Our First Christmas Party!

We are still alive...even though we never blog anymore...I tried to catch up for the last few months so check all of the posts below this one.

Ellison got this new outfit last night at the Lister Family Christmas Dinner.
Every year, we get together with the Lister side of the family on the Friday before Christmas.

Ellison enjoyed all of the excitement, but was soon very, very tired.

We put his Christmas pajamas on so we could enjoy the occasion
even more...his hat was a little small.

He loves spoons for some reason.

Uncle Jerry and Aunt Carolyn giving him his gift. It was a

toy cell phone...thanks so much for all of the wonderful gifts.

We love them all.

Special Times

Last weekend, Ellison and I went to a baby shower for my sweet friend Julie and her precious daughter Hannah. Julie and Michael are missionaries and are home for a few months. The FNA reunited to give Julie a shower before she and Michael return to Southeast Asia. We had a great time with everyone. It is funny because the FNA has definitely grown...or at least our families have. We all have children now...nine total...I think...it was hard to keep up with them all.

Olivia and Gibson having a big time!
Ellison played his little heart out and then the crying began.
He was so tired because he had missed his morning nap.

Julie and Hannah.

Uncle Chad turned 40 this year so we had a surprise party for him.

He was totally surprised...can you tell? Sheila did a great job keeping the secret.

Thanksgiving!

For Thanksgiving, we went to the lake on Wednesday night and stayed until Thursday around lunch time. We had a great time with MaMa, Aunt Dana, Uncle Michael, Grace Ann, Uncle Chad, Aunt Sheila, Chase, and Sophie. Ellison did pretty good considering the boys stayed up late playing video games. Chase and Matthew tried to fish in the freezing cold, but they had no luck.
We took some family pics with Aunt Dana being the very "professional" photographer. On Thursday, we also went to my grandmother's house to visit with my side of the family. We ate another Thanksgiving meal on Saturday night with my other grandmother. We were turkied out by the end of the weekend.

Days go By!

Ellison loving is Mommy!
Supper Club at Cracker Barrell. Fun Times.

Ellison liked this basket for a little while:).

Ellison striking a pose with dad.

Happy Halloween!

Ellison and his buddies...Lane (Tiger) and Wyatt (Lion)
I'm not sure that the boys were really excited about these costumes.

Wyatt was trying to be friendly but Ellison couldn't figure this Halloween thing out.

He just stared at everyone.

Wendy and Jack

aka...Amber's parents...Denise and Rick

Happy Hallowen!

Ellison and "Michael Jackson and the Eighties Chick" aka Uncle Quinn and Aunt Amber
Dad and his little monkey

Mommy's little monkey

How cute!

This monkey has a pacifier:)

The Lord is Faithful

We went into the hospital on Thursday Oct. 22 and came home on Sunday the 25th. Ellison did really well with his surgery once again. He experienced a little more pain after this one but still did great. We are so thankful to be home and now without the colostomy:). We have something new for us...dirty diapers. Ellison has had a pretty bad diaper rash this week, but it is getting better. We continue to pray for a complete healing with our sweet boy. The Lord has proven Himself faithful through every step of the way. We are so thankful. Thank you for your prayers!

Ellison loved the balloons that our friends Max and Linda sent to him.Our little trooper feeling better around day 3 of the hospital stay.

Watching the Clemson vs Miami game with Dad.

We could tell Ellison was sore after surgery because he kept this one leg up for a long time.

It hurt him to stretch it out and kick like he loves to do.

Around the House

Ellison's favorite hobby is playing with his toes.
One of the cutest outfits for fall!

Me and Dad just hanging out!

One morning Ellison saw me drinking out of this cup and decided to use

it as his toy for the day.

Another Step in our Journey

Tomorrow Ellison will have his colostomy reversed at 9:00am. This is the last scheduled surgery to repair the colon. Please pray that the surgery will go well and that our sweet boy will not have any complications. We are a little nervous taking him to the hospital during this terrible flu season but we know and believe that the Lord is watching over him. We thank you all for your prayers already but please lift us one more time tomorrow.

Also, please pray for Kevin Knight's family. He passed away after battling complications associated with the flu and pneumonia. He leaves behind a beautiful wife and two darling boys. Please pray for them and the extended family.

I hope to post some pictures soon. Sorry for the delay...life has been a little crazy lately.

Love you all,
MLV, NPV, and EAV

Well, we went to Dr. A's today and our next step of the surgery process will be on October 22. Ellison will have his colostomy reversed on that day...how exciting. Please be in prayer for us because it is another surgery and there's a lot goes along with surgery....mainly mommy worrying. Dr. A did say that Ellison was doing well and moving along just as planned.

Enough about surgery...One other exciting thing that has happened this past week was that Ellison was dedicated at church.

After the dedication, Aunt Dana, Uncle Michael, and Grace Ann came over to

give Ellison all of the balloons we used for decorations. He loved them. Obviously, Daddy liked them too.

Uncle Q and Aunt Amber joined us for the dedication party.

Uncle Q has a hard time keeping his eyes open for pics. He closed them in every one.

Chase eating that delicious Publix fried chicken.

Mommy and Daddy enjoying the party.

Daddy and Ellison playing with the balloons.

Pretty Sophie.

Pat, MaMa, and Carolyn at the party.

Uncle Chad holding the sweet boy. People say Ellison looks like Chad now.

Pops and Grandma making sure Ellison gets his lunch too.

Pastor Jerry loving on Ellison

Ellison was checking out the crowd at church.

We were very nervous about this but Ellison did really great.

It was a fabulous day. Praise the Lord and thanks to everyone that helped

make it wonderful!!!!

Has it really been a month?

I guess it really has been a month. Sorry guys! Life has definitely gotten a lot busier with mommy going back to work. Ellison has being doing so many new things lately. I try to catch them on video or with a quick picture but it is getting difficult. As you can see, he is eating new foods...we are now up to cereal, a few veggies, and bananas. He LOVES them...maybe not the greens but he still eats them. He is also rolling over...not on command. It usually happens when we aren't looking. At his last peds appt, he weighed right at 17lbs and was over 24 in long. We go to Dr. Abram's today for our next surgery update.

MaMa and Ellison right before bedtime.
Ellison and his MaMa. They have become such
good buddies! I think he knows she has a prize closet
waiting for him.


Such a model!

Uncle Quinn's hat looked so cute on Ellison.

We haven't made it to a game yet, but we still

support our Tigers every week! Win or Lose:)

This is a great face while eating some yummy green beans!

Ellison eating some of his first bowls of cereal.

Ellison and Parker at the New's Tailgate Party.

We had lots of fun. Thank You Matt & Lindsey!