Picture a Stable in Judea

I had some pipe cleaners lying around and Chloe took them and created an artsy rendition of Mary, Jospeh, and Baby Jesus in the stable.

(look closely, the light green ones are hard to see)

Tis' the Season

It's that time of year again when you scramble to get your family ready for those holiday family pictures. It seems like this time of year can get a little crazy and finding the time to take family pictures can be tricky and stressful. If you want a fabulous, low stress session, before the hustle and bustle of the holidays begin, my sister in law would love to help you out. Ryan's sister Hayley is a photographer in California and she's coming to town next week and is happy to schedule some sessions. She loves photography and makes you feel so comfortable in front of the camera.

You can check out her website here.

Leave me a comment if you're interested and I will give her your name.

Tough Day for Toys

Chloe was playing in her room the other day and I walked in to check on her and found...

this poor baby with her hands and feet tied, and...

this puppy tied up and pinned under the leg of the chair.

( I love how it looks like he's struggling to get loose)

I'm not sure what they did to deserve this but I'm sure they thought it was going to be just another play day with Chloe...SURPRISE! You never know what you're going to get when Chloe plays with you.

Poodleskirts and Ponytails

We had a 50's Party/Sock Hop at our church a couple weekends ago. They encouraged us to dress-up and have fun with it so I decided to make the girls poodle skirts. They were so easy and the girls loved them. Chloe really wanted to wear hers to church the next day.

Ryan always tells me that Channing and Chloe are my little dress-up dolls and I have to admit they kind of are. I love little girls.

Summer Days

Hats off to a great summer!

Here is a summary of our summer. I figured this is the best way to make up for all the posts I haven't written.

My brother Michael's wedding.

My brother got married in May to this beauty, Kylee. They are so cute together and I'm excited to have another great sister-in-law in the family.

Staub Family Reunion at Artesian Lakes

We had a fun family reunion at Artesian Lakes with the Staub family. Cool cabins, fun swimming, lots of alligators, and quality family time. It was fun having all the cousins there together.

Channing's dance recital.

What a cute group of girls with an awesome teacher. Thanks Angie!

Trips to the Zoo and Children's Museum with our friends the Petty's.

Swim Team

Swim Team

and more swim team!!!
(I thought it would never end)

The girls enjoyed it and did so well. I was hoping that Chloe would be able to swim the length of the pool by the end of the season but she did it by the 2nd swim meet. We were so proud of her. Channing had another great year and won her first, 1st place ribbon. What a great season. Good job girls.

(Chloe in the middle lane)

(Channing in lane 6)

Vacation Bible School

The girls attended a week of vacation bible school at Fisher's of Men, which is where Channing went to preschool last year. The theme was "God the Builder" and now I can't sing the Bob the Builder song without singing it God the Builder, not that I sing the song often in the first place. The girls learned some fun religious songs and sang them for weeks. Here's Chloe performing one of her favorites.

4th of July.
We spent the 4th of July weekend at the lake house. Vern and Sheriee hosted the 2nd annual Freedom Swim and had about 80 people participate. It seems like a good start to a great tradition.

(Check out the sweet prom pose from Chloe and Ben...hilarious!)

The kids had fun with sparklers and a few other fireworks on the dock and then we enjoyed a beautiful firework show right on the lake.



Chloe hates loud noises and sat like this most of the evening.

A visit from the Wade cousins.

My sister came for a visit and brought her 3 kids. We had a blast.

We played.

We swam.

We face painted at the Children's Museum.

And probably best of all, we sipped snow cones by the pool...thanks Sheriee!

What a great summer! Stay tuned for what happened after our summer ended.

Excuses, Excuses

Don't you love all the excuses your kids can come up with once it's bedtime. Here are a few of the ones most frequently used at our house.

I can't go to bed because:

1. I need a drink
2. I need to go to the bathroom
3. I'm scared
4. Chloe's touching my bed
5. Chloe said her bed is comfier than mine
6. Channing won't let me sleep in her bed
7. I'm hungry

Chloe came up with a new one last night:

What are some of the excuses your kids come up with?

Easter weekend 2009

For Easter this year we decided to camp out in our backyard. The girls loved helping Ryan set up the tent.

They gathered sleeping bags and bakpacks filled with pajamas, special sleeping blankets, and a flashlight.

I cooked tinfoil dinners inthe oven and Ryan set up the TV outside so we could watch a movie while we ate. The girls thought it was so cool to have our TV outside.

Channing said, "This is the best night!"

The girls participated in not one,

not two,

but three Easter egg hunts.

It was a beautiful Easter weekend in which we were able to reflect on the sacrifice out Savior made for us and the blessings we receive from that event.

With the Wave of a Wand

I had to fill out a questionaire with each of the girls for the spotlight they do in primary and this is the conversation I had with Chloe:

Me: Chloe what do you want to be when you get big?

Chloe (in a very excited voice): a Bus Guy

As I typed the answer she sat very quietly and then asked: Is the tooth fairy going to make me into a bus guy?

Me: No ( a little confused)

Chloe: Well then who is going to make me into a bus guy.

Me: You are.

She looked up at me with her eyebrows crinkled and very firmly said: I can't! I don't have a wand!

Happy Day! She Got It!

Channing learned to ride her bike with no training wheels. Ryan took her to the church parking lot one afternoon and 45 minutes later she was riding her bike. She took to it very quickly and loves her new found freedom.

Christmas 2008

We had a great Christmas with Wes, Kate and their kids. The girls were so excited that Logan and Benny got to spend the night at our house on Christmas Eve.

They decorated cookies for Santa and ate a few too.
We sprinkled food on the driveway for the Reindeer.
The Christmas Story was told, songs were sung, and all the kids were off to bed like good little boys and girls. Yahoo!!

Christmas Morning: The kids all got a lot of fun toys. Each year we give the girls new pajamas on Christmas Eve and this year I decided to make them. The girls got new dolls from Santa and the dolls were wearing matching pajamas. Santa must have seen me making them and had his elves make matching ones for their new dolls. The girls thought that was so cool! Way to go elves.

Then....Logan and Ben got to stay at our house for a week while Wes and Kate went on a cruise with Kate's family. The boys went back and forth between our house and Grandma and Papa's house. We played hard and had a lot of fun.

We rode bikes and took trips to the park

We walked a couple miles around Brazos Bend State Park to see and touch alligators.

We put all the kids to work raking leaves and then we had to play in them, of course.

What a great Christmas vacation!