Elizabeth's Acting Debut

Hello all!! Elizabeth has not let the Christmas chaos slow her down one bit. About a week after she began sitting up on her own, she figured out how to move her little body in a forward motion. She has spent the last 3 days perfecting her mobility, and it is now a coordinated crawl. As of today (Dec. 19th), she must be watched constantly. She is increasing her speed by the moment, and doesn't hesitate to put tiny, inedible objects in her mouth. She had no problem destroying the Little People Nativity set that Christa and I were playing with earlier today, and she is no longer content to sit in one place with a few baby toys. I have a strong feeling that as soon as Christmas is over, I will be going through the house, moving all toys with tiny pieces upstairs to the big girls' rooms. I also foresee some new rules about food only being eaten in the kitchen for a while.

The littlest one is all ready for Christmas, and sitting up like a pro!

We spent her 9 month birthday (on Dec. 17th) celebrating cousin Maggie Beth's 5th birthday. All of the girls had a blast playing together at Funhouse.

Happy 9 month birthday, Elizabeth!

She loves making this face, especially when I'm trying to feed her and she doesn't want to eat :)

Elizabeth got to play the role of "Baby Jesus" in my mother-in-law's church's children's Christmas program. She did a great job, and Cline's cousin, Hannah, played the role of "Mary." She fussed a little toward the end, but considering that she sat up there, still, for most of the program, I was very pleased!

I had a small part, myself, as an angel, handing "Baby Jesus" to his mother.

We are almost ready for Christmas. I'm taking Christa Christmas shopping for a few more things, and then I think we'll be good to go. I'm trying really really hard to enjoy the season and not succumb to the stress. It's hard, I'll admit, and I'm sure I've been a little snappy at Cline lately as I've tried to do all that is expected. My goal is to finish up everything I'm doing this year tomorrow, and just enjoy a few days with my family, preparing for one of the two biggest days of the year for us!