21st Century Scrapbook

The Wedding

2010-07-07T18:25:00.005-05:00

The purpose of our trip to Utah was to attend my sister's wedding. She and Chris were married in the St. George LDS Temple. A Temple and city that has important meaning to our family, on both sides.

It was absolutely beautiful. I felt so blessed to be able to witness their union. You could just feel their love and happiness for one another. I am so happy for my sister. And Chris is such a nice guy. We are happy to have him join our family.

Our parents with Anita

The girls with the Bride.

The Drive Up

2010-06-29T11:19:00.015-05:00

We started off the summer with a trip to Utah. My sister, Ana, was getting married and we had a family reunion all in the same weekend. So me, being the adventurous (yeah right)/insane (that's better) person that I am, decided that we should drive and show the girls some sights on the way. My parents had driven us from South Texas to Southern Utah every other year of my life so why couldn't I do the same. Plus, Reagan had learned about the Grand Canyon in school and I thought that it would be great to show it to her. So off we went, 4 girls (somehow, I convinced Heidi to travel up with us--Ian was working) ready for a very long drive.

I'd like to start off by saying, that my girls were absolutely wonderful. They took naps everyday, hardly watched any movies, and just played the whole time.

Now this lady...I believe that her devilish grin reveals a different story on her end.

We were a bit behind schedule and got to the Grand Canyon late because of the fun jewelry on the reservations (my girls discovered the joy of turquoise). But here we are at the park entrance.

And here we are at the Hoover Dam. I think that the girls found this just as exciting at the Grand Canyon.

Then we were off, once again, and on our way to Vegas. Heidi and I were way more excited to finally get there. It was time to begin the shopping.

Later that day, we met up with my parents.

I believe that the highlight of the trip for the girls, up until that point, was the M&M store. That is were they did their shopping.

After enjoying Vegas, we were on our way to Southern Utah, the home of my Dad. We were all excited to meet our soon to be new family member, Chris. And give him a good scare, by allowing him to see what kind of family he was about to join. :)

10 Years

2010-06-24T08:02:00.004-05:00

Then:

Now:

Happy Anniversary Hun! I love you!

Burgers, and Shakes, and Fries, Oh My!

2010-05-27T07:42:00.004-05:00

As many of you know, in February, the girls and I got food poisoning at a burger place in our area. Since then, I have hardly been able to even look at a burger. But when my hubby sent me this link, my mouth started watering and I felt a tear come to my eye (OK, that last part was an exaggeration, but you get the point). As Ian said, he may never get his wife to California again!

What Are The Odds?

2010-05-10T08:58:00.001-05:00

Poison Ivy and Termites (at the same time)....

Seriously, what are the odds?

My Legit Excuse

2010-04-13T17:56:00.003-05:00

OK. So it has been a while....a long while, since I have blogged. I admit that I have been avoiding it. That, and I have been back and forth from my place to my parents (3 separate times in 1 1/2 months). My family and I have been sick. And I am just tired.

My mother had back surgery at the end of February. She was to the point that she had to use a walker to walk. So Jenna and I went down to help out during that time.

For Spring break (3 weeks after surgery), the girls and I went back to help out with my mom. She still wasn't able to drive, push a shopping cart, or even bend over/reach for anything. Luckily, my dad was there to help her with everything. Unfortunately, the day after we arrived, my dad suddenly could not walk at all. We found out that week that he needed serious surgery on his vertebrae. So our 5 day trip turned into a 10 day trip. It was such a blessing to be there to help, because basically, my mom couldn't do anything.

A week later, Jenna and I returned in time for his surgery. We spent a week there helping out, once again, greatful that I was able to be there.

I returned home to care for Reagan who had strep, only to get it myself, a few days later.

Like I said, I am tired. But even more so, I am greatful.

I am greatful for:
-all the friends that helped with Reagan
-all the church members that fed my parents when I was not there
-a good surgeon who preformed both of my parents' surgeries
-their extremely speedy recoveries
-my patient and supportive husband
-the fact that I am blessed to be able to travel back and forth
-Jenna being an absolute angel day after day, hour after hour of being in the hospital
-answered prayers
-priesthood blessings
-and the calming peace and love of my Heavenly Father

brrrrr

2010-02-09T08:39:00.001-06:00

28 degrees....I don't know how much longer I can stand the cold!

Pinewood Derby Champ

2010-01-08T13:49:00.002-06:00

This week, for Adventure Guides (the daddy/daughter activity that Ian and Reg do), Reagan (and Ian) won the Pinewood Derby for their group. Reagan was so excited. Jenna and I went along and were able to cheer them on. It was a lot of fun. And I am pretty sure that Reagan will have a hard time waiting for the Derby next year.

Christmas and New Years

2010-01-08T13:22:00.010-06:00

This year, Liz came out for Christmas. The girls had so much fun playing with her. (I had pneumonia.)

On Christmas Eve, the girls decorated a gingerbread house.

And they got to play in some snow. Yes, it actually snowed on Christmas Eve.
It does happen here a few times a year...even in Texas.

Our tree, Christmas morning.

I always love Reagan's reaction to the tree...OK, the presents not the tree.

Jen showing off one of her gifts before ripping off the paper.

Auntie Anita and my parents came for New Years.
I know she looks a little tipsy with her tiara that way but she was seriously just loaded up on Diet Coke.

It was the first year in a while that Ian and I decided to stay home for New Years. It was so nice to just be at home with family.

Shopping With the Stars

2009-12-22T00:00:00.003-06:00

This is in front of a parking space at Kohl's! Who would have thunk it??
(Is our Kohl's the only crazy one?)

IT'S MILEY!!!

2009-12-06T20:49:00.007-06:00

A while back, Reg and I went to the Miley Cyrus concert with some good friends.

Us Mommies were obviously pumped.

The opening act was Metro Station (the lead singer is Miley Cyrus' brother).

And this is what Reagan thought of their music.

Then when this lady came out, Reagan was like this:

I had so much fun going on a Mommy/Daughter date with my big girl!

Thankful

2009-11-29T15:32:00.005-06:00

2009 has been a year of education in thankfulness. So many things have happened to our little family, our extended family, and even friends, that have caused us to look at all that we have and be thankful.

I am thankful for waking up every morning with the gift of life.

I am thankful to be blessed with a home that is warm when it is cold, and cool when it is hot.

I am thankful that we have smoke detectors and that our windows can open.

I am thankful that despite the fact that my husband is constantly working (even on weekends), we have been blessed with him having a job.

I am thankful that we have food to eat and clothes to wear.

I am thankful that, even though we have spent a crazy amount of money on medical bills in the past 2 years, we are blessed with health.

I am thankful for doctors who help heal us and comfort us when there is pain.

I am thankful that I have 2 beautiful little girls.

I am thankful for a husband that loves and respects me.

I am thankful for family that is constantly "there" for us. And is always willing to do anything to show their love.

I am thankful for friends that are thoughtful, sympathetic, and bring laughter into our lives.

I am thankful for my God, that is my strength through trials small and large.

I am thankful that I have so many things to be thankful for that I can't list them all.

My List of Excuses

2009-11-17T14:09:00.003-06:00

As a rule, I generally try to get most of my Christmas shopping done before the end of November. Last year, it was a breeze. But this year, I have found my goal a bit more difficult to achieve. I think that a big part of it is the fact that my girls are getting older so it is harder to sneak around. Jenna is in preschool on 2 days a week for 3 hours. Exercising takes up at least an hour to an hour and a half of that "free time". Plus we are always 15 minutes late to preschool. Oh, and I am usually on time to pick her up (a miracle, I know). And of course, there are always random bills and errands to take care of. And Reagan is looking in my closet these days to see what has been recently placed in a hard to reach shelf. She is such a little detective. She listens to every conversation. She sneaks around and will even pretend to be sleeping, just so she can hear what is being shared in the "adult" conversation. It has definitely gotten harder to get the shopping done this year. I do realize that I am making excuses for myself. But in my defense, they are pretty good excuses. And some of the toys are already sold out everywhere. I know that you know what I am talking about. A few years back, when Reagan was a baby, this guy:

was all the rage. Do you remember the news stories about people fighting over this toy? And it being sold out everywhere? I do. And boy was I glad that Tickle Me Elmo was not on my daughter's list of must have's for Christmas. But this year, Elmo is not the hot toy, but rather these:

These hamsters are sold out everywhere! And don't get me started on the accessories--the object of my desire.

There are a few other big items on most kids' wish lists this year...but if I post them, a certain little spy will get some more evidence to hold against Mommy, Daddy, ....and Santa. So that is the end of my rant. I hope that ya'll's shopping goes a bit smoother than mine this year.

The Wedding (This is the Last Bunch...I promise)

2009-10-19T14:34:00.017-05:00

Groom (Klas, my amazing new Brother in Law) and the groomsmen

Ian walking Cami down the isle.

Traditional music was played at the wedding and reception.

Happy Couple

The music was amazing! My humble bro-in-law is a well known musician. And as a result, the wedding and reception were filled with the best musicians from Sweden.

Klas' mom and her partner danced several traditional dances.

Some Americans.

The next morning, we (all the Americans) headed out to Klas' family summer cottage (everyone in Sweden has a summer cottage---got to take advantage of the "warm" days).

We ate, talked, walked, played games, and just enjoyed nature.

I heart Sweden!

Stockholm

2009-10-06T20:18:00.019-05:00

Sweden was GORGEOUS!!!

We had never dreamed of ever going on a trip to Sweden but boy am I glad that we were able to. The people were so kind and humble. Everyone was willing to help us out (even on the subway). And everyone was so sincere. The Swedes are truly a different creature.

When we got off the train, Cami was there to meet us. We were so excited to see her (I mean she and Klas were the reason we were there). We were so lucky to spend some alone time with her before the wedding. She impressed us with her fluency of the language (even though everyone there spoke perfect English). And she was able to give us a mini tour before we started meeting up with more family. The first place she took us (besides our hotel) was the building where the Nobel Prize breakfast takes place. As we all know, Alfred Nobel was a Swede so it only makes sense.

This is the view from our hotel. I had to throw this one in because it was amazing to look out our window and see this beautiful city.

Later on, we met up with the rest of the family and headed on down to Cami and Klas' place.

Ian and I went on a walk with Cami and Klas to enjoy the forest that backed up to their apartment. It was perfect. Cool, quiet, green, and then of course a lake. Sweden is covered/surrounded by water. It was so nice to experience this after spending time on a plane.

One treat was going on a steamboat to hear Klas play some old jazz standards. I loved it! I mean I was in Heaven! ( I grew up watching old black and white movies and knew all the music as a result.) Even the older people were letting me get in front because they saw how much I was enjoying it. In retrospect, I should have let them move infront but they all live in Sweden and can go anytime...right?!

We did a lot of sightseeing. And an amazing amount of walking. I can't tell you how many miles a day we walked. It was awesome! I felt so healthy. Anyway, I am getting off subject... We toured museums, went shopping, took a boat tour and bus tour, toured a government building (I am married to Ian so that one was to be expected), and enjoyed good food (I am all about the food and chocolates).

Here is Ian with his sisters, Cami and Brooke. I told Ian to please stop being silly when I was taking pictures but he kept on doing it so I decided to just put the pictures up. So maybe next time he won't be so silly.

Here he is with his mom....being silly. So I told him to be serious. And this is what I got:

Not a great improvement. But it had to do.

We went to the Scandinavian Museum. And in the section that was marriage traditions, they had this great flower covered heart/arch. So we did what any natural couple would do...act cheesey.
This is the Vasa. It was a ship that sank a very long time ago (in the 1600's). The Vasa Museum was very interesting. I highly recommend it to anyone who is heading that way.

I had to throw this one in. Just to tease Ian.

This is the castle in Stockholm. They say that if the Swedish flag is being flown, the Royal family is there. If you look closely, it is up.

Ian and I had an amazing time. There are no words to express how beautiful this country was, or even how humble and kind it's people were. I am officially a huge fan of Sweden. And I am telling everyone, if you have an opportunity to go, GO!

More Pictures to come...

Trip: Part 1, Paris

2009-09-18T08:56:00.023-05:00

Ahh, Paris... What can I say. Ian and I had an amazing 3 days in this beautiful city before heading off to Stockholm. We knew that we would have time to visit one other country besides Sweden but didn't know which to choose. Paris was kind of a left over city (when we were choosing). Ian wanted Spain, but for more than 3 days. And I wanted Italy, for more than 3 days. So naturally, we chose Paris because who knew when we would ever go. Once we got there, we were so glad that we had gone. The people were so nice (despite what we had heard) and between English, Spanish, and Ian's slight knowledge of French, we were able to communicate pretty well.

One of my favorite parts of the trip was all of the amazing food. I was a complete pig the whole time. The breads were amazing. I could have survived completely on bread. That or creme brulee. I won't even start on that one. But seriously, the food was amazing!

