the carter crew

Support for Smylie

2011-07-26T11:57:00.001-07:00

Summer Smylie was my college roommate and sorority Lil Sis. We haven't seen or spoken to each other in a few years but I still love her as much as I did when I saw her everyday. Her little brother Blane is several years younger than her and I have never actually met him. About 6 months ago Blane was involved in a car accident that broke almost every bone in his body. Only 2 weeks ago did his doctor release him to go back to work. Prior to going back he called his big sister and said he wanted to go to the lake before he had to go back to work. He lives in Weatherford, OK and Summer lives in Dallas so they met at Lake Texoma with Blanes girlfriend, Anita as well has his best friend and his girlfriend. For some reason, I'm not sure about yet, they were having trouble getting the boat out of the water. Blane decided to dive in to help. He did not know he was in water only waist high. Summer stated that as soon as he hit the water his body went limp and she knew what had just happened to her baby brother. Summer has a little lifeguard experience so was able to get into the water and turn him over so that he could breathe and stabilize him enough until the helicopter could land to transport him. Blane crushed his C6 and broke his C5. He was in surgery most of the day Sunday to try and repair his spine.

The latest report that I received on Tuesday was that Blane was able to bend his elbows and feel some touch on his legs but still unable to move his legs. His biceps are working but his triceps are not. He is not yet able to grip. He will be transported to Denver, CO as soon as the OKC ICU can stabilize his blood pressure, which as of today was really good.

Summer is not doing well. She is having all kinds of guilt and fear and grief. Blane's spirits are pretty good. For those of you who will read this please visit the facebook page Blane's friends have set up for him, Support for Smylie, and try to help in any way you can. If not monetarily, please pray!

Beau's Birthday & Mother's Day All Wrapped Up Into One

2011-05-16T13:12:00.000-07:00

First, I'll start with Beau's 2nd birthday. We decided on a Texas Ranger Baseball theme on a Thursday night. We cooked out hotdogs and had ball park nachos, peanuts, popcorn, sunflower seeds and bubblegum! It was a great time with great friends.

An amazing 4 days it was. Even though Brye had a Bachelor party to attend to almost the entire weekend, he still managed to pull off a great Mother's Day for me. We just planned to go eat lunch together and just spend the day together. I was putting a load of laundry in and Bex walks up to me with 4 tickets to a Rangers Game!! It was so fun and the best present.

And we're out!

A Run to Remember

2011-05-06T13:22:00.001-07:00

Four months ago I would have told you, I don't run; never have, never will. But I was given a challenge and took it. My oldest sister is a runner. A very good one. She found out about the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon and saw that there is a marathon relay. She gave us the challenge to run the relay. She told us about it in October of 2010 and we registered to run in November. At that time I immediately grabbed the shortest leg of the race, 3.1 miles, knowing good and well I was the least athletic of all my sisters. Of course, I procrastinated the workouts until early January. I started out as slow as possible running only for a minute or two at at a time. Surprisingly, those minutes extended rather quickly and I was able to run 3 miles within a short two months. I signed up to run a 5K in mid March to get a feel of what a race was like. I shocked myself to pieces when I ran that 5K in 32.32 and came in fourth place in my age division beating out my most athletic sister! I continued to run and got up to 4 miles in April!

Oklahoma City Marathon is here! Julie and I drove up to meet my dad, sisters and Whitney on Saturday, April 30. We picked up our packets, had a nice dinner and went to the hotel. First and foremost the hotel was NOT what we expected. We picked it off Expedia.com and was a dump. It wasn't dirty really, it was just old and not kept up to date. The noise barriers were non existent. We decided since we needed to be downtown with 25,000 other people by 5:45 the next morning a cab ride was our best bet.

The weather forecast for OKC on race day was not exciting. 50 degrees was the high, windy and 10% chance of rain. We prepared ourselves with sweatpants to keep us warm prior to our legs of the race. We all had matching t-shirts made for the race and the cutest red and white striped knee high socks!! We were the cutest team in the race!

The cabbie picked us up at 5:30 am and drove us to the First Methodist Church, where a free pancake breakfast was being held. We were standing outside the church, getting our bibs on when it started lightning and sprinkling. We decided to go inside the church for a minute and lucky thing, it starts pouring rain. And it did not stop. The marathon was postponed 30 minutes due to the lightning. We sat inside, drank a cup of coffee and waited. When it was getting closer to race time we got ready. Jodi went to the starting line and the rest of us went to try to watch the race begin. We counted down to the start then took off to find our bus.

Each leg of the relay was to catch a bus to the exchange point. It was still raining at this point, but not as badly. But it was still very cold. I found and got on my bus and waited in the nice warmth of it before heading off to our exchange. By the time we reached the relay exchange point it was 7:50. I knew Jodi's goal to finish her leg

of the race was an hour; so hopefully she is about finished and Julie is next. My exchange point was at the edge of a lake in a park. There was little to no shelter. The marathon committee had set up two canopy's with tables of food and water and our only shelter was to squeeze all 900 of us underneath them. My guess is only about 150 at a time fit. Lucky for me, I found a spot, but it was still freezing cold and I was in no way dry. I kept checking the time and realized around 9:15 I was going to have to brave the cold and rain and get out from underneath my shelter and look for Jennifer who was the third leg of the race. God smiled down on me and stopped the rain about that time. I kept looking for Jenn and praying for her to hurry. I looked up and just out of the corner of my eye saw her run right past me! I had to c

hase after her yelling her name, knowing she couldn't hear me because she had her headphones on! I hadn't yet taken my sweats off or got my iPod ready, but didn't have any time. She finally saw me and we made our exchange and I took off. It did NOT rain the entire time I ran! It was awesome. The people lining the streets cheering for us were amazing. I didn't feel tired at all. I did however have some cramping in my right quad muscle, but I pushed through. I also felt very slow. Lots of people passed me and right about the time I was finished running I realized these people are marathoners, they run a lot faster than me, who cares!

Earlier in the day I was complaining about having to drive home later that night all by myself. My dad looked at me and said I wasn't going to have to, that my best friend was coming to surprise me at the finish line. I almost started crying right then and there. And there she was, Jammi was standing at my finish line when

I crossed it! She said she was so proud of me and she just had to see me finish. I honestly wouldn't have been able to do this without her. She had watched Beau for me every Tuesday and Thursday for the past four months so I could run. She has been an angel.

So I hand my chip off to Whitney and head to the bus to get back to the finish line to watch her. By the time the bus took off it had started pouring again. When we reached downtown I just took off running again. I had spoken to Julie on the phone and she said they didn't want to wait for me any longer and just to head to the bleachers. I was trying to call her when I looked up and there they were right in front of me. Jenn was no where to be found! She didn't have her phone on her so we just had to watch Whit without her. As so

on as Whitney crossed the finish line; it was now 42 degrees, raining, winds 15-20 mph; we ran after her. Lo and behold, Jenn's right there! We grab Whitney and head to the church, our saving grace. There we get dry and warm and meet up with Aunt Susie and Dennis.

As we sit there we look up of chip times. My leg of the race ended up being about 3.5 miles. My goal was 35 minutes, my time was 34.59!! Our total time was 4:09. We unofficially placed 10th out of 72 teams in our division and 87th out of 900 overall! We are so proud of ourselves. Dennis and Susie have the Expedition so they drive us to the hotel so we can change clothes and go eat lunch.

This experience was a very challenging and emotional experience for me. Although my mom was not a victim of OKC, we still did this run for her. She would have been so proud of us and no doubt our number one fan. I love her and miss her terribly.

I'm not gonna stop running. My next goal is a 10K. Ev

entually I'm going to run a half marathon. I know I can do it and want to do it. Thank you, Jennifer for pushing me into this race and now this lifestyle. Love you!

Work Hazard

2011-04-19T22:07:00.001-07:00

Who would have thought becoming a stay at home mom would result in "workman's comp". I am proof. I have recently been diagnosed with de Quervain's Tenosynovitis. My husband will tell you I'm crazy but it's verifiably true. I woke up one morning in February with a terrible pain in my wrist/thumb. I assumed it was beginning arthritis given my family history, but after three to four days I called my doctor. X-rays were clear and I remained on anti inflammatories. When that didn't work I googled "wrist ligament pain" and came up with the above diagnosis and called none other than my dad. I went and bought myself a wrist/thumb brace with the advice of my semi doctor "daddy" in hopes that combined with the anti inflammatories it would go away.

