I wanna bop with you baby...

I have no idea where Landon got his moves, but aren't they great! Landon had a great time watching the big kids and picking up some moves at Katie and Shaun's wedding dance on Saturday.

Wedding

Because of the inclement weather on Saturday we did not travel out of town to attend Christmas with the Schrandt's. We did however attend the nearby wedding of my step cousin Katie who got married to Shaun Reed in Ossian, Iowa. We did not attend the wedding because of Landon running a fever and napping (teething), but we did attend the reception, and the beginning of the dance. It was beautiful, and we had a great time.

The family

Cousins, Me, Nicole and Becky
The Lynn sister's minus Melissa

Landon and Grandma Sabelka

Doris (Grandma), Joyce, Sharon and Margie
Sisters

Landon getting ready to party!

Landon and Elke

Landon likes to cuddle with Elke, or at least that's what it looks like he's doing. Although Elke doesn't seem to enjoy it- she don't get up and move either. Here are some pictures of them this morning. Landon scoots as close as he can to Elke, she licks him and he laughs. So cute!

Schrandt Christmas

Yesterday we planned on going to Jeremy's Aunt Mic's and her husband Marv's for Christmas. They live by Rochester, so we took off early to do a little shopping before hand. As we got going the rain started coming down . We watched the temperature drop below freezing and then heard we were in an ice warning for the afternoon, and snow was expected in the evening. While we thought we could make it up there, we weren't sure about getting home in the evening. So unfortunately we turned around. We were really looking forward to seeing their new house and catching up with everyone. It's been a while since we've seen them. Mic had previously delivered a Christmas present for Landon, so he opened it this morning. Thanks for the wonderful gift Mic and Marv. This is Landon's first set of legos! Hopefully we will see you soon!

Merrill/Murray Christmas

On Christmas Day, we got together with Grandma Merrill and her friend Mike. Landon is ready to open presents. To bad we hadn't eaten yet!

Now it's time to dig in!

Late in the afternoon on Christmas Day, we got together with Mike and his children. Here are his two grandchildren- Lucy and Russel. Landon is exactly two weeks older than Lucy. She will be one on the 27th and Russel with be three in January. Aren't they cute!
It was so thoughtful for Mike's daughter Liz and her family to give us a gift. In the cooler there was ground beef, steaks and a roast, along with buns, condiments, seasonings and mints! What a great gift! We just loved it. I might have to copy this idea next year- it was so practical!

Merry Christmas!

Here are pictures from Christmas at the Sabelka's. We always get together on Christmas Eve. It is so much fun with all the kids, and they all played together so nice! As always, everyone out did themselves, especially Grandma and Grandpa. Landon got some fun toys and movies and has had a really fun Christmas!

Landon got two tractors!

Daddy assembling Landon's new shopping cart


And we're off!

Ba-bye ba ba!

It's official, the bottle is gone! Since Landon turned one, I knew it was time to get rid of the bed time bottle. I admit, I was hanging on, thinking "what if he wakes up in the middle of the night because he was hungry?" The Dr. reassured me that wouldn't be the case! The last two nights, Landon has fallen asleep at regular bedtime (8 pm) without a bottle. Yaahh! Oh, and he didn't wake up in the middle of the night. Thanks Dr. Schilling!

Snow day!

This is what we woke up to this morning. 9 inches of fresh snow. After the county plowed our gravel road this morning I attempted to go to work. I got to Fort Atkinson and after realizing I needed to walk two blocks to get to Landon's daycare, I realized it just wasn't worth it. So we had a snow day, and I loved every minute of it!








As with anything new, Landon cried when he tried out his sled for the first time. He got over it and then seemed to enjoy being pulled around by Grandma Merrill.

















Sitting on a snow mound. He wasn't brave enough to touch the snow.















Landon and Mom all bundled up!











Even Elke enjoyed running around in the snow. She has been sleeping on the couch ever since we came back in the house!

Life one year later...

I've done a lot of reflecting today, as it was one year ago today we brought Landon home from the hospital. If you asked me a year ago what life would be like today, I couldn't have imagined it would be so wonderful! Tonight, I listened to Landon cry for 20 minutes after I cut his toe nails. In his mind, the world was crashing down on him- he cried so hard he fell asleep. I was upset that Landon was upset, but I was also happy that I have an independent toddler, who knows what he likes and doesn't like.