The architecture was gorgeous. We seemed to take hundreds of pictures of buildings because they were all so beautiful. It was definitely like stepping back in time. And we just couldn't get enough of it.

(Another pretty scene)

Of course, we saw all of the tourist sites.

Notre Dame

Arc de Triomphe

The Louvre

The Louvre definitely put every single museum, that I have ever been to, to shame. It was so amazing. I felt like I could have spent all 3 days in just that one museum.

A picture of me calling the girls.
Thanks to my parents, Ian and I were able to do this 12 day trip without the kiddos.

Paris was beautiful. Everything about it was beautiful. We loved our time there. But I do have to say that my most favorite part of the trip was being with:

It was definitely like a second honeymoon.
Thanks hun. It was perfect.

Temperature

2009-08-24T13:51:00.001-05:00

Paris:
In the High 80's

Stockholm:
In the Low 60's and 50's

Brrrr...

Wedding #1

2009-08-06T20:34:00.002-05:00

Congratulations to my little sister and her new hubby!

Lost Cord --->Catching Up

2009-07-23T15:03:00.010-05:00

Like many others who have gone before me (in the blogging world), I have seem to misplaced the cord for my camera. So that is my excuse for not blogging.

Here are some pictures of things that happened a few months ago that I never posted:

I helped out at Reg's Valentine's Party (yeah, I know...that was quite a while ago but I didn't post it and I am making up for lost time).

I made Hello Kitty cake pops with some friends. Not perfect but cute and yummy.

Girls went "camping" with my mom in their backyard.

My parents have discovered the "joy" of camping in their latter years. I think they are crazy but whatever makes their boats float. :) Regardless, the girls think that it is really cool.

And nocamping in the backyard adventure would be complete without roasting hot dogs and marshmallows.

Grandma Liz came to visit during the month of March. The girls had fun playing and reading books with her. (Sorry Liz for taking so long to do this.)

And here is one more really old picture (Reagan, 2 years old, after spending the day at Sea World). This is how I feel after this last weekend. (When I find the cord for the camera, I'll explain the hell-ish weekend we had.)

9th...uh, yesterday

2009-06-24T12:30:00.003-05:00

Happy 9th Hun!

"Can't Touch This"

2009-06-15T21:03:00.003-05:00

Lately, I have been seeing Harem Pants in fashion news.

Ladies, I feel like there are times when we all need to be reminded:

Just because someone made them, doesn't mean we should wear them.

(For those of you who want to embrace the style of the great MC Hammer, good for you. It is just not my cup of tea.)

Our Ballerina

2009-06-07T21:18:00.005-05:00

I just wanted to put up 2 cute pictures of Jenna in her recital costume.

Okay, just one more.

Sorry. She's my baby. I think she's cute.

Camping (Not Me!! Ya'll know that for me, camping is staying at a bad hotel.)

2009-05-15T11:59:00.014-05:00

Last weekend, Ian and Reagan went camping with their Daddy/Daughter Adventure Guides group again.

No, they did not sleep in tents. They stayed in cabins.

Here is Reagan with the girls in her group.

They did things like horse back riding...

fishing...

hiking...

(No, it wasn't just flat. They actually climbed up some steep areas, and waded through narrow areas of rivers.)

...and the dads hung out around the fire (acting like boys) a lot.

Yes, I am going to be really cheesy and say it:

We had some Happy Campers in our family.

A Time and a Season...

2009-05-09T22:12:00.008-05:00

Presently, my life consists of looking for these:

and

Purchasing things like these:

and

(I liked these so much that I bought 3 of them and now I can't find a place to put them. Oh well.)

Reagan gave me my Mother's Day "book" that she made for me at school. One of the things she was supposed to write was what her mom does for a living. Reagan put "shopping". Need I say more.

Single

2009-04-28T08:45:00.006-05:00

The life of a single woman:

Fly to Vegas for a fun weekend with friends.

Get asked out by professional athletes.

Get asked out by the man in picture. (Yes, that is really him!)

Get advice on where to live while in law school from Mr. R. Jackson.

Attend VIP parties with the likes of the man pictured below and Ms. Spears.

Fly home and tell your sister and niece about your fun little but not too surprising weekend.

....only in my sister's world.

Hair CUT!!!

2009-04-21T16:07:00.004-05:00

After months and months of begging, I finally gave in. So today, Reagan got her hair cut!

The last time her hair was this short was when she was 18 months old (picture below).

I think that she looks so cute. And it was a wise fashion choice for my little/big girl.

Now I just need to make Jenna hold out a few more years. She is asking for long hair! No thank you. Her "Posh Bob" is too cute on her. I am so not giving in.

7

2009-04-10T08:13:00.006-05:00

My baby turned 7!

Reagan requested several things for her special day: chocolate chip pancakes, everyone (Mama, Papa, Jenna, and Mommy) join her for lunch at school, Pei Wei, and gifts (like you didn't know that one was coming). So we took care of all of her requests. And she was very pleased.

Reagan is such a wonderful little girl. She does everything that she can to help me. She loves her little sister and is constantly "mothering" her. Reagan always has a hug waiting when someone is sad. She knows that Mommy loves sugar so much that she always shares her treats. :) She has the sweetest smile and is always willing to share that with others. Reagan has such a kind heart. She is constantly a good example to me.

Reagan loves:

Music
Dancing
Movies
Hannah Montana
Anything Rock-n-Roll -ish
Clothes (even though we don't agree on them)
Friends
Sweets
Daddy/Daughter Dates
Her Family
Arts-n-Crafts
Barbies
and of course
Me :)

Happy Birthday Reg-ee-poo!

We love you!

Avoidance

2009-04-02T10:11:00.003-05:00

OK. I admit it. I have actually been trying to avoid doing a post.

It all started out with me losing my camera. It took me a while to find it and then well, I got lazy. And when I say lazy, I don't just mean about blogging. I have been avoiding all things except for shopping (clothing that is). I think that I have felt so overwhelmed with the list of things that I needed to do that I decided to just ignore it all. (In my world, that actually fixes the problem rather than just making it pile up even more. Yes, I live in an imaginary world.)

So after 2 weeks of no laundry, basically no food, and quite a mess, I decided that it was time to get busy. I feel slightly stressed by it all but have decided to self medicate by shopping (house decor this time). I think that I can make it through the next 2 weeks (Reagan's bday is coming up and Adventure Guides is at our home next week too). There will however be an extremely long post in the near future, filled with a plethora of pictures.

Well I'm off, I have a therapy session with Dr. HomeGoods. :)

Weekend at the Great Wolf Lodge

2009-03-03T14:36:00.009-06:00

As a Valentine's gift, Ian decided to schedule a weekend for the family at The Great Wolf Lodge.

It is a crazy indoor water park/hotel. The girls and us grownups had a wonderful time going on slides, playing in the wave pool, relaxing in the lazy river, and getting water dumped or sprayed on us pretty much constantly. It was really neat too because this last weekend was pretty darn cold. So it was weird going from the cold outside, to the warmth that was inside the hotel/water park.

There wasn't just a water park but a kids' activity area too. The girls were able to paint snakes, play games, and color.

Ian joined in on the games.

I had to through this picture in because Reagan looks so funny with that fake squirrel.

We had so much fun and are already trying to plan when to do our next trip back.

Look Alikes

2009-02-27T13:38:00.004-06:00

Ian and I were watching American Idol last night when he made a funny observation. Adam Lambert totally looks like Jason Bateman!

Adam Lambert

Jason Bateman

As far as I'm concerned, anyone that looks remotely like he could be Jason Bateman's brother, cousin, long lost son, etc, is a winner in my book.

Two Sisters, No Kids, and a Whole Lot of Nashville

2009-02-23T14:02:00.017-06:00

So I just returned from Nashvegas. And boy was it fun just hanging out with my younger sister Heidi. I went to celebrate her 28th birthday. My mom and dad came to our place to watch the girls (yes, Ian was there too but very busy with work). Thanks to them I was able to take off for 5 days and not worry about the kids or the hubby.

Since I was last in Nashville, Heidi moved into a new place (her place is behind her in the above picture). She is now the neighbor of Bill Frist (former senator of Tennessee).

His house is the one below. He is literally the next door neighbor of her. A fun little tid bit of info.

One night, we went to see The Pajama Game (one of her friends gave us the tickets). It was fun to go. But while we were parking (we were late and it was so darn cold), we (and I mean Heidi when I say we) had problems paying and ended up paying twice! Luckily the tickets were free, but $20 for parking was somewhat frustrating.

After the show, we (and by we, I mean I) were hungry. Heidi is a carrot cake freak so she took me to a place that she loves to go for carrot cake. I of course wanted something salty so we ordered carrot cake and a loaded potato.

Now let me just tell you, we were getting funny looks from the waiters because of our food combo. But we liked it and were filled up for a mere $10.93! (check it out below) I just have to say that I was very impressed by my frugalness. Yay me! High five to myself and my cheapness!

The next morning we went to Pancake Pantry. It is famous in Nashville for it's pancakes.

Here we are standing in line waiting to fill our tummy's with some sweet potato pancakes. We stood in line for an hour. Supposedly the line was quite short that morning.

We finally got in. And I had to take a picture of Heidi messing with her Blackberry. You see, normally when I am home or on a trip with the hubby, he is doing this (see below). But I was away from the hubby and I still had to deal with this (see below) the whole time.

Once we got our food, I knew that it was well worth the wait. The syrup alone filled my heart and tummy with the greatest of joys...ooo that was good cinnamon syrup. I highly recommend eating at this place.

Baby happy! ( I am Baby. Hah! I got you!)

After filling ourselves with pancakes, eggs, and hashbrowns, we walked around (hoping to burn whatever calories that we could before it got cold again).

One of the places we went to was Posh, a boutique in Nashville.

There was an article in Elle Decor that mentioned the exact one that we went to:

"Hillsboro Village, a neighborhood near the Vanderbilt campus, is like a compact version of New York's SoHo, and it's here that Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood find edgy fashion at Posh."

-Elle Decor

So I found a fun pair of boots here. I couldn't leave the store without them. I mean that I literally could not. I am very indecisive (as you all know) and couldn't decide whether or not to buy them but I refused to leave the store without them. So what's a girl to do...I had to buy them!

We decided that that night would be an order pizza/rent a movie night (it was supposed to snow). So we rented Mama Mia. I think that we were the only 2 females in the U.S. of A to have not seen it yet. I had heard mixed reviews. It was cute and cheesy. I wouldn't recommend it (even though I know that you have all seen it). One thing that the critics had said that was absolutely true was that Pierce Brosnan sounded like a water buffalo. Too true, too true.

I had a great time with my sister. I was able to attend one of her classes. She was amazing! I knew that she was a great speaker but this was a completely different level of amazingness (love the anayansi-ism). I would have loved to have a professor that was as engaging as she was.

One thing that I should have known but didn't, was that in Nashville, everyone is a singer/songwriter. Everywhere that we went, people were claiming to be making an album or just performing somewhere. It was quite funny. Even a guy working at Sprint was telling a customer about it. Oh, and the picture of Heidi and me in the line at the Pancake Pantry...yup, that was taken by a "singer/songwriter". Too funny.

Well that is a quick overview of my trip. It was much needed on my part. I had a wonderful time with my sister. And had a great time seeing even more of Nashville. I highly recommend the Pancake Pantry (the cinnamon syrup is to die for).

Happy Birthday Heidi! Welcome to edge of your 20's! :)

Thanks Mom and Dad for watching the kids. I definitely couldn't have done it without you two.

Date Night

2009-02-10T08:49:00.008-06:00

Saturday evening was an exciting time for our girls. Reagan and Ian had a date. They were going to a Daddy/Daughter Princess Dinner and Dance. And Jenna and I had reservations at the American Girl Bistro (I didn't want her to feel left out).

Reagan was so excited. She had fun dancing with her friends.

And loved dancing with her daddy the whole evening.

They both had a wonderful time. Ian said that it was so funny to see all these grown men dancing their hearts out. Then when you looked down, there were all these little girls dancing right along. Personally, I loved the fact that they had this opportunity. I would have loved to have done something like that with my dad.

Jenna and I said our good byes to Daddy and Reagan and headed down to the American Girl Boutique and Bistro. We got there early enough (I know, me early... it seems almost impossible) to check the store out. Jenna loved the Bitty Baby section (since that is the doll that she has).

Then it was time for dinner. She loved having Ruby sit by her for dinner.

And since she ate all of her food, she was able to enjoy a yummy milkshake.

We all had a fun night. But Jenna is definitely ready to have a date with Daddy...she wants to go camping!

OH MY GOSH! It's DON DRAPER!

2009-02-06T18:37:00.005-06:00

Last night, Mr. Don Draper (Jon Hamm) of Mad Men was on 30 Rock! I don't know who was more excited, me or Ian. I think that we are like most fans of Mad Men, we have a lady crush and a man crush on him. I mean look at the guy! Plus he just exudes coolness.

