The Falzons-A Blessed Life

Brave, 24, and Family

2011-08-31T16:28:00.003-05:00

Brave

For the last few years I've been attending a ladies Bible study at our church on Wednesday mornings. I can't explain to you how much I've loved those ladies and that time together. Not only do we study the Word and grow together spiritually, but we are "real" with each other. No fluff, no putting on a happy face to look like you've got it all together. We told each other the way it is, how our lives really are, so that we could help each other through anything. Now that we've moved, I'm so sad to not be able to make it to Wednesday morning anymore. Jack's preschool schedule conflicts with it. So what did I do?? I made another one! I called up some girls I know over here and am so excited that they all wanted to do a Bible study too! So we are going to meet every other Wednesday night after work and do this study:

I'm so excited about it because it's just what I described: a study that focuses on the hearts of women. What we're really going through. That we get worn out and lost sometimes, and that we're all in over our heads. I can't wait to start to share with a new group of women!

Okay, so I'm a little behind the times. Jason and I have live streaming Netflix, so we decided we'd start to watch a TV show together on Netflix since it's the end of the summer and nothing is new. I watched a couple episodes of 24 at the end of the series right before it was cancelled, and I liked it, so we decided to go with that one. I CAN'T GET ENOUGH! This show is absolutely awesome! Why was I not watching it from the beginning?? The nice thing about Netflix is that we can watch a couple of episodes in a row if we want to. I have no idea how people waited an entire week before finding out what happened in the next episode? Loving it!

Family

Every morning Benji holds a vigil on the landing of the stairs waiting for Jack to get out of bed. So stinkin adorable....

Pretty much the best family a girl could ask for right here....

Contentment

2011-08-30T08:30:00.004-05:00

Like all marriages, we've had our ups and downs, struggles, tragedies, and losses. But I've always been happy in my marriage. I've always loved my husband and have known that we'd whether all of life's storms together. But lately I've been feeling a different type of contentment than ever before. I can only describe it as an inner joy and peace with my family and my life. And I know that I am being blessed with this because I have grown closer to God in the last few years. I've been trying hard to focus on God's will for my (and our) lives, and being in the center of that will. Sometimes it's really hard....hard to discern if it's God's will or my own personal desires that I'm feeling .

I was hoping you all would pray for me. As the kids are getting older, I have the little nagging feeling that someday God is going to want me to do something. Maybe go back to teaching, volunteer, or go back to school. I have a feeling He might want to put me in a situation where I can use what we've been through to help people. Will you please pray that when He does tell me what He wants to do, I'm paying attention enough to listen and hear Him? ;-) Because it's actually listening for the answer that's the tricky part.

Thank you!

Grover, Home Makeover: Update #2, and Friends

2011-08-28T14:29:00.018-05:00

Grover

Today our church was visited by a man named Grove "Grover" Norwood. He came to share his story and his ministry with us. Please, please, please click on this link and read his story. There's no way I can sit here and type it. I'd cry again. I've already cried three times today when thinking about him. This man and his family lived through a devastating tragedy, trusted God, and turned it into an amazing ministry. In a lot of ways his tragedy reminded me of our loss. God made miraculous things happen from their grief, as He did by bringing Sarah into our little family. A testament to what God can do with lemons. Cheers to lemonade!

Well....

2011-08-24T16:39:00.007-05:00

.....we moved! It's been a whirlwind summer (which is why I haven't made a post in eons)! On July 17th we moved into a new house in Friendswood, which is about 40 minutes from our old town (Missouri City). We had several reasons for making the move, but the two biggest ones were to be closer to our family here and to be settled where we want to be before Jack started Kindergarten. We felt like God had his hand it bringing us here, and so far it's been great! We LOVE our new house and new neighborhood, and we love this town. Which is a good thing, because we're not moving again for two decades. And you are probably chuckling at that, but I'm not. I'm serious. Two decades. The earliest I will consider moving again is when I'm nearing the half-century mark and will hopefully have the mid-life crisis Corvette I've wanted since I was 12. Red or black, either t-top or convertible. But don't get me distracted. Obviously if God wants us somewhere else we'll go. But I really, really don't want to move again until my kids (and their junk) are out of this house. The last time we moved I was pregnant with Jack and we were leaving a rental with not too much stuff. This time we had SO MUCH STUFF! It took the better part of a week making trips back and forth to get everything from one house to the other. It's amazing how many things such small people can add to a family's belongings!

This is the only picture I have from moving weekend. It didn't bring out the best in us....let's put it that way. ;-) As I'm sure you can see by this picture. Jack is being a goofball while Jason and Nathan are picking all of our clothes up off of the floor of the trailer....

Here are Jack and Sarah swinging in their new backyard. Man, moving that swingset was quite the endeavor. Thanks to Andrew for your help!!

Jack's new room. The house is pretty much a blank slate. So I'm able to make it completely ours, choosing paint colors and updating fixtures. Jack wanted a dinosaur room that was blue and yellow, so this is what resulted:

The kid's bathroom. Similar to their old one, but now two colors of blue instead of one.

This is one of my favorite spots in the new house. I've never been big on baths, mostly because I have extreme difficulty relaxing. I can always think of something else I should be doing. But as I've gotten older I have realized that relaxing once in a while makes me a better wife and mom. So I made our bath a spot that was both relaxing and romantic (and that's all the information on the romance I'm willing to divulge.)

I got this chandelier from Amazon for $15. It was white and I painted it red to match, and put tea lites in it. So cute!

Hehe and I thought this wine bottle was appropriate decoration for a master bathroom!

Pre-K! Can you beleive Jack is in Pre-K?? Here is the new backpack hook he is super excited about. (Actually, maybe it's me that's excited about the hook. No more backpack on the floor ALL the time.)

First day of school was today. Sarah eating her Cheerios. Can you believe she's big enough for a booster seat already?? And of course Jack's Lightning McQueen mac and cheese cup had to be in the picture.

My big boy in his backpack. What a charmer he'll be someday.

A GREAT DAY!

2011-07-06T17:14:00.006-05:00

We had a GREAT day today. Our church has begun participating in a refugee outreach at an apartment complex in Houston. Most of the people that live in this complex are refugees from areas where there is much unrest, mostly in Muslim countries in Africa and the Middle East. We want to show Christ's love to them and build relationships with them so they can hopefully understand the love of Jesus that we hold so close to our hearts.

Today we had what I can only describe as a big playdate with the refugee children. One of our pastors, a few members of our youth, and a few women (and Jack, Sarah, Makenzie, and Maddie) went out together with bubbles, sidewalk chalk, books, and popsicles to build relationships and trust with the people who live in the complex.

Here is a member of our youth helping Jack climb a tree.

Here are the kids eating their popsicles and playing together.

I'm so grateful to have this opportunity to show my children the importance of service and of showing the love of Christ to people in the community! I pray that my children grow up to have a heart for God, and I hope that one day they will be the members of the youth that head out to do these things!

From what I understand, the refugee women have gotten the idea (based on the media, TV, and movies here in the US) that Christian women are not family oriented. (Sheesh, I don't know how they could have gotten that idea from American TV!) We want to do our part to change their perception of Christian mothers! I hope Rachel and I were able to start to do that today. And if not, at least we had fun trying. :-)

In other news, Sarah pulled up for the first time the other day. She is only 7 1/2 months old! Jack was probably 10 months before he started to pull up! But she's got him to keep up with, so I'm sure she's going to learn everything much sooner!

Proud of My Paint

2011-07-05T21:03:00.002-05:00

A while back I busted my tail painting most of the interior of our house. I've posted pictures of the kid's rooms and bathroom before, but never the kitchen and living rooms. So I thought I'd give you a peek at how it turned out.

Here is the kitchen, looking into the dining room. I have a red accent wall where the pantry is.

Kitchen looking into the living room.

Living room with another red accent wall that looks out into the backyard.

Living room looking into the master bedroom.

Party Time

2011-07-04T09:40:00.009-05:00

I just can't beleive that my little guy is almost 4! Since Makenzie and Jack have birthdays that are 6 weeks apart (June 18 and July 31), we had a joint 4th birthday party for them this year at Blaine and Michele's house. TOO fun!

Here is our cute baby girl before the party started. She is so close to crawling, and she even tries to pull herself up on things occasionally. She is farther along than Jack was at this age, probably because she's trying to keep up with him!

Bounce house! Maddie and Laney jumping away.

Makenzie

Andrew, Kelly, and Aiden came down for the party. They are the best...LOVE them! Thanks for the visit guys!

Andrew, Rachel, and Makenzie

Me with my sweet babies.

Sarah LOVES Jack. It's really quite funny...he is IT as far as she's concerned!

Nicole and "Caweb" (as Jack calls him).

LOL I had to inculde this awesome hair shot! It seems Mama's still just a big kid herself. :)

EVERY time Jack jumps off the diving board he lands on his stomach, no matter what he's trying to do!

Tried to teach him to dive off the side, but it turned into a lesson in flips instead.

Very excited about his presents of course!

I'm thinking we should sell this picture to Domino's. I think she'd make a great model for their next ad campaign. :)

Dads

And for grins, breakfast pictures from today. Happy 4th!

2011-06-22T20:39:00.005-05:00

My feelings towards Ford right now, in a nutshell:

Last week while driving Jack to VBS (yes-my baby is old enough for VBS! But that's another story entirely. Don't get me distracted.) I had to slam on the brakes so I didn't rear end some not-so-intelligent drivers. During the slamming of the brakes a little coffee spilled onto the console. No biggie. At the next light I used a few napkins and a wet wipe and cleaned it up.

The next day when I got in the car to put it into drive, it took 90 attempts (yes, I said 90) to get my car out of park. The problem got worse as the day went on, so last Friday I took it into the dealer to have it worked on assuming it was a warranty issue. Jason and I had figured out I could get it out of park if I stepped on the emergency brake first, but not when I just stepped on the regular brake. The guy called a couple hours later and said that the coffee had leaked down into the gear shift and was sticking it closed. SERIOUSLY? It was, like, one ounce of coffee that spilled, most of which stayed on the console. But apparently when 1/5 of an ounce of coffee leaks down into a Ford gear shift it turns into this:

Or maybe this:

Yes, of course they make a replacement part. And by "they" I don't mean Ford, I mean a vendor. But the vendor is out of stock of shifters in the entire US! They're having to order the part for my FORD from outside the US! Sheesh. So after holding my car hostage for the weekend, they've ordered the part. Now they've sprayed some electrical cleaner in it to loosen up the gunk a little until the part comes in, but they advised me not to put the car into park when I'm out just in case it doesn't come back out. Don't want to be stuck in the parking lot with my two kids unable to move my mountain of a car. Nope. That would not be good. SO, when I stop somewhere, I have to put the car in neutral and set the E brake. Thing is, though, when the car is in neutral the key won't come out. So I have to leave the key in the ignition all the time. Might as well get a sign that says "Free to Anyone Who Can Break a Window." Times are tough. I'm sure I'd have some takers.

So after all that, I need some of this:

2011-06-11T11:17:00.007-05:00

So now I'm in the 3rd Edition of the Ultimate Catch Up.

Sweet baby face. This shows her personality really well. Always in such a happy mood.

On March 13 we adopted a rescue dog. His name is Benji and he's a 1 year old shih tzu/yorkie mix. He is a perfect fit for our family. Loves to play, likes attention, but is just as happy when he's taking a nap in the closet. He also doesn't shed at all, which makes Mommy very happy.

Lonestar Triathlon Festival

In early April Jason and my brother Andrew both competed in the Lonestar Triathlon Festival in Galveston. Jason in the half-iron distance and Andrew in the sprint distance. These pictures were taken during Andrew's race on Saturday morning.

This photo shows Jack's personality (and his cereal). :)

Rachel went at one point to take pictures of Andrew as he came in on the bike. Makenzie walked over with her. This is what Maddie looked like when she realized her big sis was gone.

And this is what she looked like a few minutes later when a catchy tune came on the sound system near the transition area.

