New Year's Eve

Here's our family, ready for some exciting adventures in 2012!

Beckett, Shonn, and I celebrated New Year's Eve with our friends the Waldens, the Holts, the Johnsons, and the Uppencamps.  We looked around and commented on how much can change in a year... Last year at this time, Jayme and I were both pregnant, Adam and Abbie were on a cruise, and Heath and Heather weren't even in our group yet.  Now, Adam and Abbie have moved to Indy, Allison and Chris are expecting number 2, and Jayme and I were chasing little rascals all night.  This is the third year we have all been in small group together, and we've become very close.  2012 promises to be a year full of new surprises and additions - I can't wait to see what's in store for all of us!

It was a wonderful evening.  We got there around 6:30, and Allison had all the decorations ready to go.  It was super-cute - very pinterest-worthy, as you will see in the following exhibit: (Need I remind you that Allison is the one who did the adorable M&M Holiday party just a few weeks ago? Talent, I tell ya.)

There was a ton of food, including my disastrous, and very UNpinterest worthy Ball-Drop Cupcakes.  I saw the idea on pinterest and chose to ignore the fact that they were created by a lady who makes cupcakes FOR HER JOB.  In my "project", I had all the wrong supplies and failed to read the full directions, so my cupcakes and cake pops remained separate desserts.  (You'll see the softball-sized cake pops in the upper right corner.  Softball similarity was one of the problems.)  Cute idea.  Major Fail.  Oh well - there was plenty to go around!
We had a great time watching the kids and playing my all-time favorite, Would You Rather.  If you aren't familiar with this game, you must immediately check it out. 
Here are some pics from the night.

Beckett was very interested in Hadleigh and Braylon. He loved playing with them both.

"Hey, cutie...Want a ride? I get 100 miles to the gallon on this hog."

"Where's Chris?"

Beckett: "Alright, c'mon! He isn't looking!" Hadleigh: "But your Ice Cream Truck doesn't match my outfit!"

Beckett: "This thing has some power!" Hadleigh: "Please."

THEN THINGS GOT SERIOUS...  Beckett leaned over, pushed Hadeigh down, and being the excellent parent that I am, I grabbed my camera instead of helping the poor girl up.  This is what ensued... And it wasn't even midnight yet...

Luckily, Aunt Abbie intervened.  Isn't she pretty?

 Before I knew it, Beckett was back on his Ice Cream Truck, cruising for more interesting activities.

He and Braylon found something exciting in the popping ball toy Jayme brought. (Again, in display of my superior parenting skills, I didn't bring any toys, which is probably why my child kept taking everyone else's. He did share his food, though...For the record...)  Here is Jayme and Braylon. Such cuties - both of them!

After a while, the toys got boring and Beckett needed to PARTY! He was walking all over the place, having a great time, singing and screaming with the party hat Aaron found and so lovingly placed on his head.  It definitely made for some cute pics!

  Shonn had some exciting party activities up his sleeve, too.  As you can see, Beckett is screaming. (In delight.)

Back on his feet, crusing for some more games and friends. With his eyes closed.

And he lost the Ice Cream Truck. (Hetold me he thought it made him look a little creepy.)

I love this picture. :)

Dad was leading Beckett to the yummy snacks in the kitchen...

...and then he realized Beckett was just following Hadleigh:

But his Number One Girl (at least for another year or two?), MOMMY, was there to intercept and give him a New Year's squish. (And some smooches.)

Sadly, I didn't get any kisses quite like Hadleigh did...

After a few more rounds of walking through the house, Beckett and Braylon got in their jammies.

The grown-ups laughed and made some very important decisions in Would You Rather...

Here's Heather and Abbie! Heath and Heather had a date night dinner before joining us. Their kiddo, Braylon, was at his Grandma's house.

Approximately 3 hours past his bedtime, Beckett was pretty much over the whole New Year's Eve celebration. (Plus Hadleigh was no where to be found.)

And not too long after, he crashed. (Please note that even though I forgot to bring toys to the party and neglected to prevent my child from attacking the other little people in the room, his hair did look pretty amazing...)

What a great night.  We are so blessed and are lookiing forward to what 2012 may bring!
xo

New Website!

Kestrel Design finished the Hild Landscaping website and it looks great!  They were very professional and easy to work with. Shonn put a ton of time into specifying what he wanted for the site, and I think it looks great. I would TOTALLY hire him. :)

Check it out:
www.hildlandscaping.com

Meeting Colin!



What, mom? We're just talking!

Beckett: So, what's good here?
Colin: Oh my.

PLEASE let me hug you!

Let's shake hands!

 Beckett and I got to have lunch with Miss Krista and her little guy, Colin, today! It was such a treat to see her, and of course to meet Colin. He is such a doll, all smiles and sugar. He was content the whole time in his pumpkin seat, making eyes at me. :) Beckett was very interested in him and wanted to hug and squeeze (and maybe eat) him. They were cute together. I wish I had more time to spend with Krista - everytime we catch up, it's like no time has passed. She is a great friend and has been a big part of my life.

Monical's Reunion

Eric, Joni, Carrie, and I met for lunch at Monical's yesterday. Carrie and Eric aren't in town very often, and even though Joni and I both live here, we rarely see each other. It was really nice to catch up with each of them and hear about all the great things they are doing. Eric is in New York City, in anesthesia school. Carrie and her husband, Jeff, own a dental practice and work together there. Their two kids, Evy and Michael, are growing and as cute as can be. Joni is an OB Nurse in Decatur and her two little ones, Hayden and Julia, are also cutie pies! Hayden is in kindergarten this year! I love the fact that we graduated in 1997 and we are still friends. Our other close friends, Katy, Angie, Casey, and Paige, had hoped to come, but weren't able to make it. We did see our old janitor, Joe, though!

Arts and Crafts

I saw this idea on Pinterest and decided to do it as a way of capturing Beckett's handprints at his first Christmas. It was fun! I laid out wrapping paper on the tile and put some paint onto a plate. He smashed his right hand in the green paint, looked at it, looked at me, looked at in again, and laughed. He kept smushing his fingers together to feel the consistency - he is defintely in the curious exploration stage, so each new experience is a wonder to him.  I had to pick him up to get the handprints on the canvas. It turned out pretty cool.  I still have to write "Beckett's First Christmas Tree - 2011" at the bottom, and then the masterpiece will be complete. :)

Daddy s Little Guy.wmv

Mini Hunter

Shonn is training Beckett to help him hunt... This year, Shonn "harvested" two deer; one during shotgun season and one with his bow.  He has really become interested in hunting...so much so that he made this video with Beckett one night before Christmas when I was at school for the Christmas program. I guess Beckett saw Shonn do it and then started trying to mimic him, so before bathtime, Shonn decided to get it on video.

 Oh my.  The things guys do... 

But I must admit, it is pretty cute!