So many firsts!!!

There have been so many "firsts" the last couple days... I thought I'd share them with you!!!

On Christmas, we headed to Kim & Roger's most recent home for dinner... we decided that I'd make the turkey! (brave call there sis)... anyways, Christmas Eve I was about to make the turkey and guess what... I found the tie for an oven bag, but no oven bag!!! I freaked! How do you make a turkey without an oven bag??!?! So Matt did some research online and found that you can cook a turkey in all sorts of things... including a brown paper bag! It was qwirky enough to get my attention - so I did it! And let me tell you it was FABULOUS!

First I brined the turkey after it was thawed, then I rubbed it with really healthy butter, sprinkled some salt, pepper & garlic powder on the outside of the turkey and threw it in the paper bag, stapled it shut and 3 hours later... a turkey!! Isn't that just bizarre??!? (not the turkey, the paper bag) It's kinda cool, like opening up a big yummy present of food! My favorite thing!! Thanks to my hubby & the internet for a great idea!

Of course, it was Cooper's first Christmas! He didn't get spoiled AT ALL... :)

Unwrapping a gift! (the ONE that was wrapped)

He had a great time.. like I said, not spoiled AT ALL haha
(this stash doesn't include anything from the grandparents....)

Cooper reading his first Christmas book!

Another first today, Dec. 26, Cooper got his FIRST haircut! He was getting a little baby mullet going on... never a good thing!

Getting starting! His bumbo worked PERFECT for a barber chair!

(and he IS wearing a diaper... you just can't see it. haha!)

Daddy finishing up... just a little trim to the mullet. Cooper did really good and didn't fuss at all!

Of course he had to get a bath afterwards... and he was a very happy, groomed and yummy smelling little boy!

Merry Christmas!!!

From our family to yours!!

(and yes, I realize I'm a day late posting it, but definitely did not have time yesterday to post - it's the thought that counts right?)

Elf yourself!!

Two posts in 1 day from Amber? Is that possible? YES!!!

I can't resist... let's rock the Christmas disco!!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Maybe a little yuletide hoe down?!?

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Christmas is ALMOST here!!!

I love Christmas. There's just no way around it. LOVE it! Here are some pictures of Christmas shaping up so far this year around the Gorsuch house!!

The tree is decorated! The first gifts are wrapped and more are on their way!


Cooper & Matt were wrapping presents together and I apparently was not allowed in "Santa's workshop" (aka our spare room). But Matt knows me well and hid the presents anyway while he was working because I'm oblivious and STILL walked into the room totally unaware of the sign - I totally didn't see it. I'm a dork, but at least my hubby still loves me! He then proceeded to kick me out and make me sit there thinking of how I could snoop... but no excuse got me through that door till he was done!

This is Cooper at Grandma Bertha's Christmas on Sunday... Matt got a camo hat and put it on Cooper! He was pretty pumped about it as you can see!

We hadn't had a family picture in a while... so here we are! We are excited and ready for our first Christmas as parents!!! YEAH!!!

Good times!!!

So last weekend Matt & I hit a crucial milestone in our lives... the first night without the baby!!! We headed to Chicago Saturday night for dinner, to see WICKED!!!!!! and for an overnight stay followed by a gospel brunch at the House of Blues (ah-mazing). We had a great time and below are just a few pictures from the night out! We had a great time but were glad to get home to little Cooper!

Kim & I and our adult beverages. That's a Wicked-tini in my hand - hence the green - it tasted like key lime pie! YUMMY!!!


Matt & Roger having fun with us girls :)


Awww, the 3 sisters... We were glad to have our siblings all together!! It was Katy's first time leaving Tristan as well!

Had to get a shot of just the 2 of us before we left... we had a great time!

Oh and one more thing... Cooper got his 3 month pictures taken today and I couldn't help but get his picture with Santa for the first time!!! He was totally not impressed because we woke him up from a nap to get his picture taken, so he didn't smile even with all the jumping, hollering, etc. that we were trying.... but it was cute anyways!