In late April we went to Southlake to visit Grandma and Grandpa. This is Sarah with Amelia, a girl I used to babysit when she was Sarah's age. She is now a senior in high school. Sheesh!

Out by Grandma and Grandpa's swingset.

My models as I tried to set up my camera to take a family picture. Quite lovely, aren't they?

The best picture I could get of my parents with the kids.....

Easter weekend was a busy one for us! We did an egg hunt with friends, went to a birthday party, and went to Nana and PawPaw's to decorate eggs and eat a yummy meal.

Laney, Jack, Makenzie, and Maddie

Jack took his egg hunt very seriously.

Sarah and Judy (Michele's mom).

As I suspected might happen, Jack wasn't very interested in the egg dying. I think he might have done two eggs before bailing back into the pool.

The girls, on the other hand, spent quite a while at the egg decorating table with Shannon.

CJs 7th birthday party in Chappell Hill. Sarah's first time in the pool.

Jack had a bubble gun in his Easter basket. It was a huge hit.

Memorial Weekend at the bayhouse in Galveston.

Shannon about to take a dip. :)

Cutest. Kids. Ever.

2011-06-10T14:22:00.004-05:00

I have the cutest kids ever! (This is my blog and I'll brag if I want to.)

Sheesh...

2011-06-09T22:27:00.007-05:00

It has been eons since I've made a post. The older the kids get the harder it is to sit down with the computer and blog! They're so busy and love to play (and I love to play too) so we spend most of our time having a ball these days. But now that everyone is asleep, I've got a few beats to make an update.

Sarah is now almost 7 months old! She's a happy, smiley little baby and is so much fun! She pretty much thinks her brother is the coolest thing ever. It's SO hard to feed her while he's in the room because she loses all focus on the task at had and starts giggling at him! She's rolling over both ways, sitting up, and is eating #2 baby food. She's much pickier than Jack was though! She hates anything green and makes the most hysterical gagging face when you sneak a bite of peas or green beans in her mouth. She is always very skeptical of a first bite, not quite trusting me to put something yummy in there (probably because sometimes I don't!). She's also not a big fan of beverages other than her formula. She doesn't much like apple juice or water. The girl has managed to grow despite this finickiness though! She's still 50th percentile for weight but has shot up to 90th percentile in height!

Jack finished up the school year at the end of May, and he seems to really like having the break to just hang around with is little sister and his dog. :) He can write and spell his first name and can spell his last name and can recognize almost all of his letters. He also learned the difference between his right and left hands the other day. He is such a good big brother and loves that little girl to death. I couldn't have asked for him to love her any more....he almost acts like a second dad sometimes, trying to do things he is absolutely too young and small for, like lifting her up when she falls over.

Jason is staying busy at work and is training for an half Ironman at the end of the month in Lubbock. I have been spending my time chasing around the little munchkins and doing some things with the Women's Ministry at our church. We have been having a great summer so far!

So...I just finally took 1500 pictures off of my two cameras. Where do I begin when I have 1500 pictures to go through?? I guess I'll just start with the highlights of camera #1.

This picture was taken back in March. Sarah was about 4 months old. That face just about sums up Jack's personality.

This is Sarah with Aiden Hunt, the son of two of our oldest and closest friends.

Jack's "unbirthday" at school. For kids with summer birthdays his preschool chooses a day in the spring for each kid to celebrate their special day early so they can bring cookies for their friends and be sung to by everyone. Here's his sweet little class.

Jack and his good buddy Laney.

Girl's Night out in April. Rachel, Val, Tammy (Laney's Mom) and I. Val and Tammy are moving, so this get-together was to celebrate them. Love these girls!

In May I had the privilege of meeting Miriam, the wife of a Christian pastor in the country of Senegal, Africa. Our church does mission trips to Senegal, and in May the pastor, his wife and daughter came to Texas to see our church. Their baby daughter's name is Sarah, and her birthday is just 6 days after our Sarah's!

Haha, Jack mowing with Jason.

Jason after winning 3rd overall in his most recent triathlon.

Jack has recently started LOVING taking pictures. The next three pictures showcase his incredible budding photographic talent.

Jack and Makenzie after her first dance recital at the end of May.

Big girl has started to sit in the high chair now! Loves being able to sit at the table with her big brother.

Couldn't resist taking this one the other day. Reminds me of a certain little baby boy I once knew (scroll down to the third picture on the link).

2011-05-10T12:42:00.002-05:00

I'm sorry! I know I have been absent from blogger for a really, really, really long time! I assure you we're still here though, and this week I should have a little bit of down time to post and catch everyone up on the happenings here at the Falzon household. Hope all is well in yours!

More Ways to Waste Your Hard-Earned Dollar

2011-02-24T19:42:00.010-06:00

A while back I posted a list of products I had seen advertised that were a completely ridiculous waste of money. Well, I know you'll find this hard to believe, but there are even more of these products out there. So here is my Second Edition of Ways to Waste Your Hard-Earned Dollar. (Click here to see the First Edition.)

The Slumber Sleeve

A pillow to attach to your upper arm for those days when you're traveling or anticipating falling asleep in 3rd period Algebra.

The Wine Glass Holder Necklace

Umk. You will look way cool at a party wearing this bad boy. You'll get all the chicks for sure.

The Booze Belt??

Why in the world would anyone need this? Is "Traveling Bartender" a real job? Because surely one person could not need this much available liquor at one time for personal use. And the thing has to weigh about 20 pounds when it's full. That much weight would pull your pants down! And why does this chick look like she's dancing. Are you supposed to dance while wearing the Booze Belt?

The Waist Band Stretcher

This thing is $29.95 Just use that cash and go to Old Navy to buy a new pair of jeans already.

The Wristband Cell Phone Carrier

Want to make sure your teenager does not want a cell phone? Insist that if she's going to get one she has to carry it around in one of these. If my mom had told me that, I'd have stuck to writing letters.

The Tummy Tub

This company says this tub is comforting because it reminds baby of being in the womb. So.....bathe your baby (who has no muscle control) in a bucket sitting up, and hold his head up the entire bath so he doesn't drown. Sounds like it makes bath time a breeze. If you really want to try this, I suggest getting a 5 gallon bucket from the mop aisle.

The Zaky Pillow

CREEPY! That pretty much sums it up.

The Smart Car

The Smart Car tops my ridiculous product list. If you live in America, this is NOT the car for you. Because in America we have speed limits of 70 mph. And 18-wheelers. And trains. And the H1. And lots of cowboys and farmers and high school students with very big, heavy Fords. If you were to get in an accident with any of these vehicles, or a Camry for that matter, your car and everything in it would be decimated. So if you live in a tiny town in Greece with cobblestone streets and people cruising around on Segues, then by all means, get a Smart Car. But in America? For your personal safety I'd advise against it.

Bow-nanza

2011-02-23T16:32:00.013-06:00

Over the weekend I got inspiration from my new blogger friend Shannon to try my hand at making barrettes for Sarah's headbands (rather than spend $12 a pop at Latte Tots for them). Shannon makes the most beautiful headbands for her baby Brooklyn! So I went where else but to Hobby Lobby to get my supplies. Before I knew it I'd made 11 barrettes!

First thing's first. For those who aren't up to speed on all of the infant fashion trends this year, here's your baby headband tutorial:

I have several crochet headbands like this one. Through the ribbon loop (or through the crochet holes if there is no ribbon) you just slide the barrette so it attaches to the headband, thus making your headband/barrette combinations practically endless. :)

This is the back of one of the barrettes I made so you can get the idea.

And here are the barrettes. This one on the top with the S monogram is huge. She will have to be at least 8 months old with a bigger head before she'll be able to wear it. :)

Two made with pink and white tulle and one with a pink and brown polka-dot ribbon, complete with big rhinestones.

For these three I used some round fabric accents I found and put a turquoise bead in the center.

Three little roses with some pearl accents, and a blue carnation with feathers. The feathers were truly Shannon inspired. :)

The little cutie this morning wearing the tulle bow. Jason said "That one has a little too much flair for me." I like flair. Actually, that's my favorite part. :)

The weather has been great lately, so we've been able to play outside again! Yay! I was starting to get cabin fever! Between super cold weather and sick kids we haven't been outside much this winter, so this was a welcomed change!

Pure, simple happiness.

Don't you just love the bed head??

Words

2011-02-22T22:17:00.006-06:00

Words

When I got my new phone last week I downloaded the Words With Friends app. Ohmygosh, I am completely addicted to that game! Basically, it's Scrabble that you play from phone to phone with other people that have the game. I play so much my phone battery only lasts about 2/3 of the day. Right now I have 11 games going on at once! This is getting a little out of hand, and I think I might need an intervention! Maybe A&E will do a show on me.

The Word

I've been focusing for several years now on letting Christ be the ruler of my life, yet I have never read the entire Bible. Actually, I probably haven't even read half of it. I have been feeling convicted for a while now that I should read the whole Bible. Every last word. Even the boring genealogy chapters. All of it. But I have been totally putting it off. It just seems like a monumental task. The book is 2100+ pages. Who isn't intimidated by that? I know God wants me to do it, and it's like I've been saying "In a little while God." Like when Jack needs to clean his room. "I'll do it after I do this." Well, it's time for me to stop putting God off! So today I started to read. There are several different plans when you want to read the entire Bible, and I am very Type A, so I chose the chronological method. I'll be reading the books not in the order they are bound in the Bible, but in the order in time the events happened. So off I go, wish me luck! And thanks to my girl Val for being my accountability reading buddy. Looking forward to it my friend!

Loving Words

During Bible study last week I remembered something Jason said to me after the accident that shows what a sweet husband I have, so I'd like to share so I can brag a little. :)

We had gone down to the Hotel Galvez in Galveston that night for Jason's show, so I was dressed up. I wore a cute 3/4 sleeved mid-thigh length black dress and black boots that hit mid-calf. I was rockin' the Ryan belly, looking super cute that night. :) When the pickup hit the tree it broke in most, if not all, of the windows (I can't remember that much detail). So since I wore the dress instead of the black pants I was debating between, my thighs (especially the inner left thigh) were pretty torn up from the window glass. I have a 3ish inch scar on my forehead that curls under my left eyebrow, and a 10 inch scar on my stomach where they had to cut to deliver Ryan. One day a couple of months after the accident (when swimsuit season was approaching and I looked not-so-cute in mine) I had gotten pretty down on myself. You see, although the accident had devastated me, I never got mad at God (or anyone/anything else for that matter) about what happened. But I sure was mad at myself for not wearing those black pants that would've protected my legs! Anyway, I was upset looking in the mirror and had started to tear up a little bit about what I saw looking back at me. Jason took my hands and looked me in the eyes and said: "You're right. The scars aren't pretty. But you know what, the new skin of these scars is stronger than all the old skin around them. What has happened has made you stronger, and because of that I think all of these scars are beautiful. And you are more beautiful now than you've ever been."

Now that's a wonderful husband.

2011-02-15T16:44:00.003-06:00

As I go through my Bible study each week I have been trying to pay close attention to what I think God is trying to say to me through His word. I'd like to be able to share those particular verses that mean something to me as I study, so occasionally the verse at the top of the page will change. This week I was struck by Philippians 2:3-4. It helps remind me that we are not here in this world for our own interests, but to encourage others in Christ. It's often hard for me to see beyond what is right in front of my face, and I know that I need to make more of an effort to do just that. So much power in just a few words!

Ryan, Monster Jam, Sarah, and Bloopers

2011-02-10T14:58:00.005-06:00

Tuesday February 8th was Ryan's birthday. This year that's what I tried to focus on; rather than the second anniversary of the accident, I tried to focus on the fact that it was Ryan's birthday. So to celebrate his birthday, I decided to make something to celebrate all three of our beautiful babies. So naturally, I went to Hobby Lobby. I got a shadow box and inside I put 5 things: Jack's tiny hospital t-shirt, Sarah's tiny hospital hat, and the three tiny bracelets that were put on the kids in the hospital. When I was finished, I put the shadow box between Jack and Sarah's footprint plates.

Closeup of the shadow box:

On his way home from work on Tuesday Jason stopped and got me some flowers. Such a sweet husband!

