family pictures and a little about thanksgiving

when my friend camille mentioned taking family pictures of us i was really happy.  i wanted family pictures for christmas cards but never really thought much about making it happen and then magically camille made it all come together so easy and perfect.  

thank you camille!

usually i say i don't want to share the pictures before christmas cards are sent out as to not ruin the surprise but if i don't share them now i might forget later.  those of you that get a card i'm sure it will still be plenty surprising.  let me start by saying how much i love these pictures and how it is almost impossible to not post every single one....so basically you are seeing most of them.  then i have to say that the witter's are some of our favorite people which made this photo shoot extra fun because we got to spend time with them afterwards.  they made our night for several reasons.  a friendship that started lots of years ago between two wild little boys has turned into a friendship between two families of three.  one of my favorite things is hearing the tales of will and chris when they were kids.....they were crazy.  i also love how ever seriously knows what to do in front of a camera.  she is so good at smiling and being cute when a camera is pointed her direction...probably because i'm always taking so many pictures of her.  she was adorable during our photo shoot.     

i'm basically in love with these pictures of ever...

the face she is making in this one....oh i love it!

when thanksgiving was over i realized i didn't take a single picture.....i was pretty bummed about it since it was ever's first thanksgiving and i'm all about documenting all of her firsts.  our thanksgiving looked like this....will worked.  i was busy cooking and taking care of ever most of the day.  when will got home from work we ate the small meal i prepared then rushed out the door to spend the evening with family playing games and such.

since these pictures were taken the day after thanksgiving we can just go ahead and let them count as her first thanksgiving pictures.

cute videos

a couple of adorable videos until i find the time to catch up on our latest happenings.

ever recently discovered turning the pages of her books.  i can't get over how cute this is.  i love the way she turns the pages all intensely.  this particular book has little flaps you can open and she also gets really excited about doing that as well.

then a giggly video.  

i absolutely adore her laugh.  i could listen to it all day long.

ever talks about the weekend

these posts are better from ever's perspective so here is what she has to say about our weekend...

i enjoy the cooler weather just like my parents.  

 i have loved going on walks lately because having blankies tucked around me in my stroller is the absolute best.

another favorite thing of mine is cuddling with my papa.  i miss him when he is at work.

mama and i fight for his attention when he gets home and guess who usually wins....me!

can't you tell from my expression that i am a sneaky mastermind at getting attention?

my mama has been doing this thing lately that involves all sorts of messy colors....i guess it is called painting.  

i'm not sure how i feel about this activity of hers.  i adore the end result but i don't like how i'm not the center of attention when she paints.  i usually make a big fuss to distract her and then when i wake up from naps i see her paintings all finished.   

i stare at them and smile.  the creepy tree is one she made for papa.  

he hung it up in his office at work.  

they said something about those roman numerals...i have no idea what they are but i guess it has to do with the day they got married.

on saturday it was really cold.  i got to wear my harajuku mini panda outfit and hello kitty vans.  i have been wanting to wear these items for months now so the cold weather made me happy because my dream outfit was finally a reality.

we went all sorts of places and so many strangers stopped my parents and made a big deal about how cute i was and how much they loved my outfit.  i didn't understand what all the fuss was about.  i was just comfy and warm and as cute as i always am.  

i was generous and gave out lots of smiles that day.  i didn't even have my usual stranger danger and freak out.

mama thought i looked hilarious all bundled up in my car seat...i guess i can see what she thought was so funny.

by the millionth stop and billionth picture i was kind of over it.  can you tell?

mama and papa put me in a new bed.  i guess it is called a crib but i think it should be called jail.  i didn't sleep good at all in this new contraption.  it made me miss my pack n play a whole bunch.  

i made my parents wish they had never taken away my usual bed by being completely naughty.  oh and just to show how sassy i can be when it comes to change....

i grabbed the jail wall and pulled myself up into standing position.

now i hear my parents talking about how they need to put the crib at the lowest setting.  

great...another change to irritate me.

they took the bassinet part out of my pack n play.  i now sit in that thing with a bunch of toys and entertain myself for about 10 minutes at a time before wailing for attention.  mama got out some toys she said she bought me before i was born.  i particularly love this pooh bear.  he is comfy.  so comfy i decided to use him as a pillow and take a nap.  

until next time...

ever.

this day...11 years ago and now.

today marks 11 years since my dad was relocated to heaven.  i spent most of the day with my two favorite ladies....ever and my mom.  let me tell you this day was so very much better than it was 11 years ago.  i reflected on that time and let myself feel those sad feelings for a few minutes then i focused on the happy things going on in my life right now for the remainder of the day.  us girls spent our day shopping at target (we laughed a bunch) then we came home to will and watched brave.  i was so happy that movie came out today.  ever was mesmerized by the short film la luna at the beginning of brave.  she couldn't take her eyes off the tv and i thought it was simply adorable.  i am absolutely in love with that short film and it seems ever finds it just as fascinating.  i adore that we both love it....and will does too.       

she stayed interested in brave for a few minutes then decided there were many more important things to do than sit around and watch a movie.  

i wish my dad could physically be here for moments like these.  

i miss him all of the time but somehow ever seems to take away much of that heartache.

she is a special little lady that i love deeply.

oh and my mom....i really love her too.