Our Family

Home Sweet Home

2009-08-19T14:09:00.000-07:00

Ok, I know it has been a while, but I have a great excuse!

We love our new home. It has felt like home since the first night. It seems to be perfect in size (not too big, not too small) and love the floor plan! Maybe one day I will have the gutso so show the inside, but maybe some here and there. There really isn't too much we want to change, which is a good thing. The kids' bedrooms need repainted and we are thinking about adding a wall, but other than that can't complain! The kids love the yard and the swing set, getting them in is like pulling teeth! Baby Cale is the worst.

We are homeschooling full-time this year. We started on Monday! So far, so good!

Brian's job is going well, he is loving working from home! I love him working from home. It makes the long days when he is gone worth it.

We are starting to "scout" out churches and hopefully will visit one soon. So much to think about between having a great youth program for Parker, a great childrens' program for Liddie & Cale and for us to find the right spot to get fed. I realize that you cannot find a church to meet all of your needs, but you need it to fill some.

More to come!

Complete Craziness...but God is good!

2009-07-13T12:19:00.000-07:00

So much to catch up on...Yes we sold our house, but our buyer backed out over us not being willing to put on a new roof when half of it was replaced in November of 08. We tried to agree with them to split the cost of half of a new roof, but that was not acceptable so they backed out. Fortunately for us (and you cannot deny it was God) we had an interested buyer come through the day we signed out contract with the first buyers. They left feedback saying that they were interested and that they were paying in cash and could close in two weeks! As soon as our deal was starting to fall apart our realtor contacted these other buyers and they were still looking, though half heartedly negotiating on another house, they really wanted a chance at ours. The offer was not as good, but we really felt like this was our chance to keep moving forward and how many times do you have a back up buyer the day your deal falls apart??? Oh and by the way, they wanted to close in 2 weeks (July 17)!

Over the 4th we went to Edmond to house hunt. We looked pretty much all day on the 3rd & 5th. We ultimately put an offer in on the first house we looked at, but at the end of the day on the 5th. On the 5th we knew about our house so we knew we were needing to close quick and we are able to close on July 24th, only a week later! God is good! Oh did I mention that we both had "criteria" of what we wanted for a house and we both got what we wanted! God is too good to us!

I called our packers to ask them about availability and he only had two dates open the week we needed him...the two days we NEEDED! God it good!

This week is CRAZY! Our packers/loaders will be here Wednesday & Thursday. We close at 10:00 a.m. on Friday! I absoltutely love all of my Houston/Pearland friends, just know I will not be able see everyone, but I don't like goodbyes anyway! I would have never enjoyed our time here without such good friends. I love and appreciate every one of you!

SOLD!

2009-06-30T10:49:00.000-07:00

We have sold our house! We countered back at the first offer, they countered back and we accepted their counter. Granted it is great to have this piece behind us and we could have held out for a little more, but it wasn't worth the gamble. We felt we needed to take a reasonable offer and move on. When we moved here from Tulsa in 2002 our house in Jenks sat on the market for 8 months, and we did not want a repeat performance!

We are in our 10 day option period (Texas thing) and the buyers can back out for any reason and only loose $100! It will end on Saturday, July 4! Keep praying all is moving forward. We really believe God has orchestrated all of this and know we are in His hands throughout this and have to continue to trust Him!

Offer, Counter-offer & Waiting...

2009-06-23T07:37:00.000-07:00

Day 8 on the market (Sunday) we were told we had a verbal offer! Our realtor prefers not to deal with verbals and requested to their agent to submit a written offer. They did just that on Monday! Of course it was lower than what we were wanting this early in the game and we countered back yesterday. We should be hearing back today! In all honesty if they don't come back with a better counter back we have one more round we are willing to go because our first counter was high.

We had a feeling this time it would sell semi-quick because we have had a lot of traffic, but I never would have guessed within 8 days! God is so good! Keep praying this negotiating process ends up in our home being sold! The Lord has been with us every step of this job process and I have to firmly believe He is with us now in this step as well.

Day 4 on the market...

2009-06-18T07:01:00.000-07:00

Today was a busy day of showings...we had 4 total! One already responded and said the house was not for them. Out of 7 showings 3 are "considering" it, one of those three are not in a hurry and another one may want to bring her husband back next week. I am hopeful that we will continue showing and maybe have an offer soon. Keep praying for a quick sale that is reasonable!

House on the Market

2009-06-16T18:24:00.000-07:00

Today was the 3rd full day our house has been on the market. I can't even begin to explain how much stress there is during this process. First to get it ready has been a chore. We have rented a storage building (5x10) and have nearly filled it. I am guessing we really don't need 3/4s of it, but hopefully we can sift through it better before the final move.

To get the house on the market we had two bathrooms painted, one room re-painted, drywall touch up work done (minor Ike damage), Brian, his mom and her husband painted our kitchen, we painted our formal living and dining rooms (office and playroom respectively), decluttered and finished it all off with a full landscaping clean up. That is why we feel like we birthed another child!

Here are a few things that have happened that have added stress:

Wednesday, June 10 we were suppose to meet with the realtor at 5:30...at 4:45 I was in the laundry room sorting laundry and Baby Cale decided to play in the shoe rack (we take our shoes off in the laundry room) and I decided to let him so I could finish, next thing I know Parker comes in and says to me "He is in the paint!!!". Cale dumped over a can of paint that had a little bit left in there, the lid wasn't secure so it came out and he played in it! I immediately called Brian and said he had to cancel our appointment! This resulted in a bath, a call to poison control (becase some was in his mouth) and a full laundry room floor clean up! Yes, shoes got some paint, but I think they were saved!

Thursday, June 11 again 5:30 appointment...at 3:30 or so a flouresent lamp bulb was shattered (yes the new ones that have mecury in them). We left the room and took all advised precautions and then properly cleaned up the mess.

Saturday, June 13 the house goes on the market!

Sunday, June 14 first showing...they spent 45 minutes at the house. We received good feedback and are one of the houses being considered!

Monday, June 15 Second showing...no feedback yet.

Tuesday, June 16 Third showing scheduled for 2:00. I have been stressed, I know...why??? One way I reduce stress is to bake. We have new neighbors on one side of us and I thought it would be a great reason to bake besides stress relief. At the time I started the dough I did not know we had a showing. I got the call during the process. Not a big deal I was cleaning up as I went and I would at least be able to bake them and then I could ice them after the showing. I preheated the oven and was right on target. A few minutes later when I was looking at the temperature I saw a small flame. I originally thought it was bits of pizza that dropped to the bottom, then I remembered I left a store bought cake in the oven (because I didn't want it sitting out on the counter). The plastic was flaming a little bit. I grapped my stone and was going to push it onto it as I was about to do that, I realized that it was getting a little bit bigger...I said to myself "forget this...I'm getting the extinguisher!". I pulled the pin and gave it two quick shots and it was gone...POOF!

After a few deep breaths and using the broom to get the smoke alarm to quit, I called Brian just about in a panic...I was still shaking! After I calmed down and realized all was well it was time to clean up the kitchen for the showing that is now 1-1/2 hours away! I lit a candle, turned on the vent hood, turned down the air and started cleaning. There were black little specs everywhere and a nice white film all over the oven, microwave and floor but who cares I took care of the immediate need. Now I can totally laugh, but I was so scared at first. I don't think the house even smelled like burnt plastic...YEA!

No feedback on this showing either, but hopefully it isn't a remark of some funky smell!

Tomorrow we have a scheduled showing between 10-11 and I have a mover coming to give a quote at 9:00! All is moving (no pun intended) pretty fast for us!

I know, I need to catch up some more...I will and will post pictures too!

Big News...

2009-06-12T08:13:00.001-07:00

We are moving!

We are moving to Edmond, Oklahoma! It is a long story how all this has come about along with the longest job interview process in the history of Brian's job interviewing. After two month of interviewing and waiting and waiting and waiting we had the official offer. We have known for a while, but everything had been verbal.

Short story: We put our house on the market officially tomorrow morning. When it sells we will move. We may be spending some time in OKC but will be back and forth until the house sells. Brian's new job is different, but still technical, he will basically be supporting two sales guys with his technical skills (that is about as simple as I can put what he does into words). He will be working out of the house so that will keep us flexible. We need to spend time down here for him to train and get acquainted with his new job. We would like to see moving at the end of July or first part of August.

Long story (God is so much in the details of this):

All of Brian's job issues that have been going on for the past 6 months came to a head all of a sudden, otherwise he would have never thought about looking for another job!

Tuesday, March 24 my friend Desiree gave me a full gallon on paint, my exact color that I need to finish my two front rooms. Jokingly we giggled saying that I was going to tell Brian it was God telling us to paint (he loathes painting). That night at the dinner table, I did just that. Of course I got the typical yeah, yeah, yeah, whatever!

The next day, Brian told me he prayed a few weeks before that if God wanted us to move back home, that he would provide a way for it to happen. He told me this before bed after Devon (they guy who helped him get the job) told him about a job with his company that would be in Oklahoma. ASG is opening an office in Oklahoma to serve OKC, Tulsa, Arkansas and N. Texas. This job is not a traditional IT job that Brian has worked in the past or currently, this would be more of a supporting sales role. For the last couple of years, Brian has been saying that he wants a change. He has grown tired of what he is doing, but did not know what he would do or really what he wanted to do.

Then the following morning before I looked at email or anything I decided I was dedicating my morning to prayer. After my time of prayer, I read an email from Brian about the job! I began to get overwhelmed with emotion and thought "the paint", God is truly telling us to paint! Then I started thinking about school and how much we love our school and how much my heart has been softened to homeschooling and how I would have never considered it had it not been for Logos. The story of us hearing about Logos is a God story in itself!

