The Garners

Jensen realized one evening that you could ask Santa for whatever you want and he's supposed to get it for you! After that he insisted we take him to the mall to speak with the man himself. (Apparently the letter method of the evening before seemed to be too slow.) As the stakes were so high (he wants a whole lot of stuff) he actually sat on his lap, which neither Al nor I were expecting.

Here he is confiding his everlasting list...

Now I'm going to go back in time to stuff I missed posting due to Duke being born... Don't worry Jes, there is more Duke in a sec....

For our annual trip Brittany and I went to Dahlonega GA's Gold Rush Festival. I have literally wanted to go for years, so it was very exciting for me.

We stayed overnight at her dad's house- not quite last years' Paris trip, but fun nonetheless.

We both made impulse purchases; Britt a necklace, me a winter coat... hehe. We did not match on purpose.

A few days before Halloween we went back to the same nursery we went to last year to get our pumpkins. Kennedi Hamner wasn't there to pose in these things with Jence this time, so Al did it.

He found the one that mommy said he could like all by himself...

Lots of big round things around that place.

He had to "take it to the lady" (what we always say in stores) himself.

Here's a play by play of Jensen's first pumpkin carving experience.

(note the contractor was only partially done laying the tile in the kitchen...)

All done and lit up outside. Jence loved that part. He was very upset when we had to take them to the dump a week later. We explained that they had cavities.... he has been less resistant to brushing ever since...

For the last Halloween that we parents get to choose the costumes we and the Gibbs decided that the boys should be Wayne and Garth. They were the hit of the neighborhood.

I have never seen Tristan so goofy- his timing was perfect

Their personalities really made this great because Jensen would go running up to a house and Tristan would follow at a little distance - they were hysterical.

Again I stress that Britt was only three weeks (and three feet) behind me in this pregnancy. She too has since had her baby (Silas) and he weighed over 7 lbs. We still have no clue where he was hiding in there.

I made them pose one last time before they could eat any candy. (They got so much because hardly anyone was out in the neighborhood, so as they were laughing everyone gave them handfuls of candy.)

Alex and Jensen went to Walmart alone and came home with a skateboard (??) for Jensen.

He looked pretty cute the one time he played with it...

A couple weeks before my due date I decided that we had to paint the kitchen...

Grandma Chrissie bought How to Train your Dragon for Jence. Here you can see the paint stirrers stuck through belt loops aka dragon wings.

In a picture of me on Jensen's due date I am wearing this shirt, so mom insisted that I put it on (I haaaaate it because I wore it so much) to take a picture on Duke's Due date.

(She told me my arms were in the way...)

Lola got a new chew- we have found that it is the miracle treat. It keeps her from jumping or chewing, as well as entertained for hours.

Here is another way she entertains herself. Playing with my wind chimes.

This is soon after we brought him home.

I grabbed a couple shots of D a few days after we got home. I didn't like any of them so I did it again about a week and a half later- I'll post some of those tomorrow.

This I loved. That's his binky he's holding in. He did this consistently through the first week- now he just knocks it out like a normal baby.

I think that was an angry face...

Jensen is on a Steak and Shake kick. Unfortunately it is in the Target parking lot and I enjoy Target. Now we have to go through hysterics at every visit if we don't schedule in time to stop and eat. The thing is, it's not the food he wants (though he usually eats better there than anywhere else-) it's the paper car that you fold up and put stickers on. He loves them. We went once when they were out of them and I tell you the world stopped turning. So Grandma Marian and Bapa hit the nail on the head when they sent him a toy car with stickers to put on it. Oh happy day.

This is a bit too close to see, but we set him with his arms up on the Boppy and within about three minutes he was up and over the other side of it on the floor, trying to turn over. Note to self, no unsupervised tummy time...

Knocked out after dinner...

Ditto.

Jensen is pretty chill about having a little attention stealer in the house, but at this particular moment he wanted to be held like Duke.

Here's Duke modeling adorable little outfit Grandma Garner sent him. (And Grandma, I have to say that those socks are the only ones we own that don't fall off- consequently he wares them for days at a time- it's okay right, I figure he's not running in them or anything...)

Becky, Jamie, Liz, and Dad came down for Thanksgiving and to see Duke, though I suspect not in that order.

They came baring gifts- the only way that Jensen allows anyone over the threshold.

Jamie and Jence got right down to business with the remote control car they brought.

Lola's one trick; she gets really calm and holds still when you touch your nose to hers.

Jence assisted us in giving Duke his first bath.

Hehe...

Duke's pants apparently never got put back on after a diaper change...

Eating Cheese-Its, making cookies in my favorite of his outfits... I know I've shown it before, but it cracks me up.

After hitting Ryan's buffet for our Thanksgiving dinner (no dishes!!) we came home and made our traditional Thanksgiving day gingerbread houses.

It was so fun to have dad and the girls there with us- I haven't gotten to make houses with them for a few years. (This was Jensen's first time, so it's been a while.)

Daddy forewent making his own house in order to assist Jensen.

Jensen' s fabulous first gingerbread house. He later insisted I add a walkway and Gramps make a garage...

The whole Ginger Village.

Jensen's secret identity.

We took everybody over to a 1800's living history village that I have been trying to get to since we moved here. (Alex just loves this kind of thing. Especially because he end up staying outside the whole time with Jensen.)

Aunt Flimsy (Liz).

Jensen and Alex watching how a cotton gin works. It was amazing- I've always wondered how they got those seeds out. Though even after seeing it in action I'm still slightly puzzled that it really works.