Jingle Bells

In case you need something to listen to while trimming the tree...

Fall

What can I say, it's been a very different season for us. These pictures are from "Toddler Day 2011" that occurred sometime in August, starring Will, Cash, and Charlotte. How do I know it was August? You know because you're kids are bored at all the free indoor/air conditioned, somewhat kid-friendly places in town. The pools are bathtub warm and getting there quickly becomes a sweatfest with no relief once you are there. My friend Kelli and I decided to actually do some of the things we'd seen on Pintrest to keep kiddos busy (neither one of us wanted to tackle these alone). First we made shaving cream paint then we baked rainbow cakes in mason jars (unfortunately I didn't get a picture of our finished products). Lots of fun and lots of firsts!

Sept. 4, Labor Day weekend, my brother got married to his sweetheart of one year, Brenda Fields! It was beautiful and fun and beautiful :) Welcome Brenda. We love you and are so glad you've joined the crazy that is our family.

See that lady in the purple dress in the above picture? That's my 63 year old mom who passed away on Sept. 30 after battling ovarian cancer for 16 years. She's my hero in so many ways. Where do I begin? So many of us are still working this out and processing her last weeks that it's hard to know what to say here...other than God is good and gracious in the middle of awful and sad things.

Just look below---see? We are moving right along with number 2. This was from the beginning of October and believe me, I'm much bigger now. Charlotte is checking my tummy for "baby sister". She is due Jan. 15, but it's hard to believe that we really have 2 more months--there is just no more room in there!

Here's a video of our little place in case you've been wondering where we were living all this time! I made it for my grandmother, since she wasn't able to see it in person.

And last but not least a video of what we spent the last evenings of summer doing--it was just so dang hot!  3 months of triple digits will really stretch you to your limit! I promise our yard is hardly this brown anymore.

And thank goodness.

Update

Let's catch up!  So much has happened since we last spoke. Here's some of the big stuff...

1) Chris decided to go to grad school this fall. He'll get a masters in educational administration.

2) We moved to Belton into a little 2/1 rental house...and love it!
3) We joined Mid-TexYoung Life committee.

4) My brother Sam got engaged.

5) Charlotte started a mother's morning out program one day a week.

6) Chris took a summer job at a local YMCA-type place.

7) Charlotte was potty trained for a whole 3 weeks...then she got a stomach bug...

8) I continue to craft (despite my Etsy showing) at some local shows and even had some orders from YL's Sharptop Cove!

9) We took a much needed trip to Colorado and New Mexico (see some pictures below). 

AND the number 10 thing we did this summer...) We found out we are having another little girl in January!!

This is taken from the ski lift in Telluride.

Ouray, CO at the highest point on our Jeep ride.

Reunited, and it feels so good :)

Cousins!

True NM sunset and colors.

Hope you are well! We are looking forward to the fall in all its craziness.

Piggies

Time for Dinner!

So we finally got a little kitchen set (gifted to us by another mom who was getting ready to move & didn't want to move this).  Charlotte LOVES it!  It's got the blender that makes noise & spins around & water faucets sounds too--very fancy!  Now she's always trying to get us to sample her cakes, teas, hot dogs & mystery drinks :)  Funny thing is, it's probably a very accurate scaled down version of our apartment kitchen!!  I'd say it's our kitchen, shrunk by a fourth :)  Just so happens that our NC friends sent us something that went perfectly with our newest pink & purple appliances--fruits & veggies! 

Thank you Jay & Kate, Blair & Cara!!

One of my Favorite Mother-Daughter Moments

This was awhile back, but I still loved this day!  I was making brownies with mint frosting for Chris' school and we shared leftovers on the beaters.  We just sat on the kitchen floor and enjoyed the moment...probably for different reasons (me--a first with my daughter, Charlotte--the taste of frosting and being a big girl).  Anyway, I'm hoping to catch y'all up to speed on life here in Texas in the coming weeks.  Stay tuned...

and by the way,

HAPPY BELATED MOTHER'S DAY!!