We are doing well two years after the accident. We are SO very blessed in our lives, and we also have the comfort of knowing where Ryan is. We look forward to seeing him someday, and it is my prayer that someday Jason and I will get to hold hands with all of our children in Heaven.

Monster Jam

Well, that's quite a segue.... :)

In January Jason bought tickets for he and his dad to take Jack to Monster Jam in Houston. Then Jack got a super high fever that hung on for several days, so we ended up giving the tickets to our neighbors across the street so the dad could take his two boys. Well, lucky for my boys, Monster Jam came back to town on February 5th. I'm pretty sure that Blaine and Jason enjoyed it at least as much as Jack, maybe even more! Jack went to church and school and told pretty much everyone who would listen about his Monster Jam experience!

Sarah

Pretty girl this morning before we headed out to run our errands. LOVE this flower headband, and would you believe I got it at HEB?

Here she's staring at a butterfly. Maybe thinking about reaching out to touch it....

And now our very own Falzon Family Blooper.

We laughed and laughed about this last night! Jack and I laughed so hard we cried, and Jason laughed as he and shook his head at us. What a crazy wife and kid he has. :) Ohmygoodness, how funny that kid can be!!

Brotherly Love

2011-02-07T10:00:00.003-06:00

I took this video this morning. It shows how much my two sweet babies love each other (and how much Jack likes to see himself on film). Makes a mommy's heart smile!

Jack is 3 1/2 and Sarah will be 12 weeks tomorrow.

Finally, Some Video!

2011-02-06T12:53:00.010-06:00

We got a video camera when Jack was born, and I've been taking videos every once and a while for the last three and a half years. But they have all been sitting on the video camera. If I wanted to watch one, I had to take the camera out of the cabinet, charge the battery, and then hit play. So I decided that it was about time I took some of those videos off the camera and shared them!

This video was taken on October 24, 2009. Jack was 2 yrs 3 months old. When he was little and was getting into everything, and sometimes when I'd argue with my husband (which never happens), I would throw my hands up in the air and say "Are you kidding me?" He began to say it too. Funny how that happens. :) It was pretty hysterical, because he'd just bust out with it all the time, leaving us in stitches. It's a good thing we don't cuss. He'd surely have been saying those words too!

Watching that one makes me a tiny bit sad....you don't realize how much they're growing and developing until you watch a video like that one....sniff sniff.

Here are Jack and Sarah on December 22. Sarah had just turned a month old, and she was getting hungry. Jack decided to sing to her so she wouldn't be sad. He sings "Twinkle Twinkle" and at the end adds a line from the ABCs. It's pretty cruel to have two kid's songs with the same tune! He's such a sweet big brother., always comforting her when she cries. Lately he hugs her and says "I know baby, I know. I love you, don't cry." So cute.

I tried to post one of Sarah I took this morning but the file size was enormous and was taking for-ever to upload. So I'll take another one soon. More to come!

The Old Days

2011-02-05T17:14:00.010-06:00

I was going through some pictures from the old days today. You know, the old days, the days before digital cameras. Well, some of these pictures brought back some good memories and tickled me a little bit, so I thought I'd share. Hope you enjoy too!

This is the only picture I have in our house of Jason as a little kid. (I think he likes to forget how big his classes were in elementary school.) From L to R are his grandpa, his great grandpa, and his dad Blaine.

Yours truly in September 1987 just before I turned 5. We were on the water ALL the time as kids. We learned to ski a year after this was taken, when I was 6 and Andrew was 4.

The little bro. He was about 6 here, on the boom before he learned to slalom behind the boat.

Now we fast forward about 10 years. This was the first day of my senior year of high school. Andrew was a sophomore.

In the fall of senior year Andrew and several of my girlfriends went to see the Tim McGraw/Faith Hill concert in Dallas. L to R are me, Andrew, Meggie, Andrea, Tara, and Katie. Such great friends, what a wonderful time!

Tara's 18th birthday, Valentine's day 2001. Around the table L to R are Andrea, Lindsey, Meggie, Tara, Keri, Katie, Jen, and JP.

Our crew of girls for prom. Tara, Meggie, me, Michelle, and Katie.

Choir banquet. Alexis, me, Tara, and Rachel.

Just before going to my graduation. Andrew, my mom Brenda, me, and my dad's mom, Grandma Aileen

Gig em Ags! Here are Dad and I after my fam helped me move into the dorm.

Awww...this is the first picture Jason and I ever took together. We were at a water ski tournament awards banquet in Louisiana.

Garner State Park Summer 2002. Becky, me, Christy, Carrie, Stephanie, Ashley, and Alyssa. That was a such a fun trip. SO thankful to the Riveras for putting up with us girls for the week.

Fightin' Texas Aggie Water Ski Team at Nationals in the Fall of 2002. Jason and Kelly are on the left, and Andrew Hunt and I are next to each other left of center. We won the National Collegiate Water Ski Championships two years later.

Ski team girls Spring 2003 at a tournament in Arkansas.

The summer I was 14 and Andrew was 12 our parents built a cabin in Montana that we visited several times a year thereafter. Here are Andrew and I Spring Break 2003 on a snow mobile trip just a few miles from the cabin. Jason was on this trip...it was his first trip to MT. Fun times!

July 2004, just a couple of weeks after we got engaged. Look how young we look (especially Jason)! I can't believe we were old enough to be engaged!! I was 21 and he was 20.

Me, Jason, and The 30. "The 30" are the 30 pounds I gained in about three months when we were dating. Jason: "Hey honey, wanna stop at McDonalds on the way to the ski late?" Me: "Sure!" This conversation happened at least three times a week for that three months.

Jer and Jason rehearsing in Jer's room at their townhouse in college.

My graduation, May 2005. Jeremy and I are about the same height, so we shared a cap and gown rather than having to buy two. (We graduated on different days.) Here he and I are posing in the gown together.

The fam outside Reed Arena.

Astros in the World Series, Fall 2005. They lost every game, but it sure was fun! Here are Jason and Shannon. She was 12.

Rachel and Andrew August 2006 at Mom and Dad's.

Mommy and me. :)

Jason wake surfing on Lake Houston summer 2006. I plan on NEVER letting Jack do this. WAY too close to the back of the boat!

Amendment

2011-02-03T18:06:00.002-06:00

After I finished my post this afternoon I thought it seemed short. Then I realized that it was...I had left out several pictures. So here's an amendment to my first post....

Sarah is now 11 weeks old! At her 8 week appointment she checked out great. Here are her stats:

Height-22", 50th percentile

Weight-10 lbs 12 oz, 25th percentile

So she's tall and skinny, like her brother and her dad! I checked Jack's 2 month appointment measurements the other day to compare, and she's so much smaller than he was! Jack was 95th percentile, 25" and 14 lbs at 2 months. He was 30% bigger than she is! I won't lie....I've been loving the fact that she's staying small longer...I love having a small cuddly baby!

Sarah is a very social little thing. She is always smiling and cooing these days. She now recognizes all three of us and lights up when we look at her. She's still very content, usually only crying when she's hungry, sleepy, or lonely. She's been sleeping though the night for a couple of weeks now, and the last three days she's slept 12 hours! She's also very strong. Since she was about 4 weeks old she's been supporting weight on her legs. She can now support her own weight completely, and we just hold her sides for balance. As for tummy time though, she has NO interest. I think it's hilarious...it's like she's laying there waiting for a masseuse to come along and rub her back! Why lift my head when it's so comfy on my stomach??

When I was teaching, the gift from the art teachers for Jack was a raw plate that they decorated after he was born with his footprints. When Sarah was born I wanted to have something similar for her, so last week I took her to the Mad Potter to make her footprint plate.

Very frustrated I couldn't get this to upload right side up!

Before Andrew's surprise party in San Antonio (see previous post) we went to the San Antonio Zoo. Sarah snoozed on the zoo train.

I talk a lot about our kids, so I suppose I should probably fill you in on us too! Jason and I are doing well. We are loving the time we are able to spend with friends and family and feel very blessed to have such a wonderful church. We are both on the praise team, and we are having a concert on March 26th with another church. It's going to be so fun! Jason's also training for his next Ironman. He's scheduled to do Ironman Texas in May, and this will be his third one. As for my workouts...that's something else I need to fit into my schedule! I'm planning to do a race in May. It's a short one though, so even if I don't get the training in I still plan to do it.

As the second anniversary of the accident approaches, I feel like we're in a good place. We're closer to the Lord than we've ever been and we're blessed with so much. We know where Ryan is, and we look forward to getting to see him someday.

It's Thursday...

2011-02-03T16:19:00.000-06:00

First of all, I must say that I am SO happy with all of my friends that have started/revived their blogs! I absolutely love keeping up with all of my friends who have moved away, and blogs make it so much easier! So yay to JoBeth and Kelly, two new blog converts. :)

A couple of posts ago I told you all that I was completely overwhelmed with housework. Well, I am happy to report that things are going much better in that department. I have started myself a chore schedule, and it is SO helpful. Now I just do one chore and tidy one room a day.Which is where the title of this post comes from. My Thursday chore is to pay bills and blog. So hopefully I will post at least every Thursday. :)

Now that I'm not frantically cleaning all the time and feeling like I'm getting nowhere, I have much more time to do fun things with the kids. Jack and I started to do "school practice" together. According to Mrs. Schmidt (Jack's preschool teacher) he is easily distracted in class, so I decided to work with him at home so he can master a few skills when other kids aren't around. Very teacherish of me, I know. :) We have been having a lot of fun with it, and he actually asks to do his school practice lately!

For the life of me I couldn't get this picture to post in landscape. But if you turn your head you can see how he's been working on his "2s."

I also started a chore chart with Jack. I've been giving him allowance for a while, but it's been totally subjective. Now each check on his chart is worth 10 cents. And he can lose checks if he isn't following directions, etc. It comes out to be about 6 bucks a week if he does everything he's supposed to each day.

Two weekends ago we went to visit my Mom and Dad. Here's Sarah flying in their kitchen.

Haha, that face says "Whatever goofy face you're gonna make Grandpa, I'm not going to crack a smile. Try me."

Sarah watching cartoons for the first time. Jack noticed she was watching so he got down from the couch to sit and watch with her. Such a good brother!

Totally cute picture of them. (And just so you know, that shirt was a gift for Jack from Kelly. I don't have that high of an opinion of myself.)

This passed weekend we went to San Antonio for Andrew's surprise 30th birthday party. Here he is walking in with Kelly's stepdad Keith.

The birthday boy and his sweet little Aiden.

What a goofball.

Jack was totally the "cool kid" at the party because he had his MobiGo (which is a little kid's handheld video game thingy).

Sarah and Aiden. He's totally checking her out and smiling, and she's all "Whatever." The male-female dynamic develops early.

Kelly and I. We have been friends for-ever. We'll be those two old ladies sharing the couch in the old folks home talking about the good ole days.

Today I am looking SO forward to snow. We're supposed to get snow in Houston overnight. Last year when it snowed for two days Jack had a really bad fever, so we didn't even go outside. This year it's game-on! He's looking forward to pelting me with some snowballs!

Ways to Waste Your Hard-Earned Dollar

2011-01-16T17:08:00.000-06:00

I am strong believer in capitalism. I believe in the entrepreneurial spirit and a consumer's right to buy whatever they want. But come on. American's are addicted to buying things! And because of this, people are marketing all kinds of what I consider to be absolutely ridiculous products.

For one, the neckline slimmer. For argument's sake let's say that it works. It might slim the neckline, but what about the rest of you? Shouldn't we worry about that first??

The hair trimming umbrella. Are you kidding me? I cut both Jason and Jack's hair, and there is no way I'd be able to get either of them to even consider wearing this contraption! I mean honestly, look at this guy!

Ohmygosh, this one kills me. I originally saw it in the Sky Mall catalog on an airplane. A wedge pillow so you can sleep on the tray. I'd be afraid of what another passenger would do to me if I fell asleep like this.......

Inflatable neck relief. Happen to notice the name of the doctor? What's up with that....?

