Three Calhouns

Happy Valentine's Day!

2012-02-13T23:27:00.000-06:00

Ella is Three Years Old!

2012-01-15T22:22:00.001-06:00

My beautiful baby girl, you are three years old! I can not believe it! It feels like I just had you yesterday and we were in the hospital and I could not stop crying because you were perfect and beautiful and I couldn't believe how much I loved you already and knew I would do anything to protect you and make you happy.

We went to the doctor on Friday and you weigh 38.4 pounds (over 95th percentile) and are 40-3/4" tall (100 percentile). Yep, you are a big girl. You used to be chunky, but you are tall and slim now. You wear size 4T, but they are starting to get too small so you have started wearing 5T and a size 4/5 in the Girl's department! You wear a size 11 shoe.

You love all things girly. You LOVE to wear dresses and always want to wear one, even to bed. The dressier the better, and I LOVE it. You wear your princess dresses all the time. Lately when you wake up you tell me you want to get dressed up. When I start getting ready for the day you tell me you want me to get dressed up and wear a dress too. That is fine by me because I like to wear dresses the most also.

You love anything that sparkles and has sequins and love to have your nails and toes painted with sparkles.

You can count to 16, know your ABC's and can recognize the number 1-5 and a few letters. You know all your shapes and can draw them pretty well. I love it when you draw Mommy's picture and you get so proud of yourself. Most days at school you make a picture and when you get in the car you show it to me. You always say "Look Mommy I made it for you. Will you put it on the refrigerator?" I used to hate having clutter on my fridge, but your artwork makes you so proud and me so happy to see you so proud.

You love to read books, sing songs, play outside and watch cartoons. You still cuddle so much a I love it. lately you have been asking us for "squeeze hugs". You love our baby sister and are already protective of her and love to make her laugh. You tell everyone "That is my Layla, my baby sister!".

You are strong willed, opinionated, bossy, stubborn and demanding also. You get a very serious face and point your index finger and give instructions! And you mean it!! We know we should discipline you when you do it, but it is so hard not to laugh!!

You are funny. You do and say some of the funniest things that make your Dad and I just laugh! You are a ham and LOVE to be the center of attention.

You are also very compassionate. You always kiss our boo-boo's and always want to make sure people are happy. If I tell you I don't feel good you say "Mommy it will be okay, I will make it all better".

I am so blessed to be your Mom. I love you more every day and am amazed at how beautiful and smart you are. You are such a mess and I wouldn't have it any other way!

Ella's Third Birthday

2012-01-11T23:32:00.000-06:00

Get ready for a lot of pictures!!
On Friday, January 6th my sweet baby girl turned three years old! We had her birthday party on Saturday at our house with our families. Ella decided it was present time a little early, so that is where the pictures begin. Her cousins were eyeing them, so she decided to go ahead and open them!

Ella has the best Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles and cousins who got her some great presents!

My Mom and Ella always watch the Princess and the Frog together at my parent's house. My Dad will even sit and watch it with her because he knows that is cuddle time. She got the movie for Christmas and Ella kept telling me she wanted the green dress from the movie and a "Tinani" doll. Yes, her name is "Tiana", but Ella says it Tinani and it is so funny, so I only recently corrected her.

The night before her birthday Ella said "Mom, I want a Tinani doll and dress and I know my Granny will get it for me." So sweet!! Little did she know my Mom had already gotten her. She was so excited when she saw it.

Her Aunt Jennie and Uncle Moo (otherwise known as my brother, Kyle) got her a Bitty Baby. She has been sleeping every night with her baby and Tinani.

She loves her babies!

Already wearing her dress! She loves to play dress up right now. She is also obsessed with Princesses.

What was Layla doing while all of this was going on, you ask? Well, she was being passed around the room and playing with balloons.

My sweet, sweet friend Melody came to the party. I love this girl like she is my sister and Ella was very excited she was there.

My sister was out of town, so she couldn't make it. She always wears necklaces that Layla loves to chew on, but since Corey wasn't there Layla had a good time chewing on Lindsey's. I am so glad someone thought to wear a necklace for her!

While Lindsey was busy fending off my child her little one Raelyn was running around and playing hard!

Layla, still chewing on balloons, with her Grandma.

Finally, all the presents were opened and it was cake time! I LOVE her cake. I found a picture and gave it to a girl named Melody, who is the sister-in-law of one of my friends, Amanda. Melody is amazing! I have gotten three cakes from her and they have each been EXACTLY what I wanted and looked EXACTLY like the picture. That has never happened for me before. You can see her blog here.

It is always so hard for me to cut them when they are so cute though!

As soon as we finished singing Ella went straight for the crown.

And Hunter went straight for the bow and shoved the entire thing in his mouth!

We all ate our delicious cake and then it was play time! My Dad made the mistake of asking a wound-up, sugar-high, crazy three year old to run and give him a kiss. This is what happened!! Ella's aim was a little off!

But, she got it right!

The babies went down for a nap and the big kids went outside and had fun letting all of the balloons go. It started out as one or two, then we just decided to let them do all of the balloons. I think there were about 40?!

It was such a great birthday party. Ella had a blast and took a great nap after everyone left! We go to the doctor Friday for her three year old check up, so I will have all of her stats then.

Layla is 7 Months!!

2012-01-01T16:09:00.000-06:00

Well by now you are 7-3/4 months, but regardless, you are still 7 months! My goodness I love you so much! Your little personality is coming out more and more everyday and I love it.

Let's see. You still wear a size 4 diaper. You have a big round bottom! It is sweet and squishy! You wear 18 months, although some are too small depending on brand, you also wear 18-24 months and a lot of 24 months. You are at a weird size. You have rolls upon rolls on your thighs, so everything fits tight on them, so 24 months work better, but if it is a dress a 24 month is too big. It is tricky! You weigh 24.9 pounds according to my scale.

You are still nursing and unless something major happens that will continue for at least another 5-7 months. Sometimes you will eat your oatmeal or rice cereal for breakfast and sometimes you won't. It's funny how one day you love it and the next you make the funniest faces and turn your head and won't even allow it near your mouth. You LOVE pears and bananas and you just moved up to the 2nd stage foods and you are eating a lot of mixed fruits. You HATE peas, you spit them out if I can even trick you into taking a bite. You eat puffs and yogurt melts and are doing a wonderful job of getting them into your mouth.

For the last month I have been saying you are going to crawl "any day now". Well, still no official crawling, but you still do your inchworm or military crawl and can get around like that with no problem. You get up on a four and rock back and forth and I just know you are about to take off crawling, but them you go back down on your tummy and propel yourself forward my pushing off the ground and stretch your arms out and move forward. You also can roll very strategically and get exactly where you want.

You have started trying to pull up. I see some bumps and bruises in our near future!

If I take something away from you you throw a fit and start crying. If I give it back to you you will stop. It is amazing to watch this happen with a baby. Already working her parents!

This week you have started saying "Mama mama mama". You usually say it in threes and there is absolutely no association between the word and me. So, yes you saw Mama, but it is just jabbering. You don't make hardly any d sounds, so we haven't heard Dada yet.

You love to play patty cake, peek-a-boo and have Mommy clap your hands. If you are crying I can sing "Jesus Loves Me" and you stop. Ella sings this to you all the time and you love it. You LOVE your big sister. You love seeing her in the mornings and just laugh when she runs around the house acting silly.

You are still such a good sleeper. You go to bed at 9 p.m. and wake up at around 9:15-9:30 a.m. (Sometimes you sleep until 10 a.m.). You take a nap from 11:30- 2:30 and another evening nap from about 5:30-6:45.

I love you sweet girl and can't wait to see what next month will bring!

Christmas Day

2011-12-30T23:37:00.000-06:00

Christmas day my family came to our house for lunch. Poor Layla! Every time Caleb wants a picture with him he just rubs her sweet cheeks. He is pretty crazy about her though, which is so sweet.

And rubbing...

I had to save her!

We had a delicious lunch and then it was time to open presents! Ella opened her own and helped me with Layla's too.

Granny bought her favorite movie, The Princess and the Frog. Yes, we have watched it approximately 749 times already!

She also got her Jessie from Toy Story. Hunter got Woody and they had them all playing together and it was so cute!

Hunter carried Woody around for a long time.

We bought Hunter a cowboy hat, stick horse and pistol. He put on his cowboy hat and my brother told him to ride his stick horse and say "Yee haw!". Well, he soon moved on to Ella's Belle Tea Cart and would push it while wearing his cowboy hat and say "Yee haw!".

Hunter wanted Papa to wear his hat. It's a little too small Dad.

Layla and her Granny!

This was the best family shot we could get. The kids were tired and not at all interested in taking pictures. We usually do a whole family shot, but it was NOT going to happen.

As son as everyone left the girls and I all took naps. I had a horrible cold and felt so yucky and am still trying to get over it. The girls got so many toys and presents and have actually been playing with them. It was so much fun seeing all of the excitement on Ella's face. I can't wait to see how much Layla will enjoy it in the years to come.

Christmas Morning

2011-12-28T00:07:00.000-06:00

I was so excited for Christmas this year! It has been so much fun seeing and hearing everything from Ella's perspective. Everything to her is so "prettyful" (beautiful + pretty) and magical! She would wake up in the morning and come into the living room and say "Oh Momma, this room is so prettyful!". She loved the Christmas tree, the decorations, and especially Christmas lights. I loved playing with her Little People Nativity scene and talking about Jesus and reading her the real story of Christmas.

Christmas Morning we woke up early and waited on Ella to wake up. Layla, who normally wakes up around 9:30 was so excited she woke up at 6:30! By the time Ella woke up at 8:30 Layla was ready to go to sleep! We had her stay up though to finish opening presents.

Trey went to get Ella in her room so I could take a picture as soon as she saw her presents. She was so excited!

Because this is the first thing she saw! Her new princess bike!

Santa brought her the bike, a bean bag, and a princess vanity set that lights up and talks with jewelery and makeup.

She loves her bike!

She ran and jumped in her bean bag chair!

She was so excited about all of her presents! I love this sweet smile on her face.

My two sweet girls! Christmas couldn't have been any better!

Layla was investigating what Santa brought her, a singing puppy and a ball with lots of activities.

Then it was time to open presents from Mom and Dad. We got her the princess doll from Tangled that has a light up singing vanity. She LOVED it!

New shoes!

Go Texas Tech!!

This girl loves anything sparkly, so these sparkly boots were a sure bet!

This was the best picture Trey could get. Ella wanted to play and Layla wanted to sleep!

Yes, we did get presents for each other, but the girls are much more fun to photograph. I got Trey a Texas Tech hat, shirt, and some Adidas mesh shorts and pants. He always tells me to get him comfortable, casual clothes because I usually get him nice dress clothes, so I finally listened!

He got me a cute charm necklace, a pair of TOMS, and a book on sewing. Yep, I sewed Layla's stocking and decided I want to start sewing a few things here and there.

We forgot all about the stockings and opened them after we opened all of our presents so Ella was excited there was even more stuff! We had a great morning and watching Ella open everything was so much fun. I even had her open my presents because I knew she enjoyed it. We had the best Christmas morning and played with everything until my family came over for lunch.

Christmas in Holliday

2011-12-27T23:32:00.000-06:00

Last weekend we went to Holliday to do our Christmas celebration with Trey's family. Ella had a great time playing with her cousin, Raelyn. Raelyn loves doing everything Ella does and being her little copycat. These two were giggling and hollering the whole weekend!

Layla's Aunt Lindsey was feeding her dinner, so it is coming out of her mouth, but she is sitting in her Gigi's lap (Trey's Grandmother).

My handsome husband.

Aunt Lindsey.

Me and my sweet girl! She was rolling everywhere and trying to put everything in her mouth!

After dinner we opened presents and I didn't get too many pictures because Layla kept trying to eat the paper and was grabbing everything so I was a little busy! Ella got a doll house from her Grandma and Grandpop, along with a ton of other stuff.

Layla got this little pig that shakes and makes noises along with so many other things. Her she is sitting with her Grandma.

We got so many presents I was worried it wouldn't all fit in the car! We got it all in, but it was packed! We had a great time and the girls got so many wonderful presents.

Christmas Decorations

2011-12-23T23:30:00.001-06:00

I love decorating for Christmas, really I just love decorating. Most of my stuff is the same as lat year, so this post will look familiar if you were a reader last year. So, I have cut down on the amount of photos since there is a lot of repetition. You can see last year's post here.

I usually have the big tree in the dining room and usually it is the bronze tree, but I moved it to the living room this year and used the red and green on it. I really like having the big tree where I see it more often. The red and green ornaments are plastic instead of glass so they will always be the ones in the living room where we always are.

Trey's Mom has made all of our stockings, but this year I wanted to try and see if I could make Layla's. I did it!!! And it turned out really good (at least I think so). I didn't have a pattern. but I made it work and it is a fully functional stocking! I need to have it monogrammed, but my sweet friend who said she would do it was having a lot of machine problems, but it will get done sooner or later.

The full view.

This is the light fixture in my breakfast room. It is visible from the living room so it is red and green too.

Ella made this sweet sign at her little school and I just love it!

This is in the foyer. The presents are a new addition this year. Ella really likes them!

