A trip to the zoo and more....

Working hard at The Bell Center!

It has been another fun-filled week with Frances.  Daddy got to come to therapy at The Bell Center with her on Thursday.  Frances does circle time at therapy now, and she LOVES it.  We also got to go to a fun birthday party for one of her friends who turned 1.....Frances was taking notes!  We finished off the week with a trip to the zoo after church today.  Frances got really excited about the big animals when we got close to them- especially the long-haired hogs.  She carried on quite an entertaining conversation with them.  I have mentioned lately that we are hoping Frances will be sitting up by her birthday- and she is on a roll.  She can do it for about a minute at a time!

Reading before bedtime with Daddy.

Frances loves reading books.

Look at me sitting up!

Uh oh:)

Fun at the zoo!

Frances' favorite animals at the zoo.

Just Being Frances

Not too much to report on around here....Frances was sick last weekend and part of the week, so we have been laying low.  Frances seems to do something new everyday and she continues to constantly make us laugh.  We are working really hard towards sitting up by her birthday, and she is getting close!  Here is a little peek into what she has been up to:

Playing a fun new game:

Drinking from a straw:

Eating scrambled eggs and pancakes!

Singing In The Tub

This girl LOVES to take a bath!

Christmas & New Years in Oxford

We had an awesome weekend in Oxford celebrating New Years and Christmas with the entire family.  It was really special to have everyone together for the first time since the triplets were born! 

Warning: Lots of cuteness in these pictures!

Lyndy and Kat opening more presents.

Frances was really excited to get her kitchen!

This is fun stuff!

Exploring her new puzzle.

Grump opening all his treasures from the grandchildren.

Kat teaching Frances how to stack the blocks.

New Years festivities sure do change with all these babies around....early to bed for everyone!

Morning playtime with the triplets!

Good morning, Anna:)

Anna, Irene, & Brooks working on tummy time.

Tummy time turned into sleeping time.

The girls love talking to each other.

All the cousins together for the first time!

A Christmas We Will Always Remember

Waking up to Frances' voice on Christmas morning was a feeling that just can't be put into words.  Its still hard for us to believe that this time last year we were anxiously preparing and waiting for her arrival- in fact most of the Christmas gifts were nursery furniture.  As we sat in church on Christmas Eve celebrating Christs' birth, I was instantly reminded of God's perfect plan for all of us.  This little gal is without a doubt the best gift we have ever received!

We had Christmas Eve dinner at our house with the Smith clan, while Meme and Grump helped hold the fort down over in Oxford with the triplets.  Christmas day was exciting and busy, starting off with our little family of 4 (can't leave Bella out) opening presents and playing with new toys.  We then headed over to the Smith's house for more playing and yummy brunch.  Next, all 4 of us loaded into the car and headed over to Mississippi for a two day visit with Meme, Grump, Sage, Jack, and of course the girls!  Frances is starting to look like such a "big kid" now, especially next to these sweet babies.

Frances trying to steal the show.....poor Brooks...Irene is confused....Anna just doesn't care

Here is a photo round-up of the weekend....with more to come next week, as we head back to MS for Round 2 of Christmas and New Years with the entire family!

Mommy and Frances

A few Christmas Eve presents with the cousins.

Yummy Christmas cookies right before bedtime:)

Bella was so sweet to help Frances get her goodies out of the stocking.

We are getting really close to sitting up!

Debut of "The Tickle Monster"....this will get its own blog posting soon.

Such a big girl standing up, and good thing Bella is supervising.

Love my new piano from Meme and Grump.

Frances and Kat telling each other all about their Christmas presents.

Lyndy whipping up some "crispy eggs" to go with the french toast.

Playing with Grump....or is Grump asleep????

Babies babies everywhere!

Frances telling her cousins that this jingle bell is not actually an approved toy to play with, but its really fun anyway!

Ready For Christmas!

Frances sure has been a little party animal, making the rounds at multiple Christmas parties over the last week.  Frances LOVES visiting with all her friends, and she seems to take particular interest in the boys- check her out with her boyfriends!

Playing with Miles at The Bell Center party.

Ethan and Frances in their matching Santa shirts:)

Frances and Charlie playing with their new toys.  We love this fish toy from Amy!

Everybody needs a friend like Charlie to share their cookies!

She had tubes placed in her ears last week, along with a sedated hearing test, and a check on her airway/esophagus.  Everything went very well and all test results came back clear!  As I said last week, she has been keeping us extra busy with doctor appointments, and that includes our trip for a nice barium enema today.  Who wouldn't want that for Christmas????  The test itself wasn't that bad, but the aftermath (that is still occurring) has been quite an adventure.  Ill spare you the gory details, but I will say its necessary to wear at least 2 diapers at a time right now.

Frances has discovered the joys of wrapping paper- who needs toys?!

Enjoy the rest of the pictures (and excuse the blurry ones from the iPhone) of all the fun Frances has been having this past week.  Will and I are so excited to be celebrating her first Christmas, and the first Christmas with all the cousins too!  Tonight we will have the McCalley Christmas, and on Sunday we get to head over for some triplet time.  We wish all of you a very Merry Christmas.  We have certainly been blessed with the best gift ever!

Coloring fun....yes, her OT mother is proud!

Perfect Puzzle Preschool party- showing off her masterpiece.

Frances absolutely LOVES her teacher, Mrs. Mita. Don't know what we would do without her!

Playing with Eleanor at the YaYa pajama party.

This just makes my heart happy!

These two girls are going to be lifelong friends.

Getting some love from Aunt Jenny. Thank you, Eleanor for the hat! 

Meeting the newest members of the YaYa clan- Baby Michael and Baby Allie.

Playing with Lyndy and Kat.