No Iowa / 5th Christmas Celebration

For our 5th Christmas Celebration we were supposed to leave today for Iowa and then celebrate with the Hunt's (Eric's mom's side) tomorrow in Edgewood, IA. Unfortunately because they are getting hit with an ice storm and then snow following we've decided not to make the trip. We will miss seeing everyone but hope they have a great time.

While we were watching the weather and trying to decide what to do my brother helped with the baby by feeding Robert for the first time. Not too many dribbles and he got a good burp at the end so for his first time ever feeding a baby I think he did a pretty good job!

Christmas Night and Friday (Red Wing, MN)

Christmas Night we celebrated with the Knautz's (my Aunt Val, Uncle Paul, Cousin Parker, and Grandpa). Robert really was a great boy for having two long days. Of course once again he slept through the opening of gifts but it was still a great time and fun spending a few days with that side of the family.Mylo & Vegas resting after all the excitement

We also got to visit with my good friend Abby, her husband Mike, and their daughter Lucy while in Red Wing. It was a lot of fun to see them again and to hang out. Lucy is a month older than Robert so it is always nice to visit and share our baby stories.

Christmas Day Lunch (Maple Grove, MN)

We spent the middle of our day in Maple Grove at my cousin Susie's house and had a great time celebrating with family on my dad's side. It is always a great time and playing with my godson Aidan always provides lots of entertainment.

Christmas Morning (Robbinsdale, MN)

On Christmas Day we had 3 celebrations and started the day off by having my mom, Nick and Mandie over for our family Christmas. After a yummy breakfast we opened gifts that Robert just couldn't stay awake for. Poor baby must have known he was in for a long day and that he needed his rest.

Good Morning Mommy...It's Christmas!

Trying to stay awake

Vegas attacking his presents

Hempler Christmas (Farmington, MN)

On Christmas Eve we celebrated with Eric's family to start our first of 5 Christmas celebrations. It was a great night and it was the latest I had stayed up in a long time. Christmas is always fun with kids around and Lyric provided lots of entertainment by playing with Robert and of course the dreaded wait to open gifts while the dinner dishes were being cleaned and put away!

Getting cleaned up for Christmas!

Stealing Grandpa's Chair

Wide awake and happy before opening gifts!

Cousin Love

My Chair!

Tonight Eric put Robert in one of our rocking chairs and got a bunch of smiles out of Robert when he started rocking the chair. We didn't get as many once I got the camera but we still got a few. The best part of it is that after we were done taping Eric tried to share the chair with Robert and he started screaming & crying. This continued with him in his swing, with him being carried, with him getting a diaper change, and every other position. I jokingly told Eric that it was because he took him out of his chair and so he put him back in the chair and within seconds he stopped crying. It was too funny! In Robert's defense it is the chair that both Eric and I love to sit in, even though we have a matching one on the other side of the room.

Happy Holidays

We want to wish everyone a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. We are excited to celebrate our first Christmas with Robert and to see a lot of relatives over the next week.

Baptism

Saturday night we celebrated Robert's baptism. He was all smiles before the service started but then his lack of naps for the day caught up with him. So Eric and I both took turns walking with him and luckily got through the baptism portion of the service with no tears! The tears, as you'll see below, came after church when we tried to take pictures.

Robert's godparents - Adam, Mandie, and Nick

Pretty sure this is the first baby Adam has held since Lyric was little!

Pastor Elaine with a screaming baby!

A crying baby doesn't upset the grandparents

Great Grandpa Knautz

Great Aunts & Uncles Paul, Val, Joe, and Sally

It's a Christmas Miracle

As many of you know my mom was in a bad car accident the Sunday before Thanksgiving and throughout that chaos her dog Vegas got out of the car and ran away. Many people searched for him but nobody had found him nor did he go to any of the farm houses nearby. With 2 1/2 weeks having gone by we had pretty much given up hope on his surviving the weather.