A couple cute videos...

So over the last week or so, I've been obsessing over some things Cooper has been up to!  He's at such a fun age where he's really starting to show his true colors (good & bad) and really interacting with us!  Here are a couple of videos from last week that I thought we could share with you!  But just so you're warned... these were taken on my cell phone and so they're not great quality, but it works!

This is Cooper in his bouncy seat.  He likes the "activate" mode where if he hits the little animals hanging down, the top lights up!  Well, this was the first time he was a complete spaz in the chair and just started going wild! It was so funny!  We couldn't do anything but laugh at our little man!!

This was me & Cooper playing on his play mat.  I decided to show him his reflection in a little mirror and started giggling like crazy!  Too cute!

Bethlehem Live! photos

Here are some pictures from Bethlehem Live! Cooper did very well - the last 2 nights he didn't even have to leave the stage because he slept basically through the whole thing! He was a trooper. And don't worry, we kept him warm and cozy all 3 nights!


The manger scene. Yeah, that's me as Mary with baby Jesus (aka Cooper) and Joseph (aka Kevin).

This was too cute. David was playing the inn keepers' son and the 2nd night was so tired, he fell asleep on a hay bail in the middle of everything. It was too cute!

Cooper was a real star! It was amazing to see all the little kids and adults come through and see a real baby in the manger scene. I loved watching especially the kids' expressions and seeing their complete innocence in seeing the whole story. Matt & I had a great time!

Bethlehem Live!

Hi all! A few months ago Matt & I started attending Crossroads Church and this weekend they are holding their annual Bethlehem live! event - it's a live nativity walk-through experience and is great! Below is the link - check it out and come check it out! Tonight was our first night and it is also on Saturday and Sunday night.

Bethlemen Live!

PS - as an added bonus to seeing this amazing story come to life, Cooper is baby Jesus this year! So as long as he's not on a break to eat or get his diaper changed, you'll see us on the last stop of the walk!

It's off to Carolina we go!!!

For Thanksgiving this year, we headed to North Carolina to spend time with Matt's familiy! His parents and sister (and family) live in Summerfield and Winston-Salem. It was great to see them! It's been a while since we've been able to make the trip down there... it was a WILD road trip! Matt & I packed up Cooper, all his stuff, christmas presents, our luggage AND our 2 dogs and hit the road. Are we crazy? Probably. But Cooper did really good, the dogs slept most of the way and we got there without a hitch! Here are photos of our trip!

All loaded up and ready to go!

Matt gave Cooper his first driving lesson!

(don't worry, we were at a rest stop - that van makes it look like they're really driving doesn't it?!)

Cooper & Grandpa Ralph hanging out with daddy

Playing with Grandma Carrie

Grandma Carrie and her two grandsons... Cooper & Drew

Grandma Carrie, Cousin Drew and Aunt Kelly messing around

Grandpa Ralph and his 2 boys!

And I don't think I mentioned this, but Matt & I's 3rd anniversary fell on Thanksgiving Day this year - the 27th! Ralph & Carrie babysat Cooper while Matt & I hit the movies! We saw the new James Bond AND I had my first cosmo since our anniversary last year, right before I went prego! It was fabulous - see below :) I was mucho happy!!

Before we left we got to go to ANOTHER movie - Australia - which is very good! We were so excited, 2 movies and a short break all in a couple days! I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving too! We're glad to be home, but miss our family in NC.

Things we were never told...

Ok, so becoming a parent is an absolute miracle in itself... we are learning new things everyday! Some we knew we would have to learn and others took us a little by surprise. For example, Cooper LOVES his car seat and sleeps very well in it, but if you lay him on his back in his crib, he can go from sound asleep to wide awake in 5 seconds flat! Anyways, here are a few pictures with a few more pieces of knowledge we've gained over the last 10 weeks...


Bouncy seats are a godsend!

Formula poop is NASTY!!!
(FYI - that's a scented bag on Matt's face, not just a random plastic bag...)

Cooper looks so stinkin' cute in camo!!!
(ok, I said it, now let's move on)

What an amazing story...

