You Better Watch Out...

"You'd better not cry. Better not pout, I'm telling you why. Santa Claus is coming to town."
Madigan has heard these words many times over the last few weeks. Hey, might as well use it while it will work!

But on Saturday, Santa Claus really did come to town and even spent a couple of hours at our church for "Santa Day". Madigan was SO excited to see him and to give him the card she'd made for him. Until he arrived, that is. Then it took about 2 hours and 10 adults trying all of the tricks to convince her to sit with him and get her picture made. This picture does a good job of capturing this struggle...
FINALLY, our efforts paid off and she sat with him. What finally changed her mind? I told her that Santa wouldn't know what to bring her for Christmas if she didn't sit with him and tell him. And if he didn't know what to bring her, she might not get anything. Does that make me a bad mom? Don't answer that. Anyway, it worked, but she was still a little nervous...But after only a minute or two she figured out that Santa was pretty cool. She even talked to him and smiled for the camera!Paxton had no issues with fear. He happily lounged with Santa and shared with him his Christmas wishes. "So here's what I've been thinking Santa..."Santa was also sweet enough to oblige me and hold Paxton up on his shoulder so that we could get a picture of the "Little Elf" on the bottom of his outfit. Isn't that cute?!All in all, a great Santa Day. Santa, if you're reading this, thanks for spending the day with us at Levy! Everyone had a wonderful time!

Ready or Not, Christmas is Coming!

Slowly but surely, we've been preparing for Christmas at the Bowsman house. Madigan is SO much more aware of everything this year and her excitement has made even the little things more fun. Here are some pictures of her decorating her Christmas cookies.
She decided that some of these were for Santa. So, I guess Santa will be eating some stale cookies this year!I love this picture. Aunt Kate sent Madi a new Christmas book (If You Take a Mouse to the Movie), so Ted read it to both of the kids.
And, of course, we had to get our tree up. So on Friday, we headed out to pick out a tree. As you can see, Paxton was ecstatic!
Unfortunately, Ted and Madigan had some differences of opinions when it came to picking out the tree. "No Dad, I want THIS one."
Eventually they came to a consensus and we got a tree.
Where was Paxton during this time? He chose to hang out in the car rather than brave the cold winds. Okay, maybe Mommy chose that for him.
When we got home, Madigan was all business...
But as always, her attention span was not as long as the task at hand. So, she played us some holiday tunes on the piano while we worked.
And Paxton...well, Paxton practiced his Heisman pose.Madigan did enjoy the decorating,
And was proud of her finished Christmas tree. (Well, somewhat finished. It really looks better with the angel on the top, the couch back in it's regular place and presents underneath the tree. You'll just have to use your imagination.)
Paxton was also happy with the tree, but was a little more interested in practicing his boxing moves.
"You want a piece of me?!"
"I didn't think so!"
Anyway, we've had fun getting into the Christmas spirit and aren't done yet!

I also needed to post a few videos today. These may not be interesting to some of you, but we've got two grandmothers out there who are going into withdrawals from not seeing the grandchildren. So, this is for them!

Paxton trying to hold his head up


Paxton "talking"

I told Madigan that I was posting some videos on the blog and needed one of her to post. She didn't really want any part of it, so Daddy helped her out. :)

Hope you have a great week!

New Pictures

Just a post to get a couple of my new favorite pictures up.

Paxton - 1 Month Old

Madigan - 3 Years Old

And a few of the outtakes from my attempt to get Madigan's picture...


Have a great week!

Thanksgiving 2009 & Fishing

For Thanksgiving this year, we headed to the great state of Texas. Our first stop was to see my best friend's son Hudson... oh yeah, and his parents too! Unfortunately, we didn't take any pictures (I think I'm going to blame you for that, Lexie). Still, we loved the time we got to spend with them and were sad we couldn't stay any longer. But, West Texas was calling our names, so we got back in the car and headed to Graham, Texas where my grandparents live and where the best Thanksgiving meal known to man is served every year, courtesy of my Mema. The kids both did great on the trip, but they were thrilled to be out of the car and stretch out!
Before I get to the Thanksgiving festivities, how about some Christmas?! Since we won't be seeing my grandparents for Christmas, we went ahead and celebrated on Wednesday night! As you can see, Madigan got just a FEW fun things (note the sarcasm). Our favorite though was her reaction to this sheep that sings and walks. She thought it was the coolest thing ever!
Paxton also got quite a bit of presents. Here's a picture of him with his new blue teddy bear. The excitement of Christmas in November had worn him completely out!Now that Christmas was over, we were ready for Thanksgiving! :) Here's Madigan watching the Macy's Day parade in a chair she thought was made just for her.

Paxton got to see a lot of people in Graham. Of course, there was Pa...and Gee Gee.
But he also got to meet all three of his great grandparents on this trip. Here he his with Great Granddad (my dad's dad). Paxton is Granddad's 17th great grandchild! We were so glad he got to come spend Thanksgiving Day with us.
We finally got Madigan to stop long enough to snap a picture with Granddad.
Paxton also met Mema and Papa (my mom's parents) for the first time. He was just sad he didn't get to eat Mema's cooking this trip!

