A Journey from Hope to Grace

October 31, 2011: Happy Halloween

2012-01-27T23:51:00.000-06:00

Sweet spider shirts for Museum school Monday....

Then we headed to B-town to trick or treat with my parents! The "real" costume reveal...

Alice and her little late bunny:) Pierce was seriously too precious for words. He kept running and would say " Im late, Im late for a very important date" sweet boy got really into "character". It doesnt hurt the tiny rabbit always gets extra candy because he's cute!

We had so much fun and the kids got SO much candy! It was crazy but they loved it and so did we!

October 26th-30th, 2011: I have an issue buying costumes #hindsights 20/20 # I'll do better, promise.

2012-01-27T23:43:00.000-06:00

October 26: Dance Halloween and Mom's League party!

Love my beautiful Tiana:)

For the Mom's League even it was Bel's turn to be Pierce's accesory:) They were both race car drivers!

My favorite tiny piggy Sweet Sable Rose:)

October 27: Strawberry Shortcake and Superman go to preschool!

We all know I like coordinating costumes. However, I played the good mama building independence role and let the people pick their costumes.

Bel's class had an official party. P's class didnt but I was still able to snag this cute group shot...

"mickey down"

Bel's class...

October 28: Revenge of the nerds Tarafied party!

and Simon in the "dog house".

October 29th: Boo at the Zoo with Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolfe!

My shy girl RAN to the stage...sweet baby:)

October 30th: My not so fabulpous witch and Superman revisited.

I made this for Bel. Not a 'real' costume but still took time energy etc and she put it on, looked at me and said " this does not make me feel fabulous"...seriously child. Grr.

super cooperative children:)

We all had a great time at Avery's super fun 5th birthday party! ( even if she didnt feel fabulous)

October 22-25th, 2011: Im tired from just looking at it all:)

2012-01-27T23:10:00.000-06:00

October 22: Dinosaur World with Poppy and Grandma

October 23: Granbury festival on the square ( small towns have a lot) and Ice skating

October 25: Some vintage Bellabowz creations and the Gateway Fall festival

I LOVE this sweet dress:) Part of the bonus of making Bels clothes is I know there wont be 10 kids in the same thing...this is no exception as I only made 3 ( Bel, Sailer and Sable) and the fabric is from a few years ago! Genius:) Plus she'll wear it next year!

Dorothy, the Scarecrow and the 'horse of another color' poor Gus is not exempt from the insanity.

Notice the Lion candy basket...Rick is brilliant sometimes!

We found Ben, Ty Ty and Sailer

Too funny...people stopped Bel to take their picture with her. 2 different people...crazy!

Pierceys first time getting his face painted!

10.20.2011: Western Day at SLC!

2012-01-17T18:19:00.000-06:00

The kidlets enjoyed western day! Pony rides and a petting zoo made for 2 happy babies! This is also the day Pierce's obsession with cowboy boots!

For some reason we didn't get a picture of P's class but it was a super fun day and the kids loved every second of it!

10.19.2011: State Fair Fun with the grandparents!

2012-01-17T18:08:00.000-06:00

Today we headed to the state fair to spend some time with Rick's parents! It was a fun day! The best part for the kidlets was riding the DART there (2 y/o and a train...need i say more?) and the best part for us was of course the beautiful October weather and the food! It was a fun day!

That is one happy boy..he got a corn dog!

and this is how we know we are done:)

when they lay themselves down for naps you know you've had a long day:)

10.17.2011: Museum School Monday Squrriels

2012-01-10T16:02:00.000-06:00

Love these sweet friends:)

10.16.2011: Ice Dancer:)

2012-01-10T15:58:00.000-06:00

Today my girl started ice skating lessons. Turns out shes a natural and was moved to Tot 2 today as well. Sister is coordinated. Im not sure where that comes from but ill take it!

Brother can't figure out why he can't do it yet and could be heard screaming " I big too" through the class....ice skating might be great for her but it is brutal for him ( and me)! 7 weeks to go:)

10.15.2011: It's a CRAZY world with these 2!

2012-01-10T15:52:00.000-06:00

After spilling 1500 rhinestones on the floor the people decide Gus needed to be spiffed up a bit...so he got rhinestones. Praise Jesus they didn't find the spray adhesive or we would be in serious bedazzled dog trouble.
and never mind my son is in a super woman costume...some battles you just don't fight since clearly there are others worth more around here:)

10.14.2011: Happy Birthday Garrison!

2012-01-10T15:46:00.001-06:00

10.13.2011: Circus time!

2012-01-10T15:45:00.000-06:00

I spent the morning making the people outfits for the circus! I think they turned out super cute!

Every once in a while I get one totally unprompted picture of my two being sweet. Their love for each other is something I pray will continue even into the teenage years.

She looks so tiny!

The new rule- if you buy them cotton candy you must feed it to them:)

Family picture:) It was an awesome time with my parents and the tiny people! We are a family who loves the circus!

10.12.2011: Dance day

2012-01-10T15:37:00.000-06:00

Look at my uncooperative ballerina:)

10.10.2011: Museum School Monday- Snakes

2012-01-10T15:35:00.000-06:00

I love creating shirts for the crazies at Museum school. It's the one time a week i can do what i want! Plus, I dont think i could find cuter models!

10.09.2011: "Wook I got muskles"

2012-01-10T15:30:00.001-06:00

10.08.2011: nash Farm with friends

2012-01-10T15:29:00.000-06:00

Today we met our neighbors and Lifegroup friends for some fun animal petting, hay riding, pumpkin throwing fun!

11.15.2011: Are you kidding me?

2011-11-16T00:55:00.000-06:00

Today between preschool drop off and Thanksgiving feasts x2 and a small school party for the birthday girl, Rick and I headed to meet Dr. K. Fun times!

If you start at the beginning it went like this:

Drop Kidlets at school in Southlake- 9am
Hightail it to down town Ft. Worth to meet Dr. K at 9:30- get there to find out they moved my appointment to 12...score..one frustrated mama makes the 30 minute hike back to Southlake in just the knick of time.
Pierce's feast- he was the cutest pilgram you've ever seen but you'll have to trust me on that until I get caught up
Bella's Feast- We had to leave about 5 minutes into hers but we left her with Grandma! Im not sure who loved the one on one time more!
Since I knew I couldnt make it back for Bella's cupcakes at school I left my mom with a camera. I forgot to leave the memory card though...i was flustered:) story. of. my. life.

Sometime right before noon we arrive back in down town at Dr. K's new office. For those who've been reading for a long time...his office isnt red anymore. Ill have to find the ranting post about that. It's int he beginning somewhere (Feb 2007ish).

Since Im an established patient we skipped the paperwork and headed strait to the consult room. Dr. K remembered us, or just read are chart before hand, but was very kind and asked about Bel. I told him she'll be 4 next week and didn't even cry! We also got to surprise him with Pierce:) That was happy.

After discussion about where we have been, where we are now ( from a we'll go gun ho with this or be more reserved) he talked about what he thought the problems could be.

We know somethings for sure:
1. My angry uterus clearly works as I have 2 beautiful kidlets.
2. Clomid makes this girl INSANE. There are no other words. He's agreed to go a different route especially since 3 rounds didn't work.
3. He's pretty sure i do ovulate since im a clockwork kind of girl. Meaning the clomid was pretty much a moot point and i was a lunatic for "fun".

After a brief look on my old test results I still have MTFHR which is just another prescription for the super vitamins and shots when i get pregnant. Woo. FREAKING. Hoo. ( Im full of sarcasm today huh) so at least if we can get my girl parts in gear i can stay pregnant.

