THANK YOU...

...to someone for a gift for Alex! No, I'm not being coy about who sent it....we really don't know who it was from :)

Yesterday, we received the cutest little gift for Alex. It is called "Blocks in a Box" and personalized with his name on it.

The shipping label states that it was shipped from a shipping company in Niceville, Florida, but there was no invoice in the box to tell us who sent this super cute gift to Alex. I sent e-mails and texts to everyone that I could think of asking who sent it...no

one knew! It is still a mystery to us!

Whoever you are (and I hope you read our blog), THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE PRESENT FOR ALEX!!! It was such a nice surprise to receive a gift like this in the mail - especially when we weren't expecting it! If you did send Alex this gift, will you please comment on this post so we can properly thank you :)

Here are some pictures of Alex's "Block in a Box":

House for Sale

Well, we did it...our house in Enterprise has been put up for sale!

For those of you that don't know, Larry's division has been relocated to Huntsville. So, where they go, we will follow :) Most of his division moved up during 2009 while we were living in Maryland. His report date is at the end of May, so our goal is to be up in the Huntsville area by the middle of May so we can get settled in a new house.

We have looked at houses online in Huntsville and have found a bunch that we like! We have narrowed it down to about 15 that we want to see during our "house-hunting" trip from February 17 to February 21.

We are both excited and nervous. As fun as this new adventure will be, it was kind of sad to put our "first home" up for sale. This is the house that we bought together, started our family in, made improvements to and really enjoyed for the past 3 and a half years. We have created so many memories in this house, but we look forward to making just as many memories in a new house!

And for any of our readers that know anyone that is in need of a house in Enterprise, Alabama. Please feel free to contact our Real Estate Agent - Joe Smith (334) 347-314o. You can view the link to our house at: http://idx2.wiregrassidx.com/listing.php?mls=30082&site_id=681&client_search=1350554

Here is a slideshow of our house pictures:

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Nothing More Fun...

Than ELEFUN!

Tonight, while were in Florida, Alex finally got to open his presents from Amanda and Josh and from Aunt Kristy and Unce Mike.

Amanda and Josh got Alex a rack with several puzzles on it. Alex LOVED it. He was able to put the puzzles together within a few minues - a genius perhaps?! Thanks to Amanda and Josh for getting Alex such a fun and educational present.

Aunt Kristy and Uncle Mike got Alex several presents: Toy Story Plate, Toy Story Bowl, Toy Story Straw freezy cup, a miniature snow globe with the name "Alex" on it, a super huge tent and the best present of all, ELEFUN!

Of course we set up Elefun as soon as he opened it and it was so much fun watching the joy on his face. I have a bunch of pictures and three videos of the Elefun :) I just love hearing his laughter and seeing his joy as he plays this game! Thank you so much, Aunt Kristy and Uncle Mike for giving us this gift that is already creating such incredible memories! Enjoy!

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Funny Video

Here is another video of our dancing fool:

Yes, we know that he isn't all that graceful and that it doesn't have much rythm...but he sure is cute!

Happy Birthday, Uncle Josh!!

Happy Birthday, Uncle Josh!

We hope you have a great 19th birthday! We love and miss you! We wish we could be with you to celebrate your special day!

Happy Birthday!!

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Our Happy Boy

There are some days where Alex is so much fun! He makes me laugh, he laughs and we have a great time together! Today was one of those days!

I decided to take some pictures of his good mood and for once, he let me :)

I love this boy more than I could have ever imagined and every day I thank God for putting him in my life!

Enjoy the pictures:

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Random Pictures

After finally downloading pictures off of our camera, here are some cute pictures that I took over the holidays and in the past few weeks.

Hope you enjoy them!

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First Day of School

Our little boy is growing up!

Today, Alex went to school for the first time! It is only a Mother's Day Out program and it is only from 8:30 am to 2:30 pm on Monday, but none the less, it is school and it is away from me! He will play with other kids, have lunch, hopefully learn a few things along the way and take a nap there! A long day for him, but sure to be an exciting one!