Whacha doing, Papa?
A picture of us all - as you can see, one person was not too happy at the moment. Actually, two of us were not very happy, but I still smiled as I whispered threats through my teeth. :)After we left Mema and Papa's, we stopped in for a short visit with my great-aunt, Auntie, so she could meet Paxton as well.
Do you know of any other 87 year old women who can plop down in the floor to visit and then pop right back up? Yes, that's right - EIGHTY SEVEN!!
Paxton also met Aunt D'Anne, Uncle Greg, Taylor and Brady, but again I did a very poor job of taking pictures. :( I don't know who I'm going to blame this time... Ted maybe?
Anyway, we had a WONDERFUL visit and were so glad to have the chance to see everyone. Before leaving, Gee Gee took Madigan fishing on Mema and Papa's lake.
She looks like quite a fisherwoman, huh?! Truth be told, she fished for about 5 minutes and then hit the water with a stick while "calling the fish"!
Papa was glad to have another buddy to fish with!
And Paxton and I just hung out, enjoying the fun!
Family picture...Unfortunately, they didn't catch anything while fishing in Graham. Could have been because they were using turkey as bait, but what do I know? However, Madigan got another chance to fish when we made it to Pa and Gee Gee's. Her favorite part this time? The worms!!
Daddy tried to impart all of his fishing knowledge to her...while Pa and Gee Gee showed her all of their tricks.
However, everyone apparently forgot to prepare her for what it would be like if they actually CAUGHT a fish. And when that happened, Madigan freaked out!

After some comforting, rationalizing, and desensitization therapy, Madigan finally warmed up to the idea of catching fish and even touched the 4th one! She was quite proud of herself for that!
Another memorable part of the trip, playing instruments with Pa. Play those tiny cymbals, Pa!

Is he beating her with the maracas?!Before we knew it, it was time to go. But you can't leave without the family pictures on the porch!

And the grandparent picture (which my dad LOVES - again, sarcasm...)It was a fantastic trip minus the torrential downpour that we drove home in. We have been unbelievably blessed and enjoyed spending time with our family this Thanksgiving. Hope yours was wonderful as well!

My Space

Madigan has transitioned well into being a big sister. The only problem we're having is that she wants to kiss and hug on Paxton ALL THE TIME. This causes some problems, especially when he's sleeping or eating. So, we've been trying to teach her when it's okay to love on him and when she needs to give him his space. Hence the lesson for tonight on personal space, which resulted in this video...
(Please excuse the blurriness at the end - not sure what happened there. Also, ignore when she interjects the word "banana" in randomly. Apparently that's funny stuff to a 3 year old...)

Our favorite part is the way she says "my". Can you tell she's from the south?!!
Apparently we still have some work to do since she practically tackled him to give him a goodnight hug and kiss tonight. But at least she loves her little brother! We just hope he's a tough kid...

Week Two

The pictures are piling up again, so I figured I'd better get a post up! I'll start with some of the newest ones of Paxton...

Such a tough life :)

I love this one - make sure you note his foot. The kid is a Houdini when it comes to getting limbs out of blankets, gowns, socks. etc.

A close up

He has some very serious expressions while he's sleeping. Deep in thought, I guess!
We went out to eat one night and this is how he stayed for the entire trip. I'm definitely not complaining!And because Madigan wants to be in EVERY picture taken now... :)We were blessed to have all of our immediate families get to come visit after Paxton was born. It was a huge help to have them all here. I already posted pictures of my brother's family with Paxton, but I wanted to get at least one picture of everyone else with him up on the blog. So, here goes...

Pa

I don't have any of Gee Gee with Paxton that I haven't already posted, but I thought this one was cute of Pa and Gee Gee with Madigan.

Aunt Kate

Gramps
GrandiMommy

Daddy

and Madigan

Ted's family also was here on our first trip to church with Paxton, so we got a family picture there.

And, I thought this was a really sweet picture of Aunt Kate and the kiddos after church.I still have a lot more pictures and I'll try to get them posted soon. Until then, have a great week!!

More pictures

I figure the only reason anyone is checking the blog right now is to see pictures of Paxton, so without further ado...

Gee Gee

We finally got a Pa picture!

Several attempts at a sibling picture...
Paxton LOVES to stare at Madigan. He finds her very interesting!

Tough life, huh?

I don't do well being stuck in the house, so we've gotten out for walks quite a bit. This was our first stroll around the block. On Tuesday we went to walk the trails at Burns Park.

Such a good Daddy!The whole strolling thing really wore Paxton out!
I love how he sucks his lip in when he sleeps.
And my favorite - this is Paxton's burping position. Anytime I put him up on my shoulder to burp, he either puts his arms under his chin or slings them over my back.
We had Paxton's one week appt yesterday and everything looks great! Thanks for all of the prayers.

Introducing Paxton!

Charles Paxton Bowsman was born on Friday, November 6th at 3:06 am. He weighed 7 lbs, 15 oz and was 21 inches long. We've all decided that he's pretty perfect. :)Between Ted, my mom, and myself snapping pictures of him, we've accumulated quite a bunch in just a few days. So I'm just going to try to put some of the best in now and will hopefully have time to blog more later.

Just a few minutes old

Proud DaddyGee Gee and Pa made it from Texas about an hour after he was born. I think they like him. :)And what about big sister? She's pretty smitten!She was very quick to inform EVERYONE that Paxton was HER baby brother. Here's a video of the first time she saw him...

This whole baby thing just wears Daddy out!Matt, Susie, Avery and Ella made a trip from Tennessee to see Paxton on Saturday. We loved having them here to meet him!Sweet Avery cuddling with PaxtonThe four cousins (or goobers, as Pa would say!)Another cousin pictureHere are a few other pictures we've taken of the sweet boy...Cuddling with Gee GeeMommy's favorite picture - my future Rangers' star :)Right after bath timeJust chillin'Spending time outsideThanks to everyone for their prayers. Paxton is such a wonderful baby and an unbelievable blessing in our lives. We look forward to introducing him to all of you! More pictures coming soon!