Mascara shield. Now I'll be the first to admit that I make a complete mess of my whole eye area while I apply my mascara. But there's no chance I'd ever waste my money on this thing. Not to mention it makes applying mascara a two-handed job, thus more complicated rather than easier. I'll stick with q-tips.

A foot cleaner/exfoliater. Seriously?

Who would ever hang their child on a bathroom stall door while they use a public restroom? When I take Jack in the bathroom I instruct him not to touch a thing. This product requires you to put half of your child's body in contact with a potentially disgustingly dirty surface. Not to mention the fact that someone can grab the straps from the outside and pull your kid over. Thus your child can be kidnapped while your pants are down. Literally.

Lazy America, here's the product for you. Don't you just hate to have to turn that pesky ice cream cone? Not any more. Let's put a motor in a plastic one. Genius.

Americans, let's multitask even more than we already do with a tray that will fit into the cup holder of your car. (As if Houston driving wasn't dangerous enough.)

Life With Two Munchkins

2011-01-14T10:50:00.000-06:00

Sarah has fit into our lives so nicely and easily! People ask me a lot if it's been stressful to add another kid to the mix, and for the most part the answer is no. Jack has adapted really well to having a sibling, and she is just the sweetest little baby! I'm still able to keep up with our busy schedule most of the time. And when I say busy, I mean busy. Jack is in preschool three days a week, and it takes about 20 minutes to get him to the church where his school is (so we're in the car a lot). Jason plays drums and I sing for the church praise team, and I also do a Bible Study on Wednesday mornings with some other women at the church. So we are at the church three days a week too. Sarah doesn't have to be at home to be content, so we can still do our playdates with Jack's friends and I don't have any problems running errands with her while Jack is at school. And taking the two of them to run errands is easier than it was when I took only Jack three months ago before Sarah was born. Having a little sister has made him grow up so much! He's such a good little helper now.

The one thing that hasn't gone so smoothly is keeping up with my housework. Particularly laundry. On any given day it looks like a Macy's and an Academy threw up all over my house. Since Jason works out so much (at least once a day, and a few days a week he works out twice a day) and I'm still washing Sarah's clothes separately, there is just SO much laundry! So I decided that next week I'm going to start myself back on the chore-a-day schedule I had right after Jack was born to keep up. Maybe that will help me be less stressed about cleaning. Wish me luck!

Now, let's catch up!

We started what I hope will become a new tradition. After Christmas, rather than putting our Christmas trees on the curb for the garbage pickup, we had some friends over and took the trees in the backyard and burned them in our fire pit. SO much fun! Here's Andrew chopping his up with our hedge trimmer.

Jason playing with the helicopter he got for Christmas that night (this was New Year's Eve).

On New Year's Day we got to meet Baby Aiden! We have been friends with the Hunts since college, and they had their first little baby 15 days after Sarah was born, on December 1st. Here the babies are swinging away!

Jack helping Mom make a cake.

About a week ago we got Jack a new bike because he grew out of his first one. We took his fishing pole on our bide ride last weekend and fished off the bridge by the house.

Smiling at her brother.

Sweet face. I can't believe she's 8 weeks old already!

New favorite passtime. Staring at her cute little face in the mirror. Andrew Hunt made prediction that she will probably be doing this for the rest of her life. :)

LOVE these ones! Last night Jack and Sarah took a bath together for the first time. Here he's pouring water on her to keep her warm. Sweet brother!

Big Boy Bed!! Yesterday night Jack's new bed was delivered! We got a loft style bunk bed and rather than putting the second twin bed under the loft, we put some of his toys under there instead.

It has a desk built in to one side.

And it has a staircase rather than a ladder.

Jack and his buddy Aiden on the stairs this morning.

The Big Bad Two-Eight

2010-12-30T22:21:00.000-06:00

So today was my birthday. Birthdays are pretty anti-climactic these days...Not like when you were 5 and got to go to kindergarten. At 10 and were finally into double digits and when you turn 11 you can no longer count your age on just two hands. 16 is a big one of course. At 18 you're an "adult" and can vote (this doesn't matter to everyone, but I thought it was pretty cool). At 20 you're no longer a teenager, 21 you're finally completely legal, and at 22 many of us graduated from college. After 22 though, you're basically just looking down the pipe towards that senior citizen discount. Not that will be cool.

In all reality though, all joking aside, I loved my birthday today. There was no glitz, no parties, no huge surprises, no cake with 28 candles (although I did split a brownie dessert with the fam at dinner tonight). But it was a fabulous day. I got to spend it with two of my favorite people: my little Joy Boy and my new Little Lovebug. At the end of the day my sweet husband and his parents took me to a nice dinner. And I truly understand just how lucky I am to be here to celebrate my 28th birthday and all of the birthdays God chooses to bless me with. So bring on the Ageless Essentials night cream, my one gray hair, and the Osteo Biflex for my aching knees. I gladly take them like a badge of honor. :)

Here is a list of a few of the things that made my birthday great:

Both kids slept in until 8:30. What?? Yes, 8:30.
At 9 am Jack wanted me to open my presents. When we tore away the paper on the one from Kelly, he got all excited and looked up at me and said, "Mom, you got a big brown box!!"
Jack kept asking me all week if he could "come" to my birthday. I explained to him that yes, he could come, because he is with me every day, which means he's with me on everyone's birthday-including my own. He said "You're not having a party?" I said no. He said, "Don't you want lots of presents??"
I got to talk to Jack about God today. His little brain is trying to understand where God is, and how he can be in more than one place at once, and that God can do anything he wants to do. "Mom, God can be on the sun?? But the sun is made of fire."
I was so proud of Jack today. He got Memory from my mother-in-law for Christmas and we opened it today and played a few games. He was really good! We almost tied once! (Maybe that just means I'm really bad.)
At the end of the day when I was getting the kids out of the car in the garage I thanked Jack for coming to dinner with me for my birthday. He said "Sure! I had fun with you on your birthday Mom!" Melts my heart! Haha and it kills me when he calls me Mom or Momma. Like, what happened to "Mommy" anyway. And how old are you, 8?
Sarah absolutely smiled at me today. Best birthday present she could have given me!
Jason said my present is some time away at the spa for a massage. YES, thank you sweet husband!!

Playing With My Camera

2010-12-30T08:57:00.001-06:00

I absolutely love taking pictures. I probably take thousands a year. A year ago for Christmas I got a Nikon D3000 camera, an entry level DSLR. For Christmas this year Jason got me a few new pieces of camera equipment to help me take better pictures. I am so excited. My kids must feel like Brangelina lately, and I am the paparazzi! Probably the most photographed kids on the planet! :)

Here are a few of the pictures I took of Sarah the other day while Jack was taking a nap. I can't believe she's 6 weeks old already! (In case you're curious I think she's right around 10 pounds and 22 inches.) The first two don't have the best lighting. Her room has one small window that faces our neighbor's huge two story house, so the sun hardly ever shines in there. (I have to turn the lamp on to change her diaper during the day!)

Sweet Girl

2010-12-26T16:45:00.001-06:00

Pure sweetness.

Blessed, Blessed, Blessed

2010-12-22T15:26:00.000-06:00

We are such unbelievably blessed parents! I'm so excited to finally have a few minutes to sit down and make a post so I can show off my sweet kiddos!

Sarah on her first morning home, 11-18-10.

Jack is such a proud big brother. He is all smiles when he holds Sarah, and he wants to hold her all the time-as long as she's not crying.

Jason said this was one of the best moments of his life-holding both kids for the first time. So sweet.

Jack wants to help us do everything. Sometimes this is helpful and sweet, as in the picture below, and sometimes he just gets in the way. :)

I l-o-v-e this outfit. Since she's so small Sarah is still in newborn clothes. I've probably had her wear this four times already.

First time at Aunt Rachel's house on the outside.

Looks like he got caught doing something naughty...

After I took this picture Jack got really upset that Sarah couldn't spend the night in his bed. "Don't worry Mommy, I'll keep my arm here so she doesn't fall on the floor." Ha yeah right!

Thanksgiving at our house. Jack and Makenzie rode their bikes until it started to rain.

I can't decide if he makes her look microscopic or if she makes him look like a giant. :)

Grandpa and the kids on their trip down for him to meet Sarah.

Jack will come up to us on the couch when one of us has Sarah and say "Mommy/Daddy, you want two kids?" Then he'll crawl up and make himself a place on your lap.

Carpool. Usually I just drive Laney (in the pink bow) but on this day Val had surgery so I also drove Abbey and Aiden. That is a lot of kids for one car. I felt like "Kelsey Plus Five" there for a while.

Baby Dedication at our church. We commit to raise our child in a Christ centered home and the church commits to help us. Very cool because we were able to dedicate Sarah and Caleb together. Caleb is Nathan and Nicole's son and we have all been friends for years. Our friends Courteny and Clay also dedicated their son Nathan (they're the family on the far left). Very cool day.

Jack thought Sarah might be cold, so he brought her the blanket off his bed.

Singing "Twinkle Twinkle" to his crying sister.

Jack fishing at Nana and Paw Paw's bayhouse when we went down for the boat parade.

Jack came out ofhis room like this to talk to his dad. Hahahaha.

Sarah sitting in the Bumbo with Jack on his bed. She is such a strong little thing. She can sit for several minutes in the Bumbo before her little neck gets tired.

Last week we went to the zoo. One of our first stops, as always, was the elephants. And of all people, George and Barbara Bush were there watching the elephants too! Like President and First Lady George and Barbara Bush. Very cool. It was also cool because the elephant trainer had the elephants do all kids of tricks for the President. Neat show! Oh, and like me, none of the moms there were taking pictures of the elephants.

We realized that we had taken a lot of kids to the zoo when they all lined up for the carousel. And two of them are infants therefore weren't even in the picture. Val, Leslie, Courtney, Rachel and I all took our kids (except for Rebekah because she was in school).

Sarah spent her first trip to the zoo asleep in the Moby. I l-o-v-e my Moby, and I must thank Amy for it. I was reading her blog and saw that she took her sweet Josie trick-or-treating in her Moby. I had never heard of it, but decided I must find out what this thing is. It's only the raddest baby carrier out there! It's great for a second kid. When she's crying and wants to be held and cuddled but I need to wash dishes or take Jack outside to play, it's a lifesaver. It's also nice at the grocery store so I don't have to take the car seat in becuse she hates her car seat..

Luke, Aiden, Makenzie, Abbey, Jack, and Hannah. Haha Hanna is like "What are you looking at?"

Last weekend was Live Nativity at our church. We wore many hats that weekend. Jason played drums and I sang, and I was Mary and Sarah was Baby Jesus. Whew! Yes, it was as exhausting as it sounds. :)

Mary and Baby Jesus. (Baby Jesus wore pink leopard print.)

Lunch Sunday at Andrew and Rachel's.

Me and the girls.

Sarah this morning. Ohmygoodness how cute she is. And there's that outfit again. If you scroll back up and look at the first picture in this outfit you'll be able to see just how much she's grown in 5 weeks. She's gained about 3 pounds and grown 1.5 inches. So now she's the size of an average newborn. :) And I don't know about you, but I think she looks like she's thinking about smiling!

Happy Thanksgiving

2010-11-23T20:36:00.000-06:00

A list of some of the things I am thankful for from the last week:

My daughter is sleeping on my chest right now!
I have an awesome son who loves being a big brother. And he's so good at it. But he thinks he's 13 and not 3. "Mom, I can carry Sarah to the living room." Haha, yeah right.
Rachel is feeling really well. She's such a sweetheart, and I'm so happy the pregnancy and delivery went as well as they did.
Jack has learned to pump. In the swing that is. And if you're a parent or a preschool teacher you understand the value of this skill. Pumping the swing is epic, and makes me love the playground so much more!
Sarah is eating like a champ, no matter what we feed her. We've tried a few different formulas with her and of course the breast milk, and she seems to like all of it. She's gained 4 oz this week. Today at the doctor she was up to 6 lb 1 oz.
Sarah is a dream baby. A dream baby! She only cries when she's hungry or has a big burp or is cold after the bath. Which comes out to about 10 times a day for about a minute each. Seriously. And she's already sleeping in her crib. On her back. Only waking up to eat. Seriously??
It took about 1.6 seconds for our daughter to wrap her daddy around her teeny tiny little finger. SO adorable.
All the little fears I had in the back of my mind about bonding were needless. She's taken to us without a problem and of course we are in l-o-v-e with her.
Our wonderful church family provided meals for our family and Rachel's family for the week. Yummy!
Our family and friends are so excited about Sarah and our family of four. They were such a help this week.
I'm so proud of my sweet husband. He gave his testimony at church on Sunday and I heard he did a great job (I was at home with the peanut). I think Bill recorded it and I'm so eager to hear it.
God loves me. :)

Sarah is Here!!