I must admit, Mad Men has been a tough show for me. The sexism and adultry (this is a PG13 show) are just constant. I find myself hating the characters and loving them all at once.

But in 30 Rock, Don Draper (aka Dr. Baird) is this kind, animal loving Pediatrician that is basically the perfect man. Needless to say, we were so excited to find out that last night's episode would not be his last.

So here's to all the ladies and men that were just as excited as we were. May we enjoy his good looks and charm while we wait for the new season of Mad Men to begin.

Teeth, Mama, and a Fashion No No

2009-02-04T08:26:00.004-06:00

My mother came into town 2 weeks ago so that I could attend my annual CE Dental courses. Tons of fun, let me tell you... So I sat through 9 hours of lectures the first day with no lunch break. As a result, I only had to do 3 hours the following day. Which was still torturous but not quite as bad. The only plus (other than getting my hours over with---not including my jurisprudence one, which Ian laughs at every time I call it that) was that I got to hang out with Cindy (went to hygiene school with me) and eat the whole day.

What did I learn at my conference? Basically, not much other than some nutritional information. I also had my beliefs, on parents being in the examination room, reaffirmed (I'm totally for it). I attended a 3 hour course on that one. And it was rather convincing.

As I said before, my mom came to help out with the girls. It turned out to be perfect timing because Reagan was sick during this time and I wouldn't have been able to leave her with a friend.

While Reagan rested/watched movies, Jenna and her Mama made cookies and played.

Yummy!

OK. Now on to a completely different subject....Uggs. I got a pair for my bday from the hubby. And for someone that thinks that 60 degree weather is cold, these baby's are a jewel! Even when it has been it's coldest here, the 20's, my feet have been extremely warm. So presently, I am living in these things.

While my family was visiting for the holidays, we went shopping an obsene amount of hours/days. And other than noticing that everyone has these shoes or some that look like them, I also noticed these uggs (see below). And can I just say that the name Ugg, completely descibes what I thought when I saw these:

What I think is hideous about these boots are the amount of...shall we call it..."fluff" that is hanging out. I think a small amount of "fluff" can be nice (see below). But the above pair, are sporting a crazy amount of "fluff". And when I checked them out in a store, I noticed the large"fluff" of a mohawk or ducktale (whatever you want to call it) above the heal and up the leg. The pair below have no mohawk (don't you love my termonology). They are bare in the back. Which makes the boot look so much better in my opinion.

Now if you have a pair of the mohawk "fluff" Uggs, please don't take offense. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. I just needed to get this off my chest. I love clothes and shoes too much to let this slip by. So if you do have this particular pair, I say work it. It is better to "own" your style then to look like you went a little bit overboard with the trend.

Visit from Sweden

2009-02-02T09:14:00.004-06:00

Two weekends ago, we were able to spend time with Cami and Klas. We were so excited to meet our soon to be brother-in-law. And the girls (mainly Jenna) needed to be proved that it was not Santa Klaus that was coming but instead "Uncle" Klas. :)

We had such a great time with them. Cami is such a kind hearted person so we knew that Klas had to be something special. And he was. We loved him almost immediately. He was so sweet, very friendly, and very genuine.

We are so excited for them both. They truly make a wonderful couple. Congratulations Cami! We love you!

Jenna and Camille posing with "Hannah Montana" and "Mulan".

Klas, Cami, Jenna, and Reagan

Cami and Klas were very clever. They knew that bringing gifts to the girls is always a sure fire way to get them to be extra friendly.

Ian and I are so excited to go to Sweden and attend their wedding! I know that it will be a beautiful experience.

Congrats again to you both!

Jen

2009-01-12T10:54:00.006-06:00

Jenna has grown so much in the past few months. She potty trained herself (just like her big sister). She is drawing pictures of people that you can actually tell are people. She is getting her letters and sounds down. The list goes on and on. But the thing that really hit me hard was when she went to Sunbeams 2 Sundays ago. It was one of those moments when i was in shock. My baby wasn't a baby anymore and I wasn't ready for that.

So I stood in the back of Primary with tears filling my eyes...trying to fight them the whole time. It was no use, no matter how I felt and no matter what I could do, she was/is growing. Time waits for no one. And my desire to keep her small just isn't going to happen. So in honor of my growing baby, I share with you the picture of her on her way to church as a Sunbeam.

Reagan picked out matching outfits-from the dress to the boots. (Reg had her coat on.)

What Jenna is into: She gives kisses and hugs constantly....and I mean constantly. She also loves to tell you that she loves you, at least, 30 times a day (I love it myself). Jenna loves to dance around and pretend that she is a princess ballerina. She loves to pretend to cook and wants to feed everyone. She is a big helper in the kitchen. Jenna loves to play with her big sister. The picture below is of Reagan and Jenna pretending to be Tiger Lily (Jen loves Peter Pan). Reagan made them both matching costumes and headpieces. They had so much fun doing that. Jenna loves singing and doing arts-n-crafts. And she has a great love of books.

She is such a fun loving little girl. We are so blessed to have her in our family.

Now if anyone knows how to get her to stop growing, please tell me your secret!

A Very Merry Christmas

2008-12-30T18:18:00.023-06:00

Let me begin this post by bringing up last Christmas' post. Last year, I had planned on putting up a series of posts so as not to overwhelm the reader. Well, I only put up 1 post in a series of 3. I was disappointed with the fact that I never got it done. So this year I decided to overwhelm you with a crazy amount of pictures. I know that this is the only way I'll get it done (because if you know me, not only am a procrastinator but I am also constantly filled with good intentions that never happen). So brace yourself, this was our 2008 Christmas.

My family came to our home for Christmas. It was so wonderful to be with them, just us girls...and Daddy and Ian (those poor/lucky guys).

Reagan and Jenna (or shall we say I) decorated Christmas stockings for everyone.

We started Christmas morning off with the stockings. --I am still trying to get used to these things because in our Panamanian home, stockings were such a minor thing with only one small gift inside.--

Then we headed to the tree.

I know that this picture is fuzzy but Reagan's face was to perfect not to share.

Jenna loved her violin. She always wants to play her big sister's but is not allowed to touch it, so now she has her own.

Every gift was so exciting to the girls. Jenna wanted to play with every gift the moment she opened it. Needless to say, it took her quite a long time to open her gifts.

Anita got Reagan "Hungry Hippos". We always wanted one as kids (my parents never knew). So we went crazy playing a few rounds.

Jenna was exhausted after opening gifts, and it wasn't even 8 a.m. yet.

Later that day, we grabbed a neighbor for a family picture.

The "Traditional" Kemple family picture.

In the evening, Reagan finally lost her first tooth. She was so excited. She has been waiting for this day for months!

And then the next evening, the 26th, Reagan lost her second tooth.

Jenna wasn't feeling very well due to a cold. Luckily, she had her Auntie Anita to read her stories.

And she only wanted her Papa to hold her and make her feel better.

I loved hanging out with my sisters, since I hardly get to see them.
Ya'll seriously need to move back to the motherland.
(Texas was once it's own country, therefore, it can be referred to as "the motherland".)

We celebrated my parent's 38th Anniversary while they were with us.

We loved having everyone with us but knew that our time was almost up. The excitement of Christmas was perfect. And we can't wait until we are together again.

I do have to say that even though Ian Claus spoiled me to an amazing degree this year (which I absolutely loved), my favorite thing was and is feeling his love for me and the girls (which we feel everyday), and having time with him (and that is definitely not something that we get everyday).

Everyone, except Heidi, headed back home after a wonderful couple of days. Heidi stayed with us for one more day before flying out (it really helped make the whole family leaving thing a lot easier for the girls...and me too).

We had a very Merry Christmas! I hope that you all had a wonderful one too.

Parents' Day at Ballet

2008-12-18T08:10:00.003-06:00

Yesterday, Jenna's ballet class had Parents' Day. It was so fun seeing her in action. It was funny how the girls would pay attention occasionally and then go off into their own thing (they were pretty distracted with parents there). I loved it and thought that it was the cutest thing ever!

A bit of Thanksgiving in the month of December

2008-12-13T14:52:00.003-06:00

Yes! I realize that this is a bit behind and all but I am putting the darn pictures up.

We spent Thanksgiving in Corpus with my parents and Ian's parents and brother came down too. It was great spending time with all of our family there. I didn't take many pictures and have actually taken none since this day but I am going to try and make up for it soon.

Jenna with Papa (my daddy).

Reagan with Grandma Lori (Ian's stepmom).

Us with the Roberts Family. Boy I sure am short next to all of them. Oh well.

Like I said before, it was really nice being able to spend time with everyone while we were in Corpus. It had been over a year since Ian had been. The girls kept on asking me if Daddy was really coming with us. I think that it was a miracle that he was able to come. It was wonderful being there as a family and having that time to relax with him. Now Christmas...we still have our fingers crossed that he will be work free for more than a day.

Thanksgiving Feast

2008-11-25T18:51:00.002-06:00

This last week, I was able to help with Reagan's class Thanksgiving Feast. It was so fun to see my little "Native American" sharing a poem and song, with the rest of the Pilgrims and Native Americans in her class. It was also fun to see the kids gobble up the feast. The traditional Thanksgiving donut holes were a big hit. :)

We are looking forward to spending time with our family this Thanksgiving....and eating way too much pumpkin pie.

Violin Recital

2008-11-17T09:56:00.003-06:00

On Friday, Reagan participated in her first violin recital. She played "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star". She was the first to perform, and she did a great job.

Here she is pretending to play because I didn't take a picture of her while she was playing (I didn't want to distract her).

Here she is with her teacher and several other students.

And of course, Jenna was very proud of her sister.

Disneyland Trip

2008-11-13T08:23:00.013-06:00

We didn't think that we were going to be able to do it (because so many before us have not), but we were able to go on a family trip that included our lawyer/daddy. I put lawyer first because we have heard many a horror story where a family plans a trip for months. And then last minute, the dad can't go because of work. So we beat the odds and took a FAMILY trip to Disneyland. We met Liz (Grandma) and Brooke (Ian's sister), Evan, McKenzie, and Brynn at the happiest place on earth.

While at Disneyland, we saw "The Mouse"! For us, Minnie is "The Mouse" because she is a female and females rule our roost. So the girls were excited about that.
***Sorry Mickey. I do acknowledge the fact that we saw and took pictures with you. And that was very special and all. But Minnie (and the Princesses) are what Disney is all about to these ladies.***

We rode a ton of rides. There were NO lines to stand in our first 2 days. It was perfect. But of course, now I will be expecting no lines anytime we go to Disneyland or World. (This was not only our girls first trip but mine also.)

We had breakfast with some characters. You can tell from the family photo above, that Jen was a bit nervous. And it is pretty darn obvious from the bear picture, that Reagan was about to burst with excitement.

So I had to through this picture in because this is how our life is (like many of yours'). Husband involved in family activity, meal, in bed, you name it and he is with his mistress Madam Blackberry.

We met a few fairies during our visit. (Jenna is starting to warm up to the characters.)

We spent some time with Princess Minnie.

We met just about every Princess. But our time with Ariel was probably the highlight of our character experience. She talked with the girls for several minutes and even played a bit. They loved it so much. It was worth it to stand in that line, just to see how excited and happy our girls were.

Another highlight for the girls, was spending time with their grandma and cousins. McKenzie and Brynn are their only cousins and we don't get to see them very often. The girls loved every second of their time with their family.

This picture of our last night together perfectly illustrates that despite the kids desire to live at Disneyland, it was time for them to go home. (Well, maybe Reagan and Brynn were up for Disney living but the other 2...they are a different story.)

We had a wonderful time with family at Disneyland. The girls are ready to go back. And I am ready for another vacation.

The President

2008-11-04T22:35:00.004-06:00

Between falling asleep and being waken by my husband, I watched the votes come in. It is amazing and hard to really grasp the reality of a President Obama. I am excited to see what our country's future holds. I hope that he will bring prosperity and peace to our country and the world.

As a side note, McCain's speech was beautiful. He was very respectful and classy. And he understood the historical impact of such an election.

Being biracial, and just a minority, I feel overwhelmed. I now truly feel that no matter what your skin color or whether you are a woman or a man, you can be President. And that is a wonderful feeling for a mother of 2 little girls that have not only European but also Panamanian blood in their veins. I feel blessed to be an American. And I feel blessed to have witnessed this historic event.

Election Day Thoughts

2008-11-04T10:54:00.006-06:00

In honor of Election Day (by the way, we voted the first weekend of early voting), I thought that I would share an article written by a regular over at Times and Seasons. I am sharing it because of several reasons.... 1. I am shocked to see an article written by someone who is LDS, that doesn't line up with what most of "us" think. 2. I am a staunch Republican. I have always agreed with everything that the Republican party has stood for. Well, that is until George Bush screwed up our country in so many different ways (and yes, I did vote for him both times. But I have decided that if something just isn't working, you need to try something new. And yes, I am still a Republican despite these feelings). 3. Years ago even before John McCain ran against Bush, I couldn't stand him. I have always felt that he is a Democrat in Republican "clothing". Ian and my parents could tell anyone that I have never liked the guy. 4. I soon discovered after Sarah Palin was added to the Republican ticket, that I knew more about politics than she did (I am talking about pre debate schooling). If I wouldn't trust myself (with the knowledge that I have on International and National dealings, laws, etc), how could I trust a woman that looked so sadly pathetic during simple interviews.

