Merry Christmas!

So while it is a few days late, Merry Christmas from the Merediths!! 

Knowing I was returning to work on the 27th, I've spent very little time in front of the computer over the last few weeks.  We managed to stay pretty busy, which has gotten easier now that Henry's a little bit older and starting to show interest in what's going on around him. 

A few weeks ago, our church hosted a live nativity scene for children in the Plano area to enjoy.  They had a fairly impressive petting zoo, as well as a little marketplace for kids to work on crafts.  Henry was recruited by a friend to play baby Jesus for one of the 45 minute shifts, which Paul and I thought was hysterical.  We were a little concerned that he would fuss the entire time (no one wants to see a crying baby Jesus!), but he did great and actually seemed to enjoy having a bunch of people come up and "ooh" and "ahh" over him. 

The funniest part of the entire experience was when we stripped him down into his diaper to go place him in the manger, Paul and I were also handed Mary and Joseph costumes.  No one bothered to tell us that if you volunteer your 2 month old to play Jesus, you automatically volunteer yourself to play Mary and Joseph - surprise!!  It ended up working out great, especially when Henry decided it was time to eat (heaven forbid the child go longer than 2 hours without eating)!

Last week, the three of us spent a few days in Pennsylvania with Paul's parents.  One of their friends got Henry a Santa suit, which was a hit!!  It was cute on the hanger, but SO much cuter on this chubby guy....

How could you not love this 10 week old Santa Claus?!? I could squeeze his cheeks just LOOKING at this picture!!

Henry has also started to notice Oscar.  As soon as Henry sees the white fur nosing around his bouncer, his eyes track Oscar until he's out of sight.  I think Oscar's ready for him to play, but I keep telling him to enjoy Henry before he's old enough to terrorize the poor dog. 

And here are a few more pictures on Christmas Eve and Christmas day.

There are not enough words to describe how thankful Paul and I are for this sweet child. And especially on the day of my Savior's birth, I cannot be thankful enough for the grace granted to us by God through his son. 

For to us a child is born,
   to us a son is given,
   and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
   Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
   Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Isaiah 9:6

Henry meets Santa!

A few weeks ago, Henry braved the mall the crowd [shhh! Don't tell his pediatrician he was in a crowd during "flu season"] and saw Santa. 

He spent most of the 1.5 hours in line sleeping.  

He did finally wake up to show the big guy his baby blues. 

Santa's only comment/word of advice for the Meredith family was to "come back during the week next year to avoid the line."  Good call Santa - Paul and I will take off work if necessary!  Can't wait to see how Henry reacts to Santa next year when he's 14 months old. If he's anything like my brother, we should get some priceless screaming photos!  Merry Christmas, all!

First Thanksgiving

Henry got to celebrate his first Thanksgiving at Gigi and Papa's in Allen, Texas.  He was also lucky enough to meet his Great-Uncle Frank and Great-Aunt Lorna!

Great-Aunt Lorna appears to have a little experience with babies.

Feeling a little sleepy before dinner.





Getting fed his Thanksgiving dinner by Gigi.

The Green brothers with Henry.

Mama loves this little guy.



Typical Thanksgiving - the men fell asleep on the couch after dinner while the ladies chatted.

Henry seemed to enjoy his first Thanksgiving!

2 Months Old!

Henry is 2 months old today, and Paul and I sometimes still have a hard time believing we're parents.  Time has absolutely flown by!  This month has been so much fun, though, because Henry's little personality has really started to come out.  He has shown no signs of wanting to roll over or pick his fat head up during tummy time.  In fact, during tummy time, he'd rather just scream face down the entire time if he doesn't fall asleep first, as demonstrated below.

In spite of refusing to properly do his neck exercises, he has really started to smile, laugh, and talk.  I will gladly admit that I'm wrong later, but I'm going to have a hard time believing that any milestone is as heartwarming as that first, on purpose, smile.  I absolutely could have just died of happiness. 

Henry has chosen to smile more at certain people than others.  Obviously, he smiles at Paul and me.  He also smiles at his Papa.  And for whatever reason, he thought his Great-uncle Frank was hysterical.

He's been very stubborn with Gigi, however, which has been a semi-source of entertainment for the rest of us.  As of December 1st, she was convinced that he had not smiled at her (though I have documented proof that he smiled at her before December 1st).

November 21st smile at Gigi.

Though he has been stingy with his Gigi smiles until the 1st, he finally decided to stop testing her patience and truly started buttering her up. Smart man, Henry, smart man.



(please excuse the fuzziness - I forgot to focus the video in attempt to capture the moment).

I can't wait to see what this next month holds for us.  My guess is a lot of drool, as he's started to chew on anything that gets near his mouth.....

Poor little guy can't really get much besides his hands to his mouth, so he currently resorts to shirts and bibs that accidentally get shoved in the general area around his mouth.  But before he grows up any more, I keep reminding myself to enjoy every last second of the cuddling.  If his current squirminess is any indication of what he'll be like as a toddler, we think this little guy is going to be running around non-stop once he figures out how to move on his own.

And seriously, how could you not want to cuddle with this little guy?