My prayer all along has been that God would open my eyes, ears & heart to receive his will and communicate it enough for us to follow. I also have prayed that I need to be trusting of God to work out the details for such a big event, it was bigger than me!

Brian met with the guy from ASG Friday, April 3. He came away from the meeting more sure, excited and saw it has a real possbility. He was told that the job would be his if he wanted it and needed to spend the weekend talking to me and thinking about what he would need for a base salary.

Back to the paint...I tried to talk Brian into painting that weekend, and he said it was too difficult to do with the kids. Unexpectedly (becacuse they ran the special) Brian's mom is came that weekend...we had help, so we painted!

We are so very excited about this opportunity to get home, but it really bring to me the true menaing of "Bittersweet". We know in our hearts this is what God wants for us, but it is truly going to be a tough move. We have been in this house the longest we have ever been in a house our entire marriage. This is the only place Parker remembers living, we brought two babies home here and have had such a great support system of friends which are like a second family, great neighbors. We have enjoyed living here much more than we ever expected! Right now, I am very emotional and overwhelmed with the stress of getting the house ready to put on the market (I have decided we have too much "junk"). The only way I can describe how I am feeling right now is numb, can anyone relate???

This has been the real reason why I have not kept up the blog...I was waiting to share this news! I will work on getting caught up and keeping you up to date on our process!

Liddie's First Astro's Game

2009-05-24T09:30:00.000-07:00

Liddie went to her first Astro's game! They only lasted about 5 innings or so. She said she liked basketball better...must be more action, plus more things to keep you occupied besides cotton candy! She had fun though and so happy she could go!

Cale enjoys the front yard

2009-05-18T09:24:00.000-07:00

Cale was a late walker (15 months or so), and so after we got some new shoes and a beautiful day came our way, we headed to the front yard for some play! Cale absolutely loved walking around on the grass, sidewalk and riding the plasma car (that he does really well on). He must have felt a new found freedom! You can tell by the look on his face he is having a ball!

End of Year Party - The Downtown Aquarium

2009-05-11T09:18:00.000-07:00

Have I said how much we love Parker's school, probably not (ha ha), but WE LOVE PARKER'S SCHOOL! For the end of year party we did a Field Trip Combo and took the kids to the Downtown Aquarium. The kids saw all the aquadic animals and some bengle tigers, then had a blast on all the rides. Here are a few pictures with Parker and his two buddies Conner & Weston. Parker has enjoyed these two kiddos (and others too) so much and they love hangin' out together.

Muffins with Mom (Liddie's Pre-school)

2009-05-08T09:09:00.000-07:00

The Children's Program Liddie attends had Muffins for Mom. It was a special time for just me and her. We enjoyed a muffin and some juice together and they gave us a sweet bath treat! I love her school and teachers! She had the best and most creative teachers this year, they will be missed!

Happy 11th Birthday Parker! (4/22/09)

2009-04-23T10:55:00.000-07:00

Parker turned 11 today! Boy time flies! Today we tried to make it as special as we could because his birthday celebration will be this weekend and I will have lots of pictures to post then!

Started the morning off with chocolate chip waffles (nothing different really); then we met Brian for lunch at California Pizza Kitchen. After all of that we went to Target to let him pick out a game (no not a video game...that was a rule) and topped that trip off with a Cherry ICEE! For dinner he picked what he wanted me to make...Meatloaf (my yummy meatloaf with sweetened condensed milk), sweet potato fries & corn and of course topped that off with ice cream...WHEW, what a day!

This weekend hold some fun stuff for Parker...grandparents coming, going to the movies and lunch with friends and yet another special dinner.

We love you Park!

XOXOXO

Cale can Walk!

2009-04-09T06:49:00.000-07:00

...but I question his "want" to walk. He is such a fast crawler, who would want to try something else??? He also can get around on the plasma car, alone...yes, alone! Plus he can get around on another riding toy so why walk?

The night before last I got him to take lots of steps and proved to me right then and there he CAN walk! He also stood up on his own from the floor the same day. He has been walking around stuff like a mad man, but just hasn't taken a true leap to walking.

Okay, okay, okay...I know I need to get caught up! Bear with me another day or two and hopefull I will get there.

Baking Cookies

2009-03-14T14:37:00.000-07:00

I love to bake cookies! Liddie loves to bake cookies with me! Well, a couple of different friends have been baking cookies and selling them, and they are beautiful! They inspired me to at least try to make pretty cookies, not to sell them but just for my family or friends or classmates of the kids. Liddie did a really great job! I was experimenting for Easter. I think I need to do a little bit more work and a little bit more experiementing. My waistline is not liking all of this, but my tummy sure is!

Cale the Climber

2009-03-14T14:21:00.000-07:00

Cale is most definitely the climber of the bunch. I think this video proves it. He has been found everywhere from the tops of the chairs (living room) to the couch before we can turn around. This particular day I looked over at him and he was on the table! I had no idea how he got there. I put him back on the floor and watched him do it again and again, so I had to break out the camera for this one.

2009_3_14

Silly Faces

2009-02-25T11:30:00.000-08:00

Since I am playing catch up, here is a slide show of some happy and silly faces in January and February.

When Parker was little

2009-02-25T11:12:00.000-08:00

I found some pictures of Parker (that were digital...few and far between then!) of when he was 2-1/2. He is such a cutie, then and now!

More Liddieisms...

2009-02-20T19:55:00.000-08:00

Lellow = Yellow
Loodles = Noodles
Lusic = Music

While we are making waffle mix:

I crack an egg into the bowl...
Liddie says "Hi Little Eggie", then she says "Little Eggie is thirsty, let's give him so milk!"
We give little Eggie some milk and she says "ahhh much better!"
From time to time when Brian is home and making breakfast with us she will tell Brian "Daddy, tell little Eggie hi!" Just too stinkin' cute!

I so don't want to forget some of these because I miss remembering all these things with Parker! Thank goodness for blogging in 2009!

"The Shack"

2009-02-14T07:01:00.000-08:00

I have been reading the book "The Shack". A friend of a friend started a book discussion on this book. It just started so it is not too late to join in. I am not a reader, but the book came highly recommended by someone who also recommended "The Wednesday Letters" and I loved that book, so I thought I would follow her recommendation again, I am so glad I did.

If you are interested in this discussion, whether it is just reading the discussion or participating, just scroll down a little and click on the book I have on the left side of my blog.

25 Random Things

2009-02-02T05:43:00.001-08:00

Okay, the 25 Random Things about Yourself has been going around Facebook like wildfire. I love reading them...you really can find out a few things about people you would have never known, and it has been pretty fun! A few of you have decided to "re-do" on your blog, and I am joining you (not sure if I will do 100 Beth)! Some will be repeats, some won't.

1. I am technically an only child, though I have 2 half brothers (one of which has passed away way too young) and 2 half sisters.

2. I secretly wish I could/would have one more baby! (Cannot believe I have written that).

3. After many years of not being able to get pregnant after Parker, we did one unsuccessful round of fertility and gave up on more than one child (and accepted it by the way). Our last two pregnancies have truly been the hand of God! (Really 3...I miscarried once after Liddie)

4. None of our children were "planned". (You know what I mean)

5. I never make my bed (only when I change the sheets)

6. I cannot stand to unload the dishwasher, that is why it is a chore of Parker's.

7. I want to win the lottery not to buy more things or a bigger house, but to have Brian home all the time and be a better giver.

8. Every child has increased my prayer life!

9. My mother-in-law & best childhood friend beat breast cancer!

10. I miss my Na-Naw (like a mother to me...my mother's mother). She would get a kick out of these kids. She passed 11 days after I had Liddie and I was unable to attend her funeral, which has made it hard for me to realize that she is really gone.

11. My mom still lives in the house I grew up in.

12. Parker is so much like me, it is scarey!

13. I want to move one more time in my life...move to the house our kids will come home to and visit after they leave and stay in their "old rooms" and have fond memories.

14. The house that we are in now is the longest we have lived in one place our entire married life (and I think Brian's entire life).

15. You would have to pay me a ton of money to return to high school (enough for #7).

16. I was PTA Treasurer for one year (you could do it for two years...one was enough).

17. My kids watch entirely too much television.

18. I always have the best of intentions, but don't always follow through.

19. If there were one reality show I would want to do, it would be Amazing Race. I would only want Brian to be my partner.

20. I have never had a speeding ticket.

21. I don't have an i-Pod (Brian & Parker do).

22. I can't wait to live debt free (including our home). We are on our way: Zero credit card debt!

23. I did not finish college, and I don't think it has hurt me.

24. I make my kids chocolate chip waffles for breakfast most mornings.

25. I want to start a new tradition of writing my kids letters on their birthdays.

There are 25! I may add some as time goes on.

Pay it Forward...Winner(s)

2009-02-02T05:37:00.000-08:00

I know I am late in doing this, but I so loved your stories. I did this to encourage us to live our daily lives paying it forward and not just sometimes. I heard stories from helping a family through the rebuilding of their home after a devastating fire (and the family was new in town) to putting a book in the mailbox of a friend who recently lost their pet...and everything in between! Paying it forward can be BIG or it can be small...the result is the same, helping others without wanting pay backs. If you don't have the resources to do a lot, you can still have a big heart by doing little things.

The two stories I mentioned "won" so you can expect a little something in the mail whenever I can get it in (I am a procrastinator and have the best intentions, just know that).

Thank you for your stories and remember to try to incorporate paying it forward daily whenever you can.

Shout out...

2009-01-21T12:39:00.000-08:00

I love to compliment a company when they treat their customers right. Here are two shout outs that I have!

