Where has the time gone?!?!

It has been 2 months since I have blogged. We have been super busy, but it is still hard for me to believe so much time has passed! In the past 2 months, we have packed up and moved into our new house! It was such a bittersweet time; packing up and moving on always is to me. But this time, we left the home I brought my sweet baby Bowen home to and my sister and her family one house away. Plus, we had the BEST neighbors (in addition to the Curry's) in the history of neighbors! I miss being able to hang out with Mon and Leisha while our boys run around, but luckily, we go back often. On the VERY bright side, we FINALLY are in our VERY OWN HOME!! It has been a long time coming, but it feels good to be somewhere that is not temporary. We can finally do just what we want to do and we couldn't be more excited!!!! It has taken a little while to get everything fixed and how we want it, but it is coming together!

Crockett got glasses!!! This is another BIG event that has taken place at our house! At his last well-check, Dr. G told us his vision needing watching, but she wasn't worried about it, so neither was I. Well, fast-forward 6 months… I was walking to pick him up from his class one afternoon, when Mrs. Reibel pulled me aside and told me that Crockett had failed the vision screening at school that day. I asked him when we were in the car and he told me that it was hard to see. Bad mom. I had no idea. We went to the eye doctor the next day and sure enough, his vision in his right eye is BAD. His prescription is 20/30 (+.75) in his left eye and +4 in his right eye. She was hopeful that we can retrain his vision in that eye and get it close to 20/20 since he is still developing. In the mean time, I have a handsome, grown-up, smart looking 4 year old! He has done so great with his new glasses and all of his friends think they are cool :) Sure makes a momma's heart happy to hear that! I couldn't be more proud of how he has handled this change. He just makes me smile!

We also made a couple of visits to the Pumpkin Patch this year. That is always so much fun and Crockett loves to pull the wagon and pick pumpkins ALL BY HIMSELF! He and I went on a Wednesday, which is our 'date day'. Bowen goes to school until 2:45, so for that one afternoon, Crockett and I have some time to ourselves. It is my favorite day of the week. I know that one-on-one time for he and I is getting more and more precious as he gets older, so I really treasure these times. We had to go back a few days later, though, because I just couldn't let my little bear miss out on the pumpkin patch!! Love these two boys and all the little boy energy that surrounds them :)

We had a SUPER FUN Halloween this year. We went back to our old stomping grounds and went Trick or Treating with the Curry's & Gonzalez's. It was so fun to watch this little posse of boys go from house to house :) Crockett and Braidy were minions (HILARIOUS!!) Quinny was Buzz Lightyear, Bowen was a horsey, Jackson was Donald Duck and Jamison was Mickey Mouse. I wish I had taken a picture of all of them together, but I didn't. It was a nice night for being out. That neighborhood is full of the nicest people and we just had a BLAST!

And last, but definitely not least, I must say how much Bowen has grown!!! He is quite the ornery little boy, who is constantly making us laugh, smile, shake our heads, who is always giving hugs and kisses and making us fall more and more in love with him. He is very vocal and is saying Mama, Dada, ba (ball), USH! (Hush! to Saydi. Don't know where he heard that!), hi, bye and he says please, thank you, all done and more in sign language. He loves school, and despite a couple of incidents, biting :(, he has done really well and doesn't cry at all anymore. He wants to do everything by himself, especially when he sees big brother doing it. He is quite the entertainer and loves to make us laugh. At 17 months, I can honestly say, I have never been more worn out by him and his brother, but I (and I think Chris feels the same) have never been happier or more in love with the boys in my life.

So that KIND OF catches me up to where we are now. Of course, I skipped some things, but we will pick up from here and look forward to all that 2013 has left for us. I feel so very blessed to be where we are right now.

Big Boy Bowen!!

Bowen got to start school the day after Crockett! He is going to PDO twice a week, and although he might not be thrilled about it when the time comes, I really think he will have a great time! I remember when Crockett started school and he seemed so much older than Bowen for some reason. He wasn't. My baby isn't a baby anymore :( He was so EXCITED and looked so cute with his backpack on, just like Big Brother's!! Bowen got to take a lunch and a nap mat (which they said he napped on, amazingly!) and just seemed so grown up. He had a few tears as I handed him off (tore him off my shirt :) which made it slightly hard, but he had already quit crying when I went back to check on him 5 minutes later. I am so excited to see all the ways he grows over the next few months.

Happy Birthday, Chris!!

Crockett's first day of school just so happened to fall on Chris' birthday! I am about 9 months older than Chris, but for some reason he seems to be much more sensitive about his age :) I think things just seem to keep getting better, and age is just a number.... although, I may not feel the same way in a couple years! This year I surprised (kind of) Chris with front-row tickets to see Don Williams. You may or may not know who he is, and I didn't before I married Chris, but we are BIG fans. So on the night before his actual birthday, we had a date night. We showed up with the rest of the over-70 population for the concert! We were both dying laughing :) We did end up seeing a few younger people, and really, Chris is kind of an old soul anyways, so we fit in just fine. Don Williams was AMAZING! We both loved every second of it.... nothing but great songs. One of the best, most simple, only-about-the-music, concerts I have ever been to. It was a really wonderful way to celebrate my love. 

