A little dirty....

Here's a little video of Ellie playing at a river in CO. She loved throwing the rocks and could care less about getting muddy. Sorry about the camera action. I guess you can tell who shot the video?

Ice Cream and The Pool.....

It seems like most of our summer days involve both of these at some point. It is still very hot here almost to where I am used to seeing 100 degrees at some point during the day whether in my car or on a bank sign. We cannot play outside or go on walks. I guess we could at night, but I normally go to the gym in the morning. I think we've almost visited all the city pools in our area. We have our favorites and all of them are very fun. The girls are becoming little fish and even Ellie is overcoming her fears of the water. Anna is crazy and loves the water. I hope to get a video of her soon in the water. We bought her some sort of floatation thing that is amazing. It is a little shirt that comes half way down with an tube going around her. It is so nice cause I don't have to hold on to her the whole time. We always see people we know at the pool which is fun or I meet my play group girls there. I love to get ice cream in the summer so I thought I'd give you a list of our faves.....

#1- Braum's:it is mainly only in the south (OK, AR, TX).... I love a single dip sundae of german chocolate ice cream with caramel topping and pecans! It is super cheap and where we go the most. We can also buy our milk there so that is nice since we are always almost out!

#2 TCBY: White chocolate mousse in a cone and Mike loves the raspberry sorbet. Wednesday is 99 cent cone day.

#3 McDonald's : Ice Cream is the only thing we get there. However, they have a fun play area and I can get a sundae for $1 while the girls play.

#4 DQ: Dipped cone yummmyyyy.

#5 Cold Stone: Mike's favorite, but I don't like to pay $4 for a dip of ice cream. We only go there on a date.

What are your favorites? I hope you are enjoying this last day of July.....

Bye Bye Diaper Day!

Well, I feel like we have been saying this oh since about April! We traveled so much this summer that it was nearly impossible to stay consistent with p.t.. Ellie has her own little personality and for sure her own time table of when she is ready for things.  I can say that we enjoyed the paci till she was 2 1/2 and diapers till she is almost 3 (next week)! We just got her big girl bed and she never has tried to climb out of her crib. However, I can tell that now she is totally ready for both. She stayed dry all morning and was very excited. When I tried before she screamed every time I tried to sit her on the potty when we were out. We still enjoyed quite the experience of going potty in Target, but it was cause Anna is pulling everything out and touching who knows what while I was holding Ellie. Anna is a totally different personality. She's fearless and has done everything very early. I'm hoping it will be the same with p.t.. This morning Ellie said "Anna go potty to" and Anna always is pulling on her clothes when she sees Ellie. I put Ellie on the big potty and Anna on the little potty. Anna went right away and immediately started clapping. She also requested and m&m like her sister. She's one smart girl. She also has figured out how to climb up onto a chair and then onto the table. These girls are keeping me busy, but I love to see them grow. God is so good to me for their health and sweet spirits. Tonight, is bye bye crib night! More to come.....

Road Trip Conquered....

Well, we did our road trip to and from Colorado. We all survived and it went really well. I have to admit in the past I would always be so confused when people would say their children traveled so well. I always was a little jealous and thought I can honestly say our children do not travel well either by car or plane. They've traveled so much and it has never been easy to this point. I was really nervous about this drive to Southwest Colorado. I was praying so much the week before for them to enjoy it and for us to have patience etc... The way there we drove straight through and it took us about 14 hours with all the stops. We watched many movies and had many snacks etc... I knew if we could get to dinner time that we would be fine cause they always sleep really well at night in the car. I couldn't believe how well it went and there were no major stressful things that occurred. We had such an awesome time in Pagosa Springs, CO. Our friends joined us and it was so fun. Our kids played so well together and our girls slept well the whole time. Ellie has never been a fan of sleeping in new places, but now that her and Anna can share a room they do great! They shared a bathroom together this week it was pretty funny, but it worked really well! I will post more pictures from our trip when I get them uploaded onto the computer. We split the trip up on the way home and it was so nice. We drove about 9 hours yesterday and did the rest today. The girls did great once again. Mike did such a great job driving us on this journey and solving all of our electronic problems. Yesterday, our radio/cd/dvd outlets all would not work. We had to stop at an auto zone to get a new fuse. We are now home and it is time to get caught up on laundry. It was our last trip of the summer and I am a little sad. We've had such a fun summer and I am looking forward to the fall. However, this week I think we will be spending lots of time at the pool cause they said tonight a slight cold front would move through Dallas this week and drop the temperature to 102 degrees! Colorado was so nice in the summer with highs in the upper 70's!

