It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas

Grandpa Brown with Adaline / Adaline with the cat CJ made for her

It is not hard for Christmas to be one of the best times of the year, but with a new baby, I have to say that Christmas is even better. It is a time to reflect on the year and the joys that we have had as well as a time to gather with friends and family.


Adaline playing with some fun new toys

As I look at these pictures I am reminded how much has happened and changed in the last year. Adaline does not really know yet what Christmas is all about, but she certainly seemed to have enjoyed herself none the less. Part of the fun this year was trying to coordinate time together with all of the different parts of our family. We met my Dad and CJ in Raleigh at Ryan and Jennifer's house for our first Christmas celebration. We had a great time and Adaline got a couple of new toys that she really loves. (especially the colored rings!)


The holidays are a great time to do a little lounging on the couch.


Shane, Cheri, Adaline, Jennifer, and Ryan


by the tree



My Mom and Jerry and Ryan and Jennifer all came to our house this year for Christmas. We were joined on Christmas evening by Claudia and Jeff for presents and dinner. Cheri did a great job as usual decorating the tree, and Adaline got lots of attention (and presents). She did not really get the concept of unwrapping the presents, but she did understand how to hug them. We finished out our holiday with a great after Christmas meal at Cheri's parents house and a little movie watching. It was an enjoyable holiday and our only wish is that it was a little longer, so we could have more time with our families. Merry Christmas to all out there, and may the new year bring lots more wonderful times!


Grandma Brown and "Grandpoopy" :)

Getting ready for Christmas...

Adaline has really become a Daddy's girl in the last little while. The babbles she makes almost even sound like dadadada, but there is a lot of babababa in there too (not much mamamama). Anyway, we are excited that she is beginning to "talk" more, and it is fun listening to her play in her crib and on the floor. Adaline has been a bit under the weather in the last week, battling a fever, congestion, and her first tooth. The tooth hasn't quite broken the surface, but we can certainly feel the edge of it and know it is coming any time now. This last week has been a bit rough on all of us sleep wise, so we are all ready for the tooth to appear. We did take her to the doctor after a few days of the fever and found out she is now over 17 pounds. Wow!



Almost two weeks ago, we took a trip back up the mountain to celebrate Christmas with the camp staff in Sparta. The folks around camp that keep the place running throughout the year all gather together annually to eat dinner and enjoy the holiday spirit. Shane went up early with a few folks to get this picture of Santa at camp for the Cheerio Christmas card. Then we met up with him in Sparta at the dinner. Shane and his fellow office staff performed a song in silly hats to amuse the guests, and Adaline tried out one of the hats. She was not happy about it.


Shane and I take turns on weekends sleeping in. One morning I woke up to find this! :)



We have been getting ready for Christmas around our house. We got the tree and decorations up, and even had our annual Christmas party. It was great to see some friends and spend a little time catching up. Adaline did so well at the party and, after visiting people for a few hours, went right to sleep so that Shane and I could remain with our guests. Adaline has been sitting with me and playing on the floor while I wrap packages and get them ready to ship out. Just yesterday we were getting a box ready to ship, and Adaline got a bit excited about seeing what was inside. She toppled over from her sitting position, hitting her face on the corner of the box. So, she now has her first big boo-boo, right on the side of her face! :(

Friday afternoon, the forecast called for some snow and winter mix. We were released early from school, and I got to spend the afternoon at home playing as it snowed and iced. Yesterday, Shane and I took Adaline outside to experience her first snow. She was not a bit interested! Perhaps we will get more snow when she can appreciate it.

Hello all. We have not posted in a little while. It could be we are all just too tuckered out to post, but I am going to make an effort to catch up a bit. As you can see even Adaline is worn out! Several weeks ago (mid Nov.) Adaline had her 9 month check up and is now weighing in around 16 lbs, 10 oz. It is really hard to believe it has been that long. She is a little behind on some of her milestones, but nothing to be concerned with...just regular preemie stuff, and she is still catching up.



Bath time still takes both Shane and I because although Adaline is sitting up well, she still has some trouble in a slippery tub. However, she is still loving the kicking and splashing around in the water.



We have been working on more variety of textures with food, and even bigger pieces. Adaline loves the puffs and does alright with her chewing skills, however, she still needs more practice picking them up and getting them to her mouth. Mostly, she picks one up and if it doesn't make it in to her mouth right away she forgets it is there. She has gotten pretty good at taking one from my hand and putting it in her mouth...I do help position it a bit as she grabs!