Of course, when you wear a wrist brace people are going to ask questions. So in explaining my symptons one day to a good friend she simply said, "I bet you have de Quervain's Tenosynovitis! I told her that's exactly what google said!! She strongly urged me to go to a hand specialist as did my PCP who I originally saw. So I did. He confirmed the diagnosis. It is very common in women who are mothers to young children! It is due to the repetitive lifting of the the kids!! Who would've thought? He said 90% of the female clients he sees have this condition. It is simply corrected with a steroid shot. Go right ahead, doc. I've been in pain for 6 weeks and am ready to be better. So on Friday I got the shot. I'm 90% better but during the night I still have a lot of pain. Doc says to wear the brace at night and continue the anti inflammatories; call back in two weeks. Gosh I hope this works because surgery is not on my calendar!

The Joys of Boys (and I've only just begun)

2011-04-11T19:26:00.000-07:00

I got my first soccer ball in the face today and it made me realize it won't be my last . I am raising two boys after all. Funny thing is, it was my husband that did it. I love having boys. I'm sure the list below will get longer as the years go by and some of the things I love; I may grow to hate and some of the things I hate; I may grow to love.

nakedness

dirt

sword fights

pillow fights

food fights

running everywhere

anything can become a sword

pirates

cowboys

superheroes

pro athlete heroes

discussions about (pardon me) penises

hating girls

matching clothes (for now)

sharing a room

wrestling

swinging

cowboy boots

hunting

fishing

skiing

golfing

baseball

football

hockey

The Sandlot

The Little Rascals

busted lips

black eyes

snuggles

hugs

kisses

I could go on and on. I'm truly blessed by two wonderful, beautiful little boys. Thank you, Jesus and Brye!

2nd Annual Halloween Party (from Hell)

2010-10-26T08:20:00.000-07:00

Last year my good friend, Angie and I decided to have some friends over to paint pumpkins with the kids. We really had so much fun that this year we decided to go all out and have a big fun Halloween party. Thanks to Martha Stewart and Disney Family, we found really good looking and tasty foods for the party. We also decided that each kid bring a pumpkin to paint and wear their costume. We had bobbing for apples and other games as well. It took Angie and I almost the entire day before to prepare our food. Menu as follows:

Witch Cupcakes

Mummies

Eyeballs

Bones

Swamp Juice (add lemonade)

The agenda for the day was all planned out. A game first, pumpkin painting second, snacks, apple bobbing and making of their own caramel apples.

All the kids wore costumes so we gathered them up once everyone had arrived for a group photo. They were all so precious and actually cooperated well for the picture.

After the photo we instructed the kids to head outside for a game. They went and sat around the base of the tree in the backyard. Unknown to anyone there was a rather large fireant bed right at their feet and bottoms. I happened to be the first adult outside and noticed the ants all over Korbin, Bexley and Case. I grabbed the kids away from the ants and began to tear off socks and shoes. By this time they had all been bitten and were screaming. I didn't realize at this point that Maddie had sat in the fireant bed! Angie ran inside and got Calamine lotion and immediately put it on the kids bites. Then all of the sudden she said, I've got to take Maddie to the ER and left!! Left me there all alone with with 17 kids. Granted the other parents were there, but they had no clue what to do or what we had planned.

So at that point with the kids deathly afraid to go into the grass, we went inside for snacks. This seemed to calm everyone down; except for me. I was a wreck. I was running around not knowing what to do, shaking, trying to get food plates and drinks ready, etc. Thanks to Gil, Angie's brother for helping with the drinks or no one would have gotten one. After the kids ate we were able to go outside again. The girls began painting pumpkins while the boys bobbed for apples and vice versa. After everyone got their apple, I dipped them in the caramel for them.

Once the pumpkins were all painted and apples coated with caramel we played one more game (that did not end up so well). It was a twist to musical chairs. We had a ghost figurine that the kids were to pass around to music. Once the music stopped whoever had the ghost in their hands was eliminated. Should have thought about the consequences of eliminating 3 and 4 year olds from a game before we started. Gracyn ended up winning with Bexley in second along with a tantrum because he wanted to win. Ugh!!

All in all I think the kids had a great time. Dalton said the bobbing for apples was the funnest part of the party! Next year, dads are coming and there might be vodka in that swamp juice!!

Oh and Maddie, she was given a shot of epinephrine and prescribed an epi pen!

What a Summer

2010-09-07T11:00:00.001-07:00

I really wish I could keep up with this blog I started, but I can't. I can't keep up with laundry either, just ask my husband. We have had a fabulous, lazy summer. It was full of swimming, soccer, good cookouts and lots of friends.

Bexley played soccer for the first time this summer and had a blast. He is a fairly good soccer player and I can't wait until he's a bit older and can be more competitive. He received the award for "the most fun player" from his coach because no matter what, Bex was always having fun!

Bexley also learned how to swim this summer. He can actually jump off the diving board and swim to the side with NO HELP!! I am so proud of him, especially since we didn't even spend any money on lessons. He learned it all on his own; with a little help and coaching from mommy of course. Beau is also going to be a good swimmer. He loves the water and with floaties on in the baby pool, I can let him go and he can handle it on his own! The boys also enjoyed time on the slip and slide and water park with their besties.

Brye and I celebrated our 10 year wedding anniversary this year! Thanks to Rob and Jo for coming to spend the weekend with the boys we were able to get away. We left on a Saturday morning (after soccer, of course) and went shopping; which we never get to do alone anymore. We bought fancy clothes for our night out. We then went and checked in at The Mansions on Turtle Creek. A beautiful old hotel in uptown Dallas. Brye made reservations for us at a wonderful restaurant called Nick and Sam's. The manager found out about our special occasion and treated us to caviar, champagne, and a wine tasting. It was fabulous! We have had a wonderful 10 years together and I can't imagine my life without Brye and the two precious little boys he has given me. Brye has literally shown me the world and I have enjoyed every minute of it and can't wait for more!!

Beau got to enjoy his first "fishing" trip with daddy this summer too! Bex got to go with Brye a few times and even got to reel in some fish. We only caught two on this particular occasion, but they were big ones and I can't wait to eat them!

Beau has really taken on a wonderful personality. He is so funny and does this little nose crinkle when he smiles! He learned how to use a fork on his own and no doubt will take his brother down very soon. He has had a few black eyes and even chipped a tooth, thanks to Stella. He will be my rough and tumble, but me sweet one too. Man does he love to snuggle.

The rest of our summer was spent with our dear friends. We played in the park, fed the ducks and I got reunited with sorority sisters and their kids I hadn't seen in years. I cannot believe it is already over, however I look forward to seeing what the school year brings for Bexley and getting to spend some quality alone time with Beau. Welcome Fall!!

Florida

2010-06-03T15:09:00.000-07:00

Finally, a family vacation. A REAL one. Thanks to Brye's job, he gained enough Rapid Rewards to get us three free airline tickets to anywhere in the continental USA. So we took advantage and booked a flight to Florida! We figured a shorter trip would be better for the boys so we flew out from Dallas to Ft. Lauderdale on a Thursday morning. We spent two days in Ft. Lauderdale just beachin' it up then drove to Ft. Myers and Sanibel Island on Saturday.

The flight to Florida went great. It happened to be timed right at naptime so Beau was tired and slept almost the entire way. We enjoyed shrimp at the Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. the first night and just strolled along the beach on the way back to the hotel. We spent the next day on Ft. Lauderdale beach, just enjoying each other. Bex loved swimming in the waves although they were pretty high and he couldn't get very far. That night we went to a wonderful restaurant for dinner and on the way home Brye and I spotted a guided fishing boat. We checked out the prices, "just to see" and it so happened the boat was expected to leave for an eight hour tour "right now". It was only $65, which was really cheap. I told Brye to go for it as I knew he'd never get the chance again. So he did! The boys and I strolled back to the hotel and had an early night. Brye didn't get home until around 4:30 AM!! The boys were up on their normal schedule at 7:30. I tried so hard to keep them quiet, but was commonly unsuccessful. Brye eventually got up and took a taxi to the airport to get us a rental car and then we headed to Ft. Myers.