Vacation in Colorado Part 1...

I took this picture with my iphone this morning around 6:30 a.m. from my balcony in Pagosa Springs, Colorado. We (my wife and 2 kids) arrived last night around midnight, so we had no idea what to expect when we woke up. Pagosa is in the Southwest part of the state near Durango. This may sound crazy, but I actually like it better than the rockies up in Estes Park. There's a lot more color here. And I can promise you this, after living in Dallas for a year I was ready for some color (anything other than concrete). That's not a bash on Dallas, but bragging on God's handywork here in Colorado. It truly is beautiful here. I've only been here for about 18 hours, and I can already say this is going to be a place I'd like to come back to every year. One of the reasons is there's not a lot of people here. You can truly have sabbath here, and practice the presence of God a lot easier than our busy lives in whatever city we live in. Most of our blog readers should appreciate this since most of you are in decent sized cities (yes, I am watching you :) This morning we went to Centerpoint Church in Pagosa and worshiped with the folks there. It was pretty similar the church I worked at in seminary, so it gave my wife and I some fun flashbacks to our days in North Carolina. I actually contacted the youth pastor there ahead of time and asked him if he had any good babysitters. Is that weird if I'd never met him? David will probably think so.
Our friends the Oakes are going to be coming in tonight to stay with us for the week, and we are so pumped to see them and get to spend our vacation with them. I'll update more soon!!!

I love my Anna....

I took this video the other day and I love Anna's little voice. Ellie had to be in the video as well. She is very in to wearing "unique" clothing for nap time, but it helps her take one so I am all for it. She found one of Mike's old student ministry shirts and she loves to wear it. 

Texas Friends

Ellie and Caleb on the 4th of July. I love their faces!
Sweet friends! They are about 7-8 months younger than Ellie.
We often join others for lunch and it is always "interesting"!
A few of our play group friends waiting for the train.

We've had a fun summer with our little Texas friends. It is neat to finally connect with other moms and our kids enjoy playing together. I am so thankful for this blessing of friendship. It means so much to me and is a real answer to prayer. Ellie loves to see her friends and talks about them all the time. I look forward to seeing them all grow up and we all pass through these trying days of tantrums, picky-eating, paci's, potty training and naps.

"Mom, I want a bath...."

The other day I couldn't find Anna anywhere. I went into the bathroom and found her in the bathtub sitting in her bath seat. She climbs on everything and can get pretty high. She is giving me quite a few scares these days, but I try not to hold her back. She is hilarious to watch at the mall play ground cause she thinks she can do anything and is not afraid to try! I love her spirit and determination. She is still so sweet and mommy's girl most of the time!

"It's a Bad Night to be an Atheist"

Last night Josh Hamilton set a record during the Home Run Derby. He hit 28 home runs in the first round of the competition. After all the greats that have ever played; Ruth, Mantle, Sosa, etc..., Hamilton beat all of them. I just kept saying one word last night; "unbelievable." The greatest thing about Josh is his story. If you haven't heard it, you can read a great blog post by Peter Gammons here. He was addicted to Heroine, was a bad husband, father, and God completely turned his life around. The commentators last night couldn't stop talking about his story, and how he had found God, and then one of the guys made a pretty interesting comment; "it's a bad night to be an atheist." Josh chalks everything up in his life to God. His story is God's story. Josh is just happy to be a part of God's story, and He's doing something very unique with him. While experience (stories) is never the first thing we would use to argue for the existence of God, it's hard to deny the turn that Josh has made and who the author is behind it all. On a personal note, the last church we worked at is the church that Josh attends when he is home in Raleigh, North Carolina. He got baptized there, and is very close with many people in the church. I got to meet him a little over a year ago, and I can say that he is completely changed, transformed, and his story is legit. He is an amazing guy, and a big congrats to Josh and his family.

