The Family Stone

2012!!!

2012-02-13T18:29:00.000-08:00

It is always so hard for me to believe another year has passed! Each one seems to go by a little quicker than the one that passed. We had such a wonderful 2011, filled with so many milestones, learning experiences, funny moments, sad moments, lots of laughs and really just 352 days worth of wonderful, special memories!

Our 2012 began with a very BIG move to Lubbock! We were very sad to leave our new friends and Crockett's school in Midland, but it was a good thing for our family. Once the apartment was packed up, Chris and I managed to get everything into our new home... It did take 2 trips to Midland in 1 day... talk about exhausting!! We LOVE our new house and street. It just happens to be 2 houses away from 5 of our FAVORITE people! The Curry's (Ryan, Monica, John, Braidy and Quin) are our new neighbors! It is so much fun and the boy's all want to wake up and go play with each other. They are all such great friends and it is so much fun to watch them play! (And Mon and I really enjoy having our coffee together in the mornings :) Crockett began his new school, Church on the Rock KDO, on January 9. Chris and I both took him, and much to our surprise, he walked right in and started playing. I had really been nervous about how he would react to his new school, only since he LOVED his teachers and friends at FBC so much. He really loved "making new friends". Such a great kid, always surprises me! After we dropped Crockett off at school, we went to a sonogram! When we got there, they asked us if we wanted to know the sex..... AND.................... IT'S A BOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Not really much of a surprise there, for me anyways! I totally had a feeling it was another little boy to add to our family football team :) and we couldn't be more THRILLED! Now if Chris and I can just agree on a name!

We have so much to look forward to in 2012. It has been a great, and very busy, start to the year. Chris is staying so busy with work, Crockett is just growing and learning and amazing me daily and I am enjoying the present, while looking forward to what's to come. Life is good and we can't wait to see what 2012 has in store! I know it is all going to fly by!

Christmas 2011

2012-01-16T15:40:00.000-08:00

Since we were in the middle of packing this Christmas season, we decided to spend Christmas at Lulu and Papaw's house. Crockett and I went on the Thursday before and Chris joined us on Friday (luckily... he almost got snowed/iced in in Midland!). RiRi was already there when we arrived and Crockett and I were SOOOOO EXCITED! Crockett LOVES RiRi... I am sure he wears her out, but she sure is a good sport :) It snowed quite a bit in Midland on that Friday, and luckily, we got just a little of that in Lubbock. Just enough to be able to enjoy it, but not make the roads dangerous.

All the girls and little boys went to ride the Polar Express on Friday evening. It was so fun and something we look forward to each year! Saturday night was Christmas eve, so we all went to Lulu and Papaw's house for dinner. As usualy the boys made it very entertaining! Once Papaw got home, we opened gifts from one another. We usually have a very organized, youngest to oldest routine... this year was slightly different. It was complete and utter CHAOS! The little boys tore into everything in sight and, although there was some minor confusion, it was lots of fun! Once all the gifts were opened, it was bedtime and time to get ready for Santa's arrival!!! Santa came that night and on Sunday morning Crockett got some SUPER FUN surprises! He loved his "toos" (tools) and he got the bike he had been asking for! Chris thinks Santa went a little overboard for Crockett, but I just keep telling him that he was just such a good boy this year :)

We had a wonderful time spending Christmas at Lulu and Papaw's house this year. Our family is truly blessed to be able to share these holiday's with one another and make such special memories.

Polar Express

2012-01-13T19:50:00.000-08:00

A LOT has happened since we rode the Polar Express! I am in catch up mode since we just got our Internet connected at our new house. More on that in a later blog :)

This was our 2nd annual ride on the Polar Express. Lulu takes her boys (and their mommas and Riri) for Christmas and we all LOVE it! It was fun last year, but this year was EVEN BETTER! Crockett watched the movie The Polar Express almost daily this year, so he really understood the train and the ticket and hot chocolate, and best of all Santa and the jingle bell! It was fun to see the excitement in his eyes :)

All 3 boys got dressed in their cute pj's and we were ready to go to the North Pole. They got cookies (Quin liked those the best :) and hot chocolate. We saw elves and the conductor and FINALLY got to meet Santa! The big boys loved him... Quinny... not so much. The boys were really wired after that and danced and played in the aisle the rest of the train ride home!

It was so much fun and is a tradition we look forward to every year. Thanks LuLu for taking us for a ride on the Polar Express!!

Home for the Holidays!

2011-12-19T14:44:00.001-08:00

This year we went to Holliday the weekend before Christmas to celebrate with the Stone's. I was quite bummed because Chris wasn't able to go with us... he had to stay behind and work in Midland, so it didn't really feel like Christmas, but we had a great time anyways! We had a big Christmas lunch consisting of Branding Iron BBQ and all the fixins (if you are from Wichita Falls, you know how yummy this is!) on Saturday and opened presents after lunch! Crockett couldn't stand the wait... he kept saying "I open presents now, momma!" He couldn't wait to tear into his gifts! He got lots of fun stuff, Thomas the Tank Engine books, play-doh, clothes, a Bible, a big ball to bounce on, and a couple tractors. As soon as he opened the tractors, he told me "I need dirt, Momma!" A couple minutes later Emily, my niece, came in and told me Crockett was in the sand box by himself... with his tractors :) All of the kids got to play, Mimi was there and got to see all of her grandkids and we all got to spend some time together. It was so much fun!

After all the fun had been had, Crockett and Rich (and their mommas) had to go take naps. Little boys without naps are no good! After a great nap, Greg took Crockett, Rich and I for a ride on his tractor. I didn't intend on going, but Crockett wasn't going without me! He loved every minute of it! We drove around for about an hour and looked for cows and finally found them! That made Crockett and Rich VERY happy :)

It was such a pretty evening, so we decided to go to the Fantasy of Lights. It is at Midwestern State University and just a lot of Christmas scenes made up of different characters and LOTS of lights! Crockett really enjoyed it and I enjoyed watching his face light up when he recognized Mickey or Dumbo, and especially Baby Jesus :)

We had to go visit Hotshot while we were in town too! It is so precious to see Crockett with Hotshot... he just loves him and I have to imagine that is how Chris was when he was younger. We went outside (despite the freezing wind) and walked around, with Crockett leading the way. He knew exactly where he wanted to go (to the water and to the tractor) and what he wanted to do (throw rocks, "drive" the tractor and swing). Hotshot got a kick out of his newfound independence :) After a little outside time, we went inside and Crockett played with Hotshot and Maryann's train they have under their tree. He loved it last year, and knew it was supposed to be there. He even got to open another present, which made him SO happy! I love that Crockett and Hotshot love to spend time together.

We had such a great time in Holliday. Grandmaw is always so wonderful to let us stay at her house and pretty much take over... Crockett takes over, anyways. We love being around all our family there. Makes us miss being closer and so thankful for all the time we get to spend together.

Merry Christmas from Holliday!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

2011-12-19T14:39:00.000-08:00

From our family to yours!!

Oh yeah, a little news too :)

Two Peas in a Pod

2011-12-19T14:33:00.000-08:00

Chris and Crockett are SO ALIKE these days, it scares me a tad bit! Not only do they have many of the same traits and characteristics, Crockett looks like Chris's mini-me a lot of the time! The other night I looked at them and they are looking at tractors, set to music, on YouTube. They are both biting on their bottom lips and furrowing their brow... OMG. This has become Crockett's favorite past time... Thanks Chris, you have created a monster :)

Last Day of School.

2011-12-19T14:04:00.000-08:00

Despite the look on his face, he REALLY LOVES Mrs. Lindsey and Mrs. Carrie!!

The Kangaroo Christmas Party!

Lots of FUN goodies!!

The BIGGEST babies in the 'Turtle' class :)

Crockett's buddy, David

The past week was such a whirlwind! It began with Chris leaving town for the week (it is always a whirlwind when I am completely on my own!), Crockett had his Christmas program at school and in addition to Christmas parties on Thursday, it was our VERY last day at FBC CDO :( It was such a bittersweet day for me. I have made so many dear friends up there and just LOVE all of my 'Turtle' babies! I also LOVE LOVE LOVE Crockett's class and teachers. Although he does not understand that it is his VERY last day, I was pretty much broken-hearted to tell his teachers (who are my sweet friends) good-bye. He has learned SO much and loves all of his classmates. He is pretty much completely potty-trained, thanks in part to their help, and he was just so comfortable and happy in their class. Carrie and Lindsey, you girls are the best and Crockett's next teachers have some mighty BIG shoes to fill! I have been working in the nursery and must say that it is one of the MOST CHALLENGING things I have ever done! I love each of those babies dearly, but oh my goodness!!! If it weren't for Stephanie, my partner, I would never have made it! She became such a special friend and we definitely learned to lean on one another. Teamwork in that room is SO necessary!

Crockett had a great time at his Christmas party! They had some yummy food and got lots of presents from each of their classmates. It was pretty crazy in the room, but they all had fun!

I cannot say enough about all of the people we love up at CDO. Crockett made great friends and so did I. CDO at Fist Baptist has been the highlight of our time in Midland. Don't know what we would have done without such a wonderful place to come each week.

Tiny Tots Christmas Party!!!

2011-12-19T13:22:00.000-08:00

Crockett and I have been going to Tiny Tots Music Class at First Baptist in Midland for the past few months. He has had such a good time learning songs, playing instruments, hearing Bible stories and running around with his new friends. We celebrated the end of Tiny Tots with a Christmas party. The kids got to play at the Activity Center, do crafts, open a gift and eat lunch and learn about the birth of Baby Jesus. Miss Shane did such a wonderful job and made the class so special for each of these kiddos.

So Very Thankful

2011-11-28T18:23:00.000-08:00

We were feeling very homesick, so we were espcially THANKFUL to get back to Holliday for Thanksgiving. I did forget my camera... so no pictures, but many wonderful memories! We arrived in Holliday very late on Tuesday, after a somewhat eventful drive. We stopped outside of Abilene to let Crockett go to the potty (we are potty training!) and when I pulled down his pants I found his entire body covered in hives! It scared me to death, but after a little detour to get some meds, he seemed fine. Anyways, we made it to Holliday and were so happy to be there! Chris has LOTS to do while we were there, and I had to help Grandmaw cook. Luckily, Amie and her girls came to help too, so we all got to hang-out, which is one of my favorite things about Holliday! We got so much accomplished on Wednesday that Thursday morning, we woke up and heated everything up and were ready to go! On Thursday morning, Chad, Sara and Rich arrived... Crockett was SO happy to see Rich! They love playing together these days :) Kyle, Marla, Kylee and Dylan got there and we were ready for the feast! We had a wonderful time eating, chatting, watching football, looking at the Black Friday ads... it was a great day, just being together! Amie, Casey and their girls came by later and everything got a little crazier! The kids just have so much fun!

It was a great Thanksgiving, and being away from our family this year has made us even more THANKFUL for the time we get to spend together! There was one thing that happened... One trip to the ER for Rich (and Chad and Sara), that put a damper on our celebration... but luckily Rich was fine! It really was a great Thanksgiving and we are so blessed to be a part of such a special family!

After Thanksgiving, we headed to Lubbock to celebrate my sweet nephew, Quin's 1st Birthday!!! I cannot believe how quickly the past year has gone by. He has gone from a teeny baby to a chunky, lovable, snuggly, mobile little boy! His birthday party was a football theme, so we all wore our Tech gear and ate nachos and popcorn. Quin had an AWESOME football birthday cake, which he LOVED! It was ALL chocolate and was ALL over him when he was done... it was straight to the bath for sweet Quinny! It was such a fun birthday party! We loved celebrating this precious little boy. Happy 1st Birthday, Quin Joseph!!(Sorry I have no pictures :(

Trick or Treat!!!!

2011-11-01T18:36:00.000-07:00

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

This was the first year Crockett has really been too interested in Halloween (And all the "cany" that comes with it!). So we were so excited to make plans to go trick or treating with friends! All week Crockett told me he wanted to "Treat with Gak"! Since Crockett is not too big on dressing up, so we decided to stick with what we know and go as BUZZ LIGHTYEAR!
He kind of fussed as I tried to get him dressed, but once it was on he was good! He liked it even better when mommy figured out that his wings lit up!!!

As soon as daddy got home, we headed over to a friend's house. We met up with several of my teacher friends from First Baptist CDO and their kids. Crockett and Jack (or "GAK" as Crockett calls him) are the same age and they are great buds. They really loved each others costumes. We also went with Jack's big sister, Lexie, and Poppy and Chloe. All of the kids had SO MUCH FUN and really got into it... they RAN from house to house and got TONS of candy! It was such a great time and just so much fun to watch the kids have such a good halloween!!

T-Pa's 90th Birthday!!

2011-10-15T13:59:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, Monica, Ryan, Braidy, Quin, Crockett and I got up bright and early on Saturday morning and drove to Temple, Texas. It was such a quick trip, but such a special celebration. T-Pa, my dad's dad, was turning 90!
The drive was fairly uneventful. We drove through more rain than any of us had seen in a year... it was nice, but would have been nicer if we weren't driving in it! Ryan did much better driving in the rain than I would have! The boys watched lots of movies to help pass the time. Quin was the best baby ever and didn't hardly cry at all! Ryan was SO INCREDIBLY EXCITED about eating at Underwood's in Brownwood! He must have talked about it most of the way there! He was a happy man :) We listened to the Red River Shootout. All in all, it was a really nice drive. We were SO happy to finally get there though!
Once we all got cleaned up, and dressed in our Tech gear :), we headed over to the party. T-Pa, D-Ma, Poppa, JJ, RiRi, Uncle Mike, Matthew and Aunt Susan were all waiting for us. Aunt Anne and Harris got there shortly after we did. It was a pretty good group, but we sure did miss those who couldn't be there!!
As soon as we got there, the boys found a hole with dirt in it and played there most of the evening! Crockett managed to get pretty dirty, Braidy found a roly poly, and then lost it, and we spent the rest of the evening looking for the "roly bug". D-Ma had a basket full of toys and two flashlights, which kept the boys occupied the rest of the night. They also had a great time with T-Pa's walker :) Fun times!! We ate a dinner of yummy lasagna, salad and bread while we all watched the TECH vs tamu game (GO RAIDERS!!!). And then T-Pa's DELICIOUS chocolate cake! It was soooo good.... the little boys went back for seconds! (And were bouncing OFF THE WALLS :) After T-Pa opened all of his cards and gifts, he was exhausted from all of the excitement. It had been a great party! After D-Ma got T-Pa in bed, Crockett went and told him nite-nite and gave him sweet kisses on his hand. It was so sweet and brought tears to my eyes <3
When we got back to the hotel, Crockett and Braidy came into our room to jump on the beds and wear off some of that chocolate! They sure were being funny and having TONS OF FUN! I bet our neighbors didn't like us too much. We got up early the next morning and drove back home... it seemed like a much longer drive home. We were all so happy to get out of the car when we got home!
T-Pa has always been such a great grandpa and great-grandpa. He has been to so many graduations, games, recitals, birthday parties... So it was so wonderful that we were all able to get together to celebrate him!

Two and a Half

2011-09-25T18:07:00.001-07:00

Where has the time gone???

On September 22, Crockett turned two and a half! I know it isn't exactly a birthday or anything, but I just feel like this has been a turning point. He is no longer a baby, maybe technically a toddler, but ALL little boy! He is so many things right now... busy, talkative, friendly, shy, tender-hearted, tough, ornery, a hugger, a hitter... just all those wonderful things that make little boys so special.

Crockett ~

- You are: 30 lbs, 36 in, in size 5 diapers (on our 1st box of 5's and hopefully one of the last boxes of diapers...) and in 2T clothes

- You STILL DO NOT SLEEP THROUGH THE NIGHT... always wind up in bed with momma or momma winds up in bed with you.

- We have been traveling SO much lately and you are AWESOME in the car! You look outside, watch movies (Mostly WoowyBuzz and The Baby (Ice Age)), and look at books. You do say Momma or Daddy about 500 times every time you see a tractor or cows... and we usually see LOTS of them! You are a great travel partner!

