Our Christmas Card

May your Christmas be filled with lots of love, family snuggles by the fire, extra marshmallows in your hot chocolate, goodies in your stocking, too many cookies, Christmas carols, beautiful lights, and lots and lots of joy!

Merry Christmas from our family to yours.

Hudson's First Christmas Program

On Monday Hudson had his first Christmas program with his daycare buddies! We thought we would have a few years to go before these programs began for us....but we were wrong! I guess they start them off young.

 Hudson getting ready to go on stage in his ho ho ho shirt. We weren't sure how he would do since the program started a hour before his bedtime, but he did great!

Are you wondering what on earth a 3 month old baby does in a Christmas program? Well....the answer is, not much! The girls that work with the babies dressed up and sat on stage with them while they sang a "Baby's First Christmas" song. The theme for their class was Babes in Toyland. Totally nailed it!

Hudson got to be in his favorite teacher, Miss Morgan's,  lap. And he didn't cry at all!

We are very lucky to have such wonderful people looking after Hudson when I am at work.

Hudson lost his cool after the performance so we had to leave....but I hear the 3 and 4 year old classes were adorable! Can't wait to see our little guy singing Christmas songs on stage in a few years!

Silence and Support

Boot love

Before I start my boot post, I have to say a few words. I have a heavy heart this morning. Now that I'm a mom my worst fear isn't that something bad could happen to me...it's that something bad might happen to my baby. All weekend I couldn't stop thinking about the events at Sandy Hook Elementary. I can't imagine dropping Hudson off at school and never seeing him again. When I was giving him a bath Friday evening, I couldn't stop crying for all the moms and dads who didn't get to give their little ones a bath that night. Or read them a bedtime story. Or rock them to sleep. I spent the weekend giving Hudson extra snuggles and thanking God for the opportunity to be his mommy. My heart aches for the moms and dads that are dealing with the loss of their precious son or daughter.

Hug your little ones extra tight...and remember what Christmas is all about. Take joy in the little things this season.
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Is it possible to be in love with a pair of boots?

 I hope so....because I think I'm in love with my new Sorel boots from Onlineshoes.com 

They are the Sorel Slimpack boots and lets just say this....holy cow are these guys comfy...and cute!

 When OnlineShoes contacted me to do a review of my choice of Women's Sorel boots I couldn't wait to try them out! I've always wanted a pair of Sorels....and these seemed like the perfect blend of riding boot meets winter boot. I really like the simple style and that they are different from the typical Sorel boot.

 I've worn them several times and they just get more comfortable each time. I've been waiting to try them out in the snow but we haven't really had any yet! But I can say that they are great in wet weather. I wore them when we went to pick out our Christmas tree and they kept me cozy and dry!

My favorite part is the back....love the little details that make these boots stand out. OnlineShoes was super easy to work with and my boots arrived so quickly! It was like Christmas morning when the box arrived!

Right now until December 28th OnlineShoes is hosting a blogger style contest! Click HERE to check out how four bloggers styled a gorgeous pair of Sorel boots and make sure to vote for your favorite! And the best part is that when you vote you are automatically entered in for a chance to win your own pair of Sorels!

O Christmas Tree!

Decorating our Christmas tree each year is one of my favorite traditions. I just love walking in to our house and smelling our wonderful fresh tree. I'll miss it when we have to take it down!

Still no presents under our tree. Mama/Santa needs to start wrapping!

We have some new favorite ornaments this year. I love this mercury glass "H" I picked up for Hudson at Kohls.

A dear friend of mine made this ornament out of the invitation to my baby shower. So cute!

Of course we have a little red shoe!

 And I am just in love with this ornament I had made at Shutterfly using our newborn photos for Hudson's first Christmas. It is my absolute favorite!

 We also have two mini trees in our family room! I go for more of a rustic theme in that room and it always turns out so cute.

 Another Hudson ornament. I couldn't help myself! He is going to have a ton of ornaments when he grows up!

My cute boy decked out in his Christmas gear.