A fun and tiring week....

So I've decided this has been the best summer we've had since seminary days or when we worked at kanakuk! I feel like we are always on the go or enjoying time at home. I had a great week this week with friends and Mike. Here's a random summer week for us. What's yours like?
Swim at a new city pool (Texans love their city pool!)
Ice Cream almost every day
Reintroduce potty-training to Ellie.
I did a garage sale today. It was interesting to say the least, but I got rid of lots of junk!
A trip on the city train with my play group girls to a fun shopping area with the kids.
Sweltering in the 100+ degree heat everyday. Tuesday night community group.
Many messes and meltdowns this week. I went to the gym consecutive days in a row.
I showered at the gym which was very peaceful. I ordered Ellie's big girl bed (yes, my almost 3 year old loves her crib!) Five Guys Burgers opened in Dallas yummy....
I went to a fun baby shower for my friend, Katrina.
Mike sold his old iphone for more than the new one costs!
Swimming twice in one day on Wednesday and more baby pool today.
A little worried about what our electric bill will cost this month?
Mike's Moonwalks is back in business ha ha... He's getting lots of calls lately.
Mike and I wishing we had family in town to baby-sit and cause we miss them.
I'm about to start a new Beth Moore study and I'm so excited!
My sweet husband watched the girls for 3 hours while I cleaned the house and did some errands. It is amazing what I can get done when everyone is out of the house!

I hope you all have a great Saturday!

Mike's blog...

Check out my sweet hubby's blog post about Camp Barnabas. He did such a great job!

Baby-Wise/Attachment parenting...

My good friend April just wrote a really interesting post on attachment parenting vs. baby-wise method. We did mostly baby-wise except more of the laid-back version of only keeping a schedule. Ellie had 3 paci's till she was 2 1/2 and it was so nice. I think the Ezzo's would have not agreed with that position! Anyways, I thought you all would enjoy reading her thoughts. I must say she has the cutest most well-behaved "Texan" children! I've only seen Anna Kate in the cutest dresses and a bow to match everyday! Here's the link to April's blog.

Ellie Grace....

Ellie has been making me laugh lots lately along with the frustration of becoming more independent. I love the way she just thinks out loud and says whatever she is thinking at the current moment. Here are a few of her new things.....
Mommy: Ellie we are going to see our friend Caleb today.
Ellie: What's his last name? What's my last name? She now likes to tell me her name is Edie Shelton. We started calling her "Edie" sometimes cause that is what she called herself for a really long time when she couldn't say Ellie. Today, we saw our friend Carsen and she immediately said what's Carsen's last name?

Ellie has always been a "tomboy" and loves Lightning McQueen so much more than Dora etc...
I love to tease her and say do you want to wear your princess pajamas or something and she said to me out of the blue "NO mommy, I'm a super-hero".

Ellie loves any kind of strange animal, reptile etc... so you can imagine yesterday as we were reading our children's Bible and we were reading Adam and Eve. She was only wanting to read about the serpent. I didn't quite know how to explain the snake to her so I just said he was a naughty snake.

We were driving the other day and she always asks me what every single place on the road is called. We drove past Wal-Mart and I said "Ellie that's Wal-Mart; we love to go there."
She said "No, that is Target"! I love to go to Target as well, but try not to as Wal-Mart is so much less expensive!

Anyways, I hope you all are having a great afternoon in nice, cool weather. Texas heat is crazy and I knew it would be like this I just have to get used to it. We've been going to the pool almost every night. I'm excited to try a new pool in the morning before it gets to hot! I think this weekend every day is supposed to be over 100 degrees. Enjoy!

Myrtle Beach trip...

Ellie loved the beach and playing in the sand!
                              We did lots of swimming and had so much fun!
                        Anna is now feeding herself!! Meals in peace!
               Ellie made a froggie at build a bear that she loves so much!
                      We went to eat seafood at Calabash, NC! Yummm!!
We went to a fun alligator/snake/reptile adventure! 

My friend Amy...

