Journey With The Jenks

Pfun with Pipe Cleaners

2012-01-30T11:50:00.000-06:00

I saw this activity on Pinterest and last time we were at Hobby Lobby, Abby picked out her pipe cleaners. The other night after dinner Abby sat in Marcus' lap and started playing!

Here is Abby playing with her worms! This activity improves fine motor skills and helped Abby really focus on getting them all the way inside the holes! I am sure we will pull it out again soon!

Soccer Update- Week 3

2012-01-28T20:33:00.001-06:00

We had a great Saturday! Abby's soccer game was at noon today, so we were able to have a normal morning. We had doughnuts, Marcus and Abby went to storytime at the library and then we had lunch with our friend Madeline, who also attended story time.

This week was our thrid week and soccer and our third game. So much improvement in her attention to the game! When she was in the game she was running with the kids! Major improvement. She even kicked the ball a few times! There are 2x as many kids as can play at once, so Marcus sat on the floor with her when she was out and they talked about the game. The biggest thing we are teaching her is NO HANDS! We also have noticed that she kicks more with her left foot, rarely her right.

The little team and Coach Mark! We taught Abby that Coach Mark is a teacher just like Ms. Nicci (her MDO teacher) and that she needs to listen to him. This week she seemed to listen to him better! Hooray!

We are playing soccer through our local YMCA which I really love! It has been a good investment for our family. We signed up for our first Free Family Friday. They offer free childcare for members on Friday nights, but they sell out quickly. I booked our February spot this morning. Yea for date nights!

Picnic in the Park

2012-01-24T13:42:00.000-06:00

On Friday, Abby and I enjoyed the warm weather at a picnic in the park with our cousins Read, Bella, and Landry. All morning Abby had been talking about having a picnic just like Minnie and Mickey do on an episode of her beloved Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.

We packed lunch for her and after eating quickly and begging to go play, I let her loose on the playground. We went to the Williamson County regional park playscape. It was perfect- not crowded, small playscape, near the parking lot (good for lugging kids and lunch), and had covered picnic tables so that Kristi and I could visit.

Abby would play with the girls for a while and then come back and talk to Baby Read. The girls are older than Abby and a little braver :). At one point Abby came running to me and told me she had gone down the slide. I was so proud of her for going down the big slide (2 story) and asked her to do it again so that I could see her. Um, yea, she meant the baby slide. :)

She sure is cute when I can get her to smile!

Bella and Landry right before we left- Abby refused to smile with them. I love these girls and always learn so much from the way Kristi talks to them and treats them. I seriously don't think I have seen two siblings who love each other this much and behave so well with each other. That I am learning takes hard work, so good job Ben and Kristi!

I look forward to more sunny days and picnics in the park this Spring!

Abby's Three Year Portraits

2012-01-21T17:50:00.001-06:00

Abby and I had her three year portraits done the first week of January. We used Sarah Phillips Photography for the first time and I loved her! She is the sister of a church friend of ours and ran a special on Facebook just before the holidays that her sister shared on her wall. I am always looking for an inexpensive photographer that will ultimately give you the CD of the images. I do too much digitally to only have a printed version.

I knew the location and look that I wanted and Sarah was eager to try something new. We took the photos just before sunset at Southwestern University in Georgetown. They have the biggest trees and best old buildings! I wanted a very vintage look to the photos.

Abby's dress inspired my look- it is very 50's. I am certain my grandmother must have worn one like it! I got it just before Thanksgiving in the holiday dresses at Buy Buy Baby. They were buy one get one free. So, I bought it and her Christmas dress that she wore to the Nutcracker.

Her pink coat was a hand me down from church friends- it is beautiful and I'll be really sad when she outgrows it. The large silk flower I found on etsy to match the dress. It came from Germany!

This one below is currently my screen saver. I love these doors to the university's chapel!

The one is Marcus' favorite!

I love them all- in the end I got 2 CDs full of pictures from Sarah. Abby wasn't in the best mood and I am so glad she got a few treasures out of a grumpy girl!

Abby's Busy Schedule...

2012-01-20T11:30:00.000-06:00

We have Abby involved in both dance and soccer this Winter/Spring and it is fun to see her make friends and develop skills in both areas. Skills meaning learning to listen, follow directions, work with others, etc. The skills are this point don't include kicking the ball or tumbling much :)

Tuesday after school we had to pick up a few things and Abby had her first icee. She looks so sad here, but she loved it. She loved having a blue tongue!

Wednesday after dance class, most all of us did lunch together at the Smokey Mo's in the parking lot. Michael Gumpl, Abby's little friend, was visiting and got to have lunch with the 6 girls! I love spending an hour a week with these Moms. We bounce ideas off each other, talk about elementary schools in the area, and support each other's kids as they accomplish new things. It is fun!

Thursday, Abby had her second soccer game. Like her new soccer bow? Once I knew her uniform color, I had to help her accessorize. It didn't stay in long enough to go in the game :) Next week!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Weekly Randoms

2012-01-19T19:36:00.001-06:00

We have had a busy and random week, so this post and recap will be random, too :)

Abby and I did some Valentine's shopping this week. We did it a little early so that we could send a package to our World Vision child, Ahlumile, in South Africa. Here is her goodies. I have a hard time shopping for her- what doesn't require knowledge of the English language (books, cards, etc.) or requires more than she has, seems extravagant, etc. I just struggle. Oh, and the items must all fit into a 6" x 9" envelope and weight less than 13 ounces. It costs about $10 for a 13 ounce package. More than that is more postage.

So, here is our little Valentine's package. The good news is that I bought everything in bulk, so I am about done with her school and dance goodies, too!

Abby has water painted a few times this week. Since I took a picture the first time, when she colors she now tells me to take her picture :)

Marcus and I have been trying to eat low fat, low sugar, low carb like we did last Spring. We did really well the first week and then this week haven't done as well. We are just too busy right now to put such crazy diet restrictions on our life. We did lose weight in the 2 weeks (5 pounds for Marcus and 7 for me). We made this yummy salad with grilled chicken, strawberries and a homemade strawberry vinaigrette. It was good!

We dropped it today when I had more dental work done. I have a crazy number of cavities to fill- the dentist told me sweet tea is the worst! It gives your teeth a little coating of sugar with every sip. For about 3 years, I drank at least a 32 ounce tea each day. Oops. I am paying for it now.

I had 4 cavities filled last week and went back in today for 6 more. I know- INSANE! Well, 2 of those from last week were bothering me. So, he planned to redo those 2 today and then 2 of the remaining 6. Numbed both my upper left side and lower right side. After he did the two right (well almost finished them), I had to remove the mouth guard and cough- I was choking. That got the cavitiy wet before it was supposed to, and he had to do it all over again. That meant we were out of time for the left side. So, I got it all numbed up for nothing. Needless to say, soft food was required and most soft foods are carbs. I quit the diet- I couldn't do a numb mouth and grilled chicken or steak.

We'll enjoy the next few days since Abby is staying with my Mom this weekend and part of next week and then go back to being better with our carbs. It is eye opening to know how many carbs are in some of my favorite foods.

Finally, it is a big birthday week in our family! Happy Birthday Mimi, Granpa and Uncle Shaun. We hope you all have great days celebrating! I think Granpa (my Dad) is celebrating it best- they are headed to Florida for a cruise to the Virgin Islands. Jealous!

First Soccer Game

2012-01-14T12:56:00.000-06:00

We had our first soccer game this morning and as expected it was comical.

Ten 3 year olds on the court makes for good entertainment. Some kids got the point, some wanted the ball no matter who had it, some forgot the point of making a goal in their net, and some could care less that a game was trying to occur. Abby fell into the last category.

If 3 year old soccer needed or required a goalie, she would have been ready! She loved standing in the net and even got her hair bow caught in there at one point.

At one point the "zebra" was talking to her about getting into the game. She just waved at him, smiled, and kept on playing solo. She did say she had fun and loves soccer which is good.

We don't keep score and everyone is a winner- which I appreciate at this age. I think our team scored more goals, but the majority of them were in the wrong net :)

Our next game is on Thursday. It can only get better!

Napping, Water colors, and a Birthday

2012-01-11T20:25:00.001-06:00

Abby and I had a fun day of just us! Daddy had to work late, so we spent the whole day together. After dance class, we made a quick stop at the grocery store and then had lunch at Chick-fil-A. Their grilled chicken nuggets are wonderful! A really healthy and yummy new option! We even ran into two friends there and Abby got to play. Good to see you Heather and Brittany.

We got home about 12:30 and I started the dreaded rest time process. Abby hasn't napped in over 2 weeks and I am a little frazzled about it. I wouldn't care if she just had quiet time in her room except she doesn't stay quiet or in her room and she is a whiner from 3-8. I was going to force her sleep today if it took everything I had. It almost did. She finally went to sleep after 3 PM. I bribed her, spanked her, yelled at her, shut her door, took away her toys, you name it! I think she fell asleep from crying so long. We'll see how tomorrow goes. We must keep some sort of nap unless she can keep a good attitude without it ;)

Tonight after dinner while awaiting Daddy's arrival, we pulled out one of our birthday gifts at water colored! I had not done this with her yet, but she had at school because she knew just what it was and what to do!

She had lots of fun coloring Dora and making brown paint! She also liked having blank sheets to draw on her own. She always draws me a number 11 and then proudly proclaims, "it's your favorite number!" So thoughtful.

I helped with Dora's skirt. She mostly used her right hand tonight? I wonder if that is what it will be. Notice how red her lips are- lucky girl!

Finally, a Happy Birthday to our Aunt Vicki! We love you and hope you have a wonderful day! Abby is coming to stay with Mom for a few days later this month and she has asked to see Aunt Vicki, Uncle Cecil and Kaki, the dog. She doesn't forget anyone!

Glow Sticks Party

2012-01-09T20:01:00.000-06:00

I read on Twitter about a Mom who bought glow sticks from the dollar spot at Target and let her kids play with them in the bath. She talked about how much fun they had and it was the best $1 she ever spent!

I would totally agree! 15 sticks for $1 and lots of glow in the dark fun!

I let Abby play with them tonight and they put 2 other sets of 15 sticks in her treasure chest when she earns 10 stickers on her responsibility chart. She loves counting her stickers and I think having these in the chest will excite her!

Celebrating Number Three

2012-01-08T18:16:00.000-06:00

We celebrated Abby Lu's 3rd birthday on Saturday morning. She had about 20 of her little friends over in the jammies for breakfast. One day I'll be able to get a good group shot of her and all her little friends, but as you can imagine, they were all over the place!

Abby has been so excited about her party and she was a good hostess welcoming her friends, sharing her toys, and saying goodbye to most everyone. I think she was a little overwhelmed because Marcus found her sitting in my office closet at one point during the party. Weird!

She loved everyone singing Happy Birthday to her and did a great job blowing out her candles! I love this picture of her in her fuzzy jammies with a sweet Fruit Loop necklace. She won't look this young forever.

This is one of the only cute pictures I got of Abby and her guests, cousins Bella and Landry. Such a sweet pictures of three little girls!

We had lots of people in the house- I have tried to shrink her parties each year and focus on her little friends more than everyone we know! I have no doubt that will get easier as she truly makes friends at church and school.

Luckily we had good weather, so many of the kids ended up playing outside with the swingset, golf clubs, soccer balls and frisbees. Thank goodness for good weather- it extends our living space for everyone! You never know with a January party!

We did not open gifts at the party- I think Abby has a hard time with the attention and since she wasn't thrilled with presents at Christmas, I didn't want her to not show interest at the party and offend anyone. So, we discussed opening them on Saturday afternoon, but Abby wasn't interested. :) We convinced her to open gifts on Sunday morning before church. It took some work to convince her, but she loved all of her goodies! We are going to have fun pulling out new toys for her every couple of weeks.

The house is back in order, the punch bowl is packed away again, and we are left with happy memories, lots of wonderful and thoughtful gifts, and two big polka dotted balloons!

As you can imagine, I have lots more photos of the party decor, food, crafts, and goodies to come next week. You can click here to see more details as they post.

Happy Birthday sweet Abby Lu!

Abby and Friends

2012-01-06T09:43:00.000-06:00

Abby's social calendar was full last month ;)

On the Friday after Christmas, we had breakfast to celebrate Blythe's 6th birthday. I texted her Mom Natalie when I got Blythe's invitation and told her we were planning the same party... Blythe's party was Pajamas and Pancakes and Abby's is Dolls and Doughnuts. It was fun to see the girls in their jammies and eat yummy pancakes with our friends!