Bex in Ft. Lauderdale

Beau

Bex and Brye building Sand Castles

I had never been to Florida so the drive from Ft. Lauderdale to Ft. Myers was really amazing to me. The Everglades is not exactly what I expected. I don't know why I always pictured more tropical scenery than just vast grass and what I call swamp lands. I was corrected on the last day of the trip that The Everglades is not swamp. We spent the day driving and taking in the scenery and sights of Florida and Sanibel Island. We got checked into our hotel and strolled the beach. On Sunday, we had a wonderful day on Ft. Myers beach. The weather was really great. It did rain for about 2 minutes, but that did not stop Bexley from swimming. The ocean waves were not big, so Bex was able to really play in the water. Beau even enjoyed it a lot. We could hardly keep him out of it.

Bex running along Sanibel Island

Bex playing in the Gulf at Ft. Myers Beach

After our day at the beach, the boys took a nap and I scheduled a Pirate Cruise for us to take. It was so much fun. Bex was very apprehensive at first and even began to cry at one point because he was scared of the pirates. We bribed him with a real pirate sword and he was good after that. He even got to have one of the pirates paint a Jolly Roger tattoo on his arm. He got to pick out "treasures" from the treasure chest, and play games with the other kids and pirates. He was even brave enough in the end to take his picture with the Captain. It was well worth it. After the Pirate Cruise we met one of Brye's old co-workers for dinner. It was so nice to see him again. He was such a dear friend when we were living in the UK. He kind of "took care" of us, showed us around London and really made us feel comfortable with living 5,000 miles away from home. We had such a great time in Florida. The flight home was not as great as the flight there. Beau was just exhausted and didn't want to sit still. He wasn't screaming so much as just constantly moving, which made me and Brye exhausted as well. We were glad to be home.

Beau's First Birthday!!

2010-06-03T14:37:00.001-07:00

So this post is way overdue as are many others, but better late than never.

My baby is ONE! I can't believe it. It seems such a short time ago he was such a tiny little infant. I have loved every single minute of his short life and cannot wait to see what the next years will bring. Since Beau was so lucky to be born on May 5 (Cinco de Mayo) we decided to incorporate some culture into his party. Poor guy is gonna get Mexican food on his birthday every year for the rest of his life. Reminds me of when I was young. My birthday happens to fall on Feb. 13th, so I always ended up with a strawberry cake; and many times in the shape of a heart. I used to get irritated, but now I can totally see where my mom was coming from! So we had fajitas, a pinata, and maracas as party favors! We borrowed a bounce house from Jodi; invited 10 of our closest friends and their kids which sounds like not that many but 10 of our closest friends turns into 20 because they are couples. With their kids (everyone has at least two) we ended up with about 40 people at the party! It was a blast. The weather cooperated; Brye was a genius with the food and it was a great day. I wish I had taken more pictures, but I was in the moment and just didn't.

We had a second party for Beau at his paternal grandparents over Mother's Day weekend. It was Kemp's college graduation as well. Congratulations Kemp!!! It was nice. My dad and sister, Jennifer got to come with her kids and our good friends, the Grishams joined us. It was short and sweet and a really good time. His second taste of chocolate cake was a little messier than the first, which was fun. Thanks to the grandparents spoiling him as usual, the car was loaded down with toys on the way home.

Beau learned how to walk about two weeks before he turned one. He has gotten really good at it and can pretty much run if he wants. He can also climb the stairs which is very scary, but he loves to play upstairs in his room or Bexley's room. He loves tomatoes, cheese, and grapes. His favorite word is "cracker" and anything in a box is a cracker. He does love crackers too! Banana's are an all time favorite as are Eggo waffles. His laugh is just like his mommas "cackle" and he has eight beautiful teeth that light up the room when he smiles. His eyes are as blue as the ocean and his hair as white as cotton. He is more beautiful than I could ever have imagined him to be. And yes, he looks just like his daddy. I love him so much.

The Innocence of a Child

2010-04-21T10:58:00.000-07:00

Last night I was doing my Bible Study and Bexley, as always, wanted me to read his bible to him. I told him I would when I was finished. He then started asking questions about God, Jesus and living in the clouds. I'm not sure exactly how he worded it but at one point he asked how we get to live in the clouds with Jesus. I had no idea how to explain it to a three year old so I simply just said, "we have to die". He said, "i don't want to die". I told him I didn't want him to die either but explained to him that if he did, he would get to see Nonnie!! He then asked how we get up there; if we fly. I said, "no baby, it's complicated". He innocently looked at me and said, "God just grabs us by our wings!" I immediately had the biggest smile on my face and tears running down my face at the same time. That's exactly right. He knows Nonnie is his special angel and that one day he will be one too. It's as simple as that. If only we could all see the world as a three year old does.

2010-01-26T16:04:00.000-08:00

Two years ago today my life was turned upside down. Two years ago today my mother died. Since 6:00 pm last night, I have relived every single moment of my last days with her. I know I shouldn't do that to myself, but in a way it helps. It's amazing to me how I can recall details like it was yesterday. I remember what I was wearing, what I ate, what I said to her when I left the hospital that night. I remember packing her bags for the hospital thinking she'll need something comfortable but presentable because she'll have visitors. When I cry, sometimes I cry because I am so jealous that she is in Heaven with our Lord praising him like I know she always wanted to. Sometimes I cry because I am so sad that my children are not going to know her. Bexley got to meet her but he was barely a year old when she died; he'll never remember how much she loved him, and as much I tell him, he'll never understand how special he was to her. Most of the time I cry because I just miss her so much. I miss calling her with recipe questions, with medical questions or with parenting questions. No matter what, she was always right. I miss her hands, her smile and her skin. I miss the way she smelled of latex gloves when she came home from work or of onions after cooking dinner. I especially miss the way she would laugh until she wet her pants!! Words can never express how special my mother was and that's what I'm most afraid of. I will not ever be able to share with my children how special she was. She was not only the best mother, but the best wife and I can only dream of being the kind of wife to my husband that she was to my dad. Most people knew my mother as a nurse and a wonderful nurse she was. She was an even better mom. I miss her more and more everyday. She was my biggest fan and the best role model I ever had. Now I have comfort knowing that she is now my Guardian Angel. I love you, Mom.