Britax:
Best car seats EVER, love them!!! I also have a Britax stroller. Unfortunately I broke the wheel of it and have been unable to use it. I called Britax to see if I could buy another wheel. For some reason, I can't remember why, but they don't sell them. So the lady offered to send me one free of charge. I reminded her that it was not a warranty problem, that I actually caused the damage. She said that is okay and she would send it to me anyway! I received the wheel just the other day! Thank you Britax!

LL Bean:
Parker's new school highly recommended that we purchase a rolling backpack for our student. Well because the specifically mentioned it I figured they meant it and needed to buy him a good backpack, so I went to LL Bean (Brian had a laptop bag from them that lasted nearly 10 years!!!). Anyway, Parker's first day of school he left the backpack strap out of the pouch while rolling because I instructed him to despite the directions. I just wanted him to have a smooth day and not spending too much time tucking the strap in and out so I specifically told him to leave the strap out just that day. Well, he got home and the strap was frayed nearly in two from one day! Although I did not have him follow directions I was so surprised it frayed that bad for one day. I called LL Bean and told them the story. They said a new one will be on the way! I said I wasn't calling to get a new free backpack, I was just hoping that maybe they would meet me in the middle because it was my fault, and they said not a problem a new one is still coming free of charge! Whooo Hoooo! Thank you LL Bean!

Honesty does pay!

Cale's Funny Faces

2009-01-21T12:34:00.000-08:00

I went on the back patio to start the grill and when I turned around I saw this...

Jesus Hat

2009-01-21T12:20:00.000-08:00

Liddie put the arm cover from a chair on her head and said "Look Momma, it's a Jesus hat"! I love it when they make connections like that.

Cale - 12 Month Check Up

2009-01-21T12:03:00.001-08:00

Cale at 1 Year:

Weight:

22 pounds and 8 ounces...smaller than I thought! He is in the 55% range.

Height:

28 3/4 inches...getting taller, slowly but surely! That is 25%, poor boy doesn't stand a chance at being a basketball playerl!!

Head:
19 1/4" which is greater than 95%! Funny story: for Cale's 9 month check up, Brian was with us and the doctor took measurements of both of our heads to determine that Cale's large head was due to genetics, otherwise we would have had to go to Texas Childrens' for a CAT scan!

Number of Teeth:

Personality:

Baby Cale is so laid back. He is a pretty quiet baby, he plays independently very well and loves the big kids, we know he can't wait to be running around with them...you can see it in his eyes.

Accomplishments:

He can say Momma, Dada, Bubba (Parker), Go (he hears us say to Liddie "go, go, go" when she is saying she needs the restroom) and nana (banana). He is the fastest crawler we have ever seen, but is walking around the coffee table, pushing a chair around and will stand when he doesn't realize it. He will put absolutely anything or everything he can in his mouth, just plain nasty! He will go to sleep while awake (HUGE for us), but still does not sleep through the night.

Baby Cale...WE LOVE YOU!

Pay it Foward...Update!

2009-01-21T11:54:00.000-08:00

I have been getting lots of stories, but few comments, which is fine. I encourage you to send me your stories. First, I decided to do this because I have been blessed by others in so many ways and I know I could never repay them. Second, I wanted to encourage everyone to give selflessly to others and if you are every asked how they could repay you, you then ask them to "Pay it Forward". God works in ways you cannot imagine. After I did this, I read this post about a couple who just had their first baby and now she (the baby) is in NICU. She specifically mentioned in her post that she would have to pay forward everything everyone has done for her because there would be no way she could repay them. Her post is here! Keep the stories comin', I will post some stories in a few days.

Pay it Forward...

2009-01-15T09:41:00.000-08:00

Pay it forward...means that someone does something for you out of the kindness of their heart, not expecting anything in return so a way to "repay" them is to do the same thing for something else.

A couple different friends of mine have encouraged others to Pay it Forward by the first 3 people to leave a comment would receive a gift. I have so enjoyed it. Now I want to pay it forward, but want to change it up a little. Send me an email at cara.canada@gmail.com of the best way you have paid it forward or if you haven't paid it forward before then here is your chance to do it and tell me about it. Leave me a comment only telling me you will send me an email, not to tell your story because I think the best way to pay it forward is to also be anonoymous! The best story I receive within a week will receive something special in the mail! I will also post your story without your name.

I encourage you to leave a comment so we can see how many people will participate and encourage one another! If you blog, do the same thing!

Here are a few examples to pay it forward:

Buy the lunch of the person behind you in the drive thru;

Help someone do something that someone else has once helped you do (organize a closet ora home office);

Call someone who does not have family close and offer to watch their kids so they can go on a date night without having to pay a babysitter;

Spontaneously drop a gift card in the mail to someone, just because and don't sign your name!

Giving is so much fun!

Cale's First Birthday

2009-01-14T19:40:00.000-08:00

This day has been bittersweet for me. I love to see Baby Cale grow, but at the same time I *love* the baby stage so much! Cale is the "caboose" of our family which makes me sad sometimes, then again it makes me happy sometimes...depends on how the day is going.

Cale is the sweetest baby and very laid back, guess most 3rd babies automatically get the laid back personality. He can be very quiet, though he babbles a lot too. He is saying ma ma ma ma ma and da da da da da, and some times even ba ba ba ba ba (Parker, i.e. Bubba). He doesn't cry a lot, mainly when he is tired and hugry, and fusses only sometimes with a dirty diaper. The boy is still not sleeping through the night, but I think I am also attached to him waking up and enjoying nursing him. With each baby they have their own thing they do just between the two of you and Cale's "thing" is to reach close to my neck of my shirt and somehow get his hand just inside and gently rub my chest, it is just so sweet.

Of course he has fallen into the "third child syndrome" meaning he did not get a big first birthday party like the other two, I still have not taken him for pictures (the other two were on the actual day!), and I guess we haven't taken as many of him as we did the others. I do wish we would have taken more pictures the day he was born, I try not to feel regret about it because I can't change it.

Here is a slide show I put together of his first year...13 pictures, one a month from the day of his birth until today, his first birthday.

Cale's First Ear Infection

2009-01-04T09:49:00.001-08:00

Cale came down with his first ear infection. I finally took him to the doctor on Friday because he wasn't acting himself, was not sleeping (worse than usual), and always wanted to be held (more than usual). I had be hesitant because he hadn't been running fever; he had a cough, but they say to let it run 14 days if no fever and a little congestion. My theory was that since Brian was home and I would not have to tote 3 kids to the doctor's office I may as well take him, plus maybe we (really me) could get a weekend of of sleep. Lo and behold one ear was "red" and the other was grey. She said normally she wouldn't treat it yet, but since his behavior was not normal she was calling it an ear infection.

Cale is still not sleeping well. I don't know if it is the ears or just adjusting back to being home after 2 weeks and our sleep arrangements have not be normal by any means. Who knows! Typically before our trip, he would "cry it out" some, but since we have been home he is horse and sounds so pitiful, I am having a hard time on the "cry it out" method. He still really isn't acting like himself.

Bilibo

2008-12-31T20:22:00.000-08:00

This is a Bilibo if you have not seen one before! It is the toy that doesn't have a specific function...it is whatever you want it to be. It is suppose to be a great toy for the kid who loves to play with a cardboard box.

Liddie got a Bilibo for Christmas, a red one too! Anyhow the theme for this Christmas is that Parker liked Liddie's toys and Liddie liked Cale's toys. Liddie finally took up with her Bilibo, sitting in it, standing on it, spinning in it and whatever else. Liddie came up with a very unique idea for her Bilibo...it is a potty chair! Hey how can I complain, easy to clean up, pour it out and wipe it out with a clorox wipe! Needless to say, we talked to Liddie about this and she should not longer use her Bilibo as a potty chair!

Christmas 2008

2008-12-31T17:47:00.000-08:00

We are blessed beyond measure! We had a wonderful Christmas. Although we traveled lots, we are blessed with family. We started off in Grapevine while Brian took a class; then off to Tulsa to have a get together with Brian's mom's family; then to Springfield, MO to gather with Brian's Dad & his wife's famiy; then back to Tulsa to see my mom & sisters and my dad and brother & to gather with Brian's mom's husband's family (did you follow that???). Santa came to Brian's mom's house for the kids.

Liddie was so in to Christmas this year! She loved opening presents and really was just excited about everything. Parker, of course loves Christmas. Cale was oblivious to it all, but really made me realize how hard it is for kids to have birthdays around Christmas. I know he will only be one, but thinking as he gets older how to make things work for him. I can't believe he will be 1 on January 14!

We are home now and trying to get caught up and get back into a routine...I loved routine!

I smell chocolate!

2008-12-31T17:27:00.001-08:00

Funny story:

We are driving from Grapevine to Tulsa to start our Chirstmas rounds. Once settled and on the road, the kids are watching a movie, Cale is asleep and I decide it is time for a Momma Treat! I pull out a half eaten chocolate bar that I have had with me on our trip and I would "sneak" a piece here and there. Well with the drive ahead of us and a great book in hand (The Wednesday Letters) I thought I would finish up the chocolate. I am in the front seat with my pillow between me & Brian, Parker is in the middle with Cale (diagonal from me) and Liddie is in the 3rd row middle. There is no way these kids see this chocolate because I have it sitting in the seat next to me closest to the console. I get the chocolate "ready", I open my book and then broke off a piece of chocolate (a little slice of heaven!)...AND it was not two seconds later Lidddie said "I smell chocolate"! I look at Brian and busted out laughing...I GOT CAUGHT! How did this little girl "smell" chocolate from the third row from the first row??? This tipped off Parker and now I have to SHARE my chocolate! She is female afterall!

