Northwest Norsworthys: Tis the season

We are decking the halls, walking in a winter wonderland and wishing you a Merry Christmas!
If fall brings smiles and joy, Christmas-time just makes me giddy. I have my stack of Christmas CD's on repeat, am sipping cider and egg nog coffee as frequently as possible and have the twinkle lights on all day because I just can't get enough! It thrills me to think about that silent night, 2,000 years ago, when scraggly shepherds saw an explosion of glorious lights and splendor in the sky to celebrate the birth of our Savior. I realized this year that the decorating and celebrating I do throughout the Christmas season is my attempt at adorning my home and my heart with the joy of that night, the beauty of that sight and the wondrous celebration of Emmanuel, God with us. It gave me a whole new perspective on the Christmas season and the preparation we make for Christmas day!

As I decorated our house this year I had the fun (and challenge) of watching my little one experience it all with wonder and excitement. Every morning he excitely points out the tree to me and looks at me as if to say, "Do you SEE that?! We have a TREE in our house and it is still there!!" And every day we go through "just touch, Ben", but I have to say he has been very good. He needs to touch several ornaments over and over every day, and make sure the rule is still to only touch and not grab and toss and shake. Once we establish that, he is very obedient and just accepts the large piece of nature in our family room as very normal. Can't wait to see what he does with all the presents on Christmas morning. :)

Since it has been awhile since the last post, here is a quick update on all the goings-on of Ben Norsworthy.

He is always busy, always moving. A lot of my day is spent just following him around as he explores and plays.
He loves to wrestle and rough-house and laugh. We can get a case of unstoppable giggles going when we start tickling and tossing him around on the pillows of the couch. He gets that kind of laugh that is so big that sound doesn't even come out--the kind that is so contagious you can't help but join him in it. He also loves to climb on top of us if we are lying on the floor and tickle us or bounce on us.
In the last month, Ben has made the profound discovery of the belly button. He knows where his is, and he knows where ours are, and he doesn't mind helping himself to a poke and a tickle to get a laugh. He will do all kinds of things for a laugh--no silliness is off limits, no noise or expression impossible if it will result in laughter. We laugh a lot in our house.
Ben finally has some words!!! We had a very precious moment when he said his first real word. We were Skyping with Gary and Linda (Gran and Pops to Ben) and their cat walked by in the background. Ben perked up, leaned forward excitedly and said "Kee-kee!!" Now mind you, we don't have a cat, aren't around people who have cats and don't talk about cats. But Gary is a veterinarian who specializes in cats, so not only was it incredibly special that they got to witness Ben's first word, but he made MAJOR grandparent points in making it a very special word to the Norsworthy family! He got so excited when Gary brought the cat up to the screen and would whine and complain when the cat went away! Later that day he said the word again when looking at a picture book. Then the next day he added the word "car" and since then he has said "cu" (for "cup"), "co" (for "cow") and "tee" (for "tree"). Now if we could just work on "Ma-ma" I would be SO happy!

Here are some pictures from the last month to help you feel like you are sharing in the moments with us...