Last night, we told Alex that he was going to school today, that he was going to play with other kids and toys and that he was going to have fun. He seemed to be somewhat excited...mostly because we said kids and toys!

I have to admit, I had quite a nervous streak last night. I wondered if he would hate it, if HE would be nervous, if he would think I just abandoned him, if he would like the kids, if he would play nice with others and how his day would go. Larry assured me that he would be okay and that he would have so much fun! I packed his little lunch last night and got a little teary eyed because it hit me that my baby wasn't a baby anymore!

This morning started a little rough. Our power was out and Alex was in a VERY grumpy mood. He brightened up a little when we put his backpack on him and gave him his lunchbox! He was not a fan of all the picture taking though (I, however, did not care that he didn't like it, it is an important day and must be documented)!

Once we got to the school, he was so excited! He held his Daddy's hand (yes, Larry went into work late on his first day back so that way he could take Alex to school with me) and was smiling the whole way. When we got to his classroom to drop him off, he went right to his teacher and started playing with the puzzles that were laid out. Seriously, the kid acted like he had been doing this his whole life - he amazes me some times! There were no tears shed (well, not by Alex), he was such a brave little man and I couldn't have been prouder.

Me, on the other hand - I am patiently waiting for 2:30 to get here. I miss him and I can't wait to get him from school! It is nice to have a few hours to myself and to be able to run some errands without getting him in and out of the car, but so much of my day is about Alex and it feels weird not to have him with me!

I know this is a great thing for him. He is learning so much more than I can teach him here (how to share, how to behave in a class setting and how to be independent).

I promise to update later this afternoon about his day and how he did - I can't wait to share how his first day went!

Here are a few pictures of our morning:

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UPDATE:

Alex did great :) I am so proud of him! He ate good (something he doesn't do at home), played with the other kids, colored a picture and layed down during naptime! He didn't nap, but we weren't really expecting him to on his first day - I'm just happy that he rested and didn't disturb the other kids.

His teacher did tell me that he had a little trouble sharing, but she said that is something to be expected on his first day. He isn't used to sharing toys with anyone else, so it is a foreign concept for him! Once they told him to share he did though!

All in all, he had a great day at school. This school follows the Enterprise school system calendar and the kids have off next week for Martin Luther King day, so Alex doesn't go back until January 22nd. I'm sure he will do just as good that day!

National Champions - ROLL TIDE ROLL!

Tonight was the National Championship football game between the University of Alabama and Texas.

As you all know, we are HUGE Alabama fans in this house, so we were super excited to cheer the Tide onto a victory.

We let Alex stay up a little later than normal (he went to bed at halftime) and watch the game with us. He loved shaking his "shaker" and yelling "Roll Tide" and something that sounds like "Go Bama"!

We had a great time watching the game together and the night became even better when Alabama won :)

Oh, and just so you all know how big of an Alabama fan Larry is - he went out immediately after the game to Hibbetts to get his Championship t-shirt and hat!

Here are some pictures during the game:

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Alex-isms Part 1

I am sure that as Alex continues to grow and explore his words, I will have more installments into "Alex-isms". Today though, I had to share one with you all that had Larry and I laughing hysterically!

Alex has a little fetish with having shoes or slippers on his feet. He loves having them on. It is rare to catch this child without shoes, slippers or socks. In fact, he has four pairs of slippers (seriously, a 2 year old boy with four pairs of slippers...silly kid)!

Well, I finally broke down the other day and got myself a pair of slippers (they are definitely not the cutest things, but they are warm and comfy). I have been wearing them around the house since I got them. Yesterday morning, I had taken them off and put my bare feet on the couch. Alex quickly noticed it and brought the slippers to me, began to put them on my feet and was telling me "shoes mama, shoes!" I told him that I didn't want to wear my shoes because my feet were hot. Being the insanely smart kid that he is (slightly biased), he put the slippers back on the floor and started blowing on my feet. Yes, blowing! We started teaching him how to blow on his food when it is hot and apparently he is associating that with anything that is hot!

Too funny! This child definitely keeps us laughing and on our toes!

