Merry Christmas!!!

I sure hope everyone had as good of a Christmas as we did here! We have actually had two Christmases so far.

On Christmas morning I got everyone up at the crack of dawn (6:30) to open stockings. I was really excited for my first Christmas. I knew it was my first Christmas because my socks told me so:

I really wanted to get into the presents, but M&D stuck my darn fence (what they call a "play yard") between me and the presents. How cruel!

Our tradition is to start off with stockings first. I did pretty good at getting my gifts out of them. Grammy Pat got me this really nice book. See:

I had a little harder time with the well-wrapped presents, but M&D helped me out...

One of my favorite gifts was this cell phone that Uncle Justin got me. I have been carrying and/or pushing it around all over the house....

Santa must have been talking with Mommy because my stocking had my favorite treats: Baby Mum Mums. Mmm mmm good...

Once I opened my goodies in my stocking I wanted to help everyone else out. Here I am helping Grammy Pat with her stocking...

After breakfast, a nap, and a wardrobe change it was time for presents. Yeah!!! I got some cool new blocks to play with. M&D like playing with them as well...

Hmmm...what can I make with this?...

I got lots of cute clothes from different family members and friends; an inflatable penguin wobbly thingamajig; a numbered pop-up toy with little levers; a walker; and lots of neat other stuff.

Today Grandpa Ike, Grandma Linda, Aunt Shannon, Aunt Dian, and cousins Katie and Morgan came to visit us at our house and have an early dinner (Aunt Dian's friend Mandy was here with her boyfriend Ryan too).

I thought that maybe I got a puppy for Christmas, but it was just Grandma and Grandpa's dog Divot:

Cousin Katie got me this super cute ladybug/sunflower hat:


And now I have my very own Oregon blanky!!!



I really liked seeing everyone. Actually, that is not true. I cried a lot. I went down with my morning nap with no one here and then I woke up to a house full of people I haven't seen for a while. It was a little overwhelming. After a while I started to warm up to them and I am really glad they came. I know M&D had a great time and were happy everyone could make the trip!

Here I am with Morgan (L) and Katie (R)...

We can't wait to see some of them again next weekend at Grandma Jan's house!!!

We hope everyone is having a safe and fun holiday season. Happy New Year!!!

More fun in the snow!

Grammy Pat really wanted to get outside as well. So, we managed to take a nice leisurely walk around our neighborhood to get some fresh air and get the blood pumping. Mommy carried me in our wrap and I was bundled up nice and warm!

Getting ready for our walk:

After our walk we decided to play in the snow in the backyard since we had not touched it yet (except for Daddy this morning who had to get up on the ladder and the roof so he could clean off the satellite dish). I REALLY like the snow and like to roll around and crawl in it!

See, I REALLY like the snow:

Hi!



This is so much fun!

Wait a second. My glove came off. This stuff is cold!

Yeah, I am not so sure about this. I liked it better when my gloves were on!

We are kind of bummed about all this snow though. We were planning on going down to Eugene on Christmas Eve for dinner with Grandma Jan and Grandpa Ray and then to church, but we figure that we would rather be safe than sorry. So, we decided that we are just going to stick around home rather than chance the trip down there. Our neighbors across the street are in the same boat and won't be having their parents over. So, we planned an impromptu Christmas Eve dinner at their place. It should be fun, but we will miss Eugene!!! Daddy can't remember ever missing Christmas Eve service at church in Eugene.

We hope everyone is safe and warm! Be safe this week if you are out there driving around!

Cars!

It is pretty easy to see who has and has not ventured out into the snow.....just take a look at the cars. It is pretty amusing to check out the different shapes the snow makes as it covers the cars.

Here is Grammy Pat's car out in front of our house this morning:



Here is Daddy's car (Mommy's is safe and dry in the garage):

And thank goodness we have the Tahoe!

Daddy uncovered it from the snow and ice this morning and he and Mommy went grocery shopping. They took John and Lisa from across the street with them as they have been unable to get out of their house for a few days.