2010-11-17T18:24:00.000-06:00

Can you believe it? Our little Sarah Elizabeth "is born" (in the words of her big brother). We are over the moon with such joy and unbelievable gladness with her arrival!

So...to make a long story long..... :)

We had an induction scheduled for yesterday, Wednesday the 17th. On Monday the doctor's office called Rachel and told her that Dr. Schroeder had been called in to testify in a court case in Conroe on Wednesday morning at 10:20, so we'd have to push the induction to Thursday. We were all pretty bummed with the delay, but in the back of our minds we were wondering if Rachel would go into labor on her own before the induction. She had been having pretty painful though inconsistent contractions for quite a while. Then over the weekend Sarah had dropped and she had quite a bit of nausea, which can be a sign that labor is imminent. Then, on Monday night, her contractions finally regulated, but weren't painful. Rachel went to sleep that night and at about 5 am the contractions had gotten painful enough to wake her up. She timed them for 2 hours and at 7 called me and said "I think we might have a baby today!" I was SO excited. I took a quick shower, dropped Jack off at my friend Tammy's house so she could take him to school for me, and headed to the apartment. Jason met us at Rachel's with donuts for them (he had been at work when she called). After Rachel ate her kolache she and I got in the car and went to the hospital. Jason waited with the girls until Andrew was up and showered and Michele came to the apartment to babysit for them. Then they joined us at the hospital.

By the time we got to the hospital she was already 5-6 cm dilated. It went SO quick! The doctor broke her water at about 10:45 and she got her epidural shortly after. Then the doctor came in again to check her at about 1:35. She took one look and said "I'm going to put on my scrubs." Two pushes later and Sarah was here!

In the delivery room for her birth were Andrew, Jason and I. Here we are when she was about 7 cm. She's still looking pretty cute isn't she??

Here comes Sarah, after just two pushes! Tiny little peanut.

Jason and I held the scissors and cut the cord together.

She cried and cried and cried! She didn't stop until I held her hand and whispered into her ear when she was on the warmer later.

Footprints! Good sized feet for such a small little thing.

Holding Jason's hand. If you look at the side of this page you can see a very similar picture of Jack. In these two pictures you can see just how alike Sarah and Jack look. The similarities are striking! She looks just like her two older brothers. She has Ryan's nose. :)

Our doctor, Barbara Schroeder. Such a sweet woman! She said delivering Sarah was one of the highlights of her career.

First time being held by Aunt Rachel (well, on the outside anyway.) :)

Uncle Andrew.

Sarah was 18.75" and 5 lbs 13 oz. The smallest baby either of the family has seen in quite a while. She's what Rose at church calls a "sweet petite."

Jack meeting Sarah for the first time at about 5 that evening. He is loving being a big brother. This morning (our first morning home) he crawled up next to her and fed her her bottle and told her he loved her. Such a sweet boy! Haha and he kept introducing himself to her this morning. "My name's Jack. I'm three years old." Too funny!

My sweet kiddos.

Meeting Paw Paw

and Nana

Hanging out with the girls in Rachel's room once everyone went home. Grandma and Sarah.

The next morning in the hospital. SO tiny!!

In her carseat once we got her home yesterday at about 4.

Our little love bugs!

There is no doubt that God orchestrated every part of Sarah's existence, and we feel so very blessed that he chose us to be her Mommy and Daddy! Our kids are the best part of our lives and we couldn't be more grateful for them!

Little Sarah so far is such a happy baby. (I told Jason I wonder if this is the calm before the storm. Haha.) She never fusses, she eats and sleeps and is just SO content. Jack was completely the opposite-quite a fussy little dude. We almost don't know what to do with ourselves with such a content little one!!

Rachel is feeling really well. She's sore at the site of the epidural and other injections, but other than that is feeling probably the best she has in 9 months! We couldn't have asked for the delivery to go more seamless than it did. And we have such wonderful family and friends who were help at a moment's notice with the kids and after the delivery. Also, our church has been sweet enough to provide meals for both families for the week. We have an abundance of things to be thankful for this holiday season!

Randomness

2010-11-12T12:06:00.000-06:00

I have so many pictures I still haven't posted from the second half of 2010. So here they are, in no particular order whatsoever. This post is total randomness. I would post a few pictures and think "Oh, yeah, I want to make sure to post those too. And those. And those. " This is totally against my usual type A style. Most posts are in complete chronological order, but this one is chaos!

Rachel and I at Sarah's baby shower in August. What a sweetheart she is!

My good friend Tammy. She and her family are moving to Mississippi as soon as the house sells...so sad! Jack is going to miss her daughter Laney.

I told you. Randomness. In late October I took Jack to the creek about half a mile from the house to take some pictures. He was on a bridge over the creek and I was down near the bank taking pictures up at him. He suddenly points and says "Oh no Mommy look!" I turn and see this guy:

A look further downstream reveals another one. There were two alligators in the creek that morning! Yikes! It didn't stop the photo shoot though, we just stayed on the bridge from then on. I'm sure glad my kid's got my back. :)

Jack and the cuzs on Halloween. Makenzie found Jack's Buzz costume from last year and wore it all afternoon!

When we tried to get a picture of all four kids Maddie and Caleb were not cooperating. In fact, they were both screaming! (And Maddie was upside down.)

Yesterday I got Sarah's car seat installed in the car. So cute!

Jack and Daddy making pancakes. We were making breakfast for dinner. Pancakes and bacon aren't cooked in our house often, so I had to get pictorial evidence.

LOL. Jason's ankle after a bee sting. He was stung mowing the lawn and then ran on it. The nurse at the Redi Clinic said when he ran that evening he spread the poison around to his entire lower leg, causing a huge swelling problem!

Jack's costume parade at school.

Jack and his best buddy Luke at school painting a box for the Thanksgiving food train.

A couple of cute pictures we got at Kelsey and Bryan's wedding.

Grandma when they came to visit in October. (I also tried to post another one with Grandpa, and one of Jack at school in his cute backpack, but I guess Blogger didn't like those ones.)

My sweet friend Val and I last week at Feast with the Beasts. I look like a tree in this picture. Should have rethought those 3" heeled boots.

LOVE these four pictures. This is Jack and Makenzie at the zoo in April 2009.

......and in October 2010. They're getting so big, and are still best friends!

Here are Jason and Jack at Hollywood Studios when we went to Disney World in April 2009.

And here is Jack in the exact same spot when we went to Disney World in October. He's totally lost all of that sweet baby fat...a full fledged member of the Boy Club now!

I CAN NOT pass a Starbucks without stopping. If I have an addiction, it's probably Starbucks. Here's Jack with his very own first Starbucks drink, a hot chocolate. Gotta groom the next generation, ya know?

When we went to Nathan and Nicole's last time Jack came out of Caleb's room with books. He sat down next to Caleb and started to read them to him. SO adorable! What a good big brother he will be!

Showing him the pictures...about 2 mm from his face!

Steve, Val and I took our kids to Dewberry Farm outside Katy in mid October. Jason was helping a friend record in the studio so he couldn't make it. We had a blast though!

Jack, Aiden, and Abbey. Aiden, not so happy.

These two are totally getting married someday.

Jack and I on a slide made out of PVC pipe. We smoked down that slide. So fast that when I landed at the bottom I almost did a full flip over the top of my kid. I'm pretty sure that if this place was in the city limits and subject to stricter safety codes, they would have to close!

The Zoo Boo with our friends: Abbey, Jack, Laney, and Makenzie

It's amazing how impossible it becomes to get a good picture when you throw another kid in it.

Wheew. That one was exhausting. Hope you enjoyed my randomness.

We are now just a few days away from Sarah's arrival. I have everything ready to go. Car seat in, bags by the door! SO excited for these blog posts to have her pictures in them too!!

T Minus 13 Days

2010-11-04T15:17:00.000-05:00

Here we are, less than two weeks from the induction date, and my left nostril is so stuffed I can't even breathe through it. I have a headache and an just feeling plain crummy. I'm in my pjs at 3 in the afternoon after a few hours of power shopping today while Jack was at preschool. Power shopping is exhausting anyway, but especially when you've got a cold. That's one of the hard things about being a stay at home mom-no sick days! I can't just be like "Jack, Mommy's going to go take a nap for the afternoon. Here's the remote. Don't get into any trouble. " (I shudder at the thought of what could happen if I was to do that!) I probably should have stayed home and rested this morning, but I needed a few things for Sarah and wanted to do some Christmas shopping, and my available days to run these errands are almost gone. I took some Sudafed and an Airborne, though. Hopefully I can kick this before it gets too bad. I'd hate to give our newbie a cold!! And I also don't want to get Rachel sick during these last couple of weeks of the pregnancy!

We had an appointment yesterday and Rachel was 2 cm dilated and still 80% effaced. Dr. Schroeder said Sarah can come any time! I'm crossing my fingers she'll make it to the induction date though; or be born this coming week. Jason gets home from Atlanta tonight and is home for the week. Then he leaves on Saturday at 3ish to go to San Antonio for his marathon with our old friend Erik. The marathon is the morning of the 14th and he will come back right after. He plans to be gone less than 24 hours. I know God has a plan for her in mind though, and if she happens to come at a time that isn't all that convenient for me, I'll get over it!

Question: For those of you who formula fed your babies-what type of water did you use to mix the formula? I'm going to ask the pediatrician if I can remember. I know the water shouldn't have too much fluoride in it, but I also know that no fluoride is bad too. So did you use tap or bottled water? Rachel has been nice enough to offer to pump for Sarah for a while, but I plan to formula feed some of the time so that Sarah will be used to it when I run out of Rachel's milk. I'm in the process of trying to relactate, which is when someone who has already breastfed attempts to induce lactation to nurse a child she didn't carry. It's not going all that well though. I haven't had a drop of milk yet and have been pumping now for about two months. Kind of frustrating, but that's another story entirely. And I'm just too tired for that....

36 Week Appointment

2010-10-28T22:06:00.001-05:00

Today was Rachel's 36 week appointment, and I was able to go with her. I haven't gone to an appointment since 18 weeks when we found out that Sarah was a Sarah and not a Matthew or Michael (we had a hard time deciding on a boy name). It was so neat to get to go! I forgot how cool it was to hear the "whoosh" of the heartbeat! Usually I stay at home while she goes to the doctor so I can watch our brood of tots, but today I asked my friend Courtney to watch Jack for me and we took the girls with us to the appointment. Everything checked out perfectly! Rachel's belly is measuring 36 cm which is just right for this week. Also, she's already 1 cm dilated and 80% effaced! (For those reading who don't know the gyno-lingo, that means that her body has already started to open the cervix in preparation for birth). So, basically, Sarah can be born any time! We decided today after talking to Dr. Schroeder that if she isn't born by November 17th, we are going to induce on that day! Which is pretty cool because it's my Grandma Aileen's birthday. So within the next 2 weeks and 6 days I will be a mother of two!