This is the smaller tree that is now in the dining room. These ornaments are all glass, so I don't let the girls touch or be around this tree without me around. It is just so pretty I hate not to put it up. Ella is really good about not touching either of the tree's.

My pretty Santa that is in the piano. (Please excuse the streaky mirror!)

Since I had more ornaments than needed I added some to this light fixture and I really like it.

Merry Christmas!!

Santa 2011

2011-12-22T00:05:00.000-06:00

I have been such a procrastinator this Christmas!!! I still don't have all of my presents bought, so that obviously means I still have wrapping to do, I ran out of ribbon so I need to buy more, and Christmas is at my house on Sunday so I need to get busy!

One of the things I kept putting off was seeing Santa. Well, my sweet hubby has been working NON stop and it seems like I haven't seen him since November, so that is some of the reason. We went to Wichita this weekend so I finally sound some time to take the girls. We had to wait about 20 minutes for him to get there, but we were third in line.

I was worried Layla wasn't going to do very well. Let's face it, I thought Ella was a Momma's girl, but Layla blows Ella out of the water when in comes to it. She really prefers for me to be the only one to hold her and if someone else is holding her I must be within 4 feet! Buuuuttt, she did so good!

She didn't smile. I didn't expect her to. She had not gotten a nap the day before and was TIRED, but she didn't cry!

But where is my other child you ask? Oh, she was crying and throwing a fit and was not about to get within 10 feet of Santa. Soooo, for the third year in a row I got my picture made with Santa! Yep, the tradition continues! At least Ella is not crying or fitting in the picture!

In case you weren't reading my blog last year, here is Ella with Santa 2010.

And 2009.

Do you notice a pattern? That girl does not like Santa, the Easter bunny or anything dressed up in a large suit. Oh well, I still love her to pieces!

Thanksgiving

2011-12-06T10:28:00.000-06:00

Yes, I am finally getting to blogging about our Thanksgiving. With two babies, wrapping up my last client's photo sessions and being sick....I am finally doing it.

Here are my two turkeys!

Trey had to work the Friday after Thanksgiving, so that ruled out traveling. I decided it would be fun to cook our own little Thanksgiving feast for our little family of four. I cooked a turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole and green beans. It all was so god. I was so proud of myself! I kept praying "Lord, please don't let this be a disaster!". I mean, with all the hard work you put into it and $150 worth of groceries you want it to turn out good right?! Or at least edible! Well, it was Delicious! I think we may do this every year. I loved having our family sit in the dining room and we got out the china and crystal. Yep, we are fancy over here! Haha!

Yes, she at her Thanksgiving meal and drank from a Santa cup.

See how fancy we are? The Great Value Pepper is sitting on the dining room table. My husband prefers that over the shaker. Either that or he says that so he doesn't have to refill the pepper shaker! Hmmm...I may be on to something. =)

On Sunday we celebrated with my family at my sister's house. The pictures are few and far between now that I am always holding a baby, but we did sit all the kids in front of the fireplace for a photo.

My sister-in-law went to put her baby, Heath, in Caleb's lab and Ella said "No, I want that one!". She didn't want Layla, so Caleb got Layla. Layla can sit on her own, but in front of a brick fireplace I wanted someone behind her....better safe than sorry I figured.

What was so funny that I didn't notice was that Caleb was playing with Layla's cheeks the whole time. He was just rubbing and squishing them. So sweet!

Things sure are fun, hectic and crazy, but fun with these five around!

The Simple Things

2011-11-23T14:55:00.000-06:00

Ella hardly ever wants to play with her toys, but leave your suitcase out after a trip to Wichita and it will provide hours of entertainment!

Of course she wanted Layla to get in too, so I had to help her in. (Please excuse the drenched shirt Layla is wearing. She drools sooo much!!) (Oh and also please excuse Ella's crazy hair!)

They played this way for about 15 minutes when Ella decided she needed to get her pillow and a blanket. Apparently this would make a great bed!

So Sweet!!

Ella is still being such a good big sister and so much help! I hope these two continue to love each other so much!

Layla is 6 Months!

2011-11-16T21:22:00.000-06:00

My sweet sweet girl, you are half a year old! My Goodness! With each month you are getting more and more personality and it is so much fun!

We had your check up and you weigh 23 pounds 6 ounces (above 99 percentile) and you are 28" long (99 percentile). You are wearing 18 month and 24 month clothes and still in a size 4 diaper. I have had to start putting socks on you since it is getting colder outside and you hate them! You wiggle your fat little feet until you work them off!

You have your two bottom teeth in a are drooling like crazy, but your top teeth haven't made an appearance yet.

You are 100% sitting up on your own and have been for almost a month. You are still a little rolling machine and can roll from one end of the living room to the other in seconds! You are also starting to lift your bottom in the air and scoot backwards like a little inch worm. It won't be too long before you are crawling. You also love to stand up on my lap. You have such sweet chubby legs!

You started eating baby food a few weeks ago and while you won't care too much for your rice cereal, you LOVE bananas!! You have tried sweet potatoes, squash and prunes. You prefer to motor boat instead of eating them!

Your sister can make you giggle and I love to hear your deep belly laugh.

You moved to your own room about 2 weeks ago and you are doing so good. You go to sleep around 8:30 and sleep until 9 unless I have to wake you up earlier, and most often I do. You still take a good 3 hour nap after you have been awake for three hours, but you evening nap is still not so great. You prefer to take that one on Momma!

I love you, love you, love you!!!!

Playing Piano

2011-11-12T21:36:00.000-06:00

Now that Layla is sitting up all on her own and rolling around all over the place Ella is enjoying having her as a little sister so much more! It is so sweet to watch them play together.
Layla loves playing this little piano and tries to get the lights when they light up. Ella, always having to be the center of attention, must always accompany her!

Showing Layla how to do it!

And Layla loves her big sister!

Unfortunately almost all piano sessions end in Layla grabbing Ella's hair and trying to eat it and Ella yelling "Mommy help me! She has my hair!". I just love these two so much!!

Halloween

2011-11-01T18:05:00.000-05:00

Halloween was so much fun with my two little ones this year. It started off a little rocky because it didn't look like Trey was going to get off work in time to help me take them trick or treating, but I went ahead and got both girls ready, took their pictures, and we had gone to about 15 houses when Trey met up with us. It was just in time too because Layla was over being in the stroller and wanted to be held.

This was the first year Ella was really into it. She saw the other bigger kids running up to the doors so she started running with them. We always have a ton of people in our neighborhood. Trey told me the entrance was lined with cars!

Ella loves Tinkerbell so it was perfect and Layla looked precious as a flower. I did have a few people call her a boy though, really?! I mean I would NEVER dress a boy up as a flower.

Ella started getting into her candy when we were half way done. As soon as we got home she was opening up as much as she could and the first thing she said when I got her up this morning was "candy?". And yes, I did let her have a piece for breakfast!

My Birthday Present

2011-10-30T19:51:00.001-05:00

My Mom called me a few weeks before my birthday and asked me what I wanted. Of course I said money! Then I thought about it and was thinking of all things I could possibly want, but I kept coming back to a swingset for Ella. So I called my Mom back and told her I wanted a swingset for Ella for my birthday. And here it is....

in a million pieces! Trey of course got the awesome opportunity to put it together for me. So what did he do....He called his Dad and asked him to come and help!

Ella was so excited when she saw her Daddy and Granpop putting it together. (Please excuse her crazy outfit. She was wearing this dress and would not take it off, so I put the warmest pants she has on her which happen to be zebra print.)

Right in the middle of it, of course!

The guys worked all morning and finished it around 5:30. Ella went down for a nap at 2:30 and when she got up at 5:30 it was all ready for her!

Silly Daddy!

She played on it for a long time. Then this morning she had to go outside first thing to go "play at the park".

Thank you Mom and Dad for getting me a present that my baby girl loves! And thank you Jack for coming down here and putting it together.

Jealousy

2011-10-25T15:15:00.000-05:00

This is how it goes whenever I am ever taking pictures of Layla...

First picture. No Ella in sight. I am talking very loudly and making noises to get Layla to look.

Second picture. Ella hears what is going on and she comes to investigate. See the big smile on her face.

Third Picture. Ella is still smiling in the background, but now it is the forced smile. The smile that says "Look at me, Pay attention to me!".

Fourth Picture. I am mad. I feel left out. Take my picture, not Layla's!

Fifth Picture. Ahhh! The center of attention again!

Basking in the limelight.

Okay, I'm over it.

And back to Layla!

Pumpkin Patch

2011-10-23T18:53:00.000-05:00

This weekend my Mom came in town for my birthday, which was the 20th, so my sister came over and we took the kids to the pumpkin patch in town. We hadn't ever been to this one, but it was cute and they had hay rides, animals to feed, a little train and pumpkins. The kids really had fun and ran all over the place and wore us out.

Ella and Layla's Grandma (Trey's Mom) got them these precious outfits last time they were in town.

They went on the little train, which went so slow for our little ones. Ella kept blowing kisses, waiving and yelling "watch out!". I guess she thought they needed her help directing things.

Granny and Ella fed the goats, sheep and cows. I was surprised that Ella would stick her hand out, but she did great.

This sign was so cute!

Of course we couldn't get all the kid to stick their heads through this at once, but oh well!

It was pretty hot outside so by the time we left we were all sweating. Ella's eyes were getting more and more red and then started getting yucky stuff in them so we had to call the doctor and get medicine for pink eye! Yuck! Poor thing....her eyes got so red, and she DID NOT like having eye drops put in but she is getting better. Never a dull moment!

Mom Me Designs is having a Giveaway

2011-10-17T11:02:00.002-05:00

@MomMe Designs is having a Giveaway on their blog! Click here to enter: http://mommedesigns.blogspot.com/2011/10/fall-giveaway-week-2.html

Layla is 5 Months!!

2011-10-11T15:31:00.001-05:00

Layla Lou, or as Ella calls you Layla Boo Boo, I can't believe you are already 5 months old!! I weighed you this morning and you are up to almost 24 pounds! You had to switch you to size 4 diapers earlier this month and they fit so much better! You have such big thighs and tummy. Well, honestly, everything is pretty big, but those stand out! I love how chunky you are and I wouldn't trade it for anything. You can still wear size 12 month onesies, but 18 month pants fit better now I just have to roll them up because they are a little long. Everywhere we go everyone asks if you are 7 or 8 months and they are shocked when i saw that you just turned 5 months.

You got your first tooth on September 30th. We were at your Daddy's reunion in Holliday watching a football game when it finally broke through. Your second one is almost through, but not quite.

You are almost sitting up on your own. Well, you can sit up by yourself for a while, but then you start slumping over, so you are 90% there!!! You can roll from your tummy to your back and your back to your tummy. You are a rolling machine!!

You blow spit bubbles all the time! Your clothes are constantly drenched with spit. You love to talk and laugh. You grab for everything and love to pull Mommy and Ella's hair. I remember I wasn't able to wear a necklace for a long time with your big sister and you are going to be the same.

You LOVE your big sister! When you are fussy Ella always sings to you and you instantly start smiling. You light up when you see her and you love it when she plays with you. I LOVE watching you two together and seeing how much you love each other, there is nothing more sweet!

On the down side, you still won't take a bottle. You won't take a pacifier either, but that doesn't bother me. You also have some serious Mommy attachment. You won't let too many people hold you, I think you just have stranger anxiety, well and I am just such a fabulous Mom, who wouldn't be attached to me! HAHAHA!!!

We love you, love you, love you and I don't care that I am the only one who ever gets to hold you because you are my baby! It's not such a bad thing!

Layla is 4 Months!

2011-09-19T14:58:00.001-05:00

Layla, you are four months old!! Where does the time go? September is flying by, so I am nine days late with this post. We took you to the doctor last week and here are your stats:

Weight: 21 pounds, over 100 percentile
Height: 26-1/2", over 98 percentile

Yep, you are a big girl! You are wearing 12 month clothes, although 18 months fit your thighs much better, they are a little long. I have been putting you in 18 months and just rolling up the pants. I figure you would rather have them too long than tight on your legs and tummy. You are still a bay though and I wish I could find larger sizes in Baby clothes. It seems the larger sizes don't have the onesies like you need. I don't want to dress you like a little girl, I want to dress you like a baby! You wear a size three diaper

You have done a lot of new things this month. You found your feet for the first time and any time I lay you on your back now you go straight for them! It is so sweet to see my little butter ball all curled up getting her toes. You have also rolled from your back to your tummy about 10 times. The first time I thought it might be an accident so I rolled you back over and had your Daddy watch you and sure enough you did it again. Sadly, all the family was here yesterday and you didn't do it. You tried so hard, but I think you were too sleepy to muster up that extra energy you needed.

You have the sweetest belly chuckle when you laugh and when you smile your face lights up! Your cheeks are so big you hardly have any eyes when you smile. You are drooling constantly. I don't feel any teeth coming in though, maybe you are just a drooler.

You are going through a phase where you pretty much only want to be held and only your Momma can hold you. Your Daddy thinks you don't like him, but I have reassured him that it is not him, you are just like you sister because she went through the same thing. You still won't take a pacifier or a bottle. I would appreciate it if you would start taking them because with Fall photo shoots coming up your Momma is going to be gone some and you will have to eat somehow!

