Merry Christmas!

Hope everyone has a fabulous holiday full of blessings! I know it's been forever since I've posted.... so much to catch up on! Will be back soon! :)

my little smudges...

hmm... thought I could sneak on the computer for a couple of minutes... all alone....

hmm.... don't know why I have so much trouble keeping these french doors clean...

Just checking in....

4 days until we leave for Washington.

been going a little nutty trying to get things done before we go.

some outfits I've been sewing for a friend that she needs by Saturday.

my projects for SD.

packing.

Cam's been sick, and Megan's starting to sniffle now too.

I did my 12 on the 12th, but it'll probably be a couple of days before it's posted.

ACK!!

Happy Birthday Brent!

My honey turns 31 today! Happy Birthday to my fabulous husband- I love you!

Tagged...

it's been a while, and since I was nosy enough to read a few answers, I'll participate :)

1. What time did you get up this morning? 5:45
2. Diamonds or Pearls? Diamonds
3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema?umm... that football movie with the NKOTB guy...
4. What is your favorite TV show? Survivor
5. What did you have for breakfast? Toast
6. What is your middle name? Marie
7. What is your favorite cuisine? Sushi
8. What foods do you dislike? Anything they have to grind up in order for me to eat.... hamburger, hot dogs, sausage, pepperoni... you get the idea
9. Your favorite potato chip? not really 'potato', but Sun Chips.. not a big chip person
10. What is your favorite CD at the moment? I guess CD would be Rascall Flatts, but Nickelback is a definite side by side winner, but that CD is in Brent's car.
11. What kind of car do you drive? the 'Hoe. as in Tahoe.
12. Favorite Sandwich? the Patriot from McAllister's
13. What characteristics do you despise? dishonesty
14. What are your favorite clothes? anything that makes me look fabulous
15. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would it
be? Tropical... tahiti or something
16. What color are your eyes?Blue
17. Favorite brand of clothing? Ann Taylor Loft, the Gap or NY & Co. is the majority in my closet.
18. Where would you want to retire?somewhere close to my family
19. Favorite time of day? evening
20. Where were you born? Decatur, AL
21. What is your favorite sport to watch? Hockey
22. Who do you think will not send this back? N/A
23. Person you expect to send it back first? N/A
24. Pepsi or Coke? Coke. Diet only.
25. Cats or Dogs? it's a tie. Can't take sides or Maggie and Patch would withhold the love...
26. Are you a morning person or a night owl? depends... these days it seems to be both
27. Pedicure or manicure? Pedicure
28. Do you prefer funny or mushy cards? Both
29. Any new and exciting news you'd like to share with everyone? I just got an email for a page for the new Cantata Book coming out. :)
30. What did you want to be when you were little?a vet. then I realized it involved blood.
31. What do you have in your trunk right now?no trunk, but in the back there's a stroller, diaper bag, and a bag I need to return.
32. What is your best childhood memory? making ornaments with my mom.
33. What are the different jobs you have had in your life? waitress, bartender, teller, bank officer, bank manager, domestic diva
34. Favorite Holiday? Christmas hands down, Thanksgiving a close second.
35. What is your favorite dessert?Tres Leches
36. Favorite Summer getaway? Somewhere up north, cooler than here for sure.
37. Ever been to Africa ? Nah.
38. Glasses or Contacts?I have reading glasses I never wear.
39. Ever been toilet papering? Yes.
40. Been in a car accident? Yes.
41. Favorite day of the week? Friday
42. Favorite restaurant? Ichibon
43. Favorite flower? stargazers
44. Favorite movies? Miracle on 34th street.
45. Favorite Pastime? photography, scrapping
46. Favorite ice cream? I dunno.. I eat it so rarely. The only time I have it is at Coldstone though.
47. Favorite fast food restaurant?Sonic. Purely for the drinks.
48. How many times did you fail your drivers test?never
49. From whom did you get your last email? Christina from Scrap Lovers
50. Sandals or tennis shoes? definitely Sandals
51. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card? hmm... I'd have to say Pottery Barn I think
52. If the speed limit is 60 what is the fastest you will drive? 40 ;P
53. Bedtime? usually around 11 or 12, this week around 10 though- I've been SO tired lately!
54. Who are you most curious about their responses to this?nosy rosy in the house- I'll read everyone's!
55. Last person you went to dinner with? Anita and my kiddos.
56. What are you listening to right now? radio commercials
57. What is your favorite color? red
58. How may tattoos do you have? *cough* one
59. How many people are you sending this Email to? nil
60. What time did you finish this email? 2:01 p.m.

grr...