- You are the pickiest eater! You have gotten a bit better recently. You eat weinies, lots of cheese, peanut butter sandwiches, macaroni and cheese, yogurt, fruit cups, cantaloupe, watermelon, oatmeal, waffles... not a whole lot else... You would drink TONS of apple juice everyday if I would let you (I still mix it with atleast 1/2 water) and now you will drink milk. YAY!

- You are a very talkative little boy. Some of my favorites are: drink = wink, Grandmaw = Mummer, Rachy = Riris, Ma = Mon, RuRus = LuLu, ew too = I love you too, mammies = jammies, oohies = horseys, tows = cows, meemeek = Mickey Mouse, Soso = Oso, boppel juice = apple juice, tactor = Tractor, ShaSha = HotShot, sheshe = fishy, Bumbo - Dumbo, DD = Braidy, When = Quin, hoooouuuusssse = House. You have begun to say so many words and are even putting 5 and 6 word sentences together occasionally. I will be so sad when you can say everything correctly :(

- Your favorite things to say lately have been "Yep", "Puppies HUSH!", "Sing Songs" (as in the songs we sing at Tiny Tots & Tunes)

- You love to play with all of your cars, trucks and tractors. You would stay outside in the dirt all day if you could. You love looking at and reading books. Your favorites are still all of the Llama, Llama books. Recently you have become pretty good at puzzles too. You are a very social little boy and do great at school most of the time, but you also play by yourself very well.

- You have learned most of your colors. We are working on your numbers... today, everything was 2, 3, 9, 10!! You change the numbers and pattern almost daily. You are almost able to spell your name, you just need a little help. At school you are also learning your shapes. You know circles really well and can pick out squares and triangles.

- You are going through the "NO" phase right now, and you are very good at ignoring your momma. Maybe it is selective hearing already... you learned that from your daddy :) You can through a huge fit, but you almost always make it better by giving sweet little kisses.

I could go on and on about the wonderful things you are doing these days. Each day I am surprised and amazed at something you say or do. You are my best buddy and there isn't anyone else I would rather spend my days with (aside from your daddy!). Your daddy and I have had the time of our lives watching you become YOU! What a special little guy you are and how thankful we are for the blessing you have been to us!

On the road again...

2011-09-13T18:54:00.001-07:00

Crockett and I have become quite the Texas travelers these days! As soon as school was over this past Thursday, Crockett and I packed up and drove to Dallas. It was a LONG drive (5.5 hours!), but we knew we were in for LOTS of fun! He actually did so good on the drive, completely exceeding my expectations. We stayed with Rachy, or Riris as Crockett calls her :) I warned her about Hurricane Crockett, but she wasn't worried! He brought lots of trucks, tractors and cars to keep him occupied and Rachy recorded Mickey Mouse... what more could a 2 year old little boy need?? Not much, because he was wonderful!

On Friday, Rach was supposed to go get her car, but it wasn't ready, so we decided to take Crockett to the aquarium. I had promised him that he could see SHARKS, and he did not forget, so he was very excited when we got to see them. He really liked them, but did not want to get too close without momma. Rach and I got to pet the stingrays, but he wasn't gonna get close to that. We saw lots of fish, including Nemo and Dorie, a 75 year old turtle that Rach and I could swear was dead, and an octopus that was so scary/fascinating. We had such a great time! After the aquarium, we were all pretty hungry, so we went to California Pizza Kitchen, one of our FAVES! After a yummy lunch, it was naptime. We decided to stay in for the evening. We made some yummy dips and queso (Crockett's favorite!) and watched UP! What a fantastic movie. We all loved it :)

The next day, we got up and headed to Burleson for Rich's 2nd birthday party! It was a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse party and we all had to wear pink or blue depending on if we though Rich was having a brother or sister! FUN! Rich and Crockett have gotten to see one another quite a bit lately, and it is so fun watching them play. Crockett asked me all week, "Where Ruch go?" So he was excited to get to play with him again and Nathalie and Emily (his other cousins) were there too! We all ate some lunch, the kids played, Rich opened his toys... although he would have stopped after his 1st gift (golf clubs!)! Rich is going to be a BIG BROTHER in January, so Sara and Chad did the baby's gender reveal at the party too! It was so fun! Rich's smash cake was pink or blue... too bad he wouldn't smash it :) Sara had told me she was worried about that happeneing! Sara finally had to shove his fist in to reveal that Rich was going to have a BABY _________!!! They are in New York right now and going to be in the crowd of the Today Show tomorrow (Thursday, Sept. 15) with a YELLOW poster telling the sex! So I can't reveal what Rich found YET!! SO happy for them :) It was a great party! Definitely one to remember!!! After the party, we headed back to Dallas with an exhausted Crockett. Or so we thought. By the time we were at Rach's apartment, it was 4, so I decided to try to keep Crockett up and not take a nap. I was a little worried, but didn't want him to stay up forever either. We thought we would grab an early bite to eat and bring it home since he was so sleepy. On the way, we stopped by Gap and oh my, they had the CUTEST clothes! We tried hats on Crockett, which he hates, and he just got the biggest kick out of this precious blue hat! So instead of being the grumpy toddler he usually is, he was this laughing, smiley, funny kid! Rach and I were amazed! We got dinner, went home and watched a movie. At about 8:30 that night, Crockett told me "Momma, night night." He was a real trooper that day! What an AWESOME kid I have :)

On Sunday, it was time to go home. We left pretty early since we had such a long drive home. I love spending time with my youngest sister. She is such a wonderful person, fun to be around, loves my baby... she is awesome. It is hard on her to be so far from all of her family. I am so glad we were able to go spend the weekend with her. Thanks for having us Rachy! We had a BLAST and can't wait to do it again! Love you!!

On another note, Sunday was September 11, 2011. As we were driving home, I listened to Fox News on my radio as they played stories about families affected by the attacks, parts of the memorials at all 3 locations, and some of the news from that day 10 years ago. So much has happened in those 10 years, yet as they were talking about all that happened that day, it was as if it was yesterday. I remember being in the Foreign Language building at Texas Tech and I remember watching it unfold all day and over the next months. I can't believe it has been 10 years, but I will NEVER forget. God Bless America.

Crockett and his Mummer

2011-09-07T07:53:00.001-07:00

Crockett loves his Mummer. She is so special to him. He was so glad to see her last weekend. All week he said he wanted to go to Mummer's hooouuuusssse and when I would tell him that we were going in 2 days he would cry and go to the back door. He knows when he goes to her house, she will have tea (sweet tea ;), cheetoes, kit kats and BUMBO (Dumbo)! We love you, Grandmaw! Thanks for always letting us take over your house! We can't wait to see you again at Rich's birthday party! XOXOXO

B.W. Stone

2011-09-07T07:32:00.000-07:00

When we headed to Holliday for Hotshot's birthday, we had no idea we would also be attending the funeral of Hotshot's brother, B.W. He had been sick for a long time, but had just recently taken a turn for the worse. On Thursday night at about 11 p.m. Chris got a call from his Aunt Brenda that B.W. was going to the hospital and not expected to make it through the night. Chris decided to go up to the hospital to see if he would be able to see B.W. Luckily he was able to see him and talk to him for a bit. B.W. did make it through the night, and Elwanda and I got to see him the next day... about 3 hours before he died. He had told his family that he was ready to die and he had such an AMAZING faith, so he knew where he was going. He was surrounded by his family (and there are LOTS of them :) and more love than most people will ever know.

Chris loved B.W. Hot shot and B.W. were close and did so many farming and ranching things together, so very often Chris would work for him as a child. As he got older, they always loved to talk shop. B.W. and his wife, Doris, lived down the road from us in Holliday, and I loved it when I pulled into our driveway and B.W. and Chris were talking. They could have the LONGEST conersations :) B.W. was such a kind and loving man. I have only known him for the past 6 or 7 years, but he was always one of my favorites. One of those people who just makes you smile. He and Doris loved Crockett too. They are both just very special people.

B.W. passed away on September 2. We are so blessed to have been there and been able to say good bye and show our love to him and all of his family. He will be terribly missed.

Happy 80th Birthday, HOTSHOT!!!

2011-09-07T07:05:00.000-07:00

Chris's grandad, Hotshot, turned 80 on September 2. To mark this milestone, we (the daughters-in-law and granddaughters-in-law :) felt it was a great reason to celebrate! Hotshot is not really one for parties, or any kind of spotlight, but luckily he was a great sport. We decided to keep it fairly small (the Stone family is VERY LARGE!) and have BBQ and cake. We tried to keep it as "Hotshot" as possible. We decorated with boots and lots of pictures. We all got to visit and the kids got to play... they pretty much just ran in circles and played tag. They had a BLAST :) Crockett tried to stick some flags in the VCR... probably trying to get it to play DUMBO. Glad I caught him!! It really turned out to be a nice evening. It was a wonderful occasion for all of us to celebrate and show our love for Hotshot. Thank you for being a wonderful father, grandfather and GREAT-grandfather! We love you!

1st Day of School!!

2011-09-05T19:59:00.001-07:00

It is hard to believe that Crockett has started his 2nd year of pre-school! This year I got to start with him :) He is beginning his year in the Kangaroo class with Mrs. Lindsey and Mrs. Carrie. I love them both and couldn't be more excited! I know he is going to learn so much and have a great time doing it. He even gets to go to Chapel and Spanish this year, as well as music.
I am working with the itty-bitty babies in the Turtle class. I love my partner, Mrs. Stephanie, and the kids are all so sweet. They range in age from 8 weeks to almost 7 months. If I don't have baby fever now, I am sure I will pretty soon :) We love all our friends at First Baptist CDO and are looking forward to a FANTASTIC year!!

We LOVE the Lake!!

2011-08-15T15:43:00.000-07:00

Kelly, Chris's sister (known to her nephew and nieces as KK :) works for Congressman Mack Thornberry in Washington D.C. It is so far away, so we don't get to see her or her husband, Brendan, nearly as much as we would like. Since she had some time off, she got to come home and we were all so excited! It has been quite a while since almost everyone (we sure missed Leslee, Drew and Steve!) was able to get together, so that is exactly what we decided to do! What began as a celebration for Kelly, really became a celebration of our FAMILY! We are all so lucky!

Chris only had Saturday and Sunday off, so we had to make it a very quick trip, but it was so worth it. We left Midland around 7 am and made it to Kyle, Kylee, Dylan and Marla's lake cabin at Lake Kemp by 11... pretty good. Crockett was so glad to be there and immediately found the gator, rocks and the bunk beds to play on. There is just so much to do there!! Shortly after we arrived, Elwanda and Kayleigh, Casey, Amie, Emily and Nathalie got there. That was when Crockett's real fun began! He really loves and misses his cousins. Crockett and Nathalie greeted each other with a hug and wrestling match. They were so funny, just rolling around, laughing... fun times :) Mimi and KK, Brenda, her sister Kathy and Greg, Chad, Sara and Rich all arrived and the reunion was officially underway! All of the girls hung out in the cabin and chatted while sipping on hurricanes, while the guys talked shop and blew up a frog pool for the little boys. Once it was blown up, leave it to Crockett to get naked and jump in :) Rich wasn't too interested in joining. Ha! I got the bad mother-of-the-year award because I forgot Crockett's little swimmer diapers AND his swimming trunks... luckily, that didn't stop him from getting in the lake with everyone! We all had such a blast! We went in the boat, KK and the girls went tubing, Crockett and Daddy explored, we sunbathed and just enjoyed everyone's company.

After we had all had enough sun for one day, we headed up for hamburgers. Dinner was delicious, and it was followed with even MORE DELICIOUS homemade ice cream! We all had so much fun and made plans to do it EVERY year!

We were staying at Grandmaw's, so we drove to her house. Crockett was excited because he knows he gets to watch "Bumbo" = Dumbo there and she ALWAYS has CHEETOES for him :) She is so kind to let us invade her house, but we are so appreciative. After a short night's rest, we were back on the road headed home. It was such a quick trip, but so worth it. We had such a great time seeing everyone and getting to catch up. Our family is so important to us...

ROADTRIP!!!

2011-08-05T10:39:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday, Mon and I loaded up Crockett, Braidy & Quin, and LOTS of other stuff and headed to the Hill Country for a visit with Poppa & JJ. We were slighly worried about the 6 hour drive, but with 2 dvd players, lots of trucks and snacks, good music and Crockett and Braidy to entertain Quin, it was actually not bad AT ALL! As soon as we got there it was time for some FUN! We had been promising swimming in exchange for good behavior the whole way, so as soon as we got there, we all put our bathing suits on and jumped into the almost 90 degree water. It was WONDERFUL! Even Quin loved swimming in water that warm! Wouldn't mind doing that everyday! After some swimming and a little relaxation, the boys found Bentley, the cat, and immediately chased him off. They continued to look for him daily, without a whole lot of luck. Braidy was convinced he was in the "forest" :)

The next day, Poppa took us to Landa Park in New Braunfels to ride the choo-choo train! It was so hot, but we loved the train. The conductor always throws nuts to the squirrels, so as the train approached them, they would run up to the train and stand up... was the cutest thing! Next time we are taking nuts to feed them. It was such great fun and the conductor even let the boys ring the bell! They thought that was pretty cool! After the park, we stopped by Naeglin's bakery, which was BEYOND DELICIOUS, and headed for some lunch at Buddy's Backyard. There was a fantastic playground there, so Poppa took them to play and eat outside, leaving Monica, Quin and I to eat a quiet lunch... we weren't quite sure what to do with ourselves :) The rest of the afternoon consisted of swimming, looking for Bentley ("Kitty.... where are you??" is what Crockett learned to say :), throwing ROCKS and running around. These little boys were definitely in their element! On Friday night, Rachy joined us! She even brought her sweet friend, Sara, to play with us a while! We were so glad to see her and catch up... We miss our RiRi!

On Saturday, we went down to the Pearl Brewery for the AWESOME farmer's market they have and then to ride the boat. It was lots of fun, but it was OH SO HOT! It is such a fun boat ride, some really great sights and you get to go through the lock, which is neat, but next time we will wait until DECEMBER to do this! Ha! We were all dripping with sweat, hiding under umbrellas and getting sunburned anyways! When we got off, we had some hungry boys, so we headed to Chris Madrid's for some lunch. Braidy fell asleep at the table... if that tells you how sleepy these boys were! As soon as we got home, Mon and I tried to get everyone into bed to continue their naps, so that we could get in the pool for our daily "lay out" session! I think Poppa and JJ actually deserve the credit for getting the boys to sleep that day :) JJ's son, Jay, and his wife, Kiley, and a few of their friends came over for dinner. We even got homemade Butterfinger ice cream for dessert! YUM! Quin got some too, and immediately broke out into hives... definitely not the strawberries this time!

On Sunday, we ate some delicious waffles for breakfast and just played. The boys watched Woody & Buzz (for the 159th time) and The Lion King and Poppa and JJ offered to babysit while Mon and I went SHOPPING!!! We didn't stay gone for too long, and everyone was swimming when we got back. Don't think they really missed us at all! Chris's dad, Steve, was in town and got to join us for dinner. When he arrived, Crockett had just woke up from a nap, and was a BEAR! Luckily, after walking outside and throwing some rock and stuff and playing with some blocks, he cheered up and had a good visit with his Grandpa. I am so glad Steve understood, he even said he used to know a little boy who was the same way :) (HaHa, Chris!) Rachy also had to leave that evening to go back to Dallas. We were so glad she was able to come.

I am sure Poppa and JJ were so exhausted by the time we left... those little boys were going non-stop the whole time we were there! They were constantly, running up and down the hill, looking for Bentley, feeding the deer, throwing rocks, climbing fences, swimming (in their trunks or even their undies!), watching Woody and Buzz, dumping out the little tiny legos, going up and down the stairs... Just being BUSY LITTLE BOYS! Everyone had a wonderful time, though, and hopefully they will be ready for Quin to join the mix next year too!