And of course Wrigley "helping" me decorate!

Make sure you join the link party and show off your Christmas tree over at Honey We're Home!

Happy 3 Months Hudson!

Last week Hudson turned 3 months old! I can't believe how fast time flies when you have a baby! I absolutely love the stage that he is in right now. He is such a sweet boy and brings so much joy to our lives.

Height and Weight: We haven't had a doctor's appointment this month, but according to our scale he is 16 pounds 6 ounces! The last time we measured him he was 24 inches...so he might be a little taller now. He is growing so fast! 

The little hair he has is definitely red/strawberry blonde. I LOVE it. And so far his eyes are staying blue.

Health: The day he turned 3 months old Hudson got his first cold. He is still sick 5 days later, but starting to feel better. Hearing his little cough just breaks my heart! I am so thankful for an otherwise healthy baby.

Even though he doesn't feel well, he's still all smiles!

Sleep: Hudson started sleeping through the night about a week or so ago! He usually sleeps for a 10-11 hour stretch. But now that he's sick that has gone out the window. Hopefully when he starts feeling better he'll go back to sleeping through the night. Fingers crossed! Hudson isn't a very consistent napper, but I try to get him to take 2 naps a day. Some days he takes 3 naps and some days he takes one super long nap.

Diet: 100% breast milk. And thanks to his daddy he finally learned to take a bottle when he is at daycare or home with daddy or grandma while I am at work.

Clothes: He wears mostly 3-6 month clothing and size 6 months in jammies. He's still wearing size 2 diapers.

Baby Gear Love: Hudson loves his Sophie the Giraffe. It is by far his favorite toy. He also likes to swat at the toys on his baby gym. 

Crying: Hudson cries when he is tired, hungry, and according to daddy when he has to take a bottle.

Likes: Eating, laughing at daddy, and chewing on his hands. And he still loves his bath. He is also noticing Wrigley and the cats more often now. Wrigley is dying to play with Hudson! They are going to be such great friends one day.

Postpartum: I still have a few pregnancy pounds to loose but I'm not stressing about it. And I've been shedding hair like crazy. I still have a ton of hair so it's not noticeable at all...just a pain in the butt. 

Social: Hudson started day care at 12 weeks. So far so good. It was much harder on me than it was on him! And all of the day care workers just LOVE him. His teacher, Miss Morgan, told me that teachers from other rooms come in just to see him and love on his chubby cheeks. It makes it a little easier to leave him knowing that he'll get lots of love during the day. 

Milestones: Hudson can hold his head up now and sit in the Bumbo. He also started rolling over from his tummy on to his back! My mom watched him on Friday and he did it twice for her....she didn't want to tell me because she was afraid I would be upset that I missed it. He still hasn't done it for me! Funny story: when my husband got home I told him the good news and he said "oh, he did that for me last week too, but I didn't think it counted." WHAT? I guess my husband thinks that it was too easy for Hudson to roll from his tummy to his back because his head is so big it just sort of pulls him over....so he is only counting rolling from back to tummy as rolling over! Silly man. 

We love our little moose!

Baby stuff I didn't know we needed....until we did

When I first got pregnant I vowed to keep the "baby junk" in our house to a minimum. I figured we didn't need more clutter in our house, right? Turns out I was wrong! So I thought I'd share my list of things that I didn't think we needed...until we did!

1. Crane Drop Humidifier. Hudson has his first cold right now and this humidifier is great! If you are pregnant make sure you buy one now because if you are like me, you won't decide you need one until it's baby's bedtime...and your husband is at baseball practice. (Lucky for me grandma was able to babysit!).

2. NoseFrida. I was at a baby shower when a friend received this as a gift and I thought it was the most disgusting thing I had ever seen! Little did I know that a few months later I would be buying one. You use this to suck the snot out of your baby's nose...and it is awesome! Hudson doesn't like it, but he HATED the one they give you at the hospital. Plus, there is a strange sense of satisfaction when you see all the boogers you can get out with this thing!

