Sam was in no hurry to come into the world. He held on for as long as possible, but the doctor decided that last Friday was long enough. He is in my opinion the most handsome child born anywhere this year. Of course, I may be a little biased.

After spending a full day in the relative quiet of the hospital Sam came home. At his home to greet him were both sets of grandparents, two of his aunts, two cousins, a very excited brother and sister, a cat and a dog. It’s no wonder he held out as long as he could

Here are some pictures from Sam’s first week.

Emma had her “Big Sister” outfit all picked out and wore it to the hospital when Jenni was admitted.

By the time Jenni delivered the baby, Emma was home asleep. Brennen and I were still there, wandering around the hospital while we waited. Brennen got to see his brother when he was about 1/2 hour old.

Emma met him the next morning. It’s a good thing Sam is big and strong. He’s going to have to survive a lot of hugs and kisses from his siblings!

Brennen, demonstrating a "flying squirrel"

Brennen and Emma invited me to go swimming with them the other night.  They really enjoy the pool and it makes for lots of good photo opportunities.    Brennen kept telling me about doing a “flying squirrel” off the diving board.  He was right, it’s pretty amazing…

Emma was interested in snorkeling.  As usual, she is quite the fashion diva.

Brennen also lost his second tooth.  He stopped for just a second to show me the new gaping hole in his smile…

Here are some pictures from that day.  As long as I had such a willing subject, I thought it might be fun to get some pictures of him “riding” on one of his presents.  When I posed him to ride on his “slinky dog” he was most distressed.

I also tried pictures of him enjoying some watermelon.  As soon as he sat down he seemed to lose his appetite.  His dog, Dixie, did was pretty good about not helping him out.  

William and his mom

Our daughter and her family moved back from Germany on October 1st.  William was only a few weeks old at the time.  While Jake went to Altus, Oklahoma for training, Andi and the boys stayed with us. 
We were really fortunate to get to watch William grow from and infant.  He has developed a wonderful personality and is growing up fast.  Here’s some pictures we took right before Andi and the boys moved to their new home  in Charleston, SC

William's great smile

On the trail to the frozen gorge

We were very lucky to have a chance to spend a few days at the Edelweiss Resort in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany.  Garmisch was the site of the 1936 Winter Olympics and is a great town.  While we were there we enjoyed the local “Christmas Market” and hiked to a frozen gorge. 

Bratwurst on the hoof

On the trail to the frozen gorgeThe gorge in Garmisch

Emma's Tea Party

Making Emma smile is not easy.  At least it’s not easy to get a genuine smile.  She’s been trained to say “cheese” whenever the camera comes out.  To get these smiles I say down at her tea party!   We both had a great time as she prepared lots of food and drink for us to enjoy!

All of my good pictures came at a time the kids didn’t think about posing or smiling, they were just being themselves!

Emma, making a treat for our tea party

William's Pillow

I was taking some pictures of my grandson, William, when our dog, Millie, decided to pay him a visit.   I didn’t think too much about it while I was taking the pictures, Millie is always checking out her kids and likes the attention.   When I was looking at them later I realized that it looked like Millie had been stalking him.  Check out this video.  I hope you like it. I’m including another picture of them that also shows what great friends they are.