Ghost and a Princess

This was the most fun we've had for halloween so far! We did NOT decide for Cole to be a ghost! He did! He LOVES ghosts. Every book we read, or decoration we saw...he would say, "Oh! There's a ghost!" Soo..when it came time to ask him what he wanted to be, he told me, "Cole be a ghost!" I wanted him to be like Casper the Friendly ghost. At first I just wanted to do white sweats...thankfully I couldn't find any because it was about 75 degrees. Instead he wore a white turtle neck and jeans. I cut out a hole in a white sheet & trimmed the edges. For our halloween party, he wouldn't let me put on the sheet & hated the face paint. For Halloween...he was excited! I think he had the best costume in town! lol. I love how so far he has had TWO homemade (slightly ghetto) costumes. Natalie was a fairy princess. There were tiny wings sewn on the back of the costume. She wouldn't keep a necklace on and wouldn't let me put bows or pony tails in either :( So she's kind of plain. After we got done trick or treating at the down town business ( a tradition here), we came home & handed out candy. All the trick or treaters got a TON of candy because we thought there would be a lot more! Cole kept saying, "There's more people!"

Foto Friday

I think Natalie had too much to drink...milk that is!

Chill Ride!

This cracks me up! Look at Natalie's hand!

As much of a smile that I can get out of Natalie!

Natalie & the pumpkiins

In a wagon!

Finished Jack-O-Lantern!

What's in there?

Not Me Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I did NOT throw a pity party to my husband today SOBBING something to this tune, "I HAVE NO FRIENDS..." Nope, what kind of sad, sad soul would do that? Not me!

I did not go hog wild in Lubbock acting as though I'd never seen stores before in my life AND put a ridiculous amount of items on our credit card. No way...because then I would cry when I saw the bill and had to pay it. Oh well...it's a good thing that wasn't me!

Speaking of the credit card, I didn't forget to pay it last week. Of COURSE I didn't! That would mean having to pay 15$ "rush fee" to have it paid by today...the due date...to avoid a $29 LATE fee tomorrow. NOT ME! (let me add, in all honesty...we have no CC debt...I DO pay it off every time we put a purchase on it...therefore...I should THROW IT AWAY!)

I didn't have to wash the kid's clothes 3 times in 2 days (same load) because I kept forgetting it in the washer. Thank goodness that was NOT me!

No matter WHAT Cole says...I did NOT hide his choo choos and choo choo books yesterday. He loves those things so much that the books are torn and I have to "fix" (tape them together) them everyday. Not to mention fix the wheels and batteries and anything else all while he throws the biggest temper tantrum in the world. Nope...I did NOT do that to my silly train obsessed son!

Just another NOT ME Monday :)

Random Cole thoughts...

I haven't really posted much about Cole lately...so this post is dedicated to my SWEET baby boy! (ok...he's 2.5...not really a BABY)

• He is talking ALL the time...and I understand 98% of what he says! Funny stuff: "eelk" is milk; "I want to buy dis"--about my dad's train set. "Baby die?"--Baby cry? (I was scared that he knew something I didn't...but I realized he can't say his hard "c"s) He talks of himself in the 3rd person, "Dole want a tookie"--Cole want a cookie. The list goes on. He cracks me up!!
• He's about 75% potty trained. Still having issues with going poo poo on the potty though...any advice?
• He's a DROOLER like mommy...poor kid. I discovered this today as we layed down to read stories for naptime and his pillow was STILL wet from overnight. GROSS!
• Such a sweet, sweet boy. If he sees me sad or someone sad on TV, he gets sad and hugs me.
• Kid LOVES to dance and keeps good rythym!
• Likes to keep sister "happy" by getting her toys. Usually the "toy" is a kleenex. They like to tear them up into tiny pieces in our bed. :/
• He helps me pick up pecans ALMOST every day (since we have 7 pecan trees). He even picks up the empty shells. When he finds a big one he says, "WOW! I show Daddy!"
• He loves his grandparents. He calls Justin's parents "mimi & papa" and my parents "Maw Maw & Pa Paw" (supposed to be grandma & grandpa). he talks about ALL of them daily!
• Justin's dad drives a semi truck...therefore he calls ALL semi trucks "Papa Wheel".
• He's still OBSESSED with trains. My dad put out his train at their house. Cole laid on the floor and watched it FOR HOURS. This is why we have hidden all of his train stuff at home.
• Still a very picky eater. He likes tuna, PB & J, ham burritos with cream cheese, eggs & bacon, chicken strips, corn dogs, tortilla chips, ANY AND ALL FRUIT, lettuce, cheese pizza, fish sticks...and sweets of course.
• He's shy around a small group of people...but not in BIG groups...like stores or football games. Isn't that strange? I mean...he'll talk to ANYBODY at the store or games.
• He is now a mama's boy :) I waited so long for this!
• He LOVES ICE CREAM! Thanks grandpa! (this is their special treat together!)
• He is still an amazing sleeper!!! if only his sister would learn from him!!
• People think he's MUCH older than he is...he's HUGE!
• He loves to "read" as many books as possible! His books are falling apart from all the "reading!"
• He knows some letters: 0, A, B, C, F, T, F, S, and sometimes E. hehe

I love this little man! He's getting so big and SOOOO smart! He's so loving & gives the BEST hugs!

Halloween Party

My neighbors and a few other friends decided to have a "Mom & Me Halloween Party"! It was last night and so much fun! There were 5 moms and 8 kids. We ALL dressed up. I was a skunk (cat ears, tail, black shirt & a white stripe down my hair). Cole was a ghost and Natalie a fairy princess. Cole was NOT happy about wearing a sheet, but he managed to let me paint his face. Still a pretty convincing ghost if you ask me :). We also had a medieval princess, Ariel, a transformer, an astronaut, a clown, and a cute little pumpkin. Leave it to me to not take pictures of anyone else! I hosted the party, so yesterday was pretty stressful! ha! I made sausage & cheese balls (always a big hit!) and chocolate chip cookie dough cupcakes. Let me tell you...having a play room REALLY makes this house worth it! The kids stayed out there and we stayed in the kitchen (I mean...it's 3 steps away...but still!)

Here are a few pics!

Natalie Walking

(check out these pics of natalie!!! Kristen Bednarz did them! http://www.kristinbednarz.blogspot.com/)

My baby girl started walking!! On Wednesday, my dad and I were sitting on the floor with Natalie. He told her, "Ok, Natalie, you HAVE to walk before Grandma gets home!" (so HE would be the first to see it) I put her out in front of me and she walked to me! She's taken at MOST 4-5 steps...but it's walking! SOOOO cute! I'll try to post pics soon. We say, "Walk, walk, walk Natalie!" Now she says, "Wak Wak Wak!"

We spent the past week in Lubbock. We got to Lubbock Thursday evening. Justin and I went on an "anniversary" date to Taco Villa! Ha! This is where we went after our wedding reception...still in the dress & suit! Friday we went to Lubbock for our FIRST TIME to eat at Orlando's. It was good. Then we went to the Red Raider Outfitter where we got some new Tech shirts. Later that evening we went to Lubbock-Cooper's homecoming game. It was COLD! Cole LOVED it though!

Saturday, my Mom ran a 10K!! I was so jealous! I cheered her on (at the beginning & end). Later that day we went to the Tech vs. Kansas State game. SUCH a good game! Sheffield is a good little quarterback! It was great to see Tech dominate on the field again! It was COLD again, and we had Cole with us. He was VERY layered & had a great time!

While at the game, Natalie stayed with her Great Aunts & Uncles (I feel funny saying that because they are all so young...). She was a little feverish...but they said she did good. When I went to pick her up that night, she was asleep. She woke up and Paul, Suzanne & Rick all game and tickled her & said goodbye. It was ADORABLE to see them love on her like that! I wish I would have taken a picture.

11 months!!!

My sweet baby girl is ELEVEN MONTHS old! Can you believe it???? Next month she will be ONE! Wow. We are so excited to plan her "Princess" birthday party!! I have a VERY strong feeling she will be a tom boy, so I'm doing pink & princess while I can. Why, you ask? Hmmm...maybe because she pushes trucks, cars, and tractors around all day? Maybe because she's mean & can beat up her brother? haha...

Anyway, here are a few neat things about Natalie on her 11 month birthday:

• She is *almost* walking


• When she doesn't get her way, she throws her head smack down on the floor in a full blown fit. (especially traumatic when its on the tile or outside on the concrete...)


• She eats anything and everything. If you are eating, she wants to eat it...and will if you set it down. When I give Cole his lunch...she stands at the bar by him and cries for his food. Yesterday she pulled down half of his tuna sandwich and was eating it...


• Yes, she's still breastfeeding. Why is this so shocking to people? The AMA recommends breastfeeding to AT LEAST one year of age? I mean EVERYBODY is shocked by this!


• NO...I'm NOT trying to wean her yet. Thank you for asking :)


• She has been working on her top back molars for about 2 weeks now...soooo ready for them to come in!


• She has 10 teeth


• She has FINALLY decided to sleep all night (most nights). This is from 8:30pm- 6:30am or so.


• She wears size 12 months


• She weighs a little less than 20 lbs


• She still LOVES her brother more than life itself! When she wakes up from a nap...she is miserable without him.


• Still VERY smart. We tell her to go get "bubba" and she crawls to his door and waits.


• She gives hugs and kisses to me & her dolls (when i ask her to)


• She says (with complete understanding), Momma, Daddy, wawa, Night Night, Naked (both of those are "na na"), Kitty Kat (tiddy tat), choo choo, and Done.


• She signs, "all done" with her hands.


• She loves to play patty cake and peek a boo on her own...and she pretends to go night night. :)


• She eats any crumb left on the floor. I sweep the floor ALL DAY LONG...and she still finds things. I think she hides things to eat later.

And that's my 11 month old baby!

Six Year Anniversary

Today is our 6 year Anniversary! It totally doesn't seem like it's been that long! Maybe because the past 3 years or so have flown by with pregnancies and babies. Ha!

Last night we went to church and the 1st reading was the SAME reading we had at our wedding for the first scripture! (Genesis 2:18-24)

"The Lord God said: "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a suitable partner for him." So the Lord God formed out of the ground various wild animals and various birds of the air, and he brought them to the man to see what he would call them; whatever the man called each of them would be its name. The man gave names to all the cattle, all the birds of the air, and all the wild animals; but none proved to be the suitable partner for the man.

So the Lord God cast a deep sleep on the man, and while he was asleep, he took out one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. The Lord God then built up into a woman the rib that he had taken from the man. When he brought her to the man, the man said:
"This one, at last, is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh;This one shall be called 'woman,' for out of 'her man' this one has been taken."
That is why a man leaves his father and mother and clings to his wife, and the two of them become one body."

Justin and I found it so fitting that this was the scripture last night. In fact, the whole mass was centered on marriage. The priest was visiting...and he was so neat. He spoke of marriage as a sacrifice...a perfect sacrifice that gives ultimate joy.

The past six years have had their ups and downs. Never once have I doubted the love I have for Justin. He makes me whole and he's my very best friend. He gave me the greatest gifts...my babies. When I look at them...I see Justin & I...and that is so amazing!

What I love about Justin...Top 10 in no specific order:

1. He laughs when I'm unhappy...and it makes me happy
2. He's an AMAZING father...AMAZING...it's what he was meant to do in life!
3. He's perserverant. There's not ANYTHING he cant do!
4. He's HANDSOME! I always wanted a tall, tough, handsome dude!
5. He takes care of me...always...
6. I come first...he's so selfLESS. If I need something...he always makes sure I have it. 7. He's the most loving, caring man I know (well...Daddy comes close!)
8. He's tall--helpful when I need something up high! haha...
9. He drives a truck (was a 4x4 when we met...it was the BEST)
10. His growing faith and love in God. It amazes me!

Sooo...looking forward to the next Six-ty years AT LEAST with Justin!

Amazing/Sad story

Through Kelly's Korner blog, I came across a blog "family" she had asked her readers to pray for.

http://bandssullivan.blogspot.com/

It's the blog of a couple married for 5 years. She got cancer...and found out she was pregnant. She carried the baby to 37 weeks and delivered her. The baby was in ICU for a while, but she grew healthy and they were able to take her home. After being home for 2 days, the mom got VERY ill and died in the hospital.

It is such a sad, sad story...but the amazing part is the faith and strength that the husband/dad has. Please pray for this sweet little family...

It's stories like these that make me eat up every single minute I have with my babies. Every night as I nurse Natalie to sleep...I remember that day when i was 7 weeks pregnant and I thought I was having a miscarriage. I remember those 11 weeks that I REFUSED to get attached to the baby...because I just knew something would go wrong. And then I remember the day I found out she was a girl. When I hold her at night I look at her hands and think that one day...this hand will wear a wedding band...one day it will hold her baby... I feel so BLESSED to have two healthy and wonderful babies!!

House progress...

Front of our House with Old Screen Door

Old Screen Door (and new door) It was aluminum with ugly trim. (We still have one just like it in the back...it REALLY is a good door...just ugly IMO)

Old Front Door

New Front of house with new Screen door & new front door. Now we need NEW windows! Is it bad that I hope they get busted out?

New Front Door



Front Living Area before


Front Living Area with new paint...Still need to add new trim & paint the ugly wood trim in parts By they way, that's blue tape. there's a trim piece there. Not sure if we'll leave it white or paint it red. We still have to put the Crown Moulding up. :)