Yesterday while at work I got a call from my mom and at first it was hard to understand what she was saying because she was crying so hard but I finally made out that somebody from the Baldwin area called and had just found Vegas. The woman that found him said he appeared to be fine and made arrangements to meet my mom that afternoon.

He was found on a county road about a mile south of the accident but we don't know where he has been for all this time or what he has been up to. The vet said that he looked pretty good but had lost about 7 lbs, was dehydrated, and had a small infection...overall not too bad. His perkyness has returned today and he is getting to be more like his old self. Both my mom and Vegas are happy to be reunited and as always the dog is getting spoiled. Thanks to everyone who has kept my mom and Vegas in your prayers and thoughts!

Santa's Little Helper

This past week we have been busy getting ready for the holidays. We've decorated the house, wrapped presents, mailed out the Christmas cards and have started baking a bunch of cookies. Robert of course didn't want to be left out so he was our cute little helper.

Our lil' Thug!

Peek a Boo!

A long 2 weeks

I apologize to all of our loyal viewers for not updating our blog in awhile but we have had a long 2 weeks and are hoping for a better month in December. On Monday, November 17th we found out that Eric's Aunt Linda had passed away. The rest of the week was spent with family and remembering a great person. It was great to have all of the Hunt Family in Minnesota and we will all continue to live out Linda's motto that she adopted throughout all of her struggles with cancer..."Celebrate Life. Live with Hope." Here is a picture of her when she visited us in the hospital after Robert was born and one of Robert with his Great Grandparents.

On Sunday Eric and I were attempting to get caught up on laundry and other chores when I received a phone call from my uncle saying that my mom had been in a car accident on her way home from his cabin. So I quickly packed up the five of us (dogs included) and we headed down to Red Wing. During our drive we began to get more details about the accident and discovered that my mom was doing okay but her dog that she has had since 2002 ran away after the accident. So we quickly stopped by my mom's house to unload the car and drop the dogs off and headed off to Baldwin, Wisconsin where the accident occurred. It turns out that as my mom was approaching Baldwin on Hwy 63 a car blew a stop sign and crossed the road right in front of her. She had no time to respond and ended up hitting the car going about 55 mph. It is amazing that all people involved in the accident were able to walk away from the accident. My mom is doing good and only suffered from bruising and stiffness all over. We worried mostly about her back, since she had just undergone her second surgery in less than 2 years a few months ago, but she insisted that was the one part of her body that didn't hurt. The sad thing is that my mom's dog Vegas is still missing. Eric, my brother, and family friends searched for him on both the day of the accident and the next day along with posting fliers all over Baldwin. We keep hoping that he'll turn up soon so that my mom has her little buddy back. We stayed in Red Wing until Tuesday night to drive mom to the doctor, insurance agents, and look for new cars. Here are some pictures of her car following the accident.

On Wednesday we went to St. Peter to help pack up my Grandpa who moved to a new assisted living place in Wisconsin near my uncles house. He suffers from Alzheimer's and it was getting to be too much on mom my mom and uncle to have him living so far away. The move will hopefully be good for him and he'll get to go to all of my cousins' sporting events to keep him busy. While in St. Peter Robert spent the day with his Great Aunt Sally, Great Uncle Joe, and cousin Chad.

On Thursday we were able to stick to our original plans and have both the Hempler's and the Roberts' over for dinner. It was the first time either Eric or I had cooked the Thanksgiving meal but I must say I'm quite impressed with our abilities. It was a great day to just relax, play some Wii, and to be around our family at a time when we have so much to be thankful for.

To what we hope is the end of our long 2 weeks the three of us are battling colds. Robert's started Sunday night in Red Wing and he has been congested and coughing ever since. Eric and I started to get sore throats on Wednesday and it has now progressed in to full head colds. Not exactly how I wanted to spend my holiday but I know that we will all survive. I had been dreading Robert's first cold but have been so impressed with my little baby. Even though he is obviously sick he still keeps giving mommy and daddy smiles and hasn't been too fussy. I just hope this continues every time he is sick. Here is a picture of my happy sick baby!