Thanks Poppa and JJ for having us and being such great hosts! We had a BLAST and made some wonderful memories!

School's Out for Summer... AGAIN!

2011-07-25T13:04:00.001-07:00

After a couple of weeks at home with not too much to do, I made a last minute decision to enroll Crockett in FBC CDO for their 6 week summer program. Since they were SO full, Crockett and I became a package deal, and I got to teach as well. It was quite the experience! Crockett was so blessed to have Mrs. Lydia and Mrs. Lindsey for his Kangaroo teachers... may I just say that they were INCREDIBLE! Lydia was one of his teachers in the Spring and Lindsey will be one of his teachers in the Fall. He even got to go to chapel with the big kids this summer, which I was excited about. I was a teacher for the Koalas :), or about 8 almost two year olds. It was wonderful and very challenging all at the same time, and I have a completely new respect for each and every teacher out there!

Since it was a short summer session, it was a little less casual and a LOT MORE FUN!!Each Thursday we had a special fun day! Some were a little more fun than others :) But the children all had a great time, which was the most important thing! I am so glad that Crockett and I were able to be a part of FBC CDO this summer! I think we both made some great friends and had a BLAST becoming a part of something so special.

Cousin Camp, Part 2

2011-07-17T21:21:00.000-07:00

Crockett has been dying to see Braidy (It had been over a week since we saw him last :) so I decided it was time for Cousin Camp in Midland!! We met Mon, Braidy and Quin in Lamesa on Friday afternoon so Braidy could come to play for a while! After a quick bite to eat at Taco Villa, we were off! When we got to our house they immediately wanted to go swimming, so I promised after a nap, we could go swim. They were just too excited to sleep, so getting them to nap was a tad bit difficult, but it finally happened. Thank goodness! As soon as they woke up, we went to the pool! It was "yots of fun"!! After a fun swim, we went back home to meet Uncle Chris and play some more. They eventually made it outside to the backyard, which is filled with dirt... Which is HEAVEN for 2 little boys!! They played and played until we made them come in a take a bath. I have never seen such dirty little boys :) Bath time was just as much fun, with BUBBLES! There is just never a dull moment with these kiddos!

The next day, after an extremely LONG night (Thanks to Crockett) we just took it easy and were a little lazy. The boys have toys everywhere, they love the stairs, and they even found some of Crockett's toys we had stashed in his closet. They played so well together and only a couple of times did we have to get on to them to share. After lunch and a nap, for mommy too, we took them to see Winnie the Pooh! Braidy was so excited to go see a movie at the "BIG MOVIE"! We got each of them seated and got them their very own popcorn and drink... they thought that was pretty cool! They were SO good! In a theater full of crying, talking, wandering, chattering children, my 2 didn't hardly say one word! They both seemed to really enjoy the movie. It was only an hour, which was the perfect amount of time. If it had been any longer, they probably would have been running around with all the other kids :) After a little more playtime, we grabbed a bite to eat and headed to home to take a bath and get some sleep.

On Sunday, after a MUCH BETTER night of sleep, we had planned to meet Mon and Ryan to exchange Braidy... but he and Crockett weren't quite ready for that, so we decided to keep him one more day :) They played and played and swam, and played some more... I am sometimes amazed that they only need 1 two-hour nap! Uncle Chris played with the boys and even though Braidy kept saying "Don't get me", Uncle Chris really got Braidy pretty good :) He tickled and tickled them... I have never heard either one of them laugh so hard! It was such a wonderful noise.

I definitely think Cousin Camp Part 2 was a success! They had a great time and Chris and I love watching Braidy and Crockett play. Braidy is such a great kid (and says the funniest/cutest things!) and Crockett learns so much from him! How to pee standing up, for example :) These two are best buds and it warms my heart to see them together. We may have some sad little boys tomorrow, but Cousin Camp Part 3 probably isn't too far away!!

Braidy Turns 3!!!

2011-07-16T08:38:00.000-07:00

I cannot believe it has been 3 years since Braidy Spencer blessed our lives. It is so amazing to see how this little boy has grown from a teeny baby to a flown-blown little boy! He talks like one, and says the funniest things, plays like one and acts like one!

For his 3rd birthday party, Mon got smart and decided to have it at a fire station and an ice cream parlor. We all met at the fire station, where one of her good high school friends is a firefighter. All of the firefighters there were so kind to let the kids climb up on the truck and even "drive" :) They got to see the big water hose and try on their helmets. About half way through, they got a call and had to leave for a little while. It was pretty cool to see all jump in the truck to go. After they got back, Mon, Braidy, Justin and a couple of the other kids got to go up in the basket... WAY, WAY UP!!! It was pretty cool and I think the birthday boy LOVED it!!!

After the fire station, we headed to Holly Hop Ice Cream Shop. Such a cute little ice cream parlor where the kids all picked out ice cream or a sundae! YUM YUM!! They ate ice cream and cupcakes, Braidy opened presents, played music on a juke box and just ran around. Everyone had such a great time and it was SO MUCH EASIER than an at-home party! Braidy got some really fun presents and was so sweet to share with the other kids. It was such a wonderful party for such a special little 3 year old!

On Sunday, Braidy's actual birthday, we ate at my mom's house. Braidy got to decide what the menu would be. He picked broccoli, corn and steak! My kind of kid :) So we all ate and had a yummy ice cream cake! He got a couple more presents too! A pretty good way to end a 3 year old birthday celebration!

We love our DD SO SO much! Happy 3rd Birthday, sweet boy!!

4th of July!!

2011-07-16T07:34:00.001-07:00

This year for the 4th of July, we decided (rather spontaneously) to go to Lubbock and hang out with the Curry's. We all met for lunch at Fuzzy's and then took the boys to nap while we got ready for cookin' out!! We cooked quite a feast, consisting of hamburgers, hot dogs, jalapeno poppers, broccoli and cauliflour salad (YUM!), baked beans and brownie with cream cheese and berries for dessert! WOW! LuLu and Papaw came and the Curry's invited their neighbors too, who brought homemade ice cream... SO MUCH DELICIOUS FOOD!!! It was a beautiful evening and we all really enjoyed being together! All three boys just ran circles around the backyard and pretty much wore each other out. Poor baby Quin had his first taste of strawberries... and immediately broke out into a rash with hives :( No more strawberries for baby Quin!

On the morning of the 4th, we all got up and headed to the 4th on Broadway parade. We watched it from the Tech campus... one of my most favorite places in Lubbock. It was a gorgeous morning, cloudy with some sprinkles. It was a great parade. I loved watching the boys, all in their red, white and blue, waving their flags and clapping their hands. So proud to be an AMERICAN! We saw lots of tractors, horses, weinie dogs, bands... the kiddos thought they were all pretty cool! Crockett's favorite was, of course, the TAC-TERs!!!!!

We were all pretty exhausted after the parade, but not the boys! They decided to strip down in the backyard and jump on the trampoline :) We put the sprinkler underneath the trampoline and they had a blast! It was a pretty funny sight! Johnny is so good to play with the littler boys and he definitely keeps them entertained. After a LLLOOONNNGGG nap, we headed home! Crockett didn't want to go, but he never wants to leave DD's hooouuusssse :) It was a wonderful 4th of July! I don't think we even missed the firework toooooo much!

Father's Day Pt.1

2011-07-16T07:05:00.000-07:00

For the first couple of days of Father's Day weekend, Crockett and I headed to Lubbock to see Poppa!! He and JJ were in town for part of the week and we hadn't seen them in such a long time, so it was a perfect opportunity! We went to Lubbock on Friday and went to the Curry's house. Nena and Pops were in town too, and we always love getting to see them! Mon and I decided to take the boys to Poppa's hotel and let them swim for a while before dinner. Crockett had never really gone swimming by himself. Braidy just jumped in and Crockett was much more cautious. He didn't even want to stand on the step! I finally just put him in the water and he finally decided he LOVED it! Mon thought he looked like a duck, just floating around! Ha! They had a BLAST! Poppa even got in with them, which they thought was AWESOME! After swimming, we went back to the Curry's for some dinner. Rachy even joined us a little later :) We all had a great time visiting and watching the boys play!

On Saturday, Dad and I got up and went to play tennis. I have always loved playing tennis with my dad. He beats me every time, but one day I will get him!! It was so lovely at 8:30, about 75 degrees... perfect weather! We played for a while and went for a very yummy breakfast. After naps, we let the boys swim again. Johnny got to go with us this time and he loved it when Poppa would throw him across the pool. Poppa is lots of FUN :) While everyone else went to a wedding, the Curry's and me and Crockett ate very delicious Orlando's pizza and played for a while before calling it a night... It was a very fun, very long day!

On Sunday, Crockett and I headed home to see Chris and cook him a very special meal!!

Father's Day Pt. 2!

2011-07-15T20:51:00.000-07:00

This year for Father's Day Chris had to work... Crockett and I were bummed out, but we decided if we couldn't take Chris somewhere, we would bring his FAVORITE steakhouse to him!! We ordered the smoked beed tenderloin from Perini's Steakhouse and had it delivered to him. Then on Sunday when we got back to Midland, we cooked green chile hominy, cowboy potatoes, jalapeno poppers and bread pudding with jack daniel sauce.. .YUMMMMY!!!! He made it home in time to eat and even relax a little bit :)

Christopher, I always knew you would be a wonderful daddy, but you have exceeded every expectation. Your son thinks you hung the moon, and I think you are pretty fantastic too :) You work so hard for our family, and I know we don't tell you thank you nearly enough. We love you dearly and hope you know that every day!

Weatherford or BUST!!

2011-07-15T18:28:00.000-07:00

In May, we (by we, I mean me, Crockett, LuLu, Monica, Braidy and Quin...) all piled in LuLu's car to go to Weatherford for our cousin Meredith's graduation. We all packed very light, but were stuffed in there with not much room to spare. After a bit of a slow start, we were off! It was not too bad of a trip, much easier than any of us expected. The boys watched their movies and slept and baby Quin was an angel!

When we got to Weatherford we checked in to our hotel and headed off to Uncle Tim and Aunt Darla's FARM!!! The boys could not have been MORE EXCITED! It was so great to see the Lowry's! We ate a delicious meal and kept the boys at the table as long as possible... and then they were off! As soon as they got outside, they saw a FROG! Shortly after that, Braidy saw a snake! We were off to an AWESOME start :) Uncle Tim took both boys on the 4-wheeler and they got to see the cows and tractors! That made Crockett's weekend:) He even took us to see some piggies! Crockett wasn't too sure of them, but Braidy loved them! They loved him too, even tried to eat his shorts!! We had a lot of fun that night!

The next morning was Mere's graduation. It was quite a morning even before we got there... not easy getting 3 boys and ourselves ready. When we finally got to graduation, me, Mom and Mon all got our goodie bags out and began our quest to keep the kids quiet. They really did pretty good.... for about the first 20 minutes... Then graduation began :) We made it until the row before Mere walked and then Crockett decided to take care of some stinky business... perfect timing :) So, he and I watched Mere walk from the doorway and then made our exit. Why, oh, why, do kids know the most inopportune times to do this?!?! Anyways, we all got to see our sweet Mere graduate, and that was the whole point of our trip. Congrats, Mere!!

After graduation, we went back out to the farm for a lunch they held in her honor. We all ate some delicious food and, of course, the boys were outside! They found their out of the gate and up the tree house, all without us knowing! The guests told us what a great time they were having... Monica and I about died. Those boys sure do keep us on our toes :) They could have played outside ALL DAY LONG! It was such a fun day of celebration with such a special part of our family.

On Sunday we all went to church. We decided to leave the 2 older boys in class while we packed up our hotel room. When I went to pick them up, their class was playing with sand, and Braidy was IN the sand :) We had lunch with the Lowry's and got ready to say our good-byes... But not before we rode the HORSE! Neither one of the boys wanted to get on by themselves, so the mommies got on there with them!

It was such a great weekend. I always love going back to Weatherford. It has such a special place in my heart. Weall have some truly wonderful memories of the people and places there and this weekend we made some wonderful, NEW memories... Can't wait to go back!!!

Mother's Day 2011

2011-07-15T18:16:00.000-07:00

It was such a blessing to be able to celebrate Mother's Day with both of my special guys. Motherhood has been the hardest, most rewarding, inspiring, tiring, wonderful priviledge of my life. I am so lucky to be taking this journey with Chris. What a wonderful day to celebrate our love for one another.

Easter 2011

2011-07-07T15:24:00.000-07:00

I haven't blogged in a VERY LONG TIME! We have had lots going on and I just haven't taken the time to sit down and do it. In an effort to catch-up, I am backing up a few months...

This was the 1st Easter Crockett was able to really "hunt" eggs on his own. And since we are in a small apartment for the time being, our backyard is just a little square of dead grass, so "hunting" is really pushing it :) We hid a few eggs and he got the hang of it and really enjoyed putting them in his basket. Mommy had most of his surprises in the basket beforehand. It is very easy to get carried away when purchasing 'a few small gifts' for my little man! We attended a new church, Stonegate, which we really enjoyed. We really had a great time hanging out as a family. It was a beautiful day to reflect and celebrate the resurrection of Christ.

SCHOOL'S OUT FOR SUMMER!!!

2011-06-07T12:43:00.000-07:00

After a wonderful 2nd semester at First Baptist Children's Day Out, we have reached the end! Crockett has loved every minute of his PENGUIN class and especially his teachers, Mrs. Lydia and Mrs. Liz (and Mrs. Amber too!). He has learned so much and surprises me daily with his new words and phrases. On the last day of school, the CDO children put on a program for the parents. Let me just say that I was moved to tears by the precious-ness of these children. Crockett was a bit timid and shy at first, but on the 3rd song, he really got into it! I could tell he knew all the moves and what to do during the song. The last song was "This Little Light of Mine" and they got to use 'shassites' (flashlights :) which was VERY cool!It started out slow and the got really fast, and let me tell you, Crockett was a-dancin'!! It was hilarious :) It was really so wonderful to see and just made me so proud of my jumpin', dancin' and movin' little man :)

One More....

2011-03-27T21:00:00.000-07:00

Our 2 year old birthday celebration wasn't complete without celebrating at school with all Crockett's friends :) I got to take cupcakes up to FBC, where we sang and let the kids enjoy their cupcakes and Capri-Suns. They are all so funny... some eat the icing, some just eat the cake, some just get it all over their face... too cute! Thanks to Mrs. Lydia and Mrs. Elizabeth for letting us bring birthday treats! When we walked out of the classroom to get Crockett's bags, he was SUPER EXCITED to see the MOON (balloon!) that he had gotten from Mrs. Paige and FBC CDC! What a great way to end our week-long celebration!!!

A TRACTOR for the TWO YEAR OLD!!!

2011-03-27T18:39:00.000-07:00

After Crockett's Dr. appointment in Wichita Falls, we packed up and headed to Lubbock to celebrate with LuLu, Papaw, and the Curry's! We stopped at the Curry's house when we got there, and Crockett was THRILLED to see DeeDee (Braidy :) They immediately went outside to dumpa, dumpa (jumpa, jumpa on the trampoline :) and play with the BUBBLES! Rich gave Crockett a bubble machine that is AWESOME!!! We have gotten TONS of playtime out of it already! When LuLu finally got off of work and we celebrated with pizza and a TRACTOR cake! It was so cute, and a little less green than the last one :)

After we ate, it was time for Crockett's present from LuLu and Papaw. She took him in her closet, where it was hidden, and SURPRISE!!!! It was his very own, pint-size TRACTOR! His face was priceless and I am so glad I was there to get a picture! He cannot quite reach the pedals, so he loves to sit on it, or in it, and watch TV or just hang out... It is pretty cute! He is quite obsessed with tractors these days, so I can't imagine anything he would love more! Thanks LuLu!

