2 Peas in a Pod

No School, No Work!

2011-02-04T07:59:00.002-06:00

It's a Snow Day today which means no school for the kiddos and no work for us! WooHoo! I'd like to say that I'll just be lazy and do nothing. But, I know that won't happen because my house is a DISASTER! So, I'll just put on a pot of beans and get to cleanin'! I won't guarantee that I'll get out of my jammies though!

It's Been A Long Time

2011-01-29T20:06:00.006-06:00

It's been forever since I've last posted! Things have been crazy busy around our house since I've gone back to work. It will be a year this March since I started back to work. Can you believe that?! Time sure does fly...

Not much out of the ordinary has happened since I last wrote. Bethany is half-way through her first year of preschool. She absolutely loves going to school everyday. She can't wait to get on her "morning clothes" right after she wakes up so she can go to school. Shelby's half-way through her 2nd grade year and is doing great. She received Good Citizen of the Week during the first month of school, was voted to be one of the representatives from her class for EACC, and just recently received a Citizenship award! So proud of my girlies.

I take back the part I said about nothing much out of the ordinary has happened...Back in October, Adam had his gallbladder removed and is doing so much better now. It was getting to where he was having more frequent attacks and we never knew what kind of foods would set it off. He was really nervous about the surgery but he was in and out in no time with a pretty speedy recovery. We're so thankful to have that over with!

I'll leave you with a few pictures and hopefully I will post a little more often...

Snow Day 2011

Yum! Decorating Christmas cookies at Aunt Amanda's was fun!

SqUiSh!!!

My lil angel Beth in pre-k choir at church.

Bethany's Christmas party at school

My little buggies at Halloween.

Pumpkin Day!

2010-10-26T18:19:00.005-05:00

Shelby and her BFF Annabelle

Daddy helping Beth play a game

Hay Ride!

Bethany did NOT want her picture take with the pumpkins. This was as close as I could get!

Matching Aprons

2010-09-22T22:01:00.003-05:00

The girls like to help me cook so Adam surprised us with these matching aprons. My friend, Melody from Simplie Girlie Designs made these and I thought she did such a great job!

CAMPING

2010-09-22T21:32:00.014-05:00

Last weekend we went on our first ever family camping trip. We went to a nearby lake, found our spot and pitched the tent. Let me tell you, it was sooo hot! We thought it'd get cooler pretty quick after the sun went down. That was not the case. We were hot, sweaty and it was very hard to go to sleep. I think our next camping trip will be when we have cooler temps. I'm not sure if that will ever happen though. It's been so hot for so long here.

Shelby and Adam put up the tent while....

Bethany napped in the van.

Then she snuck some Cheetos while Daddy was grilling burgers.

TaDa! Tent's done!

There was no campfire so no smores...there was a burn ban in effect. :(

Shelby told us a story about a Cowboy and Cowgirl. That girl has some imagination!

You can tell we were HOT! Look how sweaty she was!

Time to hit the trail!

Swampy!

Shelby and Bethany in front of the Visitor's Center.

All in all we had a fun time. Next time I think I'd rather "camp" in a camper though. I just don't think I'm the outdoors-y type. I like a bed, an air conditioner and a SHOWER!!!

First Days of School

2010-09-11T16:55:00.005-05:00

Shelby and Bethany are having fun in school this year. Shelby's already been Koality Kid of the week and is making good grades. Bethany is having so much fun with her friends. She learned about colors last week and brought a pink ducky to show and tell on Friday.

Ready or Not...Here I Come!!!

2010-07-27T21:36:00.003-05:00

Shelby has a friend sleeping over tonight and all 3 girls were playing hide and seek. Adam helped Bethany find a hiding spot so that Shelby and her friend couldn't find her. The search for Bethany began. After a few minutes Bethany still had not been found. Adam yelled from the living room to Beth's hiding spot in the bathroom, "Bethany, be real still and quiet!" In reply she yells, "Okay!" giving away her location! It made us laugh so hard! So cute!!

Adam's B-Day

2010-06-22T08:30:00.005-05:00

We celebrated Adam's 31st birthday at Amanda and Cory's. It was a whirl-wind trip was was so much fun. The kids had a blast. We always feel so at home and have so much fun when we all get together. It's a shame we live so far apart because we all enjoy each other so much.

Charley and Bethy (as he calls her) were inseparable!

Cory is showing the girls how to make kabobs. They were so yummy!

Adam's diggin' into his ice cream cake from Maggie Moo's.

We're on our way to CrabTown for Adam's birthday.

The girls caught fireflies that night.

Roasted marshmallows!

Look at the size of this one!

2 pooped kiddos!

Look who's 3! It's Bethany!

2010-06-17T08:00:00.005-05:00

Bethany turned 3 last Saturday. Since she has a summer birthday we decided to have a swimming party for her and invite her friends from Sunday school.

Bethany and Jorja

Bethany asked for a Dora cake.

Shelby, Annabelle and Bailey

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BETHANY!!!

PINK

2010-05-26T09:22:00.004-05:00

Shelby's room is now pink! She's been wanting it pink for a long time. I wanted to paint it before she got out of the pink phase and into something else. She's such a girly girl!

Summer.

2010-05-25T20:29:00.004-05:00

I can't believe another school year is coming to a close and my baby girl will be going into the 2nd grade next year. Just can't believe it! Bethany will be turning 3 next month and she will be going to PK 3 in the fall. Where does the time go??? I'm so ready for summer! We're planning a road trip to see my family in West Texas, going to a family reunion on Adam's side, going to VBS and Shelby will be taking swimming lessons again and going to a Theatre Camp. Also, my sis-in-law is going to be having twins at the end of July so we will be traveling to see her and the baby boys. Summer used to go by so slowly when I was a kid. I wish this summer it would just crawl by but I know that in the blink of an eye it will be time to go school clothes shopping again. But maybe by the time school rolls around again I'll be ready for the cooler weather. It's already getting so hot here!

"I gonna do it myself!!"

2010-04-20T07:51:00.006-05:00

Bethany has certainly turned out to be Miss Independent. If I help her pull up her pants she will actually pull them DOWN and then pull them back up again and say, "No, I gonna do it myself!" If I try to help her wash her hands she says, "I gonna do it myself!" She even insists on buckling and unbuckling her car seat! I've had to get onto her for actually getting out of her seat while we're driving! She's a character but I love her sooo much!

Catch Up on Spring Break and Easter

2010-04-10T08:10:00.033-05:00

Spring Break

We went to San Antonio during Spring Break to see family, get my eyes checked and have a mini vacation. It was so fun and the weather couldn't have been better. My eyes checked out good. For those of you who do not know, my retina in my left eye detached 9 years ago and I had to have a couple of surgeries to correct it. I have a cousin who is an Optometrist in San Antonio and he referred me to a really good Retinologist so I've been going back every year to San Antonio to get a check up on my eyes. Shelby even got her eyes checked for the first time this year. Thankfully, they looked great. She has really good vision. Our plans were to go to Sea World while we were there so we thought we'd wait to go in the middle of the week rather than the weekend to give the Spring Breakers time to go home. Well, we pulled up to the gates and guess what?! They were CLOSED!! Guess I should've checked it out before we went...They were open the weekend before but not during the week until a later date. I just knew the kids were going to be crushed. So, we decided to go to the zoo instead. It turned out to be a gorgeous day and the kids had a lot of fun (not to mention it was less expensive than Sea World!) They were really good sports about it, thank goodness. MiMi, PaPa and all of us also went to San Marcos and did a little shopping at one of the outlet shopping centers and we even rode a glass bottom boat! We also went to a Children's Theatre to see If You Give a Moose a Muffin. It was so cute! The girls really enjoyed it. We ate at some really good restaurants and had a really good time with family.

Bethany found a good place to sit and read while waiting to get on the glass bottom boat.

The view on the glass bottom boat. The water was so clear!

Bethany liked to climb on our backs while we were riding the boat.

Shelby wanted her picture taken with a Mariachi band on the riverwalk.

