K&A

What's in Your Closet

2010-08-27T12:47:00.000-07:00

I knew when I quit my job I would need a new hobby. Something to keep me entertained, something I could become good at and spend my alone hours working on. I've always worked and really worried about my sanity of having "mom" as my only title. So, I dusted off the old sewing machine my mom gave me for Christmas a few years ago and began working on small projects. Lately I've become totally immersed in reconstructing old items right from your closet after reading this blog: This girl takes old outfits she bought for $1 and transforms them into these unique outfits. Amazingly brilliant.
So, I saw Kevin giving a bag of clothes away and I asked him not to take them to Goodwill. There may be something in there I want to use. What do you know, one of his shirts became a cute little child's apron. Easy cheesy.

Isn't it funny how our urge as Americans is to run out and buy something you don't have. You run out of orange juice, you rush to the store and pick it up. You need a new shirt for an event, you go buy it. But what if your solution is right in own house and you don't have to spend any money to get it?

For example, Margo has a gross case of cradle cap. With Nora, we bought the $10 shampoo that was very mediocre, at best. This time I did a little research and read that olive oil on the scalp should brush the cradle flakes away. Gross, I know, but it's my child so it doesn't gross me out. Now ask me to brush your child's flakes away and I probably won't be as willing. Anyway, it worked. Like a total charm. Free.

I've been trying to do the same thing with the way we spend our grocery money. Do we really need all this food? This part has been a stretch for me because I really found pleasure in my grocery store time. I loved getting new food and stocking up our pantry. I read grocery shrink's e book and have been trying to change my mindset. My latest venture includes making granola bars from scratch. It's super easy, saves tons of money, and delicious. Just wrap them up in some wax paper and they make the perfect snack.

It's been fun (and humbling) to change our mindset of spending money. We thought we were frugal before, but when you look at what you buy and what you really need, it's amazing to see what you find. My sewing still stinks, but it's a work in progress.

2010-07-15T07:43:00.000-07:00

I'm having a hard time trying to keep Nora entertained while taking care of Margo. You can see the boredom on her face as I attempt to have a fun afternoon in the sprinkler. I get overwhelmed with worry sometimes wondering if I'm a boring mom, if I'm providing enough activity for her, all of the things moms fill their heads with.

But today I was reminded of several things when I had the sweetest conversation with Nora about heaven. It was unprovoked, and it was after I returned home from a funeral. I didn't tell her where I was going but thought it was interesting when she brought this up on her own. We were in the car and she said "mommy, I remember when so and so's mommy went up to heaven". After conversing a bit, she got such a giddy smile and said "ohhh, I can't WAIT to see Jesus!" It was by far the sweetest moment with my child.

It also reminded me of a few things. My faith is not childlike enough, and I hope to take this moment and apply it to my walk. Secondly, it's not so important that Nora remembers that when her sister was born, she didn't have something to fill her time every second of the day. Maybe that's a good thing, because when we busy ourselves with stuff to do, that stuff clouds our minds and distracts us from our purpose on this earth. I needed that reminder and am grateful for the Lord's reminder in me through my child. I'm also learning this stay at home mom job is no joke. Whew.

"The homemaker has the ultimate career. All other careers exist for one purpose only - and that is to support the ultimate career. "
— C.S. Lewis

New Beginnings

2010-07-12T05:24:00.000-07:00

Long ago I decided I'm okay with neglecting this blog. After all, I'm doing good to shower in the mornings, much less share what's on my heart. But I've felt the Lord's nudging more than once on this subject, and today when I was having quiet time before the girls woke up, I read Matthew 10:27 and thought I better be obedient. "What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight. What I whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs". I'm hoping these words can bless someone, more than likely they will bore someone, but hey.... I'm being obedient. I'm going to try and make time to at least journal my thoughts on a regular basis and update a bit on Margo, poor child. Totally neglecting the second as far as documentation is normal, right??

Much has changed in the months since I've updated. Kevin and I made the decision for me to quit my day job and become a full time mom. This transition has been a blessing, albeit stressful at times, we are still adjusting but very grateful for this opportunity. It will definitely be a time to put my faith into action as we are getting used to living with just one income. I sort of look forward to this challenge. I'm still mourning leaving the job I loved, but I know this was the right decision and so far it's been a major blessing.

In an effort to do this job well, I've taken on several tasks which have been quite demanding. I've always made my baby's food and not resorted to the jar food that's filled with all kinds of unnecessary fillers, so when the time came to begin this for Margo it added lots of dishes, etc. We are plugging along and have a full batch frozen in the freezer. This has become much more difficult with a 4 year old talking my head off while I'm trying to make the food so I've tried to get her involved in the cooking as well. She has, in turn, become quite the little chef. She makes up her own recipes and loves to join me while I cook. It makes things 10 x's messier, but we have good quality time while making a mess. I've also been cloth diapering which saves tons of money but again, adds tons of laundry. I'd totally recommend this, however.

Our household has been trying to eat healthier lately, and I feel it's our responsibility to make sure what we are putting in our mouths is the healthiest option for our bodies. I believe the Lord created certain foods for us to eat, and sadly Americans have tweaked this until it's not healthy anymore. I've been trying to educate myself on the benefits of organic, which meats are safe, and how I can save money by eating healthier. We are making our own bread now (which includes only about 5 ingredients instead of 25 like you'll find at the store), making our own bagels which saves about $15 a month, and trying to cut meat from our diet except for once or twice a week. Thankfully my husband is on board and will eat just about anything I cook. It's funny how paying attention to what you eat makes you more self aware in all areas of your behavior. I'm hoping we can become better stewards in all areas of life by making this one change.

Anyway~ the girls are good, I'm good, Kev's good. We're all looking forward to August when Nora starts soccer for the first time and I start a Mom's group where I can get some wisdom once a week and be kid free interacting with adults for a few hours. Yeehaw! I only know how to upload photo booth pictures, so until Kevin shows me the other, here's what you'll be getting... for some reason everyone left me alone at the hospital after I had Margo, but thankfully they also left the Mac:

Easter

2010-04-10T14:10:00.000-07:00

Some pics of Nora hunting Easter eggs with AJ. The girls wore cute dresses this year but I never got a picture. I'm sure one day I'll put them in the dresses again and have a photo shoot, but it's been a rough week. I'll post when I do.

Margo and Jacob.

Here's our annual picture in front of the azalea blooms. Nora's been begging me FOREVER to get her hair cut so I caved today. After all, it's her hair, not mine. It turned out really cute, but note to the readers, never trust a stylist from Walmart. I refuse to pay alot for a 4 year old's hair cut, but man.... do you get what you pay for sometimes. It'll take more than a bad cut to get us down though. :)

Snow Day x2

2010-02-04T13:19:00.001-08:00

We recently had TWO snow days from school. It was so much fun (although we got cabin fever after day 4 of being iced in). Even Daddy's office was closed one day so he got to work from home! Snow days for us meant lots of crafts, lots of hot chocolate and baked goods from the easy bake oven (except they're more like baked "bads" b/c they are so na asty))

2010-01-18T07:49:00.000-08:00

Ok, I'm done with my hiatus. I think.

I'll try to recap the last few months in pictures from what I can remember. When we brought Margo home she had jaundice and wasn't gaining weight which meant doctors appointments ALL the time. We had to do sunlight therapy for a while. Here's one of my favorite pictures of her doing her therapy.

Look how orange she was! These pictures don't do it justice. She was halloweeny.

The adjustment has been great, mostly because Margo is the definition of a perfect baby. She's so easy. And cute. :)

Nora loves being a big sister. She's really doing a great job and Margo loves just staring at big sis. Don't think I'm not telling her to get out of Margo's face 100 times a day, but besides the normal adjustment stuff, she really is handling this life change very well.

Nora had her ballet demonstration for her class she's been taking at school right before Christmas. Heavy dose of cute, it was.

Margo got to meet several of mommy's college friends. Here she is with Jaime, Candice and Chelsea

Here's Julia Child on Thanksgiving morning. :) We stayed home and had a nice feast with just us. It was a great day.

We went to Texas for Christmas and spent lots of quality cousin time. Aunt Tammie got all the cute pictures because Nora stayed with them, so click on over to Tammie's blog for cousin pictures.

Our Fuller cousin reunion~ can't remember the last time we all took a picture together!

Big news this week was Margo rolled over! I remember with Nora we practiced and stood hovering over her daily until she rolled over. With Margo, I put her in bed on her belly and came in a second later and she was on her back. A little less dramatic, but she rolled over, nonetheless. And we were excited!

We are crazy about this sweet girl!

What we've been up to. . .

2009-11-09T19:51:00.000-08:00

Welcome Margo Lael!!

2009-11-02T12:23:00.000-08:00

Margo was born on Nov. 2 at 1:16 pm weighing 8 lbs 1 ounce. Mom and baby are doing great!

2009-10-30T08:32:00.000-07:00

When we decided to start trying for a baby with Nora, it all came pretty easily. Three months after deciding we were ready, the Lord agreed and blessed us with our first pregnancy. I'm normally a 'fly by the seat of my pants' kind of gal. Not really organized, don't really have to have a schedule or any kind of routine. Since I've gotten older I have gotten a bit better, and definitely since we started doing Dave Ramsey and paying off our monstrous student loans I have suddenly become a Type A planner. I had everything planned, we'd try for #2 when we had x student loan paid off, then deliver around x month.

One year and one miscarriage later we found ourselves expecting our 2nd. The whole process was very emotional, but also taught us to fully trust in the Lord, and know that our plans may not be what is best for our lives. He is working hard to form our family, and we had to let go the control we wanted to have and trust that His way is the only way. It's been a great journey for us.

So, with that said, it took us FOREVER to find a middle name for this baby. I wanted it to be something so special, because of the Lord's hand in this process. I also wanted it to flow, like any mother does, so this was overwhelming because nothing was working. A few weeks ago I prayed (seems like a silly prayer, but the Lord answered) that he would literally drop a middle name into our brains (or at least onto google) and he did.