Then he looked at a test they do to measure egg reserve. It is a combo thing. 4 almost 5 years ago my antral follicle count was 7 and 3 ( not great but not so low he wasn't hopeful). My fsh was mediocre at best.
Since today is day 1 of my cycle ( super TMI but way to go for planning) we went ahead and did the antral follicle count again. It was no bueno. This time it was 2 and 1. At this rate ill be in menopause before many of my friends. So my eggs are old and rotten. Seriously, I am 29. My eggs are 40. It SUCKS.
Dr. K as great and positive as he tries to be is also super honest. So he told us it isn't impossible but it's not going to be easy. Essentially, since we do have 2 kids it almost makes it harder. On one hand we know what it is like to be around such amazing little people. On the other we have 2 to enjoy and the emotional and financial stress will affect them in some ways. It's a rock and a hard place. We know our family isn't done yet. I just feel it. However we have a huge heart for adoption, so there is part of me that believes maybe the time has come sooner than later and money spent on fertility treatments could be put toward that instead. Who knows...there is a lot of prayers for us to be praying right now. Wisdom, understanding, acceptance to His control over our lives. It's time for us to be obedient even if it isn't an easy decision or what we want.

For now we are going to finish the rest of the testing. Today an ultrasound and bloodwork to test egg quality. Next week( on our anniversary and Bel's birthday- dont you love timing) an HSG. Then we wait for everything to come back and see whats next.

Our game plan for now is IUI. Dr. K said he'd be comfortable with 1 cycle before suggesting IVF. He said honestly there is no point in wasting time or money- which I wholeheartedly agree with.

I never thought id be in this place. Im sad. Im angry. I hurt and ache for something that just might never be. I do have hope and I know our family isn't complete. For now I will just surrender my will to Him and be obedient whether its how i would have done it or not. But man...that is hard. So hard.

Real Life Blooging: The next step in the Journey

2011-11-14T21:27:00.000-06:00

It's funny for me to think this blog that is so much about life and love started with loss. It started with hurt and fear of the unknown. So as I sit here and we are back in that place it sort of feels- okay. Like at very least this time we know the journey ends in life, happiness and babies.

It wasn't but 6 years ago I figured out it doesn't always end in babies. Our first miscarriage devastated me. It shook me to the core, the second one hurt but more than anything just made me numb. Annelise, well, she changed me. Then another miscarriage and our infertility journey began. It was short and we ended up with a great set of doctors and a healthy baby Cupcake Princess to call our own. Success. 9 months later my womb was overflowing with our sweet Master P...it was then that I thought " wow we won the battle".

Funny how when we started this journey to #4 I never imagined we'd be on the same winding road. I'm honestly not sure how I feel about it all. I almost want to say this go around has been harder on me. Why, because now I know how amazing the gift of a child is. How I don't really just want a baby, though that's what i tell myself. I want the life. I want the cranky teething 9 month old, the independent toddler. I want the shy 7 year old and the teenager that makes me want to drink hard liquor at the start of the day because he is just that hardheaded. I want it all.

I made the mistake of posting on facebook about how hard it was to walk into Bella's class where all but two moms are pregnant. I am one of the two. It sucks. I'm not unhappy for those women. I am jealous and envious and so sad to hear them complain about how hard it is...because I would give ANYTHING to be pregnant right now. Needless to say there were some comments about " be grateful you have 2 kids some have none" etc. It really just made me angry. Just because my heart aches for another child to love doesn't mean i am ungrateful for the two i have. Just because i want another child more than words can explain doesn't mean I don't hurt or understand those who have none. I just hurt, like they do, for a need you can't just "fix".

Tomorrow we head back to Dr. K ( Click here for our first meeting 4 years ago). I'm scared and calm and really okay. Rick and I had to really think before truly heading down this road again. I mean, it was pointed out already, we do have 2 kids. After A LOT of prayer and even more sit downs with just the two of us, we know our family isn't complete. We feel it. What we do not know is to what degree we will pursue this. Four years ago if we had to we'd go balls to the wall and be totally okay with it. Now, we aren't in that place anymore. This time we are seeing Dr. K after almost a year of being back on my meds and 3 unsuccessful rounds of clomid. ( 3 months of pure HELL you really do not want me to share). It was awful. This time, I'm not ovulating my angry uterus is REALLY angry and now my ovaries aren't even cooperating and it makes me SO mad.

This journey is different. It's marred by knowing how wonderful the end result is. It is also racked with guilt knowing any money spent on something to expand our family takes away from the two precious gifts we have now. It means knowing there will be moments we have to choose between the two, our future and our present. It means walking this path and understanding that loss might happen again, that it will hurt but also we can overcome it. It means completing our family instead of starting it. It means we've come full circle and are ready to do this again. It means there will be lots of tears and leaning on friends who won't have the 'right' words to say or who even really understand but just knowing they care will make it better.

So once again I ask for your prayers, from you my virtual friends. We find ourselves back on this road. It has lots of twists and turns but this time we know the end is more rewarding than the pain.

10.07.2011: Super Hero Birthday

2011-11-04T22:00:00.000-05:00

Today we met up with our friends to celebrate Hudson and Harper! Baby Harper is 2! Crazy! My spidey heroes loved every second of it! Katie did an amazing job but my favorite part was the late night decorating with our crew! It was an awesome party!

10.06.2011: Firetruck Day

2011-11-03T14:19:00.000-05:00

Today was a HUGE very important day for the kidlets, mostly Pierce, but still. Today the 'firemans' came to school to teach the kids about fire safety. Let me tell you we are all proficient at 'stop, drop and roll" in this casa! Piercey is obsessed with firetrucks! He loves them!

Thankfully his class is on the younger side so he didn't have to wait very long!

Sweet boy waiting patiently...

this picture makes me laugh because there is a little girl pinching P's cheeks...we learned from Mrs. Celina that P is quite the ladies man ( too funny). We did ask P who is friends were at school. To which he told us " Mrs. Celina...she's so pretty"...i think he might only have eyes for her!

and more waiting...

HIs sweet little class...Mrs. C is on the left!

After some exploration and talking to the 'firemans' it was time for Bella to see the firetruck!

Her class! I'm not sure there are enough words to describe her amazing teachers and this school. It's a blessing for them to be there and we are so grateful!

Both kids LOVED firetruck day! After school we headed with Naoma, Sophia and Micheal to the pumpkin patch but the battery on the camera died so no pictures! Just know we had a blast!

10.04.2011: continued with a little "milestone"

2011-11-03T13:59:00.000-05:00

My little loveys, you know those kidlets who bring me nothing but joy they ended the day with a "fun" milestone of sorts.

Let's preface with they are 3 and 2 and it was bound to happen sometime. Today after many talks on "danger" and we don't touch mommies scissors it happened...i was sewing, looked up and out the window to see Bella use my good, extra sharp fabric scissors to whack of her brothers spikes....

Notice the hunk out of the (his) right side. Thankfully he's got enough calics it isn't terribly noticeable.

It was then that the scream of NOOOOOOOO and me jumping out the door that i saw Bella take her ponytail and whack off the length below the rubber band.

Incidentally, baby girl gave herself a mullet. Thankfully she wears big bows and no one is the wiser. As long as she wears her hair exactly the same until it grows out we will be good...

It could be worse...alas...another milestone checked off the list.

10.04.2011: Just another school day!

2011-11-03T11:03:00.000-05:00

I wish these pictured turned out better but alas we were running behind and just had to go! I'm not sure I could love these little people anymore. They are JOY pure and simple.

10.01.11: Happy Birthday MamaTam

2011-10-23T22:55:00.000-05:00

Today we headed to MamaTam's surprise party! She really thought we all forgot about her:) The kids sported their first Bellabowz wear! I'm super proud of this dress...it was a sewing class creation and while it's cute I'll never make another one!Ha! p's shirt is jsut an applique but a cute one:)

All the ladies that drive Poppy crazy:)

Pierceys favorite part were the "MamaTams on a stick" he thought these balloons were the best thing ever!