What A Christmas

2010-01-08T08:04:00.001-08:00

Well this year was probably one of the most memorable Christmases EVER! Brye and I decided last year that Santa would be coming to our house from now on instead of Grandparents. It was very hard for me to make that adjustment given that the rest of my sisters would be at my dad's for Christmas morning. Our plan this year was to wake up Christmas morning, have our family Christmas then drive to Childress for Christmas with my family. Due to Brye's work schedule we were not going to be able to make it all the way up to Canyon this year, so Brye's parents decided to come to McKinney to spend Christmas here with us! They arrived on Wednesday afternoon and Jo and I made Christmas candy together and got to do some last minute shopping. Christmas Eve day it began to snow some. It rained a bit first then a few flurries came here and there. We again had some errands to run so about 1:00 pm while we were out and about my sister Julie sent me a text. She and her family had set out for Childress around noon that day. Her text stated they had to pull over and ditch the luggage rack from on top of the car due to the blizzard. They were packed full! She said they were only about an hour away!! The snow started to get thicker here and only about 30 minutes later Jodi called. The highway to Childress was now shut down. She and her family who were also on their way to Childress were just entering Dallas. They have a six month old and didn't want to risk it by continuing on and were too far to turn back around. She asked if they could stay with us tonight. Of course! I wouldn't have it any other way. Julie and her family were now stuck on the highway somewhere between Decatur and Wichita Falls. Every now and then we would get a text from her, they haven't moved, they had moved at maybe 5 miles an hour. The snow here was really starting to come down. Jodi and her family got to our house around 3:00 pm. Julie had still not budged on the road. At 5:28 pm Julie's text said they still had not moved at all. It was beginning to get dark and now we were worried. Brian passed around a 12 pack of Coke to other stranded passengers on the road. Throughout the evening still no movement. I have never felt so hopeless. All I wanted to do was go and get them or take them some coffee or hot cocoa, but nothing could be done. Semi trucks were jack-knifed and blocking any flow of traffic. Rescue crews could not get to them and snow plows were getting stuck as well. At one point Julie stated they reached the Jolly truck stop which was only about 15 miles from Wichita Falls. They were stopping to rest, bathroom, etc, but as soon as they pulled in all the power went out. There were stranded people everywhere; out of gas! Finally around 11:00 pm Brye read online that the military was going to send 10 HumV's out to help. It had only been 12 hours!! We had to go to bed and no sleep was to be had. The worry of my sister and her babies out in the middle of no where was too much. We awoke, or got out of bed rather, around 7:00 am and I had a voicemail from Brian's sister from 3:30 am stating Brian and Julie's cell phones were dead and she was trying to reach my dad to let him know. I called her immediately and asked what was going on. She said they reached a Wichita Falls around 3:00 am and by the grace of God found a hotel room and stayed the night. I just broke down in tears. They were safe and warm! I called my dad and told him the news and he too just cried. It was a feeling of relief I have never felt before. I've never in my life been so worried and helpless and hope to never experience it again.
The snow here was beautiful and we had a great White Christmas morning. Santa brought presents for the boys and filled stockings for the girls as well. He took their big presents to Childress ;). We spoke to Julie and she informed us that Santa came to the hotel!! The Highway Department was still reporting road closures around Wichita Falls so we took our time getting ready to leave. Julie and Brian set out around 10 am for Childress from WF. We headed out around noon. We were cruising pretty well until we reached Bowie, then all the sudden the roads became nothing but ice! It was horrible. Traffic slowed to a crawl of about 5 to 10 mph, stopping every now and then. I began counting cars on the side of the road. It was an amazing sight. There were even cars that I assume had run out of gas just sitting in the middle of the road. We reached Wichita Falls and the bridge to enter was at a stand still. Jodi was a bit ahead of us and said to take the 287 loop around the city so we did. The roads on the other side of Wichita Falls were not much better. We finally reached Electra and as quickly as the road became icy, it became clear. Our normal four hour drive to Childress was already at 4 hours and we were still 1 1/2 hours away. We finally made it to Childress around 7:00 pm. Julie and Brian got there around 4:00. It was such a relief to be home. Brye and I had questioned if it was worth it but I couldn't imagine not being there with the rest of my family so yes, it was worth it! The rest of our weekend was great. We had good food, great quality time with everyone and the cousins had a blast together. Needless to say, the drive home went by very fast!! However, when we approached DFW Bexley started to notice the snow had melted and he himself had a meltdown. We scraped together the snow that was left on the ground and made a tiny little snowman! He loved it.
Oh and the final stranded tally?
Cars: 195 (and I am not kidding!)
Semis: 35
Snowplows: 1
Dropped trailers: 3
Snowmen: 2

Bexley's 3!!!

2010-01-06T11:35:00.000-08:00

My little Bexley is now three years old. It has gone by so fast and I am loving this age. Bex is such a talker and can really carry on a good conversation. I so wish I would write down some of the things he says so I'll never forget. One of my favorites that I can think of right now is if I get upset with him and raise my voice or punish him in any way, he'll simply ask, "Momma, you happy?" If I say no, he'll respond with, "hugs make us happy" and give me the biggest hug ever. Sometimes, I tell him I'm not happy just to get a great big hug. He is absolutely amazing and LOVES his momma. He loves his daddy, too, don't get me wrong, but man is he attached to me. He is still attending school two days a week and recently had his Thanksgiving program. Needless to say, he did not actually participate besides standing where he was supposed to and staring at the crowd. A little stage fright never hurt anyone, just ask Barbara Striesand. My dad, Poppa, was able to come down for Bex's birthday this year which was a lot of fun. Matt and Tanya and Bentley also got to be here. We had a pancake breakfast and everyone got to make their own pancakes. We had chocolate chips, cinnamon apples, blueberries, and bananas. They turned out really good. Grandpa and JoJo didn't make it this year but came for Thanksgiving the following weekend so he got to open more presents!! We splurged on the little guy this year and finally got him that four-wheeler he'd been wanting. We had promised it to him for successfully potty training but when your birthday is two months away, I had to hold off. He has enjoyed his four-wheeler a lot, but now that the weather is getting pretty cold, it's been parked in the garage for a while.

Bex is becoming such a good big brother too. He and Beau are now taking baths together and Bexley asks almost every night if Beau can sleep with him. Not too much longer, Buddy and he can. I can't imagine my life without my Bex. He makes me laugh and has taught me so much about patience and parenting :) Love you as big as the sky Buddy!!

Halloween; better late than never

2010-01-06T11:24:00.001-08:00

So once again, another update. At least its something, huh? Let's see, my last post was October 28th so that means I am behind by 4 holidays and a birthday! How am I ever going to catch up. First things first; Halloween. Not much to say really. We trick or treated with Julie, Jordan and Case in our neighborhood this year, which was a lot of fun. The weather was great, the kids had too much candy and the dad's, well, they got to stay home and pass out candy. In addition to Halloween night, we also attended Fall Festival at the country club with the Palmers. Bex and Korbin had a blast hula hooping, getting faces painted and in the bounce house. The Haunted House was not so fun. Here are a few pictures, but most can be found on facebook.

Just catching up

2009-10-28T10:28:00.000-07:00

Gosh, I didn't realize it had been so long since I last blogged. So I'm going to try and catch up as much as possible. In early October we visited our friends, Matt and Tanya in Houston for their daughter Bentley's 3rd birthday. We always have so much fun when we go to visit them even if we don't do anything! Bentley and Bexley get along pretty well, as well as two three year olds can. Here's a few pictures of them "cruisin" in Bentely's new Escalade!

Beau is growing up so fast. I realized not too long ago that it was time to start practicing with him sitting up. It took only one day and he was a pro. He can sit up for many minutes and plays with his toys well. Once he is down that kid can roll all over the house; but only in one direction! It is so funny when he gets up against a solid surface and can't get out. It makes him so mad. He is a great kid; now if only I could get him to sleep through the night. He is still waking up once sometimes twice a night. For no reason other than to get his pacifier back and for mom to pat his bottom.

He now has his two bottom teeth! With that said, I have officially stopped breastfeeding. It's been pretty depressing, but Beau seems to have adjusted very well. He is eating his rice cereal like a champ and gets very excited when he sees his bottle coming. Now daddy can have more bonding time with him and Bexley also loves to help feed him. He's becoming a great big brother.

Our friends, Angie and Maddie invited us over one day for pumpkin painting. It was a lot of fun and got us all into the spirit of Halloween!

Before,

During,

After: notice there is more paint on the table than on the pumpkin.

Bexley got to wear his Halloween costume to school this morning. I've had this costume for two years now because when I saw it I had to buy it and he hasn't been able to wear it until this year. They also had a "Science Fair" at school today. They had three projects to show us. The first one was dropping water on a penny. They were to count how many drops they could put on the penny until the water rolled off the edge. Then they were to drop soapy water on the penny and count how many drops of the soapy water they could put on until it ran off the edge. They could get more of the regular water than the soapy water. This was Bexley's favorite project. Secondly, they took a ball of clay and dropped it in water. It sank right to the bottom. Then they took the clay and rolled it out flat and dropped it into the water and it floated! Lastly, they dropped paper clips and squares of paper towels into water. The paper clips would sink to the bottom "unless" they were dropped on the floated paper towels! It was fun. Here' as few pics of Bex and his friends this morning.

Bexley the Alligator!

Bex concentrating very hard on his water dropping.

Dropping the water again. That's Bella in the back, they are good friends!!