I am so excited and happy, in a way that's hard to explain in words. But in the interest of full disclosure, I should also be honest and say that not being able to carry Sarah has been tough at times. And I wonder a little bit in the dusty corners of my brain about the future, like how not having carried her will effect the way Sarah and I bond at the beginning. But if you aren't able to carry your own baby, how awesome of a blessing is it that one of your best friends-who is practically your sister-is willing to do it for you? Not much is better than that. We should totally write a book. :)

The Three Year Old Mind

2010-10-25T17:56:00.001-05:00

There are several things that are difficult for a three year old (or our three year old at least) to wrap his mind around:

1. The difference between the house alarm and a fire alarm. If Mommy sets the alarm when we leave, does that mean the house is going to catch on fire?
2. The concept of "next week," "5 more days," etc.
3. The concept of "strangers." A stranger is anyone you don't know, not just someone who looks mean or otherwise scary/crazy.
4. Kenzie and Maddie can't come with us everywhere we go.
5. We wash our hands before we go to the bathroom, not after.
6. That Mommy doesn't just sit around with her thumb up her you-know-what while he's at preschool. "You went to the store while I was at school??" Translation: "How dare you go to the store without me! I wanted to harass you the entire trip about going to look at the toy aisle."
7. Tom Bergeron is on America's Funniest Videos and Dancing With the Stars? At the same time??
8. Not every one's favorite color is yellow.
9. Grandma and Grandpa live 250 miles away, thus preventing a day trip.
10. We have to wait for Christmas to come, and we can't travel to it. "Mommy, I wanna go to Christmas."

There is an even longer list of things he thinks he understands, but in reality hasn't the foggiest idea about. One of these being the concept of a sibling. Cognitively he's aware that he's going to be getting a little sister, and that she will cry and wear diapers and drink milk. But he doesn't even begin to understand how this "wittle tiny" person is going to rock his 3 year old world.

Because of this fact, Jason and I have been trying to pack these last few months with lots of fun stuff for him to do, since much of it will come to a screeching halt by Thanksgiving. And I've also been trying to include him in much of the preparation for her arrival so he doesn't feel left out.

Here he is painting on the canvas that is now hanging in her room. I posted the finished product two posts ago.

He is becoming such a good little helper and can do so much more than he could just a few months ago. Here he is tonight tearing the tortillas for our King Ranch Chicken. And for the first time, his "help" actually saved me time, rather than costing me time!

With his finished plate of bite-sized tortilla pieces.

Last weekend we took him to the Kemah Boardwalk for the evening. He and Jason are waiting in line for the Ferris wheel here.

All by himself in the balloon ride. Big boy!

Today I took him on a bike ride, and I tried really hard to savor the precious moments, like the sound of his bike bell as he rode behind me and how much fun he had when we stopped to throw sicks in the creek.

Once Sarah's born, I'll be sure to make an update on how he's doing once his little sister is actually living here!

Happy Times

2010-10-25T15:49:00.000-05:00

At the end of September Jason, Jack and I went camping with Andrew, Rachel and the girls. We went to Sommerville State Park up by College Station. As kids Andrew and I used to go camping with Dad all the time, but I probably haven't been true blue tent camping (in Texas anyway) for 15 years or so. We had such a great time! There is no better way to spend a weekend with your kids than this.

Rachel brought the kids bubbles. Jack blowing to no avail....

My brother brought a HUGE tent. It slept 10 and was called a "cabin tent" on the packaging. Funny though-Maddie didn't sleep well in the tent so the dads and Maddie ended up spending the night in the Expedition. So we had an enormous tent with only Rachel, Kenz, Jack and I inside. Overkill at its finest. :)

Jack and I on the tube. He had so much fun. Quite different from his first summer when he fell asleep while tubing with me!

Maddie, Rachel, and Sarah :)

Kenz and Andrew. Makenzie has always been timid around the water, and she didn't want to tube at first. But once she got out there she had a blast too, and even asked to do it again!

Haha this makes me laugh. Reminded me of old times. And I'm pretty sure Jason almost killed us a few times with his tube driving.

Jack and Jason on the wakeskate. Jack was scared for about 90% of this ride, but at the very end he relaxed and finally started to smile. It would have helped if the wind wasn't blowing 20 mph causing such a rough chop on the water....his little teeth were chattering from the bumps the wind caused!

Slip and Slide 2010

Last year for Jack's birthday I rented this huge slip and slide. It was fun, but much too old for the toddler crowd. Looking at these pictures, what in the heck was I thinking last year when I rented this for a toddler party? Anyway, the adults had so much fun on it last year that we decided to have another party and rent it again. I have a feeling this will be an annual get together! We are so blessed to have a wonderful group of friends. People that you don't feel like you have to out up any pretenses with....they're just so easy and fun to be around!

Jeremy and Jason about to heave Jack down.

Andrew about to slide down with Kenzie.

No slip and slide would be complete without dish soap. Here are the two Andrews. Big and Little Andrew as Jack calls them.

Big Andrew and Jason at the end in the soup.

Hahaha. These guys take this pretty seriously.

Even the little guy has his game face on.

Aw little Caleb, Nathan and Nicole's new joy boy.

Haha the Kelly Belly. She was mad here because she sat in chocolate. :)

"Washers is real easy Aiden. Just walk on over to the hole and drop the washer right in. See."

You know it's been a good party when....

Hmmm. I guess this could have been an indication it was a sucky party too. :)

Getting Ready for Little Sister

2010-10-21T16:42:00.001-05:00

I can't believe it's been a month since my last post, and even longer since I've posted pictures! We have done SO much since in these last several weeks. It hurts my head thinking about sitting down and posting some of the 700 (yes, 700) pictures I took in he last two months-but I've gotta start somewhere...

A lot of our time lately has been spent getting ready for little Sarah. On August 7th my friends Kelly and Nicole threw me a baby shower with all of my girlfriends. Here she is getting the scones ready the night before. They are due Dec 18th with their little Aiden Daniel. If you look closely you can see her tiny baby bump here. (And the wine bottle on her right was mine, not hers.) :)

The party had a tea party theme, which was a-dorable!! We all drank out drinks out of my china teacups. So cute!

Nicole made me a diaper cake.

Rachel and I sharing a laugh as we opened presents. The ladies all brought Rachel a pampering present to make pregnancy a little more comfortable for her.

Nathan's mom made the cake, which was inspired by Sarah's bedding. Isn't it absolutely fabulous?!

Sarah's room has been a labor of love for me. I never considered myself creative at all, so I never tried to do anything artistic. The most I did for Jack's room on my own was spray paint a few picture frames and use acrylic paint for the J-A-C-K on his door. But in Sarah's room I decided to try my hand at a few things.

Here is the tutu I made for her. I plan to put it on her for some newborn pictures. Pink ribbon with white polka dots and white and pink shiny tulle.

Our friends Steve and Valerie Barr came over with their kids in mid September to help is with the chair rail. It went up without a hitch and looks great! Here are the guys doing some man work on the driveway.

It's hard to tell in these pictures, but her room is a light green on the top of the chair rail and a bold pink on the bottom. In this corner with the glider I hung a pink mirror with the tutu on an "S" hook above it.

Next to the window is the doll house my dad made for me when I was a kid.

The crib-complete with airplane sheet. We don't have her bedding yet. :)

The changing table wall.

Her window. I added a beaded trim to the bottom of the curtains, and a matching trim on the lamp on the changing table.

My little artists made these paintings for Sarah's room. Jack painted the one on the left and Makenzie and Maddie the one on the right.

Here I used stencils to paint her name on a canvas.

This is a closer shot of the paintings hanging over her crib. A chandelier with rhinestones, the word "Joy" and a cross.

Name on her door, pink with polka dots.

I painted all of the light switch/outlet covers.

This is a close-up of her lamp. I painted large dots on a plain white shade and added the trim. I found the base at Target....isn't it so cool?

At each appointment Rachel has been measuring a little ahead of schedule. She is feeling much better, just a little fatigued as Sarah gets bigger (and her girls get busier). I can hardly wait to have my little girl at home. I'm pretty sure I'm not going to be able to put her down for at least a week.

31 Weeks

2010-09-22T16:35:00.000-05:00

I am sitting down for the first time today (not counting when I was driving all over town earlier this morning). We're doing a ladies Bible study this semester called Contagious Joy, and I've decided that if I'm going to capture the kind of joy we all want, I must force myself to relax for at least a few minutes a day. So right now my toddler is sleeping, my painting is on hold, and I am visiting with you all while relaxing with a glass of Merlot.

Can you beleive we are 31 weeks already! Oh my time is flying by! Rachel startes her bi-weekly appointments this month. She had one last Thursday and will have another on the 30th. She checked out great! She passed her extended glucose test (Yay! Thanks for your prayers!) and at the last two appointments has measured a week ahead of schedule. So little Sarah is in there growing like crazy. She has been doing a number on Rachel's poor ribs...kicking them constantly! Dr. Schroeder said to expect Sarah to arrive anywhere between 5 and 9 weeks from now. YAY!

Rachel is looking oh so cute lately! I'll have to post a picture soon of what she looks like. She's all baby and gets compliments on how cute of a pregger she is pretty much everywhere she goes. I still haven't gotten used to people's inquiries though. We'll be somewhere together and someone will say "Oh, so you're going to have three little girls soon!" and she'll say "No, this is her baby" and point to me. Then people gush over what a wonderful thing it is. And yes, it is a wonderful thing!

Jack is getting super excited about having a sister. Right now I'm trying to relactate, which is when you try to induce lactation in yourself to nurse a baby you didn't carry. Jack will sit next to me on the couch while I'm pumping and be like: "Mommy, whatcha doin?" I'll say "You know what I'm doing Jack." Jack: "Yeah. You're trying to make milk for Sarah from your boobies." Me: "That's right Jack." Jack: "Because she doesn't have any teeth." We have this exchange every time I pump, which is about every two to three hours. So funny! Also, I've found my cretive side lately and have been doing a lot of the work in Sarah's room myself: making paintings and other decorations, making her a tutu, and putting a beaded trim on her curtains. Jack has loved helping with the crafts. He especially loves to use the hot gule gun and the scissors (yikes!).

Well, I'm afraid my break might be over. Tonight is Parent's Night at Jack's preschool. Rachel is watching Jack for us (no kids allowed at Parent's Night), so I'm going to make dinner and take it over to her so she doesn't have to worry about cooking for all three kids. Ta ta!

Sea World

2010-08-28T08:42:00.001-05:00

Right after Jack's birthday, August 1 and 2, Jason took a day off and we took Jack to Sea World. It was SO much fun! I think Jason and I had just as much fun as Jack did. He really loves sea life right now, so we knew Sea World would be the perfect place. We've taken him once before, about a year ago. He remembered it a little bit, but this time he was able to do so much more. It was a blast.

The first thing we did was buy the little fishies to feed the dolphins. This guy greeted us when we came up to the wall.

I love this picture of Jack touching the dolphin's snout.

At 40" Jack is finally tall enough now to start to ride some amusement park rides. Here are Jack and I in the second car at Shamu Express. We also took him on Journey to Atlantis, which is similar to Splash Mountain at Disney World-a big boat with a long steep drop into a "lake." He was exactly tall enough for that ride, which I couldn't believe! It was kinda scary!! But he wanted to go again when we were done. He's 100% boy I tell ya!

In the wagon when we stopped for lunch. FYI to those reading with small kids, I absolutely recommend the wagon at Sea World. Not only could he ride when he was tired, but we didn't have to carry our bag either.

After day 1. Asleep in the car before we even got to the highway.

Day 2
At the front entrance. It took 7 shots before I got one where he was looking and smiling.

Jack was also tall enough for the tube rides at the Sea World water park. He LOVED these, which also surprised us. We rode down in a line, me first, then Jack, then Jason. When I was going down and getting thrown back and forth in the tube I was freaking out-I was afraid of what Jack's reaction to the ride would be. When he got to the bottom he said: "That was AWESOME! Can we go again??"

And on a tamer kid slide:

With Daddy bringing up the rear.

Sarah Update

We are now about 27.5 weeks. Rachel isn't feeling so hot again, probably because of her glucose levels. She was borderline on her glucose test and has to go in and do the long 4 hour glucose test. Say a prayer for us that even if she has gestational diabetes, it will be easily controlled and not lead to any complications. Sarah is doing great in there though, measuring right on schedule. Just a few short weeks to go!