After the party ( we forgot the during pics so those will ahve to do) we headed to Garrison's ballgame! He scored a triple! GOOOOOOOO Garrison!

It was a super fun day!

09.30.2011: First visit to the Patch:)

2011-10-23T22:43:00.000-05:00

Let the holiday wear begin:) If i planned right you'll only see each shirt once although some have made a reapparence from last year! It's one of the many bonuses of Bellabowz:) I really do love dressing the kidlets for the holidays! Today we met Bel's old playgroup ( remember Rugrat Tuesdays?) at the pumpkin patch! We still meet every Friday but we miss a lot since Friday is our only day this year without scheduled activity. It turns out we really our a crew who needs one PJ day a week!

Today we met the Rugrats at the patch and sported our gear! It was super fun! The kids are finally old enough to a) not need a stroller ( WOO HOO) and b) do the fun stuff like corn maze! It's kind of bittersweet but Rick and I are having fun doing "big kid stuff". Sigh.

LOVE my sweet kids!

I cannot begin to believe he is 2. Im not sure how the time managed to move faster than it did with Bel but it has....he talk like a 5 year old and is just such a boy now...my baby is gone:(

this cracks me up...about half of every picture session we have ends up like this....he is just so curious!

After playgroup we headed to Octoberfest int he town square....

then ended the day with ice cream!

They are unbelievable!

Let the holiday wear begin!

He is good

2011-10-21T20:30:00.001-05:00

Today we received the call that the VP of the corporation Rick works for went to bat for him, a rarity in these economical times. In general no one will take the risk. We are so blessed that this man has not only transferred Rick to a different team but also as of this afternoon reinstated full benefits and pay. We were originally told ( this morning) with a transfer it would be a lower ( by 50% salary) and while it is for sure better than funemployment it wasn't going to be easy.

So that call tonight was a blessing and an answer prayer.

My faith is strong but I cannot tell you how much this week shook me. It was a bleak path and it really rocked me to the core. I haven't had the "why God" prayer in a long time, since Annelise at least, but this week you could find me on me knees asking just that. I understand God is in control, never more so than right now. I get it but I still struggle with the constant why. My family of four has been through more than most people have in a life time. It just doesn't make any sense. Then I realize once again I will never know why, it is His bigger picture and I am just living this life for Him. One day when I'm holding my sweet girl again I'll ask Him but it won't be until then i get a chance.

Everything that happens in our life on Earth is writing our story. I just pray that through our struggles we can live and tell our testimony in a way to reach others. That even through losing Annelise, finacial struggles and worries, through infertility we've had God. He's carried us through the bleakest portions of our lives. He loves us. He wants the best for us. He gave his only Son so we could be saved. Amazing.

Through the bleak, the dark, the rainbows and the sunshine God is good. He is good.

Real time blogging!

2011-10-18T12:04:00.003-05:00

On days when I am reminded I have no control for my own life, when life is more than hard but seemingly unbearabl, I choose to remember God is good in every season of life. The hard times and the easy times God is good.

Today I find comfort in a virtual world where I can ask strangers to cover my family in prayer. God knows the situation but if you could pray for our wisdom, strength and continued leaning on Him when we really just want to be mad and angry, I would be grateful. It says in Matthew 18:20 where two or more are gathered in My name I am with them. I believe that and I trust in God and that he can make this better. It is nothing but a simple reminder we really aren't in control, He is. So this is a mere bump in the road but it's left us shaky at best. A little shocked and mostly sad. A new opportunity for our family may be on the horizon, please pray for God's will. We will know Friday.

So when we are at rock bottom it doesn't hurt to list all the things you're grateful for to make life seem a little bit more bearable:

Piercey's sweet laugh and "oh Mans"
Bella's precious giggle and her I love yous at just the right time.
A strong Godly husband.
a mom to run home to when I need a hug
friends who know something is wrong and simply say " let's pray" in the parking lot.
fall days
pumpkin smells
a growing business that will once again be the sole support of our family
A faith that continues to grow and comfort me in our times of need.
Chicken express
early morning when Bella snuggles between us in bed and shortly after when P comes in with demands of milky and snuggles with sissy
how my two babies love each other with such ferocity they stop the crowds to hug after spending time apart.

Today I am grateful for those things and tomorrow I will be better, stronger. For now I am sad, mad but still trusting in God because He is Good in all things.

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV)

The REASON I LOVE my job:)

2011-10-02T20:13:00.000-05:00

Recently, I was asked to make outfits for 2 sweet families who welcomed their soldiers home from Afghanistan. After, talking with Rick and going with m heart I knew I couldn't charge them for their outfits. After all, they are the reason for my freedoms. It was the beginning of Bellabowz Gives Back. A little piece of why I love my job! These 2 families were chosen to be on the new segment of the marines homecoming! Check out their cute gear and get ready for some tears! I'm so grateful to be FREE and so honored to make outfits for these babies to see their dads home safely in!

. http://weareaustin.com/fulltext/?nxd_id=183207

09.29,2011: Bellasaurus and baseball

2011-09-30T23:22:00.000-05:00

Today was "D is for Dinosaur" day at school and while 'matching' the theme everyday isn't totally my style I couldn't help but make my girl a Bellasaurus shirt. Seriously from the cute little dinosaurs hair bow down to the swarovski crystal embellishments it was a "bella'd" a dinosaur could get:) She was so happy she finally got her very own shirt! It makes me sad I started this business for her and rarely get to make her anything...im doing better about changing that though! and speaking of not matching the 'theme' all the time...I forgot about Museum school this week...the theme was Skunks...

and these 3 little stinkers were so cute in their matching shirts! EVERYONE stopped us and I was trying to remain anonymous but Courtney and Lauri were kind enough to sing Bellabowz praises so by time we picked up the girls everyone asked me about it...blush:) get ready though because these 3 will be matching on Mondays more often than not! I love the sweet friendships they're forming! It makes my heart smile to know Bel will have sweet friends to share these fun memories with!

back to today...here's P arguing about his choice of shoes ( no flip flops to school) while maintaining the sippycup in his mouth...TIME. TO. TAKE. THAT. AWAY!

I wasn't feeling well so Rick took the kids to school so I could catch up on Bellabowz and try and sleep off my sinus infection...ugh! However, family comes first and my sweet nephew hinted that he wanted us to come to his game tonight. He thought he was going to pitch ( he didn't but he ROCKED 1st base) and wanted us there which was so nice. I know the day is coming where he won't care if we are there or not so we went! However the dust did a number to sidetrack my progress. No bueno! The antibiotics don't seem to be working either so I'm scheduled for a CT scan on Monday to see what's going on! If it isn't one thing it's another:)

09.27.2011: Smiling on the inside

2011-09-30T21:30:00.001-05:00

I love these 2 crazies! EVERY picture from this morning before school Bella purposefully closed her eyes.

Today MamaTam turned another year older. The big 4-0. Normally i don't think she'd want that posted all over the Internet but this year I'm pretty sure she's just glad to be alive. She request her birthday meal be mom made...stuffed peppers, broccoli and rice, corn casserole. YUMMY! So since I had a terrific but busy day ( school drop off- hobby lobby- bible study- lunch with the girls for another of my favorite ladies birthday- school pick up- errands) i came home made a shirt then put on my pjs to head to mom and dads! I'm glad I did because the real clothes and shoes I sported all day wouldn't have been good to show off my mad baseball skills:)

Just so you know MamaTam killed it and I need to open my eyes but we had a blast playing and making the big cousins run down the street after our errant balls:)

Happy Birthday MamaTam! We love you and can't wait to spend another 40 years with you...mostly so I can pick your home but also because you make life WAY more interesting!

09.25.2011: Pic-A-nic!

