Christmas 2011

As always, we had a wonderful holiday visiting all our family! It is a whirlwind trying to see everyone, but we enjoy the time spent with family. We began the trip with the Thompson Christmas  - this was the first time for Harper to meet most of the Thompsons. Unfortunately, our little sweetie got her first fever that night  (102.5) and consequently was a bit grouchy. Luckily her fever broke with a single dose of Tylenol and she was quickly feeling much better. Ross and I had a nice time chatting with the adults and I think the parents enjoyed reminiscing about when their kids were Harper's age.

We spent Christmas Eve at Grandpa Kirk's house. Linda had prepared a special activity for us - making Lefsa! Lesfa is a traditional Norwegian flat bread - Ross LOVES to eat it when it's been prepared with butter and sugar (and sometimes a little cinnamon). Linda had worked to find a recipe and the tools for us to make it at home - it was a great way to spend Christmas Eve. That evening we went to church before opening gifts in front of the fire.

Christmas Day was spent back at Grandma Ruth's house. We lounged around in our PJs and had a relaxing day - it was wonderful to have the time to reminisce about all the blessings we have received this year.

A few days later we went to Iowa Falls to celebrate with Grandma Judy. It was a full house and an extra special holiday since it was the first celebration with Harper and Reid in attendance! The older kids were very excited that Santa had dropped off a few extra presents for them at Grandmas house, too.  We are so blessed to have so many people who love us!

Santa

My company, NCMIC, has a holiday party for the children every year. There are lots of crafts and treats for the kids to enjoy. And, best of all, Santa stops in to see all the kids! Harper was happy to sit on his lap. We don't think she whispered anything into Santa's ear, but we are sure that she has secured her place on his nice list!

Technical Difficulties

Sorry for the break in posts - we lost both our computers within a few days! The hard drive on the laptop went out and a few days later a mean virus developed on our desktop. Thanks to Dave for helping us retrieve all the data from the computers and to Kirk for giving us an older tower to use!

Santa's Helpers

Happy Holidays from the Whittleseys!

As we prepare for Christmas, our house is full of holiday cheer. Grady has been supervising all of the wrapping

and Harper has been being extra adorable!

2 Months Old

Harper celebrated turning 2 months old this week. In honor of her milestone, we visited Dr. Peterson for a well visit check up. Harper is up to 11 lb, 2 oz and 23" long - which puts her in the 60 percentile for weight and 76 percentile for height. She eats approximately 4 ounces every three hours and her cheeks are becoming quite chubby! Dr. Peterson was pleased with her growth and said she was a beautiful little girl (Yup, doc, we agree!). At the end of the appoinment, Harper recieved three shots as a present. Although the nurse did an excellent job, Harper wasn't a fan of the shots and demonstrated her vocal ability to let the entire building know that it hurt. Poor kiddo. That evening, we snuggled and she took a nap on both Ross and myself before bathtime (one of her favorite things).

Silent Night

In the last few days, Harper has figured out that she should sleep at night. Previously she was a night owl - often staying up until past midnight. She was often overtired and cranky so getting her down at night was tiring for us. However, just this week, she decided that 8 pm is a good bedtime. Ross and I are loving the change in schedule - and that there is a schedule! We have also discovered what happens if you try to change her nap schedule - you get a very cranky baby!

Alice in Wonderland

We read to Harper as part of her bedtime routine. We started out with some of the books she recieved as gifts. However, recently Ross has reading her Alice in Wonderland. Everynight he sits down with her and reads a chapter of the story. It's a nice way to unwind for Ross and Harper loves hearing her dad's voice. Ross found an application on his phone with some classic stories so he has been using it to read her the book - ahhh, technology! No matter where the book is coming from, storytime has become one of the best times of the night.