3. Boppy Nursing Cover. For some reason I didn't think I needed this. I figured I would just feed Hudson a pumped bottle if we were out and about. Turns out he didn't really like a bottle at first so this was totally necessary! So far I've only used it in the car and haven't gotten up the courage to use it somewhere more public. Maybe with baby #2 I'll be more brave!

4. Gas Drops. Just buy these now. Your baby may have gas or may be like mine and just cry a lot, making you think he has gas. Who knows if these helped at all but it made this new mama feel like at least I was trying something during those first few (super hard) weeks!

5. A Second Boppy Cover. If you use a boppy (we love ours!) make sure you get a second, or even a third, cover for it. Trust me.

6. Bottle Warmer. I refused to register for a bottle warmer. I am breastfeeding and figured we didn't need it. All you have to do is heat up some water in the microwave and plop a cold bottle in there right? Turns out this process took longer than I thought. And according to my husband it was a pain in the you know what. So save your husband a hassle and go out and buy this for him. He'll thank you for it.

7. Sheet Saver. Buy two of these. Spit up on sheets is no fun. While you're at it buy two mattress pads too.

8. White noise apps for your iphone. We have white noise lite and a wonderful nature one from BuzlyLabs. These come in handy when you are out and about and need to drown out loud noises so your baby stays asleep! I learned that trick from our newborn photographer Miranda!

9. Vitamin D drops. I had no clue that breastfed babies needed these! You can put them in a bottle for daycare or do what I do and give them to your baby when he is taking his bath! Hudson is always in a good mood during bath time and takes them like a champ.

10. A cute baby book. This is the one I bought and I LOVE it. In fact, everyone who looks at it loves it too!  When I was pregnant I couldn't find a baby book that I liked. I decided I didn't need one and that I could just make a really nice photo book of Hudson's first year. But trust me, you need a real baby book! Especially since it's hard to remember all of those "firsts"! You think you'll have no problem remembering and then you have a baby and BAM....you loose your mind. Those first few weeks I couldn't remember what day it was or when the last time Hudson ate...so there was no way I could remember the date of his first outing or first bath. Trust me on this one!

What is on your "I didn't know we needed it" list?

New Mommy Confessions.....

Guess who slept through the night for the second night in a row????

This guy! Is it a fluke or did I luck out with a good sleeper? Who knows....but I'll take it! Hudson slept from 7:15 pm until 6:15 am. HOLY. COW. 

And he did MUCH better at day care yesterday too....all because daddy figured out he'll take a bottle if he is swaddled. Genius. 

Anyway, as some of you know, being a new mommy is amazing....but at times can be crazy awkward. Like when my boobs leak all over my work clothes. Or I don't realize until I get home from work that there was spit-up in my hair. Or when Hudson has poop all the way up to his shoulders and I have to map out my attack plan. Check out my and other blogger's "new mommy confessions" today over at Running from the Law! I guarantee it will put a smile on your face!

this n' that

And now, a post in list form....because it's Monday....and I'm tired.

• Thank you for your prayers and good thoughts on my last post. Hudson did okay at day care. He was sort of fussy for them and is still unsure about taking a bottle, but overall he did fine. I, on the other hand, cried in the parking lot and the entire drive to work. 

• Hudson stays home with me on Wednesdays and daddy or grandma on Fridays...which I am so thankful for. Any tips for helping a breastfed baby take a bottle?

• Want to know what's awkward? Pumping at work. 

• Now that I'm no longer on maternity leave the weekends are even more precious. More time with my little man = a happy mama. But weekends just go by way too fast. 

• Hudson slept through the night last night! And I couldn't even enjoy it because my boobs hurt so much.

• Finally ordered our Christmas cards......I feel so behind this year. My OCD tendencies usually mean I have them addressed and ready to go by the first of December. Oh well. 

• I really want some cute reindeer/snowflake leggings. Does anyone know where I can find some that don't break the bank?

• And because I can't post without a picture....here is one of my sweet little man. It's so hard to leave him!