You love your sister and watching her play. You give her big smiles and your eyes always follow her as she walks across the room. You will stop crying if she sings to you. I can't wait for you and her to be able to play together!

Your Daddy and I love you so much! I can't imagine what we would do without you. You are so sweet, cuddly and happy (well, if I am holding you!).

First Day Of School

2011-09-15T17:48:00.000-05:00

Last week Ella started weekday school two days a week. Trey's Mom came in town so I didn't have to wake up Layla and take her up there and so I could give Ella all my attention. This is a big milestone after all and Mommy needed some cute pictures.

At first she wasn't into taking pictures at all, but I finally got her to smile. I had search and searched for the perfect first day dress and actually bought two. This one was the second one I bought and I LOVE it!

I love this sweet girl!

I picked her up at 2:30 and she was so excited to see me. She said she had a lot of fun. Her teacher gave her a good report and said she was cheerful and good natured. It is so fun to pick her up and see what she has to say. She has a great memory and tells me if a little boy cried or that she likes to slide on the playground during recess.

I was a little sad the night before her first day. My sweet girl is growing up so fast! It helps so much that I have such a great family and friends. As soon as I dropped her off my sweet friend Melody was calling to check on me. While we were talking my Mom called, then my husband called, then I got home and my mother in law was doing our laundry and was cleaning out Ella's drawers (a task I had been meaning to do for about 6 months, but never really had the time, or honestly, the drive to actually do it!). It was a good day! Ella has loved everyday since and I am so glad she is liking it.

My Baby

2011-09-02T19:50:00.000-05:00

This sweet little chubby thing has been all smiles lately, well except when she is hungry or tired, then all bets are off. I love all of her sweet sweet rolls, chubby cheeks, and very wet kisses. Her skin is as smooth as butter and I love rubbing her sweet round tummy. I can not get enough of this girl.

Last night she woke up in the middle of the night, which hasn't happened in while. I starred at her sweet face and just couldn't get over how much I love her. I also thought about how Ella was at this age and tried to remember her as a baby. I still remember it, but it isn't as vivid. I want to bottle this all up and relive it. They grow up so fast and I am so thankful that I have an amazing husband who wants me to stay at home with our babies almost as much as I want to stay home. I couldn't imagine not spending all of my time with them.

I guess to sum this post up it would just be that I love my girls. Yes I am pretty much tired all the time. Yes there are times when nap time can't get here quick enough and seems to end way too fast. Yes there are times when I think I can't do anything right! But I would not change it for the world!!

Meet the Teacher

2011-09-01T21:45:00.000-05:00

Today Ella, Layla and I headed to our church for meet the Teacher day. Ella is going to start going to weekday school two days a week at our church. She is growing up so fast, what can I do to stop it!!?? Of course I had to take pictures to document the occasion.

She wasn't too interested in smiling for the camera. She wanted to run around and play!

This is her nap mat and lunch pail. They match her backpack, but since we didn't need it today I don't have a picture of it. I will have one though next week when she starts school.

She did feel the need to bring her bunny and two teddy bears with her.

And we're off!!

We met her teacher and she colored a little fish and got to hang it on the wall. Then she got a little snack and we were on our way home. I am excited and sad as we start his new chapter. I am excited for her because she is such a little social butterfly and loves playing and will have so much fun making new friends, but it just means my baby is growing up!!!

Dress Up

2011-08-31T15:37:00.000-05:00

Ella has been so funny lately. We will be sitting on the couch watching cartoons or laying on the floor playing with Layla when she will jump up, hold her finger up and say "be right back" I ask where she is going and she will just say "hold on, I'll be right back". When she comes back in usually she is wearing a whole new outfit. This day she went into my room to find her wardrobe. She put on my hat, my tank top inside out and backwards and my shoes. She then grabbed her bunny and new lunch box and told me she was ready to go to school!

Can you imagine if I took her to school looking like this? Well, she does look pretty cute, but I am sure I would get a lot of looks.

This outfit though really topped the first one. Her new hat is tupperware. I guess she couldn't find mine or thought the tupperware looked better with this one. I really love the way she accessorizes though. Her daddy's belt as a scarf looks great and his boots finish it off quite nicely.

She is such a mess!

Cousins

2011-08-25T10:05:00.000-05:00

We went to Wichita a few weeks ago to visit our families. It was Layla's first road trip and she wasn't a huge fan of driving there and I had to sit in the backseat with her, but as long as I sat with her and talked to her she was ok. She did great sleeping there too. That was always a problem with Ella- she never slept good anywhere but at our house.

Trey's Mom bought the girls matching outfits so we did the best we could to get a 2-1/2 year old, a 1-1/2 year old and a three month old to all look at the camera at the same time. I think they turned out cute!

Painted Piggies

2011-08-18T12:59:00.000-05:00

My sister gave me a gift card to Painted Piggies when Layla was born. I already have a platter and cookie jar with Ella's footprints on them. I wanted a big platter with both girl's feet and I LOVE the way it turned out. I picked out the Bible verse I wanted on it, only I just noticed that 'Philippians' is spelled WRONG! She put two L's and one P. Oops! Guess I need to call her. I still love it though and will have to keep is misspelled because I wanted it done at 6 weeks because that is when Ella's was first done.
These are just so sweet I think. Yes, you have their footprints in the baby album, but how often do you get that out when they are older? I love having these in my kitchen and seeing them every day. Already it is hard to believe Layla's feet were so small!

Layla is 3 Months

2011-08-18T11:48:00.000-05:00

My baby Layla Lou is three months old. You are so sweet and cuddly! Every morning when you wake up you give me the biggest, sweetest smile. I unwrap you from your swaddle and you do the cutest stretch with both arms raised so high in the air and you arch your back like you have been asleep forever and are finally awake.

Speaking of sleeping, you did your longest stretch so far last night. You went to sleep at 11 p.m. and woke up at 9:30 a.m. You usually sleep anywhere from 7 to 8.5 hours, but when you wake up you eat and go right back to sleep. You take about an hour nap in the mornings and take a big three to four hour afternoon nap. You also do a one hour nap in the evenings around 7. You have always been a good sleeper for your Momma. (Well, except during the jaundice and then the steroids.) Thank you!

You still eat every three hours, when you are awake. You are so chubby that I know everyone thinks I feed you every 5 minutes, but Momma just has good milk! I weighed you this morning and the scale said you are exactly 19 pounds. That is 19 pounds of pure lovin'! You are wearing some 6-9 month clothes, mostly 9 months now. You are just one big baby. Long and chunky!

You HATE tummy time. I mean Hate it! You can lift you head, but you are so busy screaming it doesn't make for a very cute picture. You do have great head control though and have started sitting in your bumbo. I am afraid it is a little tight on your thighs though and don't know if you will even be able to fit in it in a week or so the way you are growing. It is a work of art to get you out of the thing and usually when I pick you up the bumbo comes with you! You do love sitting in it though. You smile and laugh. You just want to be a big girl like your sister.

You have the biggest smile and your cheeks are so big that when you do smile you have no eyes! I love it. Your sister was the same way.

You still aren't a fan of being in the grocery store in your car seat. It makes it pretty hard on Mom to get stuff done, but you love being in your baby sling so for now that is what we have to do. It gives Momma a good work out too! I am hoping that now that you have toys on your car seat it will help a little.

We love you Lou Lou! I can't wait to see what the next month brings us!

Poor Baby

2011-07-30T10:18:00.000-05:00

Two weeks ago my poor baby started coughing and it was waking her up at night. It started on a Saturday night and by Monday her cough was a little worse so I decided to go ahead and take her to the doctor. My poor baby had a bronchial virus and we had to do a breathing treatment and we were sent home with oral steroids and had to do breathing treatments all week at home.

It was an awful week! She was so grumpy and my baby who was such a good sleeper and napper left and in her place was a fussy baby who never slept more than 3 hours at a time at night and 30 minutes at nap time. Praise the Lord that she didn't mind the breathing treatments, she only cried while doing them a few times. I did not see a great improvement either. So, we went back this past Monday and she is now on a 5 day treatment of antibiotics and breathing treatments.

After the first dose of antibiotics I saw a huge difference. My sweet baby has returned! She has been sleeping 8 to 9 hour stretches at night and is back to her 3 to 4 hour daily nap another small nap in the morning and afternoon. I am so glad she feels better!!!

Sisters

2011-07-15T20:39:00.002-05:00

Layla is TWO Months!

2011-07-14T16:18:00.001-05:00

My sweet Layla Lou, you are already two months old! We went to the doctor this morning for your check up and you weighed 15 pounds 4 ounces, that is over the 100th percentile, yep sweet girl you are off the charts! You are 23-3/4" long which puts you in the 97th percentile and your head is 40 cm which is 96th percentile. So you are proportionate, just big and beautiful. You had to get three shots and drink some yucky stuff. You cried for about a minute, but then you realized your Momma had you are you were okay. Then I put you in your car seat and you realized Momma wasn't holding you are you get a little upset, but got over it! You like to be held.

Your neck is good and strong and you can lift it up when you are on your tummy. The doctor said since you are big it is a lot to hold up, but you showed her. You smiled and cooed for her. You are just like your sister, when you smile your whole face lights up. You have the biggest sweetest cheeks. You like for your Momma to rub her nose in your cheeks and you chuckle every time I do it. It is almost a laugh, but not quite.

You are still a strictly breast fed baby. You have had a bottle once when Mom had a photo shoot to do and you took it like a champ for your daddy. That is the only bottle you have had and you still won't take a pacifier. You just don't like it. I have bought every different kind they sell, but you just aren't interested.

You generally go to sleep around 10:45 p.m. and you sleep until about 5:30a.m. You eat, I change your diaper and back to sleep you go until around 9:30 a.m. You go back to sleep at 12:00 p.m. and take a 3-4 hour nap. You take little cat naps the rest of the day.

You are a good natured baby and only cry when you are tired or hungry. But when you are hungry you let everyone around know! This girl likes to eat, can't you tell! You nurse at 5:30 a.m. 9:30 a.m. when you wake up for the day and again at 12:00 p.m. before your big nap. You eat at 4:00 p.m. when you wake up. Then it gets a little tricky at night. Sometimes you eat at 7:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. others it is at 6,8, and 10. I have not put you on a schedule, you sort of did that yourself. When you are ready you will figure out your night time routine. Two or three feedings, it makes no difference to me. I have been pumping during your big nap and freezing it just in case I ever need to give you a bottle I have it ready.

I love you, I love you, I love you and I couldn't be happier that you joined our family!

Ella is Two and a half!

2011-07-13T15:43:00.000-05:00

My sweet girl is growing up so fast. She turned 2-1/2 years old on July 6th. Sometimes I can't believe she is 2-1/2 and sometimes I can't believe she is only 2-1/2! Here is how I would describe my girl:

1) So sweet! You still love to give your mommy and daddy big hugs and sugars. Every night when we lay in bed and I sing to you and we say our prayers you run your hands through my hair and tough my face. You always say "I love you Mommy" so sweetly, it just melts my heart. Those are the times I wish I could bottle up and keep forever.

2) Fun! You love to run, play and laugh. You have a deep belly laugh and laugh with your entire body. You love to run up to Daddy jump in his lap and say "I'm gonna get you!" and tickle him.

3) Sassy! You have a sassy little attitude. You are very girly. You loves shoes, purses, dresses, and make up. I believe you are 2 going on 16 the way you act sometimes. You huff when you don't get your way sometimes and you put your hand on your hip with so much attitude.

4) Smart! My goodness girl you are so smart! You know and can sing all the words to the ABC's, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, You are My Sundhine, Jesus Loves Me, Jesus Loves the Little Children, Old McDonald, and all those crazy Yo Gabba Gabba, Dora and Fresh Beath Songs! You can count to ten and count mommy's fingers, toes, eyes, items on tables and such all the time. You know the colors black, white, blue, green, purple, pink, red, yellow, green and orange. You know the shapes of a cirle, triangle, star and square. You don't know the rectangle yet, you still think it is a square! It's tricky, I know. You talk in sentences and there aren't a lot of words that you don't know. You talk more like a four year old than a two year old and most people think you are 4.

5) Stubborn!!!! You are very stubborn. You do thinkgs your way and like it that way. Unfortunately this leads to a lot of spankings. The good news is, I won't ever have to worry about someone walking all over you, you will never be a doormat!

6) Beautiful. You have the prettiest blue eyes and blonde hair. You hair is getting so long and has the prettiest soft ringlets in it. You have porcelain skin and the cutest lips. Sometimes I look at you and am amazed at how pretty you are.

7) A Momma's girl! You still are attached to my hip and I wouldn't have it any other way. You are my little partner, my little buddy, and lately you have been my little helper! You help momma pick up your toys, bring me diapers for your little sister, throw things away for me and always seem so eager to please.

8) A great big sister. You love your baby sister and always want to give her sugars and hold her. Thank you for being so sweet to her and not being jealous like I thought you would. You love to have her around and are always checking on her.

You are such a delight and a joy in my life. Yes, there are days when you try my patience and I can't wait for your Daddy to get home from work, but I wouldn't trade it for the world. You are a carbon copy of me and as my Mom has told me several times. I am so thankful that God blessed Trey and I with you and love watching you grow up!

