Birth-iversary!

My parents sent us to a Bed & Breakfast in Buffalo Gap, Texas, for our 9th anniversary/my 30th birthday! We haven't been on a vacation together away from the kids ever, so a couple of nights in a sleepy little town was the the perfect gift. Here are a few pics from our get away!

The B&B where we stayed was an old church building You can see the church bell on the left.
The second photo is the cornerstone of the church, built in 1937.

The front door of the church/B&B. It says "Peace and Grace to All Who Enter."

The private garden. Wish we could have been there when it was in full bloom!! The steps you see on the right go up the the hot tub.

Part of the room. It was so pretty!

On Monday we went to the Buffalo Gap Historical Village, which was about a block away from out B&B. Here we are on the porch of the Hill House in the village; it was Marshal Tom Hill's home circa the 1880's.

I saw this sign in the old train depot at the BGHV; I thought it was pretty cool!

What did the kids do while we were away? My parents took them to Chuck E. Cheese, bought a sandbox for Will's birthday and set it up for them, and let them play in the pool. Yes, they were quite spoiled!


So, today I turn 30 and Scott and I celebrate 9 years of marriage and 10 years together. We are so blessed! I hope you all have a wonderful May 27th...I plan on it!

Where Have I Been??

Well, I'll tell you. I've been at work! But as of last week, I have gone back to part-time and I couldn't be happier about my decision. I am so glad to be back at home with my kids two days a week!

Since I will be at home a couple of days a week again, I will hopefully be able to update a little more often. Since my last post at Easter, a lot has happened! Scott graduated from LCU on May 2nd, earning his second Masters degree, a Master of Arts in Biblical Interpretation. Scott's parents and grandmother were able to join us for the event. We are so proud of our daddy and all his accomplishments!

That same day, when we got home from Lubbock, we had Will's 4th birthday party. This year, we went with a pirate theme; Will dressed as Captain Jack Sparrow in the costume we got him. It was a crazy day, but we had a lot of fun! Since we were going to be out of town the day previous to Will's party, I bought his cake from the bakery this year instead of making it myself. They did a great job and it was delicious!

Will's actual birthday came on Mother's Day, May 10th. That day we celebrated by going to Midland, eating at Rosa's, shopping, and having birthday cookies on Spider-Man plates at home. It was a good day for all. We just can't believe that our big boy is FOUR!

Here is a random picture of Claire reading in her chair that I thought was too cute and had to share! The next picture is Claire at her end-of-the-year CDO program. They are singing "Twinkle, Twinkle." I don't have a very good picture of Will; we took more video of him than pictures.

We are excited that my parents are here this weekend. They are going to take care of the kids while Scott and I get away for a couple of days (our anniversary is coming up). Then, summer is right around the corner and our lives will be filled with VBS, camps, mission trips, youth rallies and the like! It doesn't seem possible that summer is so close.

I am looking forward to updating more often and keeping myself updated with all of you!

Happy Easter!

Claire's class after their egg hunt at Children's Day Out.

Will after his egg hunt. They got to have theirs at the park.

Dying eggs!

Today after church in the neighbor's garden.

This is the only decent one that we got of them together!

Pictures by Robyn

Robyn was able to take photos of us while we were in Lubbock a few weeks ago! Check out her photography blog for a sampling of the pictures!

Goings-On

Hello! I am still alive :)

So much has been going on, and most of the time I am way too tired to even consider blogging, but I thought I'd update since I have a few pictures to share.

A couple of weeks ago, we went down to San Antonio to visit my grandmother and meet up with my parents. The kids and I went on with my mom and dad to Katy and Scott returned home to work on his essays for his comprehensive exams. We returned a few days later by plane. THAT was an experience I'd soon like to forget. Plane travel alone with two kids is not much fun. I did survive, though :) My mom took a lot of great pictures of my kids riding my brother's girlfriend's horse, but alas, I do not have those. Maybe my mom will email them to me (hint, hint!) ;)

Scott has since finished his essays and turned them it (Praise God!) and we are done with grad school stuff for a while. We also found someone to baby-sit our kids on those days that they're not in "school." So that is another "Praise!" The flower shop was extremely busy last week with several funeral pieces, so I definitely got in some "practice." This week has been a little slower so far, so that's kind of nice (it is our local schools' spring break, which is always notoriously slow).