Bethany was saying "hi" to the big bear outside a chocolate store.

Bethany and PaPa waving to the boat that was passing by.

We liked riding the trolley downtown.

The ZOO!

Bethany and MiMi taking a break.

PaPa and Adam.

PaPa was the bird whisperer this time instead of me!

Beth and Shel loved feeding the birds.

Easter

After church we went to Grammy and Pap's and had a delicious lunch and an Easter egg hunt. It was a good day!

Snow Day!

2010-02-12T08:21:00.005-06:00

We didn't get a whole lot of snow but what we did get the girls played in and had so much fun!

No More Diapers!

2010-02-07T21:33:00.004-06:00

Bethany's potty trained! She's been wearing big girl panties for a week now. She tells us when she needs to go potty, too. I've worked with her a little along ever since she was a year old. It wasn't until recently that I really started working with her a lot on potty training. She just decided she was ready and took off. She's such a big girl now!

Workin' 8 to 5

2010-02-07T21:13:00.005-06:00

Starting Tuesday I'll be returning to work full time. Excited? Yes. Nervous? Yes. Sad? Yes. I'm very thankful for the opportunity I've had to be a full time mom to my girls for almost the first 3 years of their lives but we've decided that Bethany's ready to socialize with children her own age and be in a structured school-type setting so I'll be starting a full time job on Tuesday. She'll start her first day of day care on Monday. Thankfully we found her a really great place to go to. I know she will have so much fun but it makes me a little sad that I won't be with her all day.
My new job is going to be a receptionist/file clerk at a doctor's office here in town. I don't quite know what to expect but I'm up for the challenge. The extra money won't hurt either!
Friday, Adam and I went to Kohl's, JCPenney's and Shoe Carnival to shop for work clothes. Let me just say I got some GREAT deals. I got 7 shirts for me and a pair of jeans for Adam for $51. I got about $460 worth of clothes at Kohl's for $150 PLUS $20 Kohl's cash. AND, I got buy one get one half price on shoes. I got a ton of new clothes. It was fun!
Anyway, tomorrow will be a big day for Beth. I've got her little bag packed. I can't forget to pack her blankie for her nap time...
Please pray for us all to have a smooth transition from me being at home to me working. I know that God has had His hand in this whole situation because of how every thing's worked out so far and I know He will continue to watch over us.

Memphis~Home of the Blues and Barbeque

2010-02-03T13:18:00.016-06:00

So a couple of weeks ago we went to Memphis, just Adam and I. We stayed the weekend and had an ok time. It was cold and rainy the first day we got there so we couldn't do much site-seeing downtown. We did, however get to eat at Rendezvous again. I love, love, love that place. They have the best ribs around. We also took a tour of Sun Studios where Elvis first started his music career. It was a really small studio and we each had to pay $12 to see it and I thought that was a little much, but whatever. That night we wanted to go to the movies. On the way to a movie theater, we happened upon an actual drive-in. So we decided to go there instead. Pretty neat. The next day we went to Beale Street (before lunch). There wasn't much going on. We looked through A. Schwab and through Peabody Place. Peabody Place could've been really nice but there were only a couple of operating stores in the whole building! We weren't impressed. We rode the trolley downtown some and that night we went to a restaurant that had a live blues band. The band was really good, the atmosphere however was not! Enough said. Sunday we missed the girls so much we checked out of the hotel and drove home soon after we woke up. We brought them home some t-shirts and Shelby a snow globe and Bethany a bear. All the proceeds from the bear went to St. Jude's Hospital. Carson the Bear is named after a 3 year old little boy who is a patient at St. Jude's battling cancer. When we drove by that hospital and saw all the windows it made me sad to think of all those little kids who are so sick. God is watching over each and every one though. I do know that.

Here's some pics from our Memphis adventure:

This was the view from our room on the 14th floor.

Adam's being Elvis at Sun Studios. The mic is supposedly the actual mic Elvis used. We were told by the tour guide that one lady actually licked it. Can you say GROSS?!

Here we are at the drive-in. "CHEESE!"

Beale Street during the day.

A. Schwab General Store

Elvis' pink coat on display at Lansky's.

Shelby Learned to Ride Her Bike!

2010-01-25T12:28:00.005-06:00

Last Thursday Shelby learned to ride her bike! She had been afraid to learn ever since we got her a big girl bike last summer. Adam did some studying up on the best way to teach a kid to learn to ride. He found out that if you take the pedals off of the bike and let the kid learn to balance by gliding, they will learn faster. I guess they feel like they can put their feet down quicker if they think they are going to fall if they don't have pedals in the way. After a few days without pedals, Shelby got the gliding down and so Adam put the pedals back on. She's riding her bike up and down the streets now! Another milestone reached. She's just too happy!

Gingerbread House

2010-01-13T08:14:00.003-06:00

The other day Shelby and I attempted to make our very first gingerbread house. It was not as easy as it looked. Shelby says it looks like a sad gingerbread house. Adam said it looked like he did the laundry in there and the suds overflowed out the windows! Shelby's favorite part was snacking on the candy as she decorated. Maybe next year our little house won't look so sad. Maybe next year I'll use an actual icing bag instead of just snipping the corner off of the icing that came with the kit.

Three Thousand Six Hundred and Fifty

2010-01-07T09:28:00.012-06:00

Today is the 3,650th day that I've been married to my wonderful husband.

In 1994 Adam and I met in high school when I was 16 and he was 15. I had to drive us on our first date! We finished high school and went on to college together. Right after I graduated from college in 1999, we got married the following January. Adam graduated the following May. In 2001, Adam took care of me when my retina detached. About a year later Shelby was born. In 2005 we bought our first home. Bethany was added to our family 2 years later. Now here we are--2010!! I love Adam as much and more now than the day I married him. I'm so glad we have been through so many things together...good and bad, exciting and scary. I'm so glad I know him so well and he knows me. I'm looking forward to many, many more happy years to come with my girls and the man I love.

I Will Be Here by Steven Curtis Chapman was one of the songs in our wedding and sums up what marraige is to me. I'm so thankful that I'm blessed with Adam who will always be here for me.

I love you, Adam! Happy 10th Anniversary!!!

SNOW!!

2010-01-04T09:27:00.002-06:00

Finally! It seems like everyone else has been getting snow here lately and finally we're getting some white stuff! I hope it keeps up and doesn't melt so the girls can play in it after school!

Christmas '09

2009-12-31T13:01:00.000-06:00

Since this is the last day of 2009 I guess I had better post about our Christmas! We had Christmas at our house this year. I must say we had quite the group! Adam's mom, dad, sister and her husband and 2 kids came which made 10 people in our tiny house with 12 on Christmas day when my mom and dad joined us for Christmas lunch! I have to admit that I was a little stressed about hosting. I am sooo not the hostess type. I say this because I stress way too much about making everything just right when it really doesn't have to be. Guess that's the perfectionist in me... It was fun getting to be with the family. Although we never saw Katie and Shelby. They were inseparable doing what little girls do. They painted their nails, played with their DSI's and did a lot of giggling. I'm glad they are so close. The little ones, Charley and Bethany, had some sharing issues and we heard a lot of "Mine, mine!" But what can you expect? They're two. They still love each other though. We ate and ate and ate some more and just caught up with each other. It was nice just being together.

Uncle Cory and the babies.

MiMi, PaPa, Charley and Amanda.

Katie's really into making things.

BARBIES!!!

Charley playing with his Thomas trains. Aren't his pj's adorable?!

Hmmm, what's Adam got?

Bethany had to try on her Yo Gabba Gabba glasses and hat from Aunt Amanda & Uncle Cory and Katie and Charley.

"When's lunch? We're starving!"

Don't you love Amanda's hair accessory?!

MiMi (Cindy~Adam's mom) and Pap (Malcolm~my dad)

Bethany LOVES dolls and accessories.

Katie and Shel

I couldn't resist taking this picture. The kids were watching a movie with 3D glasses! Charley didn't last as long as the big girls though!

Daddies get to put together Barbie houses!