One Monday night, we had dinner with the families of two of Abby's church friends- Lauramae (pictured here) and Megan. Abby talks about both of these girls on Sunday, so it was nice to have dinner with them and their families. I look forward to the day when us adults can talk more and there isn't the stress of Abby not eating the lovely meal. We had amazing baked spaghetti with cream cheese inside, brown sugar green beans, and homemade rosemary bread. Oh, and I should not forget Peppermint Cheesecake. Seriously, Abby ate like 2 green beans. Stinker!

In mid-December, we had our Fantasy Football wrap party and Abby got to play with Ellie who just turned two. She is the sweetest little girl- I love seeing her run and play. I'll never forget the miracle that she is!

We also had dinner with our little friend Madeline last month. Marcus was working late, so Abby and I met Madeline and Caroline at Chick-fil-A. We have known Madeline since she was born and at dinner she spoke more without hesitation with me than I've ever heard. I was so proud to see she was comfortable with me and had something to say! Abby and Madeline loved running to the playground and then coming back and declaring it too loud. So, they read books to each other.

Abby watched a Yo Gabba Gabba episode called "Talent" and each character identifies their talent. Abby once asked me her talent and I had to really think about it. We decided her talent is making friends and work with her on how to be a good friend- give hugs, share our toys, greet each other. I love seeing her work on being a good friend with these special girls.

Let the Games Begin

2012-01-05T19:48:00.001-06:00

Thursday was Abby's first soccer practice! We enrolled her in soccer at our local YMCA. It was a minimal investment and we thought a good time to let her try something new. She loves balls and running and after our difficult transition into dance class, we felt like she needed more exposure to group activities.

Since this was her first athletic activity, she wore her first pair of Nikes. They look tiny on her (size 9)- I swear they are as wide as they are long!

Practice is 45 minutes every Thursday for the next 8 weeks and then we have games on Saturday mornings. She wasn't always on the same page as the other kids- not standing in line listening fully; but, she did 10 times better than her first dance class!

It was nice to have Marcus attend and see just how difficult it is not to try and force her to participate. You want to talk in your serious voice, pop her, take her arm and put her in place, but it all will not work. You just have to keep calm, praise her when she does well and consistently enforce the message, in this case, "stand on the white line and listen to Coach Mark".

This only happened once which makes me happy- A major improvement!

I honestly think she could be good at this. She has the right build :) But, she can kick the ball. She can stop it with her foot. She made 2 of 3 goals. She was a toot during practice when it wasn't her turn and she had nothing else to do. I'm excited to see if she does have talent for soccer, if she will focus and apply herself, and if she keeps up the interest.

Until then, Marcus is "that" Dad and I'm a soccer Mom and we love it!

Three Year Well Check

2012-01-04T07:55:00.000-06:00

Marcus and I were so excited to see our pediatrician this morning. We then realized how blessed we were- we have seen her 2 times in the last year. We have a healthy little girl and we wanted to show off how wonderfully smart and big she is, but we also had a couple of questions and concerns that we wanted to get her opinion on.

First up, the stats. Abby is a healthy big girl. She is 37 pounds and in the 95th percentile. She is also tall at 38 3/4 inches which is the 88th percentile. Dr. Sperling looked at her and proclaimed her healthy with a "strong bone structure" and not overweight. She said she could tell it was her build and not a big belly. She is a little linebacker :)

We talked about all the normal things like moving her to a bigger carseat. We purchased a new one after the appointment since she is too long for the current one! I evaluated all the seats based upon price and the length they can accommodate. This one will keep her in a 5 point harness to 65 pounds and converts all the way to a booster for up to 100 pounds and 57". Perfect!

We also discussed moving her to 2% milk, switching her to regular toothpaste after testing her ability to spit, how much sleep she should be getting, and refilled her Epi-Pens and Flonase for another year. We also did a vision test which she passed.

Our biggest areas of concern likely sound silly to other people and especially parents with older kids, but she is our first and we don't want to mess up or not report something we should.

We wanted to update her on Abby's fear of noises. We have left playgrounds and movies because she was scared. During her school play, they put tissue in her ears to muffle the other kids singing. Other noises that frighten her- toilets flushing, blowdryers, leaf blowers, hand dryers, big trucks, motorcycles, etc. The Target bathroom is a nightmare. When she hears these noises, she will freeze and cover her ears until we reassure her or the sound passes. She genuinely seems frightened.

Our other concern is Abby's OCD, as we call it. She is VERY particular about some of her things. Sets belong together and she will lose her mind if she has 4 of the 5 toys that came together. She even questions when, for example, 2 Gabba characters are in a scene and the others are not. She doesn't understand why they are not all together. She can't just have her Dora toy, she needs the whole family. She is also particular about matching like colors together- pink foam must go in the pink bowl. A yellow toy must have a yellow blanket. Three animals means three blankets at night. I am particular and like things to match, but she has a more aggressive almost obsession with it.

In both of these cases, Dr. Sperling wanted us to watch her and if we felt like either of these were disruptive to her happiness or the flow of daily life they she would recommend occupational therapy. Until then, we should expose her to sounds over time and praise her for being brave and that we keep her engaged in MDO and a preschool program to help her learn to transition better before kindergarten. All reassuring!

New Glasses

2012-01-03T09:54:00.000-06:00

Do you like Abby's new glasses! While at Dollar Tree shopping, Abby wanted her picture taken with the reading glasses. I think growing up with both parents wearing glasses makes her especially interested in them!

We went to Dollar Tree and allowed Abby to pick out 5 things for Marcus for Christmas. We had the most fun discussing is that for Daddy or Abby! She also would put things back as she found something else she wanted to get him. In all, she did great.

Marcus got a giant blue crayon, Dora stickers, razors, a back scrubber (she thinks it is a giant hairbrush) and some body scrub. I hope we do this each year!

Second Christmas

2012-01-02T15:35:00.000-06:00

We celebrated Christmas with my Mom and sister's family on New Year's Eve day. It was so pretty outside that the kids were able to kick the soccer ball and swing. Loved the weather last weekend!

Since they had to drive to me, I made them all lunch. We had salad and girl scout casserole. Plus, we ate birthday cake and ice cream in honor of Ms. Abby Lu!

We opened presents after lunch- we bought Cohen a new game for his Nintendo DS.

And, Kyleigh got a new shirt, scarf, and hat. She is definitely a normal 10 year old girl, she wants new clothes!

Since learning that Marcus can wear a youth hat, we've had lots of fun! I love that he plays along with me :)

Mom and Tiffany spoiled Abby with some fabulous things including this really cute cape. My sister made both of my Christmas gifts and I love them! She is becoming a really talented on the sewing machine. She made me a cute apron and a messenger bag!

Abby refused to take pictures, so here is my Mom with her more cooperative grandkids :)

The tree is now done and most of the gifts are put away. After all, we have a birthday party coming up on Saturday! Hooray!

Christmas Day Recap

2012-01-01T19:36:00.000-06:00

I am a little behind with all my holiday posts, but I don't want to forget Abby's Christmas presents this year. It will help me when planning next year.... get her less! She wasn't excited about anything. Maybe next year?

I was so excited she is finally 3 and can play Candy Land. We have played in a handful of times and it is fun! She is still learning the rules, but gets super lucky with the "jump" cards. Santa also brought her much needed shoes, a soccer ball and shin guards. She starts soccer this month!

These little dolls on the left were found on Etsy, named Mary, Mabel and Maxine. Abby sleeps with them! We lost Mary at Wal-Mart and I retraced our steps across the whole store. In a last ditch effort, we stopped by customer service (3 days after Christmas, ugh!) and someone had turned it in! Santa also brought Abby black, brown, and pink fleece pants for the upcoming winter along with a few other outfits.

Finally, Santa knew Abby loves Dora and brought her a ball and a book that comes with all 12 characters as small plastic toys. Abby loves them, they moved into the birthday dollhouse :)

We stayed home all day on Christmas. It was wonderful- we watched TV, played games, and relaxed. No real need to pull out the camera!

Next to Candy Land in the picture above is the letter Santa left Abby telling her about the Barbie Jeep he bought her and to go to the garage. She has riden it twice since Christmas and is terrified of it. We'll try again every few weeks- I just know she will love it eventually!

Eleven and Twelve

2011-12-31T20:22:00.002-06:00

I love a fresh start. The end of one thing and the promise of something new.

2011 was a WONDERFUL year. It was better than I ever imagined it could be. God put His hand on our family and protected and provided for us in so many ways....

We were able to travel to Savannah in April and Cabo in September.

I left my full time job in August and was given two amazing part time jobs that provide me growth, challenges, and give our family the income we needed for me to stay home with Abby.

We saw just how serious a peanut allergy can be and how the Lord can bring all the pieces together to keep us safe.

We bought a new car to fit our new income- one that saves us money each month and gas each week.

We watched our baby girl become a little girl that is fully potty trained and sleeps in a big girl bed.

We celebrated friends who promised to love each other forever, those that welcomed sweet babies into their homes, and those that announced babies to come in 2012.

I had two resolutions for 2011- memorize more scripture and wear more lipstick.I do wear lipstick more- I love this one and this one, both found in 2011. I know more scripture than I did in 2010, but nearly as much as I want to.

Looking to 2012- my resolutions all fall into one category- patience. I want to be more patient with my husband and most especially my daughter. I want to be more patient with strangers and offer a smile instead of judgement. I want to be more patient with myself- I don't have to accomplish my to do list by 9 AM- I should snuggle with Abby. I need to focus long term on a healthier body, home, and bank account.

Goodbye 2011, thank you for blessing me repeatedly!

Katy and Ike Visit Texas

2011-12-30T16:47:00.000-06:00

Our friend Katy and Ike (the ones with the fun wedding in Cabo!) moved to Los Angeles in November and they were home in Texas for Christmas. We drove to Belton Wednesday night where Ike's parents live to visit them over yummy fajitas, thanks Steve!

It was fun to see our friends and talk about life in Los Angeles. Katy just started blogging if you want to follow a Texan learning life in LA. She is a personal assistant to a celebrity and he is a music producer. You can imagine they get to do some fun things!

We stayed at their house (Abby was with us, but no good photos!) way too late and got home just before midnight. Abby was a champ playing with everyone and watched videos on the iPhone all the way home.

We are hoping we can visit them in March and have lunch among paparazzi, see the sights from a "local" and visit the taping of a show!

Birthday Fun

2011-12-29T20:39:00.000-06:00

The greatest benefit of a holiday birthday- we get to spend the whole day with Abby Lu! No business meetings or school to interfere with our fun day! Every year we've tried to fill it with fun things just for her.

Abby was up at 7:30 this morning and we all sang Happy Birthday in our big bed. Then, Abby and Marcus went to the local doughnut shop for our breakfast. She loves her doughnuts!

Over breakfast, we opened her birthday presents.... a family and three story dollhouse!

She had fun playing with the family and furniture while Marcus put the house together. This is our second Kid Kraft product and the assembly is the best! It took less than 30 minutes, had simple to understand directions, and the screws are color coded to match the house. I love that!

We set it up on the little blue table behind the couches. She has played with it all day long! I love the fun colors of the house and how much her imagination goes crazy while she plays with it. She named each of the family members (Mom,Dad, 2 girls, 1 boy, and grandmother) after her own family members except the small girl which should be her. She named her Shelby after the high school Sunday school teacher she obviously loves! Cracks me up!

It wasn't long before her family expanded to include Abuelo, Poppy, Dora (x2) and their cousin Diego.

All those visitors were too much for Momma and she decided to take a nice long bubble bath ;)

Instead of a pedicure, she asked to stay home and play, so I enjoyed a pedicure all by myself! I then picked up Marcus and Abby and we had lunch outside at Newk's. It is one of Abby's favorites and she loved sitting outside.

This evening after dinner, we had her birthday cake. Since we won't have an official one at her party, we did it tonight. She wanted a blue cake!

She was pretty excited about cake! We save cake for parties and she gets so giddy knowing special cake is coming! All that excitement, and she ate about 2 bites of icing.

Happy 3rd birthday Abby Lu- we had a blast with you today!

Happy 3rd birthday Abby Lu

2011-12-29T01:18:00.000-06:00

This blog post is publishing at 1:18 AM, the moment 3 years ago that you entered the world and gave me the greatest title ever, Mommy. I waited so long for you and you have not disappointed me one bit. There is so much I want to remember about you and this age and I fear my memory and words will fail me.

You are by far the funniest kid I know. I am sure most parents think that about their kids and they may all be right. You make up songs, tell funny stories, have a million facial expressions, speak in different characters voices, and entertain at all times.