**thanks Krystn- I switched back to Firefox again :) all posts updated with pics!***

OH and the shirts you're wondering about- I'm wearing one in the picture :)


been a busy weekend. best part was having dinner with my two oldest brothers, their fiancees, and my sister. very great for us to get together and laugh. needed it. second best part would have to be my pedicure. oh yes. definitely. also had fun at a couple of birthday parties- Jenni's and Addison's.
cameron went down to shelley's this weekend- loves going out to the farm.
I guess it wasn't enough farm life though, because she took him to the wildlife trek.
he informed me that the ostriches have heads that are way too big for their necks, and they wanted to eat all thier food.
he came home in new redneck gear.
i swear she does this to torment me, because it will be his new shirt he wants to wear every day.
he asked to sleep in it tonight.
it will have to disappear.
just like that last one did- the blue camo one.
camo'd out- this tee is like the hunting gear camo of the trees on it.
so he can blend right in. here in the 'burbs. awesome. thanks shell.

Happy 14 month Birthday Miss Megs!

2nd time's a charm... hopefully blogger won't eat this one. Maybe that's a sign I should quit doing these, but I figure I'll keep doing the monthly updates for as long as she keeps doing monthly things to write about...

ANYways.... this month you added a couple of new words to the vocab- "pees" with a grabbing motion right before you start squealing to get whatever it is you want, and "kitty" as you're laughing and squealing, chasing poor Patch around trying to yank on her tail. That poor cat- just when she recovers from the trauma of Cameron, here you go.
You also started using utensils on your own as well- though it's usually to help spread your food around your hair and everything else near you, while you still use your fingers to actually put the food in your mouth, but hey, we're working on it. Baby steps. :)
Kurstee came and stayed with us for a week while she was on fall break- you adore her and had a great time with her while she was here. We tried to take her shopping a bit while she was up, since she doesn't get to do much of that out on the farm. We hit up the outlet malls, and the Woodlands, and you greatly benefitted from the excursions as well. ;P
We also went to the zoo this month- you're starting to be much more interested in the animals when we go now- you really liked the giraffes this time- I think you were plotting the whole time how you were going to crawl up those big long necks to check out the view up there.
We went to your first Halloween party too- you're Minnie Mouse this year, and a very cute one too I might add... .although the ears never stay on for too long at one time. Still cute though! Cameron is Spiderman, and he just loves trying to 'save' Minnie from the perels she comes across. We also went out the oil ranch, where you took your first hay ride, and played in the moon bounce with Cam, and rode the train. You mainly just loved being able to run free- you love anything you feel like your getting away with! You also loved picking up the pumpkins all by yourself (just like your brother of course!)
This month we celebrated my birthday (28), Uncle Wade's birthday (34), Papa Scottie's birthday (not going to guess on that one), and your cousin Nick's birthday (7)
You shocked me last week when we were at the park- the three of us had gone down the slide over and over again, and I turned around to wait for Cameron, and you had plopped down feet first on your belly and went down the slide all on your own!! *sniff* big girl! And so proud of yourself!
You're still a lover of the phones- my cell phone is your source of entertainment whenever we're out somewhere and you get fussy- it's been dropped and drooled on more than I can count.
You're definitely miss independant- more and more so every day. You spend more and more time running rather than walking- to nowhere in particular. Just getting a kick out of life. I can't believe how quickly you're growing- and wanting to do EVERYTHING just like your brother! He's a great big brother to you though, you both make me proud. I love you both very much!

Happy Birthday Miss Megs!
Love,
Mama

***Blogger won't let me post pictures right now :( I'll add them later!****

blogger ate my post..

I had Megan's 14 month post all ready to go, and Blogger ate it. Poo. Hate it when that happens.

Went to the Melting Pot Saturday night. Yum-O! as usual... also had Ty's Birthday party Saturday during the day. Spent three hours rotting my brain away trying to plan a scrap room. The joyous occasion I had thought it would be was just not so. Last night had the Light the Night walk with some girlfriends- between the four of us we raised about $1200. yay!
I also now have red hair.... it's growing on me now- was a little freaked out at first. Rita has me hooked on Bedazzling everything... I now look at everything wondering how it shall look bedazzled. :P I took the kiddos to the Mud Pie Friday to make an M&M jar for Brent at work- he always keeps candy at his desk for everyone.... my poor camera suffered some abuse while we were there- first my son spilled the water bowl on it, then I hung it on the side of my chair to avoid the water, and my daughter pulled the chair down so it came crashing to the floor (along with Megan). Ouch.

