quick post

It's Spring...one way I can tell is that I'm spending much less time at my computer and more time outside. Kellie-Laine saw "Bridge to Terabithia" this Friday and spent the rest of the weekend working on her own Terabithia fort. She and Landrie had a picnic in the fort today and even took the portable DVD player out there to watch a movie! Unfortunately, it rained this evening and so there's no telling what Terabithia might look like tomorrow!

Emerie turned 7 months this week...I can't believe it! She's gotten a little grumpier, most likely due to teething. The most perplexing thing is that she does not eat baby food! I know good and well Landrie was gobbling it down at this age, but it's just like Emerie doesn't get it. She keeps trying to grab the spoon when I approach her mouth, and then she gags and her eyes tear up when I do get some food in her mouth. Other than breast milk, formula supplements and occasional biter biscuits or pretzels--she's not eating a thing! She's also VERY active...rarely ever still. Have you ever held a rabbit? It's kind of like that....

Landrie's still keeping us on our toes, but she's also starting to turn into a fabulous 4 year old (which will be a welcome change from the terrorizing threes!). She's completely potty trained (thank you, Cody!) and she'll say, "Tee-tee means off, poo-poo means on." She's referring to sitting on or off the potty and the associated wiping technique used for each of those functions....I won't go into much further detail. The last habit that must be broken is the pacifier. I'm afraid this will be something similar to climbing Mt. Everest....not likely to happen easily!

And now, I'm leaving you with a Bible verse that I really love to help get your week started:

"The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor His anger forever. He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His love for those who fear Him, as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions. Psalm 103:8-12

What a merciful, gracious God we serve!

Have a great week!

Spring Break Memories!

This may have to be a two part post! I haven't been blogging much due to our week-long vacation, so I have a lot to say!

We started off our vacation by seeing the Barnum and Bailey Circus here in Waco. We took Kellie-Laine when she was 4, and it was amazing! Sadly, the ever-famous three-ring circus has downsized, and there was only one ring, a few dogs, prancing horses, and an elephant. Bummer! What happened to the lions and the cannon ball guy? Nevertheless, the kids didn't seem to notice and Landrie kept asking, "Is it over now?" for fear that the colorful fun had come to an end.

We then headed to Keller, TX to visit some old friends for the weekend. What a blast! We had not seen these friends in over two years, yet we picked up right where we left off. I love friendships like that...it's more like a family, I guess. No matter how long it's been since you last saw them, the mutual feeling of love is still present. I also had a chance to check out the new North Park Mall. Wow...you've got to go see it! There are some great stores and if I had been alone, we would be broke! Cody took the girls for a little bit while I shopped, but the shopping karma wasn't with me that day. The only thing purchased was some sugar cookies from Corner Street Bakery. : (

It was back to Waco for a few days after that, and I did a little spring cleaning. With three girls, it's hard to get much accomplished. But Cody actually had a pretty light work-load, so he was with us most of the time. I love having my husband home, and so do the girls. He's the "player," meaning that he's the one who will play spotlight tag at night, jump on the trampoline, tear apart the couch to build a fort, etc. I'm more of the nurturer--making sure the girls are fed, the house is clean, the laundry's done, the boring stuff. I really want to make more of an effort to let some of my mommy duties go and just enjoy the time with my girls more. Time will pass before I know it, and in the end a clean house isn't that great of a memory. I'd much rather make memories with my family.

Finally, it was off to San Antonio/Boerne! We stayed in a cool place called the YeKendall Inn, the Lancaster suite (http://www.yekendallinn.com/) and it was really fun! Much nicer than a hotel, and the girls got a kick out of the little house. Sea World started off a bit shaky for us, though, because ALL of Texas decided to be at Sea World the very same day we were! You had to go to the show an hour before it started just to get a seat! To make matters worse, the temperature got close to 90 degrees, and that made everyone cranky. Emerie didn't want to nurse, didn't want to sleep, and certainly didn't want to ride in the stroller. So by 3:15 we called it a day and headed back to Boerne. After showers and dinner, we went back to Sea World and got there at 8pm. It was perfect! No crowds, no lines, no waiting! We even got to see a 4-D Pirate show, which was spectacular! (although Emerie & Landrie did NOT like getting wet!)

All in all, this was probably my favorite spring break thus far. We traveled just the right amount, and stayed home just the right amount. Cody and Kellie-Laine are actually headed to San Antonio again this weekend to see the Aggies play in the Elite Eight tournament (keep your fingers crossed!). He's promised that if the Ags go to the final four in Georgia (?), that he'll fly our entire family there!

Have a great week everyone!

HAPPY SPRING BREAK! Our school let out this afternoon to kick off an extended spring break week. We're headed to Ft. Worth this weekend to visit some dearly missed, old friends of ours. On the way in, we'll swing by the North Park Mall to do some shopping and see what new stores they've added. I've heard they added a two-story Forever21 store, which is one of my favorites. It's kind of a trendy place, but I've loved shopping there ever since I discovered it in San Diego 4 years ago. Now the big question is "Will I be able to FIT into anything???" (Yes, I'm still trying to shed the last few pounds of this baby weight!!)

We'll spend a couple of days in DFW then head to San Antonio for a little Sea World action. I found a really cool place in Bourne, TX (sp?) that has these precious little cottages for rent. So we'll stay there and drive in to San Antonio...it's a little out of the way, but staying in Bourne puts me closer to the outlet malls, too. Do you notice a shopping theme here? Thank goodness I have a self-less husband who lets me get my "fix" in and will watch the kiddos while I shop! Thank you, honey!

The other funny thing that happened to us this week is that a stray dog has decided we will be her new family. She's a mutt but is obviously part chow, and the girls have named her Jenna. I don't really want another dog, but it's funny to see the girls treat her like a princess.--especially after they've ignored Sully for the longest time! Jenna will go to the pound pretty soon; we just don't know when. Kellie-Laine actually gets up early each morning to feed her and play with her....I don't EVER remember her doing that for Sully. Poor Sully!

I hope each of you enjoy your week together! It looks like it's going to be great weather most of the week, so enjoy it!

Brrrr!

Again....the cold weather's back! And, of course, we had KL's first soccer game this morning at 9 am. The wind was so cold! We sat through it, though, bundled up in many blankets. The girls were warmer than we were and Emerie didn't seem to mind a bit! They won their soccer game 6-2. KL had one goal. I can't believe that she can run up and down a full-sized soccer field for an hour! I'm tired just watching her, but she did great for her first game in 6 years! Her team is mostly hispanic, and so they have given her a "spanish" name so she'll fit it. Isn't that funny? I think they call her "Patricia."

Sorry, I don't have recent pictures to post...I'm too lazy to upload them from my camera. I'll add some of my recent digi pages instead.

Well, sorry this is short and sweet but Cody has just gone to bed, and I hate it when he goes to bed before me. Guess I'll go catch up! Have a great Sunday!