My Dad

2011-07-07T17:34:00.000-05:00

One of my Dad's hobbies is making knives. For years, well as long as I can remember, my Dad has made them. He made me one when I was little, of course he didn't sharpen the blade. Apparently I used it to try and cut concrete so my Dad took it away and put it in a safe place for keeping until I was old enough to have it and not to try and cut concrete again. Well, apparently it was a very safe place because to this day he still can not find it.

I have watched him make knife after knife after knife. I always wanted another one, so I finally gave him a hard time about everyone he has ever known having one except for his youngest daughter and asked him to make me one. I picked out my handle material. A year later I checked to see how his progress was coming. I had seen him start and finish multiple knives in that time. Another year passed and again I checked on his progress, still nothing! Well, another year later and I am happy to report I finally have my knife.

I love it and I believe it is the prettiest knife I have seen my Dad make. Of course I wanted a specific material for my handle and blade, but Dad went above and beyond and made it extra fancy for me. What can I say, after 28 years the man knows me!

Isn't this beautiful?

I even got my name on it. He always puts his name on it and a bear, that is his nickname.

My Dad works so hard on these and is so meticulous. He does not sell them, he gives them away to the special people in his life. He is a man that feels blessed to be able to make them and give them away. Yes it is a beautiful knife, but for me it is even more special because my Dad made it for me. I will always have it and always know how hard he worked on it to get it just right for one picky customer! Thanks Dad!!!

Fourth Of July

2011-07-07T16:23:00.000-05:00

Every year our Sunday school teachers have a July 4th party at their house. They have a gorgeous house on an acre lot so there is plenty of room for the little kids to run around and the big kids to do fireworks because it is outside the city limits. We have the most amazing Sunday school teachers and a great group of people in our class. Last year we were one of only a handful of couple with kids and this year those without kids were in the minority! What a difference a year makes!

My girls got all dressed up in their red, white, and blue. Ella was so excited because she got to hold Layla. I don't think Layla was as excited!

Just after this picture was taken Trey got up off the swing and got stung by a wasp. Then we discovered there was a nest on the back of the swing. Praise the Lord none of the little ones who had been sitting on the swing all night got stung. And poor Trey, he seems to always be the one that stuff happens to.

These are the new babies in the class. There will be three more in the next few months, so we are a growing class! From left to right, Mallory, Liam, Katie, and Layla. I love that all the girls have on their big red bows. I did not get the memo that the bow was suppose to be on the other side of Layla's head though!

We had a great time! last year we stayed out much later, but Layla was fading fast so we left the party around 9:30. She was so good though and Ella of course was sweet and sassy as always!

A New Nephew

2011-07-06T16:05:00.000-05:00

Friday my newest nephew, Heath Robert Jones, was born. Me and the girls met my Mom, Dad, sister and other nephew Caleb at Olive Garden for lunch before heading to the hospital. Ella LOVES Caleb, so she was so excited to see him and they were both bouncing off the walls. Praise the Lord we were tucked in a corner or we might have been asked to leave!

We went to the hospital and waited and waited and waited some more. The hospital she delivered at is under a lot of construction so it was very confusing and they had the big waiting room blocked off, so we were in a tiny room with three kids, Hunter joined us there, and there were three other couples already in the room so it was PACKED and NOISY! Finally we got the see baby Heath through the window in the nursery for about 3 minutes and then it was back to the waiting room. He got to visit Jennie, but decided we would come back the next day to see Heath.

Saturday my Mom, the girls and I headed back to the hospital and this time we got to see him and hold him! He looks just like his big brother when he was born. Mom holding Heath. Ella had to get in the picture with her Granny. After all, it is HER Granny and she doesn't really like to share her!

So sweet!

Mom stayed with us Friday night and Saturday night and Dad came to pick her up on Sunday. Ella was very sad to see her go, so was I. It is so nice having her here because I know Ella is just crazy about her and I know she is getting the attention she hasn't been getting when it is just me.

Happy Father's Day!

2011-06-19T18:31:00.001-05:00

Happy Father's Day to my Dad! Thanks for being a wonderful Dad who provided an amazing example of what a Dad should be. We took some great photos of the grand kids for our Father's day present this year. Dad loved it!

And a very Happy Father's Day to my husband. You never really know what kind of Dad your husband is going to be when you get married. You have far surpassed my hopes and expectations. I love that my girls have a Dad who tells them he loves them every chance he gets, reads bedtime stories, and even sings and dances with them. You are such a great Daddy!

Pleasing God

2011-06-16T16:14:00.000-05:00

I ran across a blog today and I really liked it. It is http://www.adventuresofasupermom.com/blog. First let me tell you that yesterday was a tough day. Ella did not want to mind. Layla only wanted to be held or nurse. The dishes and laundry are piling up, I need to finally get out thank you notes (WAY over due!!!), I need to get out birth announcements, and I need to finish editing photos from a recent photo session. Then, when I finally got a moment when Ella and Layla were napping I thought ahead, and trust me that has not been happening lately. I got out my breast pump and thought I would go ahead and pump for another photo session I have this coming Saturday. Well, I noticed my pump wasn't working and then I saw that is because the valve has been removed and without it one side does not work! UHHH! Are you kidding me? I really thought I was going to explode. I was not a pleasant person to be around the rest of the day.

I woke up this morning, yes with swollen eyes from crying, and prayed that God would give me a better attitude and just help me get through today. Flash forward four or so hours to Ella taking off her poopy diaper and smearing it in the carpet in her room while Layla was screaming. Instead of loosing it, I prayed. I prayed for patience and to respond in a loving manner instead of a mean one.

So, on to the blog I found. It is geared towards Moms, Christian Moms who want to raise Godly children. I read this question...Are we performing with the goal of going beyond expectations? I thought that was great. At my old job I wanted to be the best. I strived to please my boss. Well, who is my boss now? God! Am I striving to please him to the best of my abilities? Yesterday I was not. Here is more from the blog "What better Boss could we ever hope for than our amazing and inspiring God? And, what better customers than our family could we ever serve?". Awesome! I think I just needed this today. I needed to be reminded that by being a stay at home Mom I am fulfilling God's calling for my life. I want my Children to see me as a Woman of God and I want to please God. My attitude yesterday was not pleasing, today I am trying!

One Month!

2011-06-14T14:58:00.000-05:00

Trey and I were talking last night and can't believe our baby girl is one month old! Apart from two days and two night where she was VERY fussy and didn't want to sleep AT ALL, this little girl has been quite the sweet little angel. I thought this was going to be very hard having a two year old and a newborn, well it is not easy by any means, but it is not as hard as I thought it would be. Ella loves her little sister and has not shown much jealousy, which is a miracle.

She loves to kiss her and hold her hand. Layla doesn't seem to be as fond of it, but she deals with it! Layla loves to eat and sleep and poop...man does she poop!

I had my four week doctor's appointment and she held Layla and exclaimed "Man, she is big for a four week old!". I agree, she is big! She is long and chunky just like Ella was. She already has two chins, I don't think it will be too long before there are three and her cheeks are a growin'.

I love my girls! I asked Trey if he we really needed a boy or if we could just keep having girls.

My Girls

2011-06-09T15:16:00.001-05:00

Just because I love this picture and I LOVE my girls!

Four Weeks

2011-06-08T12:35:00.000-05:00

My sweet Layla was four weeks old yesterday! She is such a good baby! Trey and I thought we were so blessed when we had Ella because she was such a good baby and hardly ever cried and Layla is the same way.

She has now outgrown about 90% of her newborn clothes, is wearing 0-3 months now and wears a size 1 diaper. According to my scale she is just shy of 11 pounds! Her cheeks are getting chunky, she has a double chin, and her thighs are getting some rolls, just precious!

Family Pictures

2011-06-02T17:28:00.000-05:00

Do you ever see pictures of families and just think to yourself "awesome photo! I want my families picture to be like that?" Well, I do. And since I take pictures of families all the time, I know how to pose them, where good locations are, and exactly what I am looking for. Accomplishing that for my families photos though don't ever seem to be quite as easy. Now, I understand it is much harder using a tri-pod while getting your two year old to sit, look at the camera and smile, but oh my goodness it is dang near impossible for us!!!

For example....

Ella is a blur on the right running out of the chair she was previously sitting in, Trey is looking at who knows what and there me and Layla are posing for the camera!

Yes I could hire someone, but I just don't want to! Praise the Lord I did get a few that I would say are good. Not exceptional, but good. I wish Ella would smile. Instead she would wait until after the picture was taken smile really big, laugh and proclaim "Yay! We did it!". Oh goodness!

Finally, a smile!

3 Weeks Old!

2011-05-31T22:59:00.000-05:00

It is so hard for me to believe that Layla is three weeks old! I feel like she was born yesterday, but on the other hand I have been so busy with her and Ella it feels like I have been doing this for a long time. She is such a good baby! She is very calm and only fusses when she needs to eat, dirty diapers don't seem to phase her, but don't come between this girl and her milk!

As with Ella she is exclusively breast feeding and is doing great. I weighed her tonight on my scale at home and she weighed 9 and a half pounds! When I went to the doctor for her two week check up my scale said 8 pounds 2 ounces and the doctors said 8 pounds 8-1/2 ounces, so I am guessing she weighs a little more. She is now wearing some newborn and some 0-3 months, a lot of the newborn clothes are getting too short.

I really thought this was going to be very hard with Ella, but she is adjusting great. She loves her baby sister and constantly wants to kiss her, it is so sweet! She asks to see the baby all the time and loves holding her hand too. I hope as these girls grow up they are the best of friends!

Two Week Check Up

2011-05-27T15:07:00.000-05:00

Wednesday morning I took the girls to the doctor for Layla's two weeks check up. They want your baby to be back to their birth weight at this appointment. Layla weighed 8 pounds 1 ounce at birth and at her two week appointment she weighed in a 8 pounds 8-1/2 ounces! Yes, she is eating well! I have a feeling she will follow in Ella's footsteps and be a big chunky baby. That is how I like 'em though. She had also already grown an inch and a half. No wonder all her newborn clothes are getting a little short!

First Bath

2011-05-26T18:03:00.000-05:00

Last Friday Layla's cord stump fell off when she was 10 days old. Sunday night I decided it was time for her first bath. Of course, we couldn't find the little net that goes in her bath tub, so I improvised by putting down a towel for her to lay on. She didn't cry at all! She seemed to really like it.

My two sweet girls. Of course as soon as Layla got out of the tub Ella wanted in. It will be so much easier when we can bathe these two together.

Up To No Good

2011-05-24T14:09:00.000-05:00

Lately we have been letting Ella watch TV in our room. That is where our DVD player is, so really it is easier than moving everything. Most of the time we stay in the room and watch it with her, but our bedroom is right off the family room so we do sometimes just keep the door open and watch her in there. Well, when things gets really quiet, or she hasn't come in our room in about 5 minutes I know she is up to something. A couple of nights ago I realized I hadn't heard her in about 5 minutes, so I sent Trey to check in on her. I knew by his face something was up and when he said "You have got to come see this!" I didn't know what to expect.

This is what we found...

In case you are wondering, that is mascara all over my sweet girl. She usually sits with me in the mornings and watches me put on makeup. I occasionally give her blush, but she knows where everything goes. I suppose when she was having a hard time getting the mascara on her eye lashes, she decided to use it as lip gloss instead!

What you don't see is that it is also all over her legs, feet, and hands. It took a lot of scrubbing to get the waterproof mascara off, but Trey finally got it. Oh, the joy of having a toddler!!!

Super Hero

2011-05-23T10:40:00.000-05:00

Lately Ella has been obsessed with being a super hero. Every night after bath time she runs through the house with her towel over her shoulders like a cape yelling "Super Ella!". It is the cutest thing ever. She has also started getting Layla's blankets and wearing them as her cape, or as she calls it her "super".

Last night while I was changing Layla I heard Trey taking pictures of Ella and this is what I found on my camera. I love this girl!

A Nice Tan

2011-05-23T10:20:00.000-05:00

I thought it was time for Layla to start tanning since it is almost bathing suit weather and I would like her to be a nice golden brown, so we bought her a baby tanning bed. Okay, so actually we went to the doctor last Monday for a follow up jaundice appointment and her jaundice lever had gotten to a 20 so the doctor ordered at home biliruben lights that she had to stay under for 24 hours. I was very sad her jaundice hadn't gone down and hoped the lights would help.

The lights were delivered Monday night at 8:00 and in she went. The first night was AWFUL!!! She hated not being swaddled and would only stay in the bed for about 45 minutes at a time. I got about 2 hours of sleep Monday not and no, those two hours were not consecutive. Tuesday during the day was better, she slept all day and stayed in the bed a lot. Tuesday night was the same as Monday night, but we went to the doctor on Wednesday and Praise the Lord, her levels were down to 13! With the good news came the great news that we didn't have to do the bed anymore! We just have to do sunlight 3 times a day for 20 minutes and I can snuggle with my baby all I want!

The Wait Is Over!

2011-05-17T11:23:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, May 10th, we headed to the hospital at 5:00 a.m. My blood pressure had been getting high, so my doctor decided to induce me at 38 weeks. This is the last belly picture taken at 4:50 a.m.!!!!

