Jump!

Merry Christmas

Ready to get started

Discovered his new chair

Happy Feet movie

Loving his new chair

Doesn't everyone want a new potty for Christmas

A FSU basketball hoop from JC's Godfather, Sean.

A cinnamon roll for Christmas breakfast- a true Mihalik tradition.

From our family to yours Merry Christmas. May Santa be as good to as he was to us.

Christmas Eve

After making it through Christmas Eve mass, that was a miracle, we headed home for some pizza and Santa prep. JC got to open one gift from Mommy and Daddy and was very excited by his new markers and smock. We of course had to take pictures by our stockings. JC left some food outside for the reindeer and did quality control on Santa's cookies by taking a bite out of one before putting it on his plate.

Our Yearly Christmas Letter

Dear Friends and Family,

In today’s economy we have been trying to figure out how to save a dollar here and a dollar there without having to cut back on our wine addiction. Well here it is, my first Christmas email replacing the yearly letter that cost us roughly $50 to send, once you count all the paper and stamps. That’s like 5 bottles of wine- hey we may drink but we know how to drink cheap. For those of you not receiving this via email…would you please catch up with the times so you can follow us throughout the year on our blog and save me $.44 next year- Thanks!

OK so on to “What have those Bouchard’s been up to?”- of course if you are reading this on our blog you pretty much know we are busy with our little man but here is my question of the year: Why don’t these kids come with manuals? I mean seriously there are over 1,000 books out there but none of them give you the same information, so how am I supposed to know which is the best way to raise my child. We could seriously screw him up if we choose the wrong book. That is way to much pressure. Our microwave is less complicated and it came with a manual. Honestly I think Gene and I are doing a great job thus far if I may say so myself.

JC started walking at 10 months and has not stopped since. He is saying over 35 words and is happy to show the world where his belly button is. He loves to read and dance, just like his mommy. JC can also be found throwing a ball around- he has an arm on him like you wouldn’t believe, just like his daddy. When JC is spending his week with Grandpa you can find the two of them glued to the TV in the afternoon watching Giada and the Barefoot Contessa on the Food Network- are you laughing cause it is funnier to see in person. He LOVES the water, whether it is a pool or a bathtub it’s hard to get him out sometimes. His best friends are his bear, his daddy and his grandpa- all of which he spends hours with each week. To help JC burn off some of his energy we have put him into a tumbling class- really it’s a bunch of toddlers just running and jumping around but we are teaching him early that exercise and nutrition are important. The kid thinks fruit is like crack or something. I mean he goes crazy for a strawberry or banana. He spent the past year being watched once a week by a wonderful family and recently we enrolled him into an at home daycare twice a week. He is learning to interact more with kids his age, color, transition from one activity to the next among many other activities.

Gene has gone back to school, well sort of. He has been training since April to be a volunteer fireman with the county. So we have lost him to school every Tuesday and Thursday and to studying when he is home but we are really proud of him. He has found something that he really enjoys doing. He is still at the marina and continues to like working there. He recently passed his beginner fire training class with a 78 and is waiting to take his HAZMAT class before starting his mentorship package.

I have been working like a dog but that is nothing new. I have been at Old Navy for just over a year and at Merrill Lynch for 3 years now. It’s hard to leave JC every morning but Gene is good at bringing him by to see me during the day and I make the most of our weekends and nights together. After several failed attempts I am still studying for my Series 7 to become a registered associate at Merrill Lynch but in the meantime I just enjoy taking a 6 hour test every few months. I have taken on many new responsibilities in the office and I am really enjoying working there.

Speaking of dog, Minnie and JC are getting along much better these days. JC loves to feed her cookies and help bring her dinner- which of course she is happy to receive. They love playing together and JC has even figured out how to hug and kiss her. Though Minnie still loves her time alone so most days you can find her curled up under our bed with her nose sticking out into the sunlight. Ah to be a dog.

This years trips were limited- 2 trips were to FL to see JC’s Great Grandpa and his Godfather. We made 2 quick trips to Savannah, one was for JC’s girlfriend’s 1st birthday and the other was for lunch on our way to FL. We drove to Mt. Pleasant so many times during the first 3 months of the year for JC’s helmet scans I almost feel like we vacationed there. Speaking of, with the help of 3 different doctors JC has a perfectly shaped head and made quick progress with physical therapy and chiropractic care.

JC’s 1st birthday in July was perfect with many family and friends traveling to join in on the special occasion. Oh we even squeezed in a surprise 30th birthday party for Gene in May with some special visitors from NY coming down for the big celebration. What can I say I love a good party and these were two great reasons to get friends and family together to celebrate and put my party planning skills to use.

As 2010 sneaks in on us we are looking forward to more new adventures with JC, including a trip to Disney later in the year (hopefully), a charity walk for ALS in memory of JC’s grandmother – we are looking to raise $900 for the walk ($100 for every year she has been deceased). So since it is the season for giving log onto http://web.alsa.org/goto/BAMBAM and help us reach our goal. And of course you can keep up with all of our adventures throughout the year by logging into http://www.cbouchard.blogspot.com/.

From our family to yours- May you have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

The Bouchard’s

Santa Tracker

http://www.noradsanta.org/en/index.html#utm_campaign=en_US&utm_medium=ha&utm_source=en_US-ha-na-us-sk-gm&utm_term=tracking%20santa

Here Comes Santa Claus and Firemen

Our community had it's yearly holiday party for the kids today with a few special guests. Santa stopped by to give the kids all a gift, JC got some blocks, and the local fire station stopped by to let the kids climb on board. JC of course loved sitting in the drivers seat and Daddy enjoyed showing him all the cool tools. It took JC a minute to get into Santa but as soon as the gift was pulled out they became best friends. JC even shared his blocks with Santa when they had some one on one time together after the other kids went off to play.

Drivin Along in My Automobile...

Festival of Trees

New York tree

Connecticut tree

New Mexico tree

Reaching in to touch the sting ray.

Every year Ripley's Aquarium has a tree decorated to represent each of the 50 states. We took a moment to pose by NY, CT, and NM. JC loves looking at the Christmas lights and always reminds us that they are hot as he walks by.

Being silly with my daddy

JC loves pulling his pillow out from the playroom and laying on it while watching tv. Daddy decided to join him on the floor for this picture.

Giggles

Guess he couldn't reach the toy he wanted

Pretending to sleep

Just like Daddy

Hanging with the boys on Thanksgiving

Twins

Watching the game with Daddy

Build-A-Bear or Dog in our Case

Waiting patiently in line to stuff his dog.

JC pushs on the pedal to put stuffing into Dog.

Helping to give Dog a bath

Dog is all set to go home.

JC loves the tag that is on his build-a-bear that we made for him before he was born. Since he is off to daycare twice a week, he starts December 1st, it was suggested that we get an extra lovey so one can stay at daycare- makes nap time easier in case we should forget it in the morning. So we decided that was a great idea and brought JC along for his first Build-a-Bear experience. He loved making dog and we loved that he loved him so much last night that it was an easy transition to his new friend.