Blankie time! Beth and Charley love their blankies! So cute!

Bethany's First Hair Cut!

2009-12-31T01:00:00.000-06:00

Well, technically it's not her first hair cut. I've cut her bangs before but never since she's been born has the back of her hair been touched. It's sooo long and was kind of uneven so I decided it was time to have her hair trimmed. I took her to the place that I get my hair cut and Taylor did a really good job. I told Bethany that she needed to be really still while she got her hair cut and she was! She did really well. It looks so cute on her too!

Sprucing Up

2009-12-03T11:03:00.007-06:00

Moving, rearranging, cramming and stuffing. That's what we've been up to before and after Thanksgiving to get ready for the new flooring in our house to be installed! We had our wood floors in the living room and hall redone about 3 years ago. A week ago we replaced the OLD linoleum in the kitchen/bathrooms with laminate and the 30+ year old carpet in the bedrooms with fresh, new carpet! It feels so much cleaner and brighter...Just in time for the holidays!

And, if you remember, we've been working on our master bathroom...

Our Thanksgiving

2009-12-02T16:42:00.006-06:00

Whew! We had a whirl-wind of a Thanksgiving but it was wonderful, nonetheless. We started off by visiting a dear high school friend of both Adam and I. It's been about 13 years since we've all been together. We got to meet her sweet daughter and just catch up. We got to her house at about 10pm on Wed. and stayed up until 1am talking and laughing. Even the girls stayed up until 1! We got up the next day at 6 so we could be on the road by 7....We left her house at about 7:30 so we weren't that late. Thursday we met up with Adam's mom and dad and got to see Adam's Grandma. It's been a year since we've seen her since we live so far away. It was so good to see her. The kids were super excited to see Granny. We celebrated Thanksgiving with her by going out for Chinese. Yum! Friday we hit the ground running. WE SHOPPED TIL WE DROPPED! We did not get up at the crack of dawn for this special event and by the time we got to the stores, some of what we wanted was already sold out. That's ok though. We survived and got more than what we needed/wanted! Saturday we did a little more shopping and visited Santa. Shelby told him she wanted a Barbie Dream House and Bethany wanted a Dorya (Dora) doll. In the blink of an eye it was Sunday and we had to make the loooong trek home. We were T-I-R-E-D! I am still tired! We all had a fun time though!

Bethany, me, Adam, Shelby and Granny on Thanksgiving Day.

We miss you, Grandpa!

Fall Pictures

2009-11-13T11:15:00.004-06:00

Shelby's 7th Birthday Party

2009-11-13T10:40:00.004-06:00

Shelby had a cooking party for her birthday. She loves to help me in the kitchen so I thought this would be a fun thing to do for her. I AM NOT taking credit for this idea though. I found it at Family Fun online. If you ever need a birthday cake/party idea, go and take a look at the neat ideas!

The girls got to make mini lasagnas and salad on a stick. I prepared the meat, noodles and vegetables the night before so they could make their own lasagnas and salads at party time. They also decorated place mats and had cake and ice cream.

Shelby's making her lasagna.

Finished product!

Salad on a Stick!

Bethany was checking out Sissy's stuff!

Shelby wanted a Red Velvet Cake (MY FAVORITE!!!).

Make a wish baby girl!

Shelby's Friends: Gabby, Annabelle, Miranda and Jorja.

Shelby's Baptism!

2009-11-13T10:32:00.003-06:00

Here we are, headed to church November 1, 2009. Shelby was soooo excited!
Pastor Stan and Shelby....before....

And...AFTER!!! Yay!!!

Shelby's Awards

2009-11-13T10:08:00.003-06:00

Here's Shelby at the Awards Assembly. She got Perfect Attendance and A/B Honor Roll!

Every month a student is chosen from each class at school to be the Good Citizen of the month. Shelby received this honor and we got treated to a breakfast and Shelby was recognized by her teacher for being responsible and keeping everyone on track in her classroom.

Here's Shelby's principal reading what her teacher had to say about her.

Halloween Fun

2009-11-13T09:59:00.004-06:00

Shelby's piano teacher had a Halloween Piano Party at her house this year for her students. They had a costume contest (Shelby won the prize for the funniest costume), ate yummy treats and played a piece from memory. Shelby played Halloween Fun.
Our nephew Charley dressed up as his Uncle Bubba for Halloween. Adam LOVED it! It was TOO cute!!

Here's our niece, Katie as Super Cat, Shelby as a HSM Cheerleader, Bethany as Foofa and Charley. They were too cute.

Let Me Introduce Myself...

2009-10-28T12:03:00.004-05:00

Hi! My name is Quincy. I'm pleased to announce I have a new family! I'm so glad because I kind of had a "ruff" life at my old home. But now I'm getting all kinds of love from my new family. Let me see if I can remember their names...there's Shelby-she loves me and gives me all kinds of hugs and sugars. Then there's her little sister Bethany. She's sweet to me too but sometimes I just don't know what she is saying! Jennifer's the mom and Adam's the dad. I like them too. I'm glad they chose me to live with them. I am also glad I have a new friend to play chase with and take naps with. Her name is Lily and she looks a lot like me!

Pumpkin Carving

2009-10-26T14:11:00.004-05:00

Friday night we carved the pumpkin we've had sitting on our front porch since the beginning of October. Shelby drew on the face and I cut it out. I had forgotten how hard it is to actually carve. I had every intention of having this nice, neat pumpkin face when I was done, but.... Anyway, we had fun. The insides feel so gross! All of us (except Adam) dug out the goo. We roasted the seeds. Here's some pics from the fun event:

Goofy Girl

2009-10-22T14:22:00.003-05:00

Bethany went into Shelby's room yesterday. She was in there for a few minutes and was quiet. Should've known something was up and then she came out looking like this:

And yes, that's a sleeping mask around her neck and gloves on her feet. She was pretty proud of her fashion statement!

The Angels in Heaven Are Rejoicing!

2009-10-14T18:40:00.008-05:00

Our prayers are answered! Shelby invited Jesus into her heart tonight and accepted Him as her Lord and Savior!

Over the past couple of years Shelby's had many questions about Jesus and the Bible and we have had many long talks with her. While we were eating dinner tonight she had some more questions. We talked and Shelby finally said, "I want to ask Jesus into my life but I don't know how." Oh my goodness... So off to church we went to talk to our Pastor. He took Shelby aside and asked her questions to determine her level of understanding. She knew that she was a sinner and the only way to get to Heaven was through Jesus. Pastor Stan wanted to pray with her and this was her little but powerful prayer, "I want to ask God into my life and I want him to know that I love him!" Wow! Adam and I couldn't be happier and I know the angels are up in heaven singing and rejoicing because Shelby belongs to Jesus!!

Pumpkin Day!

2009-10-03T16:09:00.008-05:00

It's a beautiful day and a day for PUMPKINS! We went to Pumpkin Day at a place not too far from where we live. We all had so much fun!

The girls rode horses. Shelby rode the big horse and Bethany rode the little one.

Adam was being silly acting like he was kissing a pumpkin.

Bethany tried to pick up 2 or 3 different pumpkins but was never successful.

The girls played in the hay.

They got their faces painted with ghosts.

They played games like Toss the Beanbag into the Pumpkin.

Grammy took the girls on a hayride.

Drama Queen

2009-10-02T09:17:00.005-05:00

Shelby participated in a Theatre Workshop last weekend and had such a good time. They spent the afternoon playing improv games, taking a tour backstage, they got to put on make-up, etc. Here's a picture of Shelby coming up out of the trap door of the stage. As you can see by her smile, she enjoyed herself very much. Is it possible we have a drama queen on our hands???

**Please forgive the picture. It was a scan.**

Pretty Weather

2009-10-02T09:05:00.007-05:00

Bethany's looking at the pretty water below.

Adam and his girls.

Pretty Shelby. (I guess Beth wanted to be in the picture too!)

"Cheese!"

Bethany LOVES to swing.