Well, it is 12:45 A.M. and I am watching the USA network in tears cause one of my best friends Amy Begley just made the olympic team in the 10,000 meters. It was amazing cause she fought like I have never seen anyone race before. She had to be in the top three women, but she also had to meet an olympic standard A time which was under 31:45 and she ran 31:43. She is now 30 years old and we were roommate our freshman year at AR and have ran many miles together. We've always kept up with each other and were in each others weddings. She has an awesome husband who has followed her all across the country supporting her. I love her family and I cannot imagine her mom and dad right now in the stadium. Anyways, I am sure there will be a youtube video soon of her race/last couple of minutes that I will post soon. You could probably watch her race tomorrow night as well on NBC I think it is at 8:00. It was just so amazing to watch it live and see her running her victory lap with the American flag. Cheer her on in Beijing!

The beach and teeth....

Well, I'm just checking in for a few minutes. I've been at Myrtle Beach for the past few days with my parents and the girls. Mike is at Camp Barnabas with the students. We had a great time in Myrtle. I will post pictures soon. The girls did so well and had so much fun. Ellie was not ready to come home and Anna seems to be changing daily. She loves the water and any sort of adventure so the beach and a water park were definetly a blast for her. Ellie loved the beach as well which is so funny cause this time last year she hated it and would throw a fit if sand got on her feet. Myrtle is definetly a great place for kids so if you are ever looking for a great beach destination with your family I recommend it! Tomorrow morning I am getting 3 wisdom teeth removed (fun fun)....The dentist said I am in the middle of how bad they are and that the recovery should be pretty normal. I went tonight to the pharmacy to pick up all my medicine. They don't knock you out anymore, but they do give you a medicine to make you really drowsy and then some nitrous oxide. I am just ready to get it over with as I have been wanting to do it for a few years, but the timing was always bad. We either had horrible dental insurance or I was pregnant etc... I'm going to my mom's dentist that I 've seen a few times. They are great and it will be nice to have help with the kids. Mike is doing awesome and loving camp. I miss him and can't wait to see him in a week. The girls have been talking about "daaaee" as Anna says all the time. He was so jealous when he found out we got to go to dinner in Calabash, NC which has some of his favorite seafood. Anyways, I'll update you again when I am awake and able to function!

Summer Time....

It seems like our summer is flying by and has been so busy I've hardly had time to get reorganized between trips. Actually, two suitcases are still in our garage somewhat unpacked. We've been to Colorado and a quick trip to Lawrence to visit Mike's family and for a wedding. We had a great time visiting mimi and granddaddy. The girls really enjoyed getting to spend extended time with them. Ellie loves all the little treasures in their house and neat books that Mike used to read. We celebrated Mike's birthday a little early with them and went to Longhorn Steakhouse which was on the East Coast as well. We got to see some of our really good friends in Kansas City and enjoy our time at Bode's wedding. He and Mike work together at Watermark. We got home and it seems like it is almost time to leave again. Mike leaves for Camp Barnabas on Monday for 8 days and I leave Friday to go to my parents house for 12 days. I have to stay a little longer cause we are going on vacation for a few days in Myrtle Beach and then I'm getting my wisdom teeth out next Thursday (yuck). I'm not looking forward to it, but my dentist there is great and I haven't found anyone in Dallas. I'm so excited about going to Myrtle. We went there so many times when we lived in Raleigh and always loved it. Mike is really excited about taking the high school students to Camp Barnabas. It is just like Kanakuk, but is for disabled children. Our students will be helping them one on one throughout the week.

Ellie has been in swimming lessons the past two weeks. It is another post in itself. HA! We've worked through lots of fear issues and giving our struggles over to God. Today, we just played in the water instead of forcing her to go under etc... She did much better without forcing her and I actually saw a little smile on her face. She normally is screaming when we pull into the parking lot and saying "I scared of water, Go Home". We have one more day since I will miss on Friday. We'll see maybe she will love it tomorrow?! Anna is changing everyday. She is enjoying feeding herself and climbing on everything! I hope you all have a great rest of the week!

The Best Daddy.....