You are loving and caring and show your compassion to those you love. You will get a sappy look on your face, tilt your head and tell me "I lub you so much" at least 5 times a day. You run and give hugs, smother my face in kisses, and tell me things like, "I adore you", "you are the best Mom" and "you're my favorite". I should bottle these kind words up for the years when you hate me!

You are incredibly organized and structured. You are routine. If you have one Yo Gabba Gabba bracelet, you must have the full matching set. If I give you green foamy bath soap, it must go in the green bowl.You never ask for a snack, it is always "a snack and a drink". You want an equal number of blankets to match your baby dolls at night time. Order is important to you. You like to count things and make sure they are all there before moving on. You come by it honestly no doubt and I hope it helps you succeed in whatever God has chosen for you to do.

You are a pretty good eater and sleeper. You have a limited number of things you will eat, but you typically eat a healthy portion of them. Your only vegetables are: peas, green beans, cucumbers, sweet potato fries, corn, carrots (raw or cooked), and broccoli. Any other you have tried have been unsuccessful. You'll eat any fruit we give you. Meat is not your thing yet. You eat chicken nuggets, grilled chicken and lunch meats only. You don't seem to understand assembled food- no pizza, sandwiches, spaghetti, corn dogs, hot dogs, hamburgers, etc. You will eat anything bread or sweet related! No questions ask- I have no idea how you know!

A typical day is a cereal bar and milk for breakfast about 7:30, a healthy mid-morning snack of fruit, cheese, or pretzels, and then lunch about 11:45. Your school lunch is cheese and crackers, fruit, and raw carrots with water or a yogurt smoothie. After nap, you get a "treat" and you love little 100 calorie snacks, a lollipop, or fruit snacks. For dinner, we often give you lunch meat or chicken nuggets, a hot vegetable, and a roll or tortilla. You love almond milk, whole milk, and mango milk (yogurt smoothie). We haven't given you juice, but you drink apple juice/water mix at school.

You are a good sleeper, once you fall asleep. Some nights you are out quickly and other nights you'll take 2 hours to go to sleep. For the most part, you will talk to yourself in bed for 2 hours and we don't even know you are still awake! You always sleep through the night. You nap for about 2 hours each day and sleep from about 9 PM - 7 AM.

We have your 3 year well check next week, but I am certain she will tell us that you are TALL! I can only assume you will stop growing soon and level out with other kids. Between your big vocabulary and your height, people often assume you are already 4. You wear a 2T or 3T clothing. You have a 4T head, 2T waist and 3T length. So, it just depends. Your feet have caught up with your age and you wear a size 8.

I asked you 20 questions after bath the other night and hope to ask these same questions of you each year. Some of these answers came out of the blue.... I would have paid big money that your favorite color is blue, your best friend is Makayla or Kalea, and that your favorite drink is milk!

Happy 3rd birthday babycakes! We love you always!

Christmas Eve with Family

2011-12-27T08:35:00.000-06:00

Marcus' Mom came into town on Friday night for Christmas weekend. We had a yummy dinner at a local cafe and then drove around and looked at some Christmas lights.

Saturday morning, my Dad and Jacque came over to celebrate Christmas with lunch! They brought pizza and I made salad and dessert. It was super casual and easy!

Abby recruited Jacque into playing chalk with her!

She also played her favorite game- hide and seek with Granpa and Jacque!

And, had a lot of fun doing everything but smiling for a picture with them!

She was all smiles in her new 6' tall cardboard castle they bought her. She loves to open and shut the doors and windows inside the castle.

We tried hard to get a smiling photo with Mimi, too. Abby wasn't the problem, this time around :) Mimi was so nice to get Abby a Pluto doll to complete the Mickey Mouse set!

Carol and our family went to Christmas Eve service at a nearby church. We didn't attend our church this time, but picked one with an earlier time slot to accommodate our plans for the day. It was the neatest production of the story of Jesus' birth. They used modern songs, language, and storytelling to make it all so relatable. We were also proud of Abby who dropped off without much struggle. Very cool... there was break dancing to Hark the Herald Angels Sing. Unexpected!

After church, we came home and had dinner and then exchanged gifts. We do our gifts to each other (and this time with Mimi) on Christmas Eve. We then do stockings and Santa on Christmas morning. I was most excited to open Abby's choices from Dollar Tree.

She gave Marcus- a large blue crayon, razors, a blue Gatorade, Dora stickers, and a large brush typically used for cleaning your back. She thinks it is a really big toothbrush!

I received a Christmas container, Peace sign headband, fuzzy scrunchies, blue marbles, and little black plastic balls used to fill a vase. Oh, and a birthday card to a son and his wife. Hilarious!

We laid out ginger spice and chocolate chip cookies along with almond milk for Santa.

We also left out food for the reindeer! Abby was given a small baggie of oats to feed the reindeer with at church. She was very clear to us they would need food!

After a long and busy day, Abby went to sleep pretty quickly! We had fun laying out her gifts from Santa and filling the stockings before going to bed early ourselves!

Under the Tree

2011-12-26T09:55:00.000-06:00

I took way too many pictures this year and don't want to sort and edit them today, but I did want to blog. So, I'll share some of our favorite gifts from Christmas weekend. It isn't the most important part of the weekend, but it is the easiest pictures to grab today!

Marcus is never sure what to buy me, so I always give him a detailed email full of links with the gifts that I would love. It makes his life easier and I get things I want/need. I make sure the list has more options than he needs so that I am still surprised on Christmas morning. This year, my big gift was the mason jar drink dispenser from Pottery Barn. I have wanted this for at least a year and didn't need it, so I never bought it. So excited to have it! I also got Toms and some fun stuff for the kitchen.

I think this was Marcus' favorite... a remote control helicopter like you see at the mall kiosks. He had mentioned one would be fun last Spring and I was glad I remembered come gift time. He also got some gray Converse and much needed clothes!

Christmas with Abby was interesting. She wasn't very excited about having presents, opening them, or the gifts inside. She got some needed items and some fun and exciting things, but none of it really made her "squeal". We stopped opening presents on Christmas Eve because she just didn't care. We hoped it would be better the next morning, but she pretty much wanted to play with what she had.

Here are a few of her favorites.... cardboard castle! I had never seen this, but it has been on FB all weekend with other kids. My Dad and Jacque got this for her. She has fun coming back to color it throughout the day.

Abby has had the most fun playing with her race cards and track. I bought this months ago at a craft fair and am so glad I did. The cars just go on batteries and the track is plastic and assembles easily. We have tried multiple configurations and love watching the cars chase each other!

Abby's "big" gift was actually given to us just a few weeks ago and we hid it in the garage until Christmas morning. She got a battery powered Barbie Jeep with it's own CD player. She was so excited to sit in it and told everyone who called that she got a new car for Christmas, but she got off it in 2 minutes, said it was scary, and hasn't gone back outside? I think she'll warm up to it and drive all over the place before long.

Finally, she has taken to these little vintage dolls since she opened them. She first called them martians? Weirdo! Once we convinced her they were baby dolls, she needed them to have names. Since they are vintage, we named them after 3 sisters of Abby's great grandmother whom she is named after.

Meet Mary, Mabel and Maxine...

Hope you got all you were wishing for, too!

Merry Christmas

2011-12-25T05:25:00.000-06:00

We hope your day is filled with JOY!

The Nutcracker

2011-12-24T10:19:00.003-06:00

Abby and I saw The Nutcracker with Ballet Austin on Friday afternoon. Our friend from church Alexis was performaing as an angel, so we were excited to see her. I bought us the least expensive seats in case we left early and hoping that the people around us would not be as concerned with a 3 year old talking and moving around.

We had lunch with Marcus ahead of time and changed into our ballet clothes. I knew we would not be able to take many picture at The Long Center. Abby did as well as I had expected. She wanted to sit, then stand, then sit, etc. She has had a hard time remembering to whisper. We left at intermission after having been there about an hour. I didn't think it would get any better and she thought it was over anyway!

I love this picture- somehow she aged 3 years in this one!

My little bitty girl as we left the ballet. The Long Center is beautiful!

I am certain we will go back in a few years and hopefully, see the whole thing!

Merry Christmas Eve! We are busy with family today, church service tonight, and presents this evening!

Happy Birthday Cohen

2011-12-23T09:46:00.000-06:00

Happy 7th Birthday Cohen!

We love you and wish you the best day and 7th year!

Responsibility Chart

2011-12-22T09:32:00.000-06:00

I saw another blogger with a child about Abby's age implement a responsibility chart and wanted to see if Abby would take to it as well as her son did. I didn't want to invest a lot of money so I thought about what we work with her on the most and made a simple Excel spreadsheet for her. I bought cheap smiling face stickers at Mardel and 4 treats from the dollar spot at Target. Pardon the extra Sunday column- I guess I did it a little too fast!

I introduced the chart when she did one of the responsibilities. I gave her a sticker for her hand and told her about her responsibilities and placed the second sticker on her chart. We started on Friday, Mom used it over the weekend and then yesterday morning, something magical happened. I was doing her laundry and she came running into the laundry room and told me to stop. She said, " I want to help you so that I can get a sticker". Heaven to a Mom's ears!

She loves to count her stickers and last night we discussed she was only 1 sticker away from a treat. She could get her treat first thing in the morning if she stayed in bed until "Raider" turns green. Raider is her alarm clock that turns green at the time we set, 7 AM. She ran into my room at 7:02 to announce Raider was green and she earned a treat! She selected a small orange slinky and all morning has told me "thank you for my treat". I love that she is old enough for this type of concept and we can work on her responsibilities with a goal in mind each week.

Way to go Abby- we are so proud of you!

Latte and Lights

2011-12-21T20:36:00.003-06:00

We love looking at lights this time of year! After an easy dinner of leftovers, we put on our jammies, grabbed a couple of blankets and hopped in the car to see lights!

No light seeing adventure is complete without a little stop at Starbucks! I discovered their Gingerbread Lattes this season and love them! I'll be sad when they are gone.

We drove through a nicer neighborhood in our area and they had some great displays. They also had trucks pulling kids on flat beds in the neighborhood. That sounded so cool to Marcus and so cold to me!

Abby was in the backseat and had the iPhone with her. She made us stop so that she could take a picture of one of the houses with the phone. Marcus and I just laughed- there is no way we were snapping pictures at age 3!

Weekend Getaway

2011-12-21T08:19:00.005-06:00

Marcus and I spent the past weekend in Houston and had the most fun! We had planned the trip after our friend Cristina offered us her Houston Texans tickets for Sunday's game. She has the best seats- I've never watched a game from the 50 yard line! Although not in Denver, I did get to see a Texan "Tebow" before the game- ha! The pre-game was lots of fun- great music and the players were all dancing. We love Jacoby Jones of the Texans- he is a fabulous dancer!
The Texans lost the game... boo! We were in a funny position because of Fantasy Football. Marcus was secretly cheering for the Carolina Panthers running back and I didn't want to see Arian Foster score, Houston's RB. We laughed as we cheered and boo'd with the crowd while smiling.

We stayed in Houston Saturday and Sunday night since I had a gift certificate for a hotel near the stadium. We ate way too much food including this yummy Apple Streusel Walnut Cheesecake at Cheesecake Factory. Being without Abby for the weekend, we ate lots of desserts with nuts :)

We stayed at the Galleria Mall and they had this 3 story tree in the ice rink! The mall was crazy packed since it was the last weekend before Christmas. There were stanchions creating lines to zig zag through the stores in order to pay. Madness- thank goodness we had free valet parking and could go back to our room when the crowds became too much.

Almost every store was offering 40% off! Great deals to be had for sure. Marcus almost bought this Star Wars Storm Trooper hat. We recently discovered youth hats fit his head- we've always known they fit his personality :)

My Mom stayed at our house with Abby for the weekend- they wore jammies all day, played, sewed, and watched TV. A perfect weekend for them, too!

Happy Birthday Kiersten

2011-12-20T19:59:00.000-06:00

We celebrated our friend Kiersten's 4th birthday earlier this month. She is Rapunzel/Tangled crazy so it was the perfect theme for her party! She was in costume all day and most days will only answer to Rapunzel. Funny girl!

She had a great party with the best food (Round Rock doughnuts, Rudy's breakfast tacos, and Chick-fil-A nuggets) and lots of fun activities. Abby had fun and when we were leaving told my friend Tabriah (Kiersten's Mom), we'll come back another day. ha!