In a few days, we will welcome Margo Lael into our lives. Lael, pronounced "Lay- ell" is a Hebrew word meaning "belonging to God". We're naming her this because she does. She belongs to God, not us. She's being given to us as a gift and display of God's unending grace for us. As much as I desperately wanted a baby and wanted one on my own time, the Lord is providing on HIS time and we are so grateful. So join us in praying for Margo Lael as she spends her last few days in the comfort of mommy's belly. Well, the comfort is hers, not so much mine, but anyway. We're so excited to meet this new member of our family!

2009-10-17T14:33:00.000-07:00

Well, we're just weeks away from becoming a family of 4 and joyfully welcoming this little one to our home.

As I think about adding to our family, I start to reflect on how my first baby is all grown up. I look at pictures of her as a baby and can't believe the beautiful little girl she is becoming. It goes so, so fast.

When I pass by her big girl room it sometimes makes me sad, but I'm excited about embarking on a new journey with her as a "big sister". She'll be so great. She's SO excited about having a baby sister, as evidenced by her constant baby talk. Seriously- it's constant and it's constantly driving me insane. Guess she's practicing??

I love watching the creative side of Nora. She will sit for hours and work on "projects" at home. She loves to create anything, much like her daddy, and it's fun to see that part of her develop. I'm trying to soak in each minute with her before things get crazy. Here are a few of her latest creations.

I can't say enough about this guy. He's been working so hard making sure I'm comfortable, getting things accomplished from my "to do" lists, AND still attending his day job, all while trying to be the best father and husband he can be. Never complaining. Ever. I'm so, so blessed to be married to someone that is daily trying to better himself in every way. Love him.

As I close, I can't help but mention my ambivalence about posting this. Although this is my life right now, I know my longtime friend is probably reading and desperately wishing she was finishing up preparations for her new baby. We were 3 days apart in our pregnancies, but the Lord had other plans for her family. Not that I didn't know this before, but now more than ever, I realize what a gift a child is. It's a miracle from conception to birth, and a gift that none of us deserve. We all, as mothers and fathers, should take this gift just as it is- undeserved- but as another example of the Lord's deep love for his children. These children are not ours, but are put in our care for an unknown amount of time, and it is my prayer that Kevin and I take care of this new gift when the Lord decides to bring her into our lives. Please pray over us these next few weeks, and continue to lift up my friend, Chelsea, as we will both be experiencing different emotions in the coming days.

Balloons for Chase

2009-10-04T10:58:00.001-07:00

My friend, Chelsea, lost her sweet baby boy last Sunday. She delivered him Wednesday, and said goodbye in a balloon celebration on Saturday. You can read about their story here. Several friends joined her in sending up balloons to Chase. Nora and I traveled to Nashville to release balloons with the Stites and Sandersons.

First, we all wrote notes to tie to the balloons.

Here are the three families represented minus Kevin- he wanted to join us but had some church commitments that kept him in Memphis.

We played Blessed Be Your Name while Murray read, ironically, the same verse Mark and Chelsea chose to represent Chase's life. David said a sweet prayer, then it was time to release and celebrate!

The release!

We love you Chase and Jacobs/Teague families!

"Earth hath no sorrow that Heaven cannot heal"

Camping Fun

2009-09-07T10:53:00.000-07:00

I had the bright idea to go camping this Labor Day weekend. We usually try and go in October, but, for obvious reasons we won't be doing that this year. I told Kev I could probably only handle one night and boyyyy was I right.

We went to Village Creek State Park outside of Wynne, Arkansas. Highlight of the trip was when I went to the bath house around midnight without a flashlight. I was walking along and saw a stick....a very curvy stick....that slithered away when I walked past it. I'm sure I woke up the entire campsite with my scream. Everything was okay once I got to the bathroom door and the frog who was blocking me kindly jumped out of my way so I could open the door.

Needless to say, this will be our last time to camp in September. Too many mosquitos, way to hot and muggy.

Kev and Nora setting up camp

Me, 8 months pregnant, not setting up camp

Success!

A little baseball

A little swimming in the lake

Kev and Nora on a walk

Me, 8 months pregnant, not walking

A good, muggy night's sleep in the tent, then blueberry muffins in the morning

Tired, and thankful to be crossing this bridge

Fun with the Stites

2009-08-02T17:03:00.000-07:00

My good friend and her husband came to visit on their way to Texas. She has four sweet girls so Nora was in dress up heaven. Here's some pics from the visit:

Here's a pic of a little hair incident involving scissors recently. Little toot.

Her latest makeup venture:

Catch up

2009-07-25T14:43:00.000-07:00

We had part of Kevin's family here for a week from Houston because our nephew, Ethan, had a baseball tournament. We were so glad to have them and Kevin and Nora lovvvved watching so much baseball. Not that I didn't love the baseball, too, but it was blazing hot so that ruined it for me. I stayed indoors and caught a few games when I could. Here's some pics of Ethan and Kev.

Nora went recently to ride a pony with her friend, AJ. Shelby Farms right down the road offers $5 pony rides at their stables. We got there and found out it's only for 5 minutes (which is ridiculous) but it turned out to be fine. Nora loved riding. Here she is with the most unfriendly tour guide on the planet. Dear unfriendly teenager, if you read this blog, I seriously had to hold myself back from complaining about you. You're incredibly rude. :)

Kevin and Nora went to Houston for a family reunion while I stayed back and got a weekend with my sister. We had a blast just hanging out with no kids. Lots of shopping, pedicures, relaxing at the pool. A much needed rest. Kevin, on the other hand, had tons of airport drama when he missed his flight, but once they arrived in Houston they had so much fun. Here's Nora with her cousins. They swam the night away at this resort in the Woodlands.

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I bought Nora this Ariel dress from the disney store. She slept in it that night. She's obsessed with Ariel right now.

We've had a very busy summer, but feel very blessed that we've been able to travel to the beach (which I just realized I hadn't posted about but there are pics on facebook). It's getting closer to the school year starting which means not long before baby sister arrives! So excited! :)

2009-06-19T20:52:00.000-07:00

We had such a great time at the beach and there are many stories and pictures to share. First, though, we've got to share that we'll be welcoming another baby girl into our family. (most everyone already knows this, but I thought I'd officially update my blog). We're so, so, so thrilled. Let's just say Kevin's father's day gift was the book "Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters". He's still walking around muttering "two weddings, two proms". Once the shock wears off he'll be fine. I've promised him a "man room" to escape to. :)

Spring Program

2009-05-25T18:18:00.000-07:00

We went to Nora's program last week and had so much fun. I'll never know how they get these kids to learn all the songs and motions, but they do. The kids were hilarious and so animated. I haven't laughed that hard in a long time. Every year they finish the show with graduation (which Nora will be in next year....NOOOO) and a slide show. I always leave with such warm fuzzies. I'm so thankful for this school.

This year Nora had lots of guests at her show. My mom was able to come into town and we were so excited!

The excitement continued when Nora found out AJ would be in attendance. :)

Receiving flowers from her best bud.

Her class sang "Going to the chapel" and they were paired with spouses. Her spouse was none other than her good friend, Dominick. I have to admit, I watched Nora maybe 1 minute and Dominick the other 5. He was SO hilarious.

Look at these faces! They were so into it. . .

I knew they threw the bouquet at the end, but the picture is so bad because I was laughing so hard at the big finish (pictured above).

What a great night. We had such a productive Memorial Day cleaning out our house, purging things we don't need and packing for the beach. Next post will be lots of pictures with water!! :)

2009-05-10T15:57:00.000-07:00

What do we do when daddy's away, you ask? P,B, &J at Germantown Performing Arts on Saturday, picked some strawberries at the nearby (super muddy) strawberry patch, went home for a nice lunch and then to a birthday party for Nora's baby. We kicked the weekend off with makeovers. If I could take a picture of my face right now, I would. Don't worry, if you work with me, the remnants will probably still be there tomorrow.

Baby is pooped after her rockin' party filled with 90's music and lots of fun games. (I'd call her by her real name, but that is her real name. Baby) We had about 8 in attendance, but I was so busy I didn't even get a group picture. :)

Lots of stopping to change diapers, feed, and change clothes (poop accident) during the party... a definite chore.

I'm loving this new imagination Nora has. It makes entertaining less of a chore because I don't have to come up with all the ideas anymore. :)

Happy Mother's Day!

2009-05-10T12:11:00.000-07:00

2009-05-03T13:41:00.000-07:00

Thanks for the well wishes. We're all beyond excited.

Also soooo excited to find this beautiful rose in my rose bush this week. Typically everything I touch dies, so this is was a nice surprise to our day.

Just a few pictures of Nora and what she's been up to lately. She's so into helping me around the house and I'm trying to take advantage. She has chores of putting her clothes in the hamper and little things like that. We implemented that recently and she's doing great. At first I was paranoid about the length between Nora and this baby, but the more she's helping out around the house the more I think this distance will be a major blessing for us.

She's always been a mother hen as evidenced by this picture, and I can't wait to see how she grows in this department. What a great big sister to have! :)

2009-04-15T06:12:00.000-07:00

Our little crazy family of three will soon be a family of four this November. Can you tell how excited we are? It's been a journey to get here, and we feel blessed beyond words that the Lord is answering our prayers for another child.

We can't wait to meet this new one!!

2009-04-12T11:07:00.000-07:00

Happy Easter! We had a great day at the park after church and look forward to an Easter egg hunt after nap.

We had a special treat on Saturday. We got to keep Meredith while her mommy was at the hospital delivering her baby sister.

Here's Meredith seeing a picture of sweet Madeline Jane for the first time.

Anytime you get two three year old girls together there will definitely be some dressing up going on.

We've got a little musician in the making here. This child lovessss to sing and dance. Here's daddy on the guitar and Nora on the "playano".

Nora had her annual Easter bonnet egg hunt at school. Here she is posing with her bonnet.

Still Here

2009-04-05T18:46:00.000-07:00

I'm such a slack, but mostly because our computer is SO awfully slow. We went and bought a new one this weekend so things are looking up. I've been a PC user forever but just switched to a Mac, so I have no idea how to even upload a picture. It definitely will mean more posts once I figure it out.

We've been having lots of fun around here. Nora is at such an inquisitive age and uses the word why every 5 seconds, and most of her questions are about Jesus. The other day we were driving home from the apple store and she asked why Jesus made computers. It was a great opportunity to explain how he wanted to spread his story all over the world, and now with computers, everyone could hear the gospel!