Hmm... I think subconciously I was trying to see how many links I could shove into a paragraph...

I made it!

Yay!!

Thanks for all your well wishes!!

http://www.scraplovers.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6787

On this day FIVE years ago...

Brent and I were married. :)

Wooo.... it's gone by in the blink of an eye, though! In some ways I feel as if it's been forever, because I can't remember much of what my life was like without him, and in some ways, it seems like just yesterday. Much like most things in life, I suppose.
It really has been a great five years. I think we were to both be married before, and get all the kinks worked out the first round, because we have yet to hit much more than speed bumps here and there.
I really do feel as if I married my best friend. We balance each other out perfectly- Brent's sense of stability, calmness, level-headed thinking mixed with my wild can't make up my mind, always looking for something new, sensitivity... makes for a great match. :P We finish each other's sentences, and have the same sense of humor (mine's a tad more sarcastic at times...) and have fun together. I feel like there's nothing we couldn't do together, and nothing I can't do for myself with Brent's support- he's definitely my #1 fan. He's also the first person not to hesitate to put me back in my place (yes, I do get a tad out of line. Once or twice.).
We are traveling down the fun, but rocky road of parenting, trying to raise our children the best we can, one day at a time. It seems when one of us is having a tough go at it, the other picks up the slack. Our family has a very blessed full life, and it's really what means the most.
It's been a great five years, and I'm looking forward to the rest of our lives together!

fingers crossed...

for a DT spot I applied for.... we shall see soon enough... :)

The kiddos and I were eating dinner tonight (B's out of town) and I asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up...

"A pilot, a eganeeer, a builder, and a firefighter." Wow.

Made a very cool shirt with Rita and some girlfriends last night using Swarovski iron on crystals. It turned out so cool! Went and bought a bunch of them at Hobby Lobby today to make some for Christmas gifts (or more for myself....)

Brent's birthday is coming up... and I have NO idea what to get him! Any cool guy ideas? I'm thinking an MP3 player- any recommendations for those? I haven't a clue...

If you ever wondered....

what he'd look like as a girl, this is it:

12 on the 12th...

Another 12 on the 12th- thanks to Rita for reminding me- I had almost forgotten this month!

1. Email, message boards, blogs, news... usually first thing in the morning I'm bee-bopping around the WWW.
2. Bye Cam! (I took a very similar picture picking him up three hours later)
3. Yumm... you know, I never really looked at the weird woman in the SB logo until now. Interesting.
4. Returns to Old Navy, ran to Ulta and Pier 1.... nothing productive came of it.
5. Met Serene (future SIL) for lunch at Joe's.
6. Cameron doing his favorite 'moves' on the playground.
7. Little miss running towards me. I realized today that I didn't write down when she started going from walking to running... and her hair gets blonder every day.
8. That would be the back of Cameron's head. In a corner. *sigh* I cannot even remember now what for.
9. Worked on a layout during nap time.
10. Happy Birthday Wade!
11. Met the family up at Pappasito's for dinner to celebrate Wade's birthday. Yum!
12. Brent's home! Yay! I always like seeing that suitcase back in the house when he's been gone.

I'm alive!

I was really worried for a day or two there... got a bug through the house, and I think I got it the worst. I really thought I was going to die for a moment. or two. yuck. been a while. the positive? it is a little good for the diet, as Stephanie pointed out to me. :P
been busy too... a couple of family parties, baby shower.... Brent was gone to Georgia all last week, so we always go, go, go when he's gone.... when the cat's away...

I'm also thinking I need a lesson 101 in stamps. I have all these fabulous stamps, and never use them because nothing ever comes out even halfway decent. I have an all new respect for stampers.... and an urge to give them all of mine.

...knock knock....

who's there?

C: Peanut Butter

Peanut butter who?

*pause*...wandering eye....

C: Honey! (followed by hysterical laughing)

...ugh...

