Chicago Christmas {A Merrill Tradition}

Snuggled up on the couch after church.

Ryan and I started a tradition when we were dating of having our 'own' Christmas. I decorated his bachelor-pad apartment with stockings and garland, and we exchanged gifts. After we were married, we continued this tradition with a full Christmas dinner and stocking/gift exchange before we leave town to visit our families. Its one of my favorite things about Christmas each year!

My handsome men.

Morning snuggles.

Of course Hunter's favorite thing was the tissue paper!

This year, we held Christmas on Sunday December 23. We started with cinnamon rolls for breakfast, church, and then an afternoon of gift exchange and cooking. For dinner I made: Roasted Pumpkin soup, twice baked potatoes, cider-glazed bacon green beans, rolls and Prime Rib with a berry punch. I have to admit, it was one of the best meals I have ever made. AMAZING!

Christmas Feast!

We like to hang our stockings on the speakers...our yule log is on the tv :)

Entry way.

After dinner we held a group skype with my family in Maryland and California. It was so fun to be all together and open gifts together-- almost as good as being there in person. We finished the night with packing for our Utah Christmas (I was very proud with the minimal packing I did and fit everything, including gifts and my madela in my carry-on bag).

Hard to see but this is my mom, dad, brother and then sister, nephew, grandma, brother in law, aunt and cousin.

Hunter skyping.

Baby H {4 Months}

My happy boy!

December 1, 2012
18 lbs, 3 oz (95%)
26 inches long (85%)

Grabbing things like crazy - pulling them down, often to his face- His perception has gotten better and he has figured out how to put things in his mouth if they are hanging in front of him.

Loves his stroller blanket- I had no idea that he would love his tag blanket so much! Its bright colors and black and white and he loves holding it and chewing on it.

Loves baby Sophie- He can chew on Sophie and play with his chew rings all day. Its a lifesaver for days he is in his carseat while we run errands.

Rolls for days- I can not get enough of his chubby legs, belly, and arms! I think Ryan is jealous of how big Hunters arms look! Haha.

Rolled over 1 time so far-We are still working with him to have this be more of a regular occurrence but he is one the move!

Loves his Johnny Jump Up- His dad has been working with him for over a month to figure out this toy! Hunter is finally starting to get it. He turns more than he jumps, but he loves to be in it!

Such a happy baby- he is so happy and content all the time. If he is fussy, its for a clear reason, and usually because he is tired.

Sleep Training- we trained him over Thanksgiving at my parents house. It was the best holiday gift ever!! Now he goes to bed when I lay him in his crib for 12 hours each night. He still wakes up to eat, but at least he goes down without a fight and is taking regular naps during the day. Halleluiah! I am a new mama!!

Supported Sitting- He loves his bumbo and sitting up to see what's going on!

Clothes - he is wearing 6 mos/6-12 mos clothes already!

love that face!

Daily Photos

I send a picture to Ryan almost every day while he is at work. Just because H is so cute and happy during the day. Here are a few:

Does it get any better than this?!

Happy Friday!

Happy Boy!

I know you're missing these thighs...

Good morning!

Sorry the last one is sideways.... as you can see, our Hunter is a big boy!! We love him so much and especially his fatty thighs, legs, belly, everything. He's a chunky healthy baby and we love him!!

Maryland Thanksgiving {Thanksgiving 2012}

Our happy family on Thanksgiving.

I love Thanksgiving. Its such a warm and cozy holiday centered around being grateful, yummy food, and friends and family.

We were so excited to spend a long weekend in Maryland with my parents for Thanksgiving this year. My mom went above and beyond to ensure a wonderful Thanksgiving Day -- the cooks (Mom, Tarin and I) started our day with a beautiful walk in Rock Creek Park, and then a busy day cooking and a delicious dinner and of course dessert. Papa kept the kids entertained during the day with raking leaves and jumping in leaf piles. We ended our day watching 2 of our family favorite Christmas movies and snuggling on the couch. It was perfect.

lots of leaves.

The beautiful Hansen Family.

Family photo #2

The Hansens #3

Thanksgiving dinner.

Grandma time.

Hunter's seat at Thanksgiving.

Love this face!!

Love my men.

Grandma kisses.

Auntie T

Sunggle time. Tarin so happy with a sleeping baby Hunter and her sweet Caidence with her.

The rest of our Maryland Thanksgiving weekend was spent sleeping in (more on sleep training Hunter later), exploring (3+ states and 3+ National Parks in one weekend!), eating thanksgiving leftovers, snuggling with Hunter and lots of family time. Leaving is always bittersweet-- Its a reminder how hard it is to live far away from our families.

Church with these cute munchkins.

Great Falls, Maryland.

Tidal Basin at the National Mall

Seriously can't get enough of these two.

Xo

Lazy Day

Today we were in our PJ's until 2pm.

It was amazing.

Yes, we are rocking our Christmas PJ's already.

Baby H {3 Months}

Stats:
16 lbs (weighed by Dad)

Notes from His Mama:

Where has the time gone?! On November 1, Baby H turned 3 months old. He is becoming more like a baby and less like an infant ... which is bittersweet for his mama! We are enjoying lots of new things from this sweet boy each day- including:

We found a ticklish spot! We discovered it when he would giggle every time we pulled his arm out of his sleeve. It was so cute and we loved how consistent it was. Now that we know his sweet spot we can tickle him whenever we want :)

H loves to talk to us. He is definitely more talkative in the morning --- which is cuter at 8am vs. 5am :)

We've gone two steps forward and 10 steps back in terms of sleeping schedule... around 2.5 months H started waking up every 3 hours at night. I'm not sure what the cause of this was, but we pushed through it. He still isn't sleeping as amazing as he was, but we'll just go with the flow.