I am so blessed today to have two examples in my life as incredible father's. Mike is such an awesome daddy to our girls. He is so selfless and has so much fun with them. He has an abundance of energy that amazes me as he plays with the girls and gives me so many breaks. He loves to teach them about Jesus and read to them every night. He is always creative in what we do as a family and our family album is already full of so many amazing experiences. We just flew home today from Kansas as we were at a wedding and visited Lawrence. The picture shows a great picture of how Mike is selfless. Many dad's would be overwhelmed by traveling with two toddlers, but Mike just goes with the flow and helps me so much. He pushes our double stroller like a pro and it has two car seats attached to it! We often times have a pack n play, suitcases, etc... He serves me so well and our girls are so blessed! I tell him often that how he helps with the kids is amazing and I don't really care if he helps me clean etc.... Almost, every Friday or Saturday morning he gives me the morning off and he takes the girls to do something fun. I love the way Ellie and Anna light up when he comes to the door at the end of the day. I am so proud of him as a daddy and as a husband. He challenges me and is the rock behind our family! I love you, Mike!
I also want to tell my dad how thankful I am for him as a father. My dad and I have always been very close. We are a lot alike and enjoy so many of the same things. I know that my dad prays for us daily and that is what is most important to me. He has always sacrificially loved us and given us so much. He was always there for me as a child/young adult. He has seen me shoot thousands of baskets and run hundreds of miles. Ellie and Anna are so blessed to have a papa like you!

Estes Park....

Well, I finally got our pictures up from Estes Park. We loved family camp and I hope we always have the opportunity to go in the future. We formed such great relationships with our church family in a much smaller setting. There were about 300 of us who journeyed by car or plane to Estes. I am so glad that we went by plane as I cannot imagine driving home with the girls after a week of camp. Mike and I hung out with the students every morning in Bible study and Mike went back at night for all kind of different activities. Our hallway was so much fun and full of kids! There were 36 kids under seven years old on our hallway of 10 rooms. Ellie loved playing with the big kids and letting them take care of her. Every night we got to go to the evening program. We had awesome worship and then a share time. All the children over 3 years old then came in for a fun night of skits and games with their parents. The only bummer part of the week was that I got really sick the first two days and ended up in the E.R. to get an iv and nausea medicine. I was so sick and could not have recovered without some meds. I had a really bad virus and ended up dehydrated. I am so thankful for Mike who balanced me, kids, and his job so well! I was so well taken care of by so many and really got to enjoy the rest of the week. The YMCA in Estes Park is an awesome place for big groups. We could give any of you details if your church or family would be interested. Our church goes every other year and has it booked for many years to come. We are now recovering and getting used to the summer heat of Texas. It was so fun to see snow and experience cold weather for a week!
What the kids did instead of taking a nap each day!
We all went sledding on our free day. There was still lots of snow!
Student Ministry Crew in the park
All the "little" ones who wimped out during sledding!
We went sledding at the continental divide!
Ellie and her good friend Emily Jane
We saw lots of Elk and other animals
Family picture in Rocky Mtn. National Park
Where are Ellie's shoes?
I think I will always love this picture

Colorado Round One....

We went to CO a few days early to see our friends Trevor and Cassie. We had a great time and loved seeing our kids play together. They are all almost the same age and could easily pass for twins. I love the picture of Ellie and Elllis. They are so funny together and we had a great night in Boulder together! I have many more pictures from our time in Estes Park at family camp. I am way to tired to even think about it tonight. We got home this afternoon and I am so thankful for the opportunity to get to know so many more families from Watermark. We learned so much while we were there and God showed us so much about His grace and love!

Good times.....

We are in Colorado for our Watermark's family camp that begins tomorrow, but we came a few days early to visit our friends Trevor and Cassie .
We've had so much fun and it has been great to see our kids together. We met them when we lived in VA and Trevor worked at another church in Charlottesville. We both had very few couple friends and we instantly connected. Ellie and Ellis are about 3 months apart and they have a baby girl who is close to Anna's age. I will have to post a picture cause when we go out it looks like we have two sets of twins. Trevor now works at a great church in the suburbs of Denver. It is so nice to see mountains and snow. I've always loved Colorado and the culture. I feel like I need to put my teva's on and have a nalgene bottle with me! We are excited for camp that will be in Estes Park and I know our girls will have a great time. I'm sure it will be so fun all sleeping in the same room for a week, but we will survive! I will try and post some pictures at some point. I know I am enjoying not being in the 100 degree temperature. We are going to Boulder tonight for dinner and because we've always wanted to go there. We love college towns and they always have great restaurants. I hope you all have a great weekend!