One year ago tonight, I was expecting the worst. I was thinking we were going to be up all night and we weren't going to get any sleep. It wasn't nearly that bad, it's never been that bad. That night Landon slept very well. He woke three, maybe four times, and after eating he immediately fell back asleep. I have a wonderful husband who then took turns and still takes turns getting up early. Tonight, Landon fell asleep at 7:45 pm, and will sleep to 5:00 am. His internal alarm clock will not let him sleep any longer!

So, life for Landon and for us is pretty fun right now. He sleeps well, he eats well, and he is very active. Landon has five teeth. He walks/runs. He usually takes two naps a day. One in the morning, and one in the afternoon. Each nap last 1-2 hours. Landon also naps on the way to Bearnice's in the morning, and then gets upset when we get there and he wakes up. I tell him that he should sleep a little longer! Landon is now drinking whole milk, and after this weekend is down to just one bottle, and that is at bedtime. Landon loves to snack and his favorites are cheerios and goldfish. Landon likes most food, except for peaches. He will eat them only if he is hungry and it's the only thing on his tray. Landon loves his dog Elke, and thinks it's fun when he takes her rope and she chases him. He cries when she takes the rope back. He tries to pet her, but she moves to quickly for him. Landon knows how big he is, what a cow says, and what a puppy says, although he won't always do it on command. Landon knows how to wave hi and bye, but sometimes waves minutes after that person left. Landon still only knows one word and it's "this." Landon is working on sign language and knows the sign for milk- in fact, that's one of his first means of communication in the morning. Landon likes to cuddle, but it must be on his terms. He is a boy after all!

To say it's been the best year of our lives would be an understatement. Every child is a blessing, and we are thankful that Landon is a part of our lives.

Happy 1st Birthday Landon!

Yesterday, Landon turned one! Landon's birthday party was held at his home and lots of family came over to help him celebrate. Landon went to bed late last night and was up early this morning because he was having so much fun playing with all of his new toys. Thanks again to everyone who helped Landon celebrate his first birthday! There are so many pictures I will try and narrow it down to just a few!

I can walk!

Here is a video of Landon walking. Landon was able to take a few steps at a time for quite a while, but three weeks ago, he decided he can walk. Literally, Landon woke up one morning and walked across the living room. Now, he's practically running. It's one more milestone checked off, and another indication he's not a baby anymore.

Rocker chair

Because Landon will be celebrating his birthday and Christmas both in the next two weeks, I was doing some packing away of toys last night. Boxing up the baby toys and making room for the big boy toys. I brought the baby toys down to the basement and noticed Landon's swing. What a great gift I got from my wonderful sister and sister-in-law. Landon used it so much as a baby. This multi-purpose contraption can be used as a swing, and then taken apart and used as a rocker. I brought it up thinking that Landon might like to use it again as a rocking chair. I'll leave it in the living room and it can be his own chair. He should have fun climbing in and out of it on his own. At first, Landon thought he got a new push toy. Everything is a push toy, laundry basket, toy barn, rocking horse, etc. Why would I think this would be different. So, he pushed it around for a while and then realized, this is kind of cool, I can climb in and out of it on my own. So, he picked up his favorite toy, the remote, and settled in. So, here are a couple pictures. The first picture is of Landon in his swing at two months old. The second picture is of Landon sitting in his swing last night. The scary part, he pushes button on the remote and looks at the TV to see what's happening. I know, kind of sad.

5 teeth!

Landon has not been himself the last few days and it is because he got another tooth. I was so afraid that he was coming down with the flu (I was out with the flu a few days last week). What a relief that it was just another tooth. Landon now has his top two teeth and three bottom teeth. I can see two more teeth coming in on the top. He was such a good sport about them coming in and didn't even wake up at night.

Christmas Spirit

We've got the Christmas spirit at the Merrill House, or at least I do! The tree is up and I love it. One of Landon's first major trips out last year was to Wal-Mart with me the day after Christmas. It was a quick trip, I knew what I wanted. I bought a skinny, pre-lit tree that was 50% off. I put it up for the first time this Christmas and I love it. Half the battle in the years past was putting all the branches up, stringing the lights, etc., etc. So easy, and so much smaller!

Today, I tried to capture just the right photos for our Christmas cards. Here are a couple of my favorites!

I also did a little baking today! Some of this will be enjoyed at Landon's birthday party next Saturday. The rest of the goodies will be shared with friends and family!

1 year photos

Landon had his one year photos taken today. Although Landon didn't really want to cooperate, Rose still managed to get some great photos. To view the rest of the photos, click on the following link: http://infiniteimagedesign.exposuremanager.com/g/children
After clicking on Landon's photo, the password is: Merrill