And a Happy New Year!

On Christmas Day, we flew to Santa Fe, New Mexico to visit the Paxtons. This was Oliver's first trip back to Santa Fe since Christmas 2010, but he didn't miss a beat. He loved chasing the cats, snuggling with Momma Joy, going on walks with Pop, and playing dinosaurs with Uncle Ben.

Of course, he didn't mind that we got to open more presents:

And everyone took a turn sporting their new gear:

After opening gifts, we snapped a few pics of Oli with his grandparents... Are these the cutest pictures ever?!?!

During our week there, we spent a lot of time outside. Although Oliver had seen snow before, this was his first time to be old enough to play in it, and he had a blast (and yes, he is wearing mom's hat... it seemed warmer than his and with an extra roll, it fit just fine):

He even went for a little sled ride:

He took lots of exploratory walks with Dad:

And though I know this picture has terrible glare (since I was inside, taking it through the window), I LOVE this shot of the Paxton boys hanging out on the porch:

The other momentous event of this trip was Oli's first haircut. I know he still looks practically bald in most pictures, but the rat tail in the back was getting a little extreme:

So one of Momma Joy's sweet friends offered to give him his first big-boy haircut:

We had to save his one curl, though, of course:

And the result? Voila:

SO grown up!

We went to a park later in the week, and Oliver and Momma Joy tried out the rope ladder:

And drove the "boat":

Could there be any more joy on that little face? I admit that an almost-2-year-old toddler is not always the easiest charge, but this one certainly brings so much fun to our lives. And what a fabulous bonus to have such wonderful family to help enjoy him! Thank you, Steve and Joy, for having us, showing us a great time, and loving our little boy so much. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Discovery Green

Houston is not Paris. Not by a long shot. But we came back from Paris determined to make the most of it...

We had heard great things about Discovery Green - the new(ish) park downtown that is eco-friendly and has cool concerts and such. I can't say that it compared to the Tuileries or Luxembourg or Champs de Mars, but it was nice and had some neat views of the Houston skyline. We decided to go one weekend when we first came back (i.e. early December), and I was determined to get some family pictures:

And yes, I believe this is the only picture of me during this pregnancy... I guess I should get a few before Elliot is born, shouldn't I? Oliver was not really in the mood for picture taking, though:

So we did our best:

He was much more interested in running down the ramp:

And playing on the wall with Dad:

Maybe not the glorious family photo shoot I'd had in mind, but a nice reminder that family time is family time, no matter what side of the ocean you are on.

15 Weeks in the Life of the Paxtons...

We moved home from our two-year stint in Paris, France. We tried to adjust back to heat, cars, fast food, flip flops, and work-out clothes. We celebrated Thanksgiving and Christmas with my family in Texas. We celebrated a late Christmas and New Years with Chris' family in New Mexico. We remodeled two bathrooms. We joined a new church plant and began helping with sound, music, and children's church. We unpacked from France, rearranged after my brother moved out, cleaned and cleaned and cleaned, and put our house on the market. Four days and three offers later, we sold our home...

In the midst of all this, we got to see our second son's little face. Elliot Kenley Paxton is certainly handsome, isn't he?

We then found a home to buy, discovered that it needed to be rewired completely, almost lost the home in the process of negotiations, had the closing pushed back, and finally (Lord willing!) are set to close this coming Monday. Whew!!!!!

-----------------------------------------------

There are many details, pictures, and updates that I still owe you concerning all those things, but I wanted to share the basics so that those who want to know can know (all two of you, I'm sure). Hopefully, the other blog posts will be forthcoming. We have two weeks (at least) of work to do on the house before we can move in, so we are planning a late-March move date (since we have to be out of our house by March 31). I am 37 weeks today, and Elliot is due March 29. Needless to say, it has been (and will likely continue to be) quite the whirlwind. Most importantly (and not surprisingly), God has been so faithful and gracious through it all; we are just thrilled to see how it all turns out and what He has in store for us around the corner.

And, to whet your appetite for the great stories and adorable pictures to come, I leave you with this:

A bientot!

Oliver Update

20 months old... I truly cannot believe it. He'll be 2 before I can blink. He is full of new words and new ideas every day. Last night, I put him to bed around 7:30, but we heard him still talking around 8:15, so Chris went in to tell him to go to sleep.... He found Oliver sitting in the middle of his crib (with his blanket, stuffed animals, and pacifiers scattered on the floor around his bed) repeating over and over, "Nana, puppies, Nana, puppies, Nana, puppies...." If you could only hear how he articulates the word puppies. I know I sound like a pathetically mushy mom, but it has got to be the cuties thing ever. He is happy, friendly, outgoing, and loved by almost every single person we meet. The whole church knows Oliver (by name), and we've only been going for four weeks... I cannot express how blessed I feel to have such a sweet boy.

Anyway, I am so far behind on pictures of him (and I haven't taken many quality ones in these recent months... too much else going on to keep up with that, sorry!), so here are just a few quick ones to keep you up to speed. One of our last Saturdays in Paris we walked for a few hours, taking video of the market, the neighborhood, and our apartment. Oliver was ready to walk by himself as we made our way up our street:

Thankfully, he was still pretty good about holding hands when you asked him to:

This sweet kid managed to stay relatively entertained by his very few toys and lots of household items while I tried to pack up our apartment before moving:

One of his first words was "choo choo," and the obsession with trains has continued to this day. Here he is just after our arrival in the US cheering that one of my mom's friends brought him a train to play with:

He adjusted SO WELL to life in the US. As my cousin David put it, he "seamlessly transitioned from crepes to tamales," and I couldn't be more thankful. He sleeps so well in his new room and often lies down on pillows or stuffed animals on the floor once he has his pajamas on and says, "night night, Mommy." How precious is that?!?!

He was quite "helpful" while I was Christmas shopping, picking out two purses in particular that he was convinced we needed:

He learned quickly which drawer contained the toys at Nana and Papa's and managed to climb into it to more fully enjoy his goodies. I wasn't quick enough to capture it with my phone, but when I first walked in, he was sitting down amidst them all with a ridiculous grin on his face - in heaven:

He also LOVES to be outside. I was so blessed a few weeks ago when a former student of mine and her family offered to keep Oliver for a few hours while Chris and I finished a few things on our house (I'll have to fill you all in on that one soon). He had a BLAST at their house! They have a huge yard, which he thoroughly enjoyed:

And he even got to play with a puppy and tupperware inside...

Plus he apparently found something remarkably entertaining - could their expressions be any more similar? We are so blessed to have such kind friends.

I admit that my 32 pound son certainly can drive me crazy and wear me out, but I also confess that I could not have asked for a sweeter boy. Disobedient at times? Yes. Way too heavy for this pregnant momma to carry? Definitely. Whiny when he's tired and hungry? Of course. But precious beyond all belief, and we are so thankful for him.

Children's Museum!

Just before we headed back to Paris, Oliver and I took one more outing that should be recorded. Our dear friends Jenn and Wyatt are members at the Houston Children's Museum, and I must admit that we will probably follow in their footsteps when we move back... This place is fabulous! I forgot my camera, but sweet Jenn not only shared hers, she even emailed me the pics. So, courtesy of Jenn (who posted on our trip to the Children's Museum almost a month ago - she's SO much more productive than I!), this is for you (yeah, YOU)!

We played in the ball pit:

Read some books:

Drove some cars (definitely the highlight of the day!):

And splashed in some water with our friend, Wyatt:

Could life get any better? We're looking forward to many more playdates when we get back!