Our church normally doesn't have service at night, but during a transition time right now we are having what's called a celebration service where they dedicate babies, introduce new members and baptize members. There is no childcare so Nora was with me during the service. I knew there would be millions of "why" questions coming my way after people were "taking a bath" on the stage, so I prepared my answer. The only way I could think of explaining it on a 3 year old level was that we are baptized so we can wash away all of our bad choices, then Jesus cleans you up. She seemed to get that. If anyone has a better way to explain this, let me know.

We're still working on an answer to why Jesus made peanut butter. ??

Although the constant talking (I mean, constant talking) drives me out of my head most days, I'm trying to remember my job right now is to disciple my child. She is at such an impressionable age that it's exciting to teach her.

We're all looking forward to the end of the school year because that means two words for us: the beach. We can't wait!! Nora asks everyday (surprise) if it's time for the beach yet. It's our first trip to the beach as a family (well, ever unless you count Galveston or South Padre Island) so we're all sooooo excited and so ready for a vacation. In Tennessee, people totally overreact if you've never been to Florida. Apparently it's like Texans never going to Colorado. So, it will be our first trip to Florida. I'm so glad because I'm sick of the reactions we get when we tell people we've never been.

We had a great visit from Kevin's mom, Margie, but I can't upload pictures since I don't know how yet. She came to help Kevin out when I was in St. Louis and then Texas for a reunion with several girls from college. I had such a great time catching up with those girls and we even had some time worshiping together which was so fun.

This is the potential for being super long since I'm just chillin in front of the tv while typing it, but I'll spare you. Once I figure out the pictures I can't upload more. For now, we're still alive, still doing what we do everyday...and I'll try to be better about recording it on this blog.

2009-03-01T18:56:00.000-08:00

There's nothing like waking up to your March 1st birthday with 5 inches of snow on the ground.

Nora had a fun start to her birthday playing in the snow with daddy

Playing with her new toys

Eating lots of ice cream since we forgot about that small detail at her party and have tons in the freezer now. . .

and snuggling up with mommy to watch Willy Wonka.

It was a nice day to be stuck inside. . .

2009-02-24T06:20:00.000-08:00

We had such a treat the other night. This past weekend was the Folk Alliance Festival in Memphis and through some connections we were asked to host the band, Act of Congress, while they were here. We didn't know we'd get a concert in our living room, but it was a great surprise. Nora even went and got Daddy's banana shaker and joined the band. Here's some pics.

After that we loaded up the car and headed to Natchez Trace, a state park outside of Nashville.

Lipstick is a must before you go exploring in the woods.

She was so mad because she wanted to slide down this hill. Love that face.

Here she is surveying the damage. (she had dirt coming out of every inch of her clothes after this...

If I could sum up our trip in one word, it would be ladybug. I've never seen so many in a cabin in all my life. Live ones, dead ones, gross gross gross.

I thought the game we brought for Nora turned out to be appropriate.

So, moral of the story is: if you're thinking of going to a cabin in Natchez Trace, don't. Sleep in a tent where bugs are expected.

2009-02-19T11:30:00.000-08:00

OK, here's me, totally unmotivated to blog. Crazy sums up our winter for some reason. Things just haven't stopped for us.

Promise that posts will pick up soon with a family retreat to Natchez Trace this weekend, then Nora's 3 year birthday next weekend (boo). Until then, I plan to focus on Spring and forget about winter. Winter can go jump in the lake for all I care. I'm ready for some sun!!!

2009-01-07T08:22:00.000-08:00

I got this e-mail from my brother today:

Angie:
Please update your blog so I'm not staring at some random flexy dude's @$$ every time I check it.
Randy

So....here's an update for my brother.

We had a great time Christmas. These are repeat facebook pictures but I don't have time right now to download different ones. . . but at least my blog is updated. I'll be back soon with pictures from our time with Madison and Drew Dunbar, friends from Switzerland.

2008-12-15T17:24:00.000-08:00

This is the guy on my video doing yoga.

This is my daughter doing yoga. Her newest obsession. . .

Nameste`

2008-12-07T18:56:00.000-08:00

Well, Thanksgiving's come and gone, so I guess I'll move on to Christmas.

I surprised Nora today with a Christmas tree. We'd been saying we weren't getting one since we'll be in Texas for Christmas, but we couldn't stand it any longer. This is her waking up from a nap to see a Christmas tree waiting for her to demolish with tacky lights and ornaments... she didn't disappoint.

When she's in charge, three ornaments end up on one stem. To each his own. . .

Later we wrapped gifts and she wanted to wrap daddy a gift for him to open when he got home. We pulled something down from the wall and she wrapped it all by herself.

Here she is showing off her wrap job. Sorry about the outfit...we're picking out what we want to wear these days. Only a two year old can make yellow, pink, orange and black look cute.

Daddy opened the present when he got home and was so thrilled to receive a stuffed owl make out of a paper bag. Just what he always wanted! (notice the headband)

Of course, each photo op has to contain and goofy face picture. Here you go:

It seems the theme on my blog lately is Nora's obsession with makeup. I'm not obsessed with makeup. I barely wear it, so I'm really not sure where this started. I literally have to hide in the closet and put my makeup on so she won't bug me to death. "I want some, I want some". SO, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em. I went out and for $3 purchased her very own, very tacky kids makeup. Turns out the jokes on me.

Here we are sporting our makeovers and new hairstyles. I think I counted 14 clips in my hair.

Nora and I were able to talk a little while putting up the tree about Jesus's birthday. We talked about Joseph and Mary, and the anticipation of the people for the son of God to be born. Although Nora's only 2, I believe she's old enough to retain what this holiday is about and how exciting it is to celebrate the birth of the son who would give us eternal life!

Halloween Catch up

2008-11-13T06:14:00.000-08:00

We had a great Halloween. Usually I dread this day, but I chose to embrace it this year and what do you know...we had fun. :)

My sweet (sometimes sour) apple

Nora and AJ getting some loot from Miss Betty. . .

Enjoying her Cheetos on the porch. . .(someone gave out Cheetos...so awesome)

In other news, we're still sneaking into Mommy's makeup bag as evidenced by this picture...

My friend, Patti, gave us her trampoline since her girls are older now. We're in the process of getting a safety net, so chill Mom.

Nora was thrilled!! By the looks of it, so was Kevin.

Our newest activity is watching John and Kate plus 8 together. She is literally glued to the tv when it's on. We recently (after a 2 year hiatus) got our cable back, so we're discovering the kid friendly shows. I was watching it with her last night and it was the episode where they went to Hawaii. She ran to put her hula skirt on and danced a jig. I couldn't resist snapping some pics. . .

2008-10-26T07:13:00.000-07:00

Here's what we've been up to lately. Nora and I played dressup one day- couldn't resist making it a photo op. She didn't complain, either.

She finally found her long awaited prince. . .

We've been having major trouble with Nora sleeping lately. For whatever reason- she's not going to sleep. We even have to put the pet gate up to keep her in the room. Here's how we found her the other night. . .

How do you punish that? So funny.

I knew the other night when I heard "Mommy, I'm a tiger...raawrrrrr", I was in trouble. Highlighter to the face.

We got to hear Kevin's band play at a University of Memphis pre-game show last night. Nora loves watching her daddy play guitar. We even joined in the tailgating with PB&J. :)

Here's the handsome band member throwing his pick into the crowd.

Here's the cutie who caught it.

what is up with the words? why are they on the side. .. there's no way I'm re-uploading all these pictures. Readers will have to deal. sorry. definitely not pleasing to the eye. . .

2008-10-12T17:58:00.000-07:00

We had a great time at the farm with my childhood friend, Candice and her beautiful girls. Loving this yearly event. . . .

2008-10-10T08:18:00.000-07:00

Camping Fun

2008-10-06T16:20:00.000-07:00

We went camping this weekend with some friends in Arkansas. The trip was mostly wonderful, minus the neighborhood about a block from the campsite where some nice folks decided to party it up until 3 am. I knew it was bad when Kevin took his knife and got in the car at 2 am to go hunt down some rednecks. It ended with a peaceful sleep about 3:45 am until 7ish. Needless to say, we're glad to be in our own beds with soundproof walls and phone coverage to call the police.

Chris went ape 'you know what' on the bridge and almost killed us all. Hopefully you can tell how our lives were in danger by how blurry the picture is. Shew.

This is how the picture should look. Pretty bridge when there's no jumping involved.

All in all it was a great trip. We'll definitely revisit the camping thing.

2008-09-28T18:45:00.000-07:00

This crazy lady took me to Huey Lewis and the News the other night. This is my coworker, Patti. Or Pat Pat to Nora. Or Pootie to her elementary classmates.

Here's Huey on the jumbo screen. Cuter than ever. . .

We're preparing to go camping next weekend. We have zero camping gear, so it's taking ALOT of preparation. So- our weekend was busy, but not too busy to squeeze in a playdate with AJ. Here's Nora playing with her bestie.

Nora was in rare form dancing and singing and talking a blue streak. I guess that's not really rare- she's constantly talking. Constantly. Here she is yelling "AJ- look at my foot"! I'm still not sure what was on her foot, but she definitely wanted everyone to look.

I love when Nora asks me to draw something with chalk, like an elephant, or a snowcone machine, or something else I can't draw. Luckily she cornered Danielle this time. Of course, Danielle gets to draw an airplane. Easy.

I'm totally ok with this picture. Two friends, 2 years old, hugging.

Not okay with this picture. Totally not okay with this picture.

2008-09-26T11:35:00.000-07:00

Listen here for a news story my cousin Grant reported from Sierra Leon, where he is teaching radio production skills at the Fatima Institute for development and Radio Maria through Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO).

His blog is here.

This story is very hard to listen to- one that lots of people would rather ignore to keep from feeling anything- but I hope you take just a few minutes to listen and pray about this situation.

2008-09-21T16:29:00.000-07:00

Nora has a dollhouse that she plays with occasionally. Since it entered our house, she has kept a picture of my grandmother (her grandma dada) in the dollhouse. It seriously never moves- Grandma dada has a role and everything.

This is grandma dada's best friend, I guess.

Here's Nora putting Dora in time out. Something she's been doing alot of herself these days. Someone tell me this gets better. I'm so over age 2!