The next day, we wanted to have a fun day with LuLu, Mon, Braidy and Quin so we went to eat lunch at Chick-Fil-A, where they always have a good time (not so much for the mommas and LuLu :) and then we headed to the Science Spectrum. They had a BLAST running around, playing on the kiddie roller coaster, making REALLY BIG bubbles, looking at the pishes (fish :), and watching the dinosaur, but only from a distance! We were all worn out and ready for a nap when we finally left! From there we napped and played just a little more before we had to go home to daddy in midland! He still needed to see the birthday boy!!!

We had SO SO much fun with everyone in Lubbock! Crockett and Braidy are into everything, but have so much fun doing it! Crockett cannot get enough of his baby cousin, Quin. Although he won't call him anything other than beebee, he is so sweet to him and just as gentle as he can be. He really loves that beebee :) Thanks to everyone for making this such a great birthday! We got to celebrate with so many people we love... and even though we didn't have a great big party, this was just as special!! (And not so stressful on everyone :) Happy 2nd Birthday, Crockett!!!

Crockett & Cade

2011-03-26T19:12:00.000-07:00

These two little boys were born four days apart (Cade on March 18 and Crockett on March 22) and I just love watching them play. We weren't able to make it to Cade's birthday party this year, but luckily we were able to get together while we were in town so they could play. They get so excited when they see each other and they play together SO well.

We met Brandi and Cade at Atlanta Bread for lunch, where neither one of them ate anything... both going through that phase... and then we went to the park to play. We were there for about 2 hours and they, although obviously exhausted, were not ready to go. It is so funny to see all the ways they are so similar, and also their differences. I am also so lucky to have Brandi to go through this fun journey with. It is great to have someone to bounce ideas off of and ask questions or just vent... knowing that she is going through some of the same things at exactly the same time!

We love y'all and look forward to all that lies ahead :)

Playin' at the Parish

2011-03-25T21:07:00.000-07:00

After Chris left Holliday on Sunday, Crockett and I went out to the Parish to visit Hotshot (HaHa as Crockett calls him :) and Mary Ann. To say this little boy loves to go out there and play would be a huge understatment! He just runs from one thing to the next and the dirtier, the better! When we got there, Mary Ann had Hotshot put together a wagon she had just bought. Crockett put all of his toys in there once it was put together and Hotshot and Mary Ann took turns pulling him around... he LOVED it! He found the kitty cat this time. He always looks for it, but it is pretty skittish. Not this time! Crockett pet it and after a minute, the cat had laid down and put its head in Crockett's lap :) He thought it was so cool. We all got a good laugh about it! Crockett and HotShot got to swing, like they always do; side-by-side. We took a walk to the tractor, Crockett loves to climb up and down and "drive" it. He was definately in his element! I couldn't stop smiling :) If there was something out there for him to climb on or in, he was there! We walked down to the tank and, although Crockett about scared me to death, and I thought I might have to jump in a time or two, he sat still the longest there and just threw rocks in the water. When we looked up, all the cows were along the fence watching us... he thought that was really cool too!! We finally went back to the house for more wagon rides and cheetoes. He knows Mary Ann always has cheetoes for him :) When it was about time to go, I asked him if he was ready and he laid down in the wagon and told me "Nite Nite" and when I asked him again, he said "Bye Bye"... I have never gotten that from him before... I think he had fun :)

Thank you Hotshot and Mary Ann for letting us come play! Can't wait until the next time!! Better rest up until then :)

Happy 2nd Birthday in Holliday!!!

2011-03-25T06:46:00.000-07:00

What a whirlwind the past week has been for all of us! Crockett turned 2 on Tuesday, March 22... and we began our celebration last Friday as we headed to Holliday.

We always have family dinners when we get back to visit. It is a great chance to see everyone and catch up and let the kids play together. So, on Saturday, we turned our family dinner into a 2nd Birthday Party!!! Grandmaw Elwanda helped me get it all together, and I couldn't have done it all without her. We had fried chicken, mashed potatoes, mac n cheese, and all kinds of good comfort food :) When we moved, we had to leave some of Crockett's toys behind at Grandmaw's house... the sand box and the John Deere gater. Elwanda filled up the sand box and we juiced up the gater and let the kids play. They had SO MUCH FUN! After we ate, they just played and played... Until the cake, that is. We ordered Crockett a BIG TRACTOR cake. He loved it especially since he got to blow out a candle! Sara and I gave Crockett and Rich a piece with lots of icing, stripped their clothes off, took them outside and let them have at it! It was SO funny to watch... they were covered in green icing! We put them in the bath to wash it all off and the water was just as green as it could be! Everyone who ate cake was walking around with green lips and teeth, too! Ha! Crockett got to open lots of fun toys. We are very fortunate to have so many people that love him so much! It was so wonderful to watch all of the cousins play and have such a great time together. The kids played until it was getting dark and they just couldn't play anymore! It was such a great get-together and I am so thankful to everyone for making Crockett's birthday so special!

Chris left on Sunday to go back to Midland, while Crockett and I stayed at Grandmaw's so we could go to see Dr. Sultemeier on Tues. for his well-check. I know Grandmaw loves having Crockett around, but I bet she was glad to get her house back and not have to hear Dumbo playing around the clock! He seriously watched Dumbo about 100 times :) All was well at the well-check. I realized how lucky I have been to have such a wonderful peditrician to help me through past two years. There is no telling how many times I have called him and his office... he is truly one of the things I miss the most about Wichita Falls. Not that I saw him that often, but just knowing he is there :(

We had such a great visit and a wonderful start to our 2nd Birthday Celebration!!!

I Wanna Be A Cowboy

2011-03-15T09:22:00.000-07:00

These pictures are from our first trip back to Holliday, so they are a little dated, but my camera went MIA and I just found it! We went out to visit Hotshot and MaryAnn one afternoon and Crockett had a BLAST! He and Hotshot went driving around in the pick up, threw rocks in the tank, looked at the cows, played in the dirt and just has a great time hanging out together! Hotshot made a cowboy hat for Crockett and he LOVED wearing it, just like his Hotshot :) We told Crockett to sit in Hotshot's lap for a picture, but he pulled the chair up next to him instead. These two guys are a great pair and have SO much fun together! We love you Hotshot!

PLAY TIME!!!

2011-02-21T13:14:00.000-08:00

Last Friday, Chris had been gone for a couple days and Crockett and I wanted to get out of the house, so we decided to go to Lubbock for a PLAY DATE with John, Braidy and Quin!! We left that morning and met the Curry's at their house. We went to lunch at Chick-Fil-A and let the boys play... in the booth and on the playground :) It was a good thing we sat in the very corner booth because they were WILD! After we played a while, we got some ice cream and headed back to Mon's house. They boys played and played... I am not sure why we ever go anywhere else... they have SO MANY TOYS!!!! When it was nap time, we tried to let them take a nap together... not such a great idea. Once we separated them, they both fell asleep... they were pooped! In the meantime, Mon went to pick up John from school and I got to babysit Quin. I could just love on him and cuddle all day long. He is too precious :) Once the little boys woke up, we headed to the park! They were all SO excited! It was a beautiful day - a perfect day to play at the park! We all had a great time playing in the sand, 'wingin, and running around, but before too long, Baby Quin informed us that it was time to go home :) It was the only time I have ever heard him cry... When we got back to their house, Uncle Ryan was home and he played with all the boys on the trampoline... Crockett loves to jumpa, jumpa!! We stayed for dinner and ended up staying the night with LuLu and Papaw. That night, Crockett got sick again... everytime we go to Lubbock... although he had been sick the week before and I guess the medicine didn't quite do it for us this time... but seriously, everytime we are in Lubbock!?!? So, we got up on Saturday morning and instead of going to the Pancake Festival, we went to the Doctor's office :( He still had 2 red ears and a horrible asthmatic cough and tons of congestion.

We had a really great time until then and hopefully the Curry's will continue letting us come play... even though we always seem to bring some sickness with us! :( It is so much fun watching these boys play together. It warms my heart seeing the way Braidy and Crockett get SO HAPPY to see each other! They really do love each other and I know I cannot wait to see their friendship evolve as they get older.

Valentine Party at FBC!!

2011-02-21T12:58:00.001-08:00

The day after the REAL Valentine's Day, Crockett's school had their Valentine Party. We got valentine's for all of his friends and some M&M's to go with them... that is Crockett's favorite! We also made some funfetti cupcakes with white and pink icing and lots of heart shaped sprinkles! It was lots of fun... Crockett just wanted to eat the icing :) Imagine that! On the day of the party, Chris just happened to be home, so I brought him along with me to witness Crockett's 1st party with his FBC friends! When we walked in Crockett immediately wanted Momma, and so did several other kids... We both decided then and there, this was probably the 1st and last party we would attend. (yeah, right :) The kids ate cookies and cupcakes and got a capri-sun. That cheered most of them up! His class is mostly boys and you could definately tell the cut-ups in the class! There was a little girl that would say "CHEESE" everytime I held my camera up, she might give those boys a run for their money! Crockett just wanted to climb on chairs and run around. He also showed Daddy the baby doll... even brought a blanket to cover it up :) Daddy might have been a little worried, but I just think he is trying to tell him that he is ready to be a big brother :) In the end, it was a nice party. It is so much fun watching all these little kids play together and just be around one another. We really do love his new class. Ms. Amber and Ms. Lydia are AWESOME with them all (11 kids!!)! I can't wait until the next party... possibly Crockett's 2nd birthday?!?!?!?! Happy Valentine's Day!!!

Happy Valentine's Day!!

2011-02-17T20:15:00.001-08:00

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes!

2011-02-03T13:36:00.000-08:00

Well January 2011 has come... and gone... in the blink of an eye. It is the understatement of the year to say that we have been busy and undergoing a few changes lately... so a bit of an update:

- We listed our house and sold it in the same week (had 3 lookers, to be exact). Although the selling process was not without a few hiccups and a bit of anxiety, we were very happy and relieved to sell it so quickly. I had a hard time leaving it... It was the home I was proposed to in, where we made our home after we got married, the house we brought our baby home to... some major milestones, not to mention the blood, sweat and tears that we put into it, but it was a good thing and we are thankful it is not still sitting on the market.
- We packed up the house and moved about 275 miles southwest to Midland, TX! Our very small apartment is not exactly what we had in mind (we rented sight-unseen and will not EVER do it again :) but we can do it for a year... especially if it goes as fast as this month has!
- Chris was offered a job by Halliburton and his offical starting date was January 5, 2011. It has definately been a huge change for both of us, but it was an opportunity he had been waiting for. The hours have been difficult for him and Crockett and I have been hanging out A LOT!! But overall it was such a blessing and really an answer to many of our prayers. We knew it was going to be an adjustment, but it is totally worth it!
- Crockett has started a new Children's Day Out program at First Baptist in Midland. He seems to like it a lot and brings home lots of pictures for me :) I am about to start substituting there too, so that will be fun. I have also started playing in a tennis league... Have only played once... dang weather is not cooperating!... but really enjoyed it and met some great people.

Overall, I think we all like Midland. It is not home and I still get very homesick... not for the house as much as our friends and family, but I know this is the best thing for my family. We are slowly, but surely, getting our house decorated and furnished. I got to buy a new couch and entertainment center, so that was very exciting for me! I think the best thing about this move is the bond that Chris and I have developed. We are stronger than ever and we have really learned to depend on one another and make the best of the time we do get to spend together.

We are really excited about the direction God has taken us and we look forward to learning what else he has in store for us this year!!

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year @ Poppa's!

2011-01-03T12:09:00.000-08:00

Last weekend we drove to San Antonio to celebrate our 4th and FINAL Christmas for 2010!! Since it was New Year's Eve when we arrived we got to celebrate New Year's with Poppa and JJ, too! Although it is quite a LONG drive, it is always well worth it and we all have such a great time! Plus, now that we have a dvd player for Crockett in the car... it was SO MUCH EASIER! (Can't remember why we didn't get one 2 years ago!!) When we arrived on Friday the Curry's and Aunt Susan were already there, so Crockett was busy with Braidy as soon as we got out of the car! They had such a BLAST running around outside, going up and down (and up and down!) the stairs, looking for the kitty cat, playing by the pool, just being busy little boys! Chris and I got to catch up with everyone and relax a bit before dinner. We always eat wwwwwaaaayyyy too much while we are there, and this weekend was definately no exception! After dinner, we decided to give Poppa and JJ their big Christmas gift. We gave them a big patio heater, which they LOVED! It was perfect weather outside to use it, too!

On Saturday, we had a huge breakfast and then opened (more) presents! The boys were so excited to see their awesome rocking chairs and Mickey Mouse song books... they got lots of great stuff! Puzzles, tee-ball stand, and LOTS of things little boys love! Us grown ups got some great stuff too! We were so thankful for all the gifts, tangible and intangible, that we got from Poppa and JJ and Aunt Susan. It was such a great day, the guys got to watch TONS of football (Can they ever see TOO much football??), Monica and I got to go shop for a bit (Ann Taylor had 50% OFF your ENTIRE purchase!! How could we pass that up!?!), Braidy and Crockett helped Poppa and JJ put out corn for the deer, move some rocks and basically get a little extra excersize :) It was a great day and we really enjoyed spending time with so many people we love! We had a delicious dinner, which included some black eyed peas, as it was NEW YEAR'S DAY! After dinner, Poppa shot some AWESOME fireworks, I was quite impressed, Crockett was not... and he lit the firepit for some marshmallow roasting! It was tons of fun and we LOVE LOVE LOVE roasting marshmallows!!

After a good night's sleep, it was time to eat some breakfast (a HUGE breakfast, actually :) and hit the road! We always have so much fun with Poppa and JJ. It was a great ending for the 2010 Christmas season! We are so lucky to have so many wonderful people in our lives. It is a great time of the year to reflect on the many blessings the LORD has given us. We are so thankful for each and everyone who is in our lives and has helped make 2010 such a special year!

It's OFFICIAL!!!!!!

2010-12-30T21:35:00.001-08:00

We are packing up and heading to..... MIDLAND, TX! Chris has been offered, and accepted, a job with Halliburton beginning on January 5th! Talk about fast! We have put our house up for sale... never really sunk in until she put the HUGE sign in our yard! We have a townhouse... and will move in sight-unseen! Have begun packing, throwning away and donating in a BIG way! The back room and the back bedroom are empty and slowly, or quickly, everything else is becoming pretty bare too! We have shown the house several times. Elwanda (God Bless her soul) has helped me DEEP CLEAN the house and kept Crockett while I tackle everything else. It has been a whirlwind.

We are very excited about this new opportunity for Chris and our family. It is also very bittersweet. We are leaving so many people that we love and a home that we brought our baby home to. But we also know that this is the best thing for our family right now. So we are very optimistic about it even though we are also realistic enough to know that it will be difficult.

We look forward to seeing what God has in store for us in Midland and are excited to begin this new adventure!

Christmas Day at Grandmaw's!

2010-12-30T20:53:00.000-08:00

For lunch on Christmas Day, we went to be with the Stone family! It is always such a special get-together and really is a great way to celebrate the day. Grandmaw is such a remarkable woman and is the glue that binds this family together. I always feel like we really remember what these holidays are about when we are at her house. God, family, friends... the most important things in life (and in that order).

We ate such a delicious meal. There is always so much food! Most of the time I don't even make it to dessert! (Yeah, right, maybe a little bit :) We get to catch-up with the ones we don't see often enough, the kids get to play, the men talk shop, it is such a great occasion! After we cleaned up, and cleared away, it is time for presents. This year, Grandmaw made EVERYONE pick a number between 1 and 19... whoever guessed her number was SANTA!!! I guessed 18 and the number was 17, luckily, Kayleigh guessed 17 and happily accepted her new job :) She was a good little Santa too!! Everyone goes around (youngest to oldest) and opens one gift... while EVERYONE watches you! It really was nerve-racking my first couple of years in the family, but we have a really good time now. After that, it is like a free-for-all!! There is wrapping paper going everywhere, toys flying, kids playing, people hugging... it is wonderful! Just what a big family Christmas should be!

