Parker's 1st Christmas

We had a great 1st Christmas with Parker. He got lots of gifts (mostly from Grandma Henry). She's going to spoil him so much! He got lots of fun things (clothes, rattle, story books, gloworm, ornaments, and blankets). As you can see by this picture, Parker is almost lost in his gifts! My mom was able to come down Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. We made sausage balls and Christmas cookies. I read the "Night Before Christmas" to Parker on Christmas Eve and we put out a plate of cookies for Santa and Jake left 2 doggie cookies for Santa's dog. Parker decided to go to bed at 4:30pm on Christmas Eve, so that day was a little short, but was up for a good amount of time on Christmas Day. We always open 1 gift on Christmas Eve and the rest of the gifts on Christmas Day, so that was fun to continue the tradition. Grandpa and Grandma Kleeman got Parker a really cute Nebraska outfit and got Jake a Nebraska bandana. It was great!


Parker feeling good the day after Christmas.


Parker's new thing is his hands. He is completely capitvated by his hands. He can sit and stare and play with his hands for a long time. He is holding on to things better and better each day.


Parker enjoys his bath time now and Grandma Henry loves giving him a bath!

Parker and Grandma Henry

Parker is enjoying Grandma Henry reading a story about snowmen that she got him. He loves being read to and really enjoys looking at the pictures in the story.

Of course Jake had a good Christmas too! He got lots of treats from us, my mom, and my sister.

Parker's plate of cookies and his letter to Santa.

Some more cookies we made.

Jake in his Nebraska bandana from Grandpa and Grandma Kleeman.

Jake and his gifts

Parker and Jake's stockings under the tree from Santa.

This will become a Kleeman tradition. We read some Christmas stories on Christmas Eve.

Parker's doing better holding his head up. He still can't quite hold it on his own, but he's getting better every day! He should be able to do that soon!

This is Parker after he just finished his bottle. He's very relaxed and is like a tub of goo!

I went to see Santa!

Saturday, I took Parker to meet Santa for the first time and got his picture made. He did really good. They took lots of pictures and he was good for 5 minutes, then he decided he'd had enough. It was a fun experience and I'm glad we got to share it together. After visiting with Santa, we went to eat at Chick-Fil-A. It was a fun Saturday!

Mom and I getting ready to go see Santa.

Grandma, I'm ready to go see Santa.

Santa, here I come!

I am fascinated with my fingers. I look at them and play with them all the time. They sometimes get in my way when I'm trying to eat.

I'm getting better everyday at sitting up on my own. My shirt says, "Elf in training."

Christmas time at our house

I absolutely love Christmas! It's one of my most favorite holidays. This year will be extra special because it will be Parker's first Christmas! As you can see by the pics, Parker is decked out in full Christmas attire. Jake was a good sport, too. Once I put his Santa suit on, he was frozen solid - it was the funniest thing! Of course, I don't think Jake liked it too much that I was laughing, but unfortunately, I think he's used to it. These pictures were actually taken on Parker's 3 month birthday, so they are extra special. Parker and Jake are the only ones to have a wrapped present under the tree so far. I hope you all enjoy the pictures of our family.


Santa's little helper (minus the hat).


Somehow neither boy looks too happy.



Meet the newest addition to Santa's team!



Our fireplace in the main living room. I know my Southern Living cronies would be proud!



Our fireplace in the sitting room. Parker and Jake both have a stocking.



A picture of our tree. I agree with my best friend, Amy - I know one day Parker will appreciate the greatness in a pre-lit tree.

Story time with Parker and Jake

We have gotten into a routine of reading a story before bedtime. It's really fun now that Parker can sortof sit up. He really enjoys looking at the pictures. Jake also enjoys this time too. He cuddles up on Parker's blanket and lays really close to me. It's a great time we get to spend together.

Parker's attempt at sitting up

Parker is getting better at sitting up, still with some support though. This night he stayed sitting up for about an hour watching football with daddy before he decided he had enough.

Parker's Baptism

On Sunday, Parker was baptized at Brad's church where he grew up and where his parents still attend. It was a beautiful service and Brad and I are so glad that we were able to be part of it. Parker wore a white gown and was wrapped in two beautiful white blankets, one from his Aunt Jenny and one from Grandma Kleeman. It also snowed a little bit the day of the baptism, so that made it even more memorable. Parker was very good through the entire service. He cried a little at the beginning, but soon found the lights in the church and was fixated on those.