We have been having gorgeous weather here lately, well....when it's not raining anyway. It definitely is finally beginning to feel more like fall. We've had lots of opportunities to enjoy being outside since it's not so hot. We went to the park recently and I wanted to share a few pics with you.

Little Miss Smarty Pants

2009-09-14T10:36:00.004-05:00

Just thought I'd share Shelby's papers she brought home the other day. We're so proud of her!

What's been going on lately...

2009-08-26T09:47:00.004-05:00

**Shelby's well into her first week of school. She's loving it but is still trying to get back into the school routine again.

**We're still working on our bathroom. The walls are up. Texture and paint is on. Shower walls and pan are assembled. Light is up (and working!) Vent/Fan is up (and working!) We still need the frame for the shower and shower door finished, flooring and baseboards. I also need to paint our cabinets. We are soooo excited! Can't wait to have a SHOWER again. We've been working on our bathroom since last October and are so ready to have it finished and behind us! I'll post pics of the finished product when we get it all done. Hopefully it won't be too much longer!

**We're working on potty training Beth. I've got to get the timing thing right though. She knows what to do. She's done it before but I usually don't catch her in time and she has an accident. I've started setting a timer for every fifteen minutes so we can go to the potty every time the timer goes off and we'll see how that works. She also has sticker chart that she can put stickers on every time she goes potty. I did the same thing with Shelby so I hope it works with Beth too.

**Oh, if you've read Adam's blog, you'll notice we had some drama the other night around here. Not the kind of drama I was hoping for either!

That's all for now. I'll try to post more often. I don't know what's been wrong with me. Guess I haven't been in a blogging mood here lately! Hope everyone has a great day today!

Back to School

2009-08-19T07:45:00.004-05:00

We survived the first-morning-back-to-school madness! We got up and dressed, ate a good breakfast, said a prayer and off to school we went for Shelby's first day of first grade. It was a little easier to leave her for the day with this being her second year of school UNTIL Adam, Bethany and I got back into the car to go home/work and what did we hear on the radio? Cinderella by Steven Curtis Chapman. I almost lost it but quickly turned off the radio! Why do our kids have to grow up so fast?!

Shelby got her ears pierced!

2009-08-13T11:18:00.001-05:00

Busy, Busy, Busy

2009-07-24T10:58:00.016-05:00

I know... it's been so long since I last posted! A lot's been going on lately. Here's my list:

*Shelby's Art Camp

Shelby participated in Art Camp a few of weeks ago. She had so much fun creating new things each day that went a long with a theme. She's very creative and uses her imagination so this was right down her alley.

*V. B. S.

Our church had V.B.S. a couple of weeks ago. The theme was Crocodile Doc. The kids learned that , 1. God is with us, 2. God is powerful, 3. God does what He says He will do, 4. God cares for us.

*Hereford, TX

My Mom, the girls and I went to Hereford to visit my Grandad, Aunt, Uncle, and cousins. It was fun! On the way back home I got to meet up with a very dear friend of mine. We haven't seen each other since high school. It was so good to give her a great big hug and watch our girls play together!

*MOMents

Our church started a new Women's Ministry called MOMents (emphasis on MOM) since we no longer have a MOPS (Mother of Preschoolers) group anymore. We had our first informational meeting last week. The group was started so that moms of all ages who have kids of all ages could come together and fellowship. We'll have speakers sometimes but mainly it's another way for moms to talk with other moms and encourage and uplift. I think it's going to be a really good thing!

*Bathroom Remodeling

We've been slowly but surely working on our Master Bathroom. We took it down to this:

We've replaced a BIG weak spot in the floor, moved a drain for the new corner shower, put in a new vent/fan, closed in a window, worked with our very old plumbing...(When I say we, it was mostly Adam and his Dad! I'm so not good at that stuff!) We need to have some electrical work down so we can actually hook up the vent/fan and lights, then we can have the dry wall put up and texture on, toilet and sink in and then shower installed. Painting will be next. I'm either going to paint it chocolate brown or blue. I'm not sure yet. Either will go with the bedroom. We will put new flooring in and then have to finish the trim! Whew. We've been working on this a very long time but Adam and I have come to the conclusion that in the future when it comes to major projects we just might hire someone to do them! I'm REALLY proud of Adam though. He used to say that he was NOT a handyman but I don't agree. He may not be able to just go in a do something, but if he reads up on it, he does it! He's a smarty! Needless to say, we will be soooo glad to have our bathroom back!!

*Gymnastics, Swimming and Piano Lessons

Shelby will finish up her last gymnastics lesson of the summer tonight. She won't go back to that until September.

Today was her second day of swimming lessons. She actually got to jump off of the diving board today! She said she was scared at first but after that she had so much fun! She jumped off FIVE times and swam back all by herself! I was so proud and NERVOUS!

Next week she starts piano lessons. The lady that we wanted Shelby to take them from finally had an opening. I'm so excited for her to learn. Hopefully I can remember enough to help her out. Maybe I'll start practicing again since we will have the keyboard out all the time...

Still Hungry

2009-07-11T20:25:00.004-05:00

I had to catch this sweet moment on video! Adam was reading one of Bethany's most favorite books, The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle, and Bethany was filling in the words! It was the cutest thing!

He Said She Said

2009-07-09T21:05:00.003-05:00

My hubby Adam just started a new blog entitled Adam Bomb (which is his term of endearment for his 1996 Ford Taurus) to tell of his experiences and share funny stories. From time to time I may write of the same experience. So as the famous radio commentary Paul Harvey used to say, you will then know "the rest of the story!"

What?!?!?!?!

2009-07-09T18:15:00.003-05:00

Shelby, six, just came in from playing outside with a friend and this was the conversation:

Shel: Mommy, if I clean my room can you give me a crisp $10 bill?
Me: What?
Shel: Well, my friend said if she helps clean her house she gets $5.

Ok, not only is she just going to clean her room but she wants $5 more than what her friend gets for helping clean the whole house!

The answer to her question was no. Reason being, when she gets older she's going to have to do it without pay anyway so she better just get used to it. I could see right through her. If I had paid her this time she might keep a clean room for a while but she would probably be asking me to pay her on a daily basis. I don't think I could afford it! I'm sure she's going to start asking for a weekly or monthly allowance some day soon but I need to figure out what she can do and how much money to give her. I think when I was a kid I got .25 for taking out the trash. What do you do with your kids?

Gymnastics

2009-07-07T10:14:00.012-05:00

Balance Beam

Springboard

Bridge Up

Straddle hold

Chin Up

Flip

Last week (after constant nudges from Shelby) Shelby returned to gymnastics. She's been out for a couple of years. I guess we got too busy with pre k and kindergarten to do many after-school activities. Anyway, she's back and she LOVES it. Above are some pictures from last week's class. She's so ready to go back today!

Ladybug Party!

2009-06-30T11:17:00.014-05:00

Birthday girl!

Cake made by Mom

Picture time!

CAUGHT! She sneakily snuck a bite of cupcake!

Who's cutting the watermelon???

Adam was the birthday boy. He can no longer call me old because I'm in my thirties! Now HE'S 30!!

Luke and Evan

Kelsey, Bailey, Wendi and Bethany

Bethany and Linda

I think Charley liked the watermelon!

Sawyer gave Bethany a birthday kiss! It was so cute!

I don't think Skyler was too happy with his party hat :(

Grammy, MiMi, Aunt Amanda and Glo

Presents!

Baby and purse from Grammy and Pap.

Jorja and her family had just gotten back from a trip. Needless to say she was T-I-R-E-D!

Miranda

Zoe "swimming" in the sand...

Play time! It may not look like it, but Bethany had a lots of fun...it was just so stinkin' HOT that day!

The 3 amigas: Shelby, Annabelle, and cousin Katie.

Bethany just had to try out her tricycle from MiMi and PaPa but it didn't work as well in the grass!

