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Jonas very much enjoyed his first road trip to Virginia to spend the holidays with the Seyfrieds.  Here is a group shot.  (From left to right and back to front…Aunt Mary, Uncle Tim, Aunt Tree, Cousin Sam, Uncle Dave, Jonas, Mommy, Daddy, Aunt Sherri, Uncle Rich, Grandma Jackie, Cousin Lindsey, Cousin Kaitlyn, Cousin Lily, Cousin Andrew, Grandpa Phil, Cousin Peter, Cousin John, and Cousin Audrey.)

Jonas was seven weeks old on Christmas Day.  Here he is in the AMAZING stocking that Grandma Jackie made for him.  🙂  (Thanks to Aunt Sherri for the idea of putting him in it for a picture.)

This is Jonas’ Godfather, my brother-in-law, David Paccassi. I met Dave when he was a freshman at George Mason University, where he met my sister Teresa. They married in December of 1998 and have four beautiful children. Dave has been a wonderful example of how to live Catholisism everyday of the week, not just Sunday mornings. Jodi and I know that we can always count on Dave to keep Jonas in his daily prayers and that Jonas can count on him for strong love and sound advice. It was very sweet when we asked Dave to be Jonas’ Godfather, via web video-chat, he could only smile and nod because he was so moved. We love that Dave has always worn his emotions on his sleeve, and we hope that Jonas can learn much from him.

I met Ben Jonas the summer of 1999 when I first moved to Tennessee. I was renting a room in a house, as was another man who was a painter. That man had hired Ben to do some work for him and we met at the house. Ben was a train hopper (one who jumps on freight trains and rides them long distances to get somewhere, or just for fun) at the time and that was something I had always wanted to do. He agreed to take me on my first train hop and I was hooked. For the past nine years, Ben and I have always kept up with each others’ whereabouts and happenings. I have been to his family’s home in northern Idaho twice now. Once for about three weeks helping to cut and bring in firewood for the cold winter. I was welcomed as a member of the family and certainly see where Ben gets his strength and faith. His mother, Ann, has strength not seen in women since the pioneer days, and his father’s faith warms their whole house.

While Ben’s humility will not allow him to say this himself, he is truly the most Christlike man I know. We are all human and born into sin, and certainly not perfect. Benjamin Jonas is not perfect, I would guess he has his struggles like all of us; however, I know no one who better lives the way Christ has called us to live. It is an honor to call our son Jonas Benjamin Seyfried, and we hope he will grow up to be close to the kind of man Ben Jonas is.

We were so excited to have Uncle Kerry home for Christmas from Taiwan (for the first time in a year and a half) and to meet up with him for breakfast at the Cracker Barrel before leaving for our Seyfried Family visit in Virginia for the holidays!!!  (From left to right and front to back…Uncle Kerry, Aunt Julie, Grandma Connie, Aunt Jeanne, Daddy, Mommy, and Jonas.)  

I love this picture of Meme and Jonas…it reminds me of the day we spent at Meme and Papa’s.  Sheri, Jonas and I were hanging out in the kitchen making peppermint bark.  At one point, I stepped away, and when I walked back into the kitchen, Sheri was holding a sleeping Jonas on her shoulder and laughing. She had picked him up, as he had started to fuss a little bit, and was amazed, as she continued with her cooking (crushing candy canes with a mallet) while holding him, that he fell asleep.  HaHa!!!  

How blessed we are to have three generations of Seyfried men…

That’s my boy!!

**VIDEO OF JONAS PREDICTING HIS FIRST GAME**

We enjoyed visiting with Grandma Jackie and Grandpa Phil over the Thanksgiving holidays.  Here are a few pictures of their time with us:  Jonas hanging out with Grandma, while she was cross-stitching his stocking; Grandma and Grandpa in front of Jonas’ first Christmas tree; and Grandpa holding Jonas at the beautiful Thanksgiving table set for the Stuart Family gathering.

I was just going through some of our wedding photos this morning…

And introducing Jonas’ priceless Godmother, Julie Lee.  We listen to her new EP (“Will There Really Be a Morning?”) almost every morning, starting our day with “Petite Bebe”…Jonas with his eyes as wide as saucers and me with my heart overflowing for my little one whose ears seem to be just as attentive to and as in love with music as my own.

We love the car seat cover that Aunt Tree sent with Grandma Jackie.  The first time we put Jonas in it and got him ready to go, we cracked up for a minute or two straight over his cute little face being the only thing you could see through the hole in the fabric.

 

Here is Jonas:  wrapped up in Daddy’s childhood quilt and enjoying the true Snow Day experience with Mommy; chilling with Daddy and basking in the evening glow of his MacBook; and curled up on Daddy’s chest, thankful to be home, after a morning of Christmas shopping.

Thanks to Tamara, Aunt Julie and Cousins Jordan and Dylan, and Grandma Connie who have all stayed with Jonas for emergency and non-emergency date nights.  We love and appreciate you and know that Jonas does too!!! (A picture of Tamara and Jonas is forthcoming…).

 

This picture makes me laugh so hard and is one of the many reasons why we love our little baby boy…all of his different sounds, expressions, and poses.  We had just come in from a stroll around the neighborhood, with Jonas all cozied up in the Baby Bjorn, complete with sweaters and hats and blankets, and this is what he looked like when I took him out of his warm little mobile home and laid him down.  HeHe!!!

This is one of Jonas’ favorite places to be…hanging out anywhere with Daddy (he takes after his Mommy in that way).  🙂

We are so thankful for our first family portrait, taken by Grandpa Phil, complete with our fourteen year old lab, Dreemer.  

Jonas Benjamin Seyfried enjoyed his first Thanksgiving as a three week old at the Haynes Family and Stuart Family gatherings.