Merriman moments

Vaughn & Carter hanging out, we finally got to keep Vaughn while her parents went out! Hope you had a Happy Birthday Aunt Darby!
Carter in his "chick Magnet shirt from Uncle Knox & Aunt Jamie!
Carter & Ben on an outing to feed the ducks and go fishing!

Yes, we went back. Ben with his fishing pole. This is the first time back since "hooking" daddy over 6 months ago! Ryan did leave his pole behind!

We also want to wish a very HAPPY Birthday to Aunt Melissa!

Pictures!

Sorry I didn't turn the picture! Getting ready for bed!
Ben with his cousin Dylan
Ben getting ready for bed.

To let everyone know, the kernal of corn did come out in the bath that same night. Through his nose, not the south end! Ben loves sticking his head under water in the bath, so we were hoping it would find its way out. So far, no more food up the nose!!!! The boys are getting big. Ben learns new words and sentences everyday. Ryan and I often get a laugh when he says something as we try to figure out which one he is repeating. Carter is happy as can be. He is still not walking. I figured he would be running by now. I think he likes being carried around. Maybe by his first birthday we can show off his steps! Ben has successfully slept in his big boy bed for over 2 weeks, YEA!!!

Where did the corn go?

Ben favorite saying. "Yep, that's right Daddy!"

We had a fun and exciting dinner last night. Ben was going 90 miles per hour all day. It took him 1 1/2 hours to fall asleep at naptime. He was in high speed all day! Last night we sat down for a normal usual dinner. The boys had cheese pizza and corn. We said our prayer and away we went eating. Carter for some strange reason didn't eat, mainly just playing with the food - very strange for him! And Ben was slowly making progress on his dinner. I looked up to see a kernal of corn in his nose! "Yep, that's righ Daddy - in his nose! I jumped up to walk over to him, at the same time be began snorting it up his nose. I yanked him up as he was saying, "mommy, corn in my nose; mommy, corn in my nose." He also began digging his finger up his nose to try and touch it. I took him off to find something to yank it out with, no luck. He sneezed and coughed a couple of times, I thought my time had passed to retrieve it. We went back to the table to finsh dinner. All along Ryan is trying to tell Benjamin what a bad choice that was, how it could hurt his nose, and if he did it again, he would get spanked. I had to try so hard not to laugh. When Ben got up from dinner Ryan asked why I thought it was so funny!! I simply explained now I know how he feels. Almost everytime Ben gets in trouble, Ryan disciplines him and then simply shakes his head and says, "man, that is exactly what I used to do." So to finish my story, I was laughing because I was always sticking food (mainly carrots and green beans) in my nose and ears so I didn't have to eat them. I made several trips to the dr's office!! When I called my mother last night, I think she got the biggest laugh of all!

Big Boy Bed!

I just had to show off the pictures of Ben in his big boy bed. We are 3 nights successful and 4 great naps in the bed without problems. YEA!! He looks so small in the bed! We were really worried about the transition into the bed, but he has done an amazing job. I hope when the new wears off, it doesn't become a problem. He also got his first big boy haircut last night by mom and dad. Not so good of a job there. Ryan said I was trying to go for the baby mullet, so he decided we needed to touch up the back! We decided through the screaming we would take him somewhere next time. We are starting off the new great, lets hope we can keep it up!!!

Wow, what a great holiday!

3 Grandchildren at Mum's and Grandad's house on Christmas Even before church!

After church picture with my sister and her family.
More Christmas parties on the 26th!

I am so lucky to have lots of time off for the Christmas holiday. I was just thinking I was actually gone from my house for 2 weeks. That is fun because we got to travel and see family, but that is also 13 nights away from my very comfy bed!! It all started with my girl trip to NYC! Yea, I think this is the 7th year my mom, sister, and I have been to NYC around the holidays. We always have such a great time together. Everybody always ask, "Do you go shopping?" I usually reply no! They have the same stores we do here in TX, it is just twice as expensive there. I did find time to shop for my boys this year. I did spend it in FAO Swartz (don't check my spelling on that) and Toys R Us! Other than that, we just explored the city! After we came home, we went straight to my parents and spent several days there with my family. On the 25th, we headed to Ryan's family. His mother surprised us with a visit from Tampa! On the 26th, we headed to Hillsboro to have Christmas with my extended family and then off to Houston until the 1st! My sister lives in Houston. London had her birthday party on the 28th (she is a 25th baby) at Pump It Up. Ryan and Ben had such a great time jumping around burning off energy. Ben did jam his thumb really bad! It is still bruised, but it didn't hurt him bad enough to miss a beat jumping around like a crazy man!

Spending time with both families made me realize how time passes so fast. 2 years ago, Ben was just a tiny baby. Now, my 2 boys are growing so big! Carter is almost walking which seems crazy, but really isn't since he is 11 months. Were did these 11 months go, more importantly am I treasuring the moments into memories enough?