I know that being LDS, we have many values that line up with the Republican party. And I definitely still have those values. But I feel like our country just can't take another 4 years that are similar to the last 8. I think that the Republican party needs a shake down, and if voting against it is the only way to get us back to the old, or shall we say Reagan, Republican party, then so be it. Oh and let it be known that if Romney would have been the nominee, I totally would have stood by the man that would know how to fix this economy. I would have even possibly, just maybe, even voted for McCain if he would have chosen Romney as his running mate. But alas, he did not. So here I am, saddened by the party that I call my own....

Below is the article that I fist referenced. I hope that it will make you think rather than just react angrily. I found it to be very interesting and enlightening to read this from an LDS perspective.

The Case Against John McCain

by Julie M. Smith

Here are a few reasons why you should not vote for John McCain:

John McCain is an adulterer.

John McCain married (the second time) under dubious circumstances and conducted his relationship in such a way that his wife was able to become a drug addict and thief without his knowledge.

John McCain supports a position on abortion rights that would deny women options that the Church believes that they should be permitted to exercise.

John McCain has conducted a dirty, negative campaign with willful, deliberate lies about his opponent.

John McCain believes that Sarah Palin is, with the single exception of himself, the most qualified person to be the leader of the United States. This is particularly troubling given his advanced age, questionable health, and refusal to fully release his medical records. If you are not concerned about this, I would encourage you to (re)watch the Couric or Gibson interview and ask yourself if this is the person you want to see interrupted while reading a picture book to first graders to respond when a foreign entity has attacked the United States . . . or you want to have sitting across a conference table from a hostile foreign power . . . or leading a conference of world leaders on economic policy.

John McCain has made statements about the economy, the structure of the SEC, the leader of Spain, the situations in Sudan and Somalia, and our relationship to Iran that raise questions about his competence, judgment, discretion, and leadership.

Why am I making the case against McCain when it seems unlikely that he will win? Because this is a prime opportunity for our Mormon/Utahn/people-with-two-or-more-children/people-who-attend-church-once-per-week/conservative/red state/Republican readers to really consider what they are doing with their votes. Your vote is not likely to change the outcome of this election, but a vote against McCain will make clear that the Republicans can’t do any fool thing and still automatically count on your demographic unthinkingly.

Four years from now, let’s be in a position where the pundits feel obligated to point out that the Republicans have to earn your vote. Care about pro-life causes? Then make clear to the GOP that they have to actually do something when in office and not just trot the rhetoric out every election cycle to demand the votes of pro-life voters. Care about fiscal conservatism? If a GOP candidate who isn’t one goes down in flames, maybe next time the GOP will run one that is. Care about family values? Then don’t vote for a candidate whose personal life is out of harmony with your convictions. Care about the future of our country? Then don’t vote for a ticket with a completely incompetent VP.

If they can’t count on you no matter what, then they might make an effort next time to be worthy of your vote.

Whether you agree with me (and the article) or not, it doesn't matter. What really matters is that we all exercise our right to vote. So Happy Election Day my fellow bloggers! May the Lord continue to bless this wonderful nation and it's inhabitants!

9 Reasons I Love Halloween/October

2008-10-31T14:21:00.010-05:00

I love the month of October. So much has gone on, that I haven't been able to blog about everything. But I did figure that I could share some things that I love about Halloween....

1. Dressing your kids up in fun costumes, makeup, and a crazy amount of hairspray. (Reagan is a Rock Star. Jenna is Ariel.)

2. Getting to dress up as an adult and go to parties that don't involve the whole family.

3. Church Halloween Activities. Who doesn't love a bowl of chili, one too many cupcakes, and some Trunk or Treating!

4. Work Halloween Parties (where we saw a lot of people from our Church Activity).

5. Group Violin Lessons -- Halloween Style

6. My Birthday (I don't like getting older but I do like all of the attention).
7. My Dad's Homemade Pumpkin Pie (It is literally the best you will ever try).

8. Pet Costumes. Bear is sporting a spider costume. I love it!

9. Family Visiting. (My Parents came to visit us for Jenna's birthday and my birthday. Who could ask for anything more...)

Happy Halloween Ya'll!

4 Things Tag

2008-10-27T08:35:00.002-05:00

4 RANDOM THINGS I LIKE ABOUT MY HUSBAND:
1. He is very funny. He always says or does the silliest things to make me or the kids laugh (even when we are upset).
2. He loves me and I know it. (kind of dumb I guess but I feel his love in everything that he does)
3. He has great legs! ;)
4. He is a very responsible person...where as I am not.

4 JOBS I'VE HAD:
1. Waitress at On The Border (my first job and definitely my worst job. As I often tell Ian, I wasn't meant to serve but be served.) :)
2. Metabolife girl (I worked at a kiosk in the mall for Metabolife)
3. "Fragrance Model" for Cool Water. Fun title but I was a perfume girl. I worked for Cool Water and would go wherever they wanted me to go.
4. Dental Hygienist (this is what I went to school for and worked for about 3 years as a hygienist)

4 MOVIES I'VE WATCHED MORE THAN ONCE:
1. Pride and Prejudice
2. Enchanted
3. Legally Blonde
4. Oklahoma

4 TV SHOWS I WATCH:
1. The Office
2. Grey's Anatomy
3. The Soup
4. SNL

4 PEOPLE WHO EMAIL ME REGULARLY:
1. Ian
2. Jamie
3. My Daddy
4. Anita (my big sis)

4 OF MY FAVORITE FOODS:
1. Pumpkin Pie (must be homemade...preferably my Dad's recipe)
2. Tangelo's
3. Ravioli
4. Crab

4 PLACES I WOULD LIKE TO VISIT:
1. Italy
2. England
3. India
4. New York

4 THINGS I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO IN THE COMING YEAR:
1. Spending some quality time with my family (vacations).
2. Redoing our kitchen counter top
3. Paying off my car
4. Furnishing our home a bit more

4 PEOPLE I TAG:
1. Erica
2. Marcie
3. Marty
4. Cindy

Jenna

2008-10-12T18:33:00.007-05:00

MY BABY IS 3!!!! I am in shock that my baby is not a baby anymore. Today is Jenna's 3rd birthday. Mama and Papa are visiting and helped out with a little party for her. She has loved her birthday weekend.

Jenna is a sweet little girl. She is very loving and cuddly. She loves to dance and sing. Shockingly, she loves everything princess. :) Jenna is one happy little girl. We are so blessed to have her in our family.

Here I am pregnant with Jenna. Reagan was so excited that Heavenly Father had answered her prayers by giving her a baby sister (she prayed for a girl every night).

Jenna's birth.

Princess Jenna.

Ready for church.

Jenna's 1st birthday was a costume party.
(cheerleading outfit was pre Dallas)

Jenna at her 3rd Birthday Party.
She was one happy princess.

10 Years

2008-10-08T08:31:00.006-05:00

The other day, I received an email from my older sister, Anita, about a Breast Cancer Walk that she is participating in this weekend. I hadn't realized that it had been 10 years since our mother has been cancer free. It brought a flood of emotions to me.

My mother had breast cancer twice. The first time, I was in elementary school. I remember being in either 4th or 5th grade and having to go sleep at our friends' house (my mother's best friend with kids our ages). I remember saying goodbye to her as she and my dad dropped us off on their way to the hospital for surgery. I felt scared and sad. I didn't really understand it all but I knew that it was very serious. I have always been very close/attached to my family and just spending the night away from them was hard. Pam, Mom's best friend, did a great job at trying to keep us busy. Despite this, I was sad and scared the whole time.

My mother came home and things went back to normal. To a child, it was as if nothing had ever happened.

As a freshman in college, my mother found out that she had cancer again. All the memories came back to my thoughts. This time it was different. I understood the situation. I understood the possibilities, both good and bad. It truly was scary.

My mom had 2 surgeries the second time around. The first time they thought that they didn't remove all of the cancerous cells. So they had to go in again.

After she came home, I became her nurse (Daddy wasn't quite as gentle). I cleaned her. I changed her bandages. I fed her. Seeing your mother as the one that needs to be cared for is a humbling experience. You become like the parent, wanting to take the pain away from her. And you become the one that tells her not to worry, that her daughters will not go through what she has. That she doesn't have to be sorry about passing that gene on.

Now, here we are 10 years later...

My mother is one of the strongest people I know. I am greatful for her love, her determination, and her example. I know that she is one of the greatest blessings that the Lord has given me. He has blessed our family through her life. Thanks to Him, my children get to love this incredible woman and learn from her, just as I have.

Mommy/Mama, we love you!

2 Down and Hopefully No More!

2008-10-05T21:03:00.003-05:00

Reagan got her cast off!

It is a miracle. My eldest child had her 2nd cast, in less than a year, removed. She is limping around (the doctor said for about a month) slowly. But she is getting to where she wants to go....which is nicer than me playing fetch. Reagan is on her way to a fast recovery and we are happy that our poor little girl will soon be running/dancing again.

I would like to thank.....

2008-09-26T13:59:00.002-05:00

Holly has passed the Brillante Weblog-Premio 2008 Award to little ol' me.

Here are the rules: I have to answer the following questions with one word answers and one word only! Then I must pass it on to seven others.

Here are the questions:
1. Where is your cell phone? pocket

2. Where is your significant other? work
3. Your hair color? highlighted

4. Your mother? spicey
5. Your father? kind
6. Your favorite thing? bed
7. Your dream last night? nightmares
8. Your dream/goal? happiness
9. The room you're in? office
10. Your hobby? shopping

11. Your fear? death
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? happy
13. Where were you last night? bed
14. What you're not? adventurous
15. One of your wish-list items? furniture

16. Where you grew up? Corpus
17. The last thing you did? type

18. What are you wearing? clothes

19. Your TV? big

20. Your pet? fish
21. Your computer? silver
22. Your mood? ill
23. Missing someone? family
24. Your car? toyota
25. Something you're not wearing? socks
26. Favorite store? expensive
27. Your summer? fun

28. Love someone? family
29. Your favorite color? blue
30. When is the last time you laughed? today
31. Last time you cried? yesterday

I am passing the award on to:

Melissa T.
Ivy
Liz
Brooke
Cami
Marcie
Cindy

Lawyer Coloring Book

2008-09-23T20:29:00.009-05:00

Every kid loves coloring books. Ian recently sent me this one for the girls. It is sadly accurate in an exaggerated sort of way. Reagan and I had a good laugh.

Here is a link to the file. I have recreated some of my favorites.

This is my suit. Color it gray or I will loose my job.

This is my Elevator. It take me way up high. People who are not lawyers stand right next to me in the elevator. They are alright, but I would not want my daughter to marry one of them.

This is my desk. It is mahogany. Important people have mahogany desks. My walls are mahogany too. I wish I were mahogany.

This is a client. He smells bad. He has money to spend. I like him.

This is the Senior Partner. He hates me. He calls me bad names but he gives me lots of raises. My wife calls him "papa."

This is my pill. It is round. It is pink. It makes me not care.
Watch me take my round, pink pill . . . and not care.

Gas

2008-09-18T10:56:00.002-05:00

This morning, Jenna was walking down the stair and passed gas. She immediately said, "That's my gasoline! It's funny when I have gasoline!" I thought it was funny that she called it gasoline. I guess it would make some sense to get the words mixed up. :)

This Past Week

2008-09-17T14:45:00.005-05:00

I have decided that I should probably write a post considering that it has been a while. So here are a few happenings from this last week.

This woman (shown below) sent an item to the youngest child in our small family of 4.

For those of you who know the woman shown above, you know that this type of gift is quite typical of her.

Might I just add that Jenna announced that this is her favorite shirt. Figures...

Reagan has adjusted to her walking boot and is quite fast on it. (She dressed herself.)

The highlight of last week was having Taylor spend the weekend with us. It was Reagan's first "sleepover". We all had a blast with her.

On our way to pick up Reagan from school, Jenna keeps on asking if Taylor is going to come home with us. Obviously, Taylor was a hit at our house.

On Saturday, we met up with Marcie, Jossi, and Rylee for lunch and a movie.

Sunday was Stake Conference. We were blessed to have Elder Bednar come and speak. It was a wonderful conference.

I am determined to spend this new week searching for items to decorate our bare house. I just don't have the gift of decorating and never know what to get. But I am determined! Hopefully, it won't take another year before I get something up on the walls.

"You Say it's Your Birthday..."

2008-09-05T21:00:00.003-05:00

Happy Birthday to the Man I love!

