Dakota Rae Clark is here!

December 21st at 11:38pm, Dakota Rae Clark was welcomed into the world. Kristen and Jared are close friends of ours that happen to be family as well! ha Jared and Andrew are first cousins, lived together during some of their college days, and our relationships actually began and developed around the same time. We love them dearly, and already love this precious little girl just as much! Congratulations Clark family!

P.S. Christmas Shoes count: 6
P.S.S. Sort of funny, I know someone with a birthday on the 21st of every month between October and February now.

Busy busy busy

It has been a busy couple of days, but lots of fun! Saturday afternoon, Ceilidh starred in her third Nutcracker. ha I was very proud of her. She actually stayed on the stage the entire party scene with her friend, "Henley." They were adorable! I think she was oblivious to the audience. She was mesmerized with what was going on, on the stage. She even started dancing, and mimicking what the dancers were doing. I have to admit, I cried a bit. ha! Only b/c she was having so much fun, and doing such a good job at having fun! ha Leigh, next year all the "mom" dancers will have to have babies, b/c Graeme and Natalie will have to make their debuts!







After all the stage fun on Saturday, Ceilidh went to a birthday party for Jesus at church on Sunday morning. She talked about this party ALL weekend! She had so much fun. While we were eating breakfast that morning, we had a pretty hilarious and sweet conversation. She kept insisting that she needed to take a card with her to the party, and I finally realized she thought that the guest of honor would literally be there. We then had a discussion about the fact that baby Jesus was the same Jesus that grew up and died on the cross for us. "Ohhhh,ok" was her response. ha! How sweet that she wanted to give baby Jesus his card in person!

At the party she made a few ornaments for the Christmas tree. She has made a few others during the last couple of weeks and we always let her hang them. Somehow they always end up on the lower right quadrant of our tree. In fact, I'm a bit worried it might tip over. wink In all seriousness though, I can't bring myself to spread them out to be more aesthetically pleasing b/c it is so cute. Therefore, if you see our tree anytime soon... that is why the snow man looks like he has a wreath hat, and our tree might be tipping a bit to the front and to the right. ha



As well as not being able to move her ornaments, I can't move the bag of books and blocks on our living room chair either. Since we don't have a fireplace in our apartment, we have "hung" the stockings on the back of our chair. Ceilidh has literally packed a bag of books and blocks for Santa! I mean really... what other kid leaves a bag of books for Santa Clause! So apparently Santa will be taking a reading break at our house on Christmas Eve! ha



Ceilidh, Graeme, mommy, Zion, Aunt "Widia," and ZZ went to the Carolina Inn today to decorate Christmas cookies. We had a blast eating more cookies than we decorated! ha I will post pictures of this extravaganza after I get them from Suzanne. Thanks for the treat ZZ and Pops!

And last but not least, the next post will be about Dakota Rae Clark arriving!!! Kristen is working hard as we speak to get this sweet baby here!

A good Advent post

Thanks Rachel for sharing. This is beautiful.

http://www.aholyexperience.com/2009/12/pains-of-true-christmas.html

A little Christmas shopping with the Tarheels

So Andrew and I have definitely left our Christmas shopping to the last moment; but with him being home in the mornings now, we can get out before the crowds which is good. We decided to run by target for a few essentials while we were out, and happened to run into the men's basketball team! ha We walked in and Andrew said, "Hey, that's Joe Holiday." Two seconds later he said, "Look there's Roy." Roy was standing at the end of an aisle when we walked by. I told Ceilidh that he was the Tarheel bball coach, that played in the Dean Dome behind our house. She said, "Oh," and walked right up to him and waved the biggest wave ever. He asked her if she was a Tarheel, and she said "Yes," and proceeded to give him a high-five! ha They talked a little more about Santa coming soon and that was that. No fear, no inhibition. That is our Ceilidh. She was told that he was a Tarheel, and that was good enough for her! ha The entire team was actually at the store, probably shopping for needy families as they were all carrying wish lists and filling their carts to the brim. I don't think I have ever seen target employees so eager to help customers. wink I don't think I have ever seen so many really tall men in Target at one time either. ha Oh, and Roy's championship ring is monstrous. It is one of the biggest rings I have ever seen. Ok, so enough musings.... but it was a cool afternoon.

Graeme update:
Graeme had his 2 month checkup yesterday and he is still 12 lbs, 7oz, but now 24 inches long. He is in the 50% percentile for weight and 75% for height. He is doing perfectly other than his little cough and congestion. They keep assuring me that it will subside soon.

New experiences for mommy

Obviously when we found out that Graeme was going to be a boy; we knew there would be many differences in their personalities and childhoods. One thing I was not anticipating though, was how many more times I would have him in the Dr.'s office than I did Ceilidh. Poor little boy has already had two pretty rough colds, whereas Ceilidh didn't go to the pediatrician for ANYTHING other than her well-checkups until about 14 months. They keep telling me it is normal; he is a Fall baby where she was a spring baby, he is a boy and she is a girl (boys apparently statistically have higher premature rates and higher childhood sickness rates), and she is bringing all her germs home to him that she can fight off but he can't. Why are children magnets for germs?! Thankfully, his cough sounds worse than it really is and she told me he looked perfect. Our sweet boy is now a big ole' 12 pound and 7 ounces! Yet again another difference as Ceilidh didn't weigh 12 pounds until she was several months old! ha Most of our new experiences have been fun to learn... this one not so much. Other than his yucky cough and congestion though, he is a "happy go lucky" little boy!

