Merry Christmas!

We hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and were surrounded by family and friends!

"Pretty Lights"

We have really been getting into the Holiday spirit lately. It is so fun now that Gabi is understanding most things. She loves the tree and all of the lights that she sees around town -- "pretty lights!" She also enjoys decorating Christmas cookies, getting a treat from her Advent calendar each day, and singing Christmas carols! She is actually pretty good at "Jingle Bells" -- we will try to get her on video one of these days! We also took a trip to Zoo Lights at the Denver Zoo -- it was actually really cool!



Maya is doing well sitting by herself now. She loves it when Gabi sits next to her to play. Maya has started to say some syllables -- mostly "lalalala, wawawa, dadadada" She has always been very vocal, but it is still kind of fun to hear her starting to understand the beginnings of speech.

Maya is also really into eating lately!

We all know that this time of year...THIS....

leads to....THIS....Thunder Thighs! Gotta love it!

(She is going to kill me when she is older!)

Have a good week! Gabi is counting down the days until Grammy Mary, Papa Gary, and Tom get here. We're headed up to Breckenridge for a week over Christmas! Happy Holidays to you all!

All our love,

Joe, Tara, Gabi, & Maya

Thankful

It has been so long since my last post, that this one is lengthy! We are all doing great -- staying healthy, busy, and happy as always. Here are some events that have made us so thankful for the wonderful family that we have.

My Mom came to visit in early November. She watched the girls for a day while Joe & I went a Wyoming football game. I know Gabi & Maya enjoyed it and I'm sure she did too! Thank you Mom!


We spent an entire week in Buffalo with Joe's family over Thanksgiving. It was wonderful to just relax and enjoy each other. Gabi & Maya got lots of quality time playing with their cousins Gio & Marco.


Amanda & Greer hosted Thanksgiving dinner -- it was outstanding! Thanks you guys!


Gabi went on her first horseback ride! She didn't like it at first, but warmed up pretty quickly. She rode Buddy, the horse, with Papa Dave first, then by herself, and then Gio got in on the action. She loved it and was a natural! She still keeps saying "Giddy Up, Buddy!" When we say our prayers at night, she now prays for Buddy in addition to all of her family and friends.


Look, they're taking turns!!! ;-)


Even Maya was able to meet and ride Buddy:


We had some family pictures taken a month ago or so. Here are a few of them. If you would like to see more, click HERE.


Here are some more pictures from around the house this past month! Gabi has been talking so much lately -- we can't believe how fast she is picking it up now. She has even started singing to herself (especially the ABC song).


Hiking on South Table:


Maya is still a calm and happy baby. She has been filling out ever since she started eating cereal, fruits, and vegies! Her legs are so strong and she can scooch herself and roll around on the floor. She loves to "talk", squeal, bathtime, anything Gabi does, and cuddles.
I took Maya to see Dr. Julia yesterday for her 6 month check-up (yes, 6 months already!!) Here are her stats:

• 16.4 lbs (61 %ile)
• 26 inches long (61 %ile)
• 17.5 inch head (90 %ile)

We hope this finds you all healthy, happy, and enjoying the Holiday season! I'm excited for Gabi to help me decorate the tree and house today!

Love to you all,

Joe, Tara, Gabi & Maya