Christmas Morning Memories

Malia was a hoot this year as she realized that fun things lay beneath all of that wrapping paper. This past month has been full of celebrations and they have led her to believe that presents are an everyday occassion. The last few mornings she has ran out to the Christmas tree shouting "pwesents," sorry girlfriend you have a ways to go before more presents come your way. After a relaxing morning we drove up to the cabin for a "White Christmas" Big thanks to Donna, she loved the piano book as you can see below. In case you can't see her jammies read "I have been GOOD all year"

Babe you are looking good!

Malia testing out the Wii fit...she loves to do exercises right next to us

Christmas Card Outtakes

The days are long gone of propping up my sweet pea and taking a million pictures as she happily sits and plays away. I am now trying to capture on film a very active and dare I say moody toddler. Here are just a few (I have about 50 more) outtakes as I attempted to get one shot of her smiling and looking at the camera, which by the way I only got with the help of Stephen who bounced her up and down while I snapped away!

So many hats, so little time

Malia found this hat in her drawer one evening before bed and insisted on wearing it...maybe we need to turn the heater up!

My girlfriend Amy gave Malia a super cute outfit and this adorable hat.

Craigslist fan

Just in the past few months I have become a huge fan of Craigslist. I was skeptical at first but I decided to purchase a tricycle for Malia and was so excited to get a Radio Flyer trike for $20, that is when I got hooked! The site helped us sell our home and now I have purchased Malia's Christmas present, which as you see below she received early. I got this outdoor toy for 1/5 of the retail price and it is in great condition...especially considering it is going to sit outside.

Many faces of Malia

She is definitely Daddy's little girl
Those famous big eyes...now those are from Mommy

Cousin Elijah taught her how to say "Cheese".... I love it

Ahhh, life is returning to normal..whatever that is

I apologize to all of you that I haven't gotten back with in the last month...our life has been crazy! Stephen and I have been praying about selling our home for some time and felt that the right thing to do was sell. We decided to put it on Craigslist and possibly get a realtor after the first of the year. Within two weeks we had awesome buyers who were downsizing and paid cash. Stephen and I were shocked and it took us some time to digest that this was really happening this quickly. It is amazing how God answers prayer and then we have to double check if this is what He really wants. I hope a day comes when I won't be shocked when he answers a prayer so clearly and dramatically. So everything went smoothly and as of Wednesday we are no longer homeowners. We are so thankful that we were able to sell while we were still ahead and we are currently staying with my parents and saving. It is working out great so far and I have been able to spend quite a bit of time with my Grandma who is going back home today. :(

We also squeezed in a trip to Florida in November to honor his Grandma Ott. I am so thankful to have learned more about the Ott's who have left an incredible legacy of love for the Lord to their family. I was so excited to receive a book of prayer that Grandma Ott had put together years ago for her devotions, and to to teach others. What a treasure! I also met Stephen's one and only cousin Derek and his wife Jennifer and their son Elijah who is 6 months older than Malia. They were adorable together and I can't wait to get the pictures from Pamela. We finished up the trip at Disney World with Stephen's Aunt Jenny as our incredible guide. Since we have returned home we have been packing and moving most of our waking hours. We also mixed in some birthday celebrations for Chad, Malia and myself. Now it is time to prepare for Christmas, I plan on keeping things simple and focusing on the Lord's birth. I am grateful for feeling more settled and I can't wait to reconnect with everyone now that things have slowed down a bit.

Malia Grace you are 2!

You were so happy to have everyone singing your favorite song (you had been serenading Mommy and Daddy for the past month)...and then cupcakes to top it all off!
Thank you Malia for bringing so much joy to our lives

The ever adoring Uncles who patiently helped you unwrap all of your gifts

Uncle Chad and Roscoe are ready for a party