Better late than never! Christmas photos of Kate

Back in December our good friends (the Shelton family) came to visit us & we took our kiddos down to the Fort Worth Stock Yards. We all had a great time and they took some pictures of Kate w/ 'Cowboy' Santa, but I just got them in the email this week! Better late than never, these were 2 of the cutest ones. He was a sweet man & gave her a little candy cane after so she was happy. :)

Hats, beans, and striking a pose

Kate pretty much refuses to wear a hat when we go outside and she is very fair-skinned - bad combo! Apparently, wearing hats is much more hip inside, since it's no longer mom's idea but her own. Here she is hamming it up...

Kate vs. the black beans - never declared a winner. She is much like her cousin Rusty - they both are beany-eaters!

Here she is wearing Momma's new maternity swimsuit around her neck (yards & yards of fabric I might point out!) She is walking the runway w/ some real attitude here. Guess she is a girlie girl!

Fierce!

Splashing w/ friends

We visited our good friends the Shelton's in Houston this past weekend & Kate got to enjoy some time at the splash park w/ their 3 boys. She adores Miss Ashleigh, and even though she wasn't too sure about the water at first, Ashleigh coaxed her in gently & before we knew it she was laughing & splashing w/ the rest of the boys. Here are some pictures - enjoy!

Ashleigh showing Kate the water

Kate and Joseph (almost 3)

My big girl - 18 months old today!

Kate's been so silly lately playing dress-up - caught her with my purse, apron & high heels so thought we'd snap a few photos...

Here she is pulling my shirt over her head - she has been practicing putting on & taking off shirts a lot lately, and a bib is lately out of the question. Too bad we still haven't mastered the spoon and fork with self-feeding - I've been doing a lot of laundry lately!

Here she pulled out as many stuffed animals as she can hold - 6 to be precise, and schlepped them down the hallway to throw them on the ground to lay upon them. I guess she's telling me it's time for bed?

Speaking of bed, here she is sitting in her new big girl bed, and another of her napping in it. We took down the crib today since she hasn't been in it for 5 days. A victory, but bittersweet for me. I can't believe she's such a big girl!

Finally, just a few cute shots. We had a bird (we don't know what kind) build a nest on our back porch and the eggs hatched just the other day. They are the noisiest little rascals you've ever heard! Here is a picture I snapped - you can see three little golden beaks crying for food.

Kate with her buddy Curt, eating apples together. They get along great - loved this picture! :)

Kate's last morning in her crib - she pulled her t-shirt up over her head like a muscle-man - so hilarious!

New toy & playing ball-ball

Kate loves to play with Daddy & Duffy in the backyard - here are a few shots of her playing with a baseball that was lost over the fence from the boy next door.
Hey Ma - look at this!

Kate has her first babydoll, and along with it we purchased her a small stroller. She loves to push it around with anything and everything in it... including her kissing Elmo! Here are a few shots...

You can't really see in this shot but she has a huge smile! :)

New video of Kate

Here she is, singing a bit of "Row, Row, Row" (her favorite next to ABC's), asking for "help" to open her toy, saying "please", "thank you", "good girl", and of course "mama" & "dada." Thought all you far-away people would like to hear her funny little voice. She's a sweetie-boo.

In case you didn't get an email...

Jackson Brian Atwell will be joining us in August! Also... sent out emails since Kip & I have switched cell providers. Ours are still working for another week or two - check your email or call us soon if you need the new #'s!! :)