Great Wolf Lodge - Part 2

2008-12-31T17:02:00.000-08:00

We had a great time at the Great Wolf Lodge! I highly recommend it for any family. Also while we were there, we did the Magic Quest...an interactive scavenger hunt. It was really fun, Liddie enjoyed it as well, which is hard to find things that both of them enjoy because of their age difference. Cale was happy as could be as long as he was in the sling, he even slept in it!

This top picture is one of my favorites! I love pictures that are "natural". This is one of the few times she would hold Parker's hand, usually it is "I want to hold Momma's"!

Great Wolf Lodge - Days 1 & 2 - Part 1

2008-12-17T07:50:00.000-08:00

This week Brian had a class in the Grapevine, Texas area. We chose to tag along and let the kids have a mini vacation before all of the Christmas choas. It has been some great fun! Indoor water park, interactive scavenger hunt, arcade and so much more...even a full service Starbucks for me! Now that is a slice of heaven!

It has been a great week to be here, the last time I checked they were at 35% capacity...NO CROWDS! You can see by one of the pictures of Parker in the wave pool...He was the only one! It has stuff for the little ones and stuff for the big ones so it has been great for us. I have let Parker go do the slides and the big water structure by himself, but I won't let him go to the wave pool by himself. It has taken me back to my water park days when I was in junior high (Allison Woods...you remember!)

Liddie has so enjoyed herself...she will play in all the fountains and will let water fall all over her, but she will not down a slide for the life of her! She has enjoyed story time every evening at 8:00, and Santa has been telling the stories every night! How fun is that???

Baby Cale has gone with the flow all week. He has napped on my shoulder, played in the water and has been drug all around without compaint (Third Child).

Parker on the other hand has eaten this place up...went on the howling tornado with dad and rode water slides with me and just has had a blast!

Snow in Houston!

2008-12-11T06:37:00.000-08:00

It snowed in Houston! Yes, you heard right, it snowed here! It is a rare occurrence and the kids were so excited! Parker dashed out the first time with shorts, t-shirt and flip flops; Liddie dashed out with a long sleeve (leaves as she calls them) turtleneck, panties and a hat (great combo)! This was just initially to see the snow...I cannot begin to tell you the excitement around here...you would have thought Santa arrived in the flesh!

The snow accumulated a little. It was odd to see snow on a Palm, imagine that! Four years ago Houston had their first White Christmas and we were in Springfield, MO. We were so disappointed then not to be home because that was a once in a lifetime occurrence in itself! We were excited to see this snow though! Of course, this morning you would not even be able to tell it snowed last night!

After dinner we let the kids go back outside for a few more minutes...better dressed though...Parker actually had a jacket and Liddie put on pants and crocs (go figure!). They threw little snowballs and just enjoyed the little bit of snow!

The Fruits of Parker's Labor

2008-12-04T20:13:00.000-08:00

Parker is a golfer by his own choice. We have encouraged him, but not pushed him. Since he showed a real interest in golf, we encouraged him to try other sports too. Parker has tried soccer, basketball and flag football and he has always come back to golf. He did a little golf camp in the summer of 2004; then the following year he did a 3 day golf camp at a golf course that he now takes lessons at on a regular basis. I think that is where it really started taking off for him. Then in the summer of 2006 he played in the Little Linksters program though the South Texas PGA. He started in the Co-Ed ages 7-9 (5 hole modified). I will never forget that very first
tournament at a small little 9 hole golf course in Alvin, Texas. I am sure he was nervous as all get out...I know my boy! I didn't know what I was doing as a parent...I wasn't a "certified" caddie yet and really wasn't "allowed" to help him and all I wanted to do was hold his hand through out the tournament! He probably played 5-6 tournaments that summer. Then in 2007 he was really ready to get playing again and was excited about playing more tournaments, only this time he qualified to play 9 hole in his age group (7-9) which was a big change...yes 4 hole, but does make a difference in a kiddo. Oh, add on top of that I was pregnant with Baby Cale and had all the time sickness and it was a hard summer. Now with this most recent summer 2008 he is 10 and had to bump up to the 10-12 age group. His instructor felt with the age group bump, it would be best to bump back down to 5 hole and work his way up...there is a way to qualify for the next division up, I won't bore you with the qualification process, but it was Parker's goal all summer to bump up and he did the last two tournaments! He was so excited. Well for the first time STPGA is offering winter tournaments for the Little Linksters. Parker played in one the first week in November and then this past weekend, he played another. This past one was emotional for us...he placed 2nd out of 12 boys ages 10-12! Then on one hole he was hitting to the green from 50 yards or so from the fairway and his ball went into the hole! The picture of him standing by the pin was the hole that happened on. Brian said everyone was cheering, Bobbie and Alan saw it and were so excited for him too! Now for really seeing the fruits of his labor now that you have the full story...his very first tournament he shot a 44 on a 5 hole tournment...this past Sunday, he shot a 44 on 9 hole tournment and was one of the youngest in his division! If he continues to play on this track he will move up another division this summer! Although I don't think we are ready for that nor is he! To see him put so much effort into golf, and see him get excited about his lessons makes it all so great to watch him blossom and grow and to know as parents we have not forced this upon him, he is chosing it for himself. We are proud of Parker not for the second place, but for sticking with golf and giving it what he has and improving day by day, lesson by lesson, tournament by tournment and turning out to be such a great golfer! We love you Park!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

2008-11-30T09:32:00.000-08:00

Bobbie & Alan (Brian's mom & her husband) came and shared Thanksgiving with us. It was nice and quaint. The luxury of only having a few of you is that it is so very laid back and relaxed. We cooked in our pajamas, ate in our pajamas and later that evening changed into clean pajamas for bed! Brian fried our turkey, he did a great job...I am very proud of him for researching it and being cautious so everything went very smoothly, no accidents to report!

This is Cale in Liddie's little Indian hat from school. It actually fit him better than her (our kiddos heads measure a bit big, thank goodness Liddie has a head full of hair now to cover it up!). The next one is of Liddie wearing her Indian hat on the back of her head...she really didn't care for Baby Cale trying it on.

Then the following pictures are of our turkey I was so proud of!

Cale - 10 Months!

2008-11-30T09:30:00.000-08:00

Our baby is growing like a weed! He is as mobile as one gets without walking. He pulls up on everything that appears stable and is in EVERYTHING...this will make it fun going to un-childproof homes over the Christmas holiday, hopefully it will enable me to maintain weight instead of piling more on!

The little Harvard t-shirt is from when Parker was little...Brian went on a business trip to Boston when Parker was little and brought him back this t-shirt...all three have worn it...maybe I will try to find a picture of all 3 wearing it and post it!

Liddie's Version of a couple of songs...

2008-11-19T19:05:00.000-08:00

Row, row, row your boat
gently down the stream
merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily
like a butter dream.

ABCDEFG
HIKKLMNOP
QRSTUVWXYZ
Now I owe my ABC's
next time won't you sing
wit me.

Multiple Posts

2008-11-17T08:47:00.000-08:00

FYI...When I post, I post several at one time!

Arm Art (Follow up to "Leg Art")

2008-11-17T08:17:00.000-08:00

I was sitting in the office and Liddie was behind me drawing on her easel. Liddie became very quiet! When I turned around I saw her writing on herself! Of course this is not a washable marker...it is dry erase! We asked her what she was doing and why she was doing this...her answer "I wanted to be scary". I can't help but to laugh.

If you did not see "Leg Art" go back to August 1 and you will see the original Leg Art by Liddie!

By the way, we could not get her to put a shirt on yesterday! Not going to fight that battle. Yesterday morning it was in the upper 30's and Parker insisted on wearing shorts and a short sleeve shirt to church. That is fine, not going to fight that battle, but there was one condition...if he insisted on wearing shorts and a short sleeve shirt he had to wear flip flops too and he could not have warm tea at church! He said he never got cold, but a mom knows that he really did!

Cops & Robots

2008-11-17T08:16:00.000-08:00

Parker and Liddie have come up with the game of "Cops and Robots". I think they got it off of a show, but nevertheless they are playing together and using their imagination! Sunday after much encouraging, they went off to play. They came downstairs in this get up! Parker has an old flag football jersey on the bottom held up by tape, yes, scotch tape (that is why I hide and hoard scotch tape); and Liddie with a pair of Parker's shorts on held up by scotch tape as well. Both with hats and armed with a nerf gun.

If you click on the picture of just Liddie you might be able to see the scotch tape!

Liddie starts swim lessons...

2008-11-17T08:15:00.000-08:00

Liddie started swim lessons a few weeks ago. She completed her two week session, meaning she had to go everyday for two weeks (so glad that is over!). This is Liddie with her instructor, Mr. Eli. She loves Mr. Eli and her spoiled her! There were days toward the end where I had to go to the pool and coax her out. She was the only one in her class so needless to say she had all the attention and easily wrapped Mr. Eli around her finger.

We started the weekly maintenance classes last week with a new instructor. Well, she cried through her entire lesson so we have rescheduled her weekly classes so she can be with Mr. Eli, and guess what...she is the only one in the class! The time is not the most convenient, but for her not to fear the water and enjoy class it is worth a little inconvenience. Once she has completed her float tests, I will consider changing her instructor, but for now the goal is to get her comfortable with the water and able to float if she were to ever fall into a pool.

Sleeping Sitting Up!

2008-11-10T07:13:00.000-08:00

This is so sad! I am not a "cry it out" mom, but my sweet husband is looking out for me. He bought a sleep book to try to help us to get Cale to sleep through the night. I know it is better for him to learn to fall asleep on his own, I just have such a hard time letting them cry. The deal is to let him cry for 5 minutes, comfort him, repeat. Well, last night he cried his 5 minutes and settled down on his own (yea!). After a few minutes of quiet of course we check on him...and this is what we found! Poor Baby Cale sleeping sitting up in his bed! Yes, the poor baby is really asleep!