The kids are doing well. Claire was sick for a while before we went to my parents' house, but she is better now. Will is currently obsessed with pirate "jewels" (which will explain a couple of pics), however we haven't watched Pirates of the Caribbean for several days as he is currently hooked on Star Wars (my fault, I let him watch it the other day). He still likes to dress as a pirate, though. Claire likes to do everything that Will is doing and is a sweet little helper. She is showing her intelligence here lately by recognizing some of the letters of the alphabet and talking more and more. She loves to sing and dance and is even starting to show interest in the potty. Kids grow WAY too fast!!!

One funny thing that Will has been doing the last few days is asking me if I am going to have a baby. I am not sure what has prompted this question...maybe it was the fact that we went shopping for a baby shower gift a few days ago. Anyway, he's asked me several times since about it and I have told him, no, that I'm not going to have a baby anytime soon. He says that I should and he wants a brother. Hmm. I'm not so sure.

Anyway, time for the pictures!

Scott and the kids watching Cinderella in our bed.

Claire's ponytail!

"Smarty Pants!"

Man, I wish this picture wasn't blurry! It would have been so great!

Will watching a movie while wearing his "pirate jewels", a Mardi Gras mask, and his Capt. Jack Sparrow hat.

Will (again with the pirate jewels) and his St. Patrick's Day hat he made at school (so cute!).

Claire with the leprechaun hat.

This is how I found my children when I came home today...Claire asleep in her chair (but sitting in it the wrong way, with its back on the ground)...

...and Will deeply engrossed in Winnie the Pooh, with my couch's arm cover on his head and wearing (of course) his pirate jewels. Funny.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

Oh, my. Where do I start? We've had an interesting few weeks at work. Valentine's Day was pretty horrible, not because we were so overloaded with work but quite the opposite. It was the worst V-Day that I've ever seen, and I've worked in the flower business for about seven years now. Aside from that, we've had some people leave the shop, mainly for health reasons; they needed health insurance and my boss can't really provide insurance that's reasonably priced--it's a small business! However, the people that left included the lead designer for the shop, who has had 25+ years experience in floral design. She is phenomenal in what she can create and do. The other person that left has been our other full-time designer since October. I have been designing some off and on for the past few months, but not in any major capacity. I only work three days a week.

Sooo....guess who's the new lead designer? Yep, you guessed it...ME! This is both exciting and scary at the same time. Today I went in thinking I would only work from 9:00 to 2:00, but ended up having to stay til 5:30 because we had a lot of funeral work orders come in. But, I made two $75 dollar standing easels and several other things and everything looked pretty good! Not 25+ years-experience top-notch, but certainly not bad.

This means I am going to have to try to go back to work full time. This is going to be hard because I don't really have anyone to take care of my kids. So, please pray for me in this new position and also that I might find a good place for my kids to go on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays (they go to "school" on Wed. and Fri.). Scott is also trying to finish up his comprehensive exams, which is really 4 papers, in the next couple of weeks for his Masters of Arts in Biblical Interpretation from LCU. So, AHHH! This is a crazy time for all this to be happening. I am just asking for prayers as we try to accommodate all these new changes.

Oh yeah, and Claire has been sick with RSV for the past week--bad timing! She seems to be at the tail-end of it, though :) To close, I leave you with a couple of random pictures...because what's a blog post without pictures??

My sweet hubby surprised me with roses on Wednesday! Beautiful!!

At long last...Scott's diploma from ACU came in a couple of weeks ago!

Sweet little red shoes on Claire for Valentine's Day (from Nana).

And finally...

A sign of the future?? Will decided he needed to take a nap outside in this cardboard box the other day. (He stayed in there for about three minutes) :)

The Highlights

We were able to go to Master Follies this weekend and it was a great show! Here are the highlights:

Koinonia's Golden Marching Band


"Sweet Dreams" performed a cappella by the hosts and hostesses


If you didn't get to go, I missed seeing you! We had a great weekend and loved seeing everyone. We were also blessed to have Robyn take our pictures, so hopefully I will have those soon to show :)

