Hello 2013!

I hope everyone is having a happy new year! Where did January go??? I think it goes without saying 2012 was a great year for the Edwards household. Below are a few photos from Lincoln's first Christmas (better late than never, right?) 

Our first Christmas as a family of 3

The boys getting ready for Santa on their first Christmas Eve

BoBo getting giggles 

Lincoln loves his Great Granny

Christmas morning with Gran and BoBo 

Christmas afternoon with Grandma, Grandpa and all 4 of their grandchildren

Lincoln's Great Grandma Darlene sent him this bench made by his late Great Grandpa Elwood, such a special gift!

I made these cookies for a friend who LOVES Milkduds. We kept a few for Lincoln to set out for Santa:

Check out the recipe I found on Pinterest. I left out the optional pecans and split the recipe in half and they turned out to be delicious!

Five Month Update:
Lincoln is growing FAST (he hit 17 lbs last week!) and his personality is showing through more and more every day. He loves hearing his own voice, especially after a long nap and first thing every morning. Bath time is still a big hit and the best way to end every day. 

water baby

Happy as can be!

He's sleeping anywhere from 8-10 hours at night with *usually* only 1 middle of the night feeding. We will be introducing "real food" sometime in the next few weeks. Lincoln and Sasha are getting to be quite fond of one another. I love that!!

(not the best photos but you get the idea)

Little Lincoln, my how the last month has flown by! You are such a ham (your daddy made up this nickname for you). One of my favorite things is seeing the loving relationship shared between you and your daddy grow. You two have bonded in such a special way. I know it is 1,000 times harder on him when he travels for work now that you are here. Luckily we are able to share photos and videos while he's gone. What a joy you are! Thank you for adding loads of extra fun and love to our family.

love these little toes...

and this face!

Happy 5 months sweet boy!

4 Month Update & Recipe at bottom

Lincoln had his 4 month check up last week and happy to report all is good and he's growing right on track! He weighed in at 16.2 lbs and is 26 1/4" long! Over the past month we've seen some fun changes and new skills in our lil' man. He LOVES bath time, kicking and splashing. We've started reading to him and he seems to really enjoy books! He plays a lot in the exersaucer he's borrowing from his cousin Ethan. The most entertaining change is he has definitely found his voice! He babbles and sings -we think so anyway =) constantly from morning til night. We went to Opryland to look at the pretty lights and Christmas decorations, visited Christiana to spend time with Aunt Brandy, Uncle Nick and 3 of his cousins to look at their pretty Christmas lights set to music, he traveled to meet his newest out of town buddy Easton (congrats to Rachel and Eric), attended a few Christmas parties and now he is ready for his 1st visit from Santa Claus. We can't wait to celebrate his very first Christmas - God is good! 

Lincoln, you make everyday moments so much more enjoyable. Especially now as we are about to celebrate Christmas with you for the very first time. Your daddy and I have SO MANY hopes and dreams for you. We can't wait to teach you about the real meaning of Christmas. We are super excited to start a few new family traditions with you. Even though you aren't aware of what's going on, we're starting one tonight when we set out cookies for Santa. And then tomorrow morning will be full of joy as we wake you up to wish you a Merry Christmas for the very first time!! I know one day we will be the ones getting woken up but for now we are enjoying you at every stage because time is really going by so fast. This time last year we had just found out you were on the way! You were the best Christmas gift last year and again this year and every year to come. We love you so much! Merry Christmas and Happy Four Months!!

Mommy and Daddy

Recipe for SNOW COCOA via HappyHomeFairy found on Pinterest

Here's a new EASY recipe we tried this past weekend at the annual pre-Christmas breakfast celebration at Lincoln's Gran & BoBo's house with some of his "extended family". We all ate so much good breakfast that we didn't really drink much of this Snow Cocoa BUT I tried it and it was delicious! Easy to make and serves a big group from the crock-pot.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups whipping cream
• 6 cups milk
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 12 oz white chocolate chips (we followed the recommendation for Ghiradelli, not sure it would really make a difference. May taste good with milk chocolate chips too!)

Directions:

• Combine all ingredients in a slow cooker.
• Heat on low for 2-2 1/2 hours or until chocolate is melted and mixture is hot.
• Stir well to blend and serve.