Granddad Brown with Adaline / Jeff with Trixie all dressed up for the holiday season

Thanksgiving was a good time with family (although we were missing many of you). We spent the holiday here in High Point at mom and Jeff's house. Jeff prepared most of the meal (as mom was still in CO with Josh, Michelle, Tallison, and the rest of the family there) and we all spent a restful and just plain full afternoon enjoying the company of family.


Marsha, Jake, and Ken with Adaline and Trixie competing for attention / Adaline's Thanksgiving dinner...not too different from other dinners, but there is always next year


just cute

Shane, Adaline and I did go to High Point's Christmas parade with some friends, but left the camera at home. It wasn't too exciting, so you didn't miss much, but Adaline did see Santa (at a distance), some lights, and an interesting crowd. I think she enjoyed watching some of the Macy's parade with me on Thanksgiving morning more????

I hope you all had a happy Thanksgiving as well!

closing up camp for winter and sitting up

This past weekend was the final fall weekend at Cheerio and it was a perfect way to finish up at camp for the year. The weather was just beautiful and the groups were pretty laid back. Above are a few pictures Shane took around sunset.


Adaline hanging out on the carpet ...and the dining hall table.



Although Shane was up at camp to work, Adaline and I were able to spend the weekend playing a bit more. We walked up to the climbing towers where Aaron was working with his dog, Gus. Adaline enjoys Trixie (mom and Jeff's dog) and Nugget and Tallulah (our cats), so I knew she would want to pet Gus. Gus was really good about letting her, too. We also couldn't stay in our apartment at camp because that building was already shut down for winter; so we stayed in Michaux and Michelle's place. It was kind of them to let us use their camp home, and so we made sure to keep everything as we found it. Adaline helped me do a load of laundry and we got in a lot of cuddle time.



I have managed to capture Adaline sitting in photos. These are two different days, and every day she is sitting longer! Yay!

In other news...Shane and I are now an aunt and uncle. My brother Josh, and his wife Michelle, just welcomed a beautiful baby girl, Tallison, into the world over in Colorado. I am so excited for them and wish them the best in this wonderful new experience!

East to West

So, the Brown family has had a busy several weeks. We have not had a weekend at home for some time, but have had lots of fun.


AW, Craig and Shane enjoying a beer at the brewery / tummy time with Kay and Adaline

A few weekends ago, we traveled to Clayton to visit my college roommates and friends (why do I not have a picture of all of us???), Anna, AW, Emily, Craig, and baby Kay, for the weekend. Anna and AW were kind to have two babies staying at their lovely home, and Adaline and Kay had a nice time meeting each other, finally. Mostly we hung around the house, caught up, and played. However, we did get out for awhile on Saturday for a yummy lunch and a brewery trip. I think people thought it was crazy to bring babies to a brewery, but Adaline enjoyed watching the people, and Kay just slept through it all. It was a fantastic weekend and perhaps another visit will not be too far off.


Guster!!! / our crowd Zach, Lauren, Shane, me, Jennifer, and Ryan

Last week, one of our favorite bands was coming through NC on a brief tour that we could not miss. Guster did a weeknight show in Charlotte that was a double set, and to date their longest performance. It was in a small venue (Neighborhood Theater) with great acoustics, and I think the best show of theirs we have seen. Although it was a late night, and tough getting up for work, it was worth it.



Adaline has been practicing her sitting skills lately, and although she can sit for a few seconds at a time without help, I haven't captured a still photo where one of us is not grabing hold of her as she tips over. I believe she is being a little lazy about it too, because when I try to sit her up she stiffens up so that I can't bend her at the waist. Soon though. Adaline has also been through her first ear infection, but according to the doctor it was not a bad one. She did have a few slight fevers, but she went through her antibiotics and is all better and feeling well now. In her trip to the doctor we did find out that she is just over 16 pounds now! She has her 9 month check up and shots in less than 2 weeks and that is very difficult to believe.


Lauren, Jennifer and me on the saddle stools / the night Martyn stopped in to play

Last weekend we traveled to Boone/Blowing Rock to visit more college friends and family. It was Shane's turn to have a weekend with old roommates. Zach and his wife Lauren flew in from Texas for a NC visit and Lauren kindly opened up her family's mountain home for us, along with Shane's brother Ryan and our sister-in-law Jennifer. We packed the weekend complete with games (from poker to hide and seek, yes at our age!), food (including Mellow Mushroom and Kilwins) and people watching in Boone and Blowing Rock on Halloween. No trick-or-treaters mangaged to tackle the mountain we sat atop either, so we had no interruptions to our visit.


Zach, Lauren, Jennifer, Ryan, Adaline, Cheri, and Shane / giddy-up Brown's

We have enjoyed all the time with friends and family and miss those of you we haven't seen in awhile! We hope to get in some more travel time in the not so distant future.