H LOVES singing time! I've found my voice and sing to him all the time. I had to brush up on my nursery rhymes and songs, which has been fun! Hopefully I learn more songs because already I feel like I sing the same thing over and over and over again. But its worth it to have a happy baby.

H continues to gain weight like a champ! His dad always like to say he is bigger than I think he is-- haha. Last time we weighed him, he is 16 lbs. Needless to say he is in 3-6 mos clothes -- more like 6 mos clothes. I can't keep him in clothes long enough!!

We had a hiccup with H taking a bottle, but with a new evening feeding routine with Dad, H is taking his bottle once again (phew). It gives him bonding time with daddy and gives mama a few minutes to get dinner on the table-- a win win for us all!

His dad keeps trying to get him into his Johnny Jump up (Ryan's favorite toy as a kid). H likes it-- but just hangs in there. He hasn't figured out how to jump just yet. Its pretty cute to see Ryan trying to teach him how to jump in it.

We still go on walks, but I think H is growing out of his bassinet...not only in size but also in his interest in laying down. Sometimes he gets fussy in there and I think he wants to be sitting up and seeing everything, so we'll need to change out the seat soon.

H can sit up on his own if he is propped up by pillows (as you can see from picture above). He holds his head up so well. 

H continues to love mornings. He will just lay in his crib and play for 30 minutes on his own before needing to be picked up or eat. Its so fun to lay in bed and watch him wake up and discover the world.

H is such a happy content baby. He is generally happy and such a joy to be with. I love the time I get to spend with him, learning more about him each day. I live for his smiles :)

Forest in the Plains

September 2012, Palos

When we moved to Illinois we realize how flat the Midwest is --- and I can say it's not one of our favorite things about Chicago. The closest things we have to mountains are the skyscrapers....which is fun for city-living but not when you want to get out and enjoy nature!

One of Ryan's favorite hobbies is mountain biking. We were able to find some good trails to ride in Minnesota, and even Wisconsin, but not quite in Illionois. Until we learned about Palos, a forest preserve about 20 miles outside Chicago. Pretty soon Ryan was spending his Saturday mornings riding and when his biking buddy couldn't make it one Saturday, I offered to go -- and take H with me.

We walk/hike the trails while Ryan rides, and it makes for a pretty great Saturday enjoying Nature. I love to talk to H and tell him what we are seeing: The colors of the leaves, the birds, lakes, wind brushing our faces, etc. I love this time with him even if he is usually sleeping or crying while we are doing it :)

I'm grateful for nature and the peace and joy it can bring to us in this busy, crazy world.

Baby H in the carrier

Our hike around the lake.

My mountain man!

Fall colors,

October 2012

H and I -- H mid-spit up...it was an exciting hike that day! Nursing on the trail, major blowout (note his blanket-pants) and lots of spit up. Living it up.

There's a New Sheriff in Town, Folks! {H's First Halloween}

My little cowboy sheriff!

Trick or Treat: Chicago-Style

I wasn't planning on taking H trick or treating -- he's only 3 months old! But when my neighbor asked if we would go with them and their 1 year old daughter, of course we couldn't refuse. H was a champ as we wound our way through our building....going up and down the elevator to meet our neighbors in true city-style. My pockets got full as neighbors couldn't refuse offering candy to my sweet little cowboy :)

A friend in Lincoln Park invited us to their neighborhood as she said it was the ultimate Halloween experience on their street. They block off the street to cars and let the kids and parents fully enjoy and embrace the Halloween experience.

Ryan missed the early train coming home from work, so we didn't think he would make it for trick or treating. But, to my surprise he called just as we were leaving and was able to run and meet us at the car to drive up to Lincoln Park. I'm so glad he got to enjoy H's First Halloween with us! I kept telling Ryan, Fremont Street looks like a scene out of a movie -- the decorations were amazing, fall leaves covered the street and neighbors were perched on their steps handing out candy to adorable little cupcakes and superheros. It was awesome.

Photo courtesy of a friend- we didn't get there in time for daylight pictures!

We came home to a warm bowl of chili (I thought ahead and prepped before we left!) and snuggled up in our favorite chair.

Happy Halloween!

Favorite Recipes

As you may know, I enjoy cooking and baking, and especially with my sisters & mama. Since we all live far away from each other, we contribute to a blog with new favorite recipes. If you want, you can check it out here:

What the Heart Desires

Happy Cooking and Baking!

xo

Pumpkins and my Pumpkin

H and I joined a few of his friends and their cute mama's for a trip to the pumpkin patch! I have never been to a pumpkin patch like this before -- one with a petting zoo, train rides, giant slides and more. Of course H could only do so much, but we had a blast enjoying a beautiful fall day and all the festivities.

check out that face!

The lama is going for H's head!

H and his friends. G is giving him kisses.

Train ride.

I can't wait for next year when H will be SO into all of this fun stuff! I love fall...

BYU vs Notre Dame

We had October 20 circled on our calendars for a LONG time. Ever since BYU went independent and announced games at Notre Dame, we planned to go. Months ago, we bought tickets with Mom, Dad and Matthew and weeks before the game Dad bought plane tickets to get everyone here. It was all worth it to experience the tradition and grandeur of Notre Dame football together. We couldn't leave Hunter behind, and with his great track record of traveling, we packed him up and of course he was a champ!

It was a gorgeous fall day -- the campus was full of fall colors and great energy of both Notre Dame and BYU fans. It was also fun to see so much Cougar Blue in Chicago that weekend! We set a record at church for the most visitors in our ward to-date. It was awesome.

It only could have been better if BYU pulled out the upset, but we still had a great time!

Family on campus -- loving our 'hard core' stroller holding all of our stuff!

Ryan and I on campus.

GO Cougars!

H snoozin through half time!

Family photo after the game.

Can't wait for next time!