The next day, September 3rd, we had the Curry's and Lewis' over for a birthday feast! I cooked chicken fried steak and mashed potatoes and Mon brought a delicious squash casseroles! It was delicious! Chris got his favorite meal and then we had a bundt cake and ice cream. Yum! Thank goodness this only happens once a year. I am not sure our waistlines could handle it more than that :) It was totally worth it, though, and I wouldn't have it any other way for my favorite cowboy! I hope this year is your (our) best yet! I love you more than I can ever say. You have blessed my life in ways I never imagined. You are the only person I can imagine growing old with, and I look foward to celebrating many, many more birthdays with you!

Back to School!!!!

I think we were ALL so excited about going back to school! All of Crockett's cousins and friends had already started, so no one was around to play, so it was just that much easier to go back. Crockett was very excited to have Mrs. Holder this year for Pre-K. He has several of his buddies from last year in his class, so that made it even better! He is in the TIGER class and even learned how to sign 'tiger' on the first day! His class is 5 days a week, which will be an adjustment, but I know he is going to learn so much. We are so proud of the smart, creative, imaginative boy he has become and can't wait to see what this year holds for him!!

MY BOYS

My sweet boys are growing up right in front of my eyes. The summer days seemed to go by soooo slowly (don't get me wrong, I love spending my days with both of them, but by August we are ALL ready for a small break from each other!!) but the years are flying by. My sweet long-time friend, Hayly, captured them, at this moment, for me. They both melt my heart with their blue eyes, sweet smiles and love for each other. I could not love them more. My cup runeth over <3 p="">

I wanna be a COWBOY

Crockett has always been my little cowboy. He loves wearing boots, a belt, jeans and a cowboy hat just like his daddy. He loves looking at tractor magazines, feeding the cows and riding in the back of daddy's pickup. He is just Chris, about 29 years ago. And I LOVE that. He has been dying to go to a rodeo lately, so when the Post Stampede Rodeo was going on, Chris just knew he had to take him. He got all dressed up and was SO excited to be going. Crockett decided he wanted to do the Calf Scramble, so Chris lifted him over the stands and he ran out there like he knew exactly what he was doing. Neither one of us could believe he just ran out there like he did, but I think he was just in his element. He didn't get it, but he did get pretty close to a calf! He loved the "buckin' bulls" and had to go elbow his way to the front row to get a real good look at those bulls. That little cowboy makes my heart so happy :) Love the bond these two have. What a fun 1st Rodeo!!

T-Ball Party Time!!

To celebrate the end of the t-ball season and all the awesome Yankee players, the coaches had a skating party for the team! It was such a fun way to end the season and let all of the kids know how proud we were of them. We all went to the oldest skating rink in Lubbock. Literally, all the parents were talking about how WE had our parties there when we were kids!! SO funny :) Crockett had never skated before and although he didn't stick with it for very long, he did really good! They had all kinds of scooters and cars for the babies too! It was such a good time. We all had hot dogs and cake. The works.  We were so blessed to be on such a great team our first year. Crockett loved Coach Juan and Coach Javier and they were so sweet to him. They both exhibited such patience, love, kindness and pride for all of the players. What a fun way to end the season!!

Yankees!!!

It is hard to believe our t-ball season went by so quickly! I thought it was going to last forever, but just like everything else, it FLEW by!! We had such a great group of kids and coaches. We were blessed to be on this Yankees team. Crockett loved it and learned so much. He made lots of friends and can't wait to play with them again next year. At the last game, after they played, each player got a trophy. It was definitely a highlight of the summer :) We are so proud of our little Yankee and can't wait to see him play again next year!!

Swimming!

Since Crockett took swimming lessons earlier in the summer, it only seemed fair that Bowen get to take some lessons too! So, he and I signed up for mommy and me classes at Tech, along with our friends, Hayly and Coy. It was fun, although I am not sure how much they "learned". We got to sing songs and blow bubbles and jump in the water. I even dunked him a few times! He was not amused. Bowen had a great time splashing and playing around and finally figured out how to blow bubbles! He was so proud of himself! On the last day of class, we all got to swim. Crockett played with Grace the whole time and went round and around the lazy river. We had a great time playing with the Hext's for two weeks! I hope we can do it again next summer!!

Braidy turns 5!!!!

It is so hard to believe that one of my very favorite little boys is now 5, and not really that little anymore :( Braidy Spencer turned 5 on July 10 and we were SO excited to help celebrate!!! We began the day with our traditional donuts! I think it was breakfast #2 for him, but you can't start a BIRTHDAY without donuts!! We all sang Happy Birthday and let him blow out the candles. It was a great start to a very special day! After a little playtime, we all went home to get ready for Braidy's special lunch. He could pick ANYWHERE he wanted and, it was no surprise to us, but he wanted Bless Your Heart! This kid LOVES fruit. (I think he has eaten entire watermelons at my house before) And Bless Your Heart has fruit... by the cup-full. He is in heaven :) Such a funny kid! After we all enjoyed our lunch, and Braidy had his fill of fruit, Mon took all of the big boys to go see Despicable Me 2.

That evening Braidy had a PIRATE party! He had been telling me about his PIRATE party since Crockett's birthday, and he never wavered on what he wanted :) It was so much fun!! The kids got to go on a treasure hunt and found treasure, tattoos and a piñata! Everyone had a great time. Braidy got lots of great "treasures" for his birthday. We got him a cowboy hat and some spurs and a "Braidy" chair, Lulu got him some new boots, he got TONS of toys and a NEW BIKE! I would say that was a wonderful way to celebrate turning 5!!

Happy 5th Birthday to my smart, ornery, sweet, silly, playful, funny nephew Braidy!! We love you so much and had so much fun celebrating YOU!!