Cale plays in Chia's water!

2008-11-10T07:10:00.000-08:00

This is Cale after he found Chia's water. Believe it or not, we were right there, but just did not have our eyes on him. He crawled over to her bowls and dumped over the water and started playing in it. It is so funny how he does his little legs in the water; this is exactly what he does in the bathtub! (I don't know how to get more of the clip uploaded to blogger, this is only the small snip-it it would upload)

Sweet Baby Cale

2008-11-10T07:07:00.000-08:00

Just some random pictures from last week. I just think this shows his sweet temperament.

Again, he and Chia are buddies.

Halloween 2008 - Part 2

2008-11-03T10:38:00.000-08:00

Okay, let this show you that the age difference between Parker and Liddie is pretty big...Parker being "Slash" from Guns N Roses (He knows about Slash from Guitar Hero) and Liddie being a "Flapper". The funny thing was as we were trick or treating all the adults knew who Parker was, but the kids did not! Parker commented that all the adults knew (except for one Asian man) and was surprised...I said "Honey, it is because most of them are mommy and daddy's age!". Trust me though, Parker really played it up, he always does though, he enjoys dressing up and playing a part!

Liddie absolutely loved it again this year. Parker really couldn't keep up with her. She didn't carry her boa around, it was "too itchy".

Baby Cale just soaked it all in and took the walking around like a trooper. He was a little puppy dog.

We have some neighbors, who either don't have kids or they are grown, who decorate every year for the kids. On year it was a pirate theme, another was Jack in the box & his wife (from the food chain), well this year was an alien theme. They "built" a mini UFO and dressed like aliens, it was great! I would attach pictures but they really didn't show up well.

Halloween 2008 - Part 1

2008-11-03T05:48:00.000-08:00

Brian with Baby Cale as a little puppy dog.

Cara with Liddie with festive t-shirts.

The pumpkins! Parker did his all on his own...He did a great job!

Liddie was making us sing "Happy Halloween" to her (to the tune of Happy Birthday). She loved it this year...I can't imagine how excited she is going to be at Christmas!

Boo

2008-10-30T18:52:00.000-07:00

I've been BOO-ed by my friend, Cindy! How fun is it to "Boo!" all my blog friends!? Here are the instructions that come with the Blogging Boo: Go to as many friends as you want and tell them they've been "B00-ed". Have them link back to your blog to pick up their Halloween Treat (picture) and tell them to Boo their friends. Then put the picture in your side bar so everyone knows that you've already been "boo-ed" and to send the picture to someone else.

I am off to Boo! Maybe I will find you!

BTW, if you just read this blog, you have now been BOO-ed!

Whose Bone is it???

2008-10-28T09:12:00.000-07:00

Cale & Chia are pretty good buddies these days. Cale loves Chia's bones. These are a few pictures showing Cale going after Chia's bone. It was pretty funny to watch, I should have videoed it, next time I will! The look on Cale's face is so funny!

Kylie's Krusaders - JDRF Walk 2008

2008-10-28T09:08:00.000-07:00

This was our 3rd year to participate in the Juvenile Diabetes Walk. Every year the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation has a fundraiser walk to raise funds to find a cure. We walk every year in support of our friends, Shane & Amy Nance. Their daughter, Kylie was diagnosed at age 2. We have watched their family deal with this diagnosis and see the many ways it has affected Kylie and their family. Kylie has done extremely well and has recently transitioned to a pump that has allowed flexibility and freedom.

If you would like to support our efforts, click on this link to make a donation.
http://walk.jdrf.org/walker.cfm?id=87256566

The Bats at Wough Bridge

2008-10-28T09:07:00.001-07:00

Saturday night, Parker's science teacher arranged a family field trip to see the bat colony at Wough Bridge. Brian took Liddie & Parker. This is a picture of them at a fountain near the bridge.

Baby Cale is pulling up!!!

2008-10-28T09:07:00.000-07:00

The first "step" to walking is pulling up! Well, look what Baby Cale has done!

The highchair seems to be a great place for me to catch some good pictures of Cale. Maybe he is the happiest when he is eating! ; )

The last picture shows just how tired the boy can be!

Backyard Picnic

2008-10-28T09:00:00.000-07:00

The weekend before last, we had some yard work to get done. While we were out there lunch time came upon us and we let the kids have a picnic. They were so excited! Of course, it was a great opportunity to catch some great pics!

Poor Baby has to Feed Himself!

2008-10-16T14:26:00.000-07:00

This is a funny story behind this messy picture.

I am feeding Cale lunch and I hear Liddie say "I pee peed!". I immediately jumped up to help her and inadvertently left the jar of food on the tray of the high chair. I am helping Liddie get all cleaned up and and thought to myself right before I walked into the kitchen that Cale was being really patient (he does not like anyone to leave the room). Well, this is what I walked in to, he was feeding himself! I was so thankful he did not push the jar all the way off the tray onto the floor...that would have been a huge mess...carrots and glass.

Now I just wish I could have seen him do this and trying to feed himself with his little hands!

Liddie & her "Princess" bed

2008-10-16T14:24:00.000-07:00

Believe it or not, we have just now transisitioned Liddie to a big bed! She still to this day has not attempted to climb out of it, which is the biggest reason most move their kids. Our thought was not to rock the boat. We were leant another crib for Cale, so we have never been forced to make this change.

We found this cute little net to put over the bed and Liddie immediately thought of a princess and now calls her big bed her "princess bed". It must come very natural for little girls to get into princess mode because this is not something we have not forced at all.

The transition has been easier than expected thanks to the princess net!

Cale's Attempt at Crawling

2008-10-16T14:21:00.000-07:00

Cale is starting to crawl! Every baby has their own unique way of crawling, Liddie surely did! Cale's form is push up, knees up, lean forward and repeat. He is just too cute!

Liddie wanted to make sure we got her too during this photo op.

Liddie our next golfer

2008-10-16T14:16:00.000-07:00

Liddie got her first real set of golf clubs for her birthday in June. Brian has worked with her some and she seems to be interested. She loves her "putters" as she calls all the clubs. Parker goes to lessons Tuesdays and Thursdays, and Liddie thinks she has lessons too. So we hang out at the practice area and putt and chip. Her favorite part of "golf lessons" is driving, and she does not mean the club and the ball, but the cart!

Cale is 9 Months-Today!

2008-10-14T08:53:00.000-07:00

Time flies! What else can I say???

Cale is nearly crawling...he does some funny push up and then brings his knees forward, whatever works, right??? He is working on a third tooth (all on the bottom). Guess I have to admit he is saying "Da da". It is very hard to say that...I mean I carried him 9 months, went through a c-section, nurse him, continue to get up with him throughout the night and nurse (I don't wanna hear any flack...I spoil my children in this regard!), bathe him...all I want is to hear "ma ma"!

He is such a happy boy and loves to laugh. Chia loves Cale and Cale loves Chia! Chia can walk by and Cale just smiles and sometimes laughs.

We are blessed by this boy!

Cutest Baby in the World!

2008-10-07T10:20:00.000-07:00

Okay, who can deny how cute this baby is??? I am so proud to call him mine!

This second picture isn't very flattering, but show how you have to be a multi-tasker when your a mom. Cale got kind of annoyed I was playing with Liddie, so I picked him up and put him on my tummy so he could play and I could still play with Liddie. Can I put this on my resume???

Science Lesson

2008-09-26T09:08:00.000-07:00

I do not need additional confirmation we made the the right decision about Parker's schooling, but God continues to to show me confirmation!

In science Parker has been studying flying creatures. As part of their homework they have had to memorize the following passage:

Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in him were all things created, in the heavens and upon the earth, things visible and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all things have been created through him, and unto him; and he is before all things, and in him all things consist. Colossians 1:15-17

In class on Thursday, their science teacher showed them this YouTube video. First, in what public school could a teacher use YouTube, and even if they could or would, I would be worried about the content they are showing. Being in a Christian school we were interviewed as a family and first and foremost during the interview they wanted to make sure that our family beliefs coincided with the school's beliefsl. Although yes, you have to be careful what your child is exposed to, I do not worry in this school as I did in public school.

Anyway, please take time to watch this video, I think it is great! Secondly, I am so excited about God being reinforced in the classroom, what a blessing!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_e4zgJXPpI4

Hurricane Ike

2008-09-20T19:36:00.000-07:00

What a week it has been! It began on Thursday, September 11. Normally that day would be remembering what happened seven years ago, but instead, we had constant news coverage about the upcoming landfall of Hurricane Ike. We began our preparations, basically laundry and making a "plan" which consisted of the debate...should we stay or should we go! Here is our time line:

Monday-Wednesday, September 8-10: Watching all the weather segments on the news to see Ike's track; checking Weather Underground every 6 hours for the new models to come out (they come out at 2:00 & 8:00 est.). Concern started growing Wednesday.

Thursday, September 11: Brian's office closed at 9:00 a.m. to allow employees to make preparations. I started laundry and keeping things as caught up as possible. We cleaned out our laundry room closet, it was the only room where we all could be that did not have an outside wall. Plus watching news coverage nearly non-stop. Parker did not have school either.

Friday, September 12: Again, no work for Brian as early effects of the storm was expected by afternoon. We were watching the track very closely. Brian got up at 5:30 a.m. to check the latest to determine if we would leave last minute. It looked as if it was going to remain a category 2 (which is the hardest part for the meteorologists to forecast). We decided to stay, but I tell ya, until 10:00 a.m. we were debating. We finally just said "ok, we are staying"! Keep in mind we are 25 miles (as the crow flies) or so inland so the storm surge was not a factor. We are told to "Run from the water, hide from the wind", so really we were okay to stay. We are in evacuation zone C and they called for A & B.