Date Night and New Boots

2011-12-17T08:03:00.002-06:00

Friday night Marcus and I went to a Christmas party for some work friends of his. It was wonderful to get dressed up and meet new people. I even tried a yummy Chocolate Martini. It was like a milkshake in a fancy glass!I was also excited to go out because I finally own cute tall boots and got to wear them! I have searched for a long time for boots that look cute and fit over my legs comfortably. I don't have wide calves, but just below my calf is abnormally big. You can also see my new dark hair in these pictures! My hairdresser moved away and my roots were getting pretty bad, so I bought a box, said a little prayer and brushed it on. I think I like it- it is really close to my natural color so very low maintenance!

Marcus and I are off to Houston this weekend for a little shopping, lots of sleeping in, and to see the Houston Texans game!

Baby Face- Christmas Dance Recital

2011-12-14T14:44:00.006-06:00

Abby Lu had her first dance recital this morning and this picture pretty much sums it up! I am so glad our studio does a small and informal recital before the big one that costs money. Needless to say, we will not be participating in the more formal recital in the Spring.

They do the dance twice- to warm the kids up and to give the parents plenty of opportunity for photos and video. The video of Abby during the first dance is uploaded here. She melts as the song goes on- from standing to frowning to sitting to laying on the ground. It was comical to all of us watching. At the end when everyone claps, she loudly proclaims, "but I didn't dance?" as if the clapping were for her and she didn't deserve them.

The second time around she went from frowning to looking around to actually dancing. I always give her a thumbs up from the watching area when she does well and today she gave her teacher a thumbs up once she began dancing.

It is perplexing as she loves to dance, sings the song and shows us the moves all week long and then freezes. I didn't expect her to dance- I just laughed it off this morning. I tried to set the expectations pretty low for my Mom and Marcus who were in the crowd!

Abby really loves Ms. Bree and Ms. Sarah her teachers. They are getting to know her and pushing her more each time. We did see the 2 year old class and it confirmed- Abby is too old for that class. They looked like babies in diapers!

Our friends Natalie and Michael were there to cheer Abby and our other friends on and we had a celebratory lunch afterward!

Parenting is humbling, an adventure, and definitely makes me laugh. Oh Abby Lu!

Rainbow Piggies

2011-12-11T08:48:00.000-06:00

I painted Abby's toes this week and let her pick the colors. She is pretty obsessed with identifying colors with an object. So, she wanted her toes the colors of each of the Yo Gabba Gabba characters- we didn't have green for Brobee, so we subbed purple for backpack from Dora.

I found a new way to keep her still while her toes dry :)

I Love My New Board

2011-12-09T08:26:00.002-06:00

Marcus and I built Abby a giant chalkboard and to say she loves it is an understatement. She spends at least an hour a day writing on it and will say the whole time, "I love my new board". Her favorite things to draw... the letter A, the number 11 (my favorite), and smiley faces in the colors of each of her Yo Gabba Gabba characters. She draws them all with both her left and right hand!

We plan to learn letters on this very board!

Tis The Season, Right?

2011-12-07T15:53:00.004-06:00

I find it funny that Joy and Peace are words associated with Christmas. I know they should be, but my next 2 weeks are anything but peaceful. I am beginning to wonder how I would fit in a full time job. I am not complaining, but I am busy this month. Here is a look at my social calendar (see I can't complain, it is all fun stuff!).

Friday - Sunday I am in Lubbock doing contract work. I get to see an old friend, shop in a few of my favorite little stores, and work. Sunday I fly home at 11 AM. I have a party to attend at 4 PM that requires that I bring silent auction items. Of course, I want them to be homemade. So, I have a set of coasters drying and a growth chart in the staining process. Must finish tomorrow. I will leave that party and head to my Fantasy Football party with fresh cornbread and a pound cake. Must make those on Sunday when I get home and before the first party.

Monday morning I have a brunch meeting and am bringing Cinnamon French Toast bake and gifts for those there. Need to get those made tomorrow. Monday evening, dinner with friends from church. The hostess doesn't want me to bring anything, but I feel like I should. I may take her up on her offer!

I am spening all day Tuesday baking goodies for some of Marcus' clients. I volunteered and am thrilled to do it. But, it will take most of the day! I have the boxes, bags and tags all completed. Labels are designed, printed and attached!

Tuesday night I have a party from 5:30 to 7. Hooray for bringing nothing to it! Wednesday is Abby's dance recital (small and informal), but we are having a luncheon afterward. Must bake cookies. Luckily, the gifts for her friends and teachers are done already. Wednesday night, dinner with the other dance Moms. Nothing to bring- thank goodness.

Thursday is Abby's Christmas program at school and party afterward. Bringing food (I will sign up for plates and napkins if I can!) and her friends gifts and teacher gifts are done. My 12 days of Christmas blog series going on right now made me do everything early!

Friday I have lunch with friends and we are doing an ornament exchange. I really need to find some ornaments- maybe this weekend while in Lubbock? Finally, on Saturday, Marcus and I leave for Houston for 2 days to attend a Houston Texans game and spend the weekend together. I'll have to remind him what I look like!

It is all fun stuff, right? It is just a lot of stuff! To help make things better, my Mom is coming in on Tuesday and staying until next week. She is here for Abby's recital and program and to save my sanity. Thank goodness!

Tell me, are your pre-holidays this bad, too?

Big Girl Bed

2011-12-07T08:11:00.000-06:00

We are officially a big girl in our very own twin sized bed!

I'll post more room pictures on the Birdie blog soon.

She is sleeping okay in her new bed. Naptime is tough- we've used videos on the iPhone to help her stay calm and fall asleep. Nighttime has been fine- she is tired at the end of the day and falls asleep. Her bed looks a little lumpy- we have foam wedges on each side that help to keep her in the bed in case she tries to sleep wonky. They were in her toddler bed as well.

Yo Gabba Gabba 2011

2011-12-06T09:58:00.002-06:00

Yo Gabba Gabba came back to town this past weekend and we really debated not going, but when the tickets came up on a group coupon site, we bought them! This time only Marcus and Abby went and of course, they had a great time!

We recapped the show in detail last year and this year it was very similar. Abby wanted to wear her DJ Lance hat and glasses and drew a lot of attention!

I love that my sweet girl knows the power of a good accessory!

Breakfast with Santa

2011-12-04T16:45:00.000-06:00

Abby and I had breakfast with Santa at the local YMCA Saturday morning. It was a great deal- no more mall pictures for me! Abby was not thrilled to see Santa or have her picture taken. She did manage to tell him she wanted "presents" for Christmas. I love the innocence of that!

She liked Mrs. Claus much better! She was in the breakfast room taking pictures with everyone as well.

For "breakfast", we had gingerbread cookies and warm chocolate milk. The room was decorated so cute with snowflakes, balloons, and festive paper goods.

Along with caroling, we had a craft- foam Santa ornaments. Our Santa has earrings :)

As we left, we received a 5x7 color photo of our picture with Santa. The official one is just as pitiful as the one I captured. Classic!

Me and My Daddy

2011-12-03T09:45:00.000-06:00

My Daddy and I had a special date night this week. Mommy had a meeting, so we went to our favorite Starbucks for a party and then we played at chip-a-lay (Chick-fil-A). It was noisy and there were lots of boys on the playground, so I just sat and watched with my Daddy! I can do the big slide now, but I don't like to if there are other kids around.

My Daddy is also teaching my tae-kwon-do. I love the Yo Gabba Gabba episode where the girl shows her talent of breaking a board so I asked Daddy to show me how to hi-ya and kick.

We keep practicing. I am good at hitting my hand down on the other hand and kicking my leg.

I am one lucky girl with a really cool Daddy.

Tonight a Baby, Tomorrow a Big Girl

2011-12-01T21:36:00.002-06:00

This is Abby's last night in her crib/toddler bed. Tomorrow, she will sleep in a twin bed like a real big girl. I have been prepping her for a solid week- she freaks out when I take her sheets off her bed so I am a little concerned. She has also told me every time I've told her she is getting a new bed that she already has a bed.

I am hoping the excitement of her new bedding (which I bought a year ago!) and her new rug, nightstand, and room arrangement will excite her and make her forget about her crib.

I also think having more room should excite her. She sleeps with three animals and three extra blankets. I think she would sleep with 10 if I let her.

Pictures of her new room coming soon!

Holiday Treat

2011-11-30T15:34:00.000-06:00

My favorite Christmas time food is the Christmas tree cakes from Little Debbie. They are so good and only out for a month or so each year.

Abby had her first Christmas tree cake this year and can you tell what she thought of it? Yummy!

Gruene Family Photos

2011-11-28T15:41:00.000-06:00

If you've never been to Gruene, it is beautiful! It is picturesque, rustic, filled with greenery and almost always filled with people. Going there on Thanksgiving day was the best. We saw 2 other couples walking around with their dogs. I think we got so many great pictures because we had the place to ourself to take our time and the kids could run around easily!

I had fun trying out the white balance and ISO with my camera. Then, I spent lots of time in the post edits making them bright, subtle, cropped, etc. Kyleigh wants to be a model and had fun posing for us. She is honestly very natural. She would tilt her head and crack a small smile and it looked perfect!

Marcus forgot he had on sunglasses in this one!

This is Gruene Hall, the oldest dance hall in Texas. It gave us a great backdrop!

These are the super cool and old doors of Gristmill Restaurant. They are always open when the restaurant is open, so you'd never know what a great backdrop they make!

These windows along the side of Gristmill are awesome. I'd love them in a bathroom :)

We thought about going down these stairs on the riverside of the Gristmill, but decided we had plenty of great options without stairs!

The seated waiting area at Gristmill has big potted plants throughout.

The sun shining on this wall and the kids straight face makes this picture look 100 years old to me.

Our last stop was a rusty side of a shed across from Gristmill. I love the orange colors of the rush with the blue in Abby's hat. Kyleigh outgrew the hat just recently and gave it to Abby as we were leaving. It fit, she loved it and I love turquoise so it worked!

Everyone was tired at this point, so we were letting them have fun! Mad faces are easy to make during nap time- ha!

Abby will likely never have a sister, so I love seeing Kyleigh take care of her and Abby looking up to Kyleigh. It is important to me that Abby have someone like Kyleigh to love her, listen to her and support her as she grows up.

Our happy family!

I'm so glad my sister recommended we take pictures on Thanksgiving Day!

Thanksgiving Weekend

2011-11-27T15:14:00.004-06:00

We have had a wonderful 4 day weekend! It included food, family, a date night, and lots of cleaning and organizing. I love weekends like this!

We drove to New Braunfels on Thursday for lunch at my sister's house with her family and my Mom. Since we were all together, we decided to use my Nikon D3100 camera and take some family photos. I spent Wednesday night reading up and trying to learn my camera. I've had it a year and hadn't done more than auto mode. It was fun to play photographer!

We took our pictures in the small town of Gruene. I'll share more of them soon- we got so many good ones! Since we were going to see my sister on Saturday again, we left Abby with her and my Mom and came back home solo! It allowed us to decorate for Christmas on Friday. I was up before 7 AM and got to work! Marcus had pulled all the tubs for me on Thursday night. Along with decorating, we did a little rearranging and posted a few things on Craigslist which sold on Sunday. I also spent every few hours prepping Abby's new bed- sanding, rust primer, pink paint, aging, glitter. Lots of fun stuff!

We finally showered on Friday at 4 PM to have a date night! After a little trip to Lowe's to research an upcoming project, we drove to Georgetown for dinner at Tony & Luigi's, an Italian place a friend had recommended. It was wonderful and they had a Frank Sinatra singer! The bruschetta was the best I've ever had. We shared it, along with lasagna and chocolate lava cake. Delish!

Saturday, we met back up with everyone at my Dad and Jacque's house for Thanksgiving, round 2. We taught Cohen how to play Skipbo and I beat the kids at Sorry. They were mad at each other for trading places and bumping back to start that they forgot about me :)

We worked on our silly faces for the camera! Oh the joys of kids!

We came home Saturday night with a very tired and stopped up little girl After 11 hours of sleep, she is doing better. Marcus went to church this morning and Abby and I stayed home to snuggle, watch Dora, and help her rest. We are hoping she is her spunky self again by Monday morning!

Classic Family Photo

2011-11-25T08:11:00.003-06:00

We took photos this weekend- my family, my sister's family and my Mom. We were all together for Thanksgiving and it seemed like a good time. The positive is that my sister lives near the pictureesque town of Gruene which was all ours on Thanksgiving afternoon.