Forrest Spence Run

2008-09-09T07:03:00.000-07:00

Forrest Spence was a very precious baby who lost his life last year. I heard about him because his parents are friends with my friend, Danielle. This run was to raise money for a local Memphis Children's Hospital and we were happy to contribute! The Spence's have turned a very devastating event into such a positive experience. I only hope I would have their heart and vision when tragedy strikes my family.

Elmo was there, and much the opposite of AJ, Nora wouldn't go within 15 feet of him. Is Elmo a him or a her? Anyway.

Had I known this hat would clash this badly with the ugly colored shirt, I never would have worn it. Just so you'll know.

2008-09-08T16:22:00.000-07:00

This is a whopper of an update. I figured I better make up for not blogging as often as I usually do. Who knows- maybe I'll hit you with two updates in one week.

We made a quick trip to Nashville last weekend for some family time. We had a great time. There was this alarm clock that was the most bomb of a clock I've seen at a hotel. It had a sound machine and everything. Maybe I never get out, but this was a great clock. Nora played with it forever turning the channel, getting on the bed and dancing/jumping to the music. Then she would switch to the sound machine and just sit in front of the clock and listen. It was great entertainment.

Lots of bed jumping fun

Loved waking up to this in the morning. So cute.

the view from our balcony (it pays to complain about all the hidden fees to the hotel staff- they'll upgrade your room to a balcony view!)

more alarm clock playing

cute little footsies

sweet girl

Our newest obsession is "Baby". What's baby's name, you ask? Baby. That's her name. What else would it be, really? She's so cute when playing with baby. Anytime she cries (in other words, anytime Nora pushes her chest and a fake cry erupts), Nora holds her close whispering in this high pitched voice "it's okay, I got you, you're fine". It's the cutest thing ever. When I say, "Nora, you're such a good mommy" she replies with "yeah".

Was anyone else Camper of the Day in 1987?

I didn't think so.

:)

Sunflowers

2008-08-28T10:14:00.000-07:00

Here's a few pictures we took this summer of Nora in the middle of the Memphis sunflowers at Shelby Farms. IT WAS SO HOT so our photo shoot literally lasted 10 minutes. Anyway- here's a few to share.

Everything's going well on the potty training front. We're definitely making progress without grossing anyone out.

Planning a quick jaunt to Nashville this weekend, then a cookout with our community group for the holidays. good times. Maybe I'll be more timely with my updates now that I'm getting a day off.

1st of School- 2k

2008-08-23T05:43:00.000-07:00

Lindsay's wedding

2008-08-15T11:11:00.000-07:00

I'm so behind on blogging. We traveled to Amarillo for my niece's wedding last weekend where Nora was a flower girl. She did really well and made it all the way down the aisle! Yea Nora! After the stress of being a flower girl ended, this child was cutting it up on the dance floor during the reception (with many different dance partners). I'll post more pics soon of her first week back to school.

2008-08-02T15:15:00.000-07:00

Just a cute picture of my growing terrible 2er.

Playing outside is what we seem to be doing alot of these days but it's hotter than blue blazes. . .

I have to plug the shirt my handsome man is wearing. It's a company called Rosa Loves. Each t-shirt you buy supports a certain organization. This one helped someone in Mexico go to school and mine supported an orphanage in Tanzania. Check out their website and buy a shirt. The designs are really hip. At least we think so?

Nora's in my niece's wedding next weekend. Here's a sneak peak of her dress. . .

I'll be back tomorrow with pictures of playtime with Sophie.

July Already??

2008-07-15T16:47:00.000-07:00

From the looks of my blog, it would appear that we've been super busy. Really, we've been super l.a.z.y.

I did return to work- so not that lazy, but blog lazy, I guess. Something I meant to post and haven't yet...Kev ran in a 5k on July 3rd called the Firecracker something or other. It was lots of fun for the whole family. We were so proud of our daddy! Nora was so excited to see him cross the finish line. He ran so well! :) I also put in a pic of Nora's big girl bed. She's official now. Still haven't potty trained. Dreading it. Totally. Haven't even attempted.

Rock n Romp

2008-06-30T08:38:00.001-07:00

One of our favorite things to do is Rock n Romp. Local Memphis bands put on concerts in people's backyards at a kid friendly time so you can bring the whole family. So much fun. Here's some pictures. . .

My child stayed at the food table- swiping food when she thought I wasn't looking.

2008-06-26T12:35:00.000-07:00

I experienced something pretty interesting today. NK and I headed over to a nearby water park that's in a pretty nice part of town, and usually filled with kids who all look alike and their perfect mothers. We were busy playing in the water when all the sudden about four bus loads of kids pull up. These kids were not like the others, and as I watched the scene unfold I saw mothers sweeping up their kids and strolling them away, I saw the segregation begin. Mothers began whispering and glaring.

But then I looked over and saw my child join the kids that don't look like her. She began playing. My heart melted. I'm thankful she chose that route, but I don't say that for props to my daughter- it was just a proud moment as a parent.

Eventually everyone dispersed and played with each other. As the kids continued to play together I imagined God smiling down on this scene. I mean, isn't this what it's supposed to look like? People from different races, different socioeconomic status, different home lives, all playing together and enjoying life together. Eventually I watched different race children share buckets, rich children holding hands and running through the water with poor children, it was a beautiful scene. I imagine this is what heaven is like.

Heaven isn't for people who look the same. Jesus didn't discriminate based on wealth, status, race. I wish our first reaction to differences would be love and acceptance. We are all a community. Brothers and sisters in Christ. Sharing this life together- do we really share it together?

2008-06-23T08:54:00.000-07:00

We just returned from a 10 day trip to Texas. We stopped in Houston first to visit Kev's family, then returned back through Ft. Worth to see mine. Kevin was in a wedding and I didn't have my camera. I'll post a picture of my handsome man in a tux as soon as I get one. I also didn't get pictures with uncle Pat and Mr. Culpepper, but we were very thankful for our visits with you both!

We drove down to Galveston one day and spent time at the beach. Here's some pics.

We finished our day at our favorite place, Pappasitos.

We caught this beautiful sunset during dinner. If you ever want to be reminded of God's glory, watch the sun set.

We had a great time in Houston, thanks so much everyone! Now off to Ft. Worth to visit my family.

Fun with my sister's kids. . .

I think my brother forgot he was an adult this day. . .

Visit with my grandmother

On the 16th, my brother and his wife, Allison, celebrated their 1 year anniversary. We're so thankful Ali is in our family!

We love uncle Randy!

Kev played a show with his brother's band. They don't get to do this very often, so it was fun for them.

We got to spend some cousin time with Kyle's kids.

This was one whipped girl. . .

Now we're back home and trying to enjoy my last week off. I'm still in pj's and it's lunchtime. Sad....but great.

Summer Lovin'

2008-06-01T12:09:00.001-07:00

Slip and slide with the neighbors

Finally crashing on the floor for a nap. . .

2008-05-29T18:04:00.000-07:00

My little sunshine at her school program

I love this look... "I know you ain't pickin your nose in front of your mama"

One proud mama

One sleepy baby. . .

My brother made a quick trip Memorial Day weekend with his wife and their friends, John and Sarah. It was a torrential downpour when they arrived, but luckily the weather cleared out and allowed us to go downtown to Beale St. on Saturday night. It just so happened it was the close of Memphis in May and Sunset Symphony weekend so there were tons of tourists and symphony watchers. There's a guy who plays on Beale each night that Kevin loves to watch. He took a liking to Ali (in a perverted way) and made her dance (which Randy gladly joined in to help out his cute, shy wife) and also had her carry his boot around for tips. Poor Ali was worn out after tearin' it up on the dance floor.

Good times.

Wrapping up the year

2008-05-17T19:21:00.000-07:00

We've been crazy trying to attend all the end of year things between my school and Nora's. May is definitely a busy time. I found this picture of Nora on her first day of school this year. She was so little! The amount of growing she's done since August to May is absolutely crazy. I'm forever amazed at what her school teaches these kids. She has her end of the year program on Thursday, so I'm sure we'll take tons of pictures and share later.

I kept AJ for a full weekend recently by myself. Needless to say, this was the only picture I had time to take. It was lots of fun and they played so well together. It was sweet.

Just thought I'd share this picture- Kevin caught Nora putting lotion on Daisy the other day. I guess she thought her skin looked ashy (I was in the process of doing laundry which explains all the clothes on the floor- I couldn't go another second without exlaining that).

Kevin is busy wrapping up his second job playing guitar two nights a week, and I started taking an Old Testament Survey class my church is offering which is keeping me busy. We're looking forward to some relaxation in June when I'm on vacation that month. Unfortunatly, counselors only get a month off in the summer. I put the "only" in there for Kevin because he loves when I complain that I "only" get a month off. Anyway- it's never enough time...especially this year because I've got potty training on the calendar for June. I need some advice (preferably from someone out there that just delivered her 4th baby girl- without naming any names). I've dreaded potty training and have been putting it off for as long as I can. I refuse to read a book on how to teach someone to go pee pee, so if somebody could just leave a comment on my blog and tell me how to do it, that would be awesome. Or come do it for me- then I'll make you dinner or something.

Seriously, the dinner will be really good.

2008-04-28T19:26:00.000-07:00

We had a family friend come into town this month and visit. Nora made him feel welcome by putting every necklace she owns around his neck. I'm surprised he didn't catch the first flight out after that experience.

He brought his camera and took some sweet pictures of Nora and Kevin. We had a very good visit and are very blessed by our friendship with you. Come back, Mr. Jim!

This picture is from a few posts ago when Nora walked in with her sunglasses on (when we thought she was asleep). I forgot to include it or blogger wasn't working that day or whatever.

I love this "excuse me, mom, I'm on the phone" look she gives when playing with my cell phone.

It seems Nora discovered my lipstick when I wasn't looking. . .

We had a good time last weekend with AJ, Nora's BFF. The park picture cracks me up because you can tell by Nora's hair, the wind was awful! It was the fastest picnic we've ever had. We can't wait until Friday when AJ spends the whole weekend with us while his mom works!!! More pictures to follow, I'm sure.

