My First Christmas!

Hi guys, Emmett here again with the help of Aunt Amy!

Wanna hear about my first Christmas?

Well, of course you do!

I think I like this Christmas thing. All I have to do is hang out and be cute and people give me presents.

I don't even have to bother opening them myself, because my big brother does it for me!

I got to be passed around to everyone while they were opening gifts. 

I guess they all want to hug me because I'm so stinkin' cute.

Landon got one of his favorite gifts from our Gigi, Bella's mommy.

I know he loves legos, so this is perfect for him!

Uncle Gosh was being silly in this next picture. He put on the football helmet that my big brother got from Bella and Gramps.

Man, I love Christmas. But it is so exhausting! Aunt Amy got a picture of me napping towards the end of the present opening extravaganza. But hey, can you blame me? I'm still just a little guy.

I love Christmas, and everyone says they can't wait until next year when I get to be more involved. 

I'm excited too!

I hope you guys all had a great Christmas too!

Oh, and PS, can someone PLEASE explain to me who this "Santa Claus" is ?

My brother has talked about him a lot in the past few days!

Merry Christmas, Darling..

...I wish you Merry Christmas,

Happy New Year, too,

I've just one wish,

On this Christmas Eve,

I wish I were with you!

Fiance and I had our "Christmas" yesterday, under the watchful eye of Nephew!

I love this one. They're sitting exactly the same!

Little man helped open gifts!

Knowing we will be married within the next few months is the best Christmas gift!

Some of the gifts.

Merry Christmas, Darling :)

Hockey All Night!!

Landon got what may be his favorite Christmas gift tonight!

Uncle "Gosh" gave him a set of sticks and a ball for hockey.

Landon recently told us "hockey all night!"

Translation: This is so fun I want to play all night!

Baby brother was watching from the safety of the couch!

I like this one best!

Tis the Season...to catch up!

Christmas is in 4 days!

I can't believe it! Things have been so crazy and busy around here that I kind of forget that today is December 21.

Of course the mid 40's to 50's weather isn't helping that. This girl wants snow.

So in the interest of keeping everyone up to date, here's one large, rambling post on the things that have been happening:

1.) We found a wedding and reception venue! And it's perfect! AND. I get a beach wedding after all!

    On May 12, 2012, I get to marry my best friend down at Lake of the Ozarks!

2.) Today we are recovering from a late night and early morning from going to the Fox Theatre to see...

Beauty and the Beast!

    It was magical and fantastic and the food we had before hand was great too. (Just another perk)

         Although our anniversary is the 27th, we couldn't think of a better way to celebrate than going to see a      show!

3.) Third, and possibly the biggest, our family became very familiar with Mercy Hospital in St. Louis.
Yep, Landon was back in for a CT with sedation and for observation. He did very well overall, and we are still waiting to see what comes of all of it, but as for now, we will be happy that he's home now!
           -Side note: Emmett did great with hanging out at the hospital, despite the fact that we found out that he has a DOUBLE ear infection, perforated eardrum, and a cold. The Dunham household has temporarily converted to their own home clinic for the boys.

Still incredibly cute even though he's not feeling well!

Well, I guess that's the Sparknotes version of all that has been happening in the past few weeks!

If I don't get a chance to tell you before, Merry Christmas!

Cruising...Part 8...How To Fold A Towel into a Turkey

Every evening, housekeeping would leave us adorable towel animals!

Mr. Frog

Mr. Seal

Mr. Puppy Dog

Mr. Sloth hanging out with Mr. Elephante

Mr. Turkey in honor of Thanksgiving :)

And the last sea day they taught us how to make them!

Cruising...Part 7...A Reason to go...

If anything, go on a cruise for the AMAZING food and drinks!

Caramel Apple Mousse Puff Pastry

Kiss on the Lips (left) and Mocha Chocolate Getaway (right)

Every night outside the casino there was an ornate drink bar!

Baked Alaska on Formal Night 2!

Cruising...Part 6...Formal Nights

The cruise had two formal dinner nights that we dressed up a lot for!

Meeting the ship captain on the night of the Captain's Ball.

Darren and Chris at dinner.

Formal night number 2!

Darren, Chris, and our main waiter, Ilham.

We miss Ilham. He was AWESOME.

Cruising...Part 5...Panama, the unexpected gem

While Panama seemed like a stranger port of call to me, it was amazing!

Our first view of Panama

Checking out Portobelo

Hanging out with a Panamanian's pet monkey

And of course, seeing the Gatun Locks of the Canal

Cruising...Part 4...Costa Rica

Costa Rica was not at all what I expected it to be but it was very interesting!

Welcome to a very rainy Limon!

We took a wildlife tour on the canal and got to see some people who work on this canal daily!

And then we got to go see a banana plantation and packing plant!

Cruising...Part 3...Cozumel!

A cruise brings a LOT of firsts into a girl's life.

My first view of Mexico!

My first time snorkeling! (It was awesome!)

And my first time eating at Pancho's Backyard.

PS: Big news! We bought Chad's wedding ring at Diamonds International here in Cozumel!

Cruising...Part 2...Days at Sea

We were NEVER bored on a day at sea! That is for sure!

There's always mini golf...

There's always AWESOME food...

And, of course, there's always room on the Lido Deck to soak up the sun!

Cruising...Part 1...Getting There

For those of you readers interested in cruising, I'll tell you two things:

1. IT IS THE BEST!

2. Getting there takes a lot, but once you get there, it is so worth it.

We started with a very early and VERY cold flight out of St. Louis down to Atlanta.

And from Atlanta, we went to Fort Lauderdale and then to Port Everglades.

Chad took this picture of me wrestling flip flops out of my suitcase once we got to Florida.

Attractive. 

Slacking...

I have been so terribly slacking on this whole blog thing for a while, I know...

And I know y'all are upset because you hang on my every word. Hahahaha....

I'll get back into it tomorrow!