Trikes and Friends

This was back the beginning of March, but hey, I've got some catching up to do.  This is Charlotte and her friend Isaac.  Isaac's mom & I trade off watching the kids twice a week.  It's so nice to have that couple of hours each week at home without a "tod" (this is what we sometimes call the toddler in our life!) underfoot.  Anyway, in the old apartment it can be a little confining...then we opened the sliding glass door!!  Much of the cabin fever was relieved and I'm not even sure they noticed there was no grass.  Let's do the math, a 4x6 space, 2 tods, 2 trikes, 2 chairs, 3 hours, not that they were out there the whole time...I think we did well!

After awhile...

...when you've been married a few years...things start to mean more (or less) than maybe they should!

We have a 2 year old in the house!

It's official, she's 2.  Can't believe it.  I had a lot of fun party planning my first real kid-party.  The "theme" was a few of her favorite things: sidewalk chalk,  a playground, various hats for everyone, monkey cupcakes and cake, and of course friends and grandparents!  Unfortunately the weather didn't cooperate too well.  Instead of being mid-70's it was more like low-60's.  Those of you in colder temps are rolling your eyes right now!  We invited 3 of Charlotte's friends and their families to join us.  Here are a few snapshots of the party.

Sweet Girl

So, it's now 3:38 AM and I've been awake since 1:45.  I've watched some shows, read everyone else's blog, saw that there was no one else on fb chat, and I'm listening to the morning trains roll in now.  It's time to update my own blog with some little pictures of our weekly commute to Austin.  We get down there at least once a week which we LOVE.  It's only an hour and it goes by quick especially when Charlotte knows we're going to see Papa and Gamaw :)  AND she's developing the cutest little singing voice (and I mean that in the way that only a mother can love).  For instance, her latest favorite is Jingle Bells, except that her version sounds like "E-O beolls" .

Here's to safe travel and a lot of time on I-35.

Here's What We're Having for Dinner this Week...

If you're like me, you want someone else to just tell you what to cook and what to buy at the grocery store.  Here's my attempt to help you in the dinner arena and just in case you aren't sure what to make, try some of these suggestions.  I have to give major credit to Real Simple magazine and their recipe department.  3  of our meals this week are coming directly from an 2009 issue!  I try to do at least one vegetarian meal a week.  Now I will pair these meals with either a salad or a vegetable of some sort.   

 Sauteed Chicken and Peppers with Coconut Rice.  Yes Please.  And there's black beans too!

We're also enjoying one of Pioneer Woman's version of chicken spaghetti...mostly available for Chris' lunches. 

I try to plan for at least 4 dinners and one that will really go the distance for lunch (since my husband really is fine with eating the same thing over and over).  Let me know if you need a grocery list!  By the way, these are all tried and true delicious.  Let me know too if this is interesting/helpful to you and I'll try to keep posting this kind of stuff!

Christmas 2010

Happy 2011 Everyone!  I didn't want too much time to go by before I posted some of our favorite pictures and videos from this past month. 

Charlotte was playing with a finger puppet of baby Jesus in the pictures below and it was just too cute.

We had a great time in Colorado seeing family and friends and enjoying the cooler weather. In the picture below, Charlotte was trying on Grandma Terry's high heels and prancing around like she owned the place.

 This is her "cheese!" face for pictures...

 This (thankfully) is not her cheese-face rather just pure, unadulerated sweetness.

 She LOVES to color these days and we are learning the difference between paper and everything.  Then there's different kinds of paper!

 Just before opening Christmas presents for the second time in her life--sniff, sniff.  They grow up so fast!

 This was Christmas, Texas-style.  The santa hat from great Grandma was the big hit.  She wore it the entire day! 

 Look at those eyes!!

 The Texas Christmas crowd.

 The magic of Christmas at work...

Shaking her Christmas groove thing.