Saturday June 19th from 6-8 pm we had Bethany's 2nd birthday party at the park. It was also Adam's 30th birthday that day so the party was for him too. It was hot, hot, hot but we had some watermelon and lemonade to cool us off. The party theme was ladybugs so Bethany had a ladybug cake and Adam had some chocolate and vanilla cupcakes. The kids played at the playground while the adults visited. Shelby and Bethany were completely covered in sand and sweat when we got home but I think they had fun!

Happy 2nd Birthday, Bethany!!

2009-06-12T07:36:00.004-05:00

My sweet baby girl turns 2 today at around 9 am. I cannot believe how fast the time has flown. It makes me sad sometimes because it seems as though she did not stay a little bitty baby for very long at all. Now she's Miss Independent and wants to be just like big sissy.

Here are some fun facts about Bethany now that she's a big girl:

Bethany loves Elmo. The last professional pics we had made she had to hug a big Elmo doll in between pictures which made her all giggly and smiley. Those pics turned out so cute!
She loves to sing Twinkle Twinkle and the ABC Song.

When she's ready to go to sleep she wants her "big bed."

Anything someone else has is usually hers.

She loves to cook in her little kitchen and serve us coffee.

Bethany and big sissy love to run around the entire house screaming at the top of their lungs. What am I going to do when they grow up? It will be too quiet around here, that's for sure!

HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY MY LITTLE SWEET PEA!

Wonderful Wedding

2009-05-28T09:08:00.008-05:00

Shelby and Katie in their precious flower girl dresses made by Aunt Vinita (Jen's mom).

Beth, Shel and Kate

Poor sick Adam and I

Katie, Amanda, Cory and Charley

Shelby and PaPa dancing at the reception

The beautiful cake! It was so YUMMY too!!

We went to Jen's wedding last weekend. It was so beautiful. The weekend was SUPER busy though. First, we arrived l-a-t-e (try 30 minutes late!) to the rehearsal on Friday evening (EEEEK! So sorry Jen!) We went to the rehearsal dinner and then to bachelorette/bachelor parties. The kids stayed with MiMi and PaPa. Saturday we hurried to do some shopping for last minute items and I DO NOT like to hurry when I shop! Jen, Amanda and I went to get our nails done that afternoon. Wonderful! Adam felt like he was coming down with something that afternoon also. He went to our hotel room that evening and slept. He woke up Sunday feeling worse so he slept practically ALL day! He had fever/chills/sore throat/headache, etc..... Turns out he had Strep Throat! He did manage to make it to the wedding to do the music after several doses of Dayquil. The wedding was GORGEOUS! I had the honor of being one of Jen's bridesmaid's. Shelby and Katie were adorable flower girls and they also had the honor of releasing two white doves at the end of the reception. You can go to Amanda's blog if you'd like to see the girls releasing the doves. Charley was the little ring bearer but he just couldn't stand being in that wagon any longer! He looked so cute in his little suit! The reception was wonderful and the food was great. Now Mike and Jen are on a cruise to the Bahamas and then off to Vegas. I hope they have a wonderful Honeymoon and beginning to their new lives together. They are such a sweet couple!

The Shoe Fanatic

2009-05-21T16:45:00.001-05:00

Holy Cow! (I mean BUG!!)

2009-05-21T08:59:00.003-05:00

Is this a dragon fly? We saw it the other day and I was shocked! I've never seen a bug this big before! If that thing had landed on me I think I would've had a heart attack!

** On a side note I am absolutely THRILLED that Kris (on American Idol) won!!! He was my most favorite all along! Yay Kris!!! **

So it's come down to this?

2009-05-13T08:37:00.006-05:00

"Do not go in my room."

**The sign above was posted on this bedroom door yesterday due to big sister's irritation of little sister's ability to slip into big sister's room and make a mess. Little sister just wants to have fun and be just like big sister. Little does big sister know that little sister cannot read this sign. Little sister will probably continue to enter big sister's room anyway and have fun while frustrating big sister!

Mother's Day 2009

2009-05-11T10:06:00.007-05:00

I hope everyone had an awesome Mother's Day! Saturday I was treated to dinner at Outback. I love that place! Adam and the girls also gave me a gift certificate for a mani/pedi which I had been hinting for (a little too loudly!) I'm going to use it before Jen's wedding which is in a couple of weeks. I've been really taking care of my nails so I wouldn't break one of them. But, guess what? I broke one of them on Saturday! Ugh! Hopefully if it doesn't grow out in time I can get a tip put on.

Thank you for a great day, family. I love you!!

Randomly Random Randomness

2009-05-08T07:49:00.007-05:00

We've had a lot of rain lately and I do mean A LOT! Yesterday was the first mostly sunny day we've had in I don't know how long. It did much to lift the spirits after so many gray and W-E-T days! Here's a video I took of the river going through town. Can you hear the water rushing?

Our church's Children's Choir performed We Can Praise on Wednesday night. They did such a good job. My heart just swells with pride over my Shelby!

Have you seen the new show on LMN called Cook Yourself Thin? If you haven't, you should! It's about these 3 women who show you how to cook the things you love (hamburgers, spaghetti, Caesar Salad, etc.) with fewer calories so you can drop a dress size in 6 weeks! I really want their cookbook! Although, you can find some of the recipes on the LMN website. Check it out here.

Way to go, Shelby!!

2009-05-04T08:49:00.006-05:00

We're so proud of Shelby and how much she's accomplished in kindergarten. Here lately she's received several awards and I'd like to share them with you. 1. She's reached and passed her 1,000 Koalaty point goal and she received a trophy. 2. Her teacher chose her to be Good Citizen of the Month. We got to eat a special breakfast with her at school and she was given an award. Her teacher said she always comes into class with a big smile that brightens every one's day. 3. She got a Great Singer award from her Choir teacher at church. 4. She also got a certificate and was in the newspaper for being in the Art Club at school! Whew! We think she's doing so great!

Little Bit of This and a Little Bit of That

2009-04-24T12:08:00.005-05:00

Not much has been going on lately so there hasn't been many interesting things to post about.
I've been babysitting a friend's little girl most of this week which meant a play mate for Bethany. She loved it!
My allergies are going CrAzY!
I have not started sewing my curtains for the back door but hope to next week.
We're going to Relay for Life tonight at which Adam will be the MC. My mom's going too for the first time.
Adam and I have been debating on taking a cruise for our 10th anniversary or going back to Mexico. On the one hand Mexico has some weird things going on right now...on the other, we always said we'd go back there on our 10th anniversary. I REALLY want to go back!!
Shelby's almost done with school. Her last day will be June 3rd. I've got to plan some fun stuff to keep her busy...
Still going to the gym and I've made some progress! Yay!
That's about all I can think of right now. Hope everyone has a great weekend!

First Ever Sewing Project Complete!

2009-04-15T12:08:00.003-05:00

Shelby's Dress

Never having sewn before, I was so nervous to start this. I've been wanting to learn to sew for several years but have never taken the time to start. Well, with the MUCH needed help from my mom, the above is my very first item to sew! My mom had to teach me everything from how to thread the machine (which is still confusing to me!) to laying out the pattern and cutting the pieces to putting in a zipper. I very much look forward to sewing more clothes for the girls but don't think I can venture out on my own just yet. I have so much to learn! I could have made the dress a size smaller but I guess Shelby can wear it next year too! My next project is going to be curtains for the back door. Those should be easier than the dress though!

Easter Fun

2009-04-13T12:27:00.008-05:00

My Mom knitted these cute little Easter Bunnies for the girls.

Bethany got the hang of looking for the eggs.

Shelby and Bethany looking for eggs in Grammy and Pap's backyard.

Jorja, Annabelle, Shelby and Bethany after an Easter Egg Hunt at the Rec. Center.

Happy Easter!

2009-04-12T08:40:00.003-05:00

Easter Egg Candy Recipes

2009-04-11T07:43:00.010-05:00

This is a recipe that my Gran used. If you like SWEET sweets, then you'll love this one. It's super EASY!

Easter Eggs

Makes about 25

1 lb. powdered sugar

1/3 c. white corn syrup

1/3 c. butter

1 tsp. vanilla

Sift powdered sugar. Mix together. If tacky, add extra powdered sugar. Add food colorings and roll into balls (or shape into eggs if you can.)

