Samantha

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!

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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!