2011-09-30T21:16:00.000-05:00

Today we met for a picnic with our family Life Group. I wish there were words for what an amazing addition this group is to our chaotic world. We just joined this past August but are already in love with the heart of this group. It was so amazing how 'right' it felt from the very beginning. Add in that almost everyone has or wants a large family, parents generally the same, has the same heart for a spirit filled life and you've got as close to perfection as you can get on earth. The new friends we've made have been so worth the extra time and activities to an already overfilled schedule. This one though is worth it. It's been amazing for our family and WE all WANT to go and more importantly miss it if we can't. It's just amazing.

We usually meet on Tuesday nights and the kids go to church while we fellowship with other couples. Today however the whole family went to the park. Bella's lost most of her baby words but her pronunciation of "pic- AHH- nic is still one she has. I love it:) We had the best time. Pierce got whacked int he face by a ball and is currently sporting another black eye but after a few tears he was back at it mostly because the big kids let him play:) Love that sweet boy!

2 of the kids friend had birthdays so we all got to have delicious cupcakes:) We heart Life Group!

09.22.2011: Trouble x 2

2011-09-30T20:59:00.000-05:00

I'd be lying if I said I didn't love every minute of mischief these 2 manage to find but man do they make a lot of work for this mama:) I adore them and their spunky natures!

09.19.2011: naptime? really

2011-09-30T20:55:00.000-05:00

This is my circus:)

09.18.2011: A little bit of old to honor the new

2011-09-24T21:32:00.000-05:00

I painted the living room today. Not for any other reason than a broken sewing machine finally gave me the time to do it. I could have hired someone but in the end I like the instant gratification of seeing the old turn into new, I needed to do the work so the meaning was there for me. Our family has undergone some powerful spiritual changes recently.We are different people in different places than we were when we painted 7 years ago. I wanted something fresh, happy, current but I also wanted something that was homey and colorful and bright. So, this handmade yo-yo quilt was the perfect jumping off place. It was made by my great grandma from my grandmothers and great aunts clothing. It's full of vibrant color and makes this house a home. A happy home with a reminder that we've survived the rough season of our life and done a job well done. The quilt is a reminder that we wouldn't be who we are with out the past. So while the last 7 years as a family haven't been easy, we survived with faith and hope the next 7 will be good. Because He is good....even in the crappy times.

We needed new and fresh. We needed happy. We are finally in a place where I feel we've been through all the hardships one can endure and shown grace, hope and faith. We've survived and as we enter a season of happiness and peace it was time for our house to enter that place too. Gone are the dark walls and here come the happy blue ones:) plus I love the feeling it give off...even Rick woke up the next morning and said " i feel like it needs a cat and a steaming cup of coffee with a new baby in a swing"....yeah dude...that is EXACTLY the feeling I was going for...just without the cat:) It's home.

I was given this verse from the prophetic ministry team on 9/6/11. Essentially, they told me our season of work is over. And ill be honest and say I went into it totally skeptical. After listening to what these women said about my friends, knowing they'd never met them but just prayed over their names and got it right I still didn't believe they'd know anything about me. However, they nailed it and even touched on aspects of my life no one knows about. So i take this verse with great honor and choose to live it!
“His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’ Matthew 25:21

Today we choose as a family to enter into a season of peace and we started it with a few needed changes:)

09.16.2011: First Day of Museum School!

2011-09-24T21:11:00.000-05:00

I'm pretty sure I was more excited about Museum school then Bella Grace was. The thing is I know she'll love every minute of it. It's a pain really. It's only 2 hours long and about a 30 minute hike from the house but in the end I know how much it will benefit her which sums up why any of us do anything for our kids. Today was the first day and I wish it had gone better. Hind sight and all that! There are only 5 girls in her class and 4 of the 5 our old friends and pretty exclusive. Bella came home crying because no one would play with her, which i get. Normally I'm a buck up and that's life kind of parent but for this instance I really wanted her to LOVE it. Plus we got to see a little bit of the class and the other girls weren't so kind just from watching through the window. Soooo...I switched her to the class with her friends Hayden Claire and Hayley. It probably makes me a bad momma for not teaching her the "not everyone will like you in life" concept but she's 3 and my baby and just from brief observation there was no way those other girls were going to willing just include the only other girl in the class, leaving my baby all alone. I just wish this "girl" lesson didn't start so early, sigh. So now she will go on Mondays starting 9/26 and be with her pals, only she has the rule " we must play with everyone". It will be good.

While Bel is in school P and I get some one on one time to chill. Today he hung out at the Children's museum and had a blast with Rick while I attended the parent orientation.

He insisted on a picture with the turtle and that he gets to go to Museum school too. Next year big boy, next year:)

09.15.2011: Happy Birthday to me!

2011-09-24T20:58:00.000-05:00

Today is my birthday, just another notch in the calender of life around here. Rick is traveling for work so I was glad to spend the midnight hour ringing in my birthday with Kara, the new Bellabowz seamstress. She even brought cupcakes to help us work hard to meet our deadline. At midnight the phone rang with a happy hubby wishing me a great day and asking if i wanted my presents....of course! So after a quick scavenger hunt I found a Wii Fit (from the kids because even though i asked for it if Rick gave it to me it would make him a jerk- or so he says) and a gift card to my favorite nail place. Such a sweet treat!

I took the kidlets to school and then met up at another nail place with Tara for a pedicure:) so sweet and a great way to spend a few quiet kidless minutes. After the pedis we met Leah, Andrea, Courtney and Lauri for lunch at Celebrity Bakery where my sweet friends got me a cake complete with candles and gifts! They are too good to me! I feel so blessed to be surrounded by such sweet friends. After lunch and some quick shopping it was time to pick up the little people. It was so nice Megan and Elizabeth our backyard neighbors walked around and the kids played for 3 hours until it was time for Rick to get home! You'll see we finally got to break out the bounce house and it was an open invite to the entire cul de sac. Before I could blink we had about 6 kids playing, giggling and getting out every toy we own! It was a BLAST! What made it better was Bella singing "Happy birthday Mother" and then declaring it was officially a party! I feel so blessed and I am so excited for what this last year in my 20's will bring:) Next year for the big 3-0 there will be a girls trip...im thinking NY! Time to get planning!

09.14.2011: She's a good sport!

2011-09-24T19:27:00.000-05:00

Poor Lola- our sweet furbaby puts up with a lot of abuse from the duo of trouble...apparently she was cold today:)

09.13.2011: Another school day:)

2011-09-23T22:41:00.000-05:00

It's just Tuesday. I drop the kids off at school at 9am and then spend the morning in my bible study and have a quick lunch with the ladies, run an errand or two and then it's time to pick them up again! These pictures are awful but notice the green shoes my boy insists on wearing! Seriously I don't know why I bought them but he wants to wear them everyday. They just don't match much...who knew they'd be his favorite!

09.08.2011:Brave strong Mommy

2011-09-23T22:32:00.000-05:00

Today my people started preschool, both of them, for the first time. They were excited, I was sad. It was for sure bittersweet. This is the first time i have no say in what they do, how they behave or what influences them. They get to be who they are, who we've taught them to be and all I can do is pray we did it well. With a short reminder- no pushing, hitting, biting, yelling or being mean( they aren't generally but still nice to have a reminder). Princess' and Super heros are ALWAYS KIND. Have a sweet heart and be friends with everyone- I sent my people on their way. Only after a few gazillion pictures:)

Bella Grace- 3

We took Pierce first at Bella's request. Rick was away for business so it was just me and the babies.Pierce looked at me, asked " you come pick me up" to which i replied of course and he said " okay bye mom" and went to sit with his new school friends. I cried. Not much though because I needed to let go of my girl too and she's much more sensitive to my tears.

She reminded me to be " a brave strong girl" and I reminded her too.

With a short wave I was dismissed. My babies are growing so fast. Once I got to the door I cried. Not because i was sad but because I was happy. Happy my people feel confident enough to enter this new world without reservations. To take on new friends and teachers with vigor to be the light we know they can be.