25 Random Things

1. I can't stick with one hairstyle for very long. I have to get it cut, colored, or *something* pretty regularly.
2. I have recently figured out (after many many years of trying to) what I want to be when I grow up. I am planning on starting a MLS degree (Master's of Library Science) in the near future in order to become a children's librarian.
3. In the seven years since college, I have worked in a funeral home, high school and flower shop.
4. After working for the flower shop for six years, I am finally a "designer" and will have my first Valentine's Day as such in a couple of weeks. I am scared to death.
5. I don't really like to cook, but I will. I prefer baking.
6. I am a very indoors-type person. But I do like spending time outdoors, too. I just never think about it.
7. I am a major list person. I have lists for everything.
8. I don't think I am funny, but my friends do. I guess their opinion matters more! :)
9. I love to sing and am so happy that my daughter likes for me to sing her to sleep every night. (My son doesn't like it when I sing to him).
10. When I was little, I had my own "library." I guess I should have known then.
11. My favorite food is popcorn, but I hate real corn.
12. I am turning 30 this year and hoping to take a fun trip sans kiddos.
13. Sleeping and reading are my favorite hobbies.
14. I am hopeful for our country's future.
15. I recently discovered that I like bleu cheese dressing (by accident--I thought I was getting ranch).
16. My favorite series of books is The Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon. The first book was over 500 pages and they just keep getting bigger with each new installment. I am very anxiously awaiting the 7th book coming out this coming fall; to prepare I am rereading the 5th and 6th books (with so many pages, a lot goes on.)
17. The main character in the book is named Claire and I only sort-of named my daughter after her.
18. My son's name is Will and he is the most aptly named child I've ever known. He has the strongest will. Ask anyone who knows him!
19. All of my best friends live at least two hours away from me. This is only slightly annoying.
20. I was born on my father's 26th birthday. If my son could have held on 17 days longer (not that I really wanted him to!), he would have been born on my 26th birthday.
21. Scott and I were married on my 21st birthday. No we didn't necessarily plan it that way, it just worked out that that was the best weekend available.
22. My husband is the smartest person I know and I am exceedingly proud of him and his accomplishments. I am also very glad he is inclined in math and physical sciences because those subjects are definitely not my forte.
23. My children never cease to surprise, amaze, and entertain me. They are precious and I am so thankful God chose me to be their mom.
24. I am definitely not a morning person and don't know if I ever will be. I am a night owl and rarely go to sleep before midnight.
25. I love television and movies, and easily get addicted. Most of the shows I like happen to be NBC shows because that is the only channel we get at our house. We don't have cable and our house is in some kind of twilight zone that only gets the one network station. And it's fuzzy (of course!). We did get the digital TV converter but it doesn't work 3/4 of the time. Very annoying!

I'd love for anyone who wants to do this to post a "25 Random Things" as well...I love learning more about my friends!

iTunes Game

Here's another fun thing to do!

1.Put your iPod or other music player on shuffle.
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer. The Name of the song is your answer!
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER HOW SILLY IT SOUNDS!


IF SOMEONE SAYS "IS THIS OKAY" YOU SAY?
"Shifting Sand" - Caedmon's Call

WHAT WOULD BEST DESCRIBE YOUR PERSONALITY?
"Just to Look at You"-Bebo Norman

WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GUY/GIRL?
"Speak to Me"-Rebecca St. James

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE'S PURPOSE?
"Love Song"-311

WHAT IS YOUR MOTTO?
"Standing Still"-Jewel
Hmmm....

WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU?
"42"-Coldplay
Odd...

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT VERY OFTEN?
"More Than You'll Ever Know"-Watermark
Ha ha!

WHAT IS 2+2?
"Where You Lead Me"-Mercy Me

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BEST FRIEND?
"Unbelievable"-EMF
Again: ha ha!

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
"Sh-Boom"-The Chords
Fitting...

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY?
"You Win My Love"-Shania Twain

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP?
"Never Alone"-Barlow Girl
Interesting.

WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
"Please Only You"-Steven Curtis Chapman

WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU?
"Jump Around"-House of Pain

WHAT WILL YOU DANCE TO AT YOUR WEDDING?
"Mud on the Tires"-Brad Paisley
We've already gotten married (duh), but I'll bet Scott would have liked to dance to this song. Funny.

WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL?
"A Cradle Prayer"-Rebecca St. James

WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST?
"Frozen"-Madonna
Weird!

