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!

National Air & Space Museum

After living in Maryland for almost 11 months, Larry finally got a chance to go to the National Air & Space Museum. Larry, Larry, Jr., Sheena, Alex and I, took a trip to the National Air & Space Museum. We decided to take a day in between packing and moving and head to Washington, DC.

The Museum is incredible and I highly recommend it to anyone who is visiting the DC area. Larry really enjoyed seeing all the aircraft and Alex LOVED the children's area. It was completely hands on - Alex was able to play inside aircraft and play with different exhibits.

Here are some pictures from the day:

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Test Pilot School Graduation

After 11 months of intense schooling, a rigorous flight schedule, many reports, one trip out west, one trip to England, one huge DT2 project, many sleepless nights and more stress that I ever realized was possible...it is official...Larry is a graduate of the United States Naval Test Pilot School.

Tonight was the graduation ceremony and Larry received his diploma!

Graduation was held at the Daughtery Center in Lexington Park, Maryland. The Graduate was escorted by both his dad and I. He had pretty good dates, if I do say so myself! There was a cocktail hour when we first arrived and we were served champagne by the instructors. After the cocktail hour, we were served dinner (both Larry's had steak and I had a chicken dish). Once dinner was over, we listened to the guest speaker, Mike Coats, tell us about his NASA and TPS experiences. Finally, the students of Class 136 were called up individually and handed their diplomas. It was a proud moment for both the student and their families! A very sweet moment in the evening is when the students presented their spouses with a rose (bottle of wine for the two gentleman spouses) and a "Certificate of Appreciation". It was nice to be reminded that not only were we celebrating the students, but we were also celebrating the people in their lives that made this past year happen! We ended the evening socializing with the other students and families.

At the end of the evening, we said our "good-byes" to many of the other students. It was a bittersweet moment. As excited as I am to be getting back home to Alabama, I am very sad to be leaving some of the people we have met. I think because TPS is such an intense situation, they students all grew a close bond. I know that regardless of where we go, we have made friends for life through this experience.

I am so excited for Larry and this accomplishment. It has been stressful, but he had such determination and drive to succeed. Proud doesn't even begin to describe how I feel about the situation. He amazes me on a daily basis with his intellect, his perserverance, his dedication and his success. He strives to be and do the best and often isn't satisfied with just "okay"! I was honored tonight to stand by his side!

Here are a few pictures from the evening...we hope you enjoy them!

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Here are a few pictures from our cell phones:

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Bye-Bye TPS

Today, Larry had the opportunity to take us to TPS one last time. Larry, Jr., Sheena, Alex and I went with him and we were able to get quite a few good pictures.

Each class leaves the School a gift. This year, the students decided upon a "kiddie" airplane ride. The airplane was painted to match the planes at TPS and all of the students signed the top of it. When you pushed the button to make it go, it played the theme from "Top Gun"! It turned out amazing and Alex LOVED it! The best part about it...it is free! I wish they would have put it in sooner, Alex and I could have spent many afternoons there :)

Also, Alex was able to try on a real helment and really liked it! He kept telling us "my hat"!

Here is are a few pictures from our last tour at TPS! Oddly enough, I am really going to miss the place.

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Christmas Cards

Since we will be moving this weekend, Larry and I worked extra hard to get our Christmas cards in the mail before we left Maryland. We were successful and they all went in the mail yesterday. If I have your address, you should be getting your card later this week.

However, I am so excited about the design of them, that I can't help but sharing! My friend Amanda has an Etsy shop (http://www.littlebeanshop.etsy.com/) and she designs holiday cards, gift and note cards, digital scrapbooking supplies and even does a little sewing! I definitely recommend contacting her if you need anything done - she is amazing!

I sent her my six favorite pictures from this past year (well, really just this past month or so) and she designed four cards for me. I selected two of the designs and put them inside our Christmas cards. I absolutely love them and hope you will, too!

Here are the designs:

And this one was another favorite, but we didn't use it:

Hope you all enjoy them just as much as we did!

Flat Iron Farms

Tonight, we went to Flat Iron Farms with The Cady's (Matt, Stephanie, Bella and Austin). Flat Iron Farms is a great place to bring the kids to get the into the holiday spirit! They had a great light display - one of the areas was even set to music on an FM radio station. There was also a little petting zoo, an indoor area with tractors and inflatable jumping toys for the kids, an area with cookies and hot chocolate, pony rides and Santa was even there.

We walked around, mostly freezing, but really enjoying seeing the smiles on the kids' faces. Alex loved the lights and kept pointing them out saying "lights, cool lights"! We tried to get Alex to sit with Santa, but that did not happen. He liked Santa long enough to get his candy cane, but not long enough to get a picture with him!

Here are a few pictures from the night - surprisingly, I was enjoying the moment and not taking pictures :)

Bella and Alex loving the animals in the petting zoo:


Sweet Bella:

Alex running around the indoor area. He loved the tractors and train display and had a little trouble following the "hands off" rule:

Alex playing on the inflatable toys:

Austin - I am so going to miss this sweet little boy! He is so photogenic and so handsome!

SEC Championship Game

Today was the SEC Championship game. Alabama played Florida for a spot in the National Championship game. Fortunately for us Alabama fans, we won the game! We are now anxiously awaiting January 7 when Alabama plays Texas in the National Championship Bowl. ROLL TIDE ROLL!

During the game, we got a few cute shots of Alex - these three were taken with my cell phone. I've been searching for the few that we took with our camera and can't seem to find them on my computer! As soon as I find them, I will upload them also :)

Alex smiling for the camera:

Alex and Daddy...all decked out in their Alabama gear! I do have to say that these are two of the cutest Alabama fans that I know!

Here are a few pictures from the camera that I FINALLY found on my computer:

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Temper Tantrum

For all of you that think Alex is a nice, sweet, calm boy...here is proof that he isn't all the time! This is when I was fighting with him to take a nap - we had just moved into our room when the tantrum ensued.

Enjoy!

Larry's Last TPS Flight

Today was Larry's last flight as a TPS student. He flew in an S-55T. He took a few pictures inside and out of the helicopter, so I thought I would share them with you all. He enjoyed the flight and told me tonight that this is the helicopter that they modeled "Harold the helicopter" on Thomas off of! Kind of a cool little tidbit of information and something that Alex will definitely appreciate in the years to come :)

Here are the pictures:

Inside the cockpit: Full picture of the helicopter - pretty neat looking:

Larry and the pilot: