Older Women

I've noticed lately that Miller just loves older women. He really enjoys his friend Hannah at Miss Karen's house. He talks about her sometimes when we're at home..."Han-nah" this and "Han-nah" that. Hannah just turned three and is really good playing older sister to Miller since she has a baby brother around Miller's age. Maddie, another 3 year old girl, from across the street is also a Miller favorite. He loves to point to her Christmas card and proudly announce her name.


So you can only imagine Miller's delight when I told him today that Anna was coming over to play. He waited patiently by the door, checking out the window from time to time to see if his older gal pal was coming up the sidewalk. Anna is one year his senior. As Miller ages, it's amazing to see his parralell playing turning into interactive play with other children. Interactive... was just what Mandy and I witnessed this morning. These two kiddies were all over the place, chasing eachother around the couch, taking turns pushing eachother on riding toys, and climbing on top of the train table. They did a nice job sharing toys & snacks!
Miller loved playing with smiley, baby Jackson too. It won't be long before he's running to try to keep up with the big kids. Christmas vacation has been so enjoyable sharing in the fun of friends and family. We're enjoying every minute of our leisurely break.

Little Conductor

To Miller's surprise, Santa visited our street while we were away for a few days. On the morning of the 26th, Miller awoke to the excitement of a new train table awaiting him in his playroom. Santa Landon worked so very hard Christmas Day night assembling the track and the whole village surrounding the track. The minute Miller spotted his new table, he proclaimed, "Choo Choo train!!" and ran up to start pushing the magnetic cars. In the background, Landon was blowing on the train whistle to make it feel like a real engine. Poppy and Grandmama couldn't miss out on all the fun the morning after Christmas, so they came over to witness Miller's excitement. They brought Miller his conductor uniform to match his train hat. Of course, he won't keep the hat on.



In just 30 short minutes, Miller had the joy of taking the track apart and moving most of the houses, bridges, and people unto the floor. All of Landon's hard work demolished in such a short time. But, that's all part of the fun! We decided to simplify the complicated track and add on to it as Miller ages....Oh the fun of new toys!

Merry Christmas to All

The Fokens' kicked off our Christmas holiday by driving to Knoxville on Monday to enjoy the first leg of Christmas 08 with Omi and Papa. Landon so skillfully packed up our sleigh. OH! there was SO much to wrap & pack. The amount of planning,washing, cleaning last minute errand runs, list making, ribbon tying, and then more packing can be overwhelming, and we only have one child!! We did manage to remember everything we needed. I never appreciated my own mom's packing skills growing up until now. Packing for a toddler & remembering everything all the way down to his tooth brush can be challenging when you're trying to get your suitcase packed as well.
What a wonderful & relaxing vacation. Upon our arrival, Omi and Papa were so proud to show Miller Papa's hobby room in the newly finished attic complete with Papa's "grown up" train table. Another highlight of the trip, was getting to watch the cows grazing and "mooing" from Omi and Papa's backyard. Aunt Laurel and Uncle Chad joined us for some fun on Tuesday & Wednesday. This year, it was meaningful to celebrate Christmas Eve at Laurel & Chad's church alongside two proud, expectant parents. We're excited to announce that Miller will have a new cousin in June! Our growing family is so very blessed.



Christmas morning greeted us so quickly! When I woke Miller up, it was fun to announce to him that it was baby Jesus' birthday. One of my favorite memories of the morning was Miller coming down Omi and Papa's long staircase in his Christmas candied "Jam Jams", sliding down each stair on his diaper padded bottom. Papa had the Christmas music all queved up to add to our Christmas excitement. On the way down the stairs, Miller kept repeating "wagon", "wagon", with great anticipation as he had already caught a glimpse of what Omi and Papa Santa got him. There it was...in ALL its glory just waiting for him underneath the tree, a red two seater wagon. As soon as Miller's footed feet touched the ground, it was off to the great tree to sit in his new Radio Flyer. We couldn't get him out of it, he was so thrilled!! The adults enjoyed our morning pausing to take turns opening gifts. There's just nothing like seeing the joy of Christmas through your child's eyes. After a traditional Fokens breakfast, we loaded up our sleigh for Atlanta to celebrate round 2 of Christmas 08.


We arrived in Atlanta with our cute little reindeer announcing "ho ho ho" to Grandmama, Poppy, and Uncle Clay. We got there just in time for a light lunch. We knew we had a two hour window for more gifting before our little reindeer needed some rest. Clay spoiled Miller with a dumptruck riding toy. Miller wanted to ride on it, the minute he tore open the paper. This entertained Miller while the adults exchanged gifts.


The highlight of the morning for Landon (& me too), besides getting to spend Christmas with both of our complete families, was receiving a Wii game system. What a complete surprise.... you outdid yourself Clay! We sure did enjoy virtual Wii bowling and spending recreational time together. Even Poppy sucummed to the Wii version of his most favorite sport. Landon and Clay finally submerged from the basement cave just in time to enjoy a wonderful Christmas dinner complete with "The Metford Series" apricot preserve cake.Then it was off to the movies for the men while Mom and I enjoyed a wonderful "silent" night.

Merry Christmas to all our blogging friends!

First Meeting

From Eight Months & Christmas Photos

What a difference a year makes!! Here's a picture of Miller on his first adventure meeting Santa. Notice the bare feet! It was also a warm day last year.

Walking in a Winter Wonderland

It's been 12 long months, since Miller met Santa for the first time. Our first meeting went so well. Miller sat contently, blissfully unaware of Santa, while I snapped a few pictures of their happy meet and greet.
Tonight, our family had the pleasure of greeting jolly Old St. Nick for a second go around. Miller got to witness several other kiddos around his age abort the Santa Mission with tears and disapproval while we patiently waited. As we approached for our turn in Santa's lap, we were all wondering how Miller would react to the jolly old man this go around. Let's just say, he survived the whole event. Miller figured if he didn't look St. Nick in the eye, he didn't exist. With a look of displeasure, stiffened body and a firm grip for dear life on Landon's shoulder, we managed to get a somewhat slouched picture. We made it through with no tears...hooray!



We sure did love our little field trip to Santa's Winter Wonderland. The magic all took place only 15 minutes from our front door. Who knew the North Pole was so close to us? While it didn't feel like the Arctic tonight in GA with temps in the upper 60's, we still got into the spirit of the season. How could you not get in the festive mood with so much to look at? Miller was wide eyed looking at all the lights, inflatables, moving reindeer, hanging illuminated helicopter and nativity. He soaked in every Christmas display with wonder and amazement.
Mr & Mrs. Claus opened up their quaint,country home, where Mrs. Claus was serving hot cider to visitors. We even snapped a quick picture with the Mrs. of the house. Their house was decked out to the 9's with nutcrackers, santas, Christmas antiques..you name it! Miller couldn't get enough of Santa's train village with all the moving locomotives and tracks. Hmm...I even think he whispered something about his wish this year for choo choo's in Santa's ear. We left with our hearts full of joy for the season and finding a new local tradition together as a family. It's been so fun to celebrate the festivities of Christmas through the eyes of child.

Dinner Date

Our family enjoyed a pizza night at the Fay's house tonight. Miller was thrilled to get out of the house from afternoon cabin fever. Allie and Miller sure did hit it off...as always. It's such a joy to watch them play and interact. After a few minutes of silence, the adults went to go investigate. Allie and Miller had locked themselves into Allie's nursery and were happily playing with her big girl kitchen. When we entered the room, these two little monkeys just giggled & shrieked like crazy as if they knew they were sneaky by closing the door. We even managed to get these two cuties to pose in front of the Christmas tree. What a joy to hang out as families! Thank you Fays for being wonderful hostesses.

Christmas Greetings

We'd like to wish all of our blogging buddies a very, Merry Christmas. So, I thought I'd post all of our proofs for memories sake. Heather made it hard to select the winner this year! We sure are loving our cozy nights by the tree with Miller. He's so into the book "Mortimer's Christmas Manger". I love teaching him about the real meaning of Christmas. He loves pointing out baby Jesus in the pictures. There's just nothing like the magic of Christmas with a toddler. Of course, he's in love with the big jolly old man too. He calls him "See-ta".
Things are busy around the Fokens' house. Decorations are up, cards are finished, lists have been made, and some shopping has been accomplished. I am learning the beauty of ordering gifts online with free shipping. There's just nothing like the "UPS Santa" delivery packages to your door without the hastle of carting a toddler around while you shop. If I do go to the mall, I have to know exactly what I want. Gone are the days of leisurely roaming the aisles in search for the perfect
gift! Enjoy this most wondrous holiday season with your families.