Happy New Year's Eve

Happy New Year's Eve from our family to yours!

We hope you have a happy, healthy and blessed 2010!

I can't believe that this year is over...it feels like it has just begun! As crazy as the year has been for our family, 2009 was definitely a year to remember. We are thankful for every opportunity that has come our way and thankful for every challenge that we have overcome. Our family has accomplished great things this year and I couldn't be prouder of us!

Here are a few pictures of our little guy on New Year's Eve:

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Dancing Fool

Tonight, Alex decided that he wanted to wear his robe over his footed jammies (kind of like Hugh Hefner). As if that wasn't enough to get us laughing, he decided that he would also provide a little entertainment for the evening!

Here is a video of Alex dancing around the living room in his jammies and robe. Enjoy :)

Christmas Pictures

As much as I love Christmas, I have never had as much fun as we did this year! Alex was absolutely amazed by the tree, lights and presents. When he first woke up, Larry went in and got him and tried to keep him occupied in his room while I set up the webcam, video camera and lights on the tree. Alex heard me talking and when we finally let him out of his room, instead of running towards the presents and tree he ran straight for Mommy! I gave him hugs, kisses and showed him the tree - I have never seen his eyes get so big!

Alex ran right up to his presents and started opening them right away! It was priceless watching him run from present to present, smiling and laughing! It took nearly 1.5 hours to open all of his presents - between opening them (which involved taking off every scrap of paper on EACH and EVERY present) and taking them out of the packaging to play with them!

We are so blessed that Alex is a part of our lives. He makes every day brighter, bring more happiness and laughter to our life than we could have ever imagined and is the light of our life. But this year, watching his celebrate the wonder of Christmas and seeing the joy and delight through his 2 year old eyes, we fell even more in love with him!

Here are a few pictures from our morning:

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Grandpa Larry and Aunt Claudia came down to visit a few days after Christmas and brought Alex another present to open! He got a NASCAR Racecar Helmet that makes noise when you put it on! Alex loves it! He also loves to make other people wear his helmet, slam the eye piece shut and say "bye-bye"! Very funny and very cute!

Here are a few pictures of Alex opening his helmet from Grandpa Larry and Aunt Claudia:

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Aunt Sheena also came to visit after Christmas and she brought with her more presents! Alex loved unwrapping and getting a HUGE Diego ball pit from Aunt Sheena! After he unwrapped it, I told her that it would be the perfect present to keep at her apartment after we move to Huntsville :) Afterall, he does need presents there, too!

Here are some pictures of Alex opening and enjoying the ball pit:

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Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

We wish each and every one of you a Merry Christmas!

I will be back on later tonight to report on what Santa brought us and hopefully have a few pictures to share!

Presents from Aunt Jenny & Nona Lynn

On Christmas Eve, we let Alex open his gifts from Aunt Jenny and Nona Lynn (Jenny's Mom).

Jenny got him two Geo-Trax sets, a Handy Manny Toy and two pairs of PJ's (Wonder Pets and Buzz Lightyear). Nona Lynn got him a tool box with a spinning/working drill and a super-cute long sleeve shirt. As much as Alex loved the toys, he loved the Wonder Pet jammies just as much. We changed into them shortly after opening them!

Thank you both Jenny and Lynn! Thank you for caring enough about our son to include him in your holiday shopping. It means to the world to us to know that we have such amazing friends/family like you! We truly are blessed!

Here are a bunch of pictures from present opening:

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Larry & Sarah's Christmas

Larry and I decided to open our presents to each other on December 23. We wanted Christmas to be all about Alex and we knew that he wouldn't give us too much opprotunity to open presents that weren't for him.

It was nice to spend time with Larry, listening to Christmas music and opening our presents.

I got Larry a new pair of Oakley's (to replace the ones that he left in London), a new iPod (to replace the one that was stolen from our car), several Alabama shirts, an Alabama Columbia Fleece jacket, a pair of Nike shoes (that should be here in a few weeks) and some fun stocking stuffers. Oh, for those of you that don't know, I ordered Larry a specially made, very pricey watch for TPS graduation. Because of the expense, it is also considered part of his Christmas gift as well.