I was a 'brave strong mommy' today and let them go. It is just the first of many times letting them go will be bittersweet.

09.06.2011: Meet the Teacher

2011-09-18T21:33:00.000-05:00

Today was the first day in our very busy fall schedule. ( you can see it went swimmingly well by the little attitudes for the pictures) Meet the teacher! The kids were excited, i was a little nervous because this is the first time I've let Bella spend time without me and I blinked and P is gone too:( I'm happy for them and this new experience but man will I miss my babies! We even sat down and made cute little teacher gifts but I forgot to get pictures...they were precious! It was a cute little mason jar filled with swedish fish and a note tag hung off that said " I'm glad you're O-FISH-ALLY my teacher" You'll have to trust me on the cute factor and I love that Bel and P both helped:)

It was a really great experience in a well established school that more than meets my requirements/wants in a preschool. It's academic and Godly and I love it. They do Spanish and chapel every day along with science( not so normal in the preschool world). This year the chapel focus is on the Fruit of the Spirit and I LOVE IT. It was a concept i learned later in life and learning even more deeply right now so it is fun that they're learning it early and we are doing it together. The place is so happy...i need to take pictures of the school itself, it's really a wonderful place!

09.04.2001

2011-09-18T21:22:00.000-05:00

Daddy has a broken leg, Pierce is sick and Bella is going crazy from being cooped up with out a playmate...so I packed up the crew and headed to the lake. It was great. Rick and P slept all day, Bella played with her big cousins and I read a book while my mom fussed about each of us...all is good in the world if only for a minute:)

09.02.2011: Just being a kid

2011-09-13T19:11:00.000-05:00

09.01.2011: YIKES!

2011-09-13T19:08:00.000-05:00

For the record these are the adorable twin birthday sets I did and Rick was taking a picture of because they were so cute when he did this....

YIKES!

** because hindsight and all that I can tell you he has a chipped/fractured tibia and pulled just about all the ligaments there is. He is set to have a FULL knee reconstruction. SCORE. We also learned that there is no " cool" way to explain this when you have to say " I was taking pictures and jumped off the coffee table onto a random remote control to my sons car." **

08.31.2011: She's learning!

2011-09-13T19:03:00.000-05:00

First off check out this sparkling tutu number my girl is wearing...i am LOVING this dance tutu thing. Nothing makes my week happier than seeing my girl and her friends in all their tutu glory. LOVE it!

I love the back...

I'm not sure what position/technique/fancy french word this is because it's been a long time since I've ~~been forced to take~~ taken ballet. She had a word for it but since she's not been exposed to those fancy french words ( except to count to 10 because that's all I know with the occasional ballet term just not this one and lines from Beauty and the Beast) I don't know what it is. What I do know is I love seeing my girl practice and love the music. I love seeing her blossom and coming out of that timid shell she's been in lately. I love being able to watch her self confidence grow and know that ballet has been a positive in her world. Bonus points if she learns a fancy french word or two as well!

08.29.2011: It was chaos!

2011-09-13T18:54:00.000-05:00

Our sweet friends Amanda, Ava, Hollis and their daddy Bo a little later, came to play this morning and lucky for us we all had such a fun time they even stayed for dinner! It was chaos but the good sort of chaos where shirt making happens along side the squeals of glee of two little princesses being chased by their little brothers. It was leg warmer knitting in the same world as lego building and dinosaur roaring....it was a good day. It was an easy day. A day where you are sweetly reminded to thank your lucky stars for great friends who understand if they want to see you chances are they have to come listen to the purr of the Viking:)

08.28.2011: Happy Birthday kaia and a little bit O random....

2011-09-13T18:48:00.000-05:00

This morning Bel and Daddy headed off to celebrate her sweet friend Kaia turning 5! It was a swimming party and Bel had a blast! I however am in self preservation mode and there was no way I was going to get in a swimsuit in front of people....i like my friends more than that and didn't want to burn their retinas!

So proud of Rick for 1) remembering the gift and 2) snapping a few pictures! Super DAD!

On Wednesday and Thursday of this week I had my usual sewing class. I REALLY believe knowledge is power and if I'm going to grow Bellabowz and help it reach my vision then I have to go and learn new things. Ive been pretty diligent in this and after a few classes I finally finished a REALLY hard project! Mostly i take the classes regardless of if I like what we are making because I ALWAYS learn some new technique or learn how to do something easier etc. This one I actually liked ( bonus) and I finished it! SCORE! Bella loves it and I added these sweet little knit pants with ruffles to match!

Bella wasn't uber cooperative but she did like the little set and I can officially say it's a one of a kind:) I won't be remaking it anyway!

look at my boy...he's always game for a picture!

08.20.2011: White Party 2011

2011-09-12T09:26:00.000-05:00

Tonight Pop and Grandma watched the kidlets so Rick and I could attend the annual White Party! It was so fun! The decor was BEAUTIFUL but sadly there aren't many pictures:( however I loved that EVERYONE participated and was head to toe white! It made for a spectacular party and we had a blast!

08.19.2011: Happy Birthday Shayne!

2011-09-12T09:13:00.000-05:00

Today we headed to Shayne's Cat and the Hat birthday party!

Hey- I made that:)

The kids had a fun time and it was nice to talk to some new moms and make new friends!

08.14.2011: Newest Bellabowz Baby: Passing the torch!

2011-09-12T09:04:00.000-05:00

The ORIGINAL Bellabowz baby is about ready to pass on the baton so to speak:) Bel isn't so much a fan of the picture taking portion of her job anymore so Shayne has stepped in and is doing pretty fabulous! I'm only sad my girl is big enough to say no but also proud that almost 4 years later we're still going strong!

I love this sweet little shirt- it's exactly the sentiment I want to live for my kids to see in me and follow!

" Shine your light and let the whole world see"

08.11.2011: Cheese Head LOVE!

2011-09-12T08:57:00.000-05:00

I love this little underwear cheese head more than you can imagine:)

*** The Cheese head is no reflection of our football loyalties. Instead it was a gift which my kid refuses to take off..thanks Lauren****

08.09.2011: Look Mom it's a sister!

2011-09-12T08:53:00.000-05:00

Bella's been asking for a sister since the day she figured out Pierce was a boy. Since Santa didn't deliver last Christmas she took matters into her own hands! Shayne is the daughter of my assistant Kara and a perfect fit into the chaos. Which is a good thing since she's here a lot! Bella loves her and she's only a few months younger than P so it's perfect! I'm just glad she let's my girl play sister for a few hours a week!

08.08.2011: Moral Support

2011-09-12T08:49:00.000-05:00

This week Pierce absolutely REFUSED to put on a diaper. Since I didn't have the energy to fight him we decided to go cold turkey into potty training. He's done fairly well with only one accident the first day and continued the rest of the week accident free. The only caveat is we haven't left the house yet! So that will be a big change! The mood is very relaxed and we definitely aren't stressing since I wasn't ready to do this anyway. So far so good though!

08.04.2011: Big Boy Bed!

2011-09-12T08:45:00.000-05:00

The day has finally come where Pierce figured out how to climb out of the crib. Until we decide what we're going to do about bed situations ( move both kids to one room etc) we just converted the crib into a toddler bed! He was so ready and did so well! I'm so sad my boy is getting big so fast!

7.31.2011: Happy Birthday Memaw & GranMary

2011-09-09T14:42:00.000-05:00

Today we celbrated my grandmothers 85th birthday and GranMarys 15th anniversary of turning 55:)

A friend told me that the best money i could spend on car activities would be on a $1 package of pipe cleaners. That was the best advise ever! In fact the whole family had a great time 'crafting'...grandma made a turtle, Pierce and Bel made bracelets and antennas and I made a camera:)

and we colored too...

Oh and this was my kids "prize" from Pop...yep that would be a motorized horse ride. Seriously these kids are spoiled rotten!