The cons- we took them during nap time, with 3 kids jacked up on Thanksgiving desserts and hyper to see each other! We did get some fabulous pictures and I'll share them soon; however, this one really captures our afternoon. ha!

We left Abby Lu with my Mom and sister and will have her back tomorrow when we do Thanksgiving with my Dad and stepmom. Today, Marcus and I are finishing Abby's new big girl bed (sanding, painting, etc.), decorating for Christmas, and having a date night! Oh, and a little Black Friday shopping as Marcus waited in line at 4 AM to get us a new flat screen for our bedroom. Hooray!

Everyone is Thankful for Me

2011-11-24T08:05:00.000-06:00

Happy Thanksgiving blogging friends! Abby wasn't so sure about having her picture taken- a true little turkey on this festive day!

We are really casual at Thanksgiving our family of three has a nice lunch with just my Mom. It is so easy, we even buy sliced turkey from the local BBQ place the day before. No fuss- we stay in our jammies, watch TV, play games and plan our Christmas shopping.

We'll celebrate with my Dad, stepmom and sister and family with a potluck on Saturday. Sometimes a small or spread out family is nice!

Slow Week

2011-11-22T13:40:00.002-06:00

Abby doesn't have school or dance this week so it is a slow week at our house. We have made trips to Hobby Lobby, HEB and Lowe's. We have done fun crafts and cleaned out her room in preparation for the big girl bed coming soon. And, today, we went to Happy Feet Two.

We were supposed to meet our friend Michael, but he got sick. It is probably for the best because the loudness of the movie scared Abby and we ended up leaving after about an hour. It is a cute fun musical movie, but there is also some darker parts with abandonment, injury, and death.

Abby did really well staying seated- I brought her booster from home and it really helped!

Tomorrow, we are cooking and chilling at home all day!

Our Elf, Holly

2011-11-19T07:57:00.000-06:00

Have you heard of Elf on the Shelf? I have wanted an elf for a long time and Abby is finally at the age where we can have an elf! We named her Holly. Abby gets to pick her name per the little book that comes with her and she first told us she was a girl and then her name was Mommy. We asked her if Molly would work and she didn't jump on it. They, I recommended Holly and she said that was it.

Essentially, Holly watches Abby all day and flies back to Santa each night to report on how naughty or nice she was. She then shows up the next morning in a new place and Abby gets to find her. Her magic is gone if Abby touches her!

We have talked about Holly all day and even mentioned being good so that Holly could tell Santa. Speaking of, Abby hasn't asked for anything for Christmas. She doesn't watch much TV and seems to have everything she wants. So, I told her to tell Holly what she wanted and she would tell Santa. She said she wants "balls" and "presents". ha!

Thanksgiving Lunch

2011-11-18T07:49:00.000-06:00

I got to spend lunch with this cute girl today! She had a Thanksgiving lunch at school and I got to be that Mom that came to a school activity in the middle of the day in casual clothes! I took her to school at 8:30 and spent the morning at Starbucks doing website work and then shopping at Academy for soccer gear since Abby starts in early January. Shin guards for a 3 year old are tiny!

Aren't her new boots the cutest! I typically dress her like a toddler, but her jeggings and Ugg boots made her such a teenager today!

They made cute little pumpkin place settings for everyone and had a fancy lunch of rolled up turkey, chunk cheese, pretzels, carrots, fruit and cookies. It was fun to see her interact with her little friends.

Abby just loves her teachers- Ms. Nicci and Ms. Yvette. We love them and her little school, too!

Quiet Car

2011-11-16T08:21:00.002-06:00

We bought a new car this week! Marcus' truck was nearing 100K miles and was no longer practical for our new budget and his job. We had been talking about a new car for months and over the past month Marcus had begun narrowing it down to what we wanted. It came down to a Honda Accord or a Toyota Camry.

We went with the Camry- it just cost less. He loved the Accord, but in comparison this one made more sense. It is a 2011 that we bought used with less than 30K miles. Marcus is excited to visit the gas tank less, have a trunk for storage and have some newer features in his car than his 2008 truck had. Abby calls it the quiet car since he had a loud truck.

And, in case you need a closer look, that bearded man in the new car really is my husband! ha!

We took this decision more seriously than we ever have with a purchase before. It was always about what car we wanted and this time it was really about what we needed. We used the equity in the truck and reduced our payments by over $100. That makes us all happy!

New Winter Accessories

2011-11-15T07:54:00.000-06:00

As I was cleaning out Abby's closet, I pulled out her cute winter hats from last year! I am so grateful this ivory hat still fits for 2 reasons... I love it on her and I'm glad her head hasn't grown much in the past year! It is a girls hat, not a little girls hat. She loves to wear it to be like Daddy!

We also have new leg warmers for dance class. It is a little chilly in the mornings before we go and these help! Don't tell Abby, but Santa is bringing her a few more pair this year! You can find cute leg warmers inexpensive on eBay!

We had a great time at dance class last week and did almost everything the other girls did. She regressed quickly when we were asked to go in the room and watch the girls to acquaint them with an audience. We'll work on that next!

Our Visit to The Abilene Zoo

2011-11-13T07:40:00.000-06:00

While we were in Abilene last weekend, we visited the zoo. Marcus took me to this zoo when we were dating and I was excited to take Abby. It is the 4th zoo we have visited in 10 months. I think we are zoo people :)

It was a little chilly when we first got there, but the wind died down and the sun shined brightly just after our arrival. It was the perfect afternoon to be outdoors!

This is a classic family photo that we'll recall years from now. It looks old with all the browns! Abby looks like such a diva in her pink and her sunglasses! We visited the zoo with our cousins and friends, Kailin, Gavin, Mikey, and Brandon.

Mimi along with a few other family members joined the kids for the zootime fun! This is inside the bird area which was stinky! Rest assured, we may be zoo people, but we are not bird people.

This is the highlight of a trip to the Abilene Zoo- I remember it so clearly from when Marcus and I were dating. You walk up this bridge and can purchase crackers to feed the giraffes.

You are about a foot taller than them and can lean down and hand them crackers.

They will gladly stick out their long tongues and take that cracker. I can't imagine how these giraffes aren't overweight!

We had such a great weekend meeting family members we hadn't seen and spending time at the zoo!

Noble Family Reunion

2011-11-11T09:28:00.000-06:00

We spent the past weekend in Abilene visiting Marcus' Mom Carol and her side of the family. They don't do reunions often, so it was nice to see everyone. Both of his grandparents are gone and we were only missing 1 cousin.

They all stayed at a hotel in Abilene and we spent the night with Carol in Marcus' hometown, about 15 minutes away. We all met for lunch on Saturday, a group of us did the Abilene Zoo and some stayed back to play dominoes and swim at the indoor pool, and then we did Gattiland for dinner and games. We said our goodbyes over the hotel breakfast on Sunday morning.

The siblings- Brian, Bruce, Carol, and Linda

The cousins- Stephen (Brian), Donna (Bruce), Jason (Linda), Nathan (Brian), Kevin (Bruce), and Marcus (Carol). They were missing Shawn, Linda's oldest son. Don't you feel for Donna growing up with all those boys! Maybe it was God's will since she has sons of her own now.

Here are the cousins with their loved ones added in! Kevin is the only single one... know any good Christian girls in San Angelo? He is a good guy!

And now, the cousins, loved ones and the kids!

It was nice to see family!

Growing Up

2011-11-09T08:03:00.000-06:00

Why didn't anyone tell me this would all happen so fast? ;) This little girl is my favorite person in all the world, but she isn't my baby anymore.

I spent this afternoon going through the baby clothes that I held back in case another miracle arrived. We are taking a few to the resale shop and giving most of them to our friend Natalie. It was hard to imagine how little she was. I kept a few significant pieces of clothing- her first day at daycare, our 6 month photo shoot, her dress for her cousin's wedding, her birth announcement shirt, her Thanksgiving dress. They were all fun to see. I won't even tell you how many shoes that little girl had!

We are taking a few things to the resale shop in hopes to pay for two new big girl things coming... her twin bed and booster seat! We took a road trip this weekend and realized Abby is getting too long for her car seat. She is well over the weight requirement for a booster seat which comes next. We are going to check in with her pediatrician and make sure we are ready for the next step.

While traveling this weekend, we came across an antique shop in little Santa Ana, Texas. They had a vintage metal bed on the side of the road in a twin size. I've always wanted a metal antique bed for Abby and couldn't ever find a twin at a reasonable price. We found it this weekend. With a little sanding and painting, it'll be perfect! We have all of her bedding from her birthday last year when I thought she was ready, so now we only need a mattress. Amazed at how expensive a twin mattress is!

Beauty School Drop Out :)

2011-11-07T16:09:00.003-06:00

Abby loves going to the beauty store, aka Pigtails and Crewcuts. I think she has learned I will give her unlimited lollipops and let her watch Dora while she sits quietly for a haircut!

Her little stacked bob was getting messy and needed to be cleaned up!

We were in and out in under 10 minutes. Abby was actually sad there wasn't a wait since she loves the big train table they have in the waiting area. Another joy of being a SAHM- haircuts on Thursday afternoon!

I love this little haircut on her, but we'll likely need to start growing it out for her dance recital. I have no idea how I would pull this back!

Gender Reveal Party

2011-11-03T16:51:00.000-05:00

I love how God brings things together in the most detailed of ways. For example, this is my friend Natalie. Her daughter Blythe has shared lots of clothes with Abby Lu since she is a few years older. We have passed those clothes down to our friend Ellie who is sharing them with Lily, born this summer.

Last week we attended a gender reveal party for Natalie's surprise 4th child and wouldn't you know, she is having a girl and her baby will be able to wear those same clothes that Natalie so generously shared years ago!

We also have held back a few tubs of our very favorite clothes just in case we had a surprise baby and have often donated them. Natalie's little girl will receive those clothes- we know God wanted us to hold them for her.

As Abby would say, "God loves a cheerful giver."

Funny People

2011-11-02T07:36:00.000-05:00

Can you tell how much these two love each other?

They make each other laugh all day long! This kid got her Daddy's sense of humor and love of entertaining. Good thing I like his sense of humor!

I can not even tell you what they were laughing about because it is always something.

I hope she finds him funny 10 years from now. :)

Halloween 2011

2011-10-31T21:18:00.002-05:00

Abby was "pink Minnie" for Halloween this year. I think that Minnie wore red when we were growing up, but she wears pink on Abby's favorite Mickey Mouse clubhouse, so red Minnie doesn't exist ;)

We really wanted to be Daisy. But that costume doesn't seem to exist for kids. Just Google it... apparently grown women love to be Daisy? Weird!

Marcus, being the world's best Dad, jumped right in to be Mickey Mouse with her. Good thing he wasn't Donald since he doesn't wear pants!

Marcus and Abby went house to house with Eva, Abby's friend from daycare and storytime. It was her first time to trick or treat and she caught on quickly! Abby did great about asking before eating- we have worked really hard with her on peanut education. We are always talking about what candy has peanuts at the grocery store check out line.

Our friend Katy sat in the driveway with me to pass out candy and pink Minnie joined us in the later evening. We ran out of candy at 8:30 and happily came inside for bath and bed. The sugar crash was well timed and Abby was out before 9.

A look back... Abby last year. That sweet baby face has been replaced by a sweet little girl.

Happy Halloween All!

Happy Halloween

2011-10-31T03:06:00.004-05:00

Love,

the BOOtiful Abby Lu

Dance Class Update

2011-10-29T08:17:00.000-05:00

So, we are still in dance class and the past 2 weeks we have seen major improvements in Abby's listening skills and her performance. Thank goodness! I seriously almost dropped her at the end of September. I don't want to pay the money or make her go if she isn't enjoying it. I also don't want her to quit things easily. We were walking a fine line!

This is Abby and Anna at lunch one day after dance class showing you their "baby face", the song they will dance to in December.

We talked to her teachers and they felt confident she was enjoying it. She would do all the moves, talk about dance all week and try to teach Marcus and I all the moves. But, in class, she stood in the corner, refused to do what she was told, and acted shy.

The past two weeks we have danced more, done what the other kids are doing (as opposed to acting like the teacher!), and even did the solo when asked.

I'm excited to see her improve each week and am proud of her for being brave!

Pictures in the Mirror Aren't Always Recommended

2011-10-28T10:43:00.000-05:00

I have decided that long sweaters and legging or skinny jeans are going to be my winter look- a long sweater can be so forgiving and it super comfy! I was in Macy's trying some on recently. I had to buy this red sweater because a red sweater is the most worn in my opinion- it works for fall, winter and into Valentine's Day. Plus, it can be a great Christmas look with dress pants. I don't like cranberry red or orange/red- I always want a true red sweater!