Korbin, Bexley and Dalton AKA Tony Romo, Alligator and Spiderman

Bex and Korb

Friends, Fun, and Food

2009-09-29T08:31:00.000-07:00

We have had a most productive and fun filled weekend. Brye actually said, "I wish every weekend could be like this!" It started off Friday evening. Our good friends Dan, Susie, Alan and Suzy (it gets complicated) had a Beatles Rockband Party. We were each to bring an English dish to share. Brye and I made Bangers and Mash with Sweet Onion Gravy and I made Cranberry Scones as well. It was so good, thanks to our good friend Jamie Oliver or The Naked Chef as some of you may know him. I bought a couple of his cookbooks when we were living in the UK but had never actually used them. The Bangers and Mash were delicious. Oh and for those of you who don't know, Bangers are Cumberland Sausages; Mash is of course mashed potatoes. The Scones recipe I got from my dear friend Sharon. She is a Scottish native and one of the best cooks I know. I also know she'll read this soon so I'm publicly thanking you Sharon for the recipe, it was delicious; and easy. Dan and his Susie made a Steak and Guinness Stew that was equally as yummy. Alan and his Suzy brought appetizers, Double Glouster (i know i spelled that wrong) Cheeses and such. We had a delicious dinner. Then the fun began. . . . The Beatles Rockband!!! All Beatles songs performed as well as you can. I of course, was on the microphone almost the entire night. I felt like a mic hog, but it was too much fun. Dan was best on the drums and Brye on the guitar. However, I have to sadly admit my husband, as much as I love him, does not have much musical talent. He tried singing; I don't think we'll ever have us a karoake date. Alan did some guitaring and Suzy some singing as well. It was great fun and we have decided we are having a "theme" party once a month. We'll see if it actually works out.

Saturday began bright and early at 8:00 am, thank you Bexley. I did laundry most of the day and Brye powerwashed the driveway, sidewalks and fence! CASA of Collin County had a Rummage Sale that I went to for a little while Saturday morning. Beau got some clothes and Bex got a remote control helicopter that he and his daddy are thoroughly enjoying. I'm not sure what the grand total of money collected was but around 4:00 pm CASA had made around $1500!! Great Job everyone. Saturday night Holly and Zac hosted dinner for us. They made a wonderful lasagna with garlic bread and salad. Zac had made a homemade Vinegrette dressing that was AWESOME. Then for dessert, coffee with homemade whipped cream, again made by Zac. It was the best whipped cream I'd ever eaten. I think we had more whipped cream than coffee! The guys ventured off into the living room to watch the football game (Tech vs. UH). So us girls just talked and laughed til we cried. Angie's mom graciously watched Bexley and Maddie for us and it was so nice and quiet!! Of course, I forgot my camera to both occasions.

Sunday continued with church and a wonderful two hour nap for ALL FOUR of us. Brye finished powerwashing, I finished laundry and we had a great day.

Now on to a completely different note. Brye and I have been asked along with five other couples to be New Member Ambassadors at the country club. It's a new program they've started where current members like ourselves are assigned to new members to mentor them, introduce them to the club and others and get them involved. It's kind of a big deal and an honor to be asked to do this. We were surprised but thrilled to do it. We haven't yet been assigned a new member but hope to soon.

I've also joined a bookclub with some of my former colleages including two judges, several attorneys and friends. We have been given our first book and our first meeting is October 28th. I'm really excited to be a part of it and hope I don't look silly amongst all the brilliant people who are in the group!

Bexley is doing really good in "preschool". His teachers told me on Monday he was so smart and asked if I worked with him at home!! HA, that's the exact reason I sent him to preschool. Because I DON"T work with him at home and was afraid he'd be behind. They said that when they read and ask questions most of the kids give them blank stares, but Bexley always speaks up. I'm so proud of him.

We Did It!!!

2009-09-12T15:36:00.000-07:00

It has been one busy week for us. First things first, I can now say Bexley is officially potty trained. It only took us a couple of weeks, but today he proved himself. We were running errands and while at the post office Bexley said, I'm tee teeing, which means he has to tee tee. There was only one restroom at the post office and someone was in it so Bex had to hold it and he did! I am so proud of him. We did it! Here's a picture I captured that he'll hate me for someday!

On top of this Bexley started preschool this week. He is going two days a week at our church. He has been excited to go but since I started staying home he has become quite clingy and doesn't want mommy to leave him. When we were discussing school the night before he asked, "Mommy are you going to stay with me?" I said no and he said, "is daddy gonna stay with me?", I said no and he said, "is Kyle (our good friend and Bex's bff''s dad) gonna stay with me?", I said no and he didn't like that he was going to be by himself. When I dropped him off he pouted his bottom lip but didn't cry. I couldn't get any really good pictures in his classroom because I didn't want him to get upset. He had a great day at school and his teacher said he was quiet!! WHAT? If only he'd be quiet at home.

After Bexley's first day of school I made a very quick road trip to Childress/Amarillo to pick up our new car! We have a good friend who is a car salesman in Amarillo that got us a great deal on a used Escalade. It was a quick trip and an 8 hour car ride on Thursday for me and the boys. I will not do that again, however I LOVE my new car. It is really nice and BIG. Thanks Brye for working this deal out for us. Bexley however, misses the blue car. He threw a tantrum once when he realized the blue car was gone. H swears it was bigger, HA it was a Civic! I do miss my Civic too, but I don't think I'll miss it much longer.

Beau is just doing great. He is growing so fast. He had his four month well check and is 15 pounds now. He is rolling over like crazy but refuses to sleep through the night still. He still wakes up a few times a night, just because. Not becuase he's hungry, just because. The pediatrican says to let him cry it out, so we'll be trying that now. He is eating rice cereal and doing really well with that. He seems to like it and has no problem eating it. He smiles all the time especially when you play with his arms and hands. I just love him to death.

Potty Training. . . UGH!!

2009-08-17T12:20:00.000-07:00

I've decided it's time for hard core potty training. Bexley has been randomly going to the potty for quite some time but everytime we try underwear he always has an accident. So this week is the week. Bex and I made a trip to the Dollar Store and bought $15 worth of toys that he picked out. We are calling these his "Potty Prizes" and if he goes to the potty all day, he gets a prize. I added suckers, too and he can have those whenever. We started with Pull-Ups over the weekend and besides bed time and nap time he is doing good as long as I keep making him go every hour or so. That seems to be the hardest part; reminding myself to remind him to go. We've had one true accident because he fell asleep in his underwear before I knew it and wet the bed. Then at the swimming pool, literally less than five minutes after he went to the potty he wet his pants while waiting in line for the diving board. We've had no poo poo accidents, thank you, Lord! Today is our first official day in underwear. I have to admit he is the cutest thing ever in his little undies. I'm still nervous about going out in public in underwear. Bex hasn't yet made the initiative to go to the potty himself, it's always me. I have to say, I'm pretty proud of him so far. Our goal is to be finished by the time he starts preschool on Sept. 9. We still have a long way to go.

Bex opening his first package of big boy underwear!!

Great Summer Day. . .Or maybe not

2009-08-12T19:46:00.000-07:00

We had such a great day last Friday. Julie had received three free Jump'n Land tickets from her school so we had to use them up before summer ended. Jump'n Land is an indoor play area full of bounce houses and those huge inflatable slides.

It was a lot of fun, Bexley ran all over the place. We were just about to leave and I heard Bex screaming and thought for sure he and Case were fighting again (as they always do). So I go over to referee and notice a kid who looks about 5 or 6 laying ON TOP of my little 2 year old trying to get a basketball away from him. This was the first time I have ever gotten on to a kid that I wasn't related to. He was giving me one of those grins like, "you're not the boss of me". Well, when I got the ball and gave it back to Bexley he tried to take it away from him again right in front of me!! Finally Grandma came over and I explained to her that this kid was laying on top of my two year old and that Bex checked the ball out from the front desk and has had the ball for over an hour. She said "I'm sorry". I was so angry I was shaking for about 30 minutes! I cannot believe a kid that old would think it was okay to do that to a toddler. But just look at the smile on his face!!

Later that day we went to a Frisco Rough Riders game. We got the cheap seats in the grass so Bex could run around, we could take Beau in the stroller and not have a care in the world. You can see in the pictures below how the kids like to be right up agains the fence. Well, Bexley and this one little boy were both on the fence and both wanted to go past each other but neither one would move. So, the other little boy reared back and punched Bexley right in the stomach. His mother came flying down to him and he really got in trouble and was made to apologize to Bexley. His mother turned around and she was a lady I had worked with about six years ago at CPS!! She was so embarassed. Bexley wasn't hurt, didn't cry or care for that matter. I guess this is not going to be the last time he gets bullied, is it? In spite of all of that we had a really great day.