Oh, and baby watch 2010 has just increased to 15!!! I read on FB this morning that a friend of ours from UNC is expecting in June. Congratulations Uncle Parker and Aunt Rachel on the newest niece or nephew! I am so happy for Jonathan and LauraLeigh!

"Christmas Shoes" = 5. This will be a new addition to "These are the Good Days." I know I will probably get hate mail for admitting this on the world wide web; but I HATE the song "Christmas Shoes." I mean, really hate. I have never really enjoyed it, but my distaste only increased thanks to my home church growing up. Let me explain. Every year, and yes I mean EVERY year, our pastor's son would sing this song during our Candlelight Service on Christmas Eve. Not "O come all ye Faithful," or "Emmanuel," or "Hark the Herald Angels Sing;" but "Christmas Shoes." Really?! To be fair, I did sing some traditional Christmas hymns; but every year without fail, we would hear "Christmas Shoes." It got to be a joke with my mom and me. We would walk into this quiet, candlelit sanctuary; and have to stifle laughter every year as we opened the program to see Special Music: Christmas Shoes. Was it a special request every year, was it the only song Josh knew, or did they not think we had heard it enough that season; I will never know. So now, every year I count how many times I hear THE song. The other day I heard the first two words, switched the dial, and caught the last two words on another station! AHHHHH I am actually kind of shocked my count is only at 5 and it is December 10th; but not sad about that at all.

"Nothing could be finer..."

Ceilidh (mommy and daddy too! ha), got a neat treat this afternoon when we attended her first Carolina Kids Club event. Thanks to a Grappy and Granddaddy Christmas gift; Ceilidh is an official member of the Carolina Kids Club now. Tonight there was a Men's Basketball meet and greet at the Dean Dome and she has been excited for about a week now! ha Daddy has finished his first semester of graduate school (woohoo), so he was able to go with us. Standing in line to check-in, we ran into a family that I babysat for during my senior year. It was wonderful to see the Copelands and see how big Benton and Riley have gotten. I definitely felt the oldest I ever have, as I remembered changing this now handsome eight year old's diapers, and watching the now 5 year old grow from infancy to toddlerhood!

At check-in, we got a calendar (for autographs), signed photo, and a CKC jersey. Ceilidh wore it the whole night and asked me if she could wear it to bed over her PJs! She wasn't old enough to go to the floor and get autographs, but I don't think she really cared. She was much more into the Sprite we let her drink than anything else. That and the Coldstone Ice cream. They had a nice spread of Jimmy Johns, Cold Stone, and of course coke products. She ate a very nutritious dinner consisting of the largest cookie I have ever seen in my life, ice cream, and sprite. Its the holidays, right?! wink

Hopefully Roy's Boys can live up to all the autographs they gave tonight and make something happen this coming April! Go Heels!

Oh, and Nicole, I was thinking this would make a perfect gift for Hudson. I don't think Tim would mind, do you? HA!


Fake sleeping with Graeme


She tucked Graeme in b/c it had been a long day. He is already proving his masculine security, as he is sporting the ballerina sheets.


Yummmmy... cookie






This wasn't even all the kids


Thats right baby


THE Sprite. ha

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

I LOVE Christmas!!! We decorated our tree last Monday, and let Ceilidh drink hot chocolate (hot tea as she calls it! ha) while we were doing it. She was hilarious. Every time she would take a sip, she would say, "yummy! I love this drink!" She made an angel for the top of our tree this year and it is precious. I have to say that I am pretty impressed as well. I told her she could draw her face and she all by herself drew two eyes and a mouth. Her snowmen even had noses. Albeit, they may be a little lop-sided; but they are cute.

Last night we went to the annual tree lighting in the village of Pinehurst, and then went to have cookies and more "hot tea" with some of my friends from the dance studio. Ceilidh was very excited to be going to "Henley's house," and we got to meet Leigh's baby, Natalie. Natalie was born just two weeks after Graeme. I have to say I love Chapel Hill, but I really miss my Moore County friends.

We also got a special treat tonight, as Andrew's Aunt Angela and family gave us a dinner, free Ceilidh babysitting, and a trip to see the Carolina Ballet's production of The Nutcracker. Angela very smartly gave us a "welcome Graeme gift" of time together, knowing we had all the "things" we needed for him. It made it doubly special, b/c Angela's middle child dances one of the gingerbread cookies and one of the infantry mice this year. The backdrops were incredible and Martha did a wonderful job. Graeme was perfect through the whole performance. He slept the entire time! ha THANK you so much Gary and Angela!!!!

Just a few pictures of our tree and friends!


Jeanne and Kenley








Ceilidh's angel