There were lots of great moments: Grandmaw got Crockett a pair of pj's with tractors on them... he had to put them on right then! He kept looking at his legs telling everyone "TACTOR!" He had actually borrowed the same pair of pj's from his friend, Cade, and I kept worrying because he wants to wear them EVERYDAY and I didn't know how I was going to give them back :), Brenda got a sign that said "There would be a lot less spoiled kids in this world if we could spank Grandma and Grandpa! HA! So true :), Marla and Brenda both got teeny tiny shirts (Grandmaw said they were the BIG THING in Granbury :), Shirley made a delicious Kahlua cake, but by the time we found out it had Kahlua in it, Nathalie, Crockett and Rich had already DEVOURED it!, All of us girls got house coats! We should have taken a big picture :) And I could go on and on....

I am so lucky, happy, proud to be a part of this family. I have spent the last 5 years right down the road from most of these people and they have taken me in like I have been here for 15! We had a wonderful day and Crockett was WORN OUT! It was the perfect ending for a pretty perfect Christmas!

We have been so lucky to celebrate with each side of our family this year! It is exhausting but so worth it. We are blessed with so many people in our lives and getting to spend part of a holiday with them is just a small way to say 'We Love You'!! After heading to my dad's this weekend (NYE!) Christmas 2010 will officially be over. What a Christmas it has been!!! :)

Merry Christmas from our home...

2010-12-30T20:21:00.000-08:00

We had decided last year that from that Christmas on, we would spend Christmas Eve and Christmas day at our house. One day Crockett will know all about Santa and he will know that Santa comes to his house! I have never NOT been at my mom's for Christmas, so it was a bit bittersweet, but she understood... and I have been looking forward to it ever since! So on Christmas Eve, after Hotshot and MaryAnn's house we went home and opened a couple of presents! Chris and I decided to let Crockett open a couple, because we couldn't stand waiting!, and he and I could only open the one Crockett had given each of us. Last year was so special since it was Crockett's 1st Christmas, but this year was even more WONDERFUL! He was sooooo much fun to watch! He knows how to open the gift and when he sees what is inside, his eyes just light up and most of the time, he says "WHOA!!" It was priceless and such a fantastic memory that Chris and I will always share. Crockett loved his tractor shirt and his toolbox... Chris LOVED the photobook Crockett:) made about "ME and MY DADDY"... and I was SO SO EXCITED about my new NIKON D3000! It was so special to spend Christmas Eve with our little family!

After Crockett went to sleep, Santa's elves got to work! We set up his kitchen, put up his "tractor" tent, got all of the stockings ready and finally got to sit back and just enjoy the moment. It is fun to enjoy Christmas through the eyes of your child and I think it really meant a lot to both of us!

On Christmas morning, of course that would be the morning, Crockett decided to sleep until about 8:30!! It was killing both of us not to wake him up! When he FINALLY got up, he was so excited about everything and just played, and played, and played! He loved all of his new toys and was such a busy little bee buzzing around our house with a new toy in hand each time he crossed the floor! It was so much fun and really made Chris and I thankful for our family. We are truly blessed!

Christmas Eve at Hotshot's!

2010-12-30T13:17:00.000-08:00

We decided to go visit HotShot and MaryAnn on Christmas Eve! Casey, Amie and the girls were already over there, so it was even MORE fun! They had gifts for the kiddos and they had a blast opening them! We had a blast watching their little eyes light up :) They gave Crockett a Race Car scooter, which he LOVES! and a musical jack-in-the-box. He was so much fun to watch this year! The girls loved their gifts also! Emily couldn't believe all the princess Barbie clothes she got and Nathalie got a scooter with Minnie Mouse on it. (Crockett was pretty excited about Minnie too! HA!) Kayleigh got a jewlery making set, with all the tools she might need! Looked very cool! They all played and played! Crockett found a NEMO ball and threw it around (pretty hard, I might add!) with HotShot! We all thought it was pretty funny! MaryAnn had set up a choo-choo train around their Christmas tree, so she started it to show the kids.... Crockett was in LOVE! He layed in front to the train just watching, and would get up every once in a while and tell everyone "CHOO CHOO!!!!" with the hand motion and everything! It was so so so cute!

It was such a fun evening and Crockett really had a great time! It usually takes him a little time to warm up to Hotshot, but not this time! He was hugging on him and playing with him. It is very special for Chris to see them play together and get to know one another. What a wonderful way to spend Christmas Eve! We are so blessed!

Christmas with MiMi

2010-12-30T13:04:00.001-08:00

On the Wednesday before Christmas, Chris, Crockett & I headed to Ringling, OK to have Christmas dinner with Mimi, Karen, Tara, Caige & Camille. Amie, Casey, Kayleigh, Emily and Nathalie were there too. We had a nice dinner and spent some quality time together. The kids got to open their gifts from KK & Brendan. Crockett got a bulldozer, that he did not put down until he fell asleep in the car! Caige and Camille got him a little work bench with shapes and a hammer, and Mimi gave him some money. The kids had a great time playing together, as usual! I forgot my camera, but got one of Mimi and the kids when she came to Grandmaw's on Christmas Day. It was a short, but nice evening of celebrating the holiday season with family.

Christmas at LuLu's!

2010-12-21T12:21:00.001-08:00

I cannot believe I am already blogging about Christmas 2010! It has come and gone in the blink of an eye!

This past weekend, we went to Lubbock to celebrate Christmas with LuLu, Papaw, the Curry's and Rachy! When we got there on Friday, we ate pizza and just enjoyed being together. Crockett was SO EXCITED to see BAY-DEE and BEEBE!! He had been waiting all week to see them :) On Saturday, Chris and I had my dear, old friend, Micah Meixner's wedding. It was at noon at First United Methodist Church... SO, SO, SO BEAUTIFUL! The bells sounded at noon, the entire choir sang, there was a trumpeter along with the organist, poinsettias everywhere... seriously, one of the most beautiful weddings I have ever been to! And on top of that, I got to see SO many dear friends. Micah and I went to elementary school-high school together, so I really saw SO many friends! After the lovely wedding and reception, Chris and I went to Chimy's - if only to make the most of our "alone" time :) which we don't get very often!

At 4:30 on Saturday, LuLu, Rachy, Mon, Braidy, John, Crockett and I took a trip to the North Pole on the Polar Express! The boys were VERY HAPPY when they saw the CHOO-CHOO!! It was so much fun; we sang Christmas music, they read the story, we drank hot chocolate and ate sugar cookies, the elves danced for us and Santa came and talked to each of our boys! They all did great and there were no tears shed this year! YAY! Each child was given a jingle bell... they LOVED that! It was so much fun - for all of us and for the kids!

That night, we ate a delicious meal and then opened gifts! It was definately a little more chaotic this year than in the past... there were little boys all over the place and little boy-toys EVERYWHERE!!! I guess that is to be expected and it will only get crazier :) We all got some really nice things, but most importantly, we got to spend some time together and make some great memories (Crockett and the marshmallows :). This is the 1st year, in all my 30 years, that I will not be at my mom's for Christmas day. So although it was a little bittersweet, I look forward to Santa coming to OUR house and Crockett seeing his gifts under our tree! I just can't wait to see his little face light up :)

On Sunday, we went and ate a wonderful meal at the Curry's. The boys played with their new toys... Baby Quin slept... he is really the perfect baby! It was a very busy, quick, and wonderful weekend! Hard to believe Christmas with LuLu is over until next year... we had such a great time! Thank you for EVERYTHING! Merry Christmas and we love you all!

Tis The Season...

2010-12-21T12:02:00.000-08:00

... For friends and family! Every year we (the Stone's, Luig's and Leggett's) try to get together and celebrate the season and our friendships. Everyone is so busy all year long, and this is just a great time to stop and spend some time with each other. This year we decided to go over to the Luig's new house and have a grilled cheese bar! It was SO SO good! Even Chris liked it... and he was pretty determined not to!We will definately be doing it again! (Thank you, Martha!) It was great because the kids could run around and play and we could cook, talk, and just enjoy our evening together! The kids decorated cookies and Brandi made a DELICIOUS cake! (I still want that recipe, by the way!)

We all went on a carriage ride at 9:30, which was a little late, but the kids did great. It turned out to be a perfect evening - chilly, but not too cold! The carriage, which was all lit up, came and picked us up from their house, which the kids LOVED! Then it took us around Country Club to look at lights! It was so much fun and there were some really BEAUTIFULLY decorated homes!

We are so very blessed to have such wonderful friends, who are really more like family. We love ya'll!

O Christmas Tree!!

2010-12-21T11:59:00.000-08:00

It is finally up!!! With any luck, it will stay that way (even with a 21 month old hitting and pulling on it!) :)

Merry, Merry Christmas!!!

Festival of Lights!

2010-12-21T10:05:00.000-08:00

Crockett's class at TLC went on a "field trip" across the street to see the Festival of Lights. The Festival of Lights, for those who don't know, is an annual Christmas event at MSU made up of different characters and scenes all dressed up and lit up for Christmas. It was a beautiful morning so I was very excited to help! There were only 4 kiddos in the class that day, so it was not tooooo difficult to keep up with them. They had such a great time and were so cute watching all of the characters. Crockett really liked Mickey and the Choo-Choo the best! It is not quite the same during the day, but they still really enjoyed it! We sure love Mrs. Alisha and Mrs. LaRetta, they are so great about getting the kids out to do fun stuff!

Thanksgiving...

2010-12-07T09:15:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving... where do I begin?!? We haven't been to my mom's for Thanksgiving in I don't even know how long, so to say I was excited would be an understatment! So I had us all packed and ready to go see the family, meet baby Quin, see my Uncle Tim and Aunt Darla and cousin Meredith. We woke up on Thursday morning and first thing, Crockett puked. Ugh. I could tell he was congested and it was just clear (TMI, I know...) so I didn't really think anything about it. I made sure to pack the Dimetapp for that night. We finally hit the road about 9:30. Crockett was in a good mood and was happy as long as he had his juice! He fell asleep for a little while and woke up somewhere around Guthrie... and puked again.... Ugh. It was the apple juice. Although we were slightly alarmed and wondered if we should turn around, we just decided it was the car and the juice. The rest of the trip was a bit stinky, but we made it without any more incidents.

Once we arrived at my mom's, we were so excited to see everyone! Rachy and Braidy met us at the door and Crockett was so happy to see them! Dinner was almost ready as soon as we got there so we went to clean up a bit and wash the nastiness off of us. Crockett and I were walking to the table to sit down when it happened AGAIN! It was at this point obvious that it was not the congestion, nor the juice. We banished ourselves to the back bedroom and called the Dr. (whom we have on speed dial) and told everyone else to go ahead and eat without us. Crockett did not feel good and it was just downhill from that point on. We managed to get him some medicine, but before Chris left to go get it, Rach walked in the room, pale and sick. She had just puked too. Chris and I took turns eating, and while the food was delicious, the meal had just lost its luster.

Once Crockett and Rachy got some medicine in them, they felt lots better, but we decided to get a hotel room just in case. Crockett was in a great mood that night. He drank some juice, at a couple french fries and played until we made him go to bed. The next morning, he seemed better, but we gave him some more medicine just in case. Then we headed to LuLu's to see Braidy and the Lowry's. Aunt Darla, Meredith and I ventured out to do a bit of Black Friday shopping! It was lots of fun and we got some GREAT stuff! When we went back to LuLu's Chris said that Crockett still wasn't feeling great but had not been sick again. So Chris went out with my Uncle Tim for a while and we worked on getting dinner ready. Mom had decided to do dinner at 5:30 and was doing bbq and all the fixins. At about 4, Crockett got sick again... all over me. It was time to go home. Chris and I ate a quick bite with everyone and bathed Crockett and got him in his jammies and headed home.

Once we said our goodbyes, got Saydi from the Curry's house and hit the road, it hit me... For the next 3 hours, I told myself over and over, "Let's just make it home" and that is what I did. As soon as we pulled up to our house and unlocked the door, I ran in and made it to the bathroom just in time. That night, I couldn't sleep in the bed, it was just too hot, so I slept on the cool couch. All night I heard Chris getting up... he was sick. It was awful! So we spent the next couple of days locked in our house, with as little contact with the outside world as possible.

My mom and Rach got sick on Saturday morning, Aunt Darla got sick on Saturday night, and Les's daughter, Marlo's son, Jake got sick on Saturday. Rach had gone to lunch with a friend and her boyfriend on Friday... they got sick too. What a mess!

We are still not sure where Crockett picked up this NASTY virus, but we think it was at Texas Roadhouse in the peanut barrell! I cannot even imagine all the germs in there, nor can I understand why I let him eat some out of there to begin with... we never have before, and we NEVER will again! Consider this fair warning :)

It was definately a memorable Thanksgiving and I think everyone has forgiven our little carrier :) Thankfully none of the Curry's got this bug, although Braidy was running a fever and had a throat infection on Friday, but I would have died if Monica or baby Quin got sick! I hope that one day we will all be able to laugh at what a mess this Thanksgiving turned into... and always remember how thankful we are to be healthy!!

On a happier note, I finally got to meet sweet baby Quin and he was definately the highlight of my Thanksgiving! He is so content and didn't even cry once! He is an awesome cuddler and makes the best baby sounds. He is so precious and was totally worth the wait! I am counting down the days to get to hold him again... although he is going to be a little bigger this time! He is 1 month on Thurs. and weighed 10 lbs 6 oz yesterday! He is going to be a roly poly just like Crockett was! So sweet!! What a lucky Auntie I am!!!

'Wingin!

2010-12-07T08:58:00.000-08:00

We love to go visit HotShot and MaryAnn out at the Parish. The last time we went, Crockett was in a really great mood and the weather was absolutely beautiful. When we got there, he was a bit shy, but after a couple of minutes he wanted HotShot to go "outtide" with him. So they went. Chris, MaryAnn and I followed closely behind and what we saw was too precious! HotShot was swinging Crockett and Crockett was giggling, giggling, giggling!! It was so cute and his laugh was infectious! After a while they stopped and went to sit on the porch swing... but about five minutes later, Crockett kept saying "'Wing! 'Wing! 'Wing!" He wanted HotShot to swing with him again :) So they did, and HotShot swang right next to him. It was so sweet to see Crockett look at him and laugh with him. He is such a special man, and I am so thankful that he and MaryAnn are a part of Crockett's life! (ours, too! :)

Christmas Time in the Falls

2010-12-05T13:31:00.000-08:00

This year since Crockett is a bit older and the weather was nice, so we decided to go to the annual City Lights parade in downtown Wichita Falls. We rode a trolley downtown and looked around at the train depot, which was VERY cool, walked through all the vendors and finally found our spot along the parade route. Clint, Leslie and Hadley Leggett joined us and somehow Clint got nominated to sit on the ground with the kiddos. He sat there so long, I think his legs were sound asleep when he finally tried to get up :) The parade was great and there were TONS and TONS of floats! We saw Mickey Mouse, which was SO exciting for Crockett, all of the local school bands marching and we even got to see SANTA and MRS. CLAUS!!! It was so much fun and a great way to get into the Christmas spirit! I love to watch Crockett's face light us when he sees everything. He thinks the lights are so cool and he even likes Santa this year, atleast from a distance! What a special Christmas this will be with our little man :)

BUDDIES

2010-12-05T13:18:00.000-08:00

I haven't posted in so long, and time seems to be flying by with no slow-down in sight... Crockett is at a point where he LOVES being around his BUDDIES. We had dinner at the Luig's house one night and Crockett and Cade played and played until atleast 11. No fighting, fussing, whining... just two little boys having a BLAST growing up together :) Crockett also LOVES his cousin, Baydee, as he says,(Braidy). They have so much fun playing and there are endless amounts of toys for them to get into at the Curry house!! Crockett gets so excited when we talk about going to see him or looks at his pictures around the house.

