The Alphabet According to Abigail

Abby is very interested in learning her letters right now and was especially excited about the magnetic letters for the refrigerator she received for Christmas. (Her favorite letter is "S.") She loves singing the ABC's, but she has her own version of the song. For about a month, it has been "The BBC's." Last week, for a very brief time, it was "The ABC's." Now it is "The Baby C's!"

Merry Christmas!

It's hard to believe that Christmas is already over! We had a wonderful time together as a family. During the week leading up to Christmas day, Abigail kept saying, "I'm so excited!" I don't think she had everything figured out this year though because we had to wake her up at 9:00 a.m. Christmas morning! (I don't think we ever let my parents sleep that late when we were younger!) Once she realized that we were actually going to open the presents under the tree, the excitement grew!

Abby kisses "Purple Dinosaur" (from Grandma Perry) while holding "Little Dinosaur" (from Nana).

Tara gives Sydney some much needed attention on Christmas Eve.

Coley helps Abigail open one of her presents.

Arizona in December

On December 7th, we flew to Arizona to spend a week at Tara's parents' house in Prescott. Coley's mother traveled from Louisiana to spend the week with us also. Abby was so excited to go on the airplane! (She really is a great little traveler!) We found it comical that when we arrived in Arizona, we still hadn't shoveled snow (this season) in Rochester, New York, but found ourselves shoveling snow in Arizona!

Abigail had a great time with Nana and Grandma. She walked around the house all week, holding up two fingers, "I have two grandmas!"

Abby also had a great time playing with her cousins, Samantha and Logan.


Toward the end of our trip, Coley and Tara spent a day in Sedona. Abby stayed with Grandma, Grandpa, and Nana, and didn't even seem phased that we were gone!

Of course, while we were gone, we looked for places to eat great Mexican food. One of the most interesting (and best) things we tried this time were duck flautas at Elote Cafe in Sedona. They were excellent!

'Tis the Season

The day after Thanksgiving, we began decorating the house for Christmas. It was a process that took most of the weekend! Abby's favorite discovery was a Santa hat. She had a little trouble getting it on her head at first, but she didn't give up until she succeeded!

"I think I can... I think I can!"

Coley and Abby had a great time putting ornaments on the tree.

Now Abby spends a good part of her day checking out the different ornaments and saying things like, "Just look.... Don't touch!"

A Time to Give Thanks

Coley was on call at the hospital right up until Thanksgiving Day, so we were unable to travel to visit family for the holiday. We decided that it was time to cook a turkey on our own.... Our mothers were not actually in the kitchen helping, but we can't really say we didn't have their help! We were certainly grateful for telephones that day as we called for cooking tips! We invited a couple of families from our ward who were also away from family to join us for dinner. While it would have been wonderful to be with family, we did have a very special Thanksgiving Day. It is always a humbling experience to stop and think about all the many blessings we enjoy.

Our Budding Pianist

Abby's favorite place lately is sitting at the piano. She loves to play and sing her own version of several well-known Primary songs. I guess it will be time for piano lessons before you know it!

Oh, Deer!

Yes, I meant "deer" and not "dear." The other night while driving home from a Relief Society activity, I hit a deer on the freeway. It was not just a little deer; it was a big buck! I did see him before I hit him, but I didn't have enough time to completely get out of his way without losing control of my car or hitting another car. Almost doesn't count here! I wasn't hurt at all, and all things considered, the car sustained little damage. The deer wasn't even knocked down, but I'm sure he wished he had some Extra Strength Tylenol! When I spoke to our insurance agent, she assured me that I was not alone with my experience. She said that since it is hunting season, the deer must be running for their lives! I just wish that this particular buck would have chosen to run somewhere other than the freeway!

From Boston to Orlando

Walt Disney World
Boston

This fall has kept us very busy. Early in September, we took a last minute trip to Boston for a conference Coley needed to attend. One day, we walked across the bridge from Cambridge into Boston. The whole time I thought about calling Grandpa Perry to tell him that I could finally really say that I had "walked to Boston" (just like in the song he always sang to the grandkids while bouncing us on his knee)! We walked most of the Freedom Trail and took a Duck Tour. Abby loved riding the subway.

The last weekend in September we spent a few days at Disney World. Abby, as you can see, had a great time visiting with Minnie and Mickey. First, she had to tell them all about her shoes (what a girl!). Then she touched Minnie's nose over and over again saying, "Nose! Nose! Nose!"

It is still fall (and even warm outside today) in upstate New York, but I'm sure the days are numbered before the ground is covered in snow!

Happy Halloween!

The Saturday before Halloween, the businesses in the Village of Webster had trick-or-treating for the children. Abby had a great time "buzzing" around in her bee costume, but I think her favorite part of the afternoon was walking down the street, holding hands with her friend, Robert.

Finally!

Well.... here we go! We are finally setting up our family blog! We are still trying to get everything figured out, but we are excited about keeping everyone updated on our news.