P90-X Update

So far, after day 2, I am really enjoying the workouts. They are challenging and fun, and there are a lot of exercises in them that I've never done before so I'm not getting bored. I'm not going to lie and pretend like I'm some Xena Warrior Princess that's not sore though. Pretty much every major muscle group, and several minor ones, hurt like I was drug behind a bus for a couple of blocks. And if I was doing this two years ago, I probably wouldn't stick with it. But I have more determination now than I ever have, so I'm going to "keep hitting play" as the annoying guy says on the DVD.

It's Time to BRING IT!

2010-08-26T20:25:00.000-05:00

That'd be the slogan of P90-X, the wicked intense at home workout program I've decided to torture myself with. I've been working out 4-5 days a week for over a year now and consider myself pretty fit, but there seem to be a few areas that aren't as easy to slim down as they were when I was 20. When Jason and I started dating, we'd stop several times a week for McDonald's on the way to the ski lake. I quickly made a new friend: 40 extra pounds. With a lot of what I call "wogging" I was quickly able to slim back down. Fast forward 7 years and two kids...as much as I still feel like I'm 20, I'm totally NOT. It's almost like when you become pregnant, 5 extra pounds makes a nice cozy home on your hip/thigh region. Not so cute in skinny jeans. So hopefully P90-X will help. I did Day 1 today, which was the Chest and Back and Ab Ripper DVDs. And the sorest part of my body is my legs. Go figure.

So, after 90 days, I will either look like Jillian.......

......or like this guy.

Or somewhere in between.

Quick little tidbit

2010-08-20T09:43:00.001-05:00

Before I make the Circus Circus post 2 (see the previous post) I wanted to show you all something cute I want to get for Sarah. Of course we already have an infant car seat from when Jack was a baby. In fact, I suppose I could post a picture of it.

Here's sweet 7 day old Jack in his car seat. When we first registered for this car seat and stroller system I literally laid awake at night worrying about it. Was it too boyish with the teal and gray plaid? Would it work for a girl if we had one someday? Of course I was being neurotic. Yes, it's unisex and would work for a girl.

All that worry was for nothing. I want Sarah's car seat to be totally girly! I'm no longer worried about things being unisex. I want pink everywhere. I found a bunch of sellers on Etsy that make car seat replacement covers from home. You can either put the cover over your existing one or replace it all together. Is this not the cutest thing you have ever seen?

This is the design we like the most right now. One seller even lets you purchase your own fabrics if you want to design your own. You buy them and send them to her and she makes the car seat cover for you. I've never considered myself very creative so I don't know that I'd do well at picking cute fabrics. Maybe I'll give it a try though! Hobby Lobby here I come!

Circus Circus, and then some...

2010-08-19T14:42:00.000-05:00

Wheew. It's about 9:30 right now and I feel like I'm sitting down for the first time in about a month. We've been having a fun summer, but I'm ready for it to be over!! Between the weekend trips, day trips, zoo trips, and summer parties it feels like we've been going non-stop since school got out in May. And I, the ever over-achiever, decided to throw painting our entire house and training for an Olympic distance triathlon in the mix. And I'm afraid that I've made a gross misjudgement when I assume that school starting will make life slow down a bit. Once school starts I'll have to finish what has turned into a monumental (but fun) painting job, getting ready for Sarah (yes, we've decided to name her Sarah for sure-and of course this is a fun task too), and do the Christmas shopping (because Heaven knows I won't be going to the mall in December with a two week old in tow.) But despite the fact I feel spread a little thin, this is the happiest I've ever been in my life. So I guess it's a pretty nice problem to have.

It's been almost a month since I've posted, so I decided to split the last month into two posts so I don't overwhelm you or myself.

Circus

In July we took Jack to the circus. I'm pretty sure this was my first trip to the circus. If I've been before, it was a super long time ago and I don't have much of a memory of it. So basically it was both mine and Jack's first circus trip, and it was awesome. They know what they're talking about when they call it "The Greatest Show on Earth." Jason, Jack, Blaine, Michele, Shannon, and I all went.

Jack looking utterly amazed with Michele when we first arrived. Although there is no picture of my face at this particular moment, I guarantee it looked just like this.

Blaine got Jack a super cool light up sword. I had to keep Jack from whacking the people in front of us for the rest of the show. :)

More utter amazement.

Ohmygosh, the most epic circus food ever. S'more on a stick. Marshmallow dipped in chocolate, stuck to a graham cracker. Absolutely fabulous and worth every calorie.

The grand finale. Those elephants were pretty amazing.

Celebration

One of the neatest women I know is my friend Val. She and I met at church and have become good friends over the last few years. Last winter she was diagnosed with breast cancer at 35 and her gracious battle has inspired me. This July we had a celebratory dinner after she finished her last round of chemo and was cancer-free. Yay Val!

Val, me, and Courtney

This is Pastor Mark. He is the best. He spent a good amount of his time at the party entertaining our kids. There was a little squirt gun Jack kept shooting everyone with. I was letting him have his fun knowing it had a tiny tank and it would run out soon. But it was like 20 minutes and this thing still had ammo. Then I saw Pastor Mark take the gun from Jack when it was empty and refill it at the hose. It was the third time he'd gotten a refill. :)

Val's son Aiden.

And her daughter Abbey impressing us with a jump kick.

RV to a Wedding??

On July 24th we went to Dallas in Blaine and Michele's RV for our friend Jason's wedding. Jason and I poked so much fun of this trip leading up to it. Here we are, 5 people riding up to a wedding in Highland Park in an RV. Does that scream redneck or what? Haha but it ended up being a really good time. And wouldn't you know, there were places on Mockingbird Ln in Dallas to part that thing.

Here is Jack on the "bus" watching a movie. Holy smokes, it must have been a good part.

Haha the best thing about traveling in the RV was that we could get pizza for lunch! We just called it in and drove right up to get it. We had a table and plates and napkins, the whole bit!

Jack and I before we went into the church. (It was very important to him that his Lightning cup was in this picture.)

Jason, Shannon, and I at the reception.

Shannon, Michele, and Jason

(Kids weren't allowed at the reception, so Paw Paw stayed in the RV with Jack.)

Jack's 3rd Birthday!!

I can hardly believe my little boy is 3!! He's so smart and so funny and is learning so much! When we say our prayer with him at night he tells us things he's thankful for and things he wants God to help him with, like "Mommy, I want God to help me to not yell at you." Such a sweetheart!

Even though he had a Lightning McQueen party last year, he insisted he have a Cars party again. Here's the cake.

Michele got Jack a slip and slide for his birthday so we set it up for the kids to use.

The kiddie pool-completely packed.

Where the adults hung out. In the shade with two industrial sized fans blowing on us.

Sweet Hannah.

Jack's friend Laney. Laney is the best-full of spunk and sass just like her mamma! She's also a tomboy in some respects, so she's a good match for Jack who is 100% boy. Jack and Laney will be in the same preschool class this year-Tammy and I are so excited!

Officer Edge and Nicole.

Nana and Paw Paw

Cake time!

Check out Shannon's face. That's classic. (Happy birthday to Shannon too-Jack and Shannon share a birthday. Such a sweetie to spend part of her 18th at Jack's kiddie party.)

Jack and his buddy Luke eating some cake.

Rachel and I helping him to open his presents. Our main task was to keep him focused. Every time he opened a new present he wanted to open the box and start to play with whatever was inside.

An Update on Sarah Elizabeth

Rachel had an appointment today and everything checked out perfectly. She measured right on target. Rachel says she moves a lot. I've gotten to feel her a few times too. It's hard to believe that in three months we'll add another little one to our family-we can't wait! Jack is getting really excited too. At night in his prayers he thanks God for his sister and Rachel and he likes to tell me everything he wants to teach his sister. He says some pretty funny things about the subject:

1. Me: "You know Jack, babies can only have milk when they're born. They can't eat sandwiches like you.

Jack: "Why Mommy?"

Me: "Because they don't have teeth when they're born buddy."

Jack: "Oh...can they eat yogurt??"

2. Me: "Jack, do you want a brother or a sister?"

Jack: "I want a brother. And LOTS of sisters."

Me: "How many sisters Jack?"

Jack: "Six."

3. Jack, watching me paint her room: "That's beautiful for my sister Mommy!"

Busy Busy Busy!

2010-07-21T14:37:00.000-05:00

This has been by far the busiest summer of my life! We have had so much fun and are constantly on the go-go-go! We've been blessed to get to spend time with friends and family and have such a wonderful beginning to the summer!

Name Disclaimer:

We are pretty sure we are going to name the baby Sarah, so I'm going to take the name for a trial run today. We (I) haven't completely decided yet, so I want to see how it sounds in this post. :)

Jack must pick up anything smaller than he is. Must. Whether it is a dog, a cat, or a person, if it weighs less than 36 pounds he has an uncontrollable urge to pick it up and carry it. Watch out Sarah!

Couldn't help but post this one. He came out one day dressed in underwear and a winter hat and gloves. He had the right idea. If he was going to be wearing a winter hat and gloves in June, he'd need to be cool everywhere else. :)

This is Jason finishing the Y-Tri in Pearland in June. He finished 1st in his age group and 3rd overall out of about 450 total competitors. Yay Daddy!

Nathan came out that morning to watch.

We spent 4th of July weekend in San Antonio with our good friends Andrew and Kelly. Here are Jason and Jack relaxing on the couch.

Jason went on a long run on Saturday morning and needed an ice bath afterwards. Jack thought it was a regular bath and was ready to jump right on in.

We spent the evening of the 4th with Kelly's mom's side of the family at the lake.

Pat Green came on the radio, so my sweet husband danced with me Texas Aggie style. Just like the good ole days.

Kelly, Andrew, and Jason laughing at Jack. If you look real close you can see Kelly's baby bump. She's due December 18th with their first.

Jack was a little freaked by the fireworks. Here he'd run to Andrew for protection.

When Hurricane Alex came ashore in Mexico, we got days and days of rain out of it. Jack loved the rain coat Aunt Shannon got for him...it's a fireman's coat!

Michele's birthday is July 8th. Jack painted her a mirror. His teachers last year made the kids personalized painting smocks. Too cute!

Helping Nana blow out her candles.

The weekend of the 9th we went to visit my parents. Here are Jason and Dad on the floor while Jack throws balls at them!

Jack winding up to throw to Jason.

On the way home from Southlake we stopped at Andrew and Rachel's for dinner with friends.

Kissing cousins!

Bike racing! (Jack on Makenzie's princess bike, Makenzie on Jack's trike.)

Whoa. I think I might have just found a picture of a bear at the circus.

Jason took the little kids for rides on the motorized scooter Rachel won at the children's fair in Houston.

Nathan and Maddie having a pow-wow on the balcony.

Nicole, Caleb, Sarah, and Rachel.

Jason and Maddie watching Forest Gump.

Jason's cousin Laci's graduation party.

Hmmm...hope there wasn't a foot in there when that happened.

Ran into Nathan and Nicole at Babies R Us.

Wow, shark.....!

(We took Jack to the Aquarium downtown.)

Bathroom

I mentioned a few weeks ago that I wanted to redo the kids' bathroom. I finished it late last week. I don't consider myself much of a creative person, but it ended up turning out really cute! Jack loves it and he tells me he's sure Sarah will too.

Shower curtain and rug.

I painted a dot border in white and brown around the ceiling, mirror, and switch/outlet covers.

I spray painted his brown step stool white and added dots in the wall color and brown.

Pregnancy Update

Rachel is feeling better this week after a rough couple of weeks. She's been having headaches and had some sort of a stomach bug the weekend of the 9th. She ended up having to go to the hospital for a few hours so they could hook her up to an IV to give her fluids she lost during the illness. Fortunately she pulled out of all of that ok and is now doing better. She says Sarah is really active, which will be a perfect companion for Jack (exhausting for Mommy though haha). I've even gotten to feel her move a few times. We are 22 weeks today and Rachel has a checkup tomorrow. I can't believe how fast this pregnancy is flying by!

Had to leave you with a smile. Dairy Queen style.