2008-04-23T09:54:00.000-07:00

I tried last night to post some pictures of a recent visit we had with a family friend, but blogger was uncooperative. I'll try again later. Instead, I posted a picture of my sister, so she would actually read my post. It cracks me up that some people refuse to read words in a blog unless it has pictures. So Tammie, since that's your rule, this is what you get. Hope you enjoyed your hot dog.

I wanted to post something I read recently. It blew my mind, and I'd love some thoughts on how to make individual changes to rectify these problems with poverty. I know that's the question alot are asking, but I really do struggle with how to change my personal life to meet the needs of these people. We've tossed around moving into a community where it would be easier to serve others, adopting a child out of poverty, but I really do struggle with everyday practical changes to make. We've already changed the way we spend our money by living on a small budget and asking do we "need" this or "want" this before we purchase anything. Changing your lifestyle financially and becoming a good steward of your money is such a peaceful way of life, I highly recommend it. "It" being some program to help teach you to manage money conservatively- our choice was Dave Ramsey's method.

I find myself reading these statements below and screaming "how can this be possible???" However, what am I doing in my life to make it not possible? Does throwing money at it really help?

Anyway, I'd love some reaction to this below.

Did you know that in our world today:

One third of deaths - some 18 million people a year or 50,000 per day -re due to poverty-related causes. That's 270 million people since 1992, the majority women and children, roughly equal to the population of the US. (Reality of Aid 2004)

Every year more than 10 million children die of hunger and preventable diseases - that's over 30,000 per day and one every 3 seconds. (80 Million Lives, 2003 / Bread for the World / UNICEF / World Health Organization)

Over 1 billion people live on less than $1 a day with nearly half the world's population (2.8 billion) living on less than $2 a day. (UN HDR, 2003)

600 million children live in absolute poverty. (SCF, Beat Poverty 2003).

The three richest people in the world control more wealth than all 600 million people living in the world's poorest countries. (Source:ChristianAid)

Income per person in the poorest countries in Africa has fallen by a quarter in the last 20 years. (Source:ChristianAid) More and more people are becoming poor.

800 million people go to bed hungry every day. (Source:FAO)

Americans spent:

8 billion dollars on Christmas decorations in 2007
2 billion dollars on Easter chocolate in 2008
40 billion dollars on dog food in 2007

How big is a billion? If you had a billion one dollar bills and laid them end to end they would stretch 97,000 miles - nearly 4 times around the earth.

If you stacked them one on top of the other they would reach 47 miles high.

If you counted to 1 billion - without stopping it would take you 16 years.

2008-04-09T11:54:00.000-07:00

Check out this website called Ordinary Radicals. It's super duper.

2008-04-08T13:02:00.000-07:00

Boo Tigers.

I wanted to record some funny stories about Nora in this post. She's getting to be so funny....not at all a baby anymore. I'm amazed at what comes out of her mouth sometimes.

Anyway, the other night we put her to sleep around 7:30. Nora is a great sleeper and rarely wakes after going to bed. Kevin put on a movie, and about 9:00 we hear little footsteps coming down the hall. She walks into the den, hair a mess, eyes squinting, passy in tow. She was too adorable to send back to bed, so I let her climb onto the couch and cuddle with me for a bit. After a few minutes, daddy puts her back into bed and low and behold, here she comes again. The second time we returned her to bed, Kevin and I gave each other a pep talk about how the next time she came out, she was going straight back into her room and this could not continue. (Besides, we were missing "The Terminal") So we start watching the movie again feeling pretty confident in our ability to be firm until she walks through the door with her blankie, passy, and sunglasses on. Needless to say we weren't very strict on following through with our plan. Too cute.

The other day we were at the mall and had gotten Nora an ice cream cone to eat thinking this would keep her occupied while we ran into the store to get what we needed. We're strolling through the Gap when I noticed her ice cream cone was leaking from the bottom. I panicked because we were in a store and I didn't want to make a mess. The only thing I could think of was to shove the rest of the cone into my mouth. Of course my thoughts were directed toward not making a mess of the place, not what my toddler would do when mom steals her ice cream and eats the whole thing right before her very eyes. She freaked. In the Gap. Freaked out. It's been several days, but Nora still will look at me and use her "ugly" voice to say "you ate my ice cream, mommy".

She loves to read to me. She'll make up words and in the middle of reading these words (which are funny in itself..just listening to what she comes up with) she'll look up at me and very loudly go "shhhhhh". "Quiet, like a mouse". She really loves school and obviously repeats what she's being taught there, only she wants to be the teacher. If we start singing a song with her she says "no, mommy, abcd". So we'll sing ABC's then I don't even have the C out before she says "NO, Old McDonald". This goes on until we sing the first word of every children's song.

Mostly she loves praise songs. I've never heard a sweeter sound than "Jesus" coming out of a 2 year old's mouth. Precious.

I thought of a few more:

Any time we get ready to walk out the door, she says "you got your keys, mommy?"

While watching the Tiger games, she was heard shouting "Are you kidding me?"
Kevin and I looked at each other, then replayed everything we had just said for the past ten minutes making sure it was rated G.

She always says "good job, mommy" or "good job, daddy" no matter what we just did. It's pretty rewarding after changing a very ripe diaper to hear those sweet words coming out of her mouth that we did a good job changing her. She's sweet, this one.

Go Tigers Go!

2008-03-30T16:46:00.000-07:00

My dad obviously had a hard time knowing who to cheer for during the Memphis vs. Texas game. I knew Memphis would kill them. Go Tigers!! Final Four!! woo hoo!

Easter

2008-03-27T17:33:00.000-07:00

Nora refuses to give us a moment's peace. Here is a prime example. Poor dad can't even exercise without her riding on his back. So cute.

Here's some pictures from Easter.

Why I Love My Husband

2008-03-16T21:29:00.000-07:00

The reasons I think my husband is the Bomb with a capital B can be summed up in a spiderman sticker. We recently purchased Kevin a beater car, but less of a beater than his previous '87 Volvo, and this one is actually somewhat cool looking. When we bought it, there was some kind of spiderman sticker decal thing on the back windshield. We blew it off, saying we'll just peel it right when we pulled it into the driveway. But, of course, when we got it home, we realized that this spiderman sticker decal thing was part of the window tinting and you must get the tint replaced for the sticker to come off. Hince, my love for my husband. He's driven around with "Spidey" on the back of his used car and not uttered a word of complaint. He's that cool.

I'm a budget geek as of late, and window tinting is at the bottom of the list currently for us, but because of my awesome husband, I don't have to worry about moving it to the top.

Happy 6 years, today. :)

Plus he gave me this cute thing (and a dozen white tulips), so what more can I say. . .

Go Get This Book!!!

2008-03-11T11:30:00.000-07:00

I have a book recommendation....whatever you're doing you need to stop and go buy "Irresistible Revolution" by Shane Claiborne. It's incredible.

I took the book with me to a recent school trip to St. Louis and couldn't put it down. I was kind of embarrassed because I had people saying comments like "wow, you're really a reader" (probably thinking what an introvert the guidance counselor is) but I literally couldn't put it down. I won't even try to do it justice by explaining what the book was about, but will say that along with the Bible, it has really rattled and convicted me. It's funny, but as I'm in the middle of this book about how wasteful America is and really focusing on poverty and the marginalized, our bus stops at Lambert's. I'm not sure how many of you readers (all 4 of you) have been to Lambert's, but it's literally the most wasteful restaurant I've ever encountered. We not only stopped once, we stopped twice!! Once on the way there and once on the way home. I really almost had tears streaming down my face when they brought my plate out and I saw the portion sizes. When we finished eating, I looked around at our table. I said "let's count how many meals are left here". In my portion alone, there were probably three meals.

It makes me sick to think how we can sit around, continue our normal, wasteful lifestyles, while there are people out there who are lucky to get one meal a day. I don't understand why there are poor people in this world with so many Christians. America has serious issues. The Christian population has some serious issues. Kevin and I are trying to figure out how we can apply the principals of this book (really, of the Bible, not so much "this" book, but "the" book) to our lives in the season we are currently in. We can easily throw money at the problem, easily. But does that really help them? Really? Yes, too many people are being stingy and not throwing money at the problem, but I want to get to know some poor people. I want to see how they live and help them. I'm open to suggestions. Kev and I thought about going downtown to a park where homeless people hang out and taking lunch every weekend....just eating meals with them. I think it will be a good experience. And as this book reminds us, Jesus was homeless. He chose to be that way. He wasn't interested in the latest fad or whether or not he could buy the next Vera Bradley item that came out. He was interested in justice for everyone.

Most of us were born into a middle class family. It wasn't our fault, we couldn't help it. It is our fault if we get comfortable living our lifestyle of waste. Do we really need all the food in our pantry and refrigerator? Did you need to throw that in the trash or could you find someone who truly needs it? Kev and I definitely have a ways to go, but I'm definitely convicted. I hope everyone will read it.

2008-03-11T11:15:00.000-07:00

I'm about to overdose you with pictures (sorry). It took me forever to load everything, I was too lazy to make sure it was in the right order.

I went to St. Louis recently with a group of 7th graders. On a bus. 100 of them. Ughhh. It really was ok and we did some neat "city" things. I rode up to the arch for the first (and last) time. Anyway, while I was gone, my parents came in town to help with Nora. We had a random winter blast in March and when I got home, we immediately put on coats and went outside. It was some kind of weather.

Nora got some clothes and glasses from aunt Tammie for her B-day and I don't think the glasses came off all weekend. She also got some dress up clothes from Mamaw, but spent most of the weekend making Papaw wear the headbands. My dad looked hilarious with his huge beard and a girlie headband. Here's some pics of the weekend. I love the picture of my mom trying to be very GQ in her pose, but the snowflake lands right on her nose. ha!

2008-03-02T13:27:00.001-08:00

Saturday was so much fun! We started the day receiving lots of phone calls from family. This year is nice because she can actually talk back to them.

Then we headed down to the Children's Museum.

I'm not sure, but Kevin may have had more fun than Nora. . .

They have a grocery store full of food where the kids can go around and "pretend" shop.

What? You don't buy $7 blocks of cheese??

One last phone call, some birthday cake, then off to bed. (Not for long, though. Apparantly our little 2 year old overdid it on birthday cake and woke up at 4 am screaming "I poopie") Awesome.

Happy Birthday Nora!!