I was a little nervous because I have heard bad stories about inductions. We got there at 5:40 a.m. checked in, headed to our room, and by 6:15 a.m. they had started the pitocin. They said I was having contractions on my own every 2-3 minutes, but I didn't feel them.

They checked me at 9:30 and I was dilated to a 3 and having very regular contractions, so at 10:00 they broke my water. My doctor told me I would go from smiles to very uncomfortable very quickly and would be asking for my epidural soon...she was right! I believe I received my epidural around 10:45. Then we waited and waited and waited some more. At noon I was complaining that no one had checked me and I didn't know how I was progressing, but no one came. At 12:45 I told the nurse I felt A LOT of pressure and it did not feel good at all, okay, it hurt...bad! She checked me and said that is because the baby was right there and we were ready to push!

We called my mom and sister in law, who had Ella, and told them to head to the hospital. My doctor said she wanted to wait 30 more minutes and if we could I wouldn't have to push much at all. I waited those awful thirty minutes and then it was time. I joked I was going to push her out in one push, and I almost did. I had to stop pushing because the cord was wrapped around Layla's body twice, so once the doctor gave the go ahead I pushed two more times and here came Layla!

They had to put an oxygen mask on her for a minute because of the cord, but after that she was perfect! She weighed 8 pounds 1 ounce and was 19-3/4" long. She has brown hair, but other than that she looks almost exactly like Ella!

Once again, I am in love!

Granny with Layla and Grandma with Ella. Ella wasn't too sure what to think of the baby. She was more concerned with the needles in my hand and kept saying "Momma you got a boo boo. It's okay Momma, don't worry." She is so sweet!

We got to leave the hospital on Wednesday because I was feeling fine and ready to get home! It was such a blessing not to have to stay another night because I was missing my sweet girl at home.

Here is our sweet girl all cleaned up and at home on Wednesday. It has been hectic and I am worn out, but these two girls are so worth it!

Maternity Pictures

2011-05-06T17:41:00.000-05:00

We took maternity pictures over a month ago, I think...I can't really remember when and I am not going to get up and go figure out when, it's not that important. Anyways, my sister took them for us and I edited them. I have been busy chasing Ella, finishing up with my clients, and really had a lack of motivation overall, so I am just now getting to editing them! We are getting down to the wire and we are soon to be a family of four (only 4 days left!!!). so I thought I should post these before my blog becomes overwhelmed with picture of Layla.

My hubby hates taking pictures, but he did cooperate a little better for this shoot. I sure do love this guy!!!

And of course one of my sweet girl all by herself.

This one below is still my favorite.

Last night I was laying in bed with Ella and we said our prayers and sang a few songs and she grabbed my face with her hands on both of my cheeks and laid a big kiss on me. She gave me to sweetest smile and said "I love you Momma." Ah, my heart melted. She is so affectionate and loving! It is those sweet smiles and words that make everything better. I wish I could have my own personal camera crew follow us along everyday and capture everything so that I never forget it. One day I know she won't look at me like I hung the moon, but for now she does and it makes me happier than anything!!!

Layla's Nursery

2011-04-25T19:47:00.000-05:00

With only 20 days left until Layla will arrive, I put the final finishing touches on her room! I LOVE it! The room was already turquoise, so I wanted to find bedding to match it and I love it. It matches perfectly and of course, I love the large giraffe print.

I made this to hang in her room. I framed a piece of fabric and applied a vinyl wall decal on the glass of the frame. I was going to buy an open back frame from Hobby Lobby, but then I would have to buy the glass and backing. So I browsed the framed art and found a really ugly picture, brought it home, took out the ugly poster and voila...cheaper than having to buy it separately.

We bought Layla a new crib. We had already converted Ella's crib to the full size bed, and I wanted an antique white finish. I have had the mirror since I first moved to Dallas. It was black, but I painted it to match the crib.

Of course Miss Priss was in the room while I was taking pictures. She loves to crawl into Layla's bed. I did tell her one day that she could not get into Layla's crib and she looked at me, pointed her finger at my tummy and said "Layla, you are in trouble. You understand?!" It was the funniest thing ever! I know there will be jealousy, but she loves babies so much, so I think she will also be sweet and gentle.

The black and white photographs were already in the black frames, I painted them cream. I took them in my photography class in Italy, so for now they are staying, but they will eventually be replaced with pictures of sweet Layla.

Yes, that is a bridal picture of me and it will be replaced too. That table was in Ella's room, but she got a new table. The chair was Ella's too, but now that her room is a toy store it doesn't fit and she doesn't need it.

I love the cornice board. It is simple, but adds some color to that corner. And of course the craddle that Ella's Grandad made for her will now be used to Layla.

I also had this old dresser. I painted it brown, put some new hardware on it and it is good to go. Trey's parents are ordering the changing pad covers to match the room and this will be our changing station.

So happy I finally finished it! Now we just need the baby (not that she will even sleep in here until she is six months old!!).

Updated To Do List

2011-04-19T13:16:00.001-05:00

At 42 days to go this was my to do list. I am happy to report that at 27 days to go I have accomplished a lot! See...

Paint Dresser - Uhh! I just really don't want to do this. My hubby has Friday off, so I am hoping he will do it for me!
~~Paint Mirror~~
~~Paint Canvas~~

Things I need to buy:
~~Carseat! #1 item~~ I bought it today!!

~~Drapes~~ Thanks Mom!!!
Changing pad cover
Boppy
~~Diaper Pail~~ Thanks to my awesome friend Melody who is giving me the one she kept in her room for her 3 month old baby girl!
~~Accessories for the room~~ Most of it is even in it's place! I just need to finish one or two more things!
~~Wall/ Book Shelf~~
~~Table~~

I had a doctors appointment yesterday and Layla is still doing good. My blood pressure was a little higher than normal and in the past week my feet, hands and legs have swollen. I had to say goodbye to my wedding rings after my finger turned purple!!! The doctor did tell me to keep my feet up and don't overdo it. That is easy with a two year old, right?! I am in the home stretch and can't wait to meet our sweet Layla!

Easter Egg Hunt

2011-04-18T23:11:00.000-05:00

We had a MOPS Easter egg hunt again this year and it was a lot of fun. We tried rounding up all of our little ones for a group photo. I must say, this is a pretty good group photo considering hos many kiddos there were. Of course, there were a few stragglers who wondered off while we were all trying to take pictures and a couple who didn't want to be in it from the get go, but other than that not too shabby!

Ella and her sweet friend Jalie and Katie (Asleep in the stroller) were all wearing these cute bunny shirts another one of the Moms in our group made. They are so cute (the girls and the shirts)!

Then it was time to get down to business. Ella ran and picked up her eggs, but she soon caught on to the fact that there was candy inside of them. So, she would pick up an egg, open it, put the candy in the basket and leave the egg on the ground. I had to follow behind and bend over (as best as I can!) and pick up the discarded eggs so some other kid didn't come along and pick it up and discover there was no candy.

Of course she took off her shoes as soon as she could. This girl loves to go barefoot.

Sweet Katie came and hung out with me for a little while. She is such a good baby! Ella saw me holding her and came up and said "Hi Baby!". She patted her and rubbed her and would just smile at her. I asked her if she loved the baby and she said yes. It was so sweet to watch how gentle and nice she was being! Makes me hope it will go this smoothly when Layla arrives!

After a while though Katie had to go back to her momma and was soon fast asleep. I just think this is so sweet!!! I can't wait for Layla to get here!

We had a great egg hunt. Ella played very hard with all of the bigger girls and was worn out and oh so very dirty when we finally left. We came home and she took a nap, but as soon as she was up she was looking for that basket of candy and it did not last long! She is like her Daddy and LOVES candy!

Dallas Aquarium

2011-04-10T13:02:00.000-05:00

Two weeks ago Ella and I went to the Aquarium with our friends Melody, Jalie and Katie. Ella loves Jalie and Melody, so anytime I say we are going somewhere with them she says "Yipee!" and jumps up and down! It is so cute! Jalie is 5, so obviously she is into older things than Ella, who is 2, but she is SO sweet to her. Holding hands as we walk through the exhibit.

Ella loves looking at all of the birds, monkeys, fish, etc. This was the first time she had been there. Some of my friends had gone before, but I wanted to wait to take her so that she would really enjoy it and she did!

She loved this part! This gigantic turtle kept swimming from one end to the other and she would follow him and say "What ya doin' turtle? Where ya goin'?" or "Turtle come back".

We stayed in this part quite a while just letting the girls look at the fish. It was really neat because everything in that tank was gigantic, especially next to our girls.

Jalie was ready to see the penguins, so we headed outside.

Ever since Ella has been walking around the house like a penguin saying "I'm a penguin momma. I walk like penguin."

It was a little cool outside, so we headed back inside to the Shark area. Ella didn't pay too much attention to the sharks, but Jalie did. I think Jalie might have been a little scared of them, she stuck pretty close to her mom.

I think this picture is funny. Not very often that you take a family picture with a shark in the background.

I wasn't expecting to see a Leopard at the Aquarium, but the girls loved it. When we first walked up to it it was sleeping, but someone took a flash picture and I think that woke it up because then it started moving around and the girls really wanted to stay and watch it. Jalie had been carrying around a stuffed leopard and wanted to introduce them to each other.

We had a great time! Afterwards we went and ate lunch at the Spaghetti Warehouse and had the sweetest waiter who brought the girls candy after they ate their lunch. It was such a fun time with our friends!

To Do....

2011-04-04T15:08:00.000-05:00

I now have approximately 42 days until Layla arrives!! I prefer to count in days instead of weeks, because it seems a lot shorter. Her bedding is supposed to ship at the end of this week and arrive next week!

Here are the things I still need to do:

Paint Dresser
Paint Mirror
Paint Canvas

Things I need to buy:

Carseat! #1 item
Drapes
Changing pad cover
Boppy
~~Diaper Pail~~ Thanks to my awesome friend Melody who is giving me the one she kept in her room for her 3 month old baby girl!
Accessories for the room
Wall/ Book Shelf
Table

Uhhh!!! I have to do all of this is 42 days?? I really do like having the room completely finished so that once our sweet girl arrives, even though she won't stay in her room for a LONG time, I don't have to decorate a room and take care of my two girls. I think I am gong to leave this post up for my amazing, sweet, very helpful husband who might read this and take care of some of these things for me!!

I did acomplish one thing this past weekend I really wanted to get done before I got so big it was hard to move (almost there) and before I got fat face! We went to downtown Waxahachie and had our maternity pictures taken. Here is one of my favorites, I will post more soon. For now I think I am going to go work on paiting the canvas for Layla's room.

Layla's Bow Holder

2011-03-31T14:46:00.000-05:00

I saw a bow holder like this and thought it was so cute! I also thought it would be so easy to make, so off to Hobby Lobby I went. I bought a wooden plaque for $2.99, a wooden letter for $2 or $3, and several spools of ribbon that were all 50% off. I already had the paint and the sealer at home.

I made a few corker (curly) ribbons. You do that by wrapping the ribbon around a wooden dowel, secure it with a wooden clothes pin, soak it is water, and then bake it a 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Let is cool, unroll it and viola! Curly ribbon! The rest I left straight and spraying with hair spray so it would be stiff. You can use starch, but we don't use that and I LOVE hair spray, so there ya go!

I hot glued it to the back of the plaque one by one, keeping the shorter pieces at the front. I hot glued two long pieces at the bottom to clip the bows to. I love it!!!!

This should also give you a good hint as to what Layla's bedding is going to look like. Which, I heard back from the company that is making it and it should ship it sometime next week!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I can't wait!

Ella's Big Girl Room

2011-03-29T13:33:00.000-05:00

You would think with a baby on the way I would be getting her room ready, well you are wrong! Ha! Well, we do have the crib in the room, the rocking chair, the dresser which still needs to be painted and a bow holder I just made. I mean, a bow holder is a priority, right?

Instead I have been working on Ella's big girl room. My mom and I bought the bedding for her for her second birthday so I couldn't wait to get it on the bed. Plus, Layla is going to use Ella's baby mattress so we needed to move that. Well, we finally got the bedding on a month or two ago, then I was trying to decide where to hang what, what was staying and what would be moved elsewhere. I love the way it is now and I am 95% sure that it is finished.

Here is the link to the last change made to Ella's Room. Well, the last change that I blogged about. Of course her bed has not been a crib, but a toddler bed, for a long time!I just never got around to posting pictures of it. So, here is her new room!

I still love this mirror as much as the day I got it! I bought the sconces at Hobby Lobby and painted them orange and added a few dangles.

I painted this canvas to go with her bedding and I love it. When I am changing her diaper she looks up at it and tells me the colors. I am hoping she won't be in diapers for too much longer. More on that later!

This is the kitchen she got from her Grandma and Grandad for Christmas. Monkey sits in the high chair and she cooks for him and feeds him.

She got this little table and chairs from her Grandma and Grandad for her birthday. It is a great place to sit and color or play with play doh. I painted those two shelves, which were previously light pink, to blue to add more color.

And the girl has so many bows. This doesn't even include the ones that are in her bathroom drawer, or in her backpack or any other random place in the house. I am thinking of making her a bow holder like the one I made Layla. I will show you that soon.

We love the chalkboard that she got from her Granny and Papa and on the other side is a magnet board. We have been going over our numbers, letters and colors on that. And of course, her baby bed for all of her stuffed animals is brimming over.