At least we don't have this car:

Makeshift Fun

We have been trapped at home since Saturday with this crazy weather. You'd think the world was coming to an end with the endless sensationalism that the local news channels are covering the storm with. In case you have not heard yet, we are in the middle of "Arctic Blast 2008" (duh nuh!).

We went to the mall on Saturday since we do not live too far away and we spent a few warm, dry hours inside. That night the snow really began to fall and then we were blessed with freezing rain. We woke up Sunday morning to a layer of ice over the near foot of snow! Daddy measured it and it was a little over half-an-inch of snow:

Being stuck inside can make you a little crazy. After a while you might even start eating the wrong part of a banana (though it sure felt good on my two new teeth...I cut my top two teeth this weekend):

Or it might make you want to do a snow angel in the middle of the night:

What we really felt like doing was getting outside. So, Daddy made a makeshift sled for me and he and Mommy took turns towing me around the neighborhood. The walking was hard for them since it was so slick, but the ice made it easy for me to move around. I had a lot of fun being outside for a little while and enjoying the snow:

Of course, we also captured a little video as well:

M&D also took off to try to do some makeshift sledding of their own using some plastic boards we had left over from our bathroom remodel. You could not fault their effort, but the results were underwhelming. Unfortunately there is no photographic record of their efforts.

We spent a couple of hours across the street visiting John, Lisa and Grace. The girls played cards while John and Daddy spent time playing football on the Wii.

After that, Mommy and Grammy spent a long time making holiday cookies. Daddy didn't spend so much time, though he meticulously decorated two cookies. He did take pride in his job of being "Official Sampler" of the cookies however.

After the cookie making was done, Grammy and Mommy took turns beating up on Daddy at a board game called Tripoley. Apparently tension mounted and there were some words of frustration expressed. Daddy does not like losing. I am sure you are surprised.

So, that was our makeshift weekend. Who knows what Monday will bring (except another 6 inches of snow apparently from the looks of it outside). We hope this snow goes away so we can make it to all of our holiday events!

Love to all,

The Foxes

It's Tradition!

Most men scare me and make me cry.....why did Mommy and Daddy make me sit on a strange man's lap??

Alternative Entertainment

We've been cooped up indoors most of this week so I have had to find new and different ways of passing the time.......

I call this game "unrecycling"

I call this game "shoe tasting"

Hopefully Daddy gets new slippers for Christmas like he asked because these ones are mine!!

Hope everyone is finding fun and warm ways to pass their time.

Love,
Maddie

Snow Angel

Happy 9 Months and it's snowing!!

Happy 9 Month Birthday to Me!!

We celebrated my 9 month birthday by going to the doctor. Here are my official stats:

height: 2 feet 5 inches (92nd %)

weight: 19 lbs 14 oz (70th%)

head circumference: 18.25 inches (97th%)

So, I'm very tall for my age, I am growing into my weight, and I have a big head to accommodate my huge brain!!! I still am not tolerating oats very well, so the doctor suggested waiting another month to try again. She also gave us some special creme for when I get the eczema rash on my face. Other than those minor things I am perfectly healthy. The doctor was impressed when I initiated a game of high five with her and tried to pull on her stethoscope.

M & D have been talking for weeks about volunteering to sell trees for L'Arche Nehalem (a non-profit agency that provides home for adults with developmental disabilities--like Great Uncle Dean). I was all excited, but at the last minute since it was so cold, they left me home with Grammy while they volunteered. But, the good news is I did get to help pick out our tree!

We took the tree home, put lights on it and decorated it. The first ornament to go on was one that Grammy got for M & D that had my name and birth information engraved on it. The second to go up was Peanut's star ornament. After that it was a free-for-all! M & D decorated while Grammy "supervised" from the couch.

When we were done decorating we decided to watch the video we had taken. There was some old footage on the tape from Chicago and Lost Lake. I loved looking at myself on screen....I kept laughing and waving at the TV. Maybe movie stardom is in my future??

Then this morning we woke up and it began to snow. This was my first snow fall ever!! I got to play around in it and I loved it! I didn't even cry one bit.

Hope everyone is enjoying a great weekend!!

Love,

Maddie