Funny Story

2010-07-01T22:38:00.000-05:00

Until March I had a spotless driving record. No speeding tickets, no parking tickets, nothing. But in March I got my first speeding ticket. Yes, I'm here admitting it....I'm a law breaker. And the story behind it is great! I would have mentioned this sooner, but as you know there has been quite a lot going on here, so I had tons of other more important things to post. So here's the story...

It was March 9, the day of the embryo transfer. Can you believe it, the day of the transfer?! If you'll remember from the post when I first announced we were expecting, Rachel had to drink a lot of water the day of the transfer so her bladder was full for the procedure. So, there we are, in my car heading from her apartment to the doctor's office (about a 35 minute drive), and we decide to stop at Starbucks for coffee and a venti glass of water. I exit for the Starbucks at 59 and 1960 just a few miles after leaving the apartment. Little did I know that the access roads in that part of Humble are a speed trap (well, at one time I did know it, when I lived there, but by March 9 I had apparently forgotten). So in the rear-view I see lights go on and I'm like "great, we're gonna be late for the appointment!" As I watch the cop in the mirror he moves over a lane and rides up behind the Expedition that is in the lane to my left, so naturally I think I'm off the hook. He's pulling over the other guy--yay! Oh no. He's actually pulling us both over. So he has us park in the mall parking lot and proceeds to write both drivers a ticket for speeding on the access road. I had just exited and was still going 65, but the access road has a limit of 40. To his credit, the cop was nice enough to drop my speed down to 60 in a 40 so I could still do defensive driving. Anyway, there we are in the mall parking lot, just a few hundred yards from Starbucks. The cop has my license and is writing on his clipboard. He stops and looks in the car at the two of us and asks "So where are you headed this morning?" To which I replied "To hopefully get her pregnant with my baby." He looks a little blank for a minute and says "....oh....."

So after the fiasco of getting my first ticket on the day our sister-in-law is to be impregnated with our baby, we finally make it to Starbucks. Through the window we watch as the same cop pulls over another car on that same access road, not 10 minutes after he had ticketed us. I wonder where the driver of that car was headed. :)

Decisions, decisions...

2010-06-28T09:43:00.000-05:00

One thing I forgot about expecting a baby is the number of decisions involved during the pregnancy! We made these decisions with Jack of course, but since Ryan was another boy we didn't have as many decisions to make. With a little girl on the way, though, we now have all of the original decisions to make all over again! It's been so much fun!

This is the bedding we've decided on. It's called Bubblegum. I love all of the colors! I think we're going to put a chair rail in her room and paint two of the bedding colors onto the wall, one below the rail and one above.

I went to visit my friend Jana the other day. She just had their second baby and we went to meet Ellie. Jana has decorated the girl's bathroom in the cutest theme, and I'm totally stealing it. :) Adorable whale theme from Target. This is the tissue box cover. I think I'll paint the walls the color of the top of the box. Jack loves whales and the ocean, so this theme is going to be a big hit!

The final decision is the biggest one--her name! We have two we like, but we're still going back and forth between them a bit. If we can't decide, we might have to give Rachel the deciding vote. ;) Jack will tell us which one he likes, but then he changes his mind an hour later, so he's no help!

Jack is really excited about having a little sister. He talks about the different things he wants to teach her, like how to swing. He also wants to push her in the stroller at the zoo. Right now in the room that will be the baby's we keep the vacuum. Jack got very concerned when I told him this would be her room. I asked what was wrong. He said "Is the vacuum gonna get my sister?" How sweet that he's already concerend about her! He's going to be such a good big brother!

2010-06-25T16:13:00.000-05:00

Our appointment yesterday went well! The baby is strong and healthy, and Rachel checked out well too. They repeated one thyroid test due to fuzzy results at 12 weeks, but other than that the appointment was completely routine, which is good!

So yes, our sweet little baby is a girl. And we are over the moon with excitement! In all reality, we were over the moon already. This little baby, no matter the sex, is the little baby that God wants us to raise. So far be it from us to be picky!

This is her profile. Her head is on the left and she is looking slightly towards you. Her little hand is up by her mouth.

This is a 3D image of her face. You can see little eyes and a nose, and her torso and arms. The left side of her face is obscured. The left side of the image is the wall of the uterus. The image isn't all that clear yet because she doesn't have much fat to conduct the sound waves. She looks a lot like Jack and Ryan already!

After the appointment Jason had to go back to work, and I went up to Kingwood to pick up Jack (where Mom and Dad had been watching the kids for us and A and R's place). After Mom and Dad left we went to Target to shop (of course). You can't resist shopping the day you find out the sex of your baby, no matter what it is! The kids were so funny! Jack and Makenzie had so much fun picking out clothes for their new little sister/cousin.

The first thing we picked out was a shirt for Jack, so he didn't feel left out. Pretty cool shirt, don't you think?

Rachel is the best bargain finder! This dress was just a few bucks on the clearance rack!

And a sweater to go with it (since she will be born in the winter).

These dresses are A-dorable!! And I love that all girl's dresses come with the little bloomers!

Ohmygosh, more cuteness! I had two skirts, this one with hearts and a solid pale pink one. I asked Jack which he liked more for his new baby sister, and he said the hearts! So he picked this one out.

A footed sleeper and onsie. The onsie says "I brighten my Daddy's world" on it.

Today after visiting a friend and her new baby we stopped to register at Target. Jack did really well for a boy picking out girl things! I found some really cute things, and am so excited to start to decorate the room with little girl stuff!

Here he is with his popcorn and Coke, ready to go!

I love several different crib bedding sets. For some reason I'm not much for characters or animals or pictures for a girl's room. I like the chic patterns. There are so many to choose from now! I guess there are lots of other moms with my taste! Here are the 5 I like best. Help me narrow them down!

Option 1

I love this paisley, and I love the bright colors! I like the idea of either pale pink or green walls with this one.

Option 2
I love the deep brown in this one, and the walls could be a shade of brown too.

Option 3

Similar to option 2. I'd probably do pale pink walls here.

Option 4

Love the circles! Again, probably pale pink or green walls.

Option 5

More circles, but this time with brown rather than the hot pink.

Thank you so much to Mom and Dad for the help with the kids yesterday and to Rachel for, well, everything!

On a completely different note, there is now an Ironman Houston in The Woodlands, which is only about 60 miles from our house. So needless to say, Jason has already signed up for the race! It's May 21, 2011. It will be such fun to have family and friends there to cheer him on! He has a race this Sunday. It's a sprint distance, so we should be able to be back in town in time for church!

2010-06-24T21:39:00.000-05:00

I had planned quite a cute post for tonight. But after a long and exciting day I am exhausted. I did promise some news though, so tonight I am just going to type.....

It's a Girl !!!!!!

We are so incredibly excited, but so very sleepy. So the cute post will have to wait until tomorrow.

Makenzie is 3!

2010-06-21T21:48:00.001-05:00

I noticed something funny recently when I thought about how my sister-in-law Shannon, who I met when she was 10, has now graduated high school. And my little brother is married now with two kids and one (ours) on the way....and my little niece, who I watched come into the world, is now 3. All of this has managed to happen without me aging at all. :)

Makenzie's birthday was June 18, so on June 19 we went up to Kingwood for her party. Rachel now has a cute little baby bump, and I just had to take a picture of it for two reasons. 1. To post here so all of you could see (of course). 2. To have for us to look at when we're excitedly thinking "Is this really happening?" So here's the bump and a picture of Jason, Rachel, Andrew, and I together.

Jack showing off his swimming skills....

The birthday girl in her new goggles.

Jack in mid-flight after being thrown by Andrew.

Jeremy's wife Nicole and Maddie (with Jack in the background after a wicked swim session).

Jason and Jeremy doing the grilling....those two.....(I'm shaking my head right now.)

Blowing out candles on her Dora cupcake

I'm pretty sure Jack had at least three cupcakes. He kept asking different adults for one, acting like it was his first. They learn how to work the system early!

My cute little family. Good looking boys, aren't they?

Sweet Maddie

Makenzie just loved all the clothes she got. It's so funny the difference in boys and girls even this early. When Jack gets clothes he literally tosses them aside and moves to the next present hoping for something manly to be inside.

The before....

and the after.....(look at Nicole's face. Priceless.)

Kickin back.

Pregnancy Update

Our appointment for the diagnostic ultrasound is on Thursday. I can't believe it's only 2 days away! This pregnancy is flying by! I'll post on Thursday evening once we find out if it is a boy or a girl, so check back then! Oh, and if you have any suggestions for boy names please leave them in the comments section. We have a few we like, but nothing we're ready to commit to yet.

The Beginning of Summer

2010-06-10T09:38:00.000-05:00

As a kid (I'm sure it comes as no surprise) I loved summer. Don't all kids love summer? No school, fewer responsibilities, and so many fun things to do. As an adult, I still love summertime, but now I am annoyed by some things during the summer months that didn't bother me much a decade ago, nor do they bother me the rest of the year:

Humidity. Hello, can we say wavy hair days? My hair used to be stick straight, but after two pregnancies now I have the annoying wave that comes out when it gets humid. UGH
Fear of sunburn. Not my own, but Jack's. I am terrified that if I let him get sunburned all other mothers everywhere will judge me as a bad mother because of my kid's red skin.
Misbehaving school-aged kids at the grocery store. My goodness, HEB turns into a circus when kids aren't in school and moms have to take them shopping.
Misbehaving school-aged kids in the childcare room at the gym. Shouldn't there be an age limit in there? I don't take Jack in there for fear he will be trampled.
I suppose I could have consolidated the above two bullets into one: "Misbehaving school-aged kids."

But, as an adult, there are some new things that I love about the summer months:

Taking Jack to the lake. Now that he's almost 3 he loves to drive the boat!
Swimming lessons. We put Jack in them this week and he is doing so well, and has overcome all fear he had of the water.
VBS. I love being a volunteer at Vacation Bible School. I'll be honest: the first summer I did it (2008) I wasn't very excited about it. But it turned out to be so fun, and I can't wait for this year's VBS in July.
Summer playdates. (Enter my fear of sunburn.)
Mowing the lawn. Ok, this sounds crazy I know. We used to have landscapers that came, but I didn't think they did as good of a job as we did. So now Jason and I split the yard work, and I actually enjoy mowing the lawn! There is such a tangible result that I get abundant satisfaction from!
Family and friends. We love having get togethers at our house, and there seem to be more during the summer than any other time of year.
Jack's birthday! This year he understands that his birthday is coming. When someone asks him how old he is, he says "Three in July."

Here are a few pictures of the beginning of our fun summer!

Jack and Jason on the carousel at the zoo. Jack calls it the "carouself."

The Mattheis fam on the carousel. Makenzie used to be terrified of this thing, but she finally decided that she was going to love it this year!

Aw, this was the sweetest Mother's Day present. At church the kids made bags for their moms.

And at school they planted us flowers and decorated the flower pot for us.

Backyard fun! Great hit Kenz!

We all just love this kiddie table!

Girls night out. Here are my dear friend Val and I with our friend Jennifer who was visiting from Tyler (Jennifer is on the left).

Jennifer, Tammy, Val and I.

Watermelon at Val's son Aiden's 2nd birthday party!

After Aiden's party we went to Shannon's graduation party at the Falzon's bayhouse (this was on May 29th). Jack went out fishing with Nathan, Jason, Blaine, and Louis and caught his first fish. He then ate it for dinner!

Jack and Paw Paw.

What a heart breaker!

Jason with his sister Shannon and mom Michele.

Shannoon and I

I told you: heart breaker.

Oh the things boys do.

So, Jack loves stickers....obviously.

Pop Ice in the pool.

And giving Wiley a drink!

Pregnancy Update

Rachel has started to feel much better! Her appetite has come back and she has gained back the weight she lost at the beginning of the pregnancy (about 6 lbs). We are now just over 16 weeks along, and we find out the sex of the baby in two weeks, on June 24th. Mom and Dad are going to come down to watch the three kids for us so we can go to the appointment. I can't believe how fast the time is flying by! She has been feeling movement now for about a month, and a couple of weeks ago I felt the baby move too! How exciting! Please keep us all in your prayers!