7.30.2011: Pictures with "the Lady"

2011-09-09T12:07:00.000-05:00

My kids make me laugh! Today when I set out to take pictures of the Bellabowz Back to School set Pierce started screaming. When I got him to chill out enough to tell me what was going on he exclaimed " I want pictures with the lady". It took a minute for us to realize he meant the mannequin! Sweet sill boy:)

and of course this princess had to get in on the pictures too!

Every night we put the kids in pjs and every night she either ends up naked ( just panties) or she redresses herself in some sort of princess wear. Tonight i found her in a pettiskirt and chuckled because in her world this probably does make perfect pjs:)

7.27.2011: LifeGroup Play Date

2011-09-08T23:46:00.000-05:00

Today the kidlets and I headed to JumpZone to meet up with my Woman's Life Group ladies and their kids! WE had a blast!

7.25.2011: SpideyPierce

2011-09-08T23:42:00.000-05:00

Little Man is OBSESSED with spider man. There isn't even a logical reason. We don't watch the shows (is there one?) or have any toys but somehow the kid KNOWS to shoot his webs and act like a super hero. Most of the time you can find him sporting this:)

07.23.2011: Life's a cake walk

2011-09-08T23:10:00.000-05:00

Today is Annelise's day and for the first time in 5 years it wasn't marred by sadness. It's not that we didn't think of our girl but really the first time we spent the day celebrating the 2 little lives we do get to share. So today we partied like rock stars...or miniature rock stars who have to have a nap midday:)

The first party of the day was sweet Sophia! She is so fun and a good calm to Bella's tornado:) She's silly and sweet and her parents share a lot of our same values. It wasn't too long ago Naoma ( Sophia's mom) and I learned that our hubby's were having lunch semi- regularly...too funny. I'm just glad to have sweet friends for the whole family!

My gorgeous girl:) I love these little rompers...they're easy and fun! Bella isn't such a fan until she decided it makes her look like a mermaid:)

Look at how HAPPY baby Harper is:) We love her ever though she's not a baby anymore!

Piercey got to hold Baby Sable and there aren't words to describe this kids face...he was so happy and proud. Such a sweet boy! I hope he can be a big brother one day soon!

After Sophia's bash we headed home for naps then back to Southlake for Angelo's 4th birthday!

Milestone Moment: Piercey can now climb and go down these slides by himself. I kid you not this is HUGE because it means I do not have to drag him up vertical ladders to slide over and over again! YAY!

and he went up and down pretty much the entire 1 1/2hours!

I'm so glad we decided to not avoid today. I miss my girl terribly but we had so much fun with our 2 crazies got to hold a sweet baby and see our friends! It was a great day!

07.20.2011: Dora, Friends, Dance- just an average day!

2011-09-08T22:38:00.000-05:00

This sibling love continues around here and I'm eating. it. up!

Today we headed to the Oh Look theaters version of Dora the Explorer. If you know me you know I've avoided Dora like the plague. Bel's friend Sailer got to watch it so Bel's been exposed but we limit it. At any rate we met up with our sweet friends to see the live version. I went in expecting it to be a total beat down but was pleasantly surprised when it ended up being the best show we've seen all summer!

I even made the girl a shirt...mostly because I had the random Dora fabric from a Bellabowz order and also because the Cupcake princess keeps giving me guilt trips because I never make her a shirt. It starts young:) When I sew she always asks " who little girl is that for" and finishes with " I wish i was that little girl with a new shirt"...good thing she's cute!

There's a sad attempt at pictures of the whole crew and in NOT ONE of them is everyone looking. In fact most of the time Dora isn't even looking:)

After Dora we met Leah, Tara and crew at TacoStand for a moment of insanity!

after the mommas couldn't take anymore mess we left and went to dance!

I am loving that she loves dance class! The tutus are really just right up my alley:)

07.19.2011: Boucing out the Heat Wave!

2011-09-03T22:00:00.000-05:00

We got P an awesome bounce house a friend was selling for his birthday. However it's been so hot we've not been able to use it! I think we are on day 32 of over 100 degree temps. Most of the last week it's been 105 with a heat index of 115. It is RIDICULOUS! So today after many days indoors I caved, pushed all the furniture to the otter walls and blew up the bounce house inside! The kidlets loved every second of it, they were worn out for nap time and I got some Bellabowz work done! It was a total win-win!

07.14.2011: Best Friends

2011-09-03T21:53:00.000-05:00

I love how these two truly love each other. Piercey ( or Tinker Pierce here) plays all her games just to be with her. They're awesome! Note to self- purchase some boy dress-up before the kid gets a complex:)

07.13.2011: Story time with friends and dance!

2011-09-02T23:34:00.000-05:00

Sorry these pictures are horrific...today we met up with Roxanne and Alyssa for story time and lunch in town square! The kids were so totally adorable!

After lunch we came home for a quick nap and headed back out to dance!

Bella still loves it! Pierce was a nightmare because even after snacks and Ipad time he still wanted to 'dance like sissy" and was so sad he couldn't. The tears just about broke me!

07.12.2011: The Little Mermaid and Sibling L-O-V-E!

2011-09-02T23:29:00.000-05:00

I caught this unprompted moment of sibling love just before we headed in to meet Haley, Hayden Claire, Channing and Abby for the play The Little Mermaid. Moments like this totally erases the bad days and the early months where taking care of two babies seemed like an insurmountable challenge. They truly are the best of friends and love each other dearly!

This is sort of how we all felt about The Little Mermaid. It was so not anything like disney and kind of beating. Thankfully it was just 45 minutes long and Bella quit asking where Ariel was about 30 minutes into it:)

It was this little dudes first play! Sweet boy was SO SO good!

At the end my shy girl took her brave brother to dance on the stage. I love how she'll do anything for him!

At the end we found Hudson and Baby Harper! Love haivng so many sweet friends in one spot!

Rick is out of town this week so the kids and I ate lunch with our friends, ran errands, had my final altercation with the Viking lady at Joanns which resulted in me calling a manager, the Husquvarna Viking customer service line and a general boycott of Joanns. Those people are HORRIBLE. They are rude and discriminate based on age. I have never set my stuff down and just left a store but I did today. Right at the checkout lane because those woman are MEAN. So no more Joanns for me! I will pay more and plan ahead to order from somewhere else before I deal with that lady again! Then we headed home to play and make it an early bed night!

07.11.2011: Love him!

2011-09-02T23:16:00.000-05:00

Sweet boy will do just about anything for his sister. Including be her "baby sister"! I love him so!

07.09.2011: Welcoming Brooklyn and Date Night!

2011-09-02T23:13:00.000-05:00

Today Bella and I picked up Grandma to go to a baby shower welcoming baby Brooklyn!

After the shower Bella and Pierce spent the night with Grandma and Pop so we could go on date night with the crew!

Our plans went totally down the drain but we still had a super fun night! It's been a long time since we've laughed that hard!

07.07.2011: Tubes!

2011-09-02T22:57:00.000-05:00

After a string of ear infections her first 18 months of life and the re-occurrence of another string it was time to get the Cupcake some tubes. Until now she has never passed a hearing test. It's odd because she can speak well but she just hears muddled and is SUPER sensitive to sound in general. This morning my brave girl put on her new cupcake pjs and we headed to the hospital. Sweet baby did awesome but was a monster coming out of the anesthesia. It was horrific. She screamed for a little over 4 hours. The big surprise was when she finally fell asleep she woke up in a puddle of blood. SCARY! So we immediately called the doctors office and learned it sometimes happens and is a product of the cutting into her ear drum as well as fluid draining out! It was one of the scariest mommy moments yet!