Winds start picking up throughout the day, but by evening we start seeing heavier gusts. We tried to have the kids stick to their regular bedtime, just in the closet rather than their bedrooms. We lost power at nearly 9:00 p.m., unfortunately it was before Liddie fell asleep so that was a chore! I laid and dozed with Cale on our bed until 11:30 or so, Brian came in and said it was time to head to the laundry room. Brian inflated the air bed so we already had that ready when we moved in there. The sounds were very hard to explain, the winds whistled sometimes and we could hear our garage doors popping in and out. The winds would let up from time to time for only 5 minutes or so and it would pick right back up. Long enough to make us think we were getting a break. We are so thankful for Brian's cell phone because we could pull up the radar and watch where the storm was exactly. Although we had a radio and we were listening to it, it was comforting to see. We were just to the east of the eye wall and that is what caused us to never get a break! There was one time we heard a big thunk and could only imagine what was happening (come to find out it was a neighbor's satellite dish). From time to time I would peek outside just to see the winds, there was one time though I looked out and it was as if someone put black paper on the window, I could not see a thing. The winds and rain went on until 7:00 a.m. or so.

Saturday, September 13: I could not wait to get outside to see what happened. It was a weird feeling after the storm passed. Power was out and almost feel like you have been cut off from the outside world for a period of time. As we walked outside, other neighbors start emerging too.

Fortunately we only lost just a few shingles. We have since found a few leaks, but think they are insignificant and can easily be fixed. We felt God's protection over us and also saw him provide for us over and over. We had friends get power back Saturday night, and they came knocking at the door at 9:00 p.m. or so asking us to come stay at their house for the night. This was such a blessing because it was really hot that night. Then the next day another friend sends me a text (by the way was really the easiest way to communicate because the cell phones were hard to get out on because so many people were using them, plus the land line was out) and tells me they got power back and offered their generator for us to use. This allowed us to watch the news and see the first pictures of what happened to Galveston and the surrounding areas, let the kids watch a movie on a portable DVD player, sleep with a fan and the most important thing...brew a pot of coffee in the morning!

The weather has been great! A cool front came through and we spent a lot of our days outside. Brian grilled every night and Sunday night we ate in our driveway with neighbors. That actually was a positive it really caused the neighbors to get out and talk. Although this was a couple we already talked to quite often, but we shared a meal together.

Suddenly Monday night the power comes back on. Every night we kept saying we were leaving the next day, but we toughed it out and it really turned out for the best. Thankfully we did not leave because Cale come down with a virus causing his to run a high fever for 3 days then broke out in a rash after the fever broke, we are thinking it is roseola. It is never fun to be away from home with a sick baby, but if we did not have power it would be better to be away from home in a cool place with a sick baby!

Parker is on schedule to start school on Tuesday. The grocery stores seem to be getting stocked back up. There still is a large portion of our town that still does not have power. Overall as of Sunday night still over 1 million without power in the Houston area. The cool weather has passed and the mosquitoes are out in full force!

All and all we decided we would only ride out another hurricane if it were smaller than this one, if it is any larger...WE ARE OUTTA HERE!

Thank you Lord for power, satellite, phone & internet!!!

Liddie & Parker Together

2008-09-07T09:32:00.000-07:00

I just love this picture of the two of them! I was not asking them to pose or anything, I just caught it!

Liddie just loves her "Bubba", but when she is mad or really wants his attention...it is Parker!

Parker bought the Twister game and they have just loved playing together.

Liddie's First Day of School

2008-09-07T09:29:00.000-07:00

Liddie was so excited to start her first day of school last Friday. She goes to a Mother's Day every Wednesday & Friday. She has so much fun and has been with 7 of the same kiddos since she was 1! It is so fun watching them grow and interact with one another. It is fun to watch families grow as well.

Brian took her on the first day. They stopped and got donuts together, it was some good one on one time for them. That is one thing we try so hard to do is give each one of the kids individual time. Sometimes it is a struggle to plan, we it is great time when we can pull it off.

Quotes from Liddie

2008-08-29T20:36:00.000-07:00

Oh how I wish I could remember all the cute things Parker said. I have learned, so here is a list of some of Liddie's.

"It's not the three little pigs" Liddie meaning to say "It's not the Olympics";

"Patty cake, patty cake, thank you man" Liddie saying her version of Patty Cake;

"Momma, you gonna hatch an egg" Liddie referring to cracking an egg while cooking;

"Click, click, click" Liddie referring to scissors or nail clippers;

"My nose is not working" Liddie referring to a stuffy nose;

"Birdy bird" Liddie says when she sees a bird;

"Is our stuff all ready yet" Liddie says this in the store when we are shopping, but it sounds like 'Is supper ready yet'.

"Ban Ban" Liddie referring to a Band-aid;

"It's not dirty, it's just dirt" Liddie referring to a 4 day old band aid on her leg that was there just because she wanted it there not because she had a boo boo. We were trying to get her to take it off and that is what she said when we said it was old and dirty.

Parker's first day fo school-5th grade

2008-08-28T04:36:00.000-07:00

Today (Tuesday, August 26) was Parker's first day of school. Starting 5th grade! This year we have chosen to put Parker in a Christian Private School. We all are very excited about it. Logos Preparatory Academy is a University Model School, meaning that first through sixth grade go to school T/Th & 7-12 grades go to school MWF. On the off days, the kids continue their school work at home with parents. The school provides the curriculum and teachers guide the parents on what lessons need to be completed on off days.

Several people think we have fallen off our rocker by doing this, but we know in our hearts this is what God wants us to do. It has been exciting just these first two days to see how the Bible and God are incorporated into the curriculum!

This is the first year we have done a rolling back pack. The school told us they highly recommend them because the kids will have to keep all their text books with them and bring them every time they are at school and their bags get very heavy.

This next picture is of Liddie. She was so disappointed she was not going to school. She kept saying "Liddie go to school" and I kept telling her not today, and she would repeat again "Liddie go to school"! Liddie will start her Mother's Day Out program next Friday. She will go Wednesday and Fridays which will be helpful in getting Parker's school work done on those days.

Parker Left for Church Camp

2008-08-10T11:11:00.000-07:00

This morning when we went to church, we were also sending Parker off to camp for the first time! The camp is only for incoming 5th & 6th graders. They are going to Camp Carolina Creek in Huntsville (about an hour and a half North). Parker and the kids will be back hom on Thursday afternoon. Parker has not stayed a night away from us since we have been down here! He was so excited, we are excited for him too, just nervous. I am nervous he is going to get homesick. I am so excited for him because it is church camp and church camp is always fun. We wrote him letters to receive each day and I tucked notes in his Bible for him to find, mainly reminders!

This is Parker with his buddy, Koen. Koen went to his first overnight camp earlier this year, so he is all prepared.

If you think about it say a prayer for Parker (and us too)!

Palm Beach at Moody Gardens

2008-08-09T13:31:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, we went to Palm Beach at Moody Gardens in Galveston. It is a great place to take the kids when you want to go to the beach, but dont' want to really hassel with going to the real beach. It has sand like a real beach with chairs and umbrellas, but it also has wading pools, a splash pad and a fun kid area with slides. This way you are a little more contained! Although this did not stop Liddie from being friendly with almost everyone she came in contact with. We have to keep our eye on her because she will talk to anybody! This is a good thing in some ways, a bad thing in other ways.

We met up with some extended family and enjoyed the day. Parker loves playing with the boys and playing in the sand. I dont' think you are ever too old for sand toys! The boys buried Parker, and he absolutely loved it.

Liddie was standing over him and asked "Bubba, are you in trouble?". It was so funny. The things that come out of her mouth. Then the next picture is of Liddie sitting on her Bubba.

Leg Art

2008-08-01T17:16:00.000-07:00

Liddie's Leg Art! At least it was washable marker, right? Well, only if they are not cheap, (probably from China) off brand markers. Thank goodness the next day we went to a friends house to swim. Their pool is saltwater and it took it right off.

Needless to say, this girl gets in to so much more than Parker even thought about!

Baby Bible Presentation

2008-07-31T19:49:00.000-07:00

This past Sunday, July 27 was Baby Bible Presentation at church. This is where the church presents the baby with his/her first Bible. A later date there will be a parent/child dedication. Cale was so happy for this picture. He certainly does not like loud music because as we walked in the worship area the music was still playing and he busted out crying, we had to turn around and walk out until they were ready for us.

This next picture was that same evening after bath, it was just plain sweet! Dontcha just love all those rolls?!?!?!?

Cale in a Hat...Again!

2008-07-31T19:46:00.000-07:00

We love to play with Cale and hats, so don't be surprised if you see this again and again! Parker loved putting on his hat on Cale, and Cale really didn't seem to mind.

Summer Silliness

2008-07-31T19:39:00.000-07:00

I never realized Parker and Liddie would play and goof around as much as they do together. I knew they would because they are brother and sister, but didn't expect it because of their age difference. We have really had a great summer, much to my surprise! I usually dread the summer, but this summer has worked out and has been very smooth and am so thankful for that. Maybe it is God's way of letting me know we are going to have a smooth school year. More about that one another time.

Parker and Liddie enjoyed making ice cream cone cupcakes and decorating them. Then next on the
list was to make popsicles. The kids decided to have fun with the popsicles tray instead. We have yet to make the popsicles. Liddie orginally started this and we caught her with 3 in her mouth at the same time. Of course we didn't get a picture, so she couldn't do it again so we settled for a picture with two in her mouth. Parker had to top her though with all four!