I don't know how Megan is still alive at this point- anything she sees goes in her mouth, including anything of interest in parking lots, or bathroom floors...... or Starbucks this morning..... yes, I try to get to her quick enough, but she's fast dammit!

and God is totally getting me back for all those "I have no idea why people ever need those silly locks/latches/doorknob covers to keep their babies out- Cameron never gets into ANYTHING" ugh... Megan is SO making up for lost time.... closing the lid to the toilet is no longer suffice. Now the bathroom door has to be shut at all times in order for her not to lift the lid and have a mini splash party.
And you know those old, nasty, dirty toothbrushes you clean those hard to reach places with? Well, my daughter has figured out how open the cabinet just far enough (yes, with that cabinet lock on) to squeeze her chubby little hand in and grab whatever she can manage to pull out, which today happened to be THAT toothbrush that promptly went in her mouth. Yes, I know you've probably uttered an "EWWWW" or three at this point... *sigh* And I'm not going to confess how much mulch that child eats each and every time we go to the park.... you'd think it wouldn't taste good after a while... kind of like the dog food I keep hiding from her... does it really taste that damn good that you hunt for it??
Cameron never put things in his mouth- I had a hard enough time finding things he liked to eat, let alone worrying about trash/mulch/bugs/toilet paper etc. going into his mouth. And he did, and still does, hate to be dirty. Not the little princess. She'd love a mud bath.
Cameron wears me out with the talking.... Megan wears me out with the running.... it's totally all worth it in the end, right? Especially when Cameron tells me I'm his favorite Mommy (yes, I know, you don't have to point out I'm the only Mommy) or now that Megan has learned how to give hugs and slobbery kisses.... so sweet.

...hmm....

still feeling random....

*I cannot stand birthday parties at Chuck E Cheese. That place is like a huge dirty petri dish, and I want to sanitize my children from head to toe when we leave.

*I hate it when someone says they want to change, or want to do something different, and yet they expect the world to fall at their feet and have it all happen with no effort on their part. I mean, are you serious??

*I think we're heading to Washington for Thanksgiving. It's been a year since I've seen my mom, and a couple of years since we've gone up there. We were going to wait until summer, but that's a long ways to go.

*I need to get a jump on Christmas...gifts....making things.... where's the motivation.....

*Talked to my sister for the first time in 10 months Friday. It was good. Progress. This must be the year for that for me.

*Today is actually cool outside. I did not immediately break out in a sweat simply by opening the blinds. Can it be that fall is really here? I might cry for joy.

* I still have no window treatments in my house. All of our windows are big eyeballs with no eyelids. Gotta start fabric shopping.

* My daughter is obsessed with phones. I don't know if it's because she sees me talking on one so often, but she loves them. Always wanting them, and then will walk around jabbering on them. She also says "dog" now.... it comes out like "dawga" though. The one picture is shortly after she 'cried' for a phone in my hand... hence the slight blotchiness.

blog again, blog again, jiggity jig....

ahh.... life.

so busy. so crazy. Kurstee has been staying with us this week since she's on Fall break, so having a teenage body in the house ups the crazy factor a tad.

I smell nice. Thanks again, Rita. Love this stuff.

Got the kids Christmas outfits this week (they match!) and they're cute!

It's too flippin' hot. 92. Gross.

Last week was a fabulous week long celebration of my birthday. Note to self: dragging the birthday out for a whole week versus one day is much more fun. Here's a pic of Hubs and I at the Melting Pot.... dip dip dip....

My husband witnessed a man fall backwards down an esclator downtown yesterday. He pulled him back up to the top, and waited for the ambulance to get there. He said the guy had no feeling in his right leg and was messed up pretty bad. He kept waking up last night talking about it. Frightening when your husband comes home from work with stories like that. I don't know what the deal is- last month he watched a girl roll her SUV 3 times at the top of a bridge, and then had to crawl in to rescue her.

Went to the zoo this week, too. It was hot there too.

I have a ton on my mind that I feel the urge to type, and then not so much.... blogging is definitely a one way road... Especially when you check out Analytics. Don't get me wrong, this has been a fabulous venue- I love reading blogs too.... life is so busy these days, and you don't always have time to catch up on the little stuff, so it's good to read a blog. But then again, when it's the not so good, sometimes I wonder what people think you're a loony toon, who relates, who just doesn't give a crap.... just interesting. There are so many blogs out there for so many different reasons. I started mine simply for the journalistic venture- I love being able to go into my archives and check back on a day when I'm scrapping, and remember that moment. Anyways, I babbling, avoiding what's really on my mind...

In other news, Megan is attempting to use a spoon and fork now. Yogurt most often ends up in her eyebrows, but she's doing good at it.

Oh, and I started back at Weight Watchers last night. I have 15-20 I want to get off, so I'm hoping by Christmas I can accomplish that. The last 12 hours have gone well.....I only kind of feel like I'm starving.

on this day 28 years ago...