I found this next recipe online that sounds similar to the Cadbury Eggs. I have not tried it yet though.

CREAM-FILLED CHOCOLATE EASTER EGGS Start to finish: 1 1/2 hours
Makes about 20
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
3 pounds powdered sugar, plus extra for dusting
Yellow gel food coloring
2 pounds chocolate melts
In a large bowl, combine the butter, salt and vanilla. Use an electric mixer on medium to beat until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the condensed milk and beat, scraping the bowl as needed, until thoroughly mixed.
Reduce the mixer to low, then add the powdered sugar 1 cup at a time. Continue mixing until it forms a stiff dough. Transfer the mixture to a counter dusted with powdered sugar. Knead until smooth, about 2 to 4 minutes.
Cut away a quarter of the mixture, then add a few drops of yellow gel food coloring to it and knead it in. Use a teaspoon to divide the mixture into about 20 small balls, rolling them between your hands until smooth. Set the balls on a cookie sheet and chill until firm.
Divide the white dough into about 20 larger pieces (you will need an equal number of white and yellow pieces), rolling each into roughly an egg shape. Press a thumb into the center of each and place one of the yellow balls into it.
Gently work the white filling around the yellow ball, covering it completely. Gently shape each piece into an oval. Set aside on a cookie sheet and chill again.
Place the chocolate melts in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high in 20-second bursts, stirring between each, until melted and smooth. One at a time, use a fork to dunk each egg into the chocolate to coat it completely, the set on parchment or waxed paper to set.
Eggs should be stored in the refrigerator until served.

No More Crib...

2009-04-07T21:22:00.004-05:00

22 Months

Yet another sign my baby girl is growing up...she's sleeping in her big girl bed for the first time tonight! Sniff, sniff!

Spring Break TEXAS Style

2009-03-31T09:59:00.026-05:00

Here's a West Texas Prairie Dog. Look at that belly!

I thought these flowers were gorgeous!

We love going to the River Walk.

Shelby liked looking at the replica of an old western town.

The Buckhorn Museum.

Shelby thought it was pretty neat to be inside a bubble.

Bethany enjoyed "talking" on the phone at the Children's Museum.

Adam carefully explained the history of the Alamo to Shelby but don't know if she quite got it just yet!

PaPa and MiMi in front of the Alamo.

Shelby's with one of the Alamo interpreters.

I guess I'm the Bird Whisperer. This bird stayed on my hand a good 2-3 minutes before Adam finally had to literally knock him off! He kept licking my hand???!!!

These birds remind Adam and I of Mexico...Good times!

Butterfly Girl

Poor Adam and MiMi suffered from some pretty mean allergies!

Bethany wasn't thrilled to be sitting on the Kimono Dragon...

The flamingos were so pretty and Shelby too!

Us on the train about to go on a ride around the zoo. Shelby and Bethany thought it was the greatest.

We had a fun Spring Break '09 last week. We spent the first part of the week in San Antonio and the other half of the week at MiMi and PaPa's. While in SA we went to the zoo, the Buckhorn and Children's Museum, the Alamo and took a boat ride down the River. We ate some really good food (the homemade tortillas and breakfast tacos were my most favorite) and walked A LOT. The weather was perfect. It was a little cool in the mornings but warmed up nicely in the afternoons. The last half of the week we went to Adam's parent's house where we r-e-l-a-x-e-d! It was so nice to not be in the car and have home cooked meals! We talked and laughed and talked and laughed some more! It was nice.

Snaggletooth Smile

2009-03-30T07:36:00.003-05:00

Shelby lost her fifth tooth yesterday. This tooth actually came out all by itself, no intervention by the dentist! She was scared for Adam to pull it at first. (I can't bring myself to pull a tooth!) But she said that she just HAD to do it and get it over with. After a 1, 2, 3 the tooth popped out and she was so proud of herself. She couldn't quit smiling all day. She kept saying Christmas over and over again to see if she had a whistle!

That Was a CLOSE Call!

2009-03-19T13:56:00.006-05:00

I should know better than to avoid silence when it comes to Bethany. If it's quiet and she's not in her bed asleep....something's up. Today I was cleaning out the car and I had set a pair of earrings and some gum on the kitchen counter and had gone into Shelby's room to put something up. I came back in the kitchen, after noticing the quietness, and immediately smelled something sweet and fruity...The gum! Where's the gum?! Then I saw four little gum wrappers on the table along with a great big grin on Bethany's cute little face! Yep, she was the culprit. She chewed and SWALLOWED FOUR PIECES OF GUM!!! A few minutes later after playing in her room, she comes back into the kitchen with something in her mouth. Like I do one hundred times a day I say, "Bethany, what's in your mouth?" She spits out ONE earring. I panic and ask where the other one is (the whole time she's just a grinnin'). Adam and I kept asking her where the other earring was thinking she had surely swallowed it and finally Bethany looks under Adam's chair and picks up the earring! Phew!! Crisis averted...well, hopefully anyway. I hope that gum doesn't clog her up!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

2009-03-17T07:17:00.005-05:00

or as Shelby says, "Leprechaun" Day

Spring is Almost Here!

2009-03-13T09:16:00.006-05:00

Shelby in our backyard

more backyard

Bethany's funny face as she smells the flowers

daffodils

Bethers

Well, at the beginning of the week it was on the warm side. Trees are blooming, flowers can be seen....now it's cold and rainy! I'm so ready for the warm weather to come back. The week of Spring Break we are going to be in San Antonio where it's going to be in the mid to upper 70's. I can't wait!

Peas

2009-03-02T13:16:00.005-06:00

Bethany: "I want a cookie."

Me: "No, Bethany. You can't have a cookie."

Bethany: "I want a cookie, peas!"

Me: giggle "No."

Bethany: "Peas, peas, peas!"

Me: "OK."

NEWS FLASH!!!

2009-03-02T08:24:00.003-06:00

Only a mom could get excited over this one! My Bethany tee-teed in the potty for the first time Saturday night! She hasn't done it since, but she has been good about telling me if she's got a poopy diaper on. Maybe potty training is around the corner?!

Sick Day

2009-02-26T08:58:00.004-06:00

Looks like our day is going to be filled with blankets, pillows, coloring books, Barney and lots of TLC. Both of the girls are sick. Shelby has a bad cough and did have a fever last night. Luckily she doesn't have one today. Bethany, I'm afraid, has the same thing...minus the temp. I can tell they both feel lousy though. Hopefully, we can all get nursed back to health soon. It's so hard seeing the girls sick!

Bethany and her squeaky shoes

2009-02-23T13:02:00.003-06:00

MiMi bought these shoes for Bethany and they just arrived in the mail today. Aren't they the cutest?!

She just had to try them out!

Gators and Valentines

2009-02-16T19:56:00.010-06:00

GATORS:
Saturday we went to an Alligator Farm and Petting Zoo. The girls thought it was great. Bethany tried to feed the deer her sippy cup and Shelby's favorite animal was the white wolf. The girls loved petting the deer, goats and miniature donkey. The alligators were inside a building with the turtles. It was really smelly. It would have been better to see them outside. Maybe when the weather warms up we can go back so we can see them outside.

VALENTINE'S:

Shelby had her Valentine's party at school Thursday. They had ice cream and could choose from all sorts of yumming toppings to add on top.

My Birthday

2009-02-11T11:20:00.003-06:00

So, yesterday was my birthday. And on my birthday I went and worked out for the first time EVER in a gym. I'm taking a Total Body Fitness class. Yesterday we did step aerobics. Let me tell you, I didn't think I could sweat any more after I finished the class! Boy was it ever a workout! My face was beet red and I was soooo tired afterwards. I guess I didn't realize how truly out of shape I was. I'm going to keep at it though. I'm determined! I'm walking three days a week (3 miles...maybe more) and taking this class two days a week. I hope I can do it!