Growing UP

2009-08-06T12:47:00.000-07:00

Can you believe my baby is already three months old? I can't believe it's been that long already. Beau is doing great. He is eating great and sleeping great, only getting up once during the night, and is just a joy to be around. He is "talking" a lot and has recently started giggling. He also likes to blow spit bubbles!! He follows mommy around the room with his eyes and his new favorite spot is the Bumbo! Just Monday, I cleaned out the newborn clothes and replaced them with the 3-6 month clothes. Thankfully Bexley was a pretty neat kid and I still have a lot of really good clothes for Beau. It's so weird to see Beau in Bexley's old clothes; it sure brings back memories of when Bex was a baby. In just one short month Beau will be eating that yummy rice cereal!! Can't wait to capture those pictures.

Above: Bexley at three months old (Bex has always been Mr. Photogenic)

Below: Beau at three months old (that's the best smile I could get)
They look nothing alike!

Your Weekend Play by Play

2009-08-03T17:42:00.000-07:00

Brye and I have not had a weekend alone without our boys EVER! So when we got the wedding invitation we jumped at the chance to get away. My good friend Niki from college got married in Atlanta, GA on August 1, 2009, so Brye and I made a weekend getaway out of the event. Thankfully, Brye's parents jumped at the opportunity to spend the weekend with the boys and I cannot thank them enough for taking such great care of them while we were gone.

FRIDAY, JULY 31. 2009

When we booked our flight there were no seats together so we were scheduled to sit one in front of the other on the plane. We got to the airport and Brye kindly asked the gate check in lady if there was any way she could put us together. She said she was busy and that she would hold on to our boarding passes and see what she could do. We went and got coffee and when we came back she handed us two FIRST CLASS boarding passes! FREE UPGRADES! It was so nice. We had lots of space and free lunch. And I have to admit the lunch was really good. Barbeque Chicken Pizza! We did however sit on the tarmack for an hour due to the weather in Atlanta, but it went by really fast. We got to Atlanta and our lugguge was the first one the conveyor belt, how cool is that?! We got our rental car and headed to the hotel. We got checked in, changed clothes, and headed to the Braves vs. Dodgers game! We rode the Atlanta MARTA, which is their subway/train. It took us to the Atlanta Underground and WOW, what a place. Not in a good way either. It was a whole other culture. It's a small mall under the ground with locals just hanging out doing nothing. You basically have to go through the underground to get to the stadium shuttle buses that take you to the front gate of Turner Field. We had awesome seats. Seventh row behind the home dugout. It did rain on us a little, but thanks to the $3.00 emergency ponchos we remained dry. The Braves lost 5 to 0 but it was a lot of fun!

I can't figure out how to caption my photos! So from top to bottom: Turner Field, Our Aisle Guy Andy, Chipper Jones, Manny Ramirez, Brye and I, Brye eating a wonderful Ball Park hotdog, Atlanta Braves Friday Night Fireworks.

SATURDAY AUGUST 1, 2009

We didn't have any plans for the day except for the wedding that night so we slept in and decided to just do a little shopping around. We went to Lenox Square which is a ritzy little shopping mall. We ate at the California Pizza Company then did a little shopping. The mall had a Bloomingdale's, Nieman Marcus, etc. We bought a few things but when Brye couldn't find a tie under $40 we decided to go to TJ Maxx! Can't beat a bargain, plus it was tax free weekend! After shopping we went back to the hotel and got ready for the wedding!!

The wedding was really nice. My friend Niki grew up Catholic so Brye and I were prepared for a very lengthy ceremony and crazy reception. I haven't spoken to Niki in about a year so when we got to the wedding we found out she and her husband were no longer Catholic. They have joined this very quaint little non denominational church and are very involved. The ceremony lasted about 20 minutes and the reception was very nice. We had wonderful food and danced a lot. It was a great time!

SUNDAY AUGUST 2, 2009

Today we decided to do the touristy thing and went to the Georgia Aquarium. We looked up Spa's and seriously considered a couple's massage, but it was a little pricey. The Aquarium was really nice. It was very big and had huge whale sharks and beluga whales! After the Aquarium we ironically had seafood at Legal's Seafood. It is famous for serving its clam chowder at every Presidential Inauguration since Reagan! From here we went to a movie, something we hadn't done in about two years! We saw Funny People with Adam Sandler and sadly I would not recommend this movie. It did have some funny scenes and had a really good story line but the language was really terrible and offensive. After the movie we went back to the hotel to get ready for dinner with the bride and groom. We had the most wonderful dinner with Niki and Brent. We got caught up on the past few years and of course reminisced on the old college days. It was a blast.

MONDAY AUGUST 3, 2009

Happy Birthday Brye!! Today Brye turned 31 years old. We had a late morning flight so we headed out pretty early for the airport. We had breakfast at the airport and got checked in. While at the gate there were two separate families with small and loud children. We have a running joke around here that everyone is always out to get Brye. He says he has a "black cloud" hanging over him and that people target him. Jokingly, I told Brye the little boy crying at the gate was going to be sitting behind him. Funny enough that little kid was in front of us and the other family was behind us. We were sandwiched between flying hell. Even the 13 year old kid sitting beside me said, "that's going to be annoying after a while". It was the only thing he said for the entire two hours!! Well it was worse than we expected. The kids behind us were not bad, they were just loud. They were playing video games and laughing and having a good time; too good of a time. The kids in front of us did great until landing time when the four year old who was separated from her mom by the aisle began to scream bloody murder. She was getting scared and wanted her mother and couldn't get up beause we were landing. I wasn't annoyed so much with the little girl as I was the adults on either side of the child and her mother that wouldn't trade places so they could sit together! She finally calmed down and the remainder of the flight was fine.

We finally made it home and having Bexley run to me in the airport was the most amazing feeling in the world! We had a great time, but I am so glad to be home with my boys. Jo, Brye's mom had made Brye a birthday cake so Bexley and I got to light candles and sing Happy Birthday to Brye after dinner and presents. Bex thought it was the funnest thing, but wondered where his birthday cake was. It was a wonderful weekend and I'm so glad we got to go. Thanks Brye!

Whoops, here it is.

2009-07-07T19:23:00.001-07:00

So I've consummed my life with facebook. Yes I'll admit it, I'm a facebook addict. So much so that I have neglected this blog. It's been over a month since I've posted. Baby Beau is growing up beautifully. He is officially two months old and growing like a weed. He is in the 67% of height at 12 lbs, but poor thing is a shrimp at only 22 inches long making him in the 25%. Oh well, he can still have a growth spurt! He is doing so good, he is "talking" and smiling a lot. He loves to play pat a cake and smiles every time. He's not liking tummy time too much, but will do it for a short time. He officially slept all night last from 9:30 pm to 6:30 am! I wonder if he'll keep it up? His eyes are still very blue! I can't believe I might have two blue eyed little boys! Bexley is doing a lot better with him than he did the first few weeks. He asks every morning when he wakes up, "Where's Beau?". He calls him his baby. I can't wait for them to actually play together.

I've been taking Bexley to the Library every Wednesday just to get him out of the house and in some routine as well as to keep him focused on reading, etc. He really enjoys it and we are meeting new friends. I'm hoping to keep it up for a while although we'll have to change days come September. He is starting Preschool!! I can't not have him doing something after all he learned at daycare. He will be attending the preschool at our church two days a week. I'm so excited and he is too. He already talks about it. The curriculum consists of Spanish, Fitness, Music and Chapel! I'm going to have to refresh my own Spanish to keep up!

I decided to try my hand in sewing recently. I've been wanting Roman Shades for my kitchen and I found some fabric that I loved and bought it on impulse. So I went to JoAnn's with no clue what I was doing. I found this really cool Roman Shade kit which including all the hardware I needed and very simple instructions. I started my journey sewing and let me be the first to admit I cannot sew a straight line to save my life. Yes, I know there is a guide on the sewing machine but I have a heavy foot and go too fast and before you know it, I'm completely off the line. I completed one (the small one) shade and it doesn't look too bad, only three inches too short!! I guess I'll just have to keep it pulled up. I'll try to get a picture of that soon.