I was welcomed to this fabulous place we call earth. Time flies I tell ya. Just when I feel the urge to downshift, it kicks up a gear.
It's really been in the last year that I've felt much more of coming into my own, figuring out my place on this planet, and what makes me 'me', and what is just 'filler'. Being okay with my likes and dislikes, and being okay with how different we all are.
Being okay with being a work in progress- I hope I never stop growing, never stop getting better.
This life only happens once, so all I can do is make the most of it, and celebrate it every chance I get!
This life thus far has been a long winding road, with many turns and twists. It's only gotten better as time goes on, so all I can think is the best is yet to come!

Happy 13 month Birthday Megs!

Lucky month 13! Woot! This month has been that month that you decided since you're the big 'ONE' now, you can vocalize and protest much more than before.... especially with Big Bro. Whatever he has, you want. Of course, this is one of those things where I'm not sure what came first, because Cameron has wanted what you have from day 1, so maybe you just are finally catching on that you can do it too.
Right after our trip to Lake Travis, you started learning how to stand up without assistance- that butt up in the air to get balance move. Before that you were crawling to the nearest object to creep back up to standing.
You and Cameron got to spend a night with Gramma this month while I went to CKU- Daddy went over in the evening, but you guys stayed there Thursday night since he gets up so early for work. And then Friday night Daddy got to hold down the fort all to himself with the two of you until I got home Saturday evening. No visible damage was done, and none was admitted to while I was gone, so I'll just assume everything went perfect!
You've added "bath" to your vocabulary this month- if your next word is 'vacuum' or 'clean' I'll become a little concerned that you're taking after the AR factor that is so present in our family.
We celebrated Madison's first birthday this month, and Gramma's birthday (she's 18). We also celebrated Cameron getting his Orange belt- yay! He thanks you for letting him practice all thos moves on you.
You love to look at books all the time now- not always in the right direction, but you look at them so intently I almost believe you can read upside down sometimes. Your favs are the "baby's book of ABC's" and "baby's book of colors" but you show no preference when it comes to pulling them off the shelves into a large pile. You have no interest in any baby dolls, other than to pick them up and chunk them straight on the floor. Maybe with time....
You also absolutely love being outside right now- which thankfully it hasn't been miserable being outside lately, so I don't mind. You usually cry when we have to come in. You just love to wander all around, "running" in that drunken sailor fashion, just checking things out, stating that independence of yours. I love it! You're growing so much every day, just reaching out a little more on your own, though you still love to come back and snuggle now and then. What a great place to be!
I love you baby- Happy Birthday!
Mama

This rocks...

I can't wait to see it myself in person! Yay! Brandy made her rounds already and picked up her copy- so neat to see Dylan holding it! My little piece of art on the cover of something is pretty spiffy!

....fun with the family....

we went down to Ichibon yesterday for some yummy Hibachi with the family... had a great time- Hibachi is always fabulous- the cook was hilarious- he took turns throwing each of us a chunk of rice to catch in our mouths.... Wade and Nick were the only catchers on that one :). And there's the "rice cake" and the "beating heart"... funny stuff.
We headed over to Kemah afterwards to walk off the enormous amount of food we ate.... of course, we had a little intermission in between, because Nick & Serene ran out of gas.... I really had to document it, since it was the first time I've ever been with someone when they ran out of gas.... *note to self* do not park on slant when car is on "E". tee hee....

They took it in good stride...

Our little outbreak monkey is doing better too... I think the heat yesterday aggravated the rash a little more, but she was a good sport the whole day.... we rode a few of the rides over at the Boardwalk- I'm always up for a little thrill! :) Had a great day- here's the rest of the pictures!

....life with kids.

Megan has hand, foot and mouth disease. Why on earth they made such a horrible name
for such a simple virus is beyond me. It's a rash. The name makes you think they will have hands and feet falling off at any moment. I will say hers is a mild case. Still. Just call it "funky rash" or something.....

Cameron was coming out of the bathroom this morning, turned around, went back in, and turned on the fan and shut the door.
"Why did you turn the fan on Cameron?"
"mommm (rolling eyes) I went to the bathroom." Dude. This is what we've come to? He's four for crying out loud.

*Disclaimer* Brent and I are both pretty (okay, really) sarcastic people, and we have our share of sarcastic little sayings we throw back and forth at each other.... I can't remember where this one originated from, but it's been around for a while....

This afternoon we were at lunch, and while I can't remember what I asked Brent, but his answer was, "Bend over, I'll show ya" (usually used in the context of asking where something is) Cameron promptly asked, "Daddy, why did you ask Mommy to bend over to show her? Show her what Daddy?"
Busted.
Brent just put his head down and continued eating as if he had never heard him ask. A the while choking a little on his food. Serves him right. He should never talk to a lady such as myself in such a way. Hmpf.

And here, folks, is what we call the Pout. With a capital "P":
And this is what we call the "threat smile"- you know, "You better look at me and smile or you're not going to {fill in the blank}" in this case, it was riding his bike:

And this is what it looks like 2 minutes later, when he's over it:

toot!

I have a layout that Scrapbook Trends wants for its January issue! Yay!

lovely summer days...

are so few and far between around here... happy to say we finally had one today (it's so sad really- Rita called me starting off the conversation with how excited she was to have the sunroof open, right at the same time I was thinking that about mine! :P) Spent most of the day outside and messed around with some pictures I took this afternoon outside.... Candice Stringham said in her classes how everyone has tendencies they lean towards when taking pictures... I 'm absolutely positive that I tend to take right side orientation pictures! Something about that off-center look I love. That, and a tilt is always great, too. :) Also messed around in PS, trying different stuff on all the pictures. Anyways, who doesn't need another excuse to show off children???

Home again home again, jiggity jig

Good to be home.... had a fabulous time at CKU, but it was good to be home, too! Missed the fam. We had "Madison's" Birthday party today (you know, "Sabrina's" daughter), so it's definitely been a flurry the last four days. I haven't had so much fun (or drank so much) in a long time. Whew! The CKU classes were good.... I definitely think the CKU-A was much better. I probably won't hit up a regular CKU again, but it was fun to go. The classes I thought were going to be great were so-so, and the classes I was just filling space with ended up being my favs. Loved the Junkitz classes, and the Photography classes were great as well.
Definitely the best part of the weekend was just us spending time together. I laughed so much this weekend. Girls weekends definitely need to happen more often. It's also really great when the people I'm close to get to know each other better and have a great time together too. I think we could have stayed in the hotel room all weekend and still had a good time! If the hotel had had room service that is. :)
In case anyone was wondering, my children and husband were all intact and in great shape when I got back too! :P

p.s. watching a one year old walk around with her newly discovered ability to make fish faces is the most hilarious thing ever.

12 on the 12th

Trying to get this posted before I head off to CKU! Woot!

The collage is a little messy.... sorry....

anyways....

1. Our vitamins... we're trying to start a new thing to get a little healthier....we'll see how long it lasts.

2. Cam's off to school

3. My newest habit- preschool days = Starbucks days..... :)

4. Megan & I head to the grocery store.

5. Some play time with Megs- always gotta find something cool for her mouth and each of her hands. :) Then nap time.

6. Head over to the Loft and Children's Place for some quick shopping!

7. Pick up Cam from school.

8. After lunch we head outside for some bike & trike riding- Megan almost immediately finds the one tiny mud puddle on our street. Nice.

9. Work on some DT assignments while the kiddos are nappin'.

10. Time for a haircut for Cam.

11. Miss Megs has had her bath, and is ready for bed.

12. Cameron and Daddy play a game before Cam's bedtime.

That's it! Left out the housekeeping, email checking, online browsing..... and the laundry....

Yesterday Cam got his orange belt!! Woot! SO proud of him!! The pics are terrible (Stephanie wasn't there to tell me the right settings ;P)

And we're off!! Yay!! CKU here I come!

tiny toot!

Paper Trends wants my birthday card I made for Hannah! Yay!

In Rememberance

Brent went to New York on business at the end of January 2002 for a job at the WTC, about 4 1/2 months after the attacks. This was what they did every time they found someone in the rubble. It rips my heart out to look at this picture, but I do. I think about the families of that person they pulled out, 4 1/2 months later, finally knowing for sure that they had lost their loved one. I think about the men finding those people, and the horror they experienced again and again for almost a year after the attacks. I think about how it changed the face of our country forever.

I don't ever want to forget.

More than anything, though, in the grief afterwards, I remember how united we all became in an instant, and came together with a love for the strangers that surround us every day. Empathy for the fellow American. Appreciation for what wasn't lost. I remember how saddened I was that it took such an enormous loss for it to bring us all together. I am amazed it's been five years- I still remember that morning like it was yesterday, and I can only imagine how time has stood still for those who lost someone they loved that day. My heart goes out to the families and friends of the almost 3,000 people that were lost that day, and for the pain they endure. For those children who lost the fathers they will never know.

I do believe we are just as vunerable today as we were then. If nothing else, it's yet another indicator of how precious life is, to not take for granted the days we have with those we love. We cannot stop what we do not know, but we can hope for a peace for all of us to become a little more tangible for the world, because it seems so far and distant right now.