Parker sitting in church before being baptized.


Brad and I with Parker and the priest. Parker was very good when Father Ron poured the water over his head - he didn't even make a sound! Even Father Ron was impressed at how good he was during this. He is a special little boy.

Brad and I with Parker and the proud grandparents!

Our family with Father Ron.

Parker by the baptism tree. If you look closely, you can see Parker's name on a leaf just to the left of his head. All the children that get baptized, gets their name on this tree and it stays in the church.

Parker on his way to church.

The Kleeman Family Gathering

The Saturday after Thanksgiving the Kleeman side of the family got together to celebrate Thanksgiving and Parker's upcoming baptism. We had a lot of fun and Parker got to meet his great aunts and uncles and his great grandma. There were probably about 25 people at Brad's mom's house and it was a lot of fun seeing everyone. Jake was a little overstimulated and could barely hold his eyes open, but he did enjoy the attention!


Grandma Kleeman with her boys, Rick, Rolly and Randy; grandson Brad; and great grandson Parker. This is an awesome picture because it shows 3 generations of Kleeman boys.


Brad and his family: Grandma Kleeman, sister Jenny with her son Peter, mom Rita and dad Rolly.

Grandma Kleeman with her grandkids and great grandkids. What a priceless picture!

Great Uncle Randy and Julia with Parker.

Great Uncle Rick and Kris with Parker.

Brad visiting with his Grandma Kleeman. Parker is listening to a good story between the two of them.

Uncle Randy and his favorite 2nd nephew, Jake.

Parker's First Thanksgiving in Nebraska

Parker's 1st Thanksgiving in Nebraska was awesome! He did very good on the way up and the ride home. He slept great during the time we were there and was a very good little boy. I think he enjoyed the cool Nebraska air. It really wasn't too cold while we were there. Brad and I also got to go to the Nebraska/Colorado football game while we were there. Nebraska won 40-31 and it was a very exciting game. We went with Brad's good friend Nick and his wife Amy - we had a lot of fun. Parker also got to see lots of his relatives and friends. He got to meet many of his great aunts and uncles and his great grandma. He also got to spend some time with his grandpa for the first time since he was born. Jake did good too. He was a little jealous of the attention at first, but soon got over that. Brad's sister, Jenny and her kids were also in from Colorado, so they kept Jake busy and entertained. We are very thankful for all our family and we hope all our family and friends had a wonderful Thanksgiving!


Parker with mom and Jake and his great aunt Corrine.


Parker with his 2nd cousin Courtney from Iowa.

Parker with Grandma Kleeman

Parker with one of his great aunts, Corrine, who lives in Nebraska.

Parker with cousin Michaela from Colorado.

Parker with cousin Christiana from Colorado.

Aunt Jenny and cousin Veronica who live in Colorado.

A great picture of a tractor plowing the field. This is the view from Brad's parent's back yard. It's a beautiful, huge corn field. On this day, the farmer was plowing the field with the tractor. It was really neat to watch!

This is what the Nebraska squirrels look like - much different from the gray squirrels we are used to in Georgia! I think they're a little more pudgy to deal with the cool Nebraska weather.

This is Jake when we took him hunting. Brad, his dad, myself and Jake went to their blind in Rising City, NE. We left the house at 5am and once we got there and were in the blind, we got to see a beautiful Nebraska sunrise. Jake did good while in the blind. He sat with me by the heater. Luckily, Brad and his dad didn't see any ducks, so no gunshots were fired. This was Jake's first time getting to "hunt." When we were ready to leave, I played fetch with Jake in the cornfield and he loved it. He also "left his mark" all over the area around the blind.

Parker with Grandma and Grandpa Kleeman.

Parker with our family friend, Kathy. She sang songs to him to calm him down - great singing Kathy!

Parker is not happy that daddy shot these poor ducks.

Jake doesn't know what to think about these ducks daddy brought home after hunting.

Jake kept Parker warm on the ride to and from Nebraska. It was so funny because he curled up on Parker's feet on the blanket and looked right at him.