Today is my hubby's birthday. He came home early to let the girls celebrate the day of his birth. Reagan decorated and made him a gift of playdough. Jenna wanted to get him the "Troy" Ken doll from High School Musical but she was outvoted by Mommy who gets more votes than everyone combined. I got him tickets to see Carlos Mencia in a few weeks.

We love this guy so much! I am constantly seeing how blessed I am to have him. He has given us a wonderful life filled with great love. We are everything to him, just as he is for us. I couldn't have asked for a better person to love and be loved by. Happy Birthday Hun! We love you!

Our Day

2008-09-03T16:02:00.009-05:00

Today was Jenna's first day of ballet. She was very nervous (pictured below) and did not want to go in. Once she was sitting with all of the other girls, she was one happy kid.

Nervous Jenna

I picked her up from class and she was in one of these moods. Obviously, she had a great time.

Then we quickly headed home so we could get Reagan to her orthopedic surgeon's office.

For those of you who hadn't heard yet, Reagan fractured her foot on Monday. We had problems with the imaging center and so here we are 3 days later finally getting a cast. Luckily, she is one tough kid (didn't complain of any pain).

Jenna was very concerned about her sister. The whole way to the office she kept on saying, "Sister be OK Mommy?" She kept on trying to make Reagan happy and enjoyed sharing her stroller with her big sister (she generally tries to escape from it so she was really enjoying walking around rather than being pushed).

The Swollen Foot

The beginning of the process of putting on the cast.

She is such a ham.

Ready to hit the road.

On Monday, Reagan fell down some of the stairs while trying to run down them. And I know what you are thinking...Yes! It has been only since February that she had her arm cast removed. Like I have said and continue to say, Reagan has inherited my lack of athleticism and has my clumsy gene. Because of this, she avoids sports (her choice alone). Yet somehow, it happens. Poor thing. I hope the next 4 weeks go by quickly for her sake.

Labor Day

2008-09-01T19:16:00.011-05:00

This Labor Day, we did something that we have yet to do. We went to Lake Lewisville . We got together with some friends to spend a few hours out on the water eating, talking, and swimming.

There were 6 adults and well, I think that we won for the most small children on a boat ever.

Jenna with her best buddy, Tessa, ready to soak in the sun.

Somehow, Ian became our captain. He probably took the boat faster than it has ever gone. I didn't know that a pontoon boat could go as fast as he made it go.

Julie became Reagan's taxi.

Mostly everyone was willing to get into the water immediately. Some of us enjoyed watching them, before jumping in ourselves (not me though, I was the camera lady for the morning).

Jenna loved the water and didn't want to go home.

Ian and Reagan

Tessa and Jamie

Taylor and Reagan

By the end of our outing, Ian became the skipper and Tyler took over as captain. He was quite a good little driver and didn't scare Jenna with his driving (Ian!).

We had a good time on the lake and have decided that we need to go back again soon. Maybe get an even bigger boat next time and really break the record for the most kids on one boat!

The "Naked Chef"

2008-08-26T10:53:00.002-05:00

Jenna decided that she needed to make a treat today. So I gave her a bowl and spoon and she went searching through the pantry for something yummy. She grabbed a bag of marshmellows and some raisins. Even with a chair, she couldn't reach the Cheerios but her lovely assistant, me, was tall enough to reach. After measuring out exact amounts, Jenna created a culinary treat! Soon after she divided it up into bags, one for Daddy (so "he can stay with us forever"---she doesn't like the fact that Daddy doesn't hang out with us all day long), one for Mama and Papa (she is still going through withdrawls), and one for us girls. I gave the treat 5 stars. I think that she is well on her way to becoming a culinary master...at least in my book.

First Grade

2008-08-25T11:52:00.007-05:00

Well, it's that time of year again when we send our kids off to school. Reagan was not exactly excited about starting first grade. She is a very cautious kid and doesn't like change. So the thought of having a new class with a new teacher and new kids was a bit intimidating. A few tears were shed but luckily, a good friend and a very energetic and kind teacher made the morning a success.

Off to school!

"A Good Friend"

"Energetic and Kind Teacher"

Our Big Girl

You Know You're from Corpus Christi when....

2008-08-21T22:16:00.005-05:00

Marcie (see reunion post) sent me a "You know you're from Corpus" forward which was hilarious for one who is from the area. It gave 44 examples of what someone from Corpus is like, which I know is way too long to share. So I am doing a condensed version.

You know you are from Corpus Christi when....

People call it "Corpus."

Flour Bluff is considered another town.

Calallen is considered "out of town".

A big concert for us is some dude or band from the 1980's playing at
Concrete Street and everyone goes.

We get excited if a new restaurant opens in town -- even if it's an IHOP.

You know by heart what a #1 or a #7 is at Whataburger.

You camp out with your family on Leopard Street for 4 days to get primo
seats for the Buc Days parade.

Landry's and Joe's Crab Shack are considered upscale restaurants.

You claim you want to leave, but you never do.

You have Whataburger and Jalisco's on speed dial.

"Meeting a celebrity" means standing in line at HEB next to the
weatherman.

The morning commute is aggravated by "heavy traffic" between 8:05
and 8:08 AM.

Your work or classes are canceled because of dangerous 30 degree
weather.

You see people wear tank tops at funerals.

When it snows, it's a regional disaster. (Snow?)

The local paper covers national and international headlines on one page,
but requires 6 pages for high school football.

You've had to switch from Heat to A/C in the same day.

You only own 3 spices: salt, pepper, and picante.

You find 98 degrees "a little warm," and 60 degree down right freezing.

You think the only seasons are hot, damn hot, and winter.

You've had several friends move away and move back within a couple of
months.

The Shrimporee, Bayfest, Buccaneer Days & the Livestock Show are the
major social events for the whole year.

Honeymoon means " San Antonio ".


Yes it is all so very true.  If you are from Corpus, this is just the way life is.
And even though it is a quirky little city, it's home to me.  :)

NOLA

2008-08-19T09:22:00.014-05:00

Ian has been working a ton lately, so when we saw that he might actually be able to take a weekend trip, we jumped at the chance. My wonderful parents came up and spent some time with the girls so we could head out to New Orleans...

...where we joined these two people (Heidi and Jeff).

We stayed in the French Quarter. At times, I felt like I was in Panama, with all the different smells and architecture.

While there, we explored a lot.

We ate a crazy amount of wonderful food.

And we saw some beautiful sights.

Of course, there was the craziness of the nightlife. We heard some good music and explored even more. (Check out the old guy looking for some fun. I think the older people were wilder than the young ones.)

When we came back, the girls had had a wonderful time with their Mama and Papa. When they left the next morning, there were some unhappy little ladies at our house.

**Thanks Heidi and Jeff for the invite. And thanks Mom and Dad for taking care/spoiling our girls. **

Trip Home - Part 2

2008-08-14T19:01:00.017-05:00

As I mentioned before, while on my trip home, I went to my High School Reunion---just 10 years people. Here are a few too many pictures, once again, of the event.

****I am doing a post on my reunion because I have several readers that know these crazy people shown and a few that were planning to attend but could not.******

Before the "dreaded" event, Heidi (who I am eternally greatful for coming down to Texas to be mine and Marcie's date) and I went over the Marcie's (my BFF from High School ---did you like the H.S. lingo) to be ultra high school-ish and make sure that we were properly dressed/coordinating in some way (j/k---once again, very high school-ish). Of course, we had to do the picture in front of the fire place just like before a dance back in the day. I'm telling you, were trying to keep it real.

No! Your eyes are not deceiving you, my reunion was in fact at a bar! Classy. I know. But of course the H.S. I attended includes the Island so everyone is ultra layed back.

(I put up this picture to not only make fun of the location but because those who know these people will be able to spot them out from the crowd.)

Not only was the reunion at at bar, but a bar with a big fish (O.K., it is a shark. Whatever)! Kudos on the extra classiness!

(Marcie was obviously pumped about the shark.)

Joe was one of the people I was most excited to see. He used to call me "Wife Number 2". And no, this is not a Mormon joke. Heidi and I hung out with Joe so much that we became "Wife Number 1" and "Wife Number 2". Wait...maybe it was a mormon joke! Hey! No but really, the guy was and still is one of the most hilarious people I have ever know.

Joseph was our valedictorian. We were in all the same classes. His mom who was our Junior English teacher came for an hour. It was fun to see them.

One of our soccer buddies (Amanda). We had this health class together where we made a work out video. I was the instructor and she was a back up girl. We worked out to Madonna's Lucky Star. I can hardly type this I am laughing so hard. On the cover of the video, we cut out pictures of Victoria Secret models in swimsuits and glued our heads to their bodies. I need to find that thing. So If ya'll come to my house I can show it to you. It really is ridiculously funny.

Here are the Panamanians with the Cubans. The four of us used to hang out all the time and get into too much trouble.

One of the wonderful examples of the, should I use the word again (I think that I have just about worn it out but I am going to have to do it), classiness of the whole event were the door prizes. Marcie won a H.S. Baseball T shirt. Niiiicccceee! Talk about some choice goodies. (Her cousin is giving the prize a thumbs up because not only did she help organize the event but she had come to realize that the door prizes sucked big time).

Here Heidi is modeling the front of the T shirt.

We were excited to hang out with Mario but were bummed that his sister, one of our best friends from h.s. didn't show up.

(If you didn't notice, Heidi was downing Red Bulls. I however was sticking to my H2O. By the end of the night she was ready to go to another gathering, where as, being the mommy that I am, I wanted to fall asleep in the parking lot.)

I told you she does her crazy eye thing all the time ---for pictures at least.

Here she is sporting the kick'n Whataburger give aways. You know you are in Texas if Whataburger is involved in an event.

The whole night we were doing some silly pictures where we would pose in some weird action. So here is the snob or the "OH MY GOSH! Can you believe what she is wearing!" pose. Ah! The odd things we do to entertain ourselves.

All in all, I had a surprisingly good time. It was fun to see old friends. Besides, anyone who knew me back then would have to agree, I look so much better now! And that is what High School reunions are really all about. :)

Trip Home - Part 1

2008-08-06T16:25:00.015-05:00

Last Friday the girls and I returned from our trip down south. We had a very full week that was filled with so much fun. Here are a few (WARNING: There are a tremendous amount of pictures ahead. View at your own risk.) pictures from our trip.

My sister Heidi flew down from Nashvegas to spend the weekend with us lovely ladies and the folks. She was brave enough to accompany me to my H.S. Reunion.

We have a ton of pictures with Heidi doing this eye thing. This is the calmed down version. Either way, yes, this is my sister....

Heidi and my dad went down to the gun range (obviously, we are from the GREAT state of Texas). She is displaying her bullseye shot. We were all pretty excited for her.

Single men, beware!

Heidi and I went to get quick pedi's while Reg experienced her first manicure. She was sooo excited.

I hung out with my old (not in age of course) Visiting Teaching buddies. We ate too much, laughed too much, and cried too much. It was definitely one of the best parts of the trip.

As a side note: When anyone asks me to take a picture of them, I assume that they mean their faces and maybe a small part of there bust. Call me crazy, but I think that peoples faces should be in the central part of the picture. And I ask, what is in the middle of this picture? Yes! Our torsos! Anyway, enough of my complaints.

OH NO!! My family is about to be eaten by that huge shark!!

OK, enough cheese.

Of course, we had to head out to the Island! The girls have to go to the beach each time we visit Mama and Papa. This time we stopped at the little tourist shops to let the girls pick out a treat.

Check out Jenna's fierce look. NICE!

Reagan loves anything having to do with the beach. When she found a large shell at one of the shops, she had to try to see if she could hear the ocean.

Jenna in her favorite person's arms. (I don't exist when we visit Mama and Papa.)

Here's Papa reading a Celia Cruz biography.

Jennazilla on her way to destroy part of our castle.

Check out the line of brown near the water. It is seaweed. Because of Hurricane Dolly, there was a ton of seaweed on the shore. Jen was terrified of it. She wouldn't go near the water.

My parents took us to a new gourmet chocolatier. Reagan had the hardest time choosing some chocolate.

In the end, she was happy with what she (and everyone else) had chosen.

On our way back home, we stopped to visit more grandparents. Grandpa Steve, Grandma Lori, and Uncle Spencer entertained us a few hours. And they very nicely wore the girls out in their pool.

We had a great time with family, just like always. In a week, they'll be here so Jenna can sleep in peace once again.

Black Thumb This!

2008-08-04T10:19:00.003-05:00

When Ian and I were first married, my mother gave me a cactus. She told me that it wouldn't be difficult to keep it alive because I hardly would have to water it. So I put the cactus in our kitchen window and watered it. After a few weeks, I decided to water it again. ....OK, maybe a month or so. Needless to say, I killed the cactus.

My family has continued to tease me, because really, who kills a cactus?!