*** Because hind sight is 20/20 I will say this was the best thing we've done for our girl. Not only has she passed her hearing tests since but she is also a different girl. No more outbursts or whining. Her dr said her behavior was a direct byproduct of her not hearing us but not knowing to tell us or communicate. So the poor girl was frustrated beyond belief. I get it now and I am SO grateful to have my sweet, brave girl back!**

07.06.2011: Pinkalicious take 3 and Ballet class take 2!

2011-09-02T22:46:00.000-05:00

Today we met up with our friend Hayden Claire and Courtney ( plus Haley, Abby, Channing and their mamas) to see another showing of Pinkalicious. Im pretty sure this was the best one yet! The little girls loved it and the mamas did too! It was a super fun morning with our sweet friends!

After Pinkalicious it was time for Bella to give it another go at Ballet. I enrolled her for a 6 week class to see what she thought before we committed for an entire year. Especially after she didn't fare so well the year before. I REALLY hope she likes it because the class for the year has all of her friends from this morning in it and it would be so fun to see them together!

Bella LOVED dance this go around! Im so excited!

7.04.2011: Happy Fourth of July!

2011-09-02T22:36:00.000-05:00

We just hung out at the house today, played with the neighbors, cooked out and let the kids light some sparklers!

and of course we watched the montage of fireworks! Where Poppy's house is at you can see them all night long in just about every direction...pretty cool!

07.03.2011: Visiting Memaw- Poppy- Cake

2011-09-01T10:40:00.000-05:00

Today mom, the kidlets and myself headed tot he middle of Texas to visit my grandmother. It's a long drive to a not so fun place and a long drive back. The kidlets were good but as with most 3 and 2 year olds they're just not so happy to visit. My grandmother can be harsh to them and they just don't understand the she's old and has dementia argument. So we always reward them with treats for surviving the trip. I do love that i have some great memories of my little people with my grandmother though. It's kind of awesome!

They were playing hide and seek with Memaw. Neither are very good at the hiding part:)

When we got back Pop had blown up the baby pool so the kids could play outside and in the shade...they thought it was SO FUNNY that Pop was in there with them!

Bella our resident party planner decided that Poppy "needed" a spider-man party with napkins and plates and cake. So we indulged and because there are no rules when Poppy is involved my kids spent the time licking the icing off the cake!

07.02,2011: Happy Birthday Poppy!

2011-09-01T10:23:00.000-05:00

We love the lake for a lot of reasons but mostly because that's where you can find a number of the people we love most!

First a little flashback to this boy in this shirt last year....only now you can find it gracing Vintage Lucy's website. Click Here to see one of my not so secret anymore kids shopping places and to see a super handsome dude:) It's amazing to see how much he has grown up over the last year...

he can still wear the shirt but he is so tall these days:( Baby boy is growing up!

After some playtime on the local firetruck we wentt o dinner to celebrate Poppys birthday! There is a little steak place called the Rib Shack that makes Ruths Chris look like Whataburger. Over the last 10 years Rick and I have been to all the major steak places and this one is bar none the BEST we've ever had. The filet melts in your mouth...amazing! Plus they make some yummy barbeque and even better banana pudding! It's a family favorite!

I'm sure my mom is horrified at the thought of no makeup on the internet but I couldn't help but post the pictures of my sweet girl and her grandma:) They have a special bond!

After dinner we headed back to the lake for some fireworks! P loved them and Bella tolerated it but not much more than that!

Tomorrow MamaTam and Bob are coming for cake and presents! Happy Birthday weekend Poppy!

06.30.2011: Date Night!

2011-08-31T23:58:00.003-05:00

If i've never mentioned how lucky we are to have amazing friends, then I should have. These two are so SUPER FUN that there are not words for what a wonderful time we had. Thank you Sean and Courtney for your kindness, generosity and super fun selves...We had a great time with you guys and can't wait to return the favor with some date night planning and good ol' Texas country music and white guy break dancing:)

06.28.2011: Field-trip FAIL!

2011-08-31T23:55:00.000-05:00

Today we headed out for a fun field-trip to the middle of Texas for the perfect pictures of the kidlets and their friends in fields of sunflowers. Only when we spotted this field of beautiful flowers 2 weeks ago they were still ALIVE! This was one hot mess. We all trekked with our tired and cranky kids to discover the flowers were less than ideal.

I adore this picture of the boys....so perfect!

In the end it was a fail but we did get these images that capture these 7 babies just as they are. Sweet, kind, unique and fun. They're fabulous friends and it is sweet to watch them grow up together.

06.25.2011: Big girl hair!

2011-08-31T23:46:00.000-05:00

The time has come to chop of the long locks. 6 inches to be exact! It was just too much hair:( Bella was blessed (or cursed you choose) with super thick hair. So the longer it got the more crazy it became to take care of it. Plus it was too long for piggytails and that's a no go with this mama:)

Unfortunately I didn't get the chance for a picture of her new do ( complete with super trendy feather). We did make it to church on time though and dinner with the James'.

you can kind of see it here...

and here...just a boring little girl bob but she looks adorable!

Plus Rick got to Meet Sable Rose for the first time...she is absolutely edible in every way!

06.24.2011: Horses, Uncle Frank and Stoney Larue

2011-08-31T23:38:00.000-05:00

Look at that face:)

and this one was right on for her mood!

Today the stars alligned just right and we got to hang out with Frank and Rebecca. We're talking old. school. crew. Our pre-baby on the boat 4 days a week and the weekend life. It was awesome to see them and even better they love our kids too. It just makes me sad our worlds are so different. We're diapers and bows and they're surfing and sun. Both fun. Just different. So it was nice to get a glimpse of that old life again:) but ill take my babies over the beach most days of the week so it works out!

Granddad was there too and the kidlets had so much fun having him all to their-selves. I'm not sure who enjoyed it more though...them or him:)

Uncle Frank and his future wakeboarding prodigy Master P:)

It was a late night but we stayed for a few songs of Stoney Larue mostly because i love him and Rick indulged me...we were there after all and the babies we so good! So bedtime shmedtime....it was fun!

06.22.2011: I'm working Mama!

2011-08-31T23:28:00.000-05:00

I was working and looked up and saw my girl splayed out on the couch ( like her daddy mind you) and when I asked her what she was doing she said " I'm working Mama- I need to email my friends". Well- all-righty baby girl! I'd hate to interrupt such important work:)

Later that day when I thought both kids were napping I walked to the hallway to find this...

That would be my precious working girl PAINTING Simon's nails. Thankfully it was clear she hijacked out of the bathroom cabinet when I wasn't looking. Love my mischievous girl but she's giving me gray hair!

06.21.2011: Celebrating Poppy

2011-08-31T23:21:00.000-05:00

Today we headed to family dinner in B-town to celebrate Pop. Poppy is a fabulous dad but an even better pop-pop. He never runs out of time for my kids. Regardless of a spotless house or busy schedule he has time to call and chat with them ( and let me assure you talking to P on the phone is a BEATING) play with them and love my babies. Watching my dad be with my kids was never something I thought i'd see and now I am so grateful they have that chance. He's a great man, an awesome dad and an amazing Pop. We love you Poppy!

Pierce and Bob:) It makes me laugh but P LOVES Bob. When he and my sister are in the same room even though my sister is generally full of prizes for the spoiled kidlets Pierce always shouts BOB first. You can't help but chuckle.

Pop opening gifts...for the record we got him an amazing electric fly swatter (the gift for the man who has everything) and Bob broke it but only after he played with it for over 30 minutes and took the kidlets "bug hunting"...i don't think any of us have laughed like that in a long time!

6.20.2011: Turtle Time

2011-08-31T23:12:00.000-05:00

Who knew two tiny turtles could entertain 4 crazy friends for an entire night?

06.19.2011: My DAD is RAD:)

2011-08-31T23:10:00.000-05:00

These two share the BEST dad in the world. When i was looking for my Mr. Right my mom told me to find someone who would always make me laugh and someone who will be a good dad. The best advise i've ever listened too.