We had a really good fourth of July weekend. Brye's parents and brother and sister in law came down to enjoy the holiday with us. We spent the morning at the McKinney parade, the afternoon relaxing and the evening at the fireworks show. We swam some at the Country Club and I can't believe how great Bexley is swimming! He can jump off the diving board and come up out of the water on his own. He can't keep it up, but that's a great start!

We also enjoyed a weekend at the lake recently with the family. Everyone was there except for Jodi. She just had her third little girl, Josie, so she was not able to come. My mom's brother and his wife joined us as well as my moms sister and husband and my cousin and her daughter. It was a lot of fun and Bexley is a maniac in the water. He even rode the intertube, at full speed, with his cousin Connor! I couldn't believe how brave he was. Of course, I didn't have my camera on the boat, so no pictures this time. I'll get him again before the summer's over. I left my camera at the lake :-( so I'll have to post these pictures another time.

I'm posting this from my new laptop that I got for my anniversary, thank you, Brye! I have no pictures on here so until I get them all transferred you can check them out on Facebook!

I think we're all caught up for now. I'll do my best not to fail you all and keep you more up to date. Until next time!

maybe we should move????

2009-06-02T12:16:00.000-07:00

If you keep up with my blog you'll remember the night Brye saw two young men sitting in his truck at 1:00 am. Well, yesterday as I was getting ready to go shopping with Jennifer I heard a loud noise followed by a house alarm. Didn't think anything of it, house alarms go off regularly in our neighborhood. About 15 minutes later we were loading up the kids and I saw two police cars driving slowly down my street. Jennifer asked if they were that cautious with house alarms and I said I thought so. I opened the garage door, loaded the stroller, went inside with the garage door and house door open to grab the kids. We got in and backed out of the driveway. When we got to the end of the drive there was a female copy scaling my fence with her gun drawn! She motioned for us to go, so we did. I looked in my rear view mirror and saw another police man about two houses down in the alley with his gun drawn. As I exited the alley the road was blocked to the left by a police car and I was instructed by the officer to go right. As I went right both ends of the block were blocked by a police car and there were two other cars in the middle of the block. I was instructed to leave the neighborhood and had to drive into the neighbors yard (sorry) to go around the police car. Jennifer looked behind us and saw another officer in the bushes with a rifle. We were quite freaked out and decided to call the police department to see if they would tell us anything. We played it off as we were unsure if we could return home. The officer on the phone told me that there was an incident with a gun and to not return home and I could call back in about 30 minutes. Well, we were out for hours and the excitement was over before we returned so I didn't get any more information. Well, as luck would have it, the next day as we were eating lunch, the same officer who blocked me in was in there. We got up the nerve to go over and ask him if he was the officer who made me drive through the grass on Blue Spruce. Sure enough it was. He said, sorry and that he would have moved his car but at that exact moment everything started happening. I asked the officers. jokingly if I was going to be okay or should I pack up and move. They laughed and said I was fine and it was just some kids horsing around. I made a comment that I was glad and was afraid it was a domestic violence case and they assured me it wasn't. A little too much excitement in Pine Ridge Estates in the past two months.

Where have I been?

2009-06-02T12:02:00.000-07:00

I honestly feel like I have no life these days. These two little boys that I love dearly are taking up every second of my life, even the ones in the shower. The other day I had Beau on his play mat in the bathroom floor and Bex was just hanging out in the bathroom with us, as he always does. I glanced over and saw Bex dragging Beau across the floor by the arm. My panicked scream was enough to scare Bexley into a panic himself and there has been no more of that going on.
Don't get me wrong, Bexley does love his baby brother, he's just not sure yet how to "touch" him. We are working very hard on soft touches and hard touches and he is really getting the hang of it. He loves to kiss Beau on the mouth, which can be anything but sanitary by a two year old, but how can I say no.
Beau is doing great and getting so big already. He eats great and sleeps great and I have no complaints. I really didn't think God would give me two perfect babies, "Thank You, Jesus!"
I am getting used to juggling the two and I don't know if its a good thing that Bexley is learning to buckle his own carseat or not but it sure does help. Shopping carts sure are giving me fits. If they were all double wides like Sam's we would be good to go. Bexley is a great kid but the freedom of the isle in Target is too much temptation. Luckily Market Street has those mini carts for kids and he does great with those until my Achilles tendon is so bruised I can hardly walk.
We've had lots of company over the past month and it has all been great. Thanks everyone for coming and helping. We've also had dinners brought and lots of gifts. Everyone has been awesome. Hopefully now that things have settled down a bit and Beau is in a good routine, I'll be able to keep up with my posts.

Beau Foster is HERE

2009-05-06T13:03:00.000-07:00

Brye is doing this post since Jaime is sleeping right now.

Beau arrived as our Cinco de Mayo baby at 6:49 in the morning. Jaime started feeling like she was going into labor around 2:00 AM and by 3:45 we decided to go to the hospital. My dad is in town for a seminar so he was able to take care of Bex. It didn't take long for the wonderful nurses to decide to admit her and start rounding up the troops.

By 7:00 AM, all the chaos was over and we were officially a family of 4.

Beau's stats are 19in and 7lb 3oz.

Big brother Bexley got to come by and see his little brother for the first time. It took some explaining, but he finally realized that Beau was no longer Beau Belly.

Momma and Beau get to come home from the hospital first thing Thursday morning.

We all appreciate the wonderful calls/texts/emails with congratulations and prayers.

Disney On Ice & Sisters!

2009-03-23T20:43:00.000-07:00

Disney On Ice came to town this past weekend and thanks to Julie we got the "Field Trip" price. Well, when your family is as large as a daycare center, you can get those kind of breaks!! It was so much fun. Jennifer came with four of her kids, Julie with her two, Jodi with her two and me with my one. Total there were 13 of us. The girls dressed up in their princess dresses and the boys in their Cars t-shirts. We got to see Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy. The Little Mermaid was the girls favorite and Peter Pan was Bexley's favorite. Lilo and Stitch were there, but we are not fans of them so I thought I was going to lose Bexley to a nap during that scene. The Lion King was pretty cool too. They kids absolutely loved it and so did we. They all behaved so well too, which is quite the surprise. After the show we went out to eat I noticed my sisters all had presents and then realized it was Breena's birthday and no one told me we were doing presents for her! I was so mad and felt so upset that I didn't have a gift for her. We were seated at the restaraunt next to four quite elderly people who did not look happy. The four of us looked at each other and each had that look that read, "big mistake seating us here". I took my poopy child to change a diaper and had a tantrum in the bathroom because he hates the changing tables. We finally get the diaper changed and get back to our seat. Breena's presents were on the table at my seat and the sisters all said, "happy mini baby shower!" I was so surprised I had no idea. They are the greatest giving me a "mini shower". I got personlized bibs, a very cute jumper, a collage frame for his room and Bex and baby got matching Big Brother, Little Brother t-shirts. The kids did remarkably well at lunch and we even got a compliment from the "crotchedy old man" at the table next to us. We got home around 3:00 pm and Bex was asleep in two seconds flat. It was a great day. I did not have my camera; Brye still had it in his backpack from his trip to Austin. I'll post pictures as soon as the sisters send me some!

Finally, you get a few pictures!!

L to R: Case, Jillian, Jordan, Bexley, Jorja, Kyler

Bexley eating cotton candy for the first time!

I'm almost positive Jillian and I were engaging in a very serious conversation about Ariel.

The surprise baby shower! I love my sisters.

It's Not Everyday. . .