When I announced in the spring time that I was determined to have a vegetable garden, I was teased once again. As family has come to visit, they have all been shocked to see that I had not killed my plants (at least the ones that are within the sprinklers' reach). :)

***The plants that are on the deck are almost all dead. Somehow, the rosemary plants' desire to live, has allowed it to do so.***

Anyway, I am pleased to announce that we ate tomatoes, cucumbers, and bell peppers from our garden yesterday! And we have a bunch of tiny green beans growing! So ha! I don't kill everything (thanks to the sprinkler system)! Maybe my thumb isn't so black! Oh yeah, I'm a gardener....

Tagging

2008-07-28T18:38:00.002-05:00

As Melissa pointed out, I didn't tag anyone for the whole "10 Random Things". So I am tagging Erica, Audrey, Whitni, Tiffany, and Liz.

Alright ladies, I am interested in seeing who participates in this one. And what on earth you are going to say. Have fun and let's keep it semi clean. ;)

10 Random Things About Me

2008-07-24T18:43:00.002-05:00

I consider myself an extremely boring person. So when I saw that I was tagged by my friend Melissa, I debated whether or not to participate in this one. Here is my horrible attempt at coming up with 10 random things about myself.

1. I buy chocolate and cookies and hide them from my children and husband so I can treat myself on a daily basis. (Unfortunately, my stash for this week was discovered by EVERYONE! And I was forced to share. Darn!)

2. I have a pretty long tongue. I can touch both my nose and chin with it.

3. I took piano lessons as a kid. The instructor told my mom that she was wasting her money on me!

4. I am one of the most unathletic and unflexible people I know. I can't even do a summersault (sp) straight.

5. I actually enjoy watching some kid shows with Reagan. I won't list them for embarrassment purposes.

6. Before Ian and I met, a friend of mine told me that he was coming home from his mission. And I declared that I was going to have to be his "personal welcoming commitee". It seemed to have worked.

7. When I was little, I used to eat peanut butter cookies dipped in mustard. Don't ask me how I thought that was good. It was my mustard faze.

8. I have never gone camping. (It seems like everyone I know goes.) To me, camping is staying at a bad hotel.

9. My Panamanian cousins consider my 2 sisters Latina but they call me Gringa. Which seems pretty funny considering that I am obviously brown. And my Utah family thinks we are all Latin. So where exactly does that put me... Being a mix can be difficult at times. I feel for Barack Obama.

10. I am going to the dreaded 10 Year High School Reunion this weekend. ...need I say more.

Swimming

2008-07-14T08:03:00.002-05:00

So far our summer/the month of July has consisted of a lot of swimming. I have been on a mission to make sure that the girls learn how to swim. So here is a mini update on their progress.

Reagan is finally swimming...but not coming up for air. I am hoping that this important skill will be tackled this week at swimming lessons. She was brave and jumped off the diving board (something that I as an adult still refuse to do. Yes. I am a major chicken). And she is working on floating on her back (that, I actually like to do).

Jenna...oh my gosh, Jenna! The kid is fearless which causes Mommy to be fearful! So she is swimming underwater (not coming up for air either). She loves going under. She too jumped off the diving board at swimming lessons on Thursday.

We went swimming with our friends the Ella, Aubrey (2 girls pictured above with my monkeys), Holly, and Cali on Friday, and just spent the whole day with them (thanks ladies, we had a blast). The whole time, Jenna was jumping into the water and swimming around whether I was near her or far from her. It was terrifying. And poor Reagan wanted to work on her swimming and Jen just wouldn't let her. Needless to say, Jenna is a nut!

I will attempt to put up some pictures of the girls at swimming lessons, in the near future.

I'm Back!

2008-07-05T17:27:00.012-05:00

Earlier this week, I got back from my Vegas/Family Reunion trip. I left my wonderful hubby for 4 days alone with the girls. It was much needed. And I am very greatful that he was more than willing to send me off (like I said, it was a much needed break).

So the first 2 days were spent in Vegas with my younger sister. She showed off her mad lady skills (aka flirting) and got us upgrades in everything that you could possibly imagine. Way to go Heidi. We had a blast shopping, site seeing, and just talking our heads off.

She's funny!

Ian told Heidi to make sure that I was wild and crazy. ....this is about as wild and crazy as I get. I spent a whole dollar on 1 slot machine. I know what you are thinking, "this girl needs to settle down." :) So I am not exactly "wild and crazy", oh well.

I took my lovely date/sister to dinner and then we went and saw Wayne Brady. The guy was hilarious! The show consisted of comedy, singing, and dancing. We were very impressed and very entertained.

After a fun time in Vegas, we headed into Utah for our family reunion. It was fun to see uncles, aunts, and cousins. Our family has one of these every other year and the past 2 times I have skipped. So it was fun to be back.

Here is my dad and his brothers. My poor grandmother had 8 boys! (One passed away several years ago. We really miss my Uncle Tom.)

And here I am with my family. It was so great that we could be there together.

I had a great time, and Ian and the girls were alive when I got home. Who can ask for anything more.

2008-06-26T14:00:00.005-05:00

One of the fun things we did for our anniversary was eat (for those of you who know me, that is about the most fun thing to do in my book....ah, foooooddddd.) Ian took me to Local.

"Housed in the historic Boyd Hotel, Local
is an intimate, modern, upscale yet unpretentious restaurant in the downtown Dallas Arts District."

It was a nice intimate place with great service and wonderful food. We tried the Chef's Tasting Menu. It allows you to have a small portion of everything good. We left completely stuffed and very happy. I recommend trying it!

Happy Anniversary to Us!

2008-06-23T21:44:00.002-05:00

Today, Ian and I are celebrating our 8th anniversary. I can honestly say that I feel so blessed that he is mine and I am his. He is an amazing man who somehow, continues to put up with the likes of me. Ian is very loving and makes us his priority. I love this man more than anything else in the world! Happy Anniversary Hun!

Family Portraits

2008-06-17T22:24:00.004-05:00

We got family portraits, just like everyone else in our stake. Here is the website of the photographer, she is fantastic.

Sisters

2008-06-17T09:02:00.002-05:00

One thing that I love about sisters, of any age, is that when one is sad or hurt, the other is always there with open arms and filled with love.

p.s. thank you heidi

It's Summertime!!!!

2008-06-07T14:45:00.002-05:00

Reg is out of school for the summer. So what do we do? Immediately jump in the car and head out to visit my folks! They are being spoiled, watching way too many movies, eating junk (which they request), playing outside, and will be heading for the beach.

We are home and it feels oh so good....

Sleep Study

2008-05-22T09:10:00.010-05:00

Reagan has always been a snorer. It seems like the older she gets, the louder the snoring gets. I brought this up to her pediatrician (who we absolutely love) and he suggested that she see an ent (ear, nose, and throat specialist). Reagan's tonsils are a bit large and she sleeps with her mouth open, so I was worried about sleep apnea. The ent was a bit eager to remove her tonsils and adenoids, so we decided to have a sleep study done on her to make sure that it was really necessary. Reagan seemed to not care either way. We just don't want to have to put her through her second surgery within the first 6 years of life if we don't have to. It is very scary to put your little girl in that position. So these are the pictures from our (her's and my) night at the Pediatric Sleep Institute.

This is the beginning of many wires.

Still happy.

Starting to realize that there are going to be a lot of wires, now that the wires on the neck and nose have been placed.

Now some behind the ear. She really had a great attitude about the whole thing.

You can see all of the wires connected to the box. There ended up being a total of 23 wired connected to her little body.

Ah, the ones on the head. She didn't complain about those ones either.

Removing the glue from the hair has not been fun.

She was worried about moving and messing up the wires.

She was finally ready to go to sleep.

Reagan was such a trooper. She didn't complain at all. She is an amazing and brave little girl.
The sleep tech was absolutely wonderful. She is what made the whole experience a great one.

Now we just have to wait and find out what will happen next.

All Worn Out

2008-05-22T08:57:00.004-05:00

One of Jenna's eardrums ruptured a few weeks ago. She was just miserable. Once we got some meds in her, she just wanted to sleep

.

Take Me Out to the Ball Game...Take Me Out for the Food (my version of the song)

2008-05-17T21:32:00.010-05:00

Last Saturday we went to an A's game (I guess it was a Rangers game but I am married to a Californian, so we called it the A's game). We took our friends, the Duenas family. Holly and I have been friends since high school/seminary. We went to good old Del Mar College/ Institute together. We both were married around the same time and were pregnant with our first children at the same time. We have also lived in Corpus, Austin, and the DFW area at the same time. If they ever leave the state, that is where I draw the line. I told Ian, Texas and only Texas will be called home. Sorry Holly. Anyway, as you can tell, they are dear friends of ours that can't get rid of us. Now back to the story... We all went to the game together. Joey is from California too and was routing for the A's along with Ian. The poor guys left the game a bit disappointed. Let's face it everything is bigger and better in Texas, that's why the Rangers won (that is also why they both married Texans :) ).

A's and Rangers

Ian explaining the game to Reagan.

Aubrey, Holly (holding Cali), Me, Jenna,Ian, and Reagan (Joey is taking the picture)

Aubrey and Reagan had a blast hanging out together (they are our firsts).

All of us girls at the game (excluding Jenna who really wanted to hang out with Daddy).
-first row: Reagan, Ella, and Aubrey-
-second row: Anayansi, Holly, and Cali-

It is always so fun to spend time with old friends. We can't wait to have free time in the summer so we can get the girls together again.

An Ear-risistable Tale

2008-05-07T09:02:00.011-05:00

On Saturday, Ian pointed out to Reagan that you could get your ears pierced at Libby Lu. So after that, all she could think about was getting her ears pierce.

Here is your play by play of the exciting event:

We headed over to Club Libby Lu after violin lessons. At this point, it was time to choose a pair of earrings. As you can tell from the picture, Reagan was very excited.

Here is a before picture.

Reagan was shown the earring gun (I guess that is what it is called).

Even after checking out the "gun", Reagan was still very excited.

The ladies getting down to business. Just so you know, Reagan didn't cry or scream. She just made the face that you see in the picture and as soon as they were finished, she was smiling again.

Here is the after picture.

Like I said, despite any pain (which was very brief), Reagan was very happy with the whole experience.

Here she is with one of the Libby Lu staff that had the honor of piercing her ears.

And of course, we had to celebrate with an exquisite dinner at, where else, Chick Fil A.

Discovering India

2008-05-05T17:20:00.006-05:00

Two weekends ago (it seems like I am always at least 2 weeks behind in blogging), we went to the Discovering India Fair in downtown Dallas. It was in the Art District, right by Ian's office.

The music was so cool and the dancing was amazing. And if Ian was writing this post, he would write about the wonderful food and probably only that. Needless to say, we had a wonderful time and were glad to expose Reagan and Jenna to such a rich culture.

Dancers

Reagan and Ian enjoying the show.

Reagan making a necklace.

Jenna doing what she does best--consuming liquids.

I tried to get Reagan to get henna done on her hand but she wouldn't. So I tried it (yes, that is my hand not hers---I have very small hands). So this is before it dried up and the hardened henna came off. It lasted a bit more than a week. I thought it would last like 2 to3 days but was told otherwise. It was definitely a conversation starter everywhere I went. And Reagan discovered that it didn't hurt Mommy which meant that it wouldn't hurt her. I think that she may try it next year.

Our Artist

2008-05-01T08:25:00.003-05:00

Last month, Lakeside Elementary displayed a few children's artwork at a local credit union. Reagan's art was one of only 2 kindergarteners' pieces chosen. So we were very excited for her and took her down to that credit union for some pictures.

Presenting Reagan and her piece entitled....um..."Division of the Squares". (I just made that up. She has no name for it but that is what it looks like.)

Grandma Liz

2008-04-27T17:06:00.012-05:00

Grandma Liz came to visit us 2 weeks ago (surprise, surprise, I am behind again). We had a great time with her.

Liz is the one in the middle. Her cousin, Grace, lives in Carrollton and was kind enough to hang out with Liz and the girls while Ian and I were gone (we'll get to that in a bit).

Reagan was able to show Grandma Liz her new violin and what she does to practice. Reg was very excited to demonstate, as you can see.

We, Jenna and I, took Liz out to lunch on Friday.

After lunch, we took Reagan out of school early and headed off to the American Girl store. Since Liz wasn't around for Reagan's birthday, she got her a few things there.

Here she is with Reagan. (Heidi, this is the dress that you got Reg for her birthday. She loves it! It is like someone that knows everything about her likes and dislikes picked it out for her. ;) )

And here she is with Jenna.

Liz was kind enough to watch the girls so Ian and I could get away and spend some time together. So we packed up our things and took the long, I don't know, 10 mile drive South to the Four Seasons Resort and Club in Las Colinas. I know, when we get away we really like to get away. (I am not sure if you can even call it a get away if it is that close to where you live.) Anyway, thanks Liz. It was very nice and relaxing. Oh! And much needed.

We had a wonderful time with her and can't wait until we can see her again!

Book Tag

2008-04-22T15:26:00.003-05:00

Of all of my friends and family that are into blogging, Holly is the one that makes sure that there is something new each and every day! Well, on Sunday, she book tagged me.

