The Holiday Season - Part II

Dear Friends and Family,

As the holiday season continued, we experienced our first snow of the winter. Fortunately it snowed over the weekend so we could be home to enjoy it. We weren't outside for long because it was a bit chilly but I couldn't resist taking Noah outside. He didn't seem overly enthusiastic about the snow (maybe that will happen next year when he's big enough to run around and play in it). As is the case with most NC snow falls, the snow melted as fast as it arrived so we weren't able to enjoy it as long as I would have liked. Hopefully before winter is up we'll have another big snow so we can enjoy it for a little longer (If it does snow it'd be great if it were over the weekend again so it won't be such a pain to drive to work/school/daycare on slick roads). For those of you in areas used to a lot of snow, you'd laugh at the pace the DOT here moves to clear roads. 

As Jack Frost continued to delight (sarcastic) us with chilly weather we had to find ways to entertain ourselves inside. Fortunately, my Aunt Karen bought us an item that should be a staple in any house with a baby, the Boppy. Noah loves this thing! He likes to be a part of all the action and the Boppy helps him sit up and observe everything going on around him. As you can see in the picture his neck is getting stronger and he is able to prop himself up for several minutes. Soon he'll be able to sit up on his own! Now that he's gotten a little older we have to keep a bib on him at all times because there seems to be a constant stream of saliva dripping out of his mouth. 

As Christmas approached we got caught up in the hustle and bustle of shopping for gifts and decorating the house. Jorge had the week  before Christmas off so he spent this time working on his graduate school paper (supposedly). I'm not sure how much work he got done because, if I remember correctly, the XBox got a lot more use during those few days than normal.  

Now I know that they (whoever "they" are) say that once you have a baby everyone should come to you to celebrate the holidays. Well we went against the grain and traveled all around NC and up to PA. We started off in Jacksonville, NC for Christmas Eve to spend time with Jorge' family. On Christmas Eve we headed over to Garner, NC to see more of Jorge's relatives who we hadn't seen in forever so it was great to see them.  

On Christmas morning we opened gifts at our house. I realized that I probably did not need to wrap Noah's gifts since his dexterity wasn't at a level that allowed him to grab onto and pull wrapping paper. He mostly sat in his new seat with a puzzled look on his face. It was really nice to have a peaceful Christmas morning where we could reflect on everything that we have been blessed with and give thanks to the one whose birthday we were celebrating. 

After opening presents relatively quickly, we were on the road again. This time we were headed up to PA to see my family. We were originally planning on leaving the day after Christmas but a big snow storm was headed for NC and we needed to get on the road as soon as possible. If you are ever planning to travel on Christmas day be warned that NOTHING is open accept for Denny's and gas stations. We were very disappointed to find that not a single decent restaurant was open along the I-95 corridor. Fortunately, we came across a gas station that had a Dunkin Donuts in it. 

After the 7 hour drive we finally made it PA where Noah had the pleasure of meeting his great-grandmother and great-great-grandfather for the first time. It was awesome to see so many generations in the same room. It was great to see my family but I think we are all so happy to be out of the car that was getting more and more claustrophobic as the trip progressed. I never realized how much stuff you have to bring with you when traveling with a baby. 

Sadly, we were only able to spend an evening with my grandmother and great-grandfather because they had to head back to NY the next morning to avoid the impending blizzard. It was a good thing they left when they did because that evening NY was hit with almost two feet of snow (which my brother had the misfortune of driving in the next day when he headed back to NY).   We ended up spending almost a week in PA before heading back down to NC for New Years. 

We ended the holiday season by celebrating on New Years day in Greensboro, NC with my family. Although this holiday season was definitely hectic, we were so blessed to have so many wonderful people to share it with!


Until next time, 


Steph, Jorge, and Noah


Ps. Here is a video of Noah dancing during lunch stop on our way back from PA: