Pumpkin Patch

We just had our annual pumpkin patch outing and it was so fun!  Last year, the girl was just too little and had to ride in the stroller!  This year was totally different!  As the kids get older, they become so much more fun and interactive!  I love our family and am totally content!  God is so good!

15 months!

Clara turned 15 months old on the 11th so I am a bit late on this post.  She is changing so much, and I can't believe it! 

Clara's Stats:

-Weighs around 20 pounds

-Size 3 diaper

-9-12 month clothes, but starting to wear 18 month.

-You are a full blown walker girl!
-She says apple, hi kitty, ball (ba), balloon (boon), bubba, dadda, mamma, please (peas), book, cracker (caka), no(one of your favorites) and I'm sure others that I can't think of but these are the most commonly said!
-She signs bird, please, more and thank you!
-Temper, temper!  Whoa!  The temper tantrums have begun! 
-You love to read books now and bring your favorites to anyone willing to read to you!

-Naps-You are taking two still (am and pm) but have recently had a hard time sleeping more than 1 1/2 hours in the afternoon.  I think we're getting close to dropping the morning nap.  I keep it to an hour right now.  AM nap-9:30-10:30 PM nap-1:30-3:30

-Night time sleep is still awesome as usual!  Bedtime is 7-7:30 and you wake around 6:30.  You'd probably sleep later if your bubba was asleep!  He's always been an early riser and plays quietly til 7:30 a.m.  You will talk and play too until 7:30!  I love that!! 

-Your favorite things to do are going swimming, swinging, shopping, eating!!!

-Eating- Well, you just about eat everything and anything you can get your chubby fingers on!  You even eat things we don't want you to eat!  You love fruit, veggies, bread, crackers, salmon, cheese...name it, you'll eat it!

Clara, you are such a joy and everyone smiles when they see you!  You are just a delight!

Three years old...

Three years ago, we welcomed our sweet bundle of joy, Ian Archer. At 10:38 p.m. on a Wednesday night, I gave birth to a 6 pound 12 ounce baby boy. My labor was very short and painless! Our hearts swelled with love when we looked at our tiny baby.

Fast forward three years later, we now have a 38 pound boy, so tall he is nearly off the charts!  Ian now uses the big boy potty regularly and loves to run around the house!  Ian's favorite things are Thomas the train, any kind of construction machine and music!  Reading books and going to the library top the list for some of his favorite outings.  He is a sweet, loving child and treats his little sister so well.  Of course we have some instances of jealousy, but that's just part of it, right?  Ian learns things so quickly and really enjoys looking at the US map and anything numbers related.  He is so smart!

 We are so thankful for the gift of Ian.  He is so wonderful and brings so much joy to our lives. What a blessing!

New Blog

For those of you inerested, I have a new blog http://ribbonsandrosescreative.blogspot.com/

I love photography and started this new blog to show my pictures.  Feel free to visit the blog and let me know what you think!

Laura

A Day Out with Thomas

Ian and Clara enjoyed a wonderful Saturday with Thomas the Tank engine!  Grandma and Grandpa suggested we all go to see Thomas at the Grapevine Vintage Railroad!  The kiddos and I had stayed with the grandparents the week prior, so that morning we loaded up and headed to Grapevine.  Daddy met us there for the big day! 

 It was a beautiful but windy day, and Ian was so excited to see Thomas.  We boarded a shuttle bus and off we went!  The area was set up with Thomas temporary tattoos and Sir Topham Hatt photo opportunities!  The smell of corn dogs and funnel cakes filled the air!  At 10:30 we road the train and sang songs!  It was so fun!  Ian loved every minute but was very serious about everything.  I think he was just taking it all in. 

We truly had a wonderful time with Thomas!  I hope Ian will always remember the wonderful experience he had there!  Thank you Grandma and Grandpa for making the wonderful day possible.  We love you!

Boy, Oh Boy!

Today, I just snapped a few pictures of our sweet boy!  It was all I could do to get him to stand against the wall and be still!  All he wants to do is see the picture on the camera and can't wait!  Oh well!  He's a boy on the go!

30 years in review

Yesterday was my 30th birthday.  I actually prefer to call it "the first anniversary of my 29th birthday."  Well, whatever I choose to call it, I have been on earth for 30 years.  I started thinking back and listing some blessings so I thought I would share.

God gave me to two wonderful people to call their daughter.  I was then blessed with my sister and brother.  I enjoyed a wonderful childhood and grew up in a godly home.  We attended services at a small, sovereign grace chuch where we are still members.  My parents, however, last year they felt God's leading to seek fellowship else where.  We are still praying for God's leadership in our lives regarding this matter.  I graduated high school in '99 and continued my education at Richland college where I would meet my husband.

In 2000, Matt and I were married in our church.  We built a home and our lives together.  We both continued our educations. Matt attended UTD to complete his masters, and I graduated with my associates and transfered to UTD to complete my bachelor's degree.  Matt completed his master's and continued his doctoral studies, while I graduated in 2007 with my BA all while I worked in dentistry.

God blessed me with an amazing opportunity to work in an amazing periodontal practice.  God knew they were a good fit for me, and I matured and grew so much while I worked.  They supported and encouraged me while I worked 30+ hours a week and took 15 credit hours at UTD.  They were such a blessing.  After 7 years, I resigned as a surgical assistant to welcome our little boy in 2008. 

May 2008, Ian was born, and God made a way for me to stay home to care for our baby boy.  August 2009, on Matt and I's 9th anniversary, we learned we were going to be parents a second time!  We welcomed our sweet baby girl, Clara in March 2010 just before Matt took an offer as full-time faculty in the history department at Eastfield College. 

I just wanted to share some amazing blessings I have experienced in my 30 years.  I am still seeking God's will for my life, and I pray God has many more blessings in store for my family and me.

Just a light dusting...

We are snowed in again today! Well, the meteorologists either over or under predict weather events. It seems they usually make a big deal, get everyone hyped up and then nothing happens. Ugh. This time, they under predicted. So a 32% chance of snow, occuring mainly to south sounds like we'll dodge the bullet, right? Then the chance went to 50% later in the evening. At 10:00 p.m. the snow was actually tracking due north, an hour ahead of schedule,and the chance jumped to 100%. No big deal though because it was just going to be a "dusting." Maybe we would get 1-2 inches. Okay! We awoke to around 5-6 inches, and it has continued to snow ALL DAY LONG! We still have quite a bit of ice disguised by beautiful, fluffy snow.

We are still thanking God for our family and warm house. We are starting to run low on food and milk, but Daddy has indicated he will brave the treacherous roads to scrounge up some grub. Love you, Daddy!

Check out the snow!!

Snowed In