2008-03-01T06:48:00.000-08:00

Going Private

2008-02-29T06:38:00.000-08:00

Hello all,

I think I'm going to make my blog private. I'm still thinking about it, but if you are a reader and would like to be added, just put your e-mail in the comment section. If you're not comfortable doing that, send me an e-mail. angiedee22@yahoo.com

Don't be embarrassed if you're a lurker. I definitely look at some blogs of strangers that I found through a friend of a friend, etc. As long as you're not crazy, I'll add you. :)

2008-02-26T16:33:00.000-08:00

Just some cute pictures of Nora wrestling her friend, AJ.

We had to include mom in the kissing pictures, too.

My sweet girl modeling her new jacket my mom sent. Kevin is going to kill me for the red eye, but I was too lazy to fix it.

2008-02-16T07:08:00.000-08:00

nora and her forever Valentine, AJ

For some reason she developed an obsession with my lipstick this V-day.

Isn't it beautiful??

Moving on to the "wip balm"

Her main Valentine, daddy

2008-02-09T19:11:00.000-08:00

We were SO happy to see sunshine today! We played and played. Nora begged for some ice-her newest obsession. The first picture is her eating the ice. The second is a picture of her putting ice in her mouth after she had set it on the porch to rest. Disgusting- mom was too busy working the camera to notice until it was too late. Ewww.

We had a pretty bad tornado rip through the mid-south this past week. It was the first time I've ever taken cover and felt like putting a mattress on top of me. Very scary. Anyway, we had all the essentials. Wrapping paper (who knew it could entertain for so long) toilet paper, cell phone, flashlight, books, and more books.

Nora in the hall with mommy in the closet. No, I didn't neglect my child, but after the whole bag of cookies had been eaten, I couldn't think of another bribe to keep her in that hot closet. Had the wind blown hard, I would have put her in a full nelson to keep her in there, don't worry.

Yes, time out still occurs when there's a tornado warning.

Nora's thankful for Denver (or denny boy as she calls him) to give her support after a difficult time out. :)

Brushing teeth and sleeping in mommy and daddy's bed.
It was a difficult night. Many lives were lost- I think I read that 8 tornados touched down in Memphis. We are thankful the Lord spared our home.

Nora sporting her daddy's shirt from 1980. Almost 30 years old and lookin' brand new.

2008-01-24T07:09:00.000-08:00

It's been too long since I've updated. Our camera is broken (excuse #1) and I've just been lazy (#2).

The weather here keeps teasing us with snow, but so far we've had zero...zilch...not even a hint of it. At Nora's school, they learned about snow and got to play in a room full of fake snow. She loved it!! She continues to amaze me with the things she learns there. We're all looking forward to March for a 2nd birthday party and Spring Break! Yipee!

Uncle Randy is the BEST

2007-12-31T09:29:00.001-08:00

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Christmas at Mamaw and Papaw's

2007-12-30T18:45:00.000-08:00

Nora making cookies (aka eating cookie dough) for Santa with her cousins, Bryce and Brayden

We played flag football on Christmas day. Here are the two teams. I think the babies were freaked out by their moms diving and ripping flags off their dads, hence the tears.

Nora and Brayden tearing it up at the bowling alley. I have a video of my brother running all over the alley holding Nora and Brayden. I'll try to post it. Here's a picture of that for now. So much fun.

Bowling night ended up with Bryce in the emergency room. Blow to the chin. eeeek

Pajama bingo and Karoke were a part of the week, but nobody got pictures of Karoke unfortunately. Pj's will have to do.

Cousins chillin with their new pillows and blankets

I didn't get any pictures of the actual Christmas day, but you can look on Tammie's blog for some more pics. We had such a good time.

Santa's visit to our house. . .

2007-12-30T16:39:00.000-08:00

More pictures of Santa's visit to Grandma and Grandpa's coming soon. . .

Christmas program

2007-12-21T13:59:00.000-08:00

We had a big day today with Nora's Christmas program and class party. She was also showered with gifts from my co-workers (thanks Pat Pat!) Now we're finally finished with work and we can play for a few weeks! Woo hoo!

2007-12-19T18:49:00.001-08:00

I don't usually write on my blog- I'm too lazy.
However, if you'll indulge me for a minute to tell you this story that happened to me today. I went to mail a package at the post office during lunch time (big mistake, I'm aware of this now. . .) The line was about five people when I arrived. Not bad, right? There were two postal women working and they were doing the best that they could. An 80 year old woman came up beside me in line (I know this because she literally complained about every ailment she has at the moment, daughter lives with her but is no help and mentioned nine times that she is "80 years young"). Anyway, the line was taking a while- as it does EVERY time you enter the post office...no suprise here- and I swear this woman began complaining so loud that it was getting others involved. It was the kind of overt complaining where you're hoping the workers here you and do something about it. Soon, the whole place was roaring and griping. I have never been so uncomfortable in my life and was wondering if the postal woman was going to knock the elderly lady out. I thought about throwing an elbow or two. The line wasn't even that long! Then I hear the postal worker start muttering under her breath "I didn't ask them to come in here. They need to find something else to do...get a job. If it's this bad everytime you come in here, why do you come back". It was c.r.a.z.y. It made me think how often people (myself included) don't pay attention to what comes out of their mouths. Seriously, if we all stepped back and watched ourselves for a day, would we be proud of our conversations? This convicted me, for one, because it's been a tough week for me in this department. I have a hard time being positive (my sister is saying something really mean right now, I just know it) and I committed this month to working on this. I've already failed more than once. I did encourage this worker when I got to the counter, though. How many positives does it take to outdo a negative again?!?

Sometimes things need to be put into perspective. There are people dying from life threatening illnesses and you're going to complain about a long line at the post office. At Christmas time. Anyway, there's my rant. I'm no J. Kiser, but it'll do. :)

One of my favorite songs usually gives me comfort in this area: May my steps be worship, may my thoughts be praise, may my words bring honor to your name.

Next time I plan on singing this out loud when I visit the post office. You Memphians can look for me on "taking back our neighborhoods".

2007-12-12T19:41:00.000-08:00

Just some cute pictures

2007-12-04T05:58:00.000-08:00

Nora was hanging out with her BFF, AJ, the other day. She kept trying on all of his clothes. So funny.

playing with a teepee

During the teddy bear parade at school

hat day at school

2007-11-25T18:19:00.000-08:00

We had a GREAT time with Kevin's family for Thanksgiving. Everyone met at his brothers in Texas and we all stayed at their house. 20 people. In one house.

Seriously, everyone has so much fun and part of that fun is all waking up together, etc. Everyone travels in so we wouldn't have it any other way! Here are some pictures of Nora with her cousins. We have nieces and nephews ranging in age from 5-25, so there's lots of people for Nora to look up to!

Nora hangin' with Annabelle

Deedee Doodle was a permanent member of the Conway family by the end of the weekend. Much thanks to Maddie Sue for toughing it out and watching a "cd" with NK.

Having fun with Madelyn!

We went to Babe's chicken (the BEST fried chicken e.v.e.r.) where you get all you can eat (corn, mashed potatoes, salad, rolls, fried chicken) for $10. Awesome. The best part is doing the "Pokey Pokey". Here's Nora and mom cuttin it up on the dance floor.

If I heard Ethan's name once, I heard it a million times before the weekend was over. Nora loves her Efan.

And finally, Nana and Ganga with the grandkids. . .

2007-11-17T08:30:00.000-08:00

Well, I finally have some time to update. Things have been very busy around here. We had my parents visit a while back and I can't get the pictures to work. We had so much fun with Mamaw and Papaw and appreciate the trip they made to spend some time with us. I'll take lots of pictures with them during Christmas to make up for the absence of pictures now.

Today we decided to take the side off Nora's bed. I'm a little nervous about tonight. I think we'll make a trip to Target and get a bed rail just in case. She, however, loves to get in her bed all by herself. She's growing like crazy and talking like crazy. She loves to play dressup, shut the door on people, do the "Pokey Pokey" and sing the ABC's to anyone who will listen. We're looking forward to the upcoming holidays.

Halloween

2007-11-04T11:10:00.001-08:00

I'm a little late...things have been crazy here.

We had a fun Halloween this year. Nora was a bumble bee (again), mostly because mom didn't have time to find another outfit. She was the cutest little bee out there. We pooped out on trick or treating that night because our little bee had a cough, but she still got lots of sugary candy thanks to Pat Pat, who took her around at school.

Halloween usually isn't my thing, but our staff dressed up as Harry Potter characters and it was very fun. Kevin's work even got into the Holiday this year. (wait, is Halloween even a holiday?!?) Whatever it is, Kev's work really got into it, by the looks of things. . . he's the bridesmaid in the pink dress. That's as big as I could get the picture.

Hope everyone had fun!

2007-10-24T11:34:00.000-07:00

Ok, this is not my child.

Apparently the zoo on wheels came to visit Nora's school and decided to bring the freaky pets out. Yes, that's Nora touching a roach the size of my hand. And, had I known a rat was that close to me (my office is about 20 yards away) I would have skipped work today. eek!

We love AK, Isabelle, and Carrigan

2007-10-14T11:46:00.000-07:00

Nora and I took our annual trip to visit my friend, Candice, and her family during my fall break. We had such a big time!

Happy Birthday Daddy!

2007-10-10T06:25:00.001-07:00

A Very Random Update

2007-10-04T08:42:00.001-07:00

I'm trying to figure out what to do with Nora's hair so we tried pigtails for a day. Not happenin, but thought this was cute. She's very much in the mullet stage so if you have suggestions, send them my way.

Just cute

The other day Nora helped me make brownies. She even cleaned up afterward. She loves to cook with mom.

picture day at school

my big girl sharing her food with her friend, and canine, Daisy. We later discussed how sharing is only considered sharing when it's a human being

Playing with her doll from Pat Pat. I have a co-worker and friend named Patti. Nora calls her Pat Pat and talks about her the minute we step foot at her school. She loves her Pat Pat doll
If you're thinking lately that I need to invest in more clothing than red, white, or navy, that's her school uniform and we usually don't come out of it until bath time. Unfortunately, that makes for many pictures in ugly clothes.

