Thanks Mickey and Megan...

Our friends, Mickey and Megan, were kind enough to send the children some books (and a card game) for Christmas. We got the package yesterday and Savannah saw the books before I had a chance to put them away and wrap them up for Christmas.
Anyone who knows our daughter knows that there isn't a book she isn't fascinated with.
Here are some pictures of Savannah "reading" her new books.

The five (of many) faces of Savannah...

Savannah asked her Daddy to take some pictures of her this morning... I guess she wanted to show us all of her moods in one photo shoot.
So here we go...

Our little model...

I think the photo shoot a few weeks ago has inspired Savannah's inner model as she has asked us to take more pictures of her and has actually smiled. Like everything with Savannah ... it has to be in her own time.
Here are a few pictures of Savannah modeling her newest Christmas dress that Grammy bought her over the weekend. You can see that she's carrying one of her many dollies (a few less since I weeded out one or two last weekend while she was away).
She is such a wonderful little girl... and has very much become her own person.

Fitzgerald Family Christmas 2009

We gathered together today for the annual Fitzgerald Christmas celebration and it was the first holiday we had all four Fitzgerald children and seven of the eight grandchildren.
We also got to tell Mom and Dad about their surprise Christmas gift... the fact that we gathered all eight grandchildren (and one great-grandson) together on Black Friday and had their picture taken.
Mom has actually mentioned this to us in the last few visits and it's been hard to keep our secret (and if they suspected they didn't let us know it). This photo has been in the works for several months as the oldest grandson, Jason, lives in New Jersey. He made a special trip here so he could make our family picture (and Christmas surprise) complete and I'm excited to see the finished product.
We also had individual shots of Savannah and Julius taken (as well as pictures of the other sets of grandchildren) and I can't wait to see those as well.
Will post as soon as I can.
In the meantime, here are some pictures from our gathering today. We had a wonderful time visiting (and eating great food as well).

Julius in the snow...

We woke up this morning to a beautiful snowfall and it brought back memories of the first time Savannah sat in the snow. Time certainly does fly!
Savannah is visiting her Aunt Kathy and Uncle Tom this weekend (and I hear they got three inches of snow at their West Virginia home this morning)so it's only Julius and I who got to play in the snow this afternoon.
Here are a few pictures.

Christmas lights in Ruckersville...

We took the children out to see the Christmas lights on Tuesday night and we all had a blast.
There is a house in Ruckersville that decorates all out for the holidays and the homeowners allow people to drive into their yard, park and walk around. They even open up there house and show off a beautiful collection of angels the woman has.
There was no one there when we pulled up and we got a chance to talk to the owner... he's not find of publicity and especially not Pat's paper. We were careful not to tell him we had ANYTHING to do with a newspaper and it kept me from asking him if he would like to tell his story.
Here are some pictures from our night out.

Our future linebacker...

I took Julius to the doctor yesterday for his ninth month check-up. First, it's hard to believe Julius is already nine months old. I can remember this time last year when he was moving around in my belly (like a hard bowl of jelly - sorry for the pun!).
He's such a sweet child, but he is all boy and certainly doesn't know his own strength.
He weighed in at 25.6 lbs. (in the 86th percentile for kids his age) and measured 31 inches in height (97th percentile for kids his age) and with a head circumference of 47 (in the 90th percentile).
Dr. Mayo, our wonderful doctor, said Julius was doing great and looking good. When she walked into the room he was standing and playing with the toys under the patient table.
He also received his second flu shot for the season and his first H1N1 shot... and he and Savannah have to go back later this month to get the rest of the shots (Julius will need his second H1N1 and Savannah will need both flu shots).
I can't believe how fast the children are growing up! Time is flying by!