The pictures are up!

If you click on the "Keller" link the password is "Heather".... let me know your favorites- I'm having a hard time deciding!

Cameron & Megan's pictures

My husband is hot.

(I can't help but say that in a Paris Hilton tone. SaaaAAaaad.)
I love him. Laugh at him. Sure, he has moments I want to yank his arm off and beat him with it, but for the most part, I love him. Last night we had a date (insanely enough, for the second weekend in a row- we go from "can't remember the last time we had a night just the two of us" to TWO!) and he took me to the Melting Pot for dinner. Now, anyone who knows me knows that I adore the Melting Pot. A few of us girlfriends have September birthdays, and we've made it a tradition to go out to dinner together, usually to the Melting Pot, but scheduling conflicts are putting it into October this year, so hubs decided to take me last night. There is really nothing closer to heaven than dipping foods. I'm a dipper. So give me a big bowl of cheese...... and chocolate..... heaven! I think I could eat just about anything if it was dipped in some cheese or chocolate first.
Dirt.
Worms.
Whatever.
Just dip it.


My friend Stephanie did some portraits of the kiddos the other day.
(if you click on her logo on the web page, you can see more pics)
I haven't seen any of them yet, so I can't wait! I'm sure she got some great ones..... I think taking portraits of a one year old that never stops moving and a 4 year old that never stops talking and/or doing super hero stances is definitely a commendable job.



I broke down and bought a Crop-A-Dile yesterday. I've never wanted to punch holes as much as I am now. Reasoned it was needed for CKU, which, did I mention, is now only FOUR days away?? Woohoo! Brandy, Rita, "Sabrina" and I are going together- SO excited!!

School Days

We've had unusually great weather in the mornings this week. Cam's new favorite thing is to hang out the sun roof while we're waiting in the car pool line. Such a ham- makes him cool.... even though, as Carmen pointed out, he's already cool. :)

feeling random.

these 4 & 3 day weekends have thrown me for a loop- last week came and went before I could blink, and now Tuesday is already over...

• the inside of our house is finally painted. Yay! the painters came and did all the outer areas- living, foyer, hallways, game room. Brent and I finished off the kitchen last night. The kitchen is Burlap, and all the other areas are Whole Wheat. They're both from Sherwin Williams. LOVE the look! Here's some pictures of the house- I know I have waited waaay too long- *sorry* I'm posting pics of the family room, with some of my family actually in it :) doing what they do best.... and the guest bath (brevity brown) and the kiddos bath (turquoise gem), the foyer with our new piece for the art niche, the gallery pics ( I know, I showed a pic before) the view into the kitchen from the family room , the breakfast room, the master bath (blonde) and the master bedroom which I (sometimes we) did not paint. I want to thank Rita for all her help with the paint colors, for they would not be what they are if I had not directly 'lifted most, if not all (okay all) of her colors. I am not showing the office or the formal dining because they have no furniture other than scrap crap and boxes, and toys, in that order, in them.
• went out to this REALLY neat place called Laurie's on Friday with the Anitameister.... LOVE that place. MIL surprised us with a ton of new very cool stuff for the house as an early anniversary present, and found some very neat pics to go in their future house, along with a bday present for SIL. Good time, good day.
• went to the Movie Tavern with Brent Sat night for a date WOOHOO! Saw Invincible (very good!) and had a great time. We don't do that nearly enough. Some times it's good to just remember what it's like to have fun together.
• Went and saw my brother and his girlfriend/fiancee Monday. I really like her more and more the more I'm around her. She's so good for Nick, and that is really great. It's still strange sometimes now talking with Nick as an adult, thinking about him being a father... crazy! But so exciting too! Exciting for babies (who doesn't love babies??) and exciting to have more family that's a part of our lives. LOVE it.
• My little trashy girl- all those cute clothes in the closet, and here she is, stripped down, probably because I had already changed her clothes 3 times that day. Doing her usual move. All these months of seeing her do it, it still cracks me up. That thumb does not go in her mouth without that hand going behind her head. Every time.
• 3 Scrappy Boys is having a Scrap off for the month of September- come check it out- challenges all month long, with great prizes!
  

Camnisms

Me: (getting ready for bed) Cameron, do you know how much I love you?

Cam: How much?

M: To the moon

C: Well, I love you to the moon and back

M: Wellll I love you to the stars and back

C: Welllll I love you to the stars and back too!

M: Well, I love you to the sun and back times two!