Heres what you're supposed to do:

Pick up the nearest book (one with at least 123 pages)
Open to page 123
Find the 5th sentence
Post the next 3 sentences
Tag 5 people

My book is I am America (and so can You!) by Stephen Colbert. "But my sheepskin announces to all assembled that though I may be a man of the people, I also have the keys to the clubhouse. I can't count the number of times I've heard the phrase, "You went to Dartmouth? I find that hard to believe." (Heard it while at Dartmouth, too) " It is a pretty funny/ridiculous book, even though I still haven't finished it. How can you not love (and I mean LOVE) Colbert. He is not only hilarious but a pretty darn good looking nerd. :) If I could just stay up late enough to watch his show more than once a month. Seriously, I love the guy.

So the lovely ladies that I am tagging are Christy, Brooke, Cami, Liz, and Abbie.

Reagan's Mulan/Chinese Party

2008-04-21T13:38:00.010-05:00

OK. So I am a bit behind on the pictures but at least it is in the same month as the party. Which is actually very good for me considering that I only posted "Part 1" of our Christmas pictures. (I promise that I'll put the rest of them up before next Christmas.)

We started off the party by decorating chopsticks to put in the girls' hair. While those dried, we played a few games and ate some food.

Here is Reagan sporting her party do and her decorated chopsticks. Do you like her outfit? My mom made it for her and one for Jenna too. Jenna was afraid of the outfit for some reason. But I thought she looked very cute. (Thanks Mom! You always surprise us with your fun creations.)

Here are a few pictures of the girls getting there hair done....they had makeup done too, but I didn't include those pictures.

(I wanted to thank all the mom's for their help, especially Marcie. You were so helpful! I owe you big time.)

All the little ladies with their hair, makeup and fans that they made. The short one is Jenna. She didn't make a fan.

Ian barely made it to the party (because of work). I was so happy when he arrived with the food and took charge of the pinata. He was tired that is why he looks so unenthusiastic. :)

Here is Reagan's dragon cake.

And after all the stress and work that goes into putting on a party at your house, there is only one thing left to do....

Thanks Mom for making the trip up to help with all of the craziness. I couldn't have done it without you!

Samantha

2008-04-15T10:08:00.004-05:00

For Reagan's 6th birthday, Ian and I surprised her by taking her to the American Girl Boutique and Bistro. (Of course, I forgot my camera.) We had a great time. The Bistro was so girly. And the food was surprisingly quite good. After eating, we let her pick out a doll. She chose Samantha. (This is the doll that I have been wanting since I was 8--I promise that I didn't coax her into getting it. We told her that she could get any of the dolls.)

Reagan had a wonderful time. She was so happy with everything. The whole way home, she was talking with Samantha and playing with her hair. It was so cute.

And I have to admit, I feel like the evening was just as much for me. ....Because, I GOT MY DOLL!!!!! YES!!

My Baby is 6!

2008-04-10T11:34:00.004-05:00

Yesterday, my baby turned 6 years old. I can't believe how quickly the years have flown. If I could just get her to stop growing, things would be just perfect. But I suppose that they need to grow. What can you do? I guess just enjoy all of the ups and downs of their precious little lives. And I know that I am very blessed to have this precious little life in mine.

Reagan is such a sweet and loving child. She is the first to give you a hug when you are down. She always laughs at the silliest things. She thinks that running around before bed time is the best. Reagan is a budding fashionista. She grabs anyones clothing and can turn it into something completely different that fits her just right and surprisingly looks pretty good. She loves her sister so much and is always helping her. She loves mexican food...rice and beans specifically. And she loves to sing. Since she could make noises she has been humming and singing. I think that she secretly wants to be a rock star, but who hasn't.

I love this kid so much. She means the world to me. And I know that she is truly "My Sweet Angel".

Happy Birthday Baby! Mommy loves you!

A Night Out With the Girls....Little Girls

2008-04-08T14:30:00.009-05:00

My current calling in church is the Laurel Advisor. So when we leaders found out that one of our YW was in the play "Beauty and the Beast", we knew that our girls would love to see it. So we made a date of it.

The evening began at Chili's Too (because the girls love it, and Coppell doesn't really have very many restaurants at all). Jenna joined us for dinner only. Ian stopped by to beg for scraps (thanks Marcie) and to take Jen home. We knew that there was no way that Jenna would be able to sit through a play....a 3 hour play!

This was one of the little ladies in our crew, Lily. She got all dressed up for the occasion. She was all about princesses that night.

And this is Jossi. She was also one of the the little ladies. (She is quite an accessorizer --is that a word?--- I love the necklace Jossi!)

Our YW, Whitney. She did a great job!

The ladies with Belle. I think that was the highlight of the night for them.

Easter pics

2008-04-03T11:17:00.012-05:00

Yes, I do realize that we are a few weeks past Easter. But what you may not know is that not only am I a procrastinator, but even when i am doing something when I should be, I am very very slow. So here are our Easter pictures, in true Anayansi form, late.

In the past, we have had some messy/very stained items (clothes, counters, etc.) due to coloring eggs. So this year we went all out and got the biggest plastic sack we could find...thank you American Airlines. As you can tell from the picture, we were prepared for just about anything with that huge bag. Ian thought that if Jenna just watched, and didn't actually participate in coloring the eggs, we would have less of a mess. So here he is trying to show Jenna the joy of having Daddy color the Easter eggs for you.

Reagan, being the big girl that she is, was allowed to participate in the dying of eggs. She had a blast. Her favorite part was putting on the Tinkerbell "Tatoos" that were included in the kit.

I decided that Jenna should be allowed to participate, so I tried to show her how to put the Tinkerbells on the egg. Of course they were "rub on's", so they were too difficult for her.

For Jenna, dying eggs was not exactly fun. (See picture below)

After the girls went to sleep, the Easter Daddy had to put together the sand/water table we got the girls as a gift from us. Since we have been married, I cannot tell you how many things Ian has been forced to put together. He wasn't thrilled that this new toy required "some assembly", which is obvious from the picture.

Well, Easter morning arrived and the girls were so excited to find their bunny baskets filled. A few months ago, Ian announced that we were cutting back on sweets for the girls (which is a good thing considering I was the one who was eating all of their treats). So this Easter they only received 2 sugary treats from the Easter Mommy.

As a side note, I would like to thank Liz for the sweets because I have been having sugar withdrawls. I left the picture out of me stuffing my face with chocolates. Ian caught me in the act with the camera. It wasn't a pretty picture.

The girls searched for their eggs quickly before church.

And thanks to Reagan's help, Jenna even found a few.

After church (while I was having a YW's meeting), Ian showed the girls the gift from us parents. They loved it. I am not so sure that I love the sand that I am constantly cleaning up in the house. But they love it, so oh well.

(Ian dressed Jenna after church. I am so glad that we got a picture of it because as you can see, Ian put Jenna's shirt on without insiding it out. I love seeing how he dresses her. At least it all matched. Good job Hun.)

We were in such a rush to get to church on time in the morning (I was in the program), that I forgot to take a picture of the girls in their Easter dresses. Ian was so smart to get a picture of them after church...even though the were pretty messy afterwards.

Don't you just love how Reagan tied her bow in the front rather than the back (she did it in Primary). She is always wanting to make her own outfits. You should see how she made a halter top dress out of one of my long sleeve shirts. I was pretty impressed.

Later that day we had a great dinner prepared by the family chef, Chef Daddy. It was a nice day. And the kids loved it.

Spring Break in CC

2008-03-31T14:19:00.009-05:00

Well we made it! We (the girls and I) made the drive down to good old CC for Spring Break. It is only the second time we've made it down sense we have moved. It felt so good to go home. And as you can tell from Reagan's face, we were ALL happy to be there.

We had a blast with my parents. It seemed as though we were constantly doing something, yet didn't get to do everything that we wanted to. We went to the beach (the one on Ocean Drive, not the Island), we went to Jalisco's (you know that was Reagan's first request when she found out we were going to CC), we did all the shopping i could imagine, i got our traditional brisket from HEB (oh! I love HEB!), the girls did their usual ride the carousel at the mall, etc, etc....

So I took a couple of pictures while we were visiting Mama and Papa. I was so mad at the camera because it was hardly working at all. I came so close to throwing it into the ocean. So close! So please excuse the barely decent pictures.

The girls at the little beach near downtown. I know what you are thinking....are they playing in the sand with bowls and spoons? Yes, as a matter of fact, they are. So we went to look for a bucket and shovel at a dollar store and they didn't have any! It was all about Easter stuff not summer time, at the store. And since we were already in the car, on our way to the beach, I said, "Let's just use bowls and spoons". Not exactly what you think of when you say,"Hey, want to go play in the sand at the beach" . But it did the job and the girls didn't seem to care.

I am telling you, the camera wasn't working. I would press the button to take a picture and it just wouldn't take until quite a bit after (like 20 seconds). I was frustrated. And as you can see, Jenna got tired of smiling. So this is as good as the pictures get Ladies and Gentlemen. So attempt to enjoy.

I had to post this picture. Poor Reagan has my legs! It is so funny to see how much her little body is like mine, legs, hips, and all. You know what I'm talking about Heidi.

We had such a wonderful time with my parents. It was so wonderful that both girls were refusing to go home. We drove away with both girls crying for their Mama and Papa. Oh, such love!

Speaking of love:

Thanks Mom and Dad for such a fabulous week!

The Fort Worth Zoo

2008-03-26T13:01:00.011-05:00

About 3 weekends ago, Ian, the girls, and I went to the Fort Worth Zoo. We had such a great time there. I think that it has to be one of my favorite family activities we have done since we moved to Dallas.

Here, Ian and the girls are checking out the zebras. Aren't they cute! (The girls, not the zebras.)

This gorilla was so cool to watch. It was also kind of scary. He was so huge!

A Tiger

It was fun to happen upon this rhino. We were just crossing a bridge when we discovered that he was hanging out underneath it.

So there is a bird area where you can feed the birds. Of course, the girls wanted to feed them so we agreed to it. There were so many birds! And they would fly around in small groups so fast and so low that their wings would touch your head.

Reagan loved feeding the birds.

Jenna enjoyed it too.....that is until a bird pooped on her. I immediately cleaned her arm. And then thought, "Darn it! I should have gotten a picture of that!"

All in all, we had a fun day!

Retraction

2008-03-14T08:30:00.003-05:00

It seems as though I may have offend my loving husband in saying that "he only sleeps here". So I am making a formal apology.

I just tease because I know he cares. He works really hard all the time and has been really busy at work. Poor thing. So in honor of my loving husband, I retract my previous statements. He Does count and Does more than sleep here (on the weekends that is :) .

Love you Hun!

The Fun Just Doesn't Stop

2008-03-12T11:03:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, we (meaning us girls....remember Ian doesn't count because he just sleeps here....I'll specify if he is ever with us) hung out with some friends at their house. As we were leaving, Reagan and Kate (the friend) decide to race down the sidewalk. Jenna wanted to join in the fun and started chasing them. In a matter of seconds, Jenna was face down with Reagan screaming, "She's bleeding!" Yes, she was hurt again. All I could keep thinking was, "Not the Emergency Room! Not the Emergency Room!" Luckily, it was just a busted lip, a huge knot on her forhead and some skinned knees.

I realize that kids get hurt but this is a bit much.

I had another little scare today when we were VTing. Jenna fell down the stairs of our lovely assigned sister's house. We were really lucky this time. Not a scratch!

If we can make it through the week with out any other injuries, I know that it will truly be an act of God.

Yes! Another Trip to the ER

2008-03-10T09:21:00.002-05:00

Reagan finally got the 24 hour stomach virus that Jenna and I have already had. As a result, Ian staying home with her and Jenna so I could go to church on Sunday. When I got home, Ian informed me that there may be dried blood around the house because Jenna cut her toe. He didn't know how or when it happened because she hadn't cried about it. He only knew that there was dried blood on Jenna's toe.

So I decided to check it out and clean it. As soon as I saw it, I knew she needed stitches.

Jenna and I took off to the ER and got it all taken care of. She never complained and was very happy and friendly to everyone at the ER! I was shocked!

The funny thing is that later that night we talked to Mani (one of Ian's classmates and fellow clerk for for Judge H). When I told him about Jenna he said that it sounded like nothing had changed. Sadly he is right.

In another month or two we should be making another trip to the ER because...well...that's just the way it is around here.

Another String of Happenings

2008-03-07T08:33:00.015-06:00

It seems that so much happens in between my posts....that or I am just taking to long to blog. So here is another long string of happenings that have gone on in the last week and a half.

Ian took Reagan to the "Coppell Family Fish". It was Reagan's first fishing experience.

She looks like a real pro.

But alas, the only fish she brought home was the one that she made at the arts-n-crafts table.

