Merry Christmas!

On Christmas morning, we saw Santa and Rudolph.
No... wait... that's Papa and Max!

Or is it?

Max had his stocking hung with care. We wanted a picture of him in it, but he didn't fit.
Daddy and Grammy show Max a new toy.
Aunt Lisa and Uncle Brett had lots of goodies for Max. The wagon was part of a "boy starter kit" that included Star Wars action figures and jousting knights. We're instructed to put them on a shelf until he's big enough to play with them--without choking on small parts or poking out his eye.
Later, more family joined us. It was a merry first Christmas.

Christmas Eve 2008

We spent Christmas Eve with Garrett's family in Oklahoma City. It was nice to have Don out of the hospital. Seeing Max must have made him feel a little better. As tradition goes, Mary brought out her beautiful china that Garrett hates washing by hand--but does so for his mom even though he wears a pout the whole time! Everyone enjoyed playing with Max.

Below is a picture of Max with his dad, Gramps, and Grandma.

Mary always decks the halls with teddy bears during the holidays. You'll find them climbing ladders up the Christmas tree or the fireplace mantle. We weren't surprised to find one under the tree for Max. We were delusional if we thought he'd cuddle it. Nope. Our little guy conjured some combination of WWF and Mike Tyson. He gnawed on its ear and wrestled it. He's all boy.Below Max unwrapped his first present. Well, I unwrapped it, but he played with it.


What did he get? His first car! Grandma shows him how to work it.
He loved it so much that he played with it in the car on the way to Tahlequah. Max truly became a backseat driver! Still, he's too young to drive because he fell asleep with one hand on the gear shift and the other on a button that kept restarting it.

I saw fairies!

How cute are my cousins? They're also very cool. They came to a Tulsa book signing to help me. Max loved hanging out with them when they weren't working. They handed out bookmarks and talked to customers. Thanks to them, we sold out within two hours. Actually, customers were lined up for books after we ran out due to their cracker jack salesmanship. Check out how few books are left in the picture below.These two wore fairy wings. They all wore t-shirts. Get one of your own by clicking here.These guys are one of the reasons I'm looking forward to moving back to Oklahoma.

Tulsa Book Signing Tonight!

Come see me in Tulsa tonight at the Barnes and Noble on 41st. The signing begins at 7:00. It's a great opportunity to do some last minute Christmas shopping. Glamour makes a great gift for the teen or tween in your life--or the gal of any age who likes fairies, glamour, and glitz.

Max may or may not be there. I was up with him all night. He alternated between shrieking and collapsing into my arms. We think that either his tummy hurt or his ears are messed up from the flight. It's so frightening. As I mentioned in an earlier post, he doesn't complain unless there's something to cry about. He seems a bit improved this morning, so I hope it's all over.

So, please come by and see me...and you might even get to see Max.

Birth Certificate

I was excited to get Max's birth certificate.

Max?

Not so much.
But he pretended for me.
While at the health department, we ran into a girl and her baby boy from our Lamaze class. Her son is a month younger than Max. She exclaimed, "I thought I was the last one!" Nope. Leave it to us. We're just glad we remembered it before we moved.

Garrett and I are surprised at how little was on the New Jersey birth certificate. Just names. Garrett was born in California, so his is detailed. It even lists his parents' occupations. Born in Oklahoma, mine is less extensive, but it at least mentions my parents' ages and my mom's maiden name. New Jersey? Fuggedaboudit.

Toys, oh boy!

For a while we were concerned Max didn't like toys. There's all this talk about kids' favorite toys and he didn't seem to prefer anything over anything else. As far as preference is concerned, the only thing that held his attention and made him super-happy was this thing that played music and lit up. We were not sure if music qualified as a toy, though.

All the confusion was solved when he met his noisy frog. Elizabeth, a friend and former colleague, gave Max a frog that ribbits when you bang it. He loves it. He lights up when he sees it. It was the first thing I remember seeing him try to reach for on a regular basis.

This week he's added another toy to what I'd consider his favorite list. Cousin Kent gave him a dragonfly. It's wings crinkle at the touch, and if you pull the handle on its tail, it plays Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star. Well, guess who figured out how to pull the handle this week? It's often tied to his play mat so that he can grab or kick at it overhead. However, we've noticed he starting to cuddle it, too. So sweet.

Our friend Joey gave him a soft froggie called a Tadbit. Garrett calls it the roadkill frog because it's like a stuffed animal--without the stuffing. But it's oh-so-soft. Max alternates between caressing his face with it and gnawing on it.

Lastly, he likes books! I probably tried reading to him when he was too young, because he wouldn't join in the fun for very long. This week, however, he's totally up for a good reading of a book Alison gave us: Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You? Before Max, I had no clue as to why this book was such a hit. Reading it with Max explains everything. He giggles and laughs whenever we make the noises. He especially likes cock a doodle doo. Oh yeah, life doesn't get much better.

So, if you're looking for gifts for little ones, these are ones to consider. They're Max approved.

All through the night....

Is it too early to think it's going to last? Max has slept through the night for the last three nights. He goes down around 10 and sleeps until about 7. Actually, this morning, he lasted until almost 8. And he's asleep now. His snoring sounds like a purring cat. Is it normal for him to sleep this much? I'm in awe.