Baptism Day!!!

I've watched this video 5 times now and I get a little teary eyed everytime I watch it. There is an amazing story behind every person you see getting baptized. The last person you see was addicted to Heroine for years and came to Christ at Watermark. He's clean now and is loving every minute of his new life. One other quick note, Steve Vanderheide our video guy at Watermark put this together (shot it, edited it). He is AMAZING!!!

Baptism Spring 08 from Steve V on Vimeo.

$2 for two Britax carseats....

I am so excited cause both girls are now riding in Britax Carseats! I've never liked Ellie's for numerous reasons. The straps are always getting twisted or the seatbelt buckles pinch her legs etc... I found Anna's at a garage sale for $2. I took the cover off which is super easy and washed it. It looks brand new and I have always loved it. I've dealt with Ellie's even though I was constantly annoyed at it! Tonight, my next door neighbor brought over her daughter's that she doesn't use anymore and asked me if I wanted it? I don't think she knew how much it blessed me. It is also super cute with a leopard print. I recommend anyone to pay the extra money and get one. It is so worth it and they are super safe. Our summer travels just got a lot more easy!

Our Memorial Day Weekend...

This weekend we found our town's best kept secret; the swimming pools. There's one down the street and we spent a good portion of the weekend there. They have this amazing splash park that both our kids enjoy and it's separate from the normal pool so we don't have to worry about them drowning. The other plus for me and mom is that we get to just chill there in the lounge chairs and watch the kiddos. Some serious sabbath was had this weekend! I took Ellie by myself tonight; we stayed until 9:00 p.m. when they closed, and there was hardly anyone there. Here's a pic...

A Must Read.....

I was so encouraged by this post and I encourage you all to read it fully..... Amazing and just what I needed to read. You can go back and read all of her posts and then it will make much more sense, but have some tissue ready..... Click here to read it now!

We all need a shower...

I feel like this has kind of been a "germ-filled" week for us. I feel like all I have done is clean things up or get the "shout" out for another stain . Ellie often times doesn't remember to go to the potty and just goes wherever. Today, I just started to laugh about our week probably because I'm going out tonight with Mike and won't have to clean anything up for 3 whole hours! Today, my play group met at a park/nature area... The playground was really busy with a group of kids on a field trip. We could not keep track of all our little 2 year olds and Anna was getting fussy in the stroller. We decided to take them on a walk through the nature area which has a  paved path. It was so nice and we all felt better in the shade. However, it was really humid and windy this morning. We were all sweating, but the kids were much happier walking on their adventure. We stopped off by a creek and Ellie was all about throwing rocks in the water. We were there for awhile and then decided to keep walking on the path. We knew it looped all the way around back to the playground. We take off and it ends up being really long at least for 6 toddlers and 4 mommies. We walk for a long time and towards the end many melt-downs were happening etc....The sippy cups were empty etc... Ellie stops at a rock and I see something trickle down her leg. She had her first adventure of using the potty in nature. I have to admit I was kind of proud of her. She then proceeds to pick up dog poo (yuck) and Anna is ready to take a nap. We make it back to the car and are all starving cause it is almost 1:00. I try and think where we could go that would be fast. I decide to go for pizza cause it was a buffet and it will be fast. Ellie decides to go again at our booth. I'm thinking oh well we are almost home and we can all take a nap! They are sleeping hard and I'm excited about going out tonight with Mike so a  long morning ended well.  I want to remember all the stains I have cleaned this week for the future so here's the list:

3 times in the carseat

1 time on the bathroom floor and then Ellie decided to splash in the "water"

1 time at pizza inn

1 time on our chair and ottoman

1 time on the nature trail

crayon on the fireplace

lipstick out of my purse all over the face

Anna found a fun ink pen to write on herself

I really do pay close attention to the girls! It has just been an interesting week! Have a fun night!