Then, I fell in love with this tunic! I love the black, orange and teal colors. It also have a middle eastern vibe which I thought was cool. I think it'll be great for date night- I have one of those this weekend!

I love the side of this one- do you see the robot?

Now, let's just get the cold weather here!

Weekend Away

2011-10-27T16:30:00.003-05:00

Sorry for the lame blogging- I went out of town for work and then got sick. I am still sick, but my camera was full and I had a little extra time at nap, so blogging it is!

I was in Houston for a conference and it was nice- one of the first times I traveled without crying. I always hated leaving Abby. This time, I was able to take a few days and enjoy the alone time at night, the nice meals, and shopping without a stroller!

Abby had a full weekend- they met my sister and her kids on Saturday morning to watch Cohen's football team. I think Abby was more interested in the snacks and the cheerleaders. She is seriously scared of loud noises and the football game was a lot for her to handle. She will just cover her ears and get scared.

After Tech's big win on Saturday night, Abby wore her cute TTU dress that my sister made her to church. I was told that every Red Raider at church was decked out in red and black proudly. Abby loves going to the Garden of Hope at church- she always asks if she can go see Jesus.

Sunday afternoon, she went to Madison's birthday party. Abby and Madison were in daycare together until this summer. She loved seeing her old friends and bouncing at the bounce house with them. Another b-day party with old friends this weekend!

It was nice to be away and nice knowing Abby had a fun weekend with Marcus and Nana.

Abby Said What: Babies

2011-10-21T14:21:00.002-05:00

Abby took a ride in a big buggy with her classmates in the 2 year old class during church on Sunday. While strolling, they passed the buggy of 18-24 month old kids. It is the class that Abby just left with kids almost her age. Abby announced to all of her classmates, "everyone wave at the babies".

This makes me laugh for 2 reasons:

- She is taking the role of the teacher, a common thing we see in group settings

- She is calling the other kids close to her in age "babies"

Oh Abby!

Yo Ho!

2011-10-19T17:46:00.000-05:00

Abby's newest obsession is Jake and The Neverland Pirates. It is the cutest little Disney cartoon with three good pirates that live in Neverland and fight off the evil Captain Hook.

So, we are learning all about pirates and like to yell out Yo Ho! and Argh! and recently wore a bandana to be our own pirate. As always, Daddy is happily in full character with Abby.

Sneak Peek

2011-10-17T18:04:00.000-05:00

We took our Christmas pictures last weekend and they are so stinking cute that I couldn't help myself, I posted them to Facebook the moment we got home!

Here are two of my favorites, minus my very favorite which will appear on our Christmas cards. We took them so early because we had a Group On, but it takes one less thing off my Christmas to do list. And, since I design our cards each year, my cards are done. Well, minus printing, stuffing, and addressing them.

Abby started off timid with the photographer, but then we gave her a lollipop and she had to hide it from Ashley (the photographer). It helped bring out some of her best looks. It was between her legs, under my hands, and even inside her hat!

Goodie Box

2011-10-16T16:08:00.000-05:00

Abby's Mimi sent her a Halloween goodie box and she was so excited to open it. I kept it from her until Daddy got home so that he could participate in the fun.

She loves her witch hat/headband. Thank you Mimi! Her and Daddy loved their Yoda marshamallows and stickers are always a big hit!

Thanks for making her day with fun treats Mimi!

2011 Pumpkin Patch Trip

2011-10-15T18:24:00.000-05:00

You all know I love me some pictures at the pumpkin patch! We went last Thursday with our friend Nicole and her dog, Winston. It was not crowded at all which is nice because Abby was a wild women running all over the place as I pushed an empty stroller :)

Getting a picture of her was tough this year- she doesn't sit still for long and she doesn't look at you for even less time. I'm happy I got something. We tried to get Abby and Winston together, but that was even more difficult. Both are so stinkin cute!

The pumpkins sat perfectly still for me :)

If you want to reminisce with me, here are our pumpkin pictures from 2009 and 2010.

Abby Lu's First Pedicure

2011-10-14T15:54:00.002-05:00

I was in desperate need of a pedicure. My favorite inexpensive local place has new kid-sized pedicure chairs. My friend Johnna had just mentioned how inexpensive and exciting a pedicure was for her little girl. All together, I decided Abby would get her first real pedicure today. Can you tell how special she felt? I can not express how much I love this kid!

She sat really still for a 2.5 year old and let them trim, file and paint her 10 little piggies. They even added a cute flower on her big toes. All for $6!

She told me afterward, "this is the best time ever." I couldn't agree more!

Y-M-C-A

2011-10-12T18:03:00.001-05:00

We are seriously loving the local YMCA we joined in August! I have never been comfortable in a gym until this one- it is filled with people of all ages, all weights and lots of Moms! I'm not intimidated by the people around me and have achieved greater speed on the treadmill while excited me. My personal best thus far is a 13:26 mile. I die afterward, but I've hit it!

The kids activities are awesome- Abby likes going and always tells me "I like the Y". Sometimes I go solo at night, I've taken her to childcare in the morning, and I've even worked out while Marcus and Abby play on the playground.

In January, we are enrolling Abby in soccer at the Y. It is indoor, for 3-5 year olds and FREE for members. I like free since a 3 year old may hate soccer and we last 1 week!

One more thing, and this is contradictory to the post above, Texadelphia (where this picture was taken) has free kids meals on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and 1/2 price queso these nights also. Their kids meals are awesome and include applesauce! We shared a chicken cheesesteak and queso after our workout last week.

Bullets

2011-10-11T15:33:00.000-05:00

Time for another random blog brain dump....

Abby loves her new school. She goes on Tuesday and Thursday and has started talking about her friends in school by name. She also loves her teacher, asks to pray for her, and talks about her on her non-school days. When I ask her what she learned at school on the car ride home, she most often tells me, "Jesus" or "bible". Next week we are getting a CD with her Christmas program songs on it to start practicing. I love it!
We read Bible stories at night and really get to see how smart Abby is. She knows numerous Bible stories. I am honestly learning them with her and love the time together.
Dance is not going so well. I don't know what it is- she talks about it all week and tells us what she learned, but doesn't want to go on Wednesday mornings, refuses to participate in class, and lays on the ground half the time. I spoke to her teacher and they don't want to move her down to the 2 year old class because we know she can do it, she just doesn't want to do it. Marcus is going to watch this week and see what he thinks.... she isn't shy, she isn't sad, she just makes faces in the mirror or mimics the teacher most of the time.
We took Christmas pictures Saturday morning since I had a Groupon about to expire and I love them all. Abby didn't want to play until we gave her a lollipop to hold and hide from the camera. Worked like a charm!
God's love for me is illustrated through the snugglebug he gave me. Abby and I snuggle for more than an hour a day. She will just ask if we can "snuddle". She likes the bed or the couch- it makes me so very happy. I'll be sad when she outgrows it.
I've read lots of Moms complain about their kids having opinions about their clothes recently. I still have complete closet control. I don't take it for granted.
Bedtime is getting a little better- we don't cry much, but do sneak out for books and toys. Every morning when she awakes, she walks into our bedroom and tells us, "Good Morning. I took a GOOOOOD nap." Cuteness!
Finally, we must be doing a great job with confidence. Abby walked up to the mirror in Target this weekend, looked at herself and said, "how beautiful". Love her!

Sitting Sideways

2011-10-10T17:46:00.000-05:00

My Dad always had a big recliner that was his chair when we were growing up. I distinctly remember that chair and him watching TV in it inside the back porch he converted into a TV room. I loved to sit in that chair sideways. I caught Abby doing the same thing last week.

Mind you, I was watching a fuzzy TV that was housed in a wooden case that weighed 500 pounds and required me to get up and turn the dial to see what else is on. Abby was playing angry birds on the iPad.

She was a happy girl. One day, she won't fit in the chair like that and we'll both be sad!

Playgroup

2011-10-08T15:28:00.002-05:00

We had a whole bunch of girls and 2 guys at our house on Friday morning for play and lunch. It was wild and crazy and we loved it! I dreamed of playgroups for a long time!

I work hard with Abby on being well mannered and she did a great job greeting all her friends and the door and hugging everyone goodbye. We'll keep working on the middle part- sharing our toys!

Austin Zoo

2011-10-07T07:34:00.001-05:00

Last Friday morning Abby and I met our friends Tabriah, Kiersten and Kaylinn at the Austin Zoo. We planned this day weeks ago and it turned out to be perfect weather!

The girls do so well together- we really love seeing them. Kiersten one year and a few days older than Abby and I love seeing what is next! Kaylinn is 7 months younger than Abby so they also play well together. The girls ran around the zoo, shared snacks with each other, and wanted sunglasses to be like each other. Girlfriends for sure!

The zoo is small and easily managed in a few hours. It is not fancy at all and relies heavily on the support of donors. Many of the animals have even been rescued. The pig was by far the largest I have ever seen- his ears were larger than my hands. He just grunted at us- I can't imagine what is costs to feed him each month.

For $1 they sell a sack of feed that you can give to the hoofed animals- llamas, goats, deer, etc. It was the most fun to watch the girls just giggle at the animals licking their hands. Abby came home with a shirt covered in llama slobber. Try saying that more than once!

We are officially zoo people! We have visited Waco (2 times), San Antonio, Fort Worth and now Austin. We plan to visit Abilene Zoo next month and heard Houston has a great zoo! To date, Waco is our favorite!

Cabo Trip, part 3

2011-10-06T14:13:00.000-05:00

Staying on the resort for all but 3 hours of our 6 days was a good plan!

They had a professional photographer on hand and for $15 you got a CD and 5x7 photo of your choice. Marcus and I took pictures just before the wedding on Saturday when we were dressed up. We had a couple great ones to pick from!

As you would imagine, we spent most of our time in the pool! We would get to breakfast around 8:30 (9:30 our time) and then head straight to the pool! It was nice to be there early before the rowdy guests arrived when the bar opened at 10.

By late morning, our wedding friends had arrived each day. I loved vacationing with a big group- everyone got along and you had someone else to talk with! The bride and groom (right picture below) also spent lots of time with their wedding guests. By the time the wedding came along, you knew everyone there!

One thing I did learn, I like alcohol provided it is free, frozen, fruity and in a foreign country. I have never been a big drinker, but frozen drinks poolside are delicious! I can still say I have never been drunk (not interested in that at all!), but I did enjoy drinking more than normal. My favorite- the Changuita. It was a pina colada with banana in it!

Marcus was super excited they had a hammock and he read a little in it. Old man ;)

We did venture in Cabo San Lucas one morning and toured the market where I bought Abby a Mexican dress and my Mom some Mexican vanilla and Marcus played golf one morning.

There is a pharmacia on every corner downtown and they cater to Americans without prescriptions or insurance. They had all kinds of drugs included all of the ED drugs! This old man made me laugh!

Saturday night was the beach side wedding. The bridesmaids looked beautiful in bright pink and colorful flowers. It was hot, but thankfully a little breeze from the water cooled us down.

Marcus and I commented this might be the first "adult" wedding we have attended. None of the traditional elements every 22 year old has were there. Katy and Ike shared their own vows- they were very emotional and heartfelt. The hotel did a wedding video- you can see it and here their vows here.

The reception was near the adult only pool and happened as the sun went down. Their first dance was original- Free by Zac Brown Band. The wedding party loved to dance and they ended up dancing in the fountain!

We had a wonderful vacation- so glad we went and we'd recommend Cabo to anyone!

Fun with Hats

2011-10-05T07:34:00.001-05:00

Last week while my Mom was here, we ran to the mall. I needed new running shoes and ended up buying sandals. Go figure! While Mom was looking for new sunglasses, Abby and I had a little fashion show!

One of the benefits of a child with a big head- she can wear adult hats!

We had so much fun trying on all these different hats- she even put on great big ones a-la-Kate Middleton.

I told Marcus I don't want to spend adult prices on a hat, but these would be fun 1/2 off later in the season.

Cabo Trip, part 2

2011-10-02T19:22:00.002-05:00

The way Cabo is situated on the map and the location of our resort on the peninsula meant that getting in the water was dangerous and prohibited. There is an area that you can get in the water on Cabo- it was about a mile from our resort so we didn't bother.

The waves were huge! They would gain momentum and get so tall that the weight of them would curl and then they would crash down. Our best guess is that they were 6 plus feet tall. They looked 10 feet tall to me!

Even though we couldn't get in the water, we did love hearing the waves, watching the tide come in, and walking in the white sand.