When I got home, Adam and the girls had supper cooked and on the table. They sang Happy Birthday to me after which Bethany said, "Happy to you!" Shelby gave me a precious card she made.

It was a good day!

Precious Moment

2009-02-05T11:51:00.008-06:00

We listen to KLOVE a lot! We listen in the car, at home, on-line...we love it. Today, I was holding Bethany and cooking lunch and was singing the song that was on. It was Jesus Messiah by Chris Tomlin. Bethany repeated the last word of every line of the chorus! It was so sweet. I pray one day God uses all these little spiritual moments in Bethany and Shelby's life to lead them straight to JESUS.

100th Day of School

2009-02-03T09:32:00.003-06:00

Today is Shelby's 100th day of school. 100 days? I can hardly believe it. The kids are having a party to celebrate. This school year has flown by. In just 4 short months Shelby will be enjoying her summer vacation!
Shelby's in a Reading Counts program at school. She has already checked out two books, read them herself and has taken a quiz over her first book entitled I Can Ski. She got 4/5 questions right! Wow! She's off to a good start!
She's still enjoying her art club which meets every Friday afternoon. Last semester Mr. Andrus, her art teacher, chose her to be in the club! She does special art projects and just has a lot of fun.
We are in the process of finding her a piano teacher. My mom taught me piano when I was little and I hope Shelby takes it up as well. I think she will really enjoy it.

KFC Commercial

2009-01-28T08:33:00.003-06:00

We were watching American Idol last night and a KFC commercial came on. As clear as a bell Bethany said, "I want chicken." She said a complete sentence with more than two words and she is 19 months old! Needless to say, we were all shocked!

Update

2009-01-27T09:11:00.001-06:00

I talked to my Grandad this morning and he is at home now. He's not feeling that great but is doing some better. Please continue praying for a quick recovery and for him to get to feeling normal again. Thanks for all of your prayers thus far!

My Sweet Girls

2009-01-26T12:50:00.007-06:00

Here lately Bethany has been pleasantly surprising me with spontaneously I Love You's and big hugs. In the mornings, to let us know she is awake, she yells as loudly as she can for Adam and I. Whoever gets to her first is greeted with a big smile and hello. Her favorite thing to watch on tv right now is the Wiggles. She dances up a storm when they come on. Her new dance is one where she moves her hips from side to side. The other day when Shelby was crying, Bethany went over to her with such a concerned look on her face, patted Shelby and said, "Cying!" Sweetheart.

Shelby is also a gem. When she sees that I am really tired, she's always quick to ask if there's anything she can help me with. She has such a big heart. She's taken up cooking with mommy. I really enjoy it. I hope she remembers cooking with me when she has a kitchen of her own. Shelby's a mother hen, too. Most of the time when Bethany is upset or crying, Shelby runs to the rescue to see if there is anything she can do to help. She's been that way ever since Bethany was born.

When Adam gets home, the first thing he hears from the girls is a screaming DADDY! He eats that up! Then the girls have to have hugs and kisses before they go on their way.

Prayers Needed

2009-01-22T20:32:00.002-06:00

I just found out that my eighty year old Grandad that the girls and I visited recently is in the hospital with pneumonia. He's also very dehydrated. Please pray for a quick recovery. My aunt and uncle live where my Grandad lives so luckily he has them near.

Aches, Pains and Complaints

2009-01-22T19:48:00.005-06:00

I didn't know that when I turned thirty that would be the magical time for aches and pains to appear. I don't mean to complain...well, yes I do...but it seems like I've either got knots in my shoulders or back or a stiff neck or just plain tired! Luckily Adam has the magic touch and can work out my knots. He gets tired of me saying, " Adam, can you rub my shoulders?"
I am going to start working out though. I'm excited about taking the Total Body Fitness class at the gym. I soooo hope I can lose some weight. Maybe I'll feel better. Wish me luck!

I've been tagged!

2009-01-14T08:13:00.006-06:00

Monica (from A Day in the Life!) just tagged me!

Here is what you do:

1. Go to your 4th folder where you store your photos.
2. Select your 4th picture (no exceptions)!
3. Post the picture with an explanation and link it back to your tagger.
4. Tag 4 people to do the same!!

The whole fam was watching tv one night and Adam grabbed the camera and just took a random shot. There's not very many pictures of the kids and I and I'm glad he takes at least a few so the girls will know what their mom looked like when they were little!

So, ladies....you're next!

Amber from Raising Rascals

Mandy from "Blog Title Here"

Alison from Buscher 3 and 1

Amanda from Life of a "Trophy" Wife

My Koalaty Kid

2009-01-09T16:50:00.005-06:00

Shelby's school has incentives for the students to be on their best behavior that are called koalaty points (koala bear/quality). For every 100 points a child receives, he/she gets prizes. If a child does a good deed or is on their best behavior they can earn koalaty sticks. These sticks along with points earned from reading books each week are combined together to obtain the amount of points each child has. Shelby has reached the 500 point mark so she earned herself a t-shirt! Just 500 more points to go and she can get the top prize which is a trophy. I'm very proud of her hard work and good manners at school!

New Years in Texas

2009-01-08T14:33:00.016-06:00

For New Years my Mom and I and the girls visited my Grandad, aunt/uncle and cousins in Hereford. It was a looooong trip...we split the trip into two days so we could make pit stops along the way. It took us the better part of two days to get there! We enjoyed seeing the family. Here's a few pictures from the trip:

Courtney and her shadow.

Shelby and Brynna getting ready to ride horses! Shelby was THRILLED!

Uncle Wes and Aunt Janna helped Bethany ride for the first time!

Shelby and Reagan

My Grandad, Uncle Wes, Aunt Janna, Courtney, Bethany, me, Brynna, Reagan, and Shelby

Grandad, Reagan, Wes, Courtney, Brynna, Mom, Shelby, Bethany and me.

My Grandad and the girls.

Bethany was getting sleepy. Can you tell?

One of the many pit stops we took along the way. The girls ran and ran and ran!

Better Late Than Never: Pics from Christmas '08

2009-01-08T14:16:00.006-06:00

Milk-n-cookies for Santa

Lots of presents!

Bethany "taking a picture"

Bethany's checking out Nipper the Cat

The girls opening their presents from Grammy and Pap

Christmas lunch at Mom and Dad's
consisting of:

Ham, 7 layer salad, sweet potato souffle', cheddar-garlic biscuits, stuffing, pecan/pumkin pie and Red Velvet Cake!

9 Years

2009-01-07T23:09:00.004-06:00

01/08/00

9 years ago I took his last name.

9 years ago I promised to love, honor and obey.

9 years ago his half made me whole.

I love you, Adam!

Happy Anniversary!

Christmas 2008 Summary

2008-12-30T09:46:00.007-06:00

I hope you all had a very nice Christmas with your families! We did. Christmas Eve and Morning was spent at our house. Shelby and I made frosted sugar cookies and milk for Santa. We set out the reindeer food. Adam read 'Twas the Night Before Christmas to the girls. He also read of Jesus' birth. Shelby woke us up REALLY early on Christmas morning. She had already peeked in the living room to make sure Santa left the gifts. The girls tore into their presents in a matter of seconds to reveal their goodies. Shelby's favorite gift was her hot pink MP3 player with Hannah Montana headphones. I think Bethany's was her Dora the Explorer ride-on car. We watched a bit of the Disney Christmas parade and then off we went to Grammy and Pap's where we opened presents and ate a yummy lunch. The next morning we got in the car again and took the 6 hour trip to visit my sister/brother-in-law, niece and nephew and mother/father-in-law. Shelby and Katie played so much. We barely ever saw them! Bethany does not have the "nice" concept down yet. She tackled Charley and whacked him on the head several times. Poor Charley! Bethany loves her cousin but she had a funny way of showing it! Amanda and I went to go see a movie, which was a lot of fun. We decided we were going to make that a Christmas tradition. Cory, Adam, Katie and Shelby played laser tag. This was Shelby's first time to play. I'm not sure she liked it too much because she said the music was really loud and it was dark! She stayed with Uncle Cory or Daddy the whole time. I have to tell you Adam and Shelby's names for their game...Adam was the Bubbanator and Shelby was the Shelbinator! HaHa!
Pictures are coming soon. Right now I'm getting last minute things together for another trip. Today, my mom, Shelby, Beth and I are going to visit my Grandad and Aunt and Uncle in NW Texas. Poor Adam will be all alone. I told him to watch all the "guy movies" he can stand while I'm gone! He'll be working on getting our bathroom back in order, too. (We're remodeling the bathroom in our bedroom.) I'm excited to see what all he's done while I'm gone. I think all that should keep him pretty busy! We'll sure miss him though!!