If I've heard "I wanna take pichure" once I've heard it a thousand times lately. Here's her latest "pichure". Tammie, before you leave a comment about how I misspelled picture, I did it on purpose.

We've had several play dates with AJ, aka Ashay. Those two make each other laugh and it's hilarious. They look at each other and start laughing. Too cute.

That's all for now! We're headed to "a certain part of the world I can't name to keep the identity of my friend's kids safe" next week to visit. Pictures to come!

Some Pictures of Nora at School

2007-09-19T11:09:00.000-07:00

Nora's school has a website now where they post pictures. Here's some from the site:

Here's Nora on "dress like mommy day"

My big girl painting with her teacher

Touring a school bus

Playing with shaving cream

Playing in the sandbox

I'm so thankful she's adjusting well. She loves going to school and is learning so much. They have several teachers come in (art, spanish, music, curriculum) and she is just soaking it all up. I'm loving being able to see the changes in her since she has started this program. It's definitely been a blessing in our lives. She just lights up when we go over things they learned that day once I have her at home. Too cute.

Catch Up

2007-09-09T13:51:00.000-07:00

Over labor day weekend we flew to Houston and got to spend time with Kevin's family. Nora loved finding hiding spots in Nana and Ganga's house and playing with "toys" like towels and such. She also loved spending time with Aunt Lolo and cousin Ethan. She'd constantly walk around going "Ethan, where are you?" We were also blessed to be able to spend time with Mamaw who came up from Saginaw, and Mr. Culpepper, a dear family friend. It was a busy weekend (we even caught a high school football game and the boys caught a Texas A&M game to watch cousin Austin in the corp (specifically the calvary...the guys that shoot the canon at the A&M game) and we're so thankful for our safe trip and can't wait until we can return.

Just a few random things about Nora. She's really into coloring. She'll draw on anything at any time (ie. see our couch) but it cracks me up some of the places she's been choosing to draw. She's pretty good about keeping it on paper for the most part, but has her moments.

We got to attend Rock n Romp this weekend, which Nora loves to do. "Thanks Mr. Chris for showing me how to mark on my nose, I even managed to get it inside my nose" Love, Nora.

I'll leave you with Kevin's sidewalk chalk art. Read closely.

2007-08-28T17:54:00.000-07:00

Sorry, this may be cheesy and boring for all non-family members, but since we live away from everyone, things like this are necessary. So, this is really for our fam.

Nora has been talking up a storm lately. Since she's been in school with me, especially. The other day she was asking for more snack and said "I want some more". I almost fell out. I was so happy to get this on video because she usually freezes when the camera comes out. So, without further ado, here is Nora performing the names of our immediate family.

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Fantasy Football

2007-08-25T08:03:00.000-07:00

I'm taking a poll to see how many fantasy football leagues your husband's are joining. I'm pretty sure Kevin's in the lead with 5.

Here's Nora helping dad prepare for his draft.

2007-08-13T18:10:00.000-07:00

Hallelujah, we made it to 18 months. I remember when Nora was born I kept saying, we just need to make it (as far as child care is concerned) a year 1/2. We tried different child care options and settled on one that worked out fine, but when she turns 18 months she gets to come to school with me. I felt so at peace going back this year knowing she would be right there with me. It's great and I'm blessed to be a working mom in this situation. Being a working mom is very difficult, especially when you don't really have a choice of whether you work or stay home (which is usually the case), but it's much easier knowing I have the option of bringing her with me. The Early Childhood program is literally right down the hall from my office and I can peak on her whenever I want. Here's some pictures of her first day. Her teacher said she was "more than happy" all day. It's also great to have co-workers come up to me and say, "I went to check on Nora for you and she's playing and looks happy". It's really a family environment and I'm thankful I have such good friends that will help me with her. Anyhoo....here are some pictures of her first day.

1 Down......

2007-08-11T11:35:00.000-07:00

When I began my 5th year at ACU I remember my dad saying that I was on my own. Both our parents paid what they could during our college (which we are thankful for), but going to ACU ain't cheap. So, we have some school loans. And by some I mean a lot. So that's why today is a big day. My 5th year, 9 years after the fact, is now paid off. Sweet relief. 2 more to go.....

When we first married we traveled and had our fun, which is good, but thanks to Mr. Dave Ramsey, we're a bit more disciplined now and we're gettin' straight!

It's been a busy week with Angie starting full time work again. That's really cut into my fantasy football preparations. I'm in 5 leagues. I need help! Ang really does work extremely hard and sacrifices so much for our family.

The big news for this week, though, is that we went to our first "meet the teacher" night. That's very strange for me especially since Nora is only 17 months. But it's officially here. Monday, Nora will start school. Let the sentimental oozing begin. It's crazy how fast it goes. She'll be down the hall from Angie so that will be really cool and I know Nora will have a great time. You can for sure expect pictures of her first day soon. Uniform and all.

K

2007-07-29T17:36:00.001-07:00

We've been trying to soak up friend time before I go back to work. I only managed to remember pictures from our time with sweet Meredith and AJ, though we've had many more engagements since then. We've seen our "soon to arrive" friend Henley's nursery, lunch and sprinkler park with Colt and Lydia, swimming with Meredith and Walt, Thomas' big boy birthday party, and a cookout with friends Lilly, Noah, and Sophie and neighbors Molly, Emma and Britten. I feel so blessed that Nora, at such a young age, will have lots of choices when it comes to friends in her life.

Nora loves AJ and cries everytime he leaves. I'm not talking normal fussing here, she cries and says "nooooo, A Shay" like someone's trying to hurt him. It's pretty cute. Here she is trying to put her bow in his hair.

Meredith and Nora after a day of swimming. After a chorus of mine's and no's, they actually started getting along rather nicely.

Finally, just a cute picture of my little corn lover at our neighbor's.

100 Things. . .

2007-07-25T21:30:00.000-07:00

Because I have insomnia at the present and because Casey tagged me. . .

1. Last night I was up for hours in the middle of the night scratching my mosquito bites.
2. I had to look up how to spell mosquito.
3. I pop my knuckles all the time.
4. I think I have arthritis because of it.
5. For some reason Kevin and I call it Arthers.
6. Kev and I nickname every member of our family and never use real names.
7. Daisy: Buddy
8. Denver: Denny
9. Nora: Cubby. Sometimes Cubby butts, cuddle bums.
10. I'm aware of the dorkiness this will create in our child.
11. I'm the most pasty I've been in my life right now.
12. Really don't care, either.
13. I have a hard time with casual conversation.
14. I usually need my space after a social outing.
15. I must have down time or I malfunction in a big way.
16. Don't handle stress very well.
17. Explains why I need down time.
18. I've never been more spiritually fed at a church like I am currently at our church.
19. Once in college my roommate's boyfriend stole all my clothes and locked them in his car for two days.
20. He also turned the flashers on in my car and put a for sale sign in the window. (I hope you're reading this Trey Thompson)
21. I love a good prank war.
23. I usually win them, except for the aforementioned prank by my roomate's boyfriend.
24. I pranked my aunt the best of all.
25. It was a doosie.
26. She got me back on my wedding day.
27. I have four football coaches in my family.
28. I can throw a mean football.
29. I think all my coach family members were quarterbacks which resulted in much teaching on throwing.
30. Explains #28.
31. I fell running hurdles in junior high and had to be taken by ambulance to the hospital.
32. I had a concussion.
33. I used to play softball.
34. My position was first base.
35. My nickname was Stance because of the way I stood while batting.
36. I think it was also Stretch from stretching to catch all the crappy balls Candice and Tammie threw to me.
37. Just kidding.
38. I also played basketball.
39. I've never hated a sport so much.
40. I ran track, too.
41. My hobby is cooking.
42. I'm so thankful I didn't marry a meat and potatoes guy.
43. He'll eat anything I cook.
44. We cancelled cable several months ago.
45. I've been reading, alot.
46. No cable= less distractions.
47. I think I'm finally understanding what it means to serve our King.
48. I've never been able to say things like that without feeling funny.
49. I've never been good at sharing the gospel with others.
50. I'm growing more and more comfortable every day.
51. I'm excited about the possibility of having another baby.
52. Not any time soon.
53. Kev and I follow Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace.
54. It's changed my life.
55. I struggle with anxiety.
56. Mostly around finances.
57. I have my sister to thank for getting me hooked on the cash system.
58. I'm not as good at it as she is.
59. Plus she's loaded and has more to work with. :)
60. I hate when people use the term "I'm poor".
61. Most of us don't have a clue what poor is.
62. One of the most important issues to me is helping the poor.
63. Jesus commands it.
64. He talked about it all the time.
65. Our friend, Steve Holt was a big player in opening Kevin's eyes to poor people.
66. When I come home from work, I immediately put on sweats and a t-shirt.
67. I stay like this most of the time.
68. I had a roommate (you know who you are) that used to stay in her work clothes until bedtime.
69. That same roommate is still a very good friend.
70. Who just had a baby.
71. That I really, really wish I could see and hold right now.
72. I'm obsessed at the fact our grass won't grow because of our trees.
73. I mean, where will Nora play?
74. Or do slip and slide?
75. We're saving up for sod.
76. We plan to go to Europe next summer.
77. I hope it works out.
78. I'm not looking forward to leaving Nora for that long.
79. Two weeks ago I was stuck on a plane or in the airport with Nora by myself for 12 hours.
80. At one point during that time she fell headfirst out of her stroller.
81. We both cried for a long time in the middle of the Atlanta terminal.
82. If there was a bridge, I would have jumped.
83. I've never felt like a worse mother.
84. I'm insecure sometimes.
85. But at work I'm usually very confident.
86. I love being a guidance counselor.
87. I have the perfect setup for a working mom.
88. Nora will be right down the hall from me this year at our Early Childhood program.
89. I can sneak a peak whenever I want to.
90. Believe it or not, I love entertaining people.
91. And cooking meals for them.
92. There are many of my friends whom I have great respect for.
93. My friendships that I have are very real and give/take.
94. I can't stand having an unequal give/take friendship.
95. Some people aren't capable of giving, but you just love them anyway.
96. I've become less judgemental once I passed 30.
97. I'm trying to accept and celebrate people's differences.
98. Everyone is unique and special in their own way.
99. People probably think I'm unique.
100. Or boring once you finish reading this.

