Christmas Pictures/ Santa Visit

Connor went to see Santa Claus Sunday in St. Louis. We went with his friend Cameron. The Dads had gone up the day before to shop so we met them, had lunch, waited in line and visited with Santa. Connor had a great trip and both boys were wonderful all day long.
When we saw Santa Connor went up and gave him high five along with a big grin. Then when it came time to sit on his lap the smile disappeared! He got the red eyes and did not like sitting there by himself. Santa was extremely patient and talked to Connor after he got off his lap. Connor was quickly back to all smiles and gave him a high five goodbye.
My favorite part of the trip was on the way home when the boys serenaded us with a song they both learned from their Parents as Teachers educator. Joanne would be proud!
We almost didn't get Christmas pictures this year since I forgot to make an appointment early enough and they were booked! Luckily they had a cancellation and worked us in -
He gets so serious about his books-
This is mom's favorite- I just love the look!


I love this grin too but unfortunately in some prints we got of this picture he looks evil!
What a big boy!
We love these even though he looks like he's in jail. He had a blast playing with the girls through the window-

Giving mom some nosey-nosey and kisses in the leaves-



They put the gift on their head to make him smile so he's just following instructions-

Caught in Action

Connor has decided that he likes to stand on top of things- tables, stacks of books, tractors.... I discovered this when I walked in to the living room this afternoon. He was yelling "Sit down." You'll also notice that he's not wearing a shirt. He now insists on feeding himself his yogurt- I couldn't find a bib tonight so there was no shirt after dinner!
I tried to get some video right before bed so everyone can see how much Connor loves to talk. He has a great memory and loves reciting songs, books and rhymes. Here he starts with Twinkle, Twinkle and then goes into his ABCs. You can see him reaching for his new favorite book at the end-



Connor's new favorite book is The Night Before Christmas. Here you can see him practicing his dramatic (sometimes very dramatic) reading of the new favorite-

Thanksgiving in KC

This year we traveled to Kansas City for Thanksgiving. We had a great time visiting Connor's aunts and uncles that live in KC and getting to see his cousins. Unfortunately they all move really fast and I didn't get out my camera much the whole weekend! It was great getting to see everyone and visit with family and friends over the holiday.
These are pictures of Connor in the hotel room reading his books and seeing if there were any deals that he's interested in on Black Friday-



On Saturday we went to the MU/KU game. Connor stayed at his cousin Harrison's house. Harrison has the coolest play room ever, complete with his own tree that you are allowed to touch!
MU/KU at Arrowhead stadium-
Yea, marching MU-
The flip tiger-
And the snow-
Don't we look like we're warm, happy and having fun?
Well, we were at that point in time. Luckily, our seats were under an overhang so we remained dry and we were pretty toasty in all of our layers. Notice the picture highlights were of the band's performance? The team's performance doesn't deserve to be documented in pictures, but these were all taken early enough that we didn't know any better!

The next day Connor got to experience snow for the first time-

More Fall Fun

I don't have any pictures from the actual parade but we went to the Waynesville Veteran's Day parade. Connor loves bands and flags so what could be better? Before we went down to watch we had some time to hang out waiting in daddy's office.
Connor found Colin's gavel and decided that he too can be a judge.



Connor continued to enjoy the fall weather and getting to play outside in particular. Here is a sample weekend afternoon for Connor-
Playing with Daddy in the leaves-

It just doesn't get any cuter than this-
Okay, maybe it does-

Sweet Connor digging in the mulch (ignore the partially landscaped courtyard- it's a work in progress)-
And then the mulch starts getting thrown on the porch-
And when told to clean up, even more gets thrown on the porch-
Oh no, apparently there is a "naughty corner" on the front porch :(

Mmmmm.....chocolate ice cream makes it all better!Especially when it's shared with Tiger-

Fall fun!

I piled some leaves this morning so that Connor could play in them. He had a great time even though it was really cold out-A quick stop for a milk break-

Back to the fun-

Here is some video of Connor in action and giving an update on the weather-

Connor's New Hats

Connor loves playing with all of the pajamas in his pajama drawer. The past two days he has decided that his pjs would make great hats. This was the first night when we were in the basement and he walked around the corner looking like this-
And then kept wearing it while playing in the ball pit-
Today I was outside working in the yard and looked in to see this through the window. Colin changed Connor's diaper and Connor told him- "No pj pants" but then when he got down he decided to wear them, on his head-

15 month check up

Monday Connor went for his 15 month check up- even though we're over 16 months old. He had a great appointment and got a few "owies" but they were "all gone" by the end of the day. He is now 32.5" tall (85% ) and 23lb. 8 oz. (under 50%)- tall and skinny but very healthy!
This is the first time that he hasn't had a reaction to the shots- usually a full day of feeling yucky. I don't know if it was the new Elmo doll from Daddy, the chicken nuggets and ice cream on the way home or the blue sucker the nurse gave him that helped the most.
His blue smile-
Yea! Connor picked a winner!!

Itsy Bitsy Connor

Connor had a great Halloween. He was a very warm itsy bitsy spider with a padded costume, hat and tights! He went trick or treating at mom's school and the courthouse during the morning and then down the street in the evening. Lots of trick or treaters stopped by (120 this year) and at one time with four little ones and eight adults plus the three of us in the living room Connor yelled- "More kids!" He loved all the visitors.
Clapping with the extra legs-
Doing the motions to the song while in costume- he called himself "Itsy Connor"

The view from the back- Connor loves license plates-
Oops, itsy fell down-