It just warms my heart to see Crockett and his friends playing and growing up together. I think these friendships will stay with him forever :) We sure love these little boys!

Quin Joseph is HERE!!!

2010-11-20T06:54:00.000-08:00

After weeks of anxiously awaiting the arrival of this sweet little man, he has FINALLY arrived!!! Quin Joseph Curry was born on November 18 (his actual due date!) weighing 8 lbs 12 oz and was 20 in. He is just precious and I cannot wait to love on him! I am beginning to see a bit of resemblance to his Big Brother, Braidy... but he is definately a little bigger than he was :) I know John and Braidy will be such great big brothers and Quin has so many fun times to look forward to! We are so excited for our new nephew/cousin! Such a wonderful time for our ever-expanding family :) Congratulations, Mon, Ryan, John & Braidy!!

HaPpY HaLlOwEeN!!!

2010-10-31T19:04:00.000-07:00

We celebrated Halloween last night by going to First Baptist Church - Holliday for their Fall Festival. It was quite an ordeal getting Mr. Crockett dressed up... I later found out he was not feeling well AT ALL. We tried on the monkey suit 1st... He HATED it. Next, we tried the horsey suit that still fits from last year... Cried and cried. Finally, we settled on dressing up like a farmer - plaid shirt, overalls, boots and a cowboy hat. He was happy, I was happy, it was time to go!

Elwanda met us up there and took Crockett around to all the booths. He was a little timid at first, but once he saw some cars racing on a track, he livened up quite a bit! There was a fishing booth, a musical chairs, putt-putt (where he got a HOLE IN ONE!! with a little help :), face painting, bean bag toss, and a couple others. He got lots of cookies and candy and a couple other little prizes. At one booth, he picked a bracelet and immediately put it on his wrist... I thought it was so funny that he would pick that from everything he had to choose from and then to know what to do with it! I was astonished. I can only figure that this is something he has learned at school??? :) We had a great time and ate a hot dog and some cheetoes before we called it a night. I feel so fortunate to live in a community with so many wonderful, kind, Christian people. Everyone really goes out of their way to make things special for the children and families that live here.

We had planned to go trick-or-treating with Cade "Frankenstein" Luig tonight, but at 4:00a.m. this morning, Crockett woke up with a 101.7 fever. We went to the doctor and learned that the head cold and cough he has had for a couple of weeks has turned into bronchitis and an ear infection in both ears, with a touch of asthma. Boo! We went ahead and went to lunch at Grandmaw's house as we had planned since Kelly and Trisha were in town. Kelly has not seen Crockett since last Christmas (except in pictures) so she couldn't believe how BIG he has gotten! It was great to see them both! Crockett had a good time and was very happy to see them too! I think he is feeling a little bit better, but I hate that we missed out on trick-or-treating this year!

Hope everyone has a very safe and fun Halloween!!

TLC Fall Festival FUN!!!

2010-10-30T07:09:00.000-07:00

Thursday was Crockett's fall festival at school. Luckily, since I had volunteered to help, I got to go around with his class. It was so much fun! I had a great time watching all of the kids play and get prizes! They are all so precious!

The carnival was outside in the courtyard, and it was a little chilly, but the kids didn't mind! They had different stations set up; face/hand painting, Go Fishing, Ball Toss, Duck Pond, Ring & Bean Bag Toss, and a BoUnCe HoUsE!! They didn't completely understand every game, but they had such a great time and got little prizes at each one. All of the kids were a little apprehensive about getting in the bounce house, so Mrs. Alisha got in and bounced around with them and then helped them all down the slide. They all had SUCH A GOOD TIME!

Since it was a special day, they even got a special lunch! Lavinia, a little girl in his class, is from Italy and her mother cooked pasta for the whole class! YUM YUM :) Mrs. Alisha said it was delicious and Crockett at VERY, VERY well!! I guess I need to learn how to cook Italian food :)

The kids had such a great day and got lots of goodies to bring home! What a FUN day :)

Sometimes you need a little Hill Country...

2010-10-25T19:49:00.000-07:00

We just got back from a weekend trip to the Hill Country! Chris, Crockett, Grandmaw and I left on Friday morning to go visit some of the people we love the most! We drove to Austin and took Grandmaw to Aunt Jeannine's house. They haven't seen each other in a while, so I know they were looking forward to spending some time together! We stayed at Jeannine's for a while to visit, then Chris, Crockett and I continued on our way to Bulverde. We were so excited to finally arrive!

One of the 1st things Crockett saw was the kitty cat! Jan showed Bentley to Crockett and from then on Crockett wanted to see the kitty cat :) Poor Bentley is not a big fan of the kiddos and decided to make himself pretty scare, but everytime Crockett saw Jan, he said "KITTY CAT!" Later that night, Rachy got to dad's house and we got to hang out with her a bit and watch the Rangers win the ALCS!!! SO exciting! We had a great time hanging out and visiting with each other. Saturday morning, Poppa (or Boppa, as Crockett says :) had a tennis match in Boerne. Although we were a little late, we still made it for the 2nd half of the match. Of course they won! WOuldn't you know that when we walked into the sports complex, there was a family with 4 free kittens they were giving away to a good home! Crockett did not want to leave the kittens... I am a little surprised we walked away empty handed :) They were so cute and he petted them and was very intrigued. After the match we went and had brunch at Bear Moon, which had AMAZING donuts, kolaches, quiche, everything! Jan, Rach and I went and shopped a bit, while Poppa and Chris took Crockett to feed the ducks. He had a great time. They decided he really wanted to have his feet in the water while he was feeding the ducks... he had to be right on the water's edge. Good thing Poppa had a good hold on him :) Boerne is such a neat little town! We all had a reat time! Saturday evening, Poppa and JJ had a wedding, Rach went to hang out with friends, so Chris, Crockett and I headed downtown to have dinner and check out the River Walk. After dinner, we rode on the river boat, which Crockett loved, and then we walked down to the Alamo. I really love downtown San Antonio, there is so much history. It was a lot of fun for our little family to go do that together. We had one sleepy kiddo that night!

On Sunday morning, we got up and hung out, had a delicious breakfast and enjoyed the beautiful hill country air. After Crockett took a nap, Dad and I went to go play tennis and Chris and Jan took Crockett to the playground. I love playing tennis with my dad. Not only is he a great player, but he is a great teacher. I always look forward to our time together... and one day, I am going to BEAT him :) Crockett had such a good time swinging! Chris said he was just belly-laughing! After we played, Crockett decided it was his turn. So Poppa got on the court with Crockett and they threw the ball around. Crockett kept saying something, which we finally decided was that he wanted a raquet. So I gave him one of my old ones and my dad helped him hit the ball. He was sooooo proud of himself and immediately said (what sounded like...) "Dad, I hit the ball!!" It was hysterical! I swear that is what he said... Funny Kid! They played for a good 30 minutes, and I knew Crockett would fall asleep on the way home. I was... WRONG! He was ready to play outside in the pool, look for Bentley ALL OVER THE PLACE, ride in the wheelbarrow while looking for Bentley :), fill up the bird feeder... you name it, as long as it was outside, the kid wanted to do it! Once the sun began to set, which was beautiful, he began to fade quickly and went from a sweet little boy, to a little monster, to a little boy who was so tired he would not close his eyes. After about an hour and a half of trying, he FINALLY went to sleep.

We left on Monday morning and headed back to Austin to pick up Grandmaw and meet Grandpa Steve for some breakfast. We all went to Waterloo, which was perfect since they have a playground Crockett could play on while we waited. It was a great visit and I know Steve couldn't believe how much Crockett had grown!

We had such a wonderful time seeing everyone! Crockett came home saying so many new words and now wants a kitty cat :) We hope to get to visit again soon... Maybe Crockett could stay by himself?!?! It is always so much fun to get away and go somewhere new, but oh how wonderful it is to get home, sweet home!!

Baby Quin's Shower!!

2010-10-18T16:46:00.000-07:00

This weekend, Crockett and I headed to Lubbock to celebrate and help prepare for my sweet new nephew's arrival! We couldn't be more excited!! After I picked Crockett up from school on Thursday, we drove to Lubbock. He didn't sleep at all, but he was soooo good! Didn't cry a bit... Man, has the kid made strides in that department! We used to stop at EVERY SINGLE reststop! YAY CROCKETT!! :) On Friday, Crockett and I went to the Science Spectrum to play with Monica & Braidy, Alisa & Annabelle (the birthday girl :), and Melissa & Jackson. He had such a great time playing and I had a wonderful time getting to hang out with some great girls I don't get to see very often! The rest of the day, Crockett got to play with Braidy, while LuLu and I were making last minute preparations for the shower. Since it was at 10 a.m. we wanted to get all of it ready so we weren't CRAZY in the morning.

Saturday morning, Papaw took Crockett to the Curry's and he tagged along with John and Braidy at Annabelle's 2nd birthday party. It was at The Maize, and I really wish I could have gone and took some pictures! I know they had a great time because Crockett was sound asleep on Uncle Ryan's shoulder when they got home. While they were at the party, we were having Quin's shower! It was great! Monica and Quin got LOTS of diapers, wipes, a super cute tote bag, a pack n play and all kinds of gift cards! That kiddo will be set! I enjoyed getting to meet some of her friends, and see some old friends.

The rest of the weekend, we also helped get Quin's room semi-ready. Uncle Bob did the bedding (it is PRECIOUS!) but the room needed to be cleaned out and clothes cleaned. Monica and I both had so much fun seeing all the baby clothes and reminiscing about almost EVERY outfit. Seems like just yesterday, Braidy and Crockett were in each little, bitty onesie. Quin definately has LOTS and LOTS of clothes. So hopefully, when we left, Monica felt a little more prepared than she was before :) She looks so cute and ready to pop! I CANNOT WAIT to meet my new nephew!! It should not be too much longer... maybe 2 or 3 weeks!

It was a great, productive and very fun trip! Counting the days until we get to go back!!!!!!!

PUMPKIN PATCH!

2010-10-12T13:35:00.000-07:00

What an exciting day at school today! This morning I joined Crockett's teachers, Mrs. Alisha and Mrs. LaRetta, and we took the class to the PUMPKIN PATCH! I just love this time of the year, with the beautiful, cool weather, the leaves changing colors and lots of PUMPKINS! There were 5 kids in his class today (Crockett, Ezra, Kindal, Zane and Lavinia), so it really worked out well for the three of us. They were all so good and minded really well. It amazes me how the teachers have taught them to sit on the mat before they go outside, and then one by one they hold onto the rail and go down the stairs, then they hold onto the rail at the bottom of the stairs until everyone is down. They are so well-trained and well-behaved! Too bad I can't get Crockett to do that at home! The pumpkin patch is across the street at the Methodist church, so we just walked over. They had a great time looking at the pumpkins and horses (they have carriage rides too!), running around and picking out little pumpkins to take home! We tried to get some pictures of the class together... but, MAN, you have gotta be fast! They had a really good time and most of them will go back on Thursday! YAY!

Crockett is a part of a great class with some really sweet kids (and wonderful, patient and loving teachers)! I am so grateful to be able to go on these excurisions with Crockett. What great memories we are making :)

Floy Clark Welch

2010-09-22T08:43:00.000-07:00

Floy Welch passed away in Wichita Falls, Texas on September 17, 2010. Floy was born on June 29, 1911 in Sagerton, Texas to Charles and Hattie Smith Clark. She moved to Holliday with her parents in 1913. Floy graduated from Holliday High School.
On August 16, 1926, she married J.B. Goble, the father of her three children. She also married Pete Moss and Dick Welch.
Floy worked as a telephone operator at Holliday and as a secretary for Talley Insurance Agency and Ayres Welding. She was a rancher and took great pride in taking care of her cattle.
Floy was an active member of the Holliday United Methodist Church, where she held many offices. At the time of her death, she was the oldest living member of her church. Floy was an avid quilter and a member of the ceramic club. In her 70's, she picked up oil painting and painted many picures for her family and friends.
Floy was always a contributing member of her community, volunteering for many civic duties. She was known for her beautiful smile, her concern for others, her upbeat and positive attitude, her willingness to serve where needed and for her inner and outer beauty. s was often said by her acquaintances and friends, "Who wouldn't love Floy Welch?" She leaves a large void in the lives of her family.
Floy was preceded in death by her mother and father, her sister, Allene Palmer, three husbands, son in law, Louis Percy Hodge, a step daughter, Patsy Welch Allen, and a grandson, Thomas Karsell. She is survived by her children, Jeannine Hodge of Austin, Texas, Mike Goble and wife Judy of Throckmorton, Texas and Elwanda Stone of Holliday, Texas. She is survived by grandchildren, Deborah Karsell and husband Bill of Lakewood, Colorado, Douglas and wife Dawnetta of Austin, Texas, Jon and wife Julie of Heidelberg, Germany, Brandi Menard and husband Richard of Throckmorton, Texas, Grant Goble of Flower Mound, Texas, Steve Stone of San Marcos, Texas, Greg Stone and wife Brenda of Holliday, Texas and Kyle Stone and wife Marla of Holliday, Texas. She is survived by great-grandchildren, Jeanne Elizabeth Karsell Horne and husband Troy, Heather, Holly, Hunter, Louis, Erin Hodge, Reagan, Chloe, McCrae, and Jack Menard, Joshua Goble, Casey Stone and wife Amie, Christopher Stone and wife Jessica, Kelly Stone Buck and husband Brendan, Chad Stone and wife Sara, Leslee Stone Pennywell and husband Drew, Kylee and Dylan Stone. She is survived by great, great grandchildren, Moses and Silas Horne, Kayleigh, Emily and Nathalie, Crockett and Rich Stone. She is survived by two step children, Ricky Welch and wife Barbara of Kountze, Texas and Peggy Moss Wood of Robstown, Texas and one nephew, Kelsey Palmer of Springerville, Arizona.
Funeral services will be held on Friday, September 24, 2010 at the First United Methodist Church in Holliday. Relatives and friends are welcome to join us to say good bye to our wonderful mother at the service and a reception to follow in the fellowship hall of the church. Burial will take place in the Holliday Cemetary, Holliday, Texas. The family requests in lieu of flowers, memorials be made in her honor to the First United Methodist Church, Box 484, Holliday, Texas 76366.
The family wished to thank the Grace Care staff for years of loving care during her stay there with them. Tributes may be sent to the family at owensandbrumley.com.

What a special lady she was. It has been a long week, but the good that comes out of death, the appreciation of family, the kindness and love that is shown by so many others, and the thankfulness we feel for such a loving, giving, comforting God has been so evident to me. I am so honored to be a part of such a wonderful family and truly feel the loss, although I didn't get to know Grandma Welch as well as the others. She really did always have a smile on her face, even when she was asking Chris to take her back to Holliday. The stories that were shared this week gave me an even greater understanding of who she was and why she was such an important part of this family's legacy. As we left the funeral home last Sunday, Marla told Crockett to tell her "nite, nite", which he did. So, nite nite Grandma Welch, we will me you so much, but know you are in Heaven feeling better than you have in years. We love you.

WESTERN DAY!

2010-09-22T08:28:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday was Western Day at TLC! I was one of the room mom's and was probably more excited than Crockett! Crockett dressed in his overalls and I tried to get his boots on him, but he wasn't having it. When we got to school, they had pony rides, a hay ride and a campfire with some marshmallows for roasting! It was SO MUCH FUN! Crockett DID NOT want anything to do with the ponies, but the rest of it was great! His whole class had cowboy hats on and they looked so cute :) I think they were the cutest class, but I am just a little biased. For a snack they had special cookies with boots and horseshoes on them and then Happy Meals for lunch! What a special day!!!

I got to his school, started to take pictures and realized that I did not put my battery in my camera. I was so mad at myself! Luckily the other room mom, Crystal Wright Johnson (she is a long time friend of my sis-in-law, Kelly), had hers! Her precious little girl, Savannah, is in Crockett's class. How fun is that?!? SO, thanks for sharing your pictures with me!!!

Daddy's 30!!