Was this really just last year?

Anna May 07
We've grown up a lot since last year


I found these pictures from our vacation to the OBX (Outer Banks, NC) last year. The girls have changed so much in one year. I look back to those times and think we've done a lot since last year. Anna is now a toddler and Ellie is a great big sister. I kind of wish I was at the Outer Banks today with our family. It was a wonderful vacation and perfect timing as we moved a couple months later. I am so glad we got to experience one of my favorite places in the U.S. for a whole week in Duck, NC!

Life this week...

I don't really have much to post, but it has been a pretty good week so far. Here are some highlights:
* Ellie is pull-up free this week except for bedtime. She has been wearing them everywhere and has done pretty well! She has told me twice in the car that "the car-seat is yucky"! However, it was because she had held it to long while I was doing errands. It has been interesting taking them into public places cause I have to hold onto Ellie while she goes potty and Anna is touching everything. It is a whole new world!
* It was 95 degrees here yesterday so we got the baby pool out and went out twice yesterday. It was really fun and nice to get some sun. I'm sure I will be sick of it come October.
* I had some friends over this morning who all have babies around Anna's age. It was fun to see them all start walking and playing together.
* Ellie has "fifths disease" don't worry it is no biggie. We all have it at some point and most of you had it as a child. It is where they get "red cheeks" and a little rash on their necks and arms. She got it most likely from another little girl. Once you get the rash you are not contagious so I am guessing that Anna will have a little rash soon since they share everything.
* We are so excited about AI tonight and hope David Cook wins it all. I really like David A. as well. I just would rather listen to David Cook in my car.
* We are leaving for CO next week for our church's family camp in Estes Park. It is going to be so fun and I know the girls will love being in the mountains.
* We have 3 plane trips in June. The last one I do by myself and I am already dreading that one. I've never been one of those moms who say "my children travel so well" cause they do not enjoy any form of travel except for whenever we get off the plane or out of the car.
* "Dan in Real Life" was so good and you all should rent it if you haven't seen it. We both really liked it and Mike said he even liked it better than "Iron Man" which he saw the night before.
* Mike and I get to go out on Thursday night and even have a free baby-sitter which is even better! I'm already looking forward to Thursday and the time we will get to spend together.

Have a great afternoon...

Long Day....

We're tired and it has just been one of those days that was long in toddler world. Anna is teething really bad. She has only been this way 2 other times and she was teething both times so I know that is the problem. She is so fussy and has a low grade fever. She basically just wants me to hold her all day.  We've had to end up taking a short drive at night time to pass the time away for bedtime. She loves to ride with the windows rolled down. We are both exhausted tonight and put the girls to bed early. I have so much house work to do, but I putting it off till tomorrow. We just rented "Dan in Real Life". I've heard great things about it and need a break! Good Night!

Life of Anna....

I've been telling Mike that it seems like in the last month or so that Anna has gone from baby to toddler over night. She seems to add new things to what she can do every day. She is a tiny thing, but she is sure full of courage and no fear. I can already see how she is like Ellie and how she is so different. She is 15 months and now weighs 18 lbs. However, she is on the growth chart for height. She seems bigger than Ellie for sure even though their weight is similar. Her little feet are not so narrow and she wears clothes that are not far off of her age. I think Anna might be our "stong-willed" child. She wants to try everything which I am learning that life is easier sometimes cause most the time she can figure it out. When I restrain her she sure does have a little temper, but she responds so sweetly to me after I have to discipline her. Here are some of the things she has picked up lately:

She is now saying in her own little language that I for sure understand: Water, Baby, Bye Bye, Hi, Ball, Drink, MINE (new this week), Doggy, Ducky, Sissy, Mama (new last week), Daddy (her first word), Play, Bottle, and Diaper

She wants to feed herself most of the time now although she hasn't quite picked up how to use a spoon. She doesn't eat very much unless she really likes it which is any fruit. She loves to drink anything and really likes it when we are out and I give her a cup with a straw in it.

