Tootie's First Christmas

The Morrisseys in Watauga liked Christmas a lot.

But Tootie, the newest Morrissey, was still just a tot!

Toots had never celebrated Christmas, never experienced the season.

She was not even one, which of course, was the reason.

So Mommy and Daddy fixed the house up just right,

And made sure she was ready for fun days and fun nights.

Mommy hung up a stocking for their little dear.
This month it was Christmas!  It was practically here!

Daddy thought, with his Daddy fingers nervously drumming,
"We must find a way to make her first Christmas stunning!"
Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, they knew their sweet girl,
Would be rushing around in a red and green whirl.
And then!  Oh, the toys!  Oh, the toys!  Toys!  Toys!  Toys!
There was one thing for sure - they would make noise!  Noise!  Noise!


Christmas Eve came at last, and to church they all went.
Hearing about Jesus' birth, what a blessed event!
The children's service was perfect for the sweet little child,
The tale of the donkey who carried Mary, so tender and mild.


Then the Morrisseys, young and old, all hopped into the car.
To go see Gran and Gramps, who didn't live far.
They opened their gifts with Uncle Dustin and Aunt Jess,
Ah, you can guess, it became quite the mess!

And then, they did something Toots loves most of all.
A night among family, just having a ball!

With Gran

With Gramps

Cousin Crystal

Cousin Michael

Cousins played all together, to their gifts some were clinging.
In the background, old Bing and the Chipmunks were singing.
And the later it got on that first Christmas Eve,
The sleepier Makenna got, so it was time to leave.
In her bed, they laid her quietly, and then snuck out quick.
Because Mommy and Daddy knew it was time for St. Nick!


A couple of hours after dawn, little Toots still a-bed.
Little Toots, still a-snooze, Mommy and Daddy sleepyheads.
They crept into her room, she rubbed her tired eyes.
She had no idea it was time for a surprise!
Mommy took her to the living room, Daddy with the camera in tow.
"Look, look, Makenna! Well what do you know?
Santa has visited and brought you something new.
A fun little Fisher Price kitchen for you!" 

Baby opened her presents, not once was she sad.
With each new fun toy, this Tootie was glad!
All the Morrisseys in Watauga, the tall and the small,
Were happy and smiling, but that wasn't all.


Off to Mimi and Granddad's the family next went.
Hoping Makenna's patience wasn't already spent!
Reading "Silent Night" and more fun ripping paper,

Brunch with Aunt B and Uncles Stephen, Colin and Lee later.

Then after the meal, it was naptime, you see.

So much excitement for one sweet little Tootie!


Off to Grammy's they went for more Christmas, Third Round.
Makenna slept on the way, hardly making a sound.
More gifts and more family, it couldn't have been better!
She would have played with the paper all night, if we'd let her!                                             
She played and entertained Uncles Nick and Randy,
With Aunties Karen and Jennifer also watching so happily.
But the clock ticked down, and it was getting so late.
Home to bed they all went; they just couldn't wait.
And what happened then?  Well, in Watauga they say,
That the Morrisseys' three hearts couldn't have been fuller that day.

SANTA!!! I KNOW HIM!

Shortly after Thanksgiving, I began making plans for Makenna's ever-important, oh-so-fun, possibly slightly stressful and/or scary First Visit with Santa Claus.  I was so excited to see how she would react when she saw him and snap those always adorable first Santa pictures.  Knowing Makenna the way that I do, and the fact that she is such a social, laid back baby, I had no fears that she would be a screamer, crier or kicker.  She loves everyone, so why not St. Nick?


We made plans to hit up good old Northeast Mall the first Saturday of December, since we knew waiting any longer was probably not the best course of action.  Before we left for the mall, though, the plan was to take some "Christmas pictures" of Makenna to use for Christmas cards. Our normally cooperative baby was not feeling so cooperative that day, and I just KNEW after 30 minutes of snapping pics left and right and we didn't get anything good.  Fortunately for me, I was totally wrong!

Sure, she may not be sitting perfectly posed or looking straight at the camera...but DANG, these pictures show her sweet little personality, and I LOVE them!  Even the "getting ready" pictures are sweet!

After the photo session at home, we jetted off to the mall.  At first glance, the line looked pretty. Stinking. Long.  Luckily, it seemed to be moving pretty quickly, and Makenna took the time to flirt with the other babies around us.  We also had time for a few family pics.

Within probably 30 minutes, we were at the front and ready to go!  Chad handed Makenna off to Santa, and she looked up at him like, "Who the heck is THIS guy?"  We all called her name and acted completely silly to get her attention and try to get her to smile, but our tired little Toots was just VERY overwhelmed and confused.

Regardless, we still spent a pretty ridiculous amount of money on some pretty adorable pictures.  Hey, she only meets Santa for the first time once, right?  TOTALLY worth it, and some pictures to treasure forever and ever.  Can't wait to see what she will do next year!

Turkey For Me, Turkey For Toots

I've always been a Thanksgiving fan, because frankly...I like food.  A lot.  So this year, I was obviously looking forward to sharing that great American tradition with Makenna.  Who also likes food.  A lot.  Adding to our usual excitement for the Thanksgiving experience was the fact that Chad's grandparents would be coming down from New England.  We couldn't wait to see them again!