Rick is an incredible dad. He shares the raising of these two crazies and I love that he is such a hands on guy. He can kiss a booboo way with as much enthusiasm as I do and he always throws in ice cream. He loves them with all he has and he is their hero. I love you Chachi:) Thank you for being an awesome man for my kids to love, admire and respect. You are our rock and I can't be more excited to grow these babies with you. As we watch them get big we can always know we did it together!

06.16.2011: Bliss and some more seaworld!

2011-08-31T23:03:00.000-05:00

I love these two!

Today Rick had the car at a client in Austin all day so the kids and I hung out at the resort. It was really awesome. They have a great kiddie pool and we got to relax and enjoy playing together! Plus i even got to read some of my book!

After we headed to Seaworld for dinner and some fun!

Piercey spent the evening showing us how to be a trainer...he knows all the moves and can even make his whale twirl:)

06.15.2011: Seaworld!

2011-08-27T13:58:00.000-05:00

Our world is now complete with shamu pj's:)

straw wars...really daddy?

Feeding the seals...they were super loud!

and a trip isn't complete without at least one picture with the whale:)A

06.14.2011: A quick getaway:)

2011-08-27T13:52:00.000-05:00

One of Rick's clients is in SA so we tagged along. It was spontaneous and perfect for our little crew. While Daddy worked all day the kids and i played at the hotel, swam, read books, took naps. It was awesome! Not to mention the nightly visits to the kids favorite place- Sea World!

Shamu at night was the best show we've seen...and we've seen A LOT:)

In random facts..NEITHER of the kidlets like smores. I'm pretty sure it is un-American but in the end it was more for me and Rick so we were okay with it:)

A little night time swimming:)

06.09.2011: Babysitting:)

2011-08-27T13:33:00.001-05:00

Our sweet neighbors had the opportunity to go to the Mavericks championship game so we offered to watch Elizabeth and Caitlin. Piercey was in heaven...that boy loves a baby but he really loves this sweet girl:)

06.08.2011: Happy Birthday Master P!

2011-08-27T13:27:00.000-05:00

Today we celebrate my sweet boy! It's hard to believe he is really a toddler now. He remains the sweetest boy around and we count our blessings everyday. He's pure joy bottled up in a crazy two year old boy!

Since last night was graduation Bella wasn't here to celebrate with us. Here he is while Rick and I sung Happy Birthday to him!

Sweet baby with his birthday breakfast of champions!

Rick and i have a tradition with our kids where we take them to the toy store by them selves and let them pick out ONE thing with no limitations. It could be anything in the whole store. Our boy, he picked out this t-ball set. He makes me laugh. He is super happy with his birthday present and we're stoked we got off so cheap this year!

We had a little birthday play date with Shayne and Elizabeth. Yummy food and cupcakes and the water slide:) It was so fun!

After nap time we met the grandparents for our annual chuck-e-cheese birthday dinner. I'm not sure we can handle going to this place more than 2 a year so any future kids are going to need a new place:)

Grandma and Poppy added a sandbox to the kids park! I can see many an afternoon playing in our backyard!

This picture cracks me up. Bella figured out the ticket eating machine which was evidently more fun than playing the actual game. So she'd go back and forth earning tickets then sending them through the ticket eater. Poor worker was a little miffed at all our tickets ( 632 total) an the face that most of them where on individual receipts:) Funny girl!

06.07.2011: She did it!

2011-08-27T12:57:00.000-05:00

The second in a string of BHS grads for our family! She did it! We love you Lauren Elise:)

06.05.2011: Congratulations Lauren

2011-08-27T12:51:00.000-05:00

Our oldest niece Lauren graduated from high school this year! Today we went to a family shindig to celebrate our grad:) She was 8 when Rick entered our family so he's been able to watch her grow up too...unbelievable! We are so proud of her and who she's become! We love you Lauren!

06.04.2011: Happy Birthdat HC!

2011-08-26T14:12:00.000-05:00

Today we helped Hayden Claire celebrate her 3 1/2 year old birthday! HC is a holiday baby too so it's super fun to get a party that isn't overwhelmed by the holiday madness. I think we'll be stealingt his idea for Bel this year. It's jsut daunting to deal with birthday then Christmas...but at any rate.

We love HC and her family. She and Bel are a funny pair. Aside from beingt he same age and have the southern 2 name thing going on they both share a ferocious love for their brothers. Im almost a little afraid no girl will ever be good enough to date them in the future. Only we've solved that problem because Pierce has a crush on HC...so it works out:)

Love this family!

Happy 3 1/2 HC!

06.02.2007: He's a mess:)

2011-08-26T14:06:00.000-05:00

This little man loves to eat...anything and everything! Love him:)

3 1/2 and 2 year portraits by B4 Photography

2011-08-26T12:17:00.002-05:00

I can't believe how fast time has gone by. Now Bella is 3 1/2 and Pierce is a few days shy of 2 we had Brandi take some pictures to commemorate this season of life. These are SO my kids. From the crazy location to the funky clothes this is them. They are crazy and fun and I am loving this season in life right now. Here's the short list on the kids:

They are really each others best friend. There are lots of spontaneous hugging and at least once a day i hear " you're my best friend". I LOVE it!
Pierce has more words than one would think. He speaks in complete sentences ( 4-8 words) and has the vocabulary to rival his sister. It's amazing really. The only downfall is he is never quiet. We often call him chatty Cathy because he can talk all. day. long.
Bella is in a super dramatic stage of life. Most of the time its really funny. Her "its the end of the world" attitude over not getting the bigger piece of cheese is pretty darn hysterical. Although i hope it ends sooner than later:)
Words to describe Lulu right now: sweet, kind, generous, stubborn, dramatic, FUNNY, beautiful, sensitive, strong willed, SMART and extremely loyal.
Words to describe Master P: snugly, sweet, kind, thinks about others, funny, silly, CRAZY, smart, obstinate, stubborn usually in the opposite way than his sister, strong willed, loving.
Bella can write her name, spell it, knows her colors and claims her favorite color is indigo, can count to 30 and in spanish to 10. She's a book lover like her mama and can be found laying in a sea of books at night:) Dress-up remains her favorite activity as well as crafts. She can sing and LOVES music. Her current movie obsession is Aladdin.
Pierce can spell his sisters name ( funny) and identify the letter P in random places. He can count to 17 on his own but isn't a fan of 4 or 13 and to 25 with help. He also loves to sit and "read", play blocks, dinosaurs, cars and with his new train table. He also likes to color and paint. He still loves Barney but Mickey Mouse is his favorite. Cars or 101 Dalmatians is his movie of choice.

Rick and I comment a lot about how easy it has become. I think the initial shock of I have an 18 month old and a newborn made that phase much more difficult. Now they are built in playmates and as long as they're together it is easy. They love each other and are the most fun to watch interact. We're loving having a 3 & 2 year old more than i ever thought we would!

Rock on little people, we love you more than words can say!!

05.31.2011: Spray Date

2011-08-26T11:16:00.000-05:00

Today we met our LifeGroup friends for a spray date at the park. Let me just say that it was obviously a mom with small kids who came up with this concept! I am in love no large bodies of water but still happy kids! So awesome!

05.30.2011: Happy Memorial Day

2011-08-26T11:09:00.000-05:00

Today we headed into the town square for the annual parade and fair. I love small towns. It's so much fun to walk around, shop, and chat with random people. Plus if you're Pop thinks he's funny like mine does you leave with 2 tiny turtles. No i am not kidding but I wish i was!

2 of my favorite men:) My pop and his tiniest namesake...and to imagine Poppy almost wasn't here to witness this cool kid. This picture makes my heart smile.

We finished the day with family dinner...a crab boil...it was good because my mom made me my own food...

turns out I'm not a fan of working for my dinner:) I do have a special place in my heart for the fake stuff though...who'd have thunk it:)