Over the years I've gotten to know a girl at work, Jeni. We've worked closely together and have become good friends, which has been great for me because coming back to Middlebury after college hasn't been the easiest transition... anyways, Jeni and her husband Jimmy have been praying for a baby and this last weekend they got a little baby girl and named her Alyah. Here is an email Jeni sent around. They've been on such an amazing journey, I couldn't help but share it... it's such a testament to God's perfect timing and sticking it out through tough times. I am so excited for them!!! After the email are some pictures I took yesterday when I visited! She's such a cuddlebug!

Jimmy and I adopted a little girl on Sunday, Nov. 16 - Alyah (a-lee-ah) Dee Anderson. She was born on Monday Nov. 10 and is 6 lbs. 3 oz. The whole process has been a whirlwind but God's timing is always perfect and we are so thankful to Him for allowing us to love her! It took us 6 months to go through the homestudy process and once you are approved they start showing your profile to birthmoms. Well we were on approved on Monday (same day Alyah was born!) and I got the call on Friday that a birthmom chose us and wants to meet us that day! Of course Jimmy was out of town so we moved the meeting to Sunday (which gave us a little more time to get ready - as best we could) So on Sunday we drove to Indianapolis - fully prepared to become parents or to have the birthmom change her mind. We meet the mom at noon and by 1:15 we were holding our new daughter!!! It is/was so amazing! To say that we were in shock is an understatment and we just keep thanking God for our beautiful baby girl! We are home now and all doing very well. Thanks for all the prayers and encouragement over the last few years! It's been a rough road but SO worth the wait!!!

Proud daddy Jimmy!

What a little sweety!

Our babies! Cooper looked like a giant next to Alyah. Oh and by the way, this is Cooper's girlfriend :)

Proud momma Jeni!!!

Check out those eyes!

I really am still here...

It's kind of funny... after Mom & Kim finally returned to the continent, I find myself out & about a lot more and less time having to blog! What was I thinking? Here are a few pictures to help us catch up...

This was actually before Halloween, I tried to put Cooper in a basket of nice, warm, clean towels! He was obviously really impressed.

Ahhhh our Bontrager family get-together at Aimee & Jason's house last Sunday... a preview to the madness that will be our Christmas this year! It's going to be a BLAST!

Cooper & I headed to Petoskey with Mom on Tuesday night to go check on the house projects that they have going on! We had a good time and it helped me figure out how to take a road trip with our little guy! He did pretty good for his first one... we're heading to N. Carolina in about 2 weeks, so hopefully he'll get better at them by then! But of course, grandma couldn't resist giving him a bath! He loved playing in the water!


Cooper's new camo hat... don't worry - he has matching gloves. His daddy is proud!

Highlights from the week!

So I actually had a really exciting week! We had a lot going on, which you've probably noticed because I blogged like a crazy person... but here are a few things I didn't blog about but probably should have...

On Thursday, my awesome sisters Katy & Aimee came up with Emma & Tristan and kept me company since Mom & Kim left me high and dry and flew to Australia & New Zealand :) It was great to see the look on the waitress' face when we all walked in to El Maguey's to eat... fun times! Here are a few pictures of all the cousins together!

Cooper was out - the other two were kicking, cooing and laughing like crazy!

They really appreciated us doing this to them... Cooper isn't quite big enough to hold his head up and Emma & Tristan can't quite sit up by themselves... they all kept sliding down the chair. It was so cute!

The next order of business is my husband... on Tuesday night he got a deer!! Matt is an avid bow hunter and was very proud of his accomplishment, as he should be! This was only (I think) his 3rd time out this year... and he got a new bow last winter, so he was really pumped! Here are some pictures of my handsome husband and the nasty dead deer - I'm proud of him regardless :)

Here's Matt showing Jadyn & Ethan the deer's foot and was telling them about it. Jadyn was SO impressed! haha

Matt & the deer... and his NEW bow! GO MATT!

Hope everyone else had a great week as well!