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SECRET?
"Immortality"-Celine Dion
Ha ha ha...I've fooled you all!!!

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS?
"I Don't Know Why (But I Do)"- Clarence "Frogman" Henry

WHAT'S THE WORST THING THAT COULD HAPPEN?
"I Have No Doubt"-Point of Grace

HOW WILL YOU DIE?
"California Dreamin'"-The Mamas and the Papas

WHAT IS THE ONE THING YOU REGRET?
"You Know Me Better Than That"- George Strait

WHAT MAKES YOU LAUGH?
"With Every Little Kiss" - Steven Curtis Chapman
Good one...

WHAT MAKES YOU CRY?
"Nothing Compares"- Third Day

WILL YOU EVER GET MARRIED?
"The Kingdom"-Caedmon's Call
I am the Bride of Christ!

WHAT SCARES YOU THE MOST?
"Bullet the Blue Sky"-U2

DOES ANYONE LIKE YOU?
"Nightengale"-Norah Jones

IF YOU COULD GO BACK IN TIME, WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE?
"One Piece at a Time"- Johnny Cash

WHAT HURTS RIGHT NOW?
"Do Not Fear"-LCU Praise Choir

New Hair and New Hope

I got my hair cut yesterday. It always makes me feel better to get my hair cut. I feel like a new person, somehow. I can't ever stick with one style for too long. It always amazes me when I watch make-over shows and these women (or men) say they have had the same hair-do for twenty or thirty years. I'm like, "Seriously? Don't you ever get bored??" But everyone's different!



This weekend we were blessed to visit our dear friends, the Malletts, in Arlington. We didn't do a whole lot--just took the kids to the park and ate out a few times--but we just had a good time being together. Since their son Ryland is one of Will's favorite people, he was just ecstatic. When Will found out that Ryland had a full gammut of pirate costumes, he was in hog heaven. I didn't take many pictures at all the whole weekend, but I did manage to get a couple of Will in Ryland's Jack Sparrow costume and of Raylee, Will and Ryland together with their guns and swords.



I just felt like I needed to express what I'm feeling right now about hope. My outlook has changed a bit since this past fall. I still don't agree with everything he stands for, but I am very hopeful about our new president. What I have seen these past few days and even weeks has been so encouraging to me; that maybe our country isn't "doomed," but is possibly in for a few good changes. I was so moved yesterday watching President Obama, just knowing that an African-American has done what so many never dreamed of, or never wanted to see happen, is awe-inspiring to me. That in and of itself, makes me proud to be an American. It was so moving to see so many people, of all races, so excited that this man has become our president. I am proud of our citizens, and that gives me a new hope. I am excited to see what lays in store for our nation in the weeks and months to come. I am praying that the many people who are still doubtful will support our authorities and our nation and not bring it down. Like he said in his inauguration speech, what we need now are hope and virtue in order to move forward.

On a completely different and lighter note: Will was the only one in his Bible class tonight. The story being taught was Adam and Eve. When the teacher told him this, he promptly told her, "No, it's Wall-E and Eve." I thought we ought to send that one in to Disney/Pixar. What do you think?

You Can Quote Me on That

It's been a while since I've done something "fun" with my blog. So, I'm stealing something I saw on Facebook. Here's the scoop:

1. Pick 10 of your favorite movies.
2. Go to IMDb.com and find quotes for those movies. Post them.
3. Have friends try to guess which movies the quotes come from.
4. When someone gets it right, bold the quote and put the title of the movie.*

Have fun!

1. All my life, when I'm quite grown-up I will always remember my grandfather and how he smelled of...tobacco and peppermint. - Susan; The Parent Trap (Way to go, Melanie and Mom!)

2. When I'm wrong, I say I'm wrong...You looked wonderful out there. - Jake Houseman, Dirty Dancing (Carrie scores one)

3. Our first television set. Dad just picked it up today. Do you have a television? - Lorraine, Back to the Future (One for Harmony, two for Mom)

4. Person 1: War, war, war; this war talk's spoiling all the fun at every party this spring. I get so
bored I could scream. Besides...there isn't going to be any war.

Person 2: Not going to be any war? Why, honey, of course there's gonna be a war. - Scarlett and one of the Tarleton twins, Gone with the Wind (Mom gets a third point)

5. I don't know, but I think what I've got is something slightly resembling... GUMPTION! - Iris, The Holiday (Alright, Dad!!!)