Cale's 6 Months!

2008-07-31T19:37:00.000-07:00

Cale is nearing the 19 pound mark! Changes are happening before our eyes. He is rolling over, sitting on his own, eating baby food and moved up car seats.

He is loving the baby food! He didn't know what to think at first, new textures and tastes, but gobbles it all up!

You can see in the picture in the bouncer he is always trying to sit, but in the following picture you see he is sitting. Although I am holding his arm, it was just a safety net to ensure he didn't fall back. He can sit on his own for quite a while, but there are times he does fall over like a little weeble.

Cale is still laid back as ever, going with the flow. He loves his big brother and will always smile at Parker when he talking to him. He will laugh and laugh while being tickled.

It is so hard to watch him grow truly knowing he is our last baby!

Parker's Golf

2008-07-31T19:35:00.000-07:00

We are so proud of Parker! Parker loves golf, it is his sport of choice. We have let him try soccer, basketball, flag football and he continues to want to play golf and practice it and work hard with it. Every summer the South Texas PGA has a summer program for kids ages 7-12 to play tournaments. They are grouped together by age (7-9) & (10-12). Depending on the clinic they attend prior to the season, they play 5 or 9 hold modified (bringing the tees up closer); or they can qualify for the red tees. Parker started his first year, age 8 at 5 hole modified; age 9 moved to 9 hole modified; age 10 5 hole modified. You have to score 8 over par or less for two consecutive tournaments to move up in your division. This was Parker's goal all summer, he accomplished his goal the last to tournaments of the season (Whoo Hooo Park, we are proud of you)!

Parker had been taking lessons once a week for late Spring through July and has improved so much with each week. He coach told him that he would help him get a first place this season, and he did it twice!

I love the very last picture, Parker and Brian walking together. Brian work with Parker and helps him so much. It is just sweet to see them together.

SHBC Mini Reunion

2008-07-23T13:16:00.000-07:00

This was all so very last minute! First, I was talking with Stephanie a few weeks before we came to town and talked about getting together. In the meantime, I was also talking to Kristi. Kristi mentioned she would be willing to drive to Tulsa, so I combined them. Well, Stephanie talked to Jason and he said he would come up (very surprisingly since Cathy just had a baby a couple weeks prior). Jason walked in the door and mentioned how close Amy lived. He called Amy, and here she was! It was all spur of the moment, although we didn't have much time, we all enjoyed the time together. Here is a picture of only 6 of us who used to be in the youth group. then the next picture is shows how six people grow!
This was all of us with spouses and babies! Just us went from six to 22! Only 21 are pictured because Kristi's husband, Mike was not with us.

Steve and Norma Murphy stopped by, it was great to see them. It was amazing only we had changed, not them!

We are hoping to have a HUGE reunion next summer with as many "Old SHBC" Youth as we can.

It was great guys! Thanks again the Stephanie & Sean for opening their home to us all, and Steve and Norma for giving us dinner!

Many Hairstyles!

2008-07-23T12:36:00.000-07:00

Liddie is finally letting me do *some* things with her hair.
This first one is what we call "piggies". It is basically pig tails, but not pulling them all the way through. The next picture shows how long they are if we do pull them through. She has much longer hair than it looks because of her curls.

I cannot explain the look on Liddie's face on the second picture...only the picture can describe it, but it is a new look for her that she often give us. This girl gives us a run for our money!

The next two pictures are of Liddie & Cale with Bobbie's wig on. Oh my gosh, Cale looks like a little doll! We laughed and laughed over these.

Swimming Season

2008-07-23T12:31:00.000-07:00

Swim season is here...or really has been here, but Cale in his little swimming trunks is just too cute! He looks like a little man! Then there is the one with his rash guard shirt on, I didn't know I'd be able to find them that little, but I did.

Liddie is posing as usual. She loves to go swimming. It is funny though, she is really cautious this year around the water, but loves to play on the steps and be carried.

Parker is constantly wanting to swim. We have not swam in almost two weeks, only because Parker came down with a bad case of swimmers ear. It hurt so bad that he said he didn't want to swim anymore this summer!

Cale's New Exersaucer

2008-07-23T12:29:00.000-07:00

Cale didn't know what to think at first, but really loves his new exersaucer. Liddie was playing with the toys, Parker was taking a picture with the cell phone and I was taking pictures with the camera, I think he was overwhelmed. He can look so very serious sometimes though, just like these pictures.

Cale 5 Months!

2008-07-23T12:27:00.000-07:00

Isn't he cute?!?!?!?
Cale is so laid back, thank goodness! He is laughing and starting to roll over. In these pictures, he was playing, laughing and sticking his tongue out!

Company Family Picnic

2008-07-23T12:24:00.000-07:00

Well we made it to the company picnic. Since Bobbie and Alan were in town they were able to come along too. We enjoyed BBQ, Crawfish, Popsicles, Ice Cream and so much more! The kids played on the inflatables, we played BINGO (and didn't win), Brian & Alan played horseshoes and Liddie danced to the Cajun music! Although it was horribly hot, we had a great time.

Ooops, did I do that???

2008-07-23T12:23:00.000-07:00

We were getting ready to leave for the family picnic Brian's company hosts when laughter breaks out...this is what we found! Liddie shocked either because she didn't realize what she was doing would result in what it did or she thought she was in trouble. She should have been in trouble, but it was too funny so we took pictures instead. Chia even got in on the action of trying to figure out what Liddie did. The look on her face was just priceless!

Liddie turns 3!

2008-07-23T12:21:00.000-07:00

We cannot believe it, our little girl is 3!!! She was so cute with the presents. Brian's mom, Bobbie & her husband, Alan came down for Liddie & Brian's birthdays. Brian's is June 1 & Liddie's is June 6. We did not have a formal birthday party with friends, just a small celebration with us and Bobbie & Alan. She "loved" everything and thought her new princess dresses were "beautiful". Liddie is so into princesses these days, she loves all of the Disney Princesses and can name them all. She tends to gravitate to Belle, my guess is because of the dark hair like hers, who really knows though. Parker bought her a Belle puzzle for her birthday with his own money, what a sweet big brother! We had
chocolate princess cupcakes...

Bumbo Time

2008-05-28T11:54:00.000-07:00

We got Cale a Bumbo! I know, I know, we are not suppose to sit him in it on high surfaces, but this was for picture taking purposes only! The bumbo stays on the floor. Doesn't he look cute! Look at his curled toes.

Then Miss Liddie, we could not take a picture of Cale without taking one of her. Parker was at school, so no Parker this time.

Cale in a Hat

2008-05-28T11:50:00.000-07:00

I had to go buy Cale a hat. When I took Liddie to the Park, I thought I was staying in the shade. Needless to say, poor little Cale had a sunburned head. That won't happen again with his new hat. Brian says he looks like he is going on an expedition.

Parker's Birthday Fun

2008-05-28T11:48:00.000-07:00

Parker turned 10! Double digits as he would say! For his birthday I let him invite a couple (one other couldn't come) over one Friday night and they played the Wii. They had a ball. We had junk food galore, chicken nuggets, chips, cheetos, orange fanta and topped it all off will ice cream cake. These are two of his buddies, Koen (Left) and Jamison (right). Parker met both at school. Jamison is in his class this year and they have really become good friends. Both of these boys are great boys and am so glad Parker is friends with them!

Potty Training in Progress

2008-05-28T11:47:00.000-07:00

Whoever said girls are easier than boys to potty trained, probably did not have a strong willed little girl like Liddie. Parker was a breeze! No joke, a breeze! Liddie on the other hand, can do it, but doesn't want to do it! This shows you I have tried everything! She gets chocolate chips as a reward every time she goes. I have put the potty in front of the tv (see picture), no go. I have tried princess pull ups, other cute Target pull ups, panties (princess and Dora) no go. I guess I should say it has been "hit and miss". I have gone as far as setting a timer every 15 minutes to ask her if she needs to potty, and without fail I will say "You need to go potty" and Liddie will say "No" and literally 1-2 minutes later, she will say "I am wet"! And lets forget about #2 on the potty! I have "caught her in the act" if you will and she refuses and says "go in there!" and she will hide.

As you can see from this second picture, she likes her panties on her head and not on her "booty booty" as we call it! I know, I know you are suppose to call their private parts by their real name, but I cannot do it!

Parker's 5th Annual Writer's Celebration

2008-05-28T11:46:00.000-07:00

Every year since Parker was in Kindergarten, his school has hosted a Writer's Celebration.
The kids are to write a story or poem and present it to a small group of kids and parents.
This was Parker reading his "Kids" poem. You can tell by his shoulders how tense and nervous he was. I had encouraged him to do it every year just to give him a little practice of being in front of a group of people and giving a presentation. I always hated those in school because of nervous I would get.

The second picture if of Liddie after all the kids had read and parents were leaving. She walked right up to the front and said "My turn!". She took her Backyardigan Book we had for her and started reading it to the "class". It was incredibly cute...maybe we are looking at a future teacher!?!? Of course, Liddie being herself was in a "party dress" (which she asks for every morning...a party dress is just a dress, any dress). Who shouldn't wear a party dress everyday? Then her beautiful blue croc kinda flip flops and her signature wild hair! As my mom would say, she looks like a "rag muffin", but that is Liddie and we love her the way she is!

Who should be on the penny?

2008-04-30T04:49:00.000-07:00

Funny story between Parker and me on the way to school! Parker found a penny on the floorboard and looked at it and we were talking about "In God We Trust" being on the front.
Parker said "They should have put a picture of God on the penny".
Mom said "We don't know what God looks like honey".
Parker said in a complete straight face and seriously "Oh right, but they didn't know what Abraham Lincoln looked like either!"
Mom said "Yes they did, they had picture of him"
Parker said laughing "oh!"