Cabo Trip, part 1

2011-10-01T16:51:00.006-05:00

Marcus and I were invited to attend the wedding of our friends Katy and Ike in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. We had never been to Cabo and were excited to spend a week relaxing in a pool. The Dreams Resort where we stayed was amazing!

We left for Cabo on the early morning flight! We flew out of Austin at 7 AM and had a short layover in Dallas before flying just under 3 hours to Cabo. Super easy and quick flight to get to a beach! I'd recommend Cabo for the ease of arrival over most any Mexican destination.

We had a suburban pick us up at the airport and drive us the 20 plus minutes to the resort. Cabo is a desert island, so there are mountains, cactus, and lots of dirt until you reach the edge where the Sea of Cortez meets the land.

The resort was amazing- beautiful Spanish style. The lobby was completely open with a series of hallways and fountains, stone designs in the flooring, and amazing views down to the pool and the sea.

They had palm trees and lush greenery all around. I can only imagine the upkeep it takes in the desert.

All of the guests in our group had suites. Marcus and I had 2 double beds- ha! The suite included a kitchenette and a small living area with a couch and desk. Our patio looked down onto the adult pool.

The pool on the left was the main pool. It was big and bright blue! It had activities at the pool throughout each day- water aerobics, paper airplanes, yoga, etc. The adult pool was much calmer with fountains, spa music, poolside massages and a softer look and feel. Both pools had swim up bars!

The resort was all inclusive- food, drinks, activities, etc. were all part of your stay. We tried each of the restaurants and enjoyed coming back to the room late afternoon to get dressed for dinner.

We dined with friends a few nights and solo a few nights. We had Asian food, Mexican food, steak and Italian.

Breakfast each morning was lavish! There was a huge buffet where you could get most anything and then enjoy the sounds of the waves and the breeze off the water. I loved these "cream cheese pillows" each morning. It was like a sugar-coated doughnut filled with cream cheese.

A sign of a good restaurant to me- a good dinner salad. I loved the presentation of the wrapped cucumber and then my caesar at the Italian restaurant was stuffed into a bell pepper ring. Genius!

More to come!

Catching Up

2011-09-30T15:26:00.003-05:00

We got back from Cabo on Monday night and have been non-stop since! I promise to post the BEAUTIFUL pictures of Cabo over the weekend- it was wonderful, we loved it, and we are trying to recover from unplugging for 6 days.

Wednesday night we went downtown to see David Crowder Band. They are on their final tour and we knew a handful of their songs. The line to get into Stubbs was so long! It ran up Red River one block and then down 9th street to IH-35 and then along the frontage road!

We met up with Ben and Kristi (my cousin) in line and saw most of the show with them. It was super humid and hot, so we left the middle of the pack with them and saw some of the show from the fringe where there was more of a breeze.

It looks like a cool night in these pictures. Pictures lie!

I do love seeing a large crowd raise their arms and worship together. Hearing everyone sing "How He Loves Us" was the experience I was wanting. It happened during the encore.

Note to future Stubb's concert goers, these are not the right shoes. My cute new sandals were filled with rocks from their hillside theater all night. Don't be cute, be smart. Tennis shoes are a must. For me, I think an air conditioned arena with my own seat is now required. I am old and I think I am okay with it.

Happy Birthday Kyleigh

2011-09-26T08:17:00.003-05:00

Happy 10th Birthday Kyleigh! We love you so much and are so proud of you!

We saw Kyleigh for a few minutes last weekend and gave her the TOMS she has been asking about for months! I love being able to give her something she really wants. I almost always get her shoes for her birthday- she knows they are coming and loves it! My kind of girl!

Have a great day sweet girl!

I'll Take Credit for This

2011-09-24T16:04:00.002-05:00

During her bath one night, Abby wore her silly bands.

She then proceeded to take them off one by one and match them to her Gabba toys.

Marcus claims he would have never matched them up by character and I'm certain I've been matching things up for a long time!

Meet Tall Man

2011-09-23T15:45:00.000-05:00

Do you remember the song "where is thumbkin?" from your childhood? Abby loves that song- they sing it at story time every week.

I had no idea there is a full 5 finger version (thumbkin, pointer, tall man, ring man, and pinky) and Marcus sings them for Abby with voices. She loves tall man and wanted to show him to me! Stinker!

Wordless Wednesday: Oh So Lady Like

2011-09-21T16:03:00.000-05:00

Guns Up

2011-09-18T16:29:00.000-05:00

I pulled out the cheerleading outfit Abby wore last year and it didn't even cover her bottom. She has seriously grown so tall over the last few months. I'm so glad she can cheer for the Red Raiders this season in another outfit we had waiting from our friend Katy and her Mom, Diane. She one is luckily long enough!

As a reference for those that don't see Abby often, when Marcus is holding her and she is eye level with him, her feet are just below his hips at the top of his thighs. I can't wait for her 3 year well check to see what they say!

Takoba Date Night

2011-09-17T19:58:00.002-05:00

Sorry for the lack of blogging the past few weeks... for the first time in almost 3 years I am just enjoying the life I am living. I don't have to cram lots of fun stuff into 2 days a week and try and blog about it all week. I am not reading as many blogs and coveting their time with their children. Our time at home can be boring and routine and while that makes for a great life, it doesn't always make for great blog content.

Parent's Night Out is back at church and Abby is finally at the age where it is fun for her, too! Marcus and I love going to dinner alone and spending only $4 for sitters. Plus, she is with her friends and enjoying crafts, pizza and snacks, and play time.

Friday night we had dinner at Takoba, downtown on East 7th. It is seriously so good- I highly recommend it. We shared grease, I mean queso, for an appetizer. Served with warm flour tortillas it was so good!

I had my favorite tacos al pastor and Marcus went all kids of funky with his dinner. He had grilled veggie tacos with guacamole and chipotle mayonnaise. Instead of rice and beans, he had Potato and Poblano soup and cactus. Weirdo! He said the cactus was spicy and just tasted really green.

He was also happy to enjoy a Lonestar on the back patio with our dinner.

Even though Abby didn't nap on Friday and we kept her out past her bedtime, she was easy and happy. Win Win for us!

Fun Times

2011-09-15T16:01:00.002-05:00

After dance class on Wednesday, we had lunch with our church friends in class with us- Anna and Hannah and their Moms, Joy and Johnna. I can not tell you how many times I wanted to be THAT Mom- eating a casual lunch with friends and Abby in my workout clothes. It was wonderful and I loved it!

When leaving Anna asked Abby to hold her hand. So sweet!

Today while Abby was at MDO, I had my hair colored. It is bright red and scares me a little. I feel like my hair is so rock and roll that it makes the rest of me seem so... easy listening. Katy assured me it will fade into the red I envision soon. I feel a little silly right now! Part of the shock is that it had been 4 months since my last color- I was a faithful every 7 weeks girl before. I think I forgot how red I was previously!

We are having a great week playing, working out, and snuggling!

Name That Skyline!

2011-09-13T12:29:00.002-05:00

I spent the weekend with my friend Andrea in Houston for a hotel sponsored familiarization trip. I attend these a few times per year- it is a chance to experience the hotel and city as my attendees would. Andrea joined me since this one was shopping-themed and Marcus and I will both be gone later this month for our trip to Cabo.

We stayed in two different hotels- both connected to shopping malls. The first place we stayed had an Italian restaurant inside and this display of grappa, a special Italian wine that they soak for more than 6 months. I am not much of a drinker, so I didn't try it. I have been told is it very strong!

On Saturday, we stayed at the Galleria mall area hotel and had this for dessert at lunch- Nutella Crepes with mint, pistachios, and strawberries. Amazing! We also had a massage on Saturday afternoon and a fun wine game and dinner that night.

It was wonderful to see Houston and it's finest hotels and shopping as a tourist and not a meeting planner!

Golf Balls

2011-09-10T12:35:00.000-05:00

We ran into Academy recently and Marcus took Abby while I shopped for some workout gear. I found them in the golf section and both had big grins on their face!

Marcus would LOVE for Abby to want to play golf with him. I think most Dads think about that and her interest in playing "golf balls" gave him hope!

She was so excited when she would get the ball in the hole- she raised her arms in excitement!

She also practiced lifting weights with Marcus and this is her strong face- ha!

We had a child-sized set of plastic clubs, balls and holes that we finally pulled out for her. She has played "golf balls" a few times since.

Weight Loss Update and Our Morning

2011-09-09T09:26:00.003-05:00

Since joining our local YMCA about a month ago, we have loved going! Sometimes Abby and I go in the morning, I go during naptime on the weekends or we meet Marcus there when he gets off work. Abby will act shy when being checked into childcare and then it playing and laughing within minutes. She'll even tell you "I love the Y" when we are leaving. She likes to rub Marcus' arm after we workout and tell him "You are sweaty sweaty sweaty".

The fact that they had face painting on Thursday may have something to do with her affinity for the place!

Since doing the HCG diet in May, I have not gained a single pound back and lost even more. This morning I weighed in 20 pounds lighter than I did on April 25, 2011 when I started. Exciting! Between the diet and starting working out after years, my metabolism is really responding! I am running more than I have in my whole life and starting to enjoy it. I ran my fastest 5K and did my fastest mile in the last week. It feels good.

I also think being home it good for caloric intake. I eat less because we are busy and we eat out less because it is no longer in the budget.

Since it was nice this morning, Abby and I walked to the local park (about 1 miles round trip) so that she could play. She was super excited! We took the frisbees (disc golf) and had them go night night. Her imagination amazes me! We checked on them while we were playing and even had to whisper around them.

We came back before it heated up and she did puzzles while watching Mickey Mouse and eating breakfast. Have you tried the Apple Streusel bread at HEB? It is in the bread aisle with red border on the wrapper- really good! Abby calls it cake bread.

We are having a lazy morning and then it is off to lunch at Chick-fil-A and then I am headed to Houston for the weekend and Marcus has lots of fun planned for Abby including a reunion weekend with her baby friends!

First Day of School

2011-09-07T15:36:00.002-05:00

Abby started her Mother's Day Out (MDO) program on Tuesday morning. We have really been talking up her new school and her new teacher Ms. Nicci (pronounced Nikki). She was excited to go on the first morning.

We selected a small Baptist church near our house and even drove Abby through the parking lot on Sunday night to help prepare her. She did just fine on drop off- a small little fit, but she was laughing during it. It is like she doesn't care to make a fit, but finds it funny. She can wear me out!

She was there for 4 hours. In that time, I worked out and then drove into NW Austin to have a couple of meetings and do some work. I grabbed lunch in the car while checking emails and then picked her up at 1:30. She is a late napper, so I didn't expect her to have slept during the allotted nap time and she didn't. She must have lost her listening ears that morning because she was a little toot during pick up. She threw herself on the floor in the hallway and other parents had to step over her with their sweet children to leave the building. I was told she "had some hard listening moments". Oh dear Lord!

We talk a lot about listening and obeying in this house and it is our #1 struggle. I am certain it is the #1 struggle of most every 2 year old, but it is pretty bad when it is yours at the exact moment all other kids are being sweet.

Fingers crossed we have a better time tomorrow! Pray for me please ;)

Katy's Bachelorette Weekend

2011-09-06T09:57:00.001-05:00

I went to Shreveport Louisiana last weekend to celebrate our friend Katy who is getting married later this month in Cabo. I have hesitated blogging about this weekend- it wasn't exactly G rated. :)

Katy will surprise you- she is beautiful and that can be intimidating. But, then you spend 5 minutes with her and you realize how nice she is and you try and set aside all of your judgments about pretty girls that you formed in high school. That isn't just me, right?

We had a wonderful time with great Cajun food, top notch people watching, a relaxing 5 hours by the pool, a little gambling and some stories that you'd have to be there to understand.

It was fun to be with 6 girls and have no drama- pretty amazing! We laughed a whole lot about the old man trying to hit on the middle aged women, the Seniors in scooters in the casinos, and the drunken stupidity of some people.

I had a wild weekend with some great girls and then happily returned to my normal life of sippy cups, iced tea and Mickey Mouse.

It is Here!

2011-09-05T11:12:00.002-05:00

I am so glad football season is here! Abby was all decked out in her Red Raider gear on Saturday! She has some cute red and black this season thanks to our friend Blythe. This little dress is super soft and comfy!

Check out Raider red on the bloomers. Love it! We are hoping to do a game at the end of the season, but don't think we'll take Abby just yet. I think the noise would scare her and I hate to spend money and a weekend on an experience that she'll hate.