Happy 2009!

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-24T16:33:00.002-06:00

From Adam, Jennifer, Shelby and Bethany!

One, Two, Tree...

2008-12-19T10:11:00.005-06:00

Bethany Tidbits

2008-12-17T09:57:00.009-06:00

Bethany's 1st Pigtails!!
18 months

Bethany has declared her favorite food as I CEAM (ice cream). Every time I ask her if she is hungry she insists on I CEAM.
She is learning how to sing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star in her own little way.
The other day she brought me the TV remote and said giggles (Wiggles).
When she hears music she stops and twirls.
She still adores her gankie (blankie) and has to have it every time she gets sleepy. She has just recently been asking for a baby when she takes her naps.
She loves saying her name, "Dethany."
If you're not careful when you open the refrigerator, you'll get plowed down in an attempt to get to the GAPES (grapes).
Her answer to everything, regardless the question, is either K or NO.
When asked what Santa Claus says she heartily replies, "Ho, Ho, Ho!"

It's a Teddy Bear Christmas!

2008-12-13T12:20:00.017-06:00

Shelby's getting ready to say her lines...

Ugggh! I forgot her glasses!

Last week Shelby performed in her very first musical at school. It was called A Teddy Bear Christmas. She was to be a Grandma bear so we fixed her up with some glasses, an apron and some beads. She was adorable. A little girl from her class was sick and couldn't be in the play so Shelby had to say her line and the other girl's line as well. Her daddy gave her a rose after her last performance yesterday. She was super excited!

Sorry the camera was shaky! I was holding Bethany and trying to film!

"Daddy, thank you for my rose!"

Snowman Overalls for the Girls

2008-12-12T13:03:00.004-06:00

I just had to share this picture with you. Grammy (my mom) made these adorable overalls for the girls. They turned out so cute! I told her she needed to start selling them.

BTW, the buttons on Shelby's snowman are from my Great Grandmother so it makes it really special.

I'll post some pictures of the girls with their new overalls at a later time.

Christmas Dresses

2008-12-10T11:46:00.005-06:00

Miss Priss

Shelby was telling everyone at church last Sunday that her little sister looked like a ballerina in her dress.

Bethany was not enthused with the photo session.

Shelby said she felt like a princess in her dress.

Leaves, Leaves, Leaves

2008-12-09T13:30:00.007-06:00

Last weekend we decided to tackle the multitude of leaves that our trees so generously dumped in our yard. Usually it takes us 3-4 weekends of back-breaking raking and bagging. This year?
It took us about 4 hours altogether between Bethany's Saturday and Sunday afternoon naps. Adam got a bagging system for his lawnmower last summer which made it tremendously easier to get the job done. Our poor garbage collectors had over fifty big bags full of leaves waiting on them this morning!

The tooth fairy paid Shelby a visit last night!

2008-12-05T08:17:00.012-06:00

Now you see 'em....

Now you don't!

Shelby has lost her first set of teeth! Well, yesterday the dentist pulled her first two teeth. She had a permanent tooth growing in behind her two baby teeth and her baby teeth didn't seem to want to be moving too well, so they had to be pulled. She was pretty scared to have them pulled but she was actually very brave. (I think Adam and I took it harder than she did!) She went in the dentist's office with a smile and came out with a smile so I'd say it went well. When they pulled her little teeth (I couldn't watch!) and they put them in the tooth fairy box and I finally saw them, I cried and Adam told me I was making Shelby afraid so I quickly tried to put on a brave face. After all, that was my baby's first baby teeth to lose!

We have been telling Shelby that when she loses her teeth the Tooth Fairy will come while she's sleeping and leave her some money. We told her the REALLY GOOD kids will get a golden coin for every tooth. Sure enough, Shelby awoke to TWO shiny, new golden coins. She was excited!

Here's what the Tooth Fairy left!

Shelby's Reading!

2008-12-03T11:12:00.004-06:00

Sam is fit. Fit Sam.
Tim is fit. Fit Tim.
Sam sat. Tim sat.
Sam is fat. Fat Sam!
Tim is fat.
Fat Tim.
Fan Sam! Fan Tim!

From a very young age Shelby has been very interested in books. Not too long after she learned to talk, she'd sit down with her books and tell a creative story from the pictures on the pages. Now she doesn't have to do that anymore! She's reading! I can't believe how much she's learning every day.

Thanksgiving 2008

2008-12-03T10:45:00.007-06:00

Jen and Beth
Cameron, Grandma and Billy
It was so hard for Bethany to keep her hands off of Abby. Poor Abby!

Sweet hugs from Grandma!

We had a really good Thanksgiving! I hope you all did as well.
We traveled 8 hours to get to our family in West Texas. Adam's Aunt Vinita and Uncle Scott hosted and we had a lot of fun. Vinita made it look so easy. She and Cindy had everything prepared by the time we arrived at 11:30! Everything was so good! Yes, Uncle Scott, even your turkey! Yum! Shelby practically lived outside playing ball with cousins Cameron, Jeff and Josh. Bethany ran around EVERYWHERE! The adults visited and had a good time. Adam tried to deer hunt, with no luck. We got to see Grandma Dorman. We don't get to see her very often, so it was good to see her. We all had a really nice time!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2008-11-26T15:00:00.001-06:00

MySpace Graphics & Free Myspace Layouts

Thanksgiving

2008-11-26T14:20:00.010-06:00

Today my friend Amber made a list of the things she is Thankful for. It inspired me to do the same. God has blessed our family so richly that it's going to be hard to narrow everything down. I need not only be thankful during this time of year, but all year long. I seem to get bogged down with all the negativity and I need to stop and be grateful for what God has given me on a daily basis, not just at Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Togetherness: time with Adam, Shelby, Bethany and all my family and friends.

HOLY Word of God/Bible: God's instruction manual.

Adam: my high school sweetheart, the love of my life.

Necessities.

Kindness.

Shelby and Bethany: my two beautiful daughters.

Good news.

Imagination.

Victories big and small.

Innumerable blessings.

New life.

God's abounding love and saving Grace.

Everyone, have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Tree Trimming Time

2008-11-25T10:39:00.008-06:00

Patches found a new napping spot underneath the tree

We are going to be traveling for Thanksgiving so we decided to get the tree up early this year. I have never put our tree up this early before. We listened to Christmas music and sang along as we trimmed the tree. Bethany even got in on the action this year!

Which is Which?

2008-11-23T09:06:00.004-06:00

Now that I have cut Bethany's bangs (for the very first time!) I can see that she looks even more like her big sis. It's uncanny! Can you tell which is which?

Shelby's Birthday Party

2008-11-19T10:21:00.008-06:00

Gabby, Miranda, Shelby and Annabelle

When: Saturday, November 15, 2008

Time: 3:00

Where: Shelby's House

Shelby just HAD to have a Hannah Montana themed birthday party this year. She requested a rainbow birthday cake. I made lime punch (Sprite and lime sherbet), pigs in a blanket and green grapes. Shelby invited 3 of her closest friends. She had a sleepover following the party. I wasn't sure how the sleepover was going to turn out with there being 5 girls with ages ranging from 17 months to 6, but it went well. We rented Kung Fu Panda (which didn't get watched, except by Adam), the girls played and played and played and then requested to watch Cinderella III before going to bed. That seemed to settle them down. They were all actually asleep by 9 pm! Can you believe it?