Random pictures

2008-04-28T09:45:00.000-07:00

4/27/2008--
1st picture...Brian was able to get Cale asleep and this is the way he was laying, it
was so cute. It was like Cale leaned over and fell asleep on Brian.

2nd picture...I was out side with the kids and I put Cale in the Bjorn, and he fell asleep with me bending over and helping Liddie, walking while Liddie was riding her scooter, it was so cute, I had to get a picture!

3rd picture...Chia! Can't forget the family dog...she can be a pain, but she really is a good dog!

4th picture...Parker being cool..."PEACE" as he says!

Parker tuns 10!!!

2008-04-28T09:27:00.000-07:00

4/22/2008--Our big baby turns 10! I can remember the day we brough Parker home from the
hospital!!! We surprised Parker with a basketball goal to be mounted above the garage, now we have
to get our homeowners' association approval before it can be put up (did not know that before). Parker decided not to have a big party, but we are going to take Parker & 3 other boys to an arcade to play games and eat. We were suppose to go this past weekend, but Brian & I came down with a nasty stomach bug so we had to cancel and are working on resceduling. We had a cake last weekend with Bobbie & Alan (Brian's mom and her husband), they came down for Parker's birthday, they do every year! Happy 10th Birthday Parker!!!

Liddie's Minor Emergency Visit...

2008-04-28T09:19:00.000-07:00

4/12/2008--We have said from early on Liddie was gonna be our emergency room child!
This night, Parker was over at a friends house having a sleepover, so they were not even
rough housing as expected! Brian was on the phone with Parker, he was reading his
devotional to Brian, and I was on the couch with Cale. Liddie was in our recliner with legos. She had reclined back and was wanting to sit back up. She pushed the leg part of the recliner down to get it to go back and as she was doing that she fell forward out of the chair and was holding legos in her hand. The lego cut the top part of her cheek below the eye. Brian thew down the phone and I jumped up and told Parker we'd call him right back. We debated if we should take her or not, so Brian stopped by a friends house who is a doctor to see what he thought. He said he thought it'd be best if we did take her. Brian took her about 10:00 and they put dermabond on it (basically superglue) so not stitches, thankgoodness! She woke up the next morning with a pretty good black eye. This did not slow her down any at all!

Cale is 3 Months!!!

2008-04-28T09:05:00.000-07:00

Oh my gosh...where does the time go! Our little one is 3 months (4/14/08). Here are a few pictures of his 3 month sitting. He started laughing that night, and of course his momma was the one to get it out of him! He is still a great baby, going with the flow and doesn't fuss much. He had the croup a few weeks ago, thankfully it was a mild case so we did not have to visit the emergency room. I did call the nurse on call about 4 a.m. and was really debating taking him, but waiting until the office opened at 8:00. The first time ever, I showed up at the doctor's office without an appointment. I was really worried about him, but he was fine. He ran fever less than 24 hours, but had that classic cough for over a week!

Cardboard Box Fun

2008-04-28T08:56:00.000-07:00

It is so true that a cardboard box can bring more fun than any toy...the picture is proof,
thier smiles are priceless!

Trampoline Fun

2008-04-28T08:54:00.000-07:00

Over Easter was the kids' first experience with a trampoline, and let me tell ya...they LOVED it! This picture was when Brian was jumping with them, Liddie came up to him and touched his face and said "Daddy, are you ok?"! It was the sweetest and funniest moment! After I jumped for a little bit, it really made me feel how old I am! Both Brian and I were able to do flips, though the landings were less than perfect!

More Chocolate Please!

2008-04-28T08:48:00.000-07:00

Liddie is a girl after my own heart...she LOVES chocolate! It was the theme for our Easter...Liddie finding chocolate and hiding to eat it. This particular picture, we were at my Aunt's house and she was given a chocolate bunny right before we were leaving. As we were getting ready to leave I realized I wanted to take a few pictures of us together. We took pictures and then we started wondering where Liddie was (I know we are bad parents not watching our kids every minute), well she was in the other room sitting on the floor eating her chocolate bunny! That little piece in the bottom picture was all that was left! The next day, we took all the candy and chocolate out of all the eggs and put Liddie through detox! Dontcha just love the first picture when she was caught red handed?!?!?!?

Tryin' to get all 3 to smile...

2008-04-28T08:36:00.000-07:00

What a task! Tryin to get all 3 to smile at one time. I couldn't fit all the pictures to show how funny it was to attempt this, but I did get a few good ones. As I was going through pictures to put up, I realized my kids are in their PJs all the time! It looks like they wear the same ones all the time! I promise I dress my kids from time to time.

This was March, I am behind on my posts! I am getting there!

Newsboys Concert-3/8/08

2008-04-05T21:43:00.000-07:00

Parker was invited to a friend's birthday party. As the party, they took the boys to see "Newsboys". This was Parker's first concert! If you don't know who the Newsboys are, you gotta check them out. They are a Christian band and have some awesome songs.
When Parker was invited to the concert, I offered Brian as a chaperone if an additional one was needed. This was one birthday party he did not complain about attending! To top off the evening, they got to go back stage and meet them! This is a picture of Brian & Parker with the lead singer! You talk about exciting, Parker could barely contain himself! He is looking forward to his next concert!

Chocolate Chips!

2008-03-11T12:47:00.000-07:00

First picture of Parker is of his "Go Texan" day at school. Go Texan day is really the start of the "Rodeo" here, when we first moved here, we thought it was to celebrate our football team, the Texans. Anyhow the kids get to dress up and have a fun day at school.

Next is Cale smiling! He is 8 weeks and smiles all the time now. He is starting to grow out of his newborn stuff and wearing some 3-6 months...healthy little boy! Then the picture of Brian and Cale, oh how much their head shape is the same!

Finally, Miss Priss Liddie! She is starting to potty train. Everyone has a bribing method, right? We Liddie's is chocolate chips. Chocolate motivates this girl! She has a few accidents when she is extra busy and we are not asking, but overall doing pretty well.

Cale Six Weeks

2008-02-28T14:08:00.000-08:00

The original "ham" all grown up and avoids the camera.

Cale is growing! He weighed 10-1/2 lbs at his six week check.
He is smiling a lot easier now, especially at mom. Brian says it is
because he sees me and thinks of milk.

Liddie has been enjoying bike rides with the boys.
They can't hardly leave the house without her, she is always
wanting to go. She has a snack and is ready to go!

Liddie was playing with play-doh this weekend and made a baby out of it.
She decided that she was going to "nurse" too!

Last weekend (2/22-2/24), Brian's mom was here for a visit. Brian took Parker on a 4 hour fishing trip into the Bay, they had fun but no luck with fish. Parker thought he was a little sea sick, but a pepto tablet helped things out. There was another little boy on the boat that didn't fare as well. The motion sickness hit Brian after he was home, it threw him for a loop!

Brian bought a new bike to start riding again, Parker is loving it; Chia & Liddie are too for that matter. We bought a trailer for Liddie to ride in and she loves it. She has a snack and she is ready to go. Chia likes it because Brian will run her while on his bike, but ultimately Chia ends up pulling Brian. He bought her a harness since she likes to pull so she won't be pulling with her neck. I have yet to see it! Liddie told Brian that her nose was not working again, this time it needs "batteries". How cute is that?

Valentine's Day

2008-02-18T12:20:00.000-08:00

This was a great Valentine's day. Liddie was so excited about her party at school. Parker was equally was excited and still enjoys Valentine's although he is getting older. Plus Brian & I were able to go out to dinner the night before Valentine's just the two of us! We have great neighbors everywhere, but this couple is an older couple (not old, just older, our parents' age) and they offered to watch all 3 kids so we could celebrate Valentine's Day. We only took a couple of hours, but it was great to have some uninterrupted conversation and not have to answer never ending questions. I still scarffed down my dinner like it was my last meal, not sure if I was really hungry or in mom mode of eat when you can! We enjoyed going to a local coffee house afterward. Rob & Carol (our neighbors) seemed to enjoy the kids and said everything went well. I think they were surprised at Liddie's rough housing with Parker because she seems so quiet and sweet all the time! Rob told us he tried to get her to stop because he didn't want her bonking her head on his watch! Brian surprised me a gift card to go shopping to buy myself something, just what a mom wants after wearing maternity clothes for what seems like forever! You can't wait to get in them, then you can't wait to get out of them.

Cale is 5 weeks today. Sleeping just the same, waking every two hours! This picture of him with his hands behind his head is so cute, Liddie did the same thing at his age...I guess I should have put one of her up too. I think he is starting to smile intermittenly. Brian swears he has had him smiling for weeks, but I guess you can't tell a dad any different.

Then the picture of Liddie putting Cale's pacifier in his mouth. Liddie actually calls it a "bye", I don't know where she got that but Parker called his a "my", and don't ask me where he got that either. We always start out calling it a "paci", who knows! She is so excited she got it in his mouth, in all reality he is about to gag because she is holding it in there so tight.

The last picture of Liddie is what happens when she is quiet for a few minutes...I guess her knees were chapped so she has to use some Burt's Bees on them to help them! She is always up to something.

I feel bad there are not pictures of Parker. I usually take them during the day while he is at school, not intentionally. I am really mad at myself for not taking more after Cale's birth. We still have yet to take some pictures of me with him and the kids, Brian with him and the kids and all 3 together. I guess it is true about the 3rd one, but I was wanting to make that a myth!

Anyway, Parker is always asking questions...I mean ALWAYS! Sometimes they can be deep, other times I have to shake my head. The latest one that makes me shake my head "What are chicken bones made out of...wood?". Please tell me you are shaking your head too!