C: Well, I love you all the way to Gramma's (10 minutes away)

M: That's A LOT of love Cameron!

life is crazy!

We got back Monday evening from a fabulous 4 day trip to Lake Travis and Cameron started his first day of preschool yesterday. I'm so mad at myself- last night we were rushing out the door to meet the IL's for my MIL's birthday, and I accidentally deleted the pictures I took of Cam yesterday for his first day. :(
ANYWAYS, had a great time at the lake.... all except for the minor near death experience when my FIL almost ran head on into a cliff, and wrecked the boat. We are all injury free, but only by a few seconds. If my neice had not screamed when she had, who knows what would have happened. I shudder to think. Other than that, it was great time- good for all us I think to just hang out together.... reconnect... Cameron absolutely loves hanging out with his cousins, and they are so sweet to Megan all the time- it's so adorable. Spent most of our time on the boat (as you can see from the almost 400 pics on Flickr, if you take the time to look) and the weather was great the entire time. Jenni and I did a mini photo shoot of the kiddos Saturday morning to surprise Anita for her birthday- the outtakes are pretty amusing.
The Cameronisms are pretty funny from the trip- Sunday out on the boat we were cruising the lake and Cameron said,"Watch out for that orange kid!" to his Papa.
"What orange kid?"
"That orange kid right there!" We were all looking around towards the shore for some kid in orange or something.
"Right there, in the water!"
"You mean the buoy?"
"Yeah, that's what I said. The boy! That kid!"
"Oh, honey, it's buoy not boy."

Every time Brent would ski Cameron would say he was walking on water. He's dying to walk on water too. We're going ski shopping for next year to get him out there on some small ones. "Walk on water" will definitely be the title of the layout I do (someday) of the guys skiing. He tubed a few times on his own this time for the first time and loved it, and he loved 'driving' the boat with Papa and going fast. We nicknamed Megan "Tator Tot" because of her life vest- she looked so hilarious in it.

Cameron's first day of school went off without a hitch- only a few tears (by me) when he went in- all smiles in and all smiles out. He did at least say he missed Megan and I while he was gone. :) That makes me feel a little better. I'm always glad he's happy to be there, but I don't want him too happy. :P

Happy FIRST birthday Miss Megan!!

I'm a little late with this post, since we were up at the lake for your actual birthday on Friday, and we just got back last night, but Happy Birthday!! We had a party for you last weekend with all the friends, and then celebrated with a little cake that Gramma made and ice cream Friday night at the lake with the family. You're still not diggin' the cake for some reason. Cupcakes, no problem. Cake, no.... this picture cracks me up- your bib says "Fun at One! It's my birthday!" and has your name and the date under (it's a Gramma thing) so it's just slightly ironic that you are crying (because Daddy wouldn't give you his beer- shucks)

This month has had a few of those kinda funny but not moments that must be documented- you fell on your head for the first time (twice- not far, and as far as we can tell, no damage other than to our ears) and you ate your first bug (I would have fish hooked you, but it was too late- that protein got digested- all that was left was a wing on your chin.)
For some strange reason I must look like a pork chop or something when you look at me, because every chance you get, you chomp. I can't even begin to tell you how many times in a day I say "No Bite" but it's got to be in the hundreds. And since you have 5 teeth now, it really does hurt.

We went and met Daddy for lunch one day this month at the Aquarium. You were really fascinated by the tanks and all the big fish- most of the time you just stared in awe at them.

We're completely finished nursing now (shockingly you never once chomped at the bit for all the other biting you do to me). We cut down to 1x/day at the beginning of the month, and then were done on the 15th. I'm really surprised I made it that far, considering I didn't make it past 6 weeks with your brother. But once the newness wore off, it was just easy, and it got to the point where it seemed silly to start on formula since we were in the home stretch to One. There were many times I had had enough and just wanted my body back, but I just kept thinking what a short span of time it was in the grand scheme of things.

You've started handing things off now and doing the "gimme" motion with your hand now when you want something- right now it's still at that cute stage, but I'm sure the novelty will wear off soon- especially for your brother- what a trooper- he gives into so much it's crazy!

And you're full speed ahead on the walking- you've been walking short places for a couple of months, but you started taking off mid-month, and you're not far from running. And I'm amazed at how you can scale those stairs so fast. You love trying to keep up with Cameron, and are always fascinated by his toys more than your own.

Happy Birthday Sweet Pea! We've been so lucky and blessed to have such a wonderful first year, and you're such a healthy, beautiful BABY!

Love, Mama