This growth chart is right inside her room. I just loved it! I need to remember to mark her height on it ever so often.

So here is her room for now! Who knows when it will change again, but for now I love it. And now that it is finished I can work more on Layla's room. I emailed the company about her bedding today. Hopefully it will come in soon. I don't feel like I can do too much before it arrives, but I am SO EXCITED to get it. In about 48 days we should be meeting our sweet girl!

Sandbox

2011-03-28T09:10:00.001-05:00

Ella got a sandbox while we were in Wichita for Spring Break and one of the first things we did was set it up for her to play with. It has been a great source of entertainment!! We usually wake up in the mornings and watch a cartoon and then she says "play in sandbox". Thankfully it has been so nice outside and I have really enjoyed spending time outside.

She does have a hard time keeping the sand in the box, but she is getting better. She just loves to throw it!

On a side note, her hair is getting so long! It does look a little crazy here, but we had been playing hard for quite a while. And yes, she is wearing her pajama shirt because it was the morning. Trey mowed the yard while we played.

I like to call this next collage "don't eat sand". Ella wasn't aware of this rule when she put a little in her mouth. She soon discovered it was not tasty and it is really hard to get out of your mouth. She has not eaten any since!

She plays in the sand and usually wants to wash her hands about 10 minutes later. Then we go inside for about 20 minutes and it is back outside again to play and repeat. I think she really just likes the water hose.

She is so much fun. I am really loving this age. She is full of funny comments and gestures that keep me entertained!

Playing

2011-03-21T10:20:00.000-05:00

I have been trying to do as many photo shoots as possible this month trying to fit everyones Spring pictures in before I am officially too big to do it anymore. With that comes editing all the photos, so I have had to come up with ways to keep Ella occupied and entertained while I edit. I saw this suggestion on Kelly's Korner blog and Ella loved doing it.

I filled up two plastic bowls with water and put ice cubes in one. I gave her a a spoon that drains and had her move the ice cubes from one bowl to another. She did this until the ice cubes were so small they fell through the holes in the spoon!

I did run to the bathroom and came back to pink her pink lamb in the bowl though, so close supervision in required. I did have towels down though just in case! In her defense she told me that Lamb "Wanted to take a bath"! She is such a little stinker!

Baby Shower

2011-03-11T15:53:00.000-06:00

With Layla being our second child and our second girl, I was not expecting a baby shower. When my Sunday school class asked if they could throw me a shower I was so excited!! We have the most amazing group of people in our class and Trey and I are so lucky to have them in our lives. We love our teachers and the friends we have made. I did not register for gifts like I did with Ella. I just said we needed diapers and newborn clothes. Ella was born in January and since Layla will be born in May most of the tiny baby clothes are going to be too hot for her. I also just wanted to give people the option to get us what they liked and I kinda liked the idea of being surprised.

We got lots of diapers, wipes, clothes, a bathing suit, a pair of shoes, two sweet blankets and a lamb that sings "Jesus Loves Me". Ella has the same lamb that was given to her by our Sunday school teachers.

Shannon gave Ella a blanket with her name embroidered on it and I love that she got one for Layla. Ella sleeps with three blankies everynight. One my sister got her, the one Shannon got her, and one from another friend. She did see Layla's new blankie and try to run off with it, just like she tried with the lamb, but I had to tell her those were Layla's.

These little shoes are so tiny and cute! I love that we are having a baby in the warm months so that I don't have to keep her all covered and bundled up. It is hard to image that there are little feet small enough to fit into these!

We had such a great morning and it just really made things feel real. Like wow, we are going to have two girls on our house very soon! I love using the term "my girls'!!!!! I can't wait to meet Layla!

Just In Case You Ever Wonder

2011-03-03T14:37:00.000-06:00

Ella has always loved to read books. If she is ever having a crabby day or even if I just need a break to relax, we will read a book. It is fun now that she has a big girl bed to climb into bed with her and read to her. She always puts her head on my shoulder and I always have her full attention.

I enjoy reading to her. I love reading Christian books to her and telling her how much Jesus loves her. About a year ago I was at Mardels looking for books and found the book "Just In Case You Ever Wonder" by Max Lucado on the clearance shelf. I knew at that time it was a little too long for her attention span, but we have started reading it a lot lately.

Max wrote it to his daughters so the book is about just how much he loves them, but that God loves them more. I love it! I will confess though it is very hard for me to read without getting teary-eyed, even after the 50th time reading it. At the end it talk about Heaven and how one day they will be there together forever, that is the part that gets me every time!! If you have a kiddo I would really suggest it. It is just so sweet!

27 weeks (1 week late)

2011-02-25T16:44:00.000-06:00

How Far Along: 27 weeks (last week) Please excuse my hair! This was at night after playing and chasing Ella, gorcery shopping and I just threw it back in a pony tail. Then I realized I needed to do a belly pic. I have been sooo bad about this. I already regret not taking them like I want to.

Total Weight Gain/Loss: I am now up to 10 pounds. I gained 28 with Ella, so I hope to come in under that or that amount. No more!!

Maternity Clothes: Leggings have become my best friend! Most of the shirts I wear are maternity.

Gender: GIRL!!! Layla Lou

Movement: Shea really likes to move at night or at around 6 a.m. I think she just likes to move while I am sleeping so that I can't!

Sleep: Getting more and more uncomfortable as the days go! I have to sleep with a pillow between my legs, I never did that with Ella. I pretty much always wake up with back pain. I tried sleeping in another bed and it helped. I think when I have to get a good nights sleep, like Saturday nights before church I am going to have to sleep in another room. Trey is not a fan!

What I miss: Being able to sleep through the night. Having a large wardrobe to choose from!

Cravings: Anything sweet. I went through a phase around Valentines day of craving chocolate and caramel, now it is Bahama Bucks shaved ice.

Symptoms: None. I never had braxton hicks or cramps with Ella. My water broke and we went to the hospital, no real warning signs.

Best Moment This Week: Sunday morning when I walked into the living room after getting ready for church Ella said "Wow Momma look so pretty!". It made my week! When you have a gigantic stomach you don't always feel so hot, but she made me feel so pretty!!

What I'm Looking Forward To: I am so excited that our Sunday School is throwing us a shower this Sunday. This being #2 and the fact that I am having another girl, I wasn't really expecting one, but I am so excited that we are!!

I also ordered Layla's bedding yesterday. Sadly it won't come in for 4-7 weeks, but I am so excited to finally be able to start on her nursery. I started cleaning out her closet yesterday. Gosh! I remember moving into this house and thinking "There is so much closet space, we will have lots of room to grow." Three years later we are brimming over!

Ella's Big Girl Bedding

2011-02-25T10:34:00.002-06:00

25 Weeks, 2 and a half weeks ago!

2011-02-17T22:32:00.000-06:00

Two and a half week ago I was 25 weeks pregnant! Wow! This pregnancy really is flying by. I can't believe I am already in my third trimester. I am also sad that I have not been taking belly pictures like I did when I was pregnant with Ella. To be honest, I just don' think about it. I am busy chasing Ella around and was sick for the last two weeks and didn't think of anything other than how bad I felt and trying to take care of Ella and feeling like a horrible mother for letting her watch so much television.

Okay, on to the pregnancy. I was 25 weeks! At my appointment I had gained a total of 9 pounds and am measuring a week ahead. Layla is very active at night and at 6 a.m. when I wake up to Trey's alarm clock and then realize I have to go to the bathroom every morning! Trey got to feel her moving for the first time that week. He has felt her several times since then. This is also when I started to be able to watch my stomach moving as she kicked. I love it!

What is not so great is the backache. I didn't get this with Ella until later, but since I am still occasionally picking up her 32 pound self, I understand why I am experiencing it earlier!

The crib has been ordered and will be here mid March. I still have not ordered her bedding, but I have picked it out. I just feel like I am not rushed to do it. By this time with Ella everything was in place, but nothing has changed in the guest bedroom that will be becoming Layla's room. I hope that changes soon!

Snow Day

2011-02-04T22:43:00.000-06:00

This week has been awful!! Ella and I have both been sick, it came an ice storm on Tuesday and has been so cold. I would not take Ella out in this cold anyways, but the fact that we were both sick and the roads were icy just added to that "cabin fever" feeling. Well, last night it started snowing and this morning I woke up to about 7" of snow!!!! On top on that, Trey was in the living room when I woke up because he didn't have to go to work, so we had a SNOW DAY!!!!

It took us about 20 minutes to find all of our really cold weather clothes, get layered up, get Ella layered up and head out the door for some fun. I took the lid off the big plastic bucket I keep some of my Christmas stuff in, cute a hole in it, tied some string to it and made a make shift sled for us to pull Ella on.

She loved it!!!

She looks so little in this picture!

Once we got off the "sled" we joined some of our friends building a snow man. I had told Ella when we first got out to try and catch a snowflake in her mouth because it was still snowing. Well, after a while it stopped, but Ella was still trying to catch them!!!

She saw her friend making snow angels, so of course the big girl that she is, she had to too. It was so cute to watch her doing it!

She made about 5 or 6, but then Daddy needed to brush her off before she got wet.

We went back to our yard and played and made more snow angels, threw snow balls at Daddy an had a great time. Of course I had to get a picture with my baby.

I loved it, but I am so glad that it is finally supposed to get above freezing tomorrow!!

Two Year Check Up

2011-01-31T23:09:00.000-06:00

We went to Ella's two year check up last week and not to my surprise, she is doing great! She ran into the office as soon as the nurse called us back from the waiting room and hopped right onto the scale. She then hopped right off, but the sweet nurse gave her two Dora stickers to coax her back on. She weighs 32.6 pounds, which is in the 95th percentile and is 36-1/4", which is in the 95th percentile. When the doctor came in to see us she said Ella is the size of an average three year old, so not to be surprised if people ask me she if she is three. Well, this has been happening for about 3 months now, so I am used to it!!

The doctor said at this age they need to be able to put two words together. I told her Ella is speaking in 5-6 word sentences. Ella also did a little showing off by counting to 10. Ella also knows the color blue and the shape circle. Dr. Smart said by the age of three they need to know colors and shapes, so we are a little ahead of schedule. She did have to have a flu shot, booster shot of some sorts, and they pricked her finer to get blood and test for anemia. Ella HATES band aids, so she ripped it off her finger as soon as the nurse wasn't looking and got blood all over her shirt and wiped her nose so it got on her face.

We also talked potty training and I told her Ella was doing great! Which she was, until that afternoon of course!! We even went and picked up big girl panties at Target, but I think that is what started the back tracking. Oh well, I really am not too worried about it. My goal s to have her potty trained by May when Layla arrives and I don't see that being a problem at all. Here she is in her dora undies she picked out!

I have been so sick since Friday afternoon it isn't such a big deal that she isn't going potty because honestly, I just don't think I could take her to the bathroom every 10 minutes. I have a very lovely deep man growling voice and hack up a lung about every 30 minutes. I felt a tiny bit better today from about 3-5 so I am hoping that I am on the upside of things. It is just not fun being sick, entertaining a two year old, and being pregnant. I told my Mom it is times like these that I really wished she lived down the street from me instead of 2-1/2 hours!

Ella is a little ham. She loves making funny faces. Here are two she made when I was asking her to make funny faces. This first one is her favorite one to make. (Yes, she is topless in both photos because the girl likes to be naked. My parents love to tell people about how they could not keep clothes on me when I was little and it looks as if my girl is following in my footsteps) She had also just eaten ravioli so she has a dirty face.

Ella's 2nd Birthday Party!

2011-01-13T22:08:00.000-06:00

We had Ella's second birthday party on Saturday at our house. We kept it simple again this year and only invited family, but trust me, the girl got enough presents!!! My mom and I got her her "big girl" bedding that will go on her bed once we convert it to a full size bed, so I based the party's color scheme on her bedding, well and her outfit! I painted this painting to go in her room. I love the way it turned out!! You saw the picture in the frame in the last post, her being all sassy!

I LOVE her cake!!!! I found a picture of a cake and gave it to someone to make and she did it PERFECT!! This is the second time I have used her and she does such an awesome job and her cakes are sooo good! I was sad to have to cut it. I wanted to just leave it the way it was!!

Me and my sweet girl!

Ella and her Daddy.

Ella ad her Granny and Papa. She was posing and smiling until I got my camera! Then she got distracted, oh well, it is still cute.

Birthday girl with her cake. Her Uncle John was behind the camera trying to get her to take a bite of the cake or put her finger it in. She was getting tickled!

We all sang happy birthday to her and she has been singing it to herself every day since! She is so funny!

The balloons were a big hit with the kiddos. I think Hunter wins to award for most obsessed with the balloons. He was precious! He even put a balloon in Ella's doll stroller and pushed it around.

Ella got SO many presents. I asked my sister to get her a Dora doll. Right now she is obsessed with Dora and Mickey. This Dora sings happy birthday and Ella loves it. We have to hold Dora while we watch her on tv.