Larry got me a new watch, a pink North Face Pull-Over jacket, a gift certificate to the spa for a massage, a Coach Purse and for my last present, the Apple Mac Computer that I have been drooling over for several years now. When he gave me the Mac, he told me that it was for both Christmas and for being such a big help to him this past year in TPS. It was nice that he recognized that and it made the gift so much more special.

We were both definitely spoiled this year, but after the past year in Maryland, it was very well-deserved :)

Here are some pictures of us opening our gifts...enjoy!

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Pictures from my Cell Phone

Here are a few images from my cell phone taken at random times!

Alex on his potty...looks like he is really concentrating!

Sleeping on Mommy...such a sweet boy!

Hiding from the camera...and saying "Cheese" at the same time! Silly kid!

Having breakfast with blankie and doggie!

Sitting in his big boy bed:

Riding the new airplane at Daddy's school:

Dancing on the ride at Daddy's school (it was playing the theme from Top Gun")

2 Year Pediatrician Appointment

Today, Alex had his 2 year pediatrician appointment. Yes, it was two months and a day late...but who is counting!

The appointment went great! First he was weighed - 28 pounds, then he was measured - 36 1/8 inches and then his head was measured 18.5 inches. His weight puts him in the 40th percentile, his height puts him in the 80th percentile and his head puts him in the 15th percentile. Thats right, we have a tall, lean child with a small head!

As always, we really enjoy talking to Dr. Whitaker (we really will miss him when we move to Huntsville, but he gave us the name of another pediatrician that he recommends Dr. Kevin Ellis, so we will definitely be calling him in a few months). Dr. Whitaker takes the time to answer all of your questions, doesn't make you feel rushed and really seems to geniunely care about both the child and the patient. We had a few questions about Alex being a picky eater and Dr. Whitaker basically told us that he will eat what he wants, when he wants and that is okay. I am not to become a short order cook! We are to make one thing at dinner that he does like and then serve him what we are eating and see how it goes. We are also supposed to give him healthier snacks throughout the day! Dr. Whitaker really makes us feel like we are doing an okay job at this whole parenting thing :)

Finally came the shots. Alex received three this time. He really did good with all of them. Only screaming for a few seconds when they poked him and then pushed the medicine in. Once that was over, he was just fine...especially after we gave him one of his coveted lollipops :)

As a parent, it is a great thing to hear your child is doing well physically, mentally and meeting all his milestones. It is nice when the pediatrician validates the work you have been doing.

Dancing Boy!

Tonight, Larry turned on the Christmas music channel on our tv. Alex started dancing to "Feliz Navidad" and I thought it was the funniest thing I have seen in a long time.

I picked up my cell phone and started filming him. I know it isn't the best quality, but I hope it makes you laugh! Please disregard the shakiness of camera, I was laughing too hard to stop!




And this is one of the videos that Larry got! Wow...this kid cracks me up :) He definitely will be yelling at me for these videos in just few years!!



Finally, the third installment of the Feliz Navidad video! This kid really knows how to shake his booty!!

Back in Alabama

After a long 15 hour drive, an exciting re-route through DOWNTOWN Atlanta (with a U-Haul, pulling a trailer with the Mariner), much fast-food consumption, many laughs and giggles, quite a few hours of DVD watching (by Alex), eating many snacks and Mike & Ikes (again by Alex...thank you Aunt Sheena), a torrential downpour on the last 30 minutes of our journey from Troy to Enterprise, and four very tired adults....WE MADE IT BACK TO ALABAMA!!

We are home and enjoying life back in Enterprise. Alex is getting used to the house and all the toys he left behind! Apparently we didn't need to buy him any Christmas presents, we just needed to bring him back to the ones we left behind!

Since we are in the process of unpacking, I haven't taken any pictures of Alex with our camera in the past few days. Sheena has a few cute ones on her camera from the roadtrip, so as soon as she sends them to me, I will share them with you all. But because we know the real reason that you call come here for (the Alex pictures), Larry did snap this cute one of him laying on the table watching TV!