Ok, I tag Tammie, Candice, Julie K., Julie B (wherever you are) and Sara M.
Come on, girls, don't let me down!

2007-07-21T10:08:00.000-07:00

I've noticed Nora's been getting into everything lately and the other day, she was playing with a teething ring. We realized we need a serious upgrade on toys. So mom hit the consignment sale this weekend and brought home lots of new goodies. So now, with her new, older toys, here's a day in the life of Nora:

First, we must take our baby for a walk around the house. Who cares if we are in pajama top and no bottoms, and haven't eaten breakfast yet. Baby's needs come before anyone's.

Next, it's time to take care of the puppy and clean him up in the new pet salon. This is usually when she brushes her own hair with the same brush she used for the dog. Don't worry, it's a stuffed animal dog. (still gross, though)

Gotta vaccuum up all that dog hair then go get dressed.

Not before she takes a rest in her new chair.

I must say, we sure do have a neat freak on our hands. Poor baby's been hanging around her aunt tammie too long.

One last rest before naptime.

2007-07-18T17:02:00.001-07:00

I have to mention, first, that one of my best friends, Laurie, had her first baby today. I'm so happy for her and can't stop thinking about how happy she must be to be holding her little baby right now! I wish I could put a picture of her, but my scanner is broken. Just imagine a beautiful blonde and you've got it. I'm so thankful that God helped her through a healthy delivery. Gosh, I love the whole delivery and being in the hospital part. Makes me want another one!

Secondly, I'm whipped. We have been going nonstop since I started my vacation, and now it's more than halfway over. :( Here's what we've been up to. Kevin took Nora to Houston (by himself!!!) while I morphed into Nanny Angie to keep my sister's kids while they were in Hawaii. The following are pictures from their trip. My sweet nieces and nephews really took care of her. I'd like to say I wasn't nervous about him making that long trip by himself but I'd be lying...seriously very badly lying. But..I will say this: not all dad's could drive to Little Rock, fly to Dallas, then drive to Houston by themselves with a 16 month old. Much less take care of them for four days without mom. Kevin did it like a champ and it only confirmed to me how proud I am to say he's my baby daddy. :) Anyway, here's some pictures of Houston. I can't remember if I've blogged this or not, but Nora is a major performer. She gets on the fire place (wherever she is) and sings happy and you know it. On the "face will surely show it" she puts her fingers on her cheek. See below. It's the cutest thing ever.

Here's what we were up to. I only had the boys one day before Nora joined us, so they got some good cousin time in as well.

I'll try to put some video up as well. They had a great time. We had our own Luau (I've never spelled that word before) so it took a while to prepare for that. We were all beat by the time we were at the Luau that we barely took any pictures of it. Just imagine three little kids running around in homemade grass skirts, dancing to Hawaiin music. It was funny. Tammie's pictures are on her blog if you're interested. We also just returned from Nashville. We tagged along while Kevin had a seminar and got to see my friend, Candice, and her kids. Candice is a childhood friend and one of my closest friends. We are very fortunate to have daughters six days apart, so they are destined to be best friends. I asked Candice this weekend if she ever wondered if they would really be friends when they grew up, Candice's reply was "we'll make them be". I couldn't agree more. Below are pictures of the two peas in a pod, plus Candice's other two very cute, very sweet, most well behaved girls I've ever seen.

Alright, last but not least, we finally got around to taking pictures of Nora professionally. Here's the link.
Tindall got one of her doing the happy and you know it face. It was so funny, she just started singing that song to get Nora's attention and Nora put her hands up on her face. So cute.

2007-07-01T18:27:00.000-07:00

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This time my mom came for a week to help out while I was finishing my last week of work. Now I'm off for a month!! I feel so blessed to have a job where I get such great vacation time.

The video above I just thought was cute, no paticular point to this blog. Nora loves to pull the cushion off the trunk and lay on it. This time she became a bit more daring. I love her grunts!

Nora sporting her new outfit from Mamaw.

Apparantly Nora prefers to eat like our dogs. They are named Daisy and Denver (or Dadie and D). You can see Daisy's eyes on the right. She so proud of her little sister, she knows she taught her well.

Of course I didn't take near enough pics of my mom, but I'll just say that the past two weeks have been like a vacation for us with Kev's mom and mine here. We don't get a break very often since we live 8-10 hours from our fam, but it is so nice when they come help out! We love you both.

Other exciting news, we applied for our passports this week. Our trip is not planned for another year, but we wanted to make sure we'd have them since all the passport slowdown is going on. We plan to go visit our good friends in Europe next summer and I can hardly wait!

That's it for now. Just gearing up for a trip to Texas for some cousin time and enjoying my month off!

2007-06-23T16:49:00.000-07:00

href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_zGsMj01iCCM/Rn2yj9yGvMI/AAAAAAAAAO8/vsdz87RjhWI/s1600-h/nana+018.jpg">

Kevin's mom came to visit us this week and we had a great time! We were spoiled with laundry, cooking, cleaning, and major babysitting. We look forward to your return Nana!

The Wedding

2007-06-19T09:47:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures of Randy and Ali's wedding this weekend. Everything was so beautiful. Kev played guitar through most of the ceremony and the four of us (me, tammie and our spouses) sang. Our kids were in the wedding, so you can imagine the stress! After the night of no sleep we had before the wedding (Nora had stomach issues) I wasn't even going to attempt to send her down that aisle, but when the time came, she grabbed her cousin's hand and marched herself down that aisle like a pro. It was perfect! We ordered flowers from a warehouse in downtown Dallas for the rehearsal dinner, if you ever need flowers from Dallas talk to me. They were good and cheap! I included a picture my sister took of the groomsmen's shoes. They all wore Chucks and it looked 100% Randy. I think it's hilarious that Kev and Scott's eyes are both closed in the family picture, it was the only one I have. In the other one my brother is yawning and Kevin is messing with his shirt.

We got lots of help from friends and family. Thanks Laurie and Jeff (I wish I took pictures!) for keeping Nora and driving all the way to the church to pick her up. Also Susan, my sister in law was babysitter deluxe on Friday. I couldn't have done it without you and the many people who helped at the wedding as well. I'm extremely close to my brother so this was such a happy and sad day. I'm so proud of the choice he made in a spouse and I look foward to seeing them grow together as a couple. We love Alison!

We also got the chance to celebrate on Sunday the awesome father Kevin is. Well, I guess driving 8 hours isn't exactly celebrating, but, I did want to mention that Kevin is the best father, husband, friend anyone could ask for and we are all thankful that he is perfect in all of his roles. We love you!

2007-06-18T07:15:00.001-07:00

This is about how we're all feeling right now after having traveled to my brother's wedding to sing and play guitar, be a perfect flower girl, then traveled home. I'll update more later when we recharge a bit. I also took ZERO pictures so I need to wait until my family sends me what they took. Everything was beautiful and perfect.

Rock n Romp

2007-06-12T13:41:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, Kevin took Nora to Rock n Romp, a kid friendly rock concert in Midtown while I went to a wedding. She had a blast! This girl loves to boogie with her friend, Meredith.

If You're Happy and You Know It. . .shout YEA!

2007-06-12T13:40:00.000-07:00

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For all My Texas Friends Out There

2007-06-03T14:00:00.000-07:00

Sorry, Jenni, I copied this from your blog...but as a misplaced Texan (or is it displaced Texan? you know what I mean) I thought I'd share with my other friends.

Fun Texas Geography Lesson
A little geography lesson for all - Here's a list of actual places to travel in Texas :

Need to be cheered up?
Happy, Texas 79042
Pep, Texas 79353
Smiley, Texas 78159
Paradise, Texas 76073
Rainbow, Texas 76077
Sweet Home, Texas 77987
Comfort, Texas 78013
Friendship, Texas 76530

Love the Sun?
Sun City, Texas 78628
Sunrise, Texas 76661
Sunset, Texas 76270
Sundown, Texas 79372
Sunray, Texas 79086
Sunny Side, Texas 77423
Sunnyvale, Texas 775182

Want something to eat?
Bacon, Texas 76301
Noodle, Texas 79536
Oatmeal, Texas 78605
Turkey, Texas 79261
Trout, Texas 75789
Sugar Land, Texas 77479
Salty, Texas 76567
Rice, Texas 75155
Sweetwater, Texas 79556

Why travel to other cities? Texas has them all!
Atlanta, Texas 75551
Detroit, Texas 75436
Colorado City, Texas 79512
Denver City, Texas 79323
Nevada, Texas 75173
Memphis, Texas 79245
Miami, Texas 79059
Boston, Texas 75570
Santa Fe, Texas 77517
Tennessee Colony, Texas 75861
Reno, Texas 75462

Feel like traveling outside the country? Don't bother buying a plane ticket!
Athens, Texas 75751
Canadian, Texas 79014
China, Texas 77613
Egypt, Texas 77436
Turkey, Texas 79261
London, Texas 76854
New London, Texas 75682
Paris, Texas 75460

We even have a city named after our planet!
Earth, Texas 79031

Exhausted?
Energy, Texas 76452

Cold?
Blanket, Texas 76432
Winters, Texas

Like to read about History?
Santa Anna, Texas
Goliad, Texas
Alamo, Texas
Gun Barrel City, Texas

Need Office Supplies?
Staples, Texas 78670

Men are from Mars, women are from
Venus, Texas 76084

You guessed it... it's on the state line...
Texline, Texas 79087

For the kids...
Kermit, Texas 79745
Elmo, Texas 75118
Nemo, Texas 76070
Tarzan, Texas 79783
Winnie, Texas 77665
Sylvester, Texas 79560

Other city names in Texas , to make you smile.....
Flower Mound , Texas 75022
Frognot , Texas 75424
Bigfoot , Texas 78005
Hogeye , Texas 75423
Cactus , Texas 79013
Notrees , Texas 79759
Best, Texas 76932
Veribest , Texas 76886
Kickapoo , Texas 75763
Dime Box, Texas
Telephone , Texas 75488
Telegraph , Texas 76883
Whiteface , Texas 79379
Twitty, Texas 79079

P.S. Whoops, left out
Muleshoe
Cut N Shoot
Hoop And Holler
Ding Dong
Farewell

And, of course, there is a place in Texas that is......
KNOTT, TEXAS