She can now climb up on our fire place mantle and stand up. She also climbed all the way to the top of the play area at chick-fil-a today and went down the twisty slide. Ellie and our other friend Anna Kate who was there with us do not like to do this and they are almost 3!

She is all about running and playing. She doesn't like to sit still for a minute. She had never watched any TV show or let me read her an entire book. She is very creative and loves her toys. She will go strong from 8-1:30 or so and then crashes from 1:30-4:30 or 5:00! She has always been an incredible sleeper. She takes after me on that area! 

She loves soft things and would love to have a blankie if I would give her one! I just don't want to keep up with it or take it on trips. When she gets really tired she will find anything on the floor like a pair of soft pj pants and cuddle up next to it. She loves to suck her thumb in bed and hold onto a blanket. My mother-in-law and Aunt K will know who also loved to do this when going to sleep!

She loves Ellie and they have a very special bond. They spend all day together and share a room most nights.  I love it that they are so close even after they fight over the same toy or Ellie pushes her down. Anna is starting to hold her own that is for sure.

I love little Anna and can't imagine what God has planned for her. She has so much energy and determination. I hope I can always be creative in letting her use it and not hold her back. She is a sweet little girl who is very much a mama's girl. She just seems to be growing up so much!

Can I freeze time?...

I had the best Mother's Day. I love this day cause it is in May and not in December after Christmas like my birthday. Mike was so sweet and really thought everything out. We made it to early church which we rarely do so that we would have most of the day. Mike had Shoreline last night so we wanted to have time after church to do something. We went to Boston Market cause there was no way I was going to face Mother's Day crowds with our two toddlers! We decided to go to the Dallas Arboretum which is a botanical garden similar to Duke Gardens for all my Carolina readers. It is much larger than Duke Gardens and it was beautiful. I tried to put the girls in somewhat matching outfits so we could get some good pictures. They had so much fun running around in the fields of flowers and exploring all the neat little houses. I told Mike I wish I could freeze time so that they will always be wearing cute dresses and hair bows. The picture of Anna running is what she loves to do now. She is so fast and strong. Today, she figured out how to open the door handle. My life is getting more interesting every day! I did pray for all my friends yesterday who have experienced loss this year. I could not stop thinking about you all and know that yesterday must have been difficult for you all. I've had 2 friends experience their baby dying in the past year. One was stillborn and the other died shortly after birth. I've had at least 5 friends have miscarriage and they've all encouraged me to enjoy every day with my children. You are all such incredible examples of God's grace and mercy. He has given you all such strength to move forward with such hope. I hope you've all had a great Monday! I look forward to reading all your blogs this week!

Ellie is the CUTEST!

Take a few minutes and check this video out, Ellie is the best!!!

Vida Loca! Volunteer Appreciation Night!

The staff performing "La Vida Loca"
My favorite Alamo Guy!
Mike, Bode and David! Ole'!

We had such a fun night last night! Watermark does a volunteer appreciation night every other year where all the volunteers from every ministry are honored. The theme was an Alamo/Cantina night. We ate yummy mexican food outside with a live mariachi band and hung out with friends. Then we went inside where all the volunteers were entertained by the staff doing their version of "La Vida Loca"! It was hilarious and Mike was so thankful he was in the back during the dance. Then we had a hilarious stand-up comedian guy tell us all kinds of funny jokes for 45 minutes. It was a great night even for the kids as they were in child-care till 10:00 P.M.! We are so thankful for our church and how good it was to laugh together!

Our trip to Arkansas!

Nana and Papa with the girls!
They have so much fun together!
Pop with his great-granddaughters
I got to see my good friend Marilyn
Ellie and cousin Avery

We just got back from a trip to Arkansas. We went to celebrate my grandpa's 80th birthday. We had a great party with lots of friends and family. I got to see some great friends and the girls go to play with their cousins. They all have so much fun together and get along really well. They were exhausted every night and I think we are all still recovering. We had a great time with my family and it was nice to be back in my old home state!

You have to watch this video...

Service Day from Watermark Student Ministries on Vimeo.
Two sundays ago our church didn't meet in our normal building. We (about 12 busses full) went out and served all over Dallas. It was amazing, take 2 minutes and watch this, you'll be blessed!