Saturday evening we also hosted our fantasy football draft. Always fun! We had 7 adults with laptops around the dining room and living room drafting for our league this year. This time of year holds so much promise- we are all thinking our team is a winner!

The party isn't complete without yummy food- Heather brought this bacon cheese pull apart bread she found on Pinterest. Divine!

Happy Football Season!

Big Girl Bed, part 2

2011-09-04T15:44:00.000-05:00

While in South Austin last week, I was on the hunt for toddler sized sheet set and blanket. Abby has been in her "big girl bed" for a few weeks, but we were still using the baby blankets we'd used since she arrived. She would complain her feet were cold or she needed help covering her arms. She also would be uncovered most mornings.

I had the hardest time finding a flat sheet! I didn't want to use twin sheets and have her end up with bunched up covers because everything was way too big! Buy Buy Baby had white sheet set and then I bought a really soft and plain blanket at Pottery Barn Kids.

She has slept so much better in her new covers! Yeah! I love that she is snuggly in her bed, can adjust her covers on her own, and we can truly tuck her in at night.

Storytime Buddies

2011-09-03T07:30:00.000-05:00

Eva, Madeline and Abby see each other at storytime pretty often. Marcus and Abby go most every weekend and sometimes both Eva and Madeline come too. Abby and Eva were in daycare together as babies and now, Eva and Madeline are in school together. Madeline's Mom and I have been friends for 5 years and we have gotten to know Eva's parents in the last year.

We love talking about these girls- their traits, sleeping habits, eating habits, personalities, and our choices and struggles as parents. It is so nice to talk with other parents!

I love seeing that Madeline is getting as tall as the other girls, Eva isn't shy for the camera, and my child is "not ready for her close up". We all described her as a toot for refusing the smile! A couple of the pictures she is covering her mouth with her hands to avoid smiling. We'll keep working on that :)

South Austin Trip

2011-09-02T15:32:00.002-05:00

My Dad and Jacque are back after 5 months up north and Abby and I spent most of Thursday with them. We left at nap time and thus no good pictures could be taken. Abby was being a stinker! But, she had fun with them running and playing and showing them all her tricks. They gave her some fruit snacks and a stuffed beaver from her trip which sealed the deal- she loves visiting them! I love that with both my parents retired and living less than 2 hours away, we can visit them most anytime.

Since we were in South Austin (45 minutes away), we went to four stores I love that we don't have any closer- Buy Buy Baby, Home Goods, Nordstroms, and Pottery Barn Kids. We didn't buy anything at Nordy's, but Abby did love trying on the bracelets.

We had a package waiting for us when we got home- Abby's new silver TOMS. They are so stinkin' cute and I love that they led to a conversation about some kids not having shoes and how Abby gave a pair to another kid. We are always looking to bring home the message of "God loves a cheerful giver."

Momma's Dream- Dance Class!

2011-08-31T18:48:00.002-05:00

This little girl lived one of her Momma's dreams from about 3 years ago when I knew I was having a girl- she wore a delicate pink leotard, tutu, tights and ballet slippers for her first dance class.

When I put her tights on her, she kept rubbing her legs. The whole ensemble... you could tell she felt pretty. She just lit up with excitement. I had hoped that would carry her into a new experience and she'd blend right into her first dance class. Not so much!

I have been assured her behavior was normal and I don't need to reevaluate our participation. She was unsure of herself and her place in the class. She was sad faced and biting on her hand most of the time, a nervous habit she has. When she saw me in the window watching, she would smile and blow me kisses. They did a little tap, a little ballet, and a little gymnastics.

She didn't really do any of it. She sat in the Assistant Teacher's lap for most of class. But, when I asked her about it, she was excited, said she danced and she wants to go back. I can be shy in big groups and often seek out my close friends while hesitating to meet new people. Marcus doesn't like change and prefers consistency. I think she has a little of those traits and we are continually working to lovingly push her into new situations to keep her growing.

I'm certain she'll do better next week and likely be comfortable by week 3. I'll keep you posted!

Oh Happy Day

2011-08-30T18:30:00.002-05:00

I had step 2 of my root canal at 8 AM this morning. While I was there, Marcus and Abby played at McDonald's and bought me flowers. I was a little freaked out- we don't have spare money for flowers until I saw that he got them 1/2 off. I love my $7.50 flowers even more!

We ran to Hobby Lobby before lunch to get a baby shower gift and then had lunch with our friends Joey and Owen. I used to work with their Mom Judy and our kids had never met. Abby wasn't nervous around new friends and was super talkative. But, she was scared to death of the CFA playground? She doesn't like big groups of fast kids on playgrounds. I'm sure she'll grow out of it, but currently it seems to really frighten her. Judy offered the kids a Starburst if they'd take a photo and Abby talked about that piece of candy all afternoon!

A couple of months ago, I bought the Mom Agenda that I had seen online and recommended by bloggers. I'll be honest- I hate it. The columns are too narrow and there are too many sections that don't make sense for me. PLus, it isn't spiral bound and starts the week with Monday. Overall, I hated it and the thought of using it for 15 more months.

Today, my new Erin Condren planner arrived and I am overjoyed with planning excitement. I ordered it 3 weeks ago- she became very popular really quickly with a groupon type deal and several bloggers expressing their love for her. I totally see why! Mine arrived today and I just love it!

It is sprial bound, really colorful, personalized and she included a cute little round paperclip for the current week. The color pattern is beautiful and so much fun!

Erin also included sweet goodies- gift tags and shipping labels with our name on them! Plus, she sent me $25 off, $10 off and 2 10% off coupons.

If you are shopping for a planner, check this one out!

I was so glad Abby took a long nap so that I could get my new planner all filled out. I'm a dork, I know. Marcus told me. ;)

Abby Said What: Poop and My Finger

2011-08-30T09:50:00.001-05:00

Marcus and I died laughing on the way to dinner Friday night.

From the backseat, Abby says, "Daddy, do you need to go poop?"

Marcus nicely replies, "no baby I don't need to go poop"

Abby then says, "but Daddy, I smell you."

For the record, it was a skunky smell outside the car, but I love that she assumed it was him!

She also has gotten into the habit of pointing to things that she wants us to see; however, she hasn't quite figured out how that works because she is always telling us, "look what is on the end of my finger" instead of "look at that dog across the street I am pointing at". You end up looking at her finger and trying to decide what she is pointing at. Silly girl!

Learn About Jesus

2011-08-28T19:09:00.003-05:00

This Sunday was promotion Sunday at church and Abby moved out of the nursery and into the 2 year olds class. You move into your class for the school year once you are 2 and Abby wasn't 2 on September 1 of last year. She is in a new hallway and her new class has lessons each week, projects, and a fun soft play area to run around in!

We always tell her we are going to our classroom to learn about Jesus and this week we told her she got a new big kid room where she can learn about Jesus, too!

Her favorite teachers from the old class promoted with her, so she was excited and went right into her new room. With many of the same friends and teachers, it was an easy transition. I can't wait to hear what she learns and see her artwork each week. The volunteer during the second hour told us she was so talkative and funny. Glad to know she wasn't shy in her new setting!

I pray she learns about who Jesus is and how many He loves her each week.

Celebration Dinner

2011-08-28T11:40:00.000-05:00

We had a celebration dinner Friday night, after my last day of work in the office. It was surreal to change my voicemail, shut my office door, and drive away at 4:55 Friday. I was so excited to pick up Abby. I have never seen her in such a good mood!

I feel like she knows so much more than we think. When I told her it was her last day, she said, "No school. No church. No Starbucks. I get Mommy all day." I love her honesty- we'll just have to work on the church part. ha!

She also told her friend Eva's Mom at storytime on Saturday when asked about staying home with Mommy, "Yes and I love it". Amazing.

We had a fun celebration dinner with a strawberry mojito, hummus, pizza, and ice cream for dessert. Every celebration needs ice cream to be legit!

First of Many Playdates

2011-08-27T11:21:00.000-05:00

We spent Tuesday and Thursday afternoon with our little friend Kiersten (one year older than Abby) and Kaylinn (just turned 2). Their Mom, Tabriah, is a childhood friend of mine and my freshman college roommate. They recently built a new home about 10 minutes away and we discovered this week that our girls play well together.

We played at their house on Tuesday and in the back yard where we made an impromptu waterpark with all of their fun toys.

Thursday, we played at the neighborhood pool. Both times, Abby throw a big fit when it was time to leave.

Thanks girls for having us over- we'll host and share all our toys (hopefully as well as you did) real soon!

My Last Day

2011-08-26T07:58:00.001-05:00

Today is my last day in the office, possbily for the rest of my life. I thought I'd do a little list of things I will miss and things I won't miss.

Working part time from home, I will most certainly miss:

Work Clothes. I love a good pair of black pants, a fun top, and black heels. I'll have to save those clothes for church and a nice date night.
Lunch Hours. I could run 4 errands and grab lunch on my lunch hour. I'll miss the productivity that comes from being alone. I'll also miss long lunches with old friends or Marcus at sit-down restaurants that don't serve kids meals or have a playground. I am hoping to fit these in while Abby is at MDO (Mother's Day Out) every now and then.
Sick Days. Yea, I haven't seen those covered in my new benefits package. I'm guessing they look like Mickey Mouse Clubhouse marathons on the couch.
Uninterrupted Time. I spent a lot of time quietly at my desk at work. I got my job done and had time to look at Facebook, the news, blogs, etc. I might sit down for 5 minutes in a row at my new desk when Abby isn't napping or at MDO.
My Paycheck. Marcus and I have been fortunate to have made a nice living and I've enjoyed buying what I want just about anytime I've wanted it. We've always had a loose budget until now. Getting paid every single Friday plus a bonus check each month is a thing of the past. We have to stretch our money and be smart with the extras.

But, I also know the rewards in my new job aren't measured in the same way and they will come through smiles, hugs, warm meals, and relaxing weekends for all of us. I won't miss:

Limited Time with Abby. In total, during the week, I was with Abby for about 3 hours per day. That is enough time to parent the basics- potty, dinner, bath, bed, but left little time for playing, projects or character building. It was really left up to her teachers at school and that has never sat well with us.
Weekends spent on the move. With such limited time during the week, I spent most Saturdays at the grocery store and most Sundays in the laundry room. I love the idea that after going out of town for the weekend, we can recover on Monday, not the next 3 nights after work.
The Unsettling Feeling of Trying to Do it all. I'm tired of being Mom, Wife, Employee, Boss, etc. I want my work to be reflected in my home, my marriage, and my child. I want to have the energy each day to invest in the people I most love and not prioritize the people who pay me above the people who love and need me.
Getting Up and Ready. I love that Abby and I can watch a little TV in the morning, snuggle until 9, eat breakfast in our jammies, and stay that way if we want to. I wake up early easily, but really prefer a few hours to fully wake up before I have to shower and get dressed.

I truly believe that in life you have time or money. Finding the right balance of the two can lead to a happy life. When one gets out of wack, life is out of wack. I know the Lord has prepared this path for me- I will learn to live with less money and will make the most of my new found time. I used to think my friends were crazy for driving across town to save $2. I get it now- I'll go on an adventure with Abby to save $2.

Satan has really attacked us this past month- in the area we most fear with this change- finances. We've replaced 4 tires, have 2 more to replace, spent close to $1000 on our AC unit, and I have an awful dental treatment plan that needs funding. While it is stressful I also know that this is God's will and that is why Satan is unhappy with me. He lost a playmate.

I expect good days and bad days. Temper tantrums and snuggle sessions. After 2 years of praying and 5 1/2 months of knowing today is the day, I am grateful, elated, and blessed beyond measure. Thank you for praying for this day with me!

Knee Update

2011-08-25T19:21:00.003-05:00

If you hadn't read the knee post from earlier this week, go here.

For those who called, texted, facebooked, etc.... Abby is walking again today. When given the choice of medicine, no story time and no swimming this morning or try walking, we were suddenly able to walk.

I truly think she hurt her knee yesterday morning and then the fear of the pain was worse than the pain. Wednesday was hard- we had a 35 pound baby that needed to be carried everywhere or crawl. Try taking a toddler that won't stand to the potty.... every 2 hours. I have a much greater respect for parents of adult children that need extra care. I was worn out. Probably didn't help that I had a root canal yesterday. Fun times in our house.

Anyway, this morning we walked carefully while always holding my hand and by this afternoon we were running, jumping and hopping all around. Thank goodness- I really didn't want to call in sick on my last day in the office or my "retirement" lunch with some of my favorite girls.

Toodles!