National Monument and reflecting pool outside the Lincoln Memorial.

Asay Family 2010

Yes we are on a slant, and no Andrew and I are not really that short compared to everyone else!

The Original Asays :)

And this is what Amelia was doing when she was not in a photo. She was tired. It was a long week!

Amelia loves going on walks outside (walking herself, that is, NOT strapped into the stroller), and she never cares how cold or rainy it is. She will often bring me her coat or boots and whine for me to put them on so she can tromp around on the leaves and hug stray cats. In the picture below, she put all the gear on herself (with a little help on the hat because she can't quite do that yet although she tries). It is so funny how she knows where things go even if she has never worn it before. Like the scarf, for example. She does not have one of her own, but from watching me put it on she knows exactly what to do with it. She also tried to put the dog's leash around her neck.

Yes, Andrea, that is the beautiful scarf you made for me years ago. I still wear it all the time and think of you :)

We have discovered that Amelia thinks shaking her head (like when we say 'no') means 'yes.' We discovered it when Andrew asked her if she loved him and this was her response:

At first Andrew took offense to her response, but then he decided to test it. He asked her if she liked doughnuts and ice cream and this was her response:

Then we knew she was confused!

Since then we have noticed that she does this all the time. It is hard to adjust and remember that when I ask her if she's hungry and she shakes her head no, she really means yes! Maybe she's got some Bulgarian in her huh Emily?

Thinking about the 4th of July

So, I know it's the Christmas season and I should be thinking about sleigh bells, reindeer and snowflakes, but today all I can think about is the 4th of July. You know, fireworks, BBQs, red, white and blue, and a brand new baby. A brand new baby? I know, kind of random, unless you just went to the doctor this morning like I did and got to see tiny pictures of your brand new baby, due July 4, 2011.

Yes, I'm serious. I am pregnant.

I am about 10 weeks along which means my kids will be about 21.5 months apart.

I know, I know, I was always so vocal about how I wanted my kids to be further apart...but apparently this little baby wasn't listening! Ready or not, we really are so excited and feel so blessed.

In the meantime, if anyone needs any saltines, don't try Albertson's. I bought them all out. But if you come over to my house, you can take your pick: stale saltines from off the nightstand, crumbs on the couch, half eaten packages in the car, or you can hold out for the real tasty ones in the bottom of my purse. Andrew just calls me "The Cracker Lady."