Notice I bought her a baby Alive and it is sitting in my lap. She didn't really care too much about it and still doesn't fuss with it to much. Her friend Jalie has one and she just about had a heart attack the other day when we left Jalie's house and she couldn't take the baby with us. I thought, oh I will get her one..and NOTHING! She could care less. I guess I need to invite Jalie over to our house with her doll and Ella will like hers! =)

Her Aunt Jennie got her this precious Minnie Mouse. Now she has a Minnie and a Mickie and we always make them dance to hot dog dance. Her Minnie is way better than her Mickie though and so soft a cuddly. She has slept with Minnie several nights now.

Her Grandma and Grandad got her a table and chairs and all the little ones loved sitting at it. Poor Hunter fell over in a chair though, so that ended the fun for him.

What would a party be without high heels? Well, Ella got two pairs!

She walked away with bedding, three new dolls, lots of clothes, high heels, a real tea set, a Barbie four wheeler and tons more stuff that I can't even think about. Most importantly she had a blast with her cousins, grandparents, aunts and uncles. Thank you so much to all of our family for making Ella's second birthday party so much fun for her and her parents!

Happy Birthday Ella!

2011-01-07T00:34:00.000-06:00

Happy birthday to my sweet baby girl, Ella, who turned TWO today! What an amazing, tiring, exhausting, fun two years it has been. You are so sweet, precious, sassy, ornery and strong willed all at the same time! Picture above, sweet and sassy. Picture below, stubborn and ornery. This is you telling me "No, momma!". You bend down and point that finger and say it with such force. I do get on to you and give your butt a little swat, but inside all I want to do is laugh.

I love that you still want to cuddle with me and are the best little cuddle bug! Every morning we watch a cartoon and you sit right next to me on the sofa with my rm around you all nuzzled under my arm. If I try to get up you say "Sit momma!". I love that you want me to be with you and love on you.

We changed you crib into a toddler bed and you had no problem at all. I had serious doubt about it and told your Daddy that I just knew the next morning there would be toys everywhere and I had no idea what you would get into, but I was wrong. You went right to bed, jumped in, laid your head down and said "Night night." Every night we say our prayers and sing Jesus Loves Me and I tell you I love you and you say "I luh you too momma." It melts my heart to hear you say those words!

You are obsessed with your babies and we have 5 in the car with us at all times! Any time we get out of the car to go into store we must take a baby with us. Recently you have started singing Jesus Loves Me to your babies and Rock-a-bye baby. It is so sweet! You are going to be such a good big sister!!

You are so social and say Hi to almost every single person we pass when we are at the grocery store, etc. When they don't say Hi back you proceed to say it louder hoping to get a response. If a person is polite and says Hi back, you say "how are you?" it seems so grown up! You are very polite and always say please and thank you. This is something your Daddy and I really love that you do. Other grown ups have told us that they have never met such a polite little girl. That makes your Mom so happy!

There are not a whole lot of words that you can't say. You can count to ten. You know as many animal sounds as I can think of and can identify all of them as well. We are currently working on colors, it seems that blue is one of your favorites, it is one of mine too. You still love to read as many books as we can. You love to dance and always break out a few moves when you hear music.

You are happy and loving and just the best little girl your Mom and Dad could ask for. Dad loves coming home from work and hearing you run to the door yelling "Daddy's home!". I love that you always want me to hold you. We go to the doctor next week and we will get your stats then, but seeing as how you are just as tall as most of the three year olds we know, I am not worried about them! I love you so much and feel so Blessed that God gave you to us!!

Christmas 2010

2011-01-03T14:23:00.000-06:00

We had a great Christmas here at our house. When Ella was little Trey and I said that we would always have Christmas morning at our house. That is what both of us did as little kids and we want the same for our kids. It was so sweet watching Ella wake up and see her toys in front of the tree. We had some toys open and sitting out and some for her to play with.

She loved her Mickey Mouse. She is going through a Mickey stage right now and just loves him.

She got a Mrs. Potato head from Toy Story and Play Doh and a Dora coloring book with over 700 stickers. Guess how many are on my coffee table right now?!

She also got this little Crayola coloring thing. The faster you color the fast the music plays. She loves to color!

Reading her new Mickey Mouse book with her new Mickey.

The rest of my family came over for lunch. All Ella could talk about all week was Hunter, Caleb and Uncle John. She usually goes on and on about Granny and Papa, but her cousins were on her mind this time. And her Uncle John loves to play with the kiddos and they all love him.

Hunter came in wearing a Santa hat and Trey had some in his truck so all the kids wore them. Ella kept hers on for a long time! She kept saying Ho, Ho, Ho!

Sweet Hunter with his Papa. Do they look alike or what??

Not to be left out, Trey put on a Santa hat! He might get mad at me for this one!

Ella and my sister Corey.

Hunter took over Ella's job from last year. He would rather sit on his boxes than open the presents.

Ella also got this art easel from her Granny and Papa. She has loved drawing on the chalk board and playing with the magnets.

Aunt Jennie and Uncle Kyle, or Uncle Moo as Ella calls him, got her the cutest Disney Belle dress and Beauty and the Beast movie. She looks like a doll!

Papa and his thee grandkids. Next year there will be two more added to this picture. Our baby girl is coming in May and my brother Kyle is having another baby in July. I can't wait! I hope those two love each other as much as Ella and Hunter do.

Granny got in on the picture.

Our attempt at the whole family. Ella and Caleb weren't cooperating too much!

My amazing hubby and sweet, sweet girl! I love these two!

After a busy day, we cleaned house again because it was a wreck after all those presents and prepared for Trey's family to come the next day. Ella's Grandma and Grandad got her this cute kitchen. It even makes a boiling noise when you put a pot on the stove. We have had a lot of fun cooking in her kitchen.

Ella and Grandma playing.

Wearing her Uncle Zachary's sunglasses.

I didn't do too good taking pictures this day because I was so tired! Ella got the cutest light up Disney princess suitcase from her Great Grandmother and a Little Mermaid tricycle from her Aunt Mary Kate and Uncle Zachary and a sock monkey from her Aunt Lindsey and Uncle Shane. Plus, many many more things! We are so blessed to have the families we do and Ella is one spoiled little girl! I wouldn't have it any other way though!

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-24T14:53:00.000-06:00

"And the angel said unto them, 'Fear not: 'Behold I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people, Unto you is born this day a Saviour which is Christ the Lord.'" Luke 2:11

We Are Having A...

2010-12-22T12:47:00.000-06:00

GIRL!!!! I think Trey's heart skipped a beat when it was confirmed by two different doctors during my sonogram on Monday that we are having another girl! He said "oh, two weddings!" as in now he has to pay for two weddings! Haha! All I could think of was more bows, matching outfits for the girls, and just more dressing up! Trey is really excited though. He is such a good girl dad. He is sensitive and caring and just loves Ella to pieces.

Our new baby girl's name is going to be Layla Lou. Lou was my Dad's Mother's middle name. Since Ella is names after my Mom's Mother, it only made sense to name our new baby after my Dad's side. We decided on a girls name a couple months ago, but were still decided on a few different boy names. Trey was convinced it was going to be a boy, but I thought it was going to be a girl. So, now it is on to decorating a new nursery. I already have the bedding picked out, we just need to go crib shopping!! Wooo hooo!

The Night Before Christmas

2010-12-16T16:43:00.000-06:00

Ella loves to read books. During a normal day we probably read about 10 books 20 times. I love it when she brings me a book and tells me to "read momma". Every night before bed we usually read about 3 books.

Last year for Christmas my parents gave Ella and her cousins the sweetest Christmas presents. They bought "The Night Before Christmas", the kind where you can record yourself reading it. Dad and Mom alternated reading the pages and Ella loves it. I ask her if she wants Granny and Papa to read to her and she always gets excited. I will admit the first time she looked a little confused and looked around the room like "where are they hiding?".

The other night she looked so cute in her Santa pajamas and when we finished the book she wanted to keep going so I grabbed my camera and watched her turn the pages one by one like a big girl.

I just love her so much! She just adds so much to our Holidays!

Ella and Santa

2010-12-14T13:29:00.000-06:00

Trey and I took Ella to see Santa on Saturday. I thought she would do better this year because she is so friendly where ever we go and loves to talk to people. I guess most people aren't walking around wearing bright red with a hat and beard. Plus, we see a lot of women and not to many big men.
All morning I would say "Ella, are you ready to go?" and she would always say yes. Then I would say "Do you want to go see Santa?" and she would say NO! I guess that should have given it away. We walked in the room where Santa was and I felt her grip tighten a little more around my neck. I told the photographer I was just going to hurry, put her in his lap and move out of the shot quickly. Well, I guess she didn't understand I meant to take it right away, because her 10 second delay did not help the situation. See...

WHen I picked her up she clung to me like her life was at stake! Poor thing! And just for a reminder, here is last years picture. Same Santa, same expression! She has changed SO much in the past year, except for her fear of Santa!!

One day she will love to look back at these and laugh!

Christmas Time!!!

2010-12-13T21:15:00.000-06:00

I love Christmas time and even more so now that I have a little one. It is so fun to drive around at night and look at Christmas lights with her and listen to her say "Pretty lights!" over and over again! I made this wreath and I love the way it turned out. I wanted something that was fun and not the typical Christmas wreath.

My friend and I went to Canton a few months ago and I found the red/green plaid mesh ribbon that is on my mantle and tree. I want the family room to be more casual and fun for Ella.

All of the ornaments are plastic and tied to the tree with ribbon, so there are no hooks or anything that will break if something happens. With an almost two year old running around I thought that would be best. The "Joy" ornament was mine when I was little. It used to hang on my Mother's tree, but is now on mine.

My mother-in-law made our stockings for me. I can't wait to see what the latest one will look like? Boy or girl, we will know in 7 days! More camo or more flowers and animal print!

My mother bought me this nativity scene last year. I think it is so pretty and I love having it around and talking to Ella about Jesus, Mary and Joseph.

This is my dining room. It is all copper and gold and more formal.

And this is Ella's nativity scene. My mother bought it for her last Christmas and it is so cute. She can play with this one all she wants and it won't hurt it!

Last, but not least, my sweet girl in her Christmas pajamas reading a book.

10 Days!!

2010-12-10T14:48:00.000-06:00

In 10 days we will know if we are having a boy or girl!! I am so excited to find out. The girl name has been decided for a while now, but we are still going back and forth for the boys name. More than anything I am ready to see our baby. To know she/he is healthy and has ten fingers and ten toes and that everything looks great.

Trey, Ella and I will be at the appointment. Of Course at 23 months she doesn't understand the whole Momma's having a baby thing. She points to my stomach and says baby, but then does the same thing to herself. It will still be special to us that she is in the room when we find out. We were overjoyed when we found out she was a healthy girl and we know we are going to be just as excited with this one.

Trey is pulling for a boy, and of course I am pulling for a girl. Out of the 8 people I know that are pregnant right now, 4 are having a boy, one is having a girl and the others don't know yet. The countdown is on!!!

Christmas Cards

2010-12-08T15:59:00.000-06:00

And I for one can not wait!! I LOVE Christmas time, the food, the decorations, and the presents!! Last year I put up two Christmas trees and loved having so many decorations. I have been busy busy busy taking people's photos for their Christmas cards, but I always wait until the last minute to have our pictures taken and order my cards. This year, that is not going to happen. We are taking our pictures next weekend and I plan on ordering my cards soon.

This year I am going to order my cards from Shutterfly. I love the new designs they have and have already been combing through them. Shutterfly is also offering 50 free Holiday Card and all you have to do is go click here. Here is a link to their Christmas cards and their photo Christmas cards. Here is one of my favorites and you can find it here.

I like the modern look of it and I can put several pictures of my sweet baby girl in this one!

So take a look and make sure a get your 50 Free Holiday Cards.

Big Sister

2010-12-07T18:14:00.000-06:00

Baby Calhoun #2 will be arriving May 23, 2011. We are so very excited to give Ella a little brother or sister. We find out if we are having a girl or boy on December 20th!!! I can't wait! I have had that appointment set for about a month now. What a great Christmas present that will be!!!

I think Ella will be a great big sister. She is such a little momma now to her baby dolls.

23 Months!

2010-12-06T23:41:00.000-06:00

My sweet girl turned 23 months old today! It is so hard for me to believe that in one month she will be two years old. What an amazing 23 months it has been. She has grown and changed SO much. She is so independent some days and others she won't leave my side. She is still very cuddly and I LOVE that. She loves to snuggle next to me with my arm around her and watch cartoons. If I try and move away, she tells me to sit and grabs my arm and puts it around her.

She loves being around bigger kids. She likes younger ones, but they just aren't near as exciting to her. She is talking up a storm and just last night counted to 10 all by herself!!! Trey was present and heard all of it, so I do have a witness. Usually she will do the even numbers if I count with her, but she has been counting to five on her own, so last night was so AMAZING to hear! She has done it twice today.

She loves being outside and playing in the dirt and grass, but her favorite thing by far is shoes. I hear the word shoes or boots so many times a day. She loves shoes! Oh, are we in trouble in about 14 years!!

She is very social and tells everyone at the grocery store, Hobby Lobby, park, or where ever we go "Hi!" and if they don't respond she will continue, growing louder each time, until they do. Good thing I am not a shy person.

I love this little girl so much. I love how much she loves me and her Daddy and how excited she gets whenever he gets home from work. I love her sugars (kisses) and sweet hugs. I thank God for her at least once everyday and am amazed at His creation.