2010-09-20T14:37:00.000-07:00

I have been looking forward to September 3 for almost 9 months now :) I turned 30 back in January and Chris LOVES to remind me how I "robbed the cradle." Well as of September 3, he can no longer tease me! He finally turned 30 too!!! WOO HOO! I think he was a little bummed out about this over-rated birthday... so we decided to make it a small, weekend-long affair.

On Friday, for his real birthday, we ate wings and then invited Grandmaw Elwanda over for a special ice cream cake (one of Chris' favorite things :)! Pretty low-key, but it was the birthday boy's decision. On Saturday, Josh and Brandi Luig drove Chris, Crockett and myself west to the Hub City where we continued the celebration! After a quick shopping trip to Red Raider Outfitter, we got dressed up for a childless, grown-ups only, night out on the town!(Thanks to LuLu & Papaw!) We all had a wonderful dinner at the Double Nickel Steakhouse and then continued on to one of our favorite old hangouts, The Spoon. It wasn't quite the hoppin' place that we remembered, but we still had a GREAT time! We played pool, danced a little bit, shared a pitcher of cherry bomb (paid for it the next morning!) and really had SO MUCH FUN! On Sunday we went to watch our Red Raiders beat SMU! (Thanks Monica and Ryan :) It was so hot, but a really good game!(WE WON!) We ate burgers and homemade ice cream at my mom and Les' house and then headed home. Brandi, Crockett and I slept the whole way home... It had been a LONG weekend! I think Chris had a good weekend and that made the whole 30th birthday a lot easier to take :)

The next day, we went out to Hotshot's (Chris' grandfather) to celebrate his 79th birthday, which was on September 2nd! (Chris' dad's birthday is also on September 2nd!) and Rich Stone's 1st birthday which is on September 10th! LOTS of September birthdays in this family!! We all had some cake and the kids played outside. We love going to visit Hotshot, but it is not very often that ALMOST everyone can get together with him at the same time. It was a special evening!

SO, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY SWEET HUSBAND! Hope your 30th is the best yet! We love you SOOOOOOO much! Happy birthday to Hotshot, Steve and Rich too!! We will have to celebrate together EVERY year!

School Kid!

2010-09-03T21:09:00.000-07:00

Last Tuesday, Crockett started Mother's Day Out at The Learning Center. We have been waiting for this day all summer long, although now that it is here, it is bittersweet! He will go every Tuesday and Thursday from 9-2 and is in Miss Alisha's class. As I made his lunch the night before the first day, I did get a bit teary eyed. I just can't believe my baby is old enough to be going to school (even if it is just Mother's Day Out!). The next morning, he wouldn't eat anything I fixed him for breakfast, didn't want me to change his diaper, and I chased him all over the house trying to get him dressed.... Thank goodness for Mother's Day Out! Nine o'clock couldn't come soon enough, and there were no tears shed by either one of us!

When we got to the Church, I walked him into his classroom and he immediately started playing with the toys. He didn't care if I was in there or not. So, I left and don't even think he noticed! I was so proud of him for not crying or whining. There were several cute little girls in his class and one other little boy. He loves being around other children and playing, so I know he is going to love school and learn so many new things!

As soon as 2:00 rolled around, I was there to pick him up! I couldn't wait to see him! He had done so great! Miss Alisha said he ate pretty good and even laid down for a nap. I was so relieved that he had a good time and was with Miss Alisha and Miss Loretta. They are already wonderful and we have only been twice! I know this is going to be so good for him.

Haircut!!

2010-09-03T21:01:00.000-07:00

I finally decided to take Crockett for another haircut. His hair was out-of-control, and that is no way to start school! Since I was so traumatized by our last haircut experience, I just let it keep growing. It was so curly, ringlet curls, in the back, but soooo long. We went to Dawn in Holliday and she was FANTASTIC! I held him in my lap, Dawn cut and our friend, Margie, entertained! It definately took all 3 of us, but we were oh so successful! He didn't even look like the same child when she was done!

Papaw's 70th Birthday Party!!

2010-09-03T20:33:00.000-07:00

On August 24, Les, aka Papaw, turned 70! To celebrate the special occasion, my mom threw him a party the Saturday before his birthday. Of course we wouldn't have missed it! Lots of people came, Les' daughter and grandsons, brothers and sisters, the Curry's, Rachey and many dear friends. We talked, ate some yummy barbeque with all the fixins and then cake (or cobbler) and ice cream. All the kids had a blast running wild in the backyard. It was so much fun to see many people come together to help celebrate!

Les has been a part of our family for more than 10 years now. He is someone who is always willing to lend a listening ear, a shoulder to cry on or a comforting word. He has a way with all of his grandsons, which is evident just by watching them interact. They love him and he loves them.

Les, we are so glad you are part of our family, and thank you for letting us be a part of yours. We love you, Papaw! Happy Birthday!

Red River ~ Day 4!!

2010-09-03T19:57:00.000-07:00

Thursday was our last day in Red River. We still had a few more things we wanted to do before we left. One thing of those things was ride the BIG ski lift to the top of the mountain. We had been waiting to do it, thinking that we could leave the kids with each other and just the mommy and daddy could take the ride together. As the time passed, we realized it was either everyone rides it this morning or we wouldn't be able to. Chris was not happy with me that we were taking our 18 month old son, who squirms and is so restless, way up this mountain. He held on to Crockett as if his life depended on it... I guess it did :) However, much to my satisfaction, Crockett slept almost the entire way up and did great on the way down too. It was very high, but such a beautiful and peaceful way to admire God's handiwork. It was a bit chilly, especially as we got to the top, but it was definately worth it. Monica, Ryan, John and Braidy were all in one seat and Braidy did very good for the most part, and slept on the way down. John was pretty scared of falling, especially on the way up, but he did great on the way down.

After the ski lift, Monica and I had made appointments at a spa. We decided that after taking care of three (ahem, five...) boys all day, we deserved a little pampering. We were on vacation, after all! So Monica got a pre-natal massage and I got a massage and facial. What a wonderful, blissful way to spend the afternoon! We both left feeling refreshed and ready for the rest of the trip!

When I got back to the cabin, Chris, Ryan and John were making one last attempt at catching a fish while the little ones napped. When they returned, John proudly showed us 5 fish! He was so excited! The dad's were pretty excited too! And to think they had almost given up.

At 4:30 we had made reservations to go horseback riding. John got to ride his own horse while Chris and Ryan rode with the little boys. After watching them take off, all without any crying, incidents, etc. Monica and I went to browse around town for a while. We went back to watch them return. A good time was had by all. Crockett and Braidy both just rode along and took it all in. John did a great job too, all by himself! It even turned out that I had worked in Austin at Smith Barney with the other man, Austin Spencer, and his daughter that were riding in the group. Small world!

That night we went to eat at a nice restaurant and then came back to the cabin in time for SMORES! I think I probably gained about 5 lbs. from the smores alone! Ha! We got all packed up and ready to leave that night so we could just hop in the car and go the next morning.

We had so much fun all week. I hope that it will become a summer tradition. All of the boys has a great time and played together so well. And I always love spending time with my sister and her family. It is such a great place to get away from the hustle and bustle of our everyday lives and spend some quality time without all of the distractions. Thanks Curry's for suggesting this, we can't wait until next time!!!

Red River ~ Day 3!!

2010-09-02T13:52:00.000-07:00

On the third day of our mountain getaway, we woke up from a not-so-great night of sleep (thank you, Crockett and/in our queen size bed!) and ate some yummy french toast Aunt Mon made. After breakfast, we headed to the bunny slope where they had tubing. When we got there, we learned that you had to be 4 or older, which meant only John could do it. We were a little bummed, but as it turns out, it went pretty fast and I am not sure the little boys would have liked it too much! John went down the first time and his eyes were huge as he flew down the track... I think it went a little faster than he had expected! But after the first time, he loved it! He got to ride the little lift up then tube down 2 more times! He had a blast!

After tubing, we headed to the go-karts, but they were closed. We wandered around the river and played a little before going back to the cabin for lunch. After naptime, we went to try our luck at the go-karts again. Lucky for us, they had just opened! And so each of us, (me & Braidy, Crockett & Chris, John & Ryan, Monica taking pictures) got in our karts and went around and around the track. All 3 boys had SO MUCH FUN!

When go-karts were over, we headed to another playground one of our friends, Josh, who lives there, told us about. It was great! Not very many people, a little off the beaten track, shady, and tons of toys to play on! There were these really cool lounging swings that we all enjoyed and great slides... Kept everyone entertained for quite a while! The daddies even had a great time swinging... so much so that they reverted to their 10 year old selves and swung as high as possible and then JUMPED!!! Ryan did it first and jumped from so highed, caught some air and rolled when he hit the ground. Luckily, he wasn't hurt. Good thing because we were laughing SO, SO hard! Then it was Chris' turn... He jumped from so high up and immediately went straight down... hard. Monica thought he had broken a leg or an arm or both... but he didn't and it too was HILARIOUS! We laughed for about 10 minutes while they nursed their wounds. I think they were pretty sore that night! WOW. So funny. Before we went back to the cabin, we decided to drive up to the top of the mountain. Talk about beautiful. The views were breathtaking... literally. We were so high up and Monica and I (and Johnny too) were not real happy about driving up the fairly narrow road. After a little persuasion, Chris turned his pickup around so we could go back down, but not before we stopped and took some family pictures :)

That night we cooked fajitas with queso and had MORE smores for dessert. It was so good and a perfect way to end night #3 of our mountain adventure.

Red River ~ Day 2!!

2010-09-01T12:20:00.000-07:00

We all got up the next morning and had a list of things we wanted to do. Ryan cooked eggs, bacon and biscuits for breakfast and once we were all ready we headed out. Fishing was 1st on the list! There were 2 ponds that we had heard about, so we tried them out... ALL MORNING LONG. The fish were not biting. Either that, or they just didn't want what we had (WORMS!). So after the not-so-successful morning of fishing, we decided to have lunch at The Lift House, where it was Taco Tuesday. The Lift House sits at the base of the chairlift where you can ski in and out. It was good, but the boys all started having meltdowns... so it was declared naptime.

After all of us napped (mommies and daddies included!) we went and played at the playground that was just down the street from our cabin. Then we found a hiking trail that was not very long or high up, but beautiful and went right along the river. Later in the day, all the guys put on their swim trunks and we played in the water... and rocks and sticks and dirt! Ryan took Braidy, and then John, across the water. They thought that was very cool. I think it made Monica just a tad bit nervous (Aunt Jess too), while Crockett was content to sit in the rocks and get his hands wet. I was thankful for that but am sure that will not satisfy his curiosity next year!

We cooked hamburgers and hot dogs on the grill outside for dinner. The little boys "fished" with their little fishing poles off of the patio while the big guys cooked. After dinner we headed down to the fire pit... AGAIN! I am missing those smores just thinking about them!! It was such a wonderful day, wonderful weather and wonderful company!

Red River ~ Day 1!!

2010-09-01T08:43:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, my sister and her husband, Ryan, asked us if we wanted to go camping with them. While I am not one to go camping, I figured that with a little boy I should probably learn to like it, and I knew Crockett would have a GREAT time with his cousins... so we went! Since Monica and I were in charge of the accomodations, we found a cabin at 3 Bears Lodge(highly recommended!)in Red River, NM. It was a 2 bedroom, 1 bathroom cabin and was quite cozy, although, next year we will probably spring for a slightly larger cabin :)

We began our adventure on Sunday, August 15. Chris, Crockett, Saydi (who got to stay at the Curry's with Scout) and I drove to Lubbock for the night so we could do grocery shopping and get a few last minute things taken care of. On Monday morning, we left Lubbock with cool mountain weather in our sights. The drive was quite long, about 6 or 7 hours, but Crockett did AWESOME! He slept most of the time and was pretty happy when he wasn't asleep. The view once we got into New Mexico was gorgeous. We could see passing rain showers in the distance, mountains, so many trees... such a welcome change of scenery :) It was raining and about 65 degrees when we finally arrived in Red River. We got settled into our cabin and by then the sun was out so we went to explore. Monica and I were a little frightenend after our 1st outing. Braidy fell and hurt his knee, John fell in the river and ALMOST got swept downstream by the currents (it wasn't deep water, just very cold) and we locked ourselves out of the cabin! Luckily, I think we were just getting these incidents out of the way so we could enjoy the rest of the week!

That evening Monica and I cooked some yummy spaghetti (I think we could have fed the entire lodge!) and salad. One of the best things about 3 Bears is that every night they meet by the fire pit and cook smores for all the visitors! So we went down and ate LOTS of smores for dessert. We all definately got used to this nightly event :) We walked around Red River for a while after that and enjoyed the cool mountain air we had been so excited for.

Long Time, No Blog

2010-09-01T08:20:00.000-07:00

It has been quite a while since I have had time to update our blog. I am not sure what I have been doing.... but I KNOW we have been busy! What has been consuming all of my time?!?! :)

Silly Boy!!

2010-07-19T19:22:00.000-07:00

Tonight after we finished dinner, Chris had some work to do, so Crockett and I went outside to play in the sandbox and on his new slide! The pool is out too, but I thought between the other toys I wouldn't have to worry about him getting in it. WRONG! I turned around to get my camera and he was sitting in the pool.... shoes and all!!! He had the best time and went from the slides to the pool more than once. He was pretty proud of himself!

Braidy Turns 2!!

2010-07-19T12:28:00.000-07:00

It is hard to believe that on July 10, my sweet little nephew, Braidy Spencer, turned 2! I remember being at the hospital, waiting in the hallway to go see his precious face. He was so tiny and perfect! We have had the BEST time watching this little man go from teeny-tiny baby, to a walking, talking little boy! He is such a ray of sunshine who brightens my day whenever I see that smile or hear all of the funny things he says. Crockett loves his cousin and there is nothing better than watching those two boys love on each other, tackle each other and play together. Happy Birthday, sweet Braidy! We love you!!

We went to Lubbock on Thursday to help Monica prepare for Braidy's Bug Birthday, but the night before we left, Crockett began running a high fever. We went ahead and drove to LBK the next day, but he and Braidy couldn't see each other yet... I think we were all a little bummed. But on Friday, Crockett was as good as new, so we went to see the Curry's new house to play with Braidy and Johnny. They jumped on the trampoline and drove Briady's car, played in the tent and found all kinds of toys to get into. We had dinner (Orlando's pizza ~ YUM!) at the Curry's that night with Poppa, JJ and Rachy, who had just gotten into town. I even got to have a girls night with my dear friend, Valerie and her sister, Marci! We stayed out WAY to late, but it was SO MUCH FUN!!! I miss girl's night out, especially with VAL :)
Saturday was the big party! Chris came in that morning, and Crockett was SO excited to see his Daddy! At the party, all the kids went on a bug hunt outside, jumped, played, ate trailmix, cupcakes and dirtcups... it was LOTS of fun! It was a little too much for the birthday boy, who really just wanted to play. He got a new kitchen/grill to cook in and tons of Toy Story toys, bubbles and some new boots - among many other things! After the party was over Braidy and Crockett stripped down and had a great time with the bubbles (and suds) Uncle Todd made. Neither one of them would let us change their diapers. They were drooping down to their knees, but they were having a BLAST! Crockett earned his new nickname "TrailMix" that day... I have NEVER seen a kid eat so much trailmix! And he learned about his love of Dr. Pepper from his cousin. They sure were happy though! :)
On Sunday, LuLu, Papaw, Chris, Crockett and I joined the Curry's (including Ryan's parents, Dan and Roz, and his brother Todd) for lunch. Dan and Roz did the cooking... fried shrimp, new potatoes, corn, salad.... It was DELICIOUS!! It was Braidy's birthday lunch - the boy LOVES some shrimp! Later that evening, LuLu, Crockett and I met the Curry's at Sheridan's for some custard. The boys all LOVED it! Crockett had it ALL over him and Braidy was drinking it out of his cup... when his was all gone, he told his mommy "More?" and she gave him the rest of hers :)
On Monday we went with Lulu, Mon and Braidy to SugarBakers (YUM!) for lunch and then went home for a nap. Later, I was at the grocery store and I got a phone call from Monica. When I answered it, no one said anything. After a minute, I said "Braidy?" and the little voice on the other end said "Crockett come ovah?" it was soooo cute! So, I ended up going to pick Braidy up so he and Crockett could play some more before we left the next day. They played in the pool in Lulu's backyard and had a BLAST!
It was such a F-U-N few days! We love hanging out with LuLu and Papaw and the Curry's. And it was even better since Rachy, Poppa and JJ were all there too! We can't wait to see our cousins again! Maybe they will come play at our house soon ;)

Hangin' out with HotShot

2010-07-18T18:14:00.001-07:00

Crockett is very lucky to have so many special people in his life. One of those people is HotShot, Crockett's great-grandpa. We take Crockett out to the Parish, where HotShot and MaryAnn live, as often as we can so that they can see each other. Last week when we went, it was so nice and cool outside. There is a beautiful view out there, so we all got to enjoy watching a distant storm move across the sky. HotShot is so great to play with Crockett and follow him all over the place. They look at the horse, cows, play with toys, read books, and pretty much anything else Crockett comes up with! HotShot is such a big part of Chris's life.... isn't it wonderful that he can be part of Crockett's too?!?!