A couple of days before Turkey Day, Great Grammy and Great Grampy arrived.  We met up at good old D'Vine Wine, since Chad was working, and had a tasty little beverage to start the evening off.

 

Then it was off for a delicious dinner at Saltgrass to begin our few days of gluttony.


Thanksgiving morning, I was up early making some homemade rolls and sweet potato casserole to take to Round One, with Mimi and Granddad.  We got Toots decked out in her pretty Thanksgiving dress, which her Daddy will want me to tell everyone he picked out.  (Yes, he really did.)

At Mimi and Granddad's, Makenna charmed the pants off of every out-of-town family member there (and probably a few IN town family members, too!).

 
She donned her turkey bib and gobbled down some of the tastiest goodies her sweet little tastebuds have ever had - turkey, tomatoes, squash casserole, green beans, cornbread stuffing.  She was in HEAVEN!

And of course, when she finished, she gave herself a stunning new hairdo with her gooey, grubby little hands!

After a hand wash, a great walk and some more visiting, it was time to head to Round Two at Uncle Randy and Auntie Karen's.  Toots took the opportunity to get in her turkey-induced nap on the way, since it was a little bit of a drive.  But when we arrived, she was ready for some more deliciousness - just NOT a fan of Auntie Jennifer's pilgrim hats!

Brisket, sweet potatoes, some more turkey...she downed it all like a champ and finished off with some sweet peaches.  This girl knows how to eat!!


After dinner, Makenna had a ball playing with whatever she could get her hands on.  

Some spatulas,

a magazine,

and maybe a napkin or two.

She faced off with Rudy, the dog, and just generally kept us all entertained.

All in all, I would say it was QUITE the successful first Thanksgiving! 

Halloween Hijinks, Makenna Style

I have to admit that I was almost more excited about Makenna's first Halloween than I was about any other holiday during her first year, Christmas MAYBE being the exception.  It's true.  I. LOVE. HALLOWEEN.  I love the idea of dressing up in costume, love the decorations, love scary movies.  It's one of my favorite times of year.


I knew that finding just the right Halloween costume for Makenna would be a chore.  It could take me days, even weeks, to make a decision.  So like a good indecisive mommy, I started looking early, searching websites with adorable kitties, pumpkins, witches, monkeys.  But none of them were quite right.  And then one day, I came across The One - Scout the Scarecrow.  I looked at the picture and could just SEE Makenna wearing that costume, so I knew that had to be it.  The problem: it cost $50.  Seriously?!?  I was having a very hard time justifying spending that kind of money, but some little angels (i.e., Gramps and Gran) helped us out.  So, Scout the Scarecrow she was!


When I got the costume in the mail, I could not have been more excited to see her in it, and she didn't disappoint!

 


The only problem?  I had VASTLY underestimated the amount of glitter that would be on that tutu.  Trust me, the glitter is definitely not visible in the pictures online.  One "test run" in that costume, and it was everywhere!  Not cool, Mommy.  But I was already hooked.


Our first Halloween-ish activity was a trip to Nash Farm in Grapevine, to the pumpkin patch. Makenna was not super impressed by the pumpkins, but she was a great sport!

Activity number two was a visit to Boo at the Zoo in Ft. Worth.  Her Grammy and I took her the weekend before Halloween, so it was slightly busy, to say the least.  The weather was perfect, though, and she loved checking out some of the animals.  The giraffes and flamingos in particular caught her attention.  Mostly, she was happy just playing with our sunglasses!

Makenna was really too little for any of the activities they were doing, so we walked through, watched a little bit of the "magic" show (complete with Justin Bieber lookalike, I kid you not). Before we left, we did her first trick or treating!

The next day was the annual Trunk or Treat at our church.  Our Sunday School class chose a Harry Potter theme, so Chad and I were all decked out as Professors Dumbledore and Trelawney.  Makenna sported her scarecrow outfit again but just would not keep that adorable hat on!  We trick or treated with Mimi and Granddad and passed out some candy ourselves, too.  She was clearly confused about all of the activity and strange-looking people, but still seemed to have a great time!

 

When October 31st finally arrived, it was time to trick or treat for real.  The weather was just right - SLIGHTLY cool, but not too cold or too hot.  Perfect for her sweet little costume!  Daddy had to work, unfortunately, but Toots and I headed to Mimi and Granddad's.  Mimi and I then hit the neighborhood, with Toots all comfy in her stroller.  That girl is WAY too heavy for us to have carried her all night!

                                      

The hat never made it out the door, and the socks MIGHT have made it through two houses.  We were constantly picking them up!  Makenna turned on the charm at every house we visited and raked in the candy.  So much so that there was no way we would EVER eat it all.  (Yes...much of it is still on top of our fridge at this very moment.)  She had a great time visiting with all of the neighbors and the other kids who were out.  When we finished, it was back to Mimi and Granddad's to check out our loot.

Daddy came by for a few minutes, and we took our Tired Trick-Or-Treating Tootie home for a few last First Halloween photos.

And then we put our sweet baby scarecrow to bed, with visions of happy ghosts and goblins dancing in her head.   I would say her first Halloween was a rousing success.  I can't wait to find her a costume for next year!!