Halloween

2010-11-02T12:00:00.000-05:00

This year was the first year Ella could actually trick-or-treat. Last year she was nine months old and we did dress her up and take her to a few neighbor friend's houses, but she couldn't eat any of the candy and had no idea what was going on.

I LOVE Halloween! Growing up my Mom always made our costumes and they were so cute! We got to dress up at school and I always loved going trick-or-treating with all of my friends. To me it is about kids getting to be kids and dressing up in cute costumes and eating candy.

We got Ella ready and she headed out the door. She wasn't quite sure what to do at first, but she was a very polite trick-or-treater and always said thank you and bye bye.

We did see a few little boys wearing scary masks that Ella did not like and we had to slow down and pick her up and wait for them to pass. Our neighborhood was packed. People drive in to our neighborhood just to trick-or-treat and the streets were lined with cars.

Our little ragdoll got a lot of candy and had a great time. We went to about 20 houses on our street and walked by a lot more that we didn't go in. We had to skip the houses with scary decorations because Ella made it clear she didn't like them and we saw a house where a guy was jumping out and scaring kids, so obviously we didn't go to that one.

After a while she was ready to go home and we had walked about a mile. Daddy carried her home on his shoulders the rest of the way.

When we got home she dug into her candy and we let her eat two kit kits and a crunch bar. I think we have created a monster now!!! She loves chocolate, but who can blame her? Her first real Halloween experience was so fun!

Hi Fish!

2010-10-29T17:10:00.000-05:00

My Birthday At The Arboretum

2010-10-29T15:47:00.000-05:00

First off, does anyone even read my blog anymore? =) I used to be good about keeping up, but that faded and I tried to hold on, but life has just been crazy around here. My photography business is doing great, but that means when I am on the computer I am editing photos and blogging on my photography blog. November is a very busy month for me. I am booked every weekend for a photo shoot, except for the weekend after Thanksgiving. That will be spent in Wichita with our families and trying to relax a little.

Back to my birthday...I met up with my friend Melody at the Arboretum. Fall at the arboretum is just the most beautiful time and there are pumpkins everywhere!! The colors are rich and beautiful and the weather was perfect. Our Mops group planned to attend, but several of their kiddos were sick, so it was just me and Melody. I did not care at all because Melody is one of my favorite people and we always have a good time. Ella is also crazy about Melody and her daughter Jalie, who is almost 5. This is Ella giving Melody a big smile when we first arrived.

We walked around and just kind of let the girls run wild. Ella loved it, except when I would try and reel her back in. Miss independent!

Don't let that sweet face fool you. See that finger? It is about to point right and me and tell me "No Mama!".

Both of the girls were just mesmerized by the water. I just love this picture of Ella because every since she was little I have taken pictures of her backside. It is usually to get pictures of all her rolls. There aren't any rolls though anymore. My girl has thinned out.

So sweet! Jalie is a little mama and was so protective of Ella. She is going to be a great big sister come January.

Such a little cutie!

We walked around for several hours and then had a little picnic. Ella ate and then started chasing birds. It was hysterical. She would say "budda budda budda BIRD!" and then take off. She never understood why they wouldn't just stay still. While Ella was chasing the birds, mama Jalie was chasing Ella. These two are a mess!

Ella also made friends with another little 18 month old girl while we were eating and then proceeded to sit in the girls stroller while Jalie pushed her around. She also ate most of the girls snacks, but the little girl and her parents were so nice. Ella has just never met a stranger! I love that she is so outgoing.

After 4 hours we headed home and Ella passed out in the car. She had just run herself ragged. We went home and napped and waited for Trey to get home. That night we went and ate at Glorias. It was delicious and Ella got to eat all the bean dip she wanted, which is a lot. My birthdays used to be about dressing up and going to a nice restaurant and staying out late, but this one was by far one of my favorites in a while. I got to spend it with a great friend, my sweet girl and my wonderful husband. I am so blessed!

My Little Cowgirl

2010-10-01T16:32:00.000-05:00

When Trey and I went to the Gaylord for our anniversary we did a little shopping. Of course we had to get something for Ella, especially since this was our first night away from her. We went into a little store and Trey pointed out the cowboy boots and he quickly regretted it! I spent the next twenty minutes debating on red or pink and finally went with the red. I was so excited about them I almost wanted to go ahead and go home!!

When we did get home the next day we showed these to her and she loved them. She has worn them around the house several times all day long. So, I decided to take her out and do a little photo shoot of her. Well, I had taken two little boys pictures that morning, so by the time I picked her up it was already 12 and HOT. I decided to do it anyways though, even as she was rubbing her eyes in the back seat signaling nap time.

It was a little too sunny and way too hot, so I may need to do a re-shoot, but oh well, I think they are precious.

When shooting an almost two year old (especially your own) it helps to have another adult there as the attention getter. Notice how the grass is more interesting than me!

We did a little outfit change about 15 minutes into it. We were there only about 25 minutes. It was just too hot. I took these at the beginning of September.

Such a sweet face!

I have been really bad about taking pictures of her lately. Probably because I have been taking pictures of other people so in my free time I just play with her. I need to get better about that. She is growing up so fast and I don't want to miss any of it!

For My Brother, Kyle

2010-09-30T18:32:00.000-05:00

Although apparently Ella thinks it is Cow.

Will I Ever Learn??

2010-09-15T17:40:00.000-05:00

This summer my hair has continually gotten more and more blonde. Today I decided it was too blonde and instead of doing the right thing, which is call a licensed beautician, I go to the grocery store and buy a box of hair color for $12. Saves me a lot of money right? Instead of paying a professional $100 (which in my opinion is soooo overpriced!!!) I only spend $12 + tax.

Now in the past I have judged it by the girl on the box. Oooh, her hair is really pretty and curly with lots of volume, it is a distraction tool! This time I judged it by the name of the color. I went with dark natural blonde, sounds good, right...that is what I am after.

I go home, put it on, only leave it on for 5 minutes because I really just wanted to tone it down just a little, not fully color it.

UUUHHHHH!!!! And every time the result is the same. Ugly! And every time I wash my hair at least 5 times, sometimes using laundry detergent, thinking it will magically fade away this ugly color, but that has never worked. Yet, I continue to do it!!!!!!!!!

So now I have an appointment tomorrow at 12 with a licensed professional to fix it. So, instead of $100, it is now $112 + tax. And I have to look at this ugly, ashy color for the next 18 hours. I do this at least once a year. So no, I don't think I will ever learn!!! =)

Three Year Anniversary

2010-09-13T23:06:00.000-05:00

Our three year anniversary was on September 8. For our first wedding anniversary I was 6 months pregnant, so we just went to a nice dinner. For our second wedding anniversary I had an eight month old baby and wasn't about to leave her, so we just went to a nice dinner. Finally, for our third wedding anniversary we decided to do something (and still go for a nice dinner!). We went to the Gaylord Resort in Grapevine and had a blast. It was my first overnight trip away from Ella and I did just fine! (Now let's go to Mexico!!! Haha! just kidding)

We arrived and had champagne and cake balls waiting on us. What a good start to the day. We did a little shopping and just walked around for a few hours checking everything out.

Later we got dressed up and went and had dinner at the Old Hickory steakhouse. We had a nice long meal and enjoyed some wine and actually got to talk to each other!! And I actually got to eat my food instead of feeding Ella the entire time and then scarfing my food down at the end of everyone elses meal! (I love how to one picture we took of us dressed up is blurry. Trey was ready to go and hurrying me and I was trying to balance the camera on a lamp shade!)

After dinner we went to the Glass Cactus Nightclub. I wish I would have known to make reservations because all the tables were reserved and there wasn't anywhere to sit except outside and it was HOT and HUMID! We stayed for about 2 hours and were back in our hotel room at 10:00, ordered room service and went to bed. We are such party animals!!!

What about Ella you ask? Well, my mom came in town to keep her.Ella didn't even say bye to us when we left and didn't really seem to care we were leaving. You see, when Granny is around, nothing else matters. My Mom graciously offered to iron my new dress before we left and Ella threw such a fit because Granny wasn't holding her, you would think someone was torturing her. When we came home she acted as if we were never gone and still was obsessed with Granny. My mom did tell me that several times during the day Ella asked for her Momma and Daddy, which made me feel better. I guess it is a good thing that she was happy and content while we were away. I would have been upset had she been heart broken all weekend.

Labor Day Weekend

2010-09-10T16:31:00.000-05:00

We had a fun Labor Day weekend. Trey worked on Saturday, so we didn't do too much but relax around the house. Sunday Ella's Grandma and Grandad (Trey's parents) came in town and we met at Glorias and had lunch before heading back to our house. I just love Glorias, they have the best chips and hot sauce! Trey's mom bought us all presents. Ella got some bubbles and a pinwheel, Trey got a big bag of bubble gum and some chocolate chip cookies, and I got two new hairbrushes, two nail polish colors, some body scrub. hairspray (a girl's best friend!), and a coupon for a free shaved ice from Bahama Bucks (another one of my favorites!).

Trey tried to keep the cookies to himself, but this little girl had at least four that I know within 3o minutes!

Monday Trey put some ribs on the smoker at about 9:30 a.m. He had the day off and we were having a great time all playing in the backyard. Until his work phone rang and he got called in. He was the back-up guy to the on-call guy, but of course the on-call guy conveniently didn't answer his phone. Trey was pretty upset because he had to drive all the way to Arlington on what was supposed to be his day off.

Oh well, he got over it and was home by 4:00. We cooked a brisket, smoked ribs, and I made baked beans. We had two couples over from church and had a great time! Melody and Justin left before I could get any pictures of them. Their daughter was at her Dad's house and they had to leave early to go pick her up.

One of the most fun toys of the evening was, as I like to call, the "bugger sucker". Here Ella is demonstrating to Addison how to properly use the booger sucker. Notice Addison paying close attention.

And then Ella decides Addison might need some of her boogers sucked. Addison obliges and tilts her head back for easier access for Ella!! I can't believe I actually caught this. Of course as soon as Nicole saw what was going on she stopped Ella.

These two almost terrible two's went at it over some of the more valuable toys such as the police rocker and the stroller.

Gregory got Ella a couple of times pretty good in the stomach and face. However, Ella has the sneak attack. Notice Gregory smiling and posing as Ella has her mouth wide open going in for the bite! What a little toot! Yes, we stopped her before she could clinch down.

And there is sweet Addison in the background, just cruising along the table and bouncing ever so often.

Ella then got Addison's diaper bag and decided to empty it out for her. She is just such a helper!

It is so nice to have a three day weekend ever once in a while. Ella and I love the extra time we get to spend with Daddy.

Birthday Parties

2010-09-09T22:18:00.002-05:00

I have been a bad blogger lately and my friend Joanna pointed that out to me tonight. I always sit down to do it and then I work on pictures I have been taking or just get caught up reading everyone elses blog. I used to stay up until at least 1 a.m., but have been trying to go to bed at a more reasonable time.

On August 27th, my adorable nephew Hunter turned ONE!!!

And of course Ella had to break in his toys for him!

We got him this camo hat and some cute came pants to match, along with some shirts. He actually left the hat on for about 5 minutes which shocked me!

Finally it was cake time and he tore it up! He definitely Smashed his Smash cake.

Saturday night my parents spent the night at our house and enjoyed some cuddle time with Ella while watching Yo Gabba Gabba before bed. She is soooo snugly at that time and I just love it.

Sunday afternoon was my other nephew Caleb's fourth birthday party. It was at a jump house place and it wore me and Trey out. Ella LOVED sliding and bouncing and just went crazy!!

She could not sit still for too long for a picture. She was just too busy!

I forgot to mention our air conditioner quit working Friday night around 10:30, so we had to deal with that Friday and Saturday too. The ac repairman was here 5 long hours on Saturday, but got it fixed just in time for my parents, Ella, and me to get home from Hunter's party on Saturday. So, it was a busy weekend, but so much fun! And if you ever need a good workout, just take your kid to a place that has bounce houses and slides!!!

Wordless Wednesday: Tupperware Fun

2010-09-01T09:29:00.000-05:00

Who needs toys when you have tupperware?

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Playdates

2010-08-31T20:59:00.000-05:00

Last Wednesday we had our first MOPS playdate of the year. I love MOPS and I am so glad that it is time for it to start up again. I love the friendships I have made and look forward to making more this year. Two of my favorite people are in my group again this year, which I am so thankful for. Our kiddos already know each other and are already used to playing together too.

Our playdate was at Melody's house and the kids WRECKED it! Poor Jalie's room had toys scattered everywhere! My sweet little thing LOVED Melody's house because she has so many dolls and strollers. Give Ella a baby and she is happy. Give her two and she is in Heaven!

This is Jalie climbing on her new neat bed. Ella got to climb up on it once everyone else had left and she did not want to get down. My girl can throw some serious fits too!

I love the loft bed she has and this little table and chairs under the bed. More room to play!

I was finally able to get a picture of sweet Aliyah. She was too busy making a pretend pizza with her brothers. And yes, there were four other boys there that I didn't get a picture of because they were just way to busy.

I also love it because afterwards Ella is worn out and takes the best naps!

Joyful-Photography: Hunter

2010-08-22T22:58:00.000-05:00

Hunter is turning One this week and he is up on the

Joyful-Photography blog.

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