6. Leslie and I have an amazing relationship and it's very physical, he still pushes all my buttons. People say 'oh but he's so much older than you' and you know what, I'm the one having to push him away. We have so much in common, we both love soup and snow peas, we love the outdoors, and talking and not talking. We could not talk or talk forever and still find things to not talk about. - Sherri Ann Cabot, Best in Show (Yea, Bethany!)

7. I put a bird in my hair. - Carrie, Sex and the City: The Movie (Good job, Kelly B!)

8. John, get ready to have some kids! - Mary, WALL-E (Carrie scores again!)

9. Is this toothbrush approved by the American Dental Association? - Kevin, Home Alone (Two for Harmony, four for Mom!)

10. What's the décor? Early Mexican brothel? - Armande, Chocolat**

*If no one guesses the correct answer, I'll post them in a week. Have a great week!

**No one guessed #10, so I kept my promise and posted the answer on 1/20. This was fun; I'll have to do "fun" things with my blog more often. Thanks for playing!!

Trying Something New

We decided to convert Claire's crib to a toddler bed last night. Of course, she only slept in it for about an hour and when we went in to check on her she had fallen onto the pillows on the floor and woke up when we came in the room. Once she saw us, she wouldn't be consoled, so back to our bed she went. She did sleep in her bed for her nap this afternoon, though. She has weaseled her way into our bed for the past few weeks, making it increasingly hard for me to actually sleep and get up in the morning, as she likes to flop all over ME (meaning, not Scott). So, I was thinking maybe her own "big" bed would encourage her to actually sleep in it. We shall see! I'm sure it will be interesting.

Speaking of interesting, there hasn't really been any of that as of late. We are just taking life as it comes, living each day at a time. Work is slow right now, as it always is in January, but V-Day is just around the corner. Ugh. I don't want to even think about it! It hasn't quite hit Scott yet that he doesn't have to return to school this semester, as we're still in the break-time between semesters. I'm sure he'll feel more freedom in a couple of weeks when he realizes there is no homework to be done.

Will and Claire are still immensely enjoying all of their Christmas gifts. Their time is mostly occupied with playing or arguing over who gets to play with what. They did start back to Children's Day Out this week, and I have to say I'm sort of glad. I do love spending time with them, don't get me wrong, but our schedules work out a lot better when they are in "school."

I will leave you with a video Scott took of Claire (I think it was last week, or maybe the week before...I can't remember!). Will had a Frosty from Wendy's that he had forgotten about whilst trying to hide it from Claire. Well, she found it and dug in. It's pretty amusing and shows her personality quite well :)

Merry Christmas, A Little Late

I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas this year! Ours was great; we had a quiet little family Christmas at home. Our kids were awesome and slept in til 9:30. After we opened presents we made Cracker Barrel pancakes (someone gave us a basket with the mix) and we enjoyed watching all the DVDs Will received for Christmas including WALL-E, Kung Fu Panda, and The Polar Express. I even got a nap! It was great!

Claire amid the mess!


Claire playing with her dollhouse


The mess in full view...Will and I are talking to my parents via Skype on the laptop.


Will and Claire playing with his new pirate ship in his room.

Will and Claire eating their pancake brunch while watching WALL-E.

We had "Christmas" with our families back on the weekend of the 12th & 13th when Scott had his graduation. It was nice to have everyone here then and get to visit. In the interim between our Christmases, we went to Lubbock to give presents to the kids at the Children's Home twice (we found a rouge present in Scott's office after returning from the first trip), hosted the LCU Praise Choir students for their Christmas Tour, and had a Christmas party for the Youth Group kids. Scott's 31st birthday was also last Monday; as his "present" to Scott, Will slept til 11:30 that morning!

Scott and Claire both have sore throats right now, but other than that, we are well. Since we were home for Christmas this year, I have been working at the shop as designer the past couple of days as our lead designer is on vacation. It's been really fun and I have done a lot of funeral work which I haven't been able to do yet. I have really enjoyed it.

I guess that's about it for now; Scott has to preach this weekend, so I'd better let him work on his sermon! If I don't post again in the next few days, I wish you all a happy New Year as well!