Christmas in Colorado

We just got back from a wonderful Christmas in Colorado with John's family in Ovid. We were also very fortunate to see Nana, Aunt Samantha and Evan and Lyndi who drove up to Ovid from Denver for the day with us. Hudson loved opening presents saying "oh, wow" with every one.

Hudson was such a good boy on this trip! We were amazed at how well he did in the 8 hour car ride...not once did he complain. Elmo on DVD sure did help the time go by though! He had such a fun time playing with all of his older cousins.

Deciding what to eat at a local steak house

Sitting with cousin Ethan at church on Christmas Eve. He LOVED the Xmas hymns. Each time one would end, he would look at us and say "more, peas" (aka "please")

All the cousins.....

One morning at Grandma's house we looked outside and saw a ton of cows coming down the street. It was quite a site for us city folk. Hudson thought they were dogs at first but finally realized they were "ow's"

Hudson loved riding on Uncle Pete's shoulders which gave him quite a workout. Each time he stopped, Hudson would say "Go!"

Eating a roll with "dada"

friends

We had a small Holiday party for our friends that we met when John was in law school at KU. There were two two-year olds, three one-year olds and two babies running around. They had so much fun together and were so fun to watch interact. We are hoping we didn't scare the couples without children too much :)

Getting one picture of the group was a bit of a challenge, even with bribery for cookies.

Hudson loved baby Mason and loved taking out his pacifier and putting it back in. Luckily is used to his one year old big brother and didn't mind too much. Hudson thought it was hilarious when Mason would grab his hair.

Even though it is 8 degrees and snowing, Hudson would rather spend most of his day naked. He can now get undressed from coat to shoes including diaper in about two minutes so we get dressed about 25 times a day right now!

We are getting ready for Christmas around here. On Tuesday we will be driving to Colorado!

Cookies and cupcakes.....

Hudson loves to be a helper in the kitchen and pulls a chair right on up to the counter. We made "Barbie's" oreo bon bons which are always a holiday favorite and he loved putting the cookies in the food processor. Surprisingly not one went in his mouth until the very end......

As soon as he saw the camera, he put on his "CHEEEESSEEE" face.

We ended our last Kindermusik class of the year with a big cupcake kiss with Ainsley.

Yum....after eating his cupcake, he proceeded to bend down to Ainsley's hand and tried to finish hers as well.

The big challenge this week has been keeping Hudson clothed. Despite the snow and freezing temperatures Hudson just wants to be naked. I put him down for a nap this week and after about 30 minutes of him playing in his crib, I heard repeated "Ah, ohs"and went up and found his naked....all but his shirt which he had his head and arm stuck in the same hole......thanks goodness the diaper on the floor was still dry.

Chooo-chooooo.....

We are moved (and almost unpacked) - yeah!!! Things went really well thanks to Nana for all of the help with packing and unpacking. Moving took 11 hours and three trips...very far from the estimate of 7 hours and one truck but nonetheless we love the new house and are filling up the space quickly! Hudson now has at least 20 new places to hide from me or run when he doesn't want to get dressed, get a coat on or shoes. Although all I have to say is the word "car" and he comes running back and finds the keys (even the right one depending on which car we ride in). He LOVES cars and things with wheels. He can accurately find our cars in the parking lot which is always helpful for me since I seem to always forget where I parked!

He also LOVES the new pantry which starts right at his level. Here he his hiding with a box of cookies happy as can be. He also loves to push chairs from the kitchen table over to the counter to use them as a ladder to climb up on the counter....lovely....so now I find all kinds of new things spilled on the floor.

We had a great Thanksgiving and were very thanksful that Nana, Grandpa and Aunt Sam made the trip over so we could spend our first Thanksgiving in our new house. We kept them busy as the ladies helped Xmas lights and the tree and Grandpa and John hung his new TV on the fireplace.

He learned how to take a picture of himself with the camera and say "cheese". We are amazed at how fast the kid can figure out a gadget and work it properly like a remote, cell phone or key.

Eating round two of thanksgiving dinner before bed....can never have too many mashed potatos.

A Staple in Hudson's diet

We took a fun field trip this week with some friends (Gage and Benjamin) to Union Station to see the huge "choo choo" display. The boys were amazed at the train display and then got a chance to ride on the train around the tree. It was by far the best $3 we have spent in a while. They would have sat on there for hours I think. Then we went to eat at Fritz's at Crown Center where the train "drops" the food off at the table. What a good time we all had.

Hudson is always daddy's little helper, especially when he has a tool in his hand!

Fun in the leaves...

Almost moving day.....

Moving day is one and a half weeks away (yikes) so this is probably the last post for a while. In the meantime we will be continuing to pack (while Hudson unpacks). We are so excited for the new house.....we will gain a much bigger yard for Hudson and the dogs to play, 4.1 baths, an attached garage (no more carrying Hudson and groceries through the rain), a finished basement and nearly doubling our square footage (which wasn't too hard with our tiny house). I am hoping a house cleaner comes with the house but somehow I don't think it will :) But we certainly are sad to be leaving Brookside and all of our wonderful neighbors.

trying to be all grown up.....

It is hard to tell this face "no"
Playing in the leaves.....this will be fun for him to look at when he reads about the first African American President in his history books

We went to the park to look at the ducks but apparently mom's diaper bag was more fun to play with:)

This kid can set a car alarm off in 0.5 seconds from any distance I swear. Even from inside a store...

Jabbering on the phone with dada. Lots of "hi's" and "bye's" and "ok's"

baseballs and baby dolls....

Hudson had such a fun day today. We went "trick-or-treating" with our playgroup at the school for the deaf. Since it is a bit warmer today, we left the "mouse" at home and opted for the baseball player. He loves to wear his hat "just like daddy". He LOVED following the kids door to door and seeing the "big" kids give out candy.

Then when we got home we had a special package in the mail. Nana sent Hudson his very own boy cowboy baby doll. Hudson was very interested in another little girl's doll at an indoor playground last week but all we could find were lots of pink ones so Nana made a special outfit for his doll.

As soon as he opened the package, Hudson took out the doll and gave it lots of hugs and kisses. He carried it around the house with him and is taking a nap with the doll now. He even offered it his a pacifier at naptime.

Pumpkins, mice and boxes

We've been a little busy around here starting the packing and getting ready for the big move in just a few weeks. Hudson thinks the boxes are big blocks and has been excited about his new indoor playground!.Here is a sneak peek at the halloween costume. Nana made him a mouse costume like Uncle Evan used to have. Yes, he is chewing on his tail!

Feeling Benjamin's soft bear costume at the Brookside halloween party.

Yummy pizza

Hudson loves to help in the kitchen now. Here he is "helping" make rice. I won't be surprised if the new house owners find rice when they move in!

Making sure mom's fruit dip recipe turned out ok

With Ainsley at the pumpkin patch

still loves hummus

making sure the bowl is clean before it gets thrown away!