Another exciting thing for us Texans (especially South Texans) was that it began snowing. Reagan has been waiting since the first cold front came in to experience snow. So she was very excited. It was extra fun because my parents and sister were visiting. And all of us being from South Texas means that snow is very rare, kind of a once in a life time experience. So it was fun to share that with them.

Like I mentioned, Heidi came to visit again (along with Mom and Dad, sorry no good pictures of them this trip). This week is her spring break so she decided to spend half of it with us. It has been so fun having her visit us so much. That has been one of the perks of moving to Coppell.

One of the reasons my parents came up (other than to be with the girls) was to give Heidi the Texas quilt my mom made her.

I guess I shouldn't complain that I didn't get one, since I actually live in this great state....and the fact that Reagan has been given one.....and that I live in this FABULOUS state (not rubbing it in or anything Heidi).

Heidi had a friend come and visit too. His name is Jeff. She warned us that he was quiet. Boy was she right. It was the most hilarious thing watching his eyes move back and forth from person to person as we all tried to talk to him. (My family loves to talk....all at the same time. It is skill to listen to us and get something out of it.)

After we said our goodbyes to Heidi, I got sick. I got the 24 hour stomach virus that has been going around (Jenna had it last week about this time). Thank goodness my parents were still here. They took care of Jenna while I slept the whole day...and did other things pertaining to the virus.

While I was sleeping, it began to snow again! What a treat! So here is a picture of the snow beginning to fall.

I was awake when Reagan came home (my kind neighbor was her driver for the day). I knew that Reagan would be so pumped that it was snowing. So I was ready for her with the camera when she got home.

And finally, today, Reagan's school is having a Dr. Seuss Day. So the kids were supposed to dress up like one of his characters. Reagan, being the type that always wants to be pretty, decided to be Cindy Lou Who. I was greatful that she would be wearing the simplest costume ever...a dress and antennas.

When I dropped her off at school this morning, we saw some pretty cute costumes. There were Thing 1 and Thing 2, 2 Cat in the Hats, several Sally's from the Cat in the Hat, a Grinch, Cindy Lou Who's, and I recognize the second kid to the left's character but I don't know which book it was from. Anyway, they were all pretty cute.

My parents leave today and we'll be all alone again. Just me and the girls (Ian doesn't count since he just sleeps here :) ).

It has been a fun week and a half!

6!!!!!

2008-02-28T22:05:00.004-06:00

This evening, the girls and I made blueberry muffins from scratch. We have bought so many blueberries lately. So instead of letting a few go bad we made muffins. They were so delicious that I ate 6!!! Darn those blueberry muffins! So warm and fresh!

Blueberry Muffins

3/4 cup butter
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup milk
1 egg
1 3/4 cup sifted flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup blueberries
1 tablespoon flour

Cream butter and sugar. Add milk and egg and beat until smooth. Sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Add to creamed mixture. Mix until moistened. Toss blueberries with flour and fold into batter. Fill a well-greased muffin pan 2/3 full with the batter. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.

courtesy of Gourmet Magazine

Jane Austen

2008-02-28T21:52:00.005-06:00

So like most women, I love cheesy romantic movies. But I like mine to be English and from a completely different time period (that or a black and white). So when I was searching through friends' blogs, I stumbled upon this quiz to determine which Jane Austen character you are most like.

I took the test, not having any specific character in mind but..... Elinor Dashwood! Ugh.

Yes I realize that she was the strong immovable sister but I was expecting someone a bit more exciting. (I have no clue why.)

Maybe you'll have better luck.

Which character are you?

Visitors

2008-02-21T20:07:00.004-06:00

Two weekends ago, Brooke (Ian's sister), Evan, and McKenzie came to visit. It was so nice to see the girls spend time with their ONLY cousin. McKenzie is 2 months older than Jenna. And she is going to be a big sister to a little baby girl in July. There is something about girls in this family. It was cute to see how tiny Brooke is despite how far along she is (I was huge with Jenna). And it was great to get to know Evan better.

It is so great to have family come and visit. We have been so lucky to have everyone in our family come visit within our first 6 months of moving to Coppell........except for you Anita. It's time to get on the ball!

This weekend, my parents (the boys, a.k.a. the dogs), Heidi, and one of her friends will be visiting. It should be fun. We will probably shop way too much, eat too much good Panamanian food, and stay up talking way too late. Ah, sounds like a good time to me.

A Quick Overview

2008-02-20T16:07:00.016-06:00

I haven't been too good about posting on the blog this past month and a half....so sit back because I put up way too many pictures.

Lakeside Elementary had a carnival at the beginning of February. Ian took Reagan to it while Jenna was napping (we didn't even want to try that one). Reg had a blast. And Ian enjoyed it too. Reagan had her face painted and brought home a balloon animal (a little turtle) for her sister since she had missed out. Reagan is always so thoughtful.

Super Bowl Sunday was spent at some friends house where the kids were way louder than the TV. Somehow, all the kids (excluding Reagan) ended up in only their diapers. I think the sandbox and water play had something to do with it.

Jenna and Tessa are sporting the diapers. Tessa was our little hostess for the night.

We had some work down on our house at the beginning of the month. We had almost all of the downstairs painted and had a chandelier and fan replaced.

Jenna had so much fun with the man that did the work. She gets so excited when she sees him at one of the neighbors' houses. (We all share the same handyman.)

For the 101st day of school, the kindergarteners at Lakeside dressed up like dalmations. They are so clever at that school.....but way too many dress up days. They aren't quite as fun as the first 10 times.

I have no clue what Jenna is doing in the background. I think that she had a hair in her mouth or something. It just looks weird.

Heidi came into town to visit us (and get a phat TV my parents got her for Christmas). We had so much fun with her, like always. She was also very kind a watched the girls while we went to a firm function. As is probably very obvious, she did my makeup. I feel like I have her eyes in these 2 pictures (that is when she has her makeup done----don't kill me for the pic Heidi. You are still beautiful to me. :) ).

Ian and me about to leave for our kid free night. Thanks again Heidi. We had a great time and really enjoyed Pat Green. That guy was hilarious!

On Valentine's Day, Reagan finally had her cast removed. After 5 weeks of wearing it, she decided that she prefered having it on rather than off. She is so silly.

Here she is right after they removed the cast. Seriously, she wanted it back on. She said that it was warm and comfy and that she couldn't wait until she got her next one.

Poor thing's arm was peeling like crazy. We are still trying to get all of the flaky skin off.

And here she is with her doctor, Dr. Capelo. He was so nice, a perfect kids' doctor.

And that is what has gone on recently. There is more but my wrist is tired so you'll just have to wait to hear about this past weekend.

"I got Hair Cut"

2008-02-08T16:41:00.000-06:00

About a week and a half ago, Jenna got her hair cut. It seemed like no matter how many bows went in her hair, she still looked homeless. So I made the executive decision to get it cut. And can I just say, it is amazing what a little hair cut can do.

So Jenna did really well. We went over to the apartment of the girl (from church) that does my hair. She put on Cinderella and Jenna was in a trance. All she wanted was to watch the "Princess DBD".

To make things not too scary, McCall (same age as Jenna), sat beside her on a stool. It gave Jenna that extra moral support that she needed.

Afterwards, I couldn't stop telling Jenna how beautiful her new hair cut was . You can tell that she loved the compliment.

And here she is ready for a day on the town....well, just to go pick up Big Sister from school.

Cute, isn't she?!

President Hinckley

2008-01-28T14:40:00.001-06:00

President Gordon B. Hinckley passed away yesterday. He was an amazing man and a wonderful Prophet. Thanks to him, there is no longer just one temple in Texas. What a blessing that is.

I am greatful to have lived while he was the Prophet. Every time I think of the song "We Thank Thee Oh God for Our Prophet", I will always have him in my heart.

Christmas: Part One of a Three Part (possibly more) Series

2008-01-25T08:45:00.000-06:00

Yes, I realize that we are basically entering the month of February, but I am a procrastinator. So you are getting Christmas pictures now.

Our Christmas was broken up into 3 separate Christmas periods (shall we say). So the first was when Steve, Lori, and Spencer came up from San Antonio. For those who don't know, they are Ian's dad, step mom, and brother. Since we have moved to Coppell, we have been able to see them a couple of times which has been really fun. We hung out, did some presents, and welcomed Camille to Texas (Ian's youngest sister). She is living in New York now.

**** Because I am not really skilled when it comes to things dealing with the computer, I couldn't figure out how to find the pictures with her and the San Antonio Roberts'. So you'll just have to wait for her pictures until we are in Part Two of the Holidays.****

It was so great that they were able to come up. It allowed us to see all of our families (except the Millar's) over the Holiday break.

Here are the girls sporting there pink pj's and just being silly together.

This is Reagan with Spencer. They were hanging out on the couch watching Scooby Doo. Nothing says Christmas like Scooby Doo. :)

Reagan took several hilarious pictures of her Grandma Lori. But to show my kindness and love to Lori, I have decided not to put the pictures up. They really are HILARIOUS!!!

Grandpa Steve has a tendency to steal kisses from the girls. Jenna is finally brave enough to give them. Unfortunately, she didn't feel like posing with anyone for pictures (other than big sister). So it is basically all about Reagan in this post.

Broken Arms, Braids, Duckies, and Strep

2008-01-22T11:22:00.000-06:00

Well, as many of you already know, Reagan broke her arm. She was running in P.E. (holding hands with a friend) and tripped and fell. She broke her radial bone near the wrist. So she gets to wear a cast for 4 to 5 weeks. She was really sad about the whole thing. She really didn't want to wear a cast or a sling. So I got an idea to put patches on her sling to make it fun.

So this is the picture of Reagan with her sling pre patches.

And this this is the picture post patches. She has finally gotten used to the whole cast thing after 1 1/2 weeks.

The funny thing is that this happened the day that she returned to school after having the flu. So she went to school for a half day and then missed the rest of the week (due to doctor's orders).

We got really lucky because Old Navy was having a huge sale. So we bought a ton of long sleeves shirt and cut the right sleeve. We also found a jacket there that fits over her cast. Totally blessed!

One thing that we have discovered is that Reagan is still quite the little artist even with her left hand. She loves to draw and the cast just can't hold her back.

So when Reagan was little, I always put bows in her hair and had it done up in some way or another. I always figured that it didn't matter what I looked like as long as my baby looked beautiful (which in my opinion isn't hard considering how pretty she is---no bias at all, right). Well then there is the second child, Jenna. Poor thing, Mommy actually cares what she looks like these days which means Jenna is the last minute hair job. So I haven't played around too much with Jenna's hair. But for some reason, I started thinking about how I used to put Reg's hair in braid and thought, why not try it on Jenna. So here is a picture of Jenna's first ever braids.

Pretty decent for a wiggle worm.

And of course, Reagan wanted in on the braid photo shoot. So I quickly did her hair too.

Last night, I made some cookies and told the girls they could have some after their bath. At this point, Reagan wasn't up to put anything in her body (she felt horrible). But Jenna thought that her rubber ducky definitely needed a cookie. She walked around the house saying "Ducky need cookie!" over and over again. So I sat her down and cut her cookie in half. One half for Jenna and one half for Ducky. She fed Ducky his half and would occasionally take a bit to help him out. It was pretty funny. Needless to say, the duck's beak was covered in chocolate after "eating" his share.

Jenna had so much fun, I wouldn't be surprised if Ducky was sitting at the dinner table tonight.

Well, last night we were up the whole night. Reagan a had horribly high fever which we were having problems getting down. After a blessing and a dip in the tub, it went down slightly. I took her to the doctor this morning and found out that she has a bad case of strep. Her throat doesn't hurt. But she has fever, headache, vomiting, and an upset stomach. So after missing a week of school, Reagan is out of school for at least another 2 days (this isn't including other absences). This poor kid has been having back to back illnesses/accidents. I am hoping that the Spring weather will bring less illness for her. But I know that is just wishful thinking.

Now we'll just have to wait and see when Jenna and I get it. Oh the fun never ends!

The New Year!

2008-01-11T11:05:00.001-06:00

The New Year began with the girls staying at my parents' house while Ian and I enjoyed some parties in Dallas. It was a great way to start the year, spending some alone time with Ian.

Then.....

...the girls got sick! The flu is definitely not fun, especially when the caretaker ends up getting sick too. The good news is that Reagan is better. And Jenna and I are doing much better too. We aren't quite ourselves but we are improving.

Then...

(I don't have a picture of this yet but...) ....Reagan broke her arm!!!!!

Ian said it was a miracle that she had lasted this long without any broken limbs. Poor thing has my lack of athletic ability. She was running on a track during P.E. and fell. She broke her radial bone. She now has a bright hot pink cast. (I promise, there will be pictures soon.) She is definitely sad about having to wear a cast, a sling, and just not being able to do much. However, she is very excited that the doctor told her that she could not return to school until Monday. She is currently wearing one of my sweatshirts. Today we will find her 2 long sleeve shirts that we can make work with the cast.

The week and this new year have already been exhausting! Just ask Jenna....