Weekend of friends...

This past weekend, Ayla was at Grandma and Grandpa's with Aunt Marla on Friday night and on Saturday afternoon, Yeh-Yeh and Nai-Nai picked her up to go to their house for the night. Have I mentioned how lucky we are to have our families in town and that they are always so willing to take Ayla for us? We were out both nights with friends who are in town for Christmas and friends who we don't see often enough. It was a lot of fun and it's always wonderful to see friends, but it was a complete change from what I've been used to lately...staying up late both nights and enjoying some "beverages" is very different from a quiet night in vegging on the couch. :)

I didn't see Ayla until 3:30 in the afternoon on Sunday. I was so excited to pick her up and give her a squeeze. She was away so much during the weekend that I started to feel like we didn't have a child! It was so strange...I didn't know what to do with myself. Because I can't seem to remember, I always ask Dean what we used to do before we had her. What a boring life it must have been!

I must mention one more time how much I love the holiday season. I can't believe Christmas is only a few days away. I do have to say that this may have been the least stressful few weeks leading up to Christmas that I've had in a long time. I have to contribute it to the fact that I did 90% of my shopping before Thanksgiving even rolled around. Instead of fighting the crowds trying to find gifts at the last minute, I actually enjoyed shopping this year. I have one more gift to wrap...after that, I can sit back and enjoy the next few days. We have family coming into town from Salt Lake City and Kansas City on Wednesday...I'm so so so excited! It's been a long time since we've all been together. We're also supposed to get more snow...some are saying it's supposed to be pretty nasty so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the forecast will be incorrect so travelers won't have to deal with it.

Just a quick Ayla update...she has been learning how to eat with a fork and spoon. She's more than delighted when a bite actually makes it into her mouth. She looks up and waits for me to applaud. :) She has a weird thing about getting her hands dirty so once she masters this, she'll be much happier.

On Sunday afternoon, I took some pictures for some friends of ours...their little baby girl is just adorable. She changes so much each time I see her...