Kemp Family Christmas Pics 2011

Fa la la

First thing's first- on Friday miss Olivia got her ears pierced! She did really well, in my opinion. Matt will tell you another story lol. She cried for about 2 minutes and as soon as she got her binkie and started strolling around the mall she completely forgot about it.

about 1 minute before

about 1 minute after

about 3 minutes after :)

pretty ears

We (Matt) finally finished putting up all of our Christmas decor today

my cute new Scentsy my seester Jessica gave me

fun crafts

&&& of course we had to take Liv to see Santa at the mall :)

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving was pretty swell for the Kemp family. Matt had a nice 5 day weekend and it was so great to spend time together as a family. I made lots of nummy treats and french onion rice and we feasted away with my family. Olivia got pretty overwhelmed with the large group of people. I think her teething did not exactly help the situation. After dinner we went to visit Grandma Carrie and Grandpa Blaine and Olivia was such a chill little chatter box! It was so funny to watch her chat and giggle with Matt's dad. After our visit it was time to tackle Black Friday! I didn't go too crazy this year but we did get some awesome stuff :) Then on Saturday we put up our Tree(s) and had our Friendsgiving (Thanksgiving with friends) at Pat and Courtney's house. It was a lot of fun!

Our tree

Olivia's tree

4 month cutie

Little miss Liv is not so little anymore. She is now 4 months old! I cannot get enough of this babe. I swear I go to bed and wake up to a whole new baby! At 4 months Olivia:

• is 25 inches long- 70%
• weighs 18.4 pounds- still above 95%
• head 16.5"- 70%
• wears 6 month clothes
• in size 3 diapers
• eats 7 ounces every 4.5 hours
• eats rice cereal twice a day
• has almost mastered sitting up on her own
• yells and chats all the time
• cutest giggle in the world
• still sleeping 8 hours through the night with 2 naps during the day
• is officially teething- so drools on and tries to put everything in her mouth
• Love, love, LOVES this video; Florence and the Machine- Dog Days are over. I loved this album when I was pregnant and listened to this song almost every day. I think it might be a familiar sound to her.

Now time for some pics

Attitude of Gratitude

Well since Thanksgiving is 2 days away, I suppose its only appropriate to list some things I'm grateful for:

• Matthew Gene

My husband, my rock, my best friend and love of my life. He is the greatest man on the face of the earth, no battle. He is such a hard worker and takes such amazing care of our family. We make a great team, and I truly admire his loyalty to me. Thank you for putting up with me and loving me exactly the way I am. Thank you for standing up for me-well us-,thank you for being my companion and most importantly thank you for the giving me our beautiful baby.

• Olivia

My daughter, my child, my pride and joy. Words can never express how grateful I am to call you mine. Being a Mom has always been a dream of mine, but being your Mom is the greatest. Thank you for your smiles, for your laugh, for your adorable little personality that I just love watching bloom. Thank you for being patient with me through this learning process of being a Mom. Thank you for your unconditional love.

• My Parents

Thank you for raising me to be the person I am. Thank you for teaching me to be a strong woman, thank you for teaching me love and empathy. We may not see eye to eye on everything, but thank you for respecting my choices and views. Thank you for being such great parents to Matt. Your support means the world to us. And of course, thank you for being such AMAZING grandparents to Olivia, not just claiming the title because she's biologically related to you. Thank you for being involved, thank you for calling everyday and coming to see her every opportunity you can.

• My Sisters

Built in best friends. The older I get the more and more grateful I am to have you both in my life. Thank you for the support, thank you for the laughs, the hugs, the late night chats, the list goes on and on. I cannot imagine a life without either of you. Thank you for being such incredible aunt's to Olivia. She loves both of you sooooo much! Thank you for helping me become the person I am.

• Friends

I love all the amazing friends we have in our lives. Thank you for supporting us and loving us and Olivia. Thank you for keeping me sane, thank you for being an outlet and teaching me new things. A special thank you to me fellow Mommy friends- I'm not really sure how I would get by without you. Thank you for being patient with my millions of questions and for your advice. I cherish the memories I've made and am continuing to make with all of you. Old friends, new friends, I love you all!

• Carrie Kemp

My mother in law. Thank you for raising such an amazing man. Thank you for wanting to be in our lives, and making an effort to do so. Thank you for being there for Matt and me. Thank you for being our middle man, well woman for certain situations. Thank you for having good intentions and supporting us. Thank you for being a Grandmother to Olivia. She loves you very much and we love having you in our lives.

• Thanksgiving Feast

My family's Thanksgiving is superb. I love the tradition and our time together. I love Grandma's rolls, Dad's deep fried Turkey(s), Mom's homemade mashed potatoes, Grandma Wilson's fantastic sweet potato casserole, Stacie's Pies (even if they aren't homemade :), my french onion rice and other various goodies, and soooo much more. What can I say, I love food!

• Black Friday

Let's be honest, what girl doesn't love to shop? Black Friday is just an excuse to do it all night :) I do love the whole experience of it. The crowds, the Christmas Spirit (until you get an elbow in the chin), and of course the deals. It is just so fun.

• The Twilight Saga

Need I say more? :)

• The... the... the... The Grinch!

My Favorite Christmas Movie in the World of all time!!

• The Wood Connection

Even though I feel like I am at a zoo when I come, I love having a place to find such adorable stuff to make!

• Our Health

We may not be participating in any marathons in the near future, but our little family is in good health. I am very grateful for something so simple as being able to function and live such simple lives not restricted by any type of debilitating illness. On that note, I am very grateful to have health insurance. I can't imagine not being able to take my sick child to the doctor without having to worry about the financial stress. I am so grateful Matt has the great benefits he does!

• Our Home

I am so happy we have a place to call home. No, we don't own a house or live in the biggest apartment in the world, but its still a home, our home. I love the area we live in, I love that we are not tied down and stuck in some upside down or huge mortgage for something mediocre. I'm grateful we decided not to jump the gun and buy a house when we first got married or when we found out I was pregnant and end up settling for something less then perfect. I am grateful that we are not house poor, that we don't have to spend an arm and a leg just to have a roof over our head.

• Life!

What can I say I love life. I love living the life we do.
Happy Thanksgiving!