Lowry Family Reunion

2010-07-16T11:14:00.000-07:00

Every 3 years, the Lowry family (my mom's family) comes together to celebrate their past, present and future. At the last reunion, my dear grandfather, Papo, was still with us, Chris and I were just married, Monica and Ryan were engaged... it amazes me to think of all that has happened in the last 3 years. This time the reunion was in Oklahoma City. Chris, Crockett and I were all there, Monica, Ryan and Braidy, LuLu and Papaw... everyone but Rachy, who was really missed! We had a great time catching up with cousins, meeting new relatives and reminiscing our loved ones who are no longer with us. All of us (and Uncle Tim and Aunt Darla) went to the Science Museum on Saturday, which was SO MUCH FUN! There was tons of stuff to do. The boys had a GREAT time and all the adults had a really good time too! Crockett loved riding in the tractor and playing with the bubbles and water. Braidy painted his own face :), rode a scooter and went up in the tree house with me. Crockett and I slid down a huge slide, but neither one of us liked it too much! We had a banquet on Sat. night. It was crazy with a bunch of little kids running around, but it was very nice. Kathryn, Keenen and Meredith were able to make it for the banquet, so it was fun to talk with them and catch up. They also really enjoyed being entertained by the boys :) On Sun. we had Church, ate lunch and decided to head home. We had planned on staying for fireworks, but God had other plans. It was POURING as we drove home... So no fireworks for us this year :(

Since the reunion, I have decided to begin learning about my family's history. The Lowry family has kept a pretty good record for about the last 220 years. I am so excited to learn more about where I came from and all about my ancestors. So far I have learned that the Lowry's are from Ireland and arrived in Amerinca on July 5, 1776, the day after the Declaration of Independence was signed. I am so anxious to learn more about their journey to Weatherford, OK and all of the people that have made up the legacy we are now familiar with.

We had such a great time and will definately look forward to the next Lowry family reunion 2013!

Gone Swimming!

2010-06-30T09:38:00.001-07:00

Last night was our last night of swimming lessons. Crockett and Cade (and their mamas!) had such a GREAT time playing and swimming together! They both learned how to splash, kick, blow bubbles, jump off the ledge and they even got dunked a few times :) Crockett was the king of the bubble blowing and Cade was the splash king. They are so precious playing together and are building a great friendship! Crockett even chased Cade a couple of times to give him a BIG hug and kiss... their daddies were not impressed, but it was HILARIOUS, and he kisses pretty much everyone these days :) Their teacher, Sylvia, was such a sweet and patient lady. Crockett really liked her and ALWAYS wanted to go to her in the water! We are so glad we did these mommy and me lessons and can't wait to do them again next year! I bet these boys will be little fishes by next summer!

99 years and counting!!!

2010-06-29T10:43:00.000-07:00

On June 26th, we celebrated the 99th birthday of Grandma Welch! WOW! She is Elwanda's mother, Steve's grandmother, Chris's great-grandmother, and Crockett's great,great grandmother. We had the party at Grace Care, where Grandma Welch lives and we ate barbeque with all the fixins, cake and punch and then we all played BINGO! The kids won each time, I think... All three of her children, Elwanda, Jeannine and Mike were able to attend with part of their families. This year there were quite a few kiddos. They had a great time playing with each other and there were several older kids to watch the younger ones... It was very nice! Crockett made a buddy, McCrae, who is almost 3 had the cutest boots on and Crockett thought he was pretty cool! I can't wait for them to get to play together again! Grandma Welch is such a special lady and is still able to walk and talk and make everyone laugh. It is so special to be a part of her BIG day!!! What a wonderful occasion to celebrate! HAPPY BIRTHDAY, GRANDMA WELCH and many, many more!

Happy Father's Day!

2010-06-26T20:47:00.000-07:00

Happy 2nd Father's Day to Chris! What a wonderful day it was! We spent the day hanging out and playing in Crockett's new sandbox. I made Chris's favorite meal (which according to him, I don't cook nearly enough!) of chicken fried steak and gravy with fried potatoes and salad... Now you can see why I don't cook it more often! It was good though, and he enjoyed it and that is what matters! Crockett is so lucky to have such a great dad. He really looks up to his daddy and gets so, so, so excited when he sees him (or tractors or pick ups or cowboy hats :) Seeing them together just melts my heart and makes me so proud to be their wife/mommy. I never knew I could love anyone the way I love my boys. Happy Father's Day, Chris!

The three of us are so lucky to have a lot of really special men in our lives that we weren't able to see for Father's Day. Most of them are still with us, a couple of them aren't. They have each played a huge part in making us who we are today. We are grateful for the lessons they have taught us, the patience with which they raised us and the unconditional love they have shown us.

We love you, Dad, Steve, Les, Papo, T-Pa, James and HotShot. Happy Father's Day!

WICKED!!

2010-06-24T19:14:00.000-07:00

We had been waiting for this weekend to get here since Christmas!! Rach is such a great gift giver; last year it was tickets to Brad Paisley and this year it was tickets to see WICKED in Dallas! YAY! Wicked is my FAVORITE play and I could see it over and over and over... plus, I think we all needed a little girl time! My mom and Monica came and picked me up on Friday and we drove on to Dallas. It was a little difficult to leave since I have only left Crockett for 1 night - EVER - but I was thankful for the break and VERY thankful to Chris and Elwanda for taking such wonderful care of him. I bet he didn't even miss me (not really) :) We went to Rachy's new apartment where she was cooking us a delicious dinner of chicken, sweet potatoes with rosemary, asparagus and a yummy cookie pizza for dessert. It was so good! We also made it to my new FAVORITE place - Nordstrom's The Rack - before we headed to the hotel. I love that place. They have everything... good thing I don't live close to it. On Saturday we got ready, shopped a little, ate lunch at La Madeleine and went on to the show! It was SO good! The story, the music (oh, how I love the music!), the orchestra... WONDERFUL! We had dinner at Mi Cocina and by about 8:00 p.m. we were ready for bed... But it had been a busy, hot, fantastic day! Since Sunday was Father's Day, we got an early start, which was even earlier due to the fire alarm, luckily a FALSE alarm in the kitchen, and had breakfast at Cafe Brazil and mom, Mon and I hit the road. We had such a good time and really hope to make it an annual event. Thanks Rachy for such an AWESOME Christmas and Birthday gift. We are all so lucky to have each other :)

SuMmEr FuN!!!

2010-06-23T19:20:00.000-07:00

Brandi, Cade, Crockett and I met Celeste, Will and Addison Locknane in Iowa Park for lunch at Sonic and a trip to the splash park! It was so much fun for the mommies to get together and for the kids to play. Will had tons of fun on the big kid slides and in the big pool. He played pretty hard and we hardly saw him the whole time. Cade, Addison and Crockett stuck to the splash pool. They loved the fish and water spouts. Crockett practiced blowing bubbles and really wanted to go on a slide... maybe next time! The three little ones are growing up so fast and were so cute playing together! It was a great place to let them play and wear themselves out :) We can't wait to go back! Yay for summer fun!!

A Surprise Visit!

2010-06-23T19:09:00.000-07:00

Grandpa Steve came and visited us on his way home from Oklahoma City! We were so excited to see him and Crockett immediately began talking to him when he walked in the door. I think he really got a kick out of Crockett's stories! The last time we saw him, Crockett was a little baby and was not even crawling. So, to say he thought he had grown would be an understatement. Steve travels so much and doesn't make it to Holliday very often, so we were so happy he came!!

What is it with kids and ketchup?

2010-06-07T20:23:00.000-07:00

Crockett has discovered a new love... for ketchup. I think he thinks ketchup was the main course and the chicken was just something to dip with, kind of like a spoon. He didn't eat much of the chicken that night, but he ate LOTS of ketchup :) and wanted more! What a mess he is! :)

Oh yeah, he LOVES Cheetoes too! And, no, I didn't get them out for him... he did that ALL BY HIMSELF!!

Long Time, No Blog

2010-06-05T19:02:00.000-07:00

I cannot believe I have not blogged in over a month... so much has happened!
#1 ~ Crockett is walking! He started walking right after Easter, and has not sat down since! He definately keeps me on my toes and is constantly finding new things to get into. Today he was up on the window seat, scaling the window! Kayleigh (my oldest neice)was calling him a "spider monkey" - a combo of spiderman and monkey :) I think she was right.
#2 ~ He has curly, curly hair! The top and back will just form these ringlets whether I have brushed it or not... most of the time it looks like I have not, but I do! The hair at the nape of his neck is straight. Chris used to have curly hair at this age and when I found a picture of Chris at 1 year, they look EXACTLY alike. Pretty cute.
#3 ~ Crockett, LuLu and I went to Weatherford to visit my Uncle Tim, Aunt Darla, Meredith, Kathryn, Keenan and Shiela. I was so mad that I forgot my camera, but we had a WONDERFUL time! Crockett still LOVES cows and he got to go check them with Uncle Tim on his 4-wheeler. He didn't want to get off... it was so cute, Uncle Tim kept coming up with things they could go do on the 4-wheeler. We got to see 2 of Mere's piggies. They were clean and cute and Crockett thought they made funny sounds, but he was still not too sure what to think of them. We had such a great time and loved getting to spend time with all of the Lowry's. Shiela was my Papo's special friend and she showed us all the old cars and the old schoolroom at the museum. It is such a neat place. We had to pry Crockett out of the car (Model A Ford). I am glad we were the only ones in there... he just honked the horn over and over... It was a great getting to spend time with LuLu too!!!
#4 ~ We started swimming lessons! It is a mommy and me class and we are taking it with Brandi and Cade Luig. It is so much fun and the boys have had lots of fun splashing and playing with us in the water. So far we have been working on blowing bubbles and kicking and floating. Crockett wouldn't do much of it in the water at our last class, but last night he started blowing bubbles in the bathtub and would kick his legs on command. It is so much fun watching him learn new things and then seeing the proud look on his face :) PRICELESS!
#5 ~ Crockett is a talker! Oh my goodness! He will talk and talk and it sounds as if you should know exactly what he is saying! Just within the last couple of weeks he has begun to say words. He now says night, night, ball, mama, dada, shoes, juice, bye bye. When he says ni, ni it just melts my heart... I could listen to it on repeat <3
#6 ~ He is FINALLY sleeping through the night!!! Halleluia!! One night all three of us were in our bed and not one of us slept. I decided that night it was going to be worth it to just let him cry it out. It was awful. He cried for 2 hours the first night, but after that it was less and less crying. Now we have a special bedtime routine and he is in bed by about 8:30. He sleeps most of the night and will sometimes sleep until 10:30 in the A.M. He is definately my child :)
#7 ~ Crockett and I went to Dallas last weekend to help move Rachy into her new apartment. Poppa's birthday is June 3rd, so we also got to have an early birthday celebration! It was a good weekend and I am so glad we could help. I had forgotten how terrible it is to move... especially in 100 degree heat with a 14 month old. Rachy was very patient with us and Crockett was very good all things considered. The Curry's were there to visit their new nephew, Noah. Todd and Marci came (Noah's mommy and daddy), Aunt Anne, Aunt Susan, Uncle Mike, T-Pa and D-Ma, JJ... It was lots of fun and Braidy and Johnny showed Crockett the pool and how to put his hand (and their heads! hahaha) in the water and open the doors. It was crazy! But so good to see everyone! AND by the way, on July 1st, we will get to find out if we will have another Baby Boy Curry or Baby Girl Curry! Mon and Ryan, I think it is a girl... YAY!!!
#8 ~ Since the weather has gotten so nice, Crockett wants to be outside ALL THE TIME! He is all boy and wants to play in the dirt and rocks and with sticks... Chris tells me it is just a matter of time until it is bugs and snakes. Ugh, I hope not... Not my sweet baby boy :) He loves his wagon and would probably sleep in it if I would let him. I still need to get his sandbox and picnic table outside. Maybe once harvest is over and Chris is here I will get that done. Then he will really never want to come in!

Crockett is growing up so fast. I stay so busy, but can never tell you exactly what I do over the course of a week. I spend most of my time chasing a very energetic 14-month old around... it is a full-time job, but I love him so much. It has been such an exciting time watching him grow and learn and become this little boy.

Easter!

2010-04-22T13:06:00.000-07:00

For Easter this year, we went to Church in Holliday and then to Grandmaw's house to eat with all the family and hunt Easter eggs! It is pretty much tradition around here to go to Grandmaw's house for any, and all, holidays. Grandmaw was there, of course, MiMi was there, and Uncle Casey, Aunt Amie and Kayleigh, Emily, Nathalie, Kyle, Marla, Dylan, Kylee, Shirley and Ken... It was a full house. We always have so much food and this Easter was no exception! Crockett was a lot of fun this year. He found a few eggs and rode around with MiMi. Can't believe it was only a year ago when he was such a tiny baby in his sweet 1st Easter outfit. He got lots of goodies from mom and dad, LuLu and Papaw, and Poppa and JJ and Grandmaw... the kid made out like a bandit. His cousins got most of the eggs this year, but next year, I bet he gives them a run for their money :) It was a wonderful day and reminded us how thankful we are for the blessings God bestows upon us daily.

Happy Birthday Rachy!

2010-04-12T20:26:00.000-07:00

For Rachy's 23rd birthday, Crockett and I planned to go to the Big D for a quick visit... a special birthday dinner, some apartment shopping, cake.... the works! What Rach didn't know was that Mom, Monica and Braidy were coming with us!! It was such a GREAT surprise! She couldn't believe it! We had so much fun. Crockett and Braidy destroyed our room... or at least the bathroom, we ate at La Duni (SO yummy!), shopped a little (not fun with babies), lunch at Breadwinners, and I cannot forget the 4 pieces of CAKE we celebrated with! SO good. I must have gained 10 lbs. But for Rachy, I would do anything! We had a really good time and can't wait to do it again... without the babies :) Hope you had a great birthday!

Three years and counting!

2010-04-12T20:15:00.000-07:00

Two days after Crockett's birthday, Chris and I celebrated our 3rd anniversary. We were still recovering from the BIG party, but we definately wanted to go out, just the two of us, since we didn't get to do that last year! We decided to hire a babysitter (our 1st!) and go eat at Pelican's. The babysitter we hired was GREAT!!! And we were able to enjoy our meal and talk to each other, which was WONDERFUL :) Our anniversary has gotten pushed to the backburner since Crockett came along, which is fine by us, but it is definately a special day for us to celebrate. I love you so much, Chris. I love the life we have built for ourselves and I know God has great things in store for us. Happy 3rd Anniversary!

PARTY PICS!

2010-04-12T19:45:00.001-07:00