2009-03-23T20:17:00.001-07:00

It's 12:30 am, I've been in bed for a few hours after a very long day. Brye comes up to bed and when walking to his side of the bed glances out the window that overlooks the driveway. He notices the cab light on in his truck so peeks through the blinds and shouts, "Someone's trying to steal my truck!" I respond, "what?" and he repeats it. I of course, say,"no way" and he says, "yes", grabs his shot gun (which is not even loaded) and takes off down stairs. My immediate response was to flicker the bedroom light to scare them away. I turned the light off and ran to the window to see nothing but the light on in the truck. Brye turns on the outside light but thankfully decides not to open the garage door. He comes back upstairs, we are both full of adrenaline and have no idea what to do. I notice there are people outside in the house across the alley and wonder if they saw or heard anything. I then suggest we call the police and make a report. So Brye grabs the phone and calls 911. He is on the phone maybe a minute and as soon as he hangs up we see the police cars with their spotlights driving around in front of the house. A second or two later the K-9 car pulls up. We stay inside until the police come to the door and are then bombarded with questions,
"which way did they go?"
"did you get a good description?"
"how many were there?"
"what race?" etc.
I never saw them and Brye only noticed they were young, upper teen's or early 20's, one either white or hispanic and one black. He had a vague idea of the color of shirt each were wearing but couldn't be sure. Niether of us saw them leave the truck. The K-9 officer then takes his beautiful German Shepard to the truck and we are told to wait inside. We run upstairs to watch out the window and see the dog sniff Brye's truck and take off running and barking down the alley. We lost sight of them at that point. It was about 15 mintues later the first officer came back to take Brye's formal statement and information. It was then we learned the dog went right to the house across the alley with the people outside. Apparently there were juveniles there "hanging out", one almost matching Brye's description. However, less than a year ago Brye's truck was broken into and our DVD player, his Oakley sunglasses and radar detector were stolen, so there was absolutely nothing in the vehicle but a $70 hunting knife. The police could not locate Brye's knife so they couldn't be sure it was these same kids. The officer then said he was going to call a detective to take prints and went to his car. We stayed on the porch and noticed a teen walking down our sidewalk. Of course the officer stopped and questioned him. Something apparently didn't jive because the kid was frisked and made to sit on the curb while they wrapped up their report with us. We went inside still wondering what was going on with the kid on the curb. A few minutes later we heard the officers raise their voices so again peeked out the blinds and watched them arrest the young man. We don't think he was connected to the truck incident, just got very unlucky walking down the sidewalk. We also learned our lesson to call 911 immediately. It's likely these kids would have been caught had we just grabbed the phone instead of the gun! (gotta love TX)
It's now, 2:00 am and we are so spooked and still high on adrenaline we can't sleep. Around 3:00 am we decide to go to bed. The next day, Brye goes straight to Lowe's and gets a security light for the driveway!
Everytime I go into our bedroom I get spooked walking by the window and Brye is so jumpy still. It's not everyday you see strangers sitting in your car in the middle of night.

Single Parenthood Is Not Fun!

2009-03-16T18:49:00.001-07:00

For the next three days, I'm a single mom. Brye is away on a business trip. It's not the first time he's gone out of town, but it is the first time he's gone during the week. Plus, being 7 1/2 months pregnant does not make this job any easier. We had a good morning. The three of us stopped for donuts on the way to daycare and then I dropped Brye off to get his rental car before his drive to San Antonio. After a long day at work, I pick Bex up and we are having a great time. He had no time-outs at school so he got to watch TV and we had cookies and chocolate milk for a snack. Well, that was my first mistake 'cause then he wouldn't eat his favorite food for dinner; burritos. In the middle of dinner (well, my dinner) he spills his full cup of chocolate milk on the floor. Here I am again 7 1/2 months pregnant on my hands and knees cleaning up chocolate milk and trying to keep the dog from licking it up. In the meantime, my dinner gets cold and all Bex can do is cry for more chocolate milk. He didn't get any. I then have to put the lid on the sippy cup, which I should have already done. He gets mad 'cause he wants to put the lid on it and throws the cup. We go to time out. Jodi calls in the middle of everything and Bex is screaming and not staying in time out which he never does. I finally get him out of time out and we go back to the table to try dinner again. Bex then attempts to get out of his chair. I tell him to sit down and if his feet touch the floor he's going back to time out. Back to time out we go. No more TV!! Dinner is finally over; he ate three bites.
It's a beautiful day today and honestly I don't want to deal with another tantrum since we can't watch TV so we go outside to play and have a great time. I didn't even have trouble getting him back in! Bex loves bathtime so that wasn't a problem until. . . . it's time to get out. Wait, let me back up. He did dump a full cup of water over the edge of the tub all over me and when he attempts it again I take the cup away which then had him purposely splashing water in my face which then had me immediately snatching him up out of the tub which then had him in another tantrum. He told me, "be nice momma" which had me laughing but I was still so mad at the little booger.
We got the teeth brushed with no problem but the punishment for a bad bath was no books at bedtime. We got PJ's on with no problem as well. We get in bed and I give him three books for him to read since mommy is not reading to him. It's right at 8:00 pm at this time. For about 10 minutes he does really well, reading to himself, talking, etc. Then I guess he realizes that mommy is not there and begins to cry. I hear him get up and open his bedroom door, something he very rarely does. By the time I get up he's halfway down the stairs. I pick him up and put him back in bed. He starts crying, "I want my daddy". I laid down with him and got sucked into at least singing songs. When I wouldn't read to him he told me, "you're not my friend" REALLY? The kid's only two!! So I try to reason with him and leave again. A few minutes later he's screaming, "momma". I ignore it and find him downstairs again. I take him upstairs and we get back in bed and here it comes, with crocidile tears, "I can't read my books by myself". How is a hormonal pregnant woman not supposed to give in at this point. We really need daddy!! We read three books, gave kisses and within five minutes he's asleep. It only took an hour, and I'm exhausted. I wonder what tomorrow will bring. I'll let you know!

Guilty Pleasure

2009-03-12T07:18:00.000-07:00

Tuesday night I just had to go to the grocery store, we were out of milk and the very essential toaster strudel for breakfast. It began raining, really raining, as I was pulling into Wal-Mart. The closest parking spot was too far away for my liking so I thought, "forget this, I'm going to Market Street to park in the new and expectant mothers parking". Is that so bad? I deserve it, right?

Oh the things kids will say

2009-03-03T12:16:00.000-08:00

This past weekend we were driving around in the car and Bexley starts singing. His lyrics go like this.

Mama's gonna bite you, don't say that word.

WHAT?! He sang it over and over and over. I finally said to him, "Bex stop singing that song, Momma doesn't like it." He laughed and said, "I like it" and continued on. I even had him sing it to Brye to make sure I was hearing what I was hearing. I then became very angry and started wondering what in the world they were teaching my kid at daycare. So Monday morning I go straight into his room and up to his teacher. I tell her that Bexley has been singing a song all weekend and I needed her to decipher his code. I sang to her what he was singing to me. She immediately began to laugh and said, it's

Momma's gonna buy you a Mockingbird!

I feel like an idiot. For one, the daycare teacher recognized that and I didn't; and two, did I really think they were telling my kid I would bite him for saying a bad word? So now I can laugh about it and will be correcting his lyrics although they are now kind of cute!

A Great Night with Friends

2009-02-23T19:56:00.001-08:00

It's been almost three years since I've seen some of my classmates and we got together this past Friday for dinner and conversation. We had a great time laughing, catching up, reminiscing and best of all, gossiping! It's so nice to see friends you haven't seen in a long time and feel like it was only yesterday. I just wish we could have all stayed longer. Hopefully it won't take as long for the next get together. We had such a good time and our next goal is to get Dan on Facebook. A big thank you to James and Althea for paying for dinner, you really shouldn't have. Until next time!

Weekend Away!

2009-02-18T07:40:00.000-08:00

Amazingly, Brye and I, along with Bexley, took a weekend vacation to Fossil Rim Wildlife Park in Glen Rose, TX. The three of us have not been alone like that in, well, ever. So we started off Saturday morning and dropped Marley off at the vets for boarding. This was the first time we boarded her and it kind of made me sad. We then ventured down 75 looking for a McDonald's. I just knew there was one on 75 and Spring Valley, but when we got closer it was actually 75 and Beltline which is one exit before Spring Valley and we just missed it. The GPS on Brye's Blackberry said there was another one at Mid Park. Well, that was in the shut down Super Wal-Mart. I knew for a solid fact there was another McDonald's at 75 and Royal Ln. So we get there and order our food and coffee. At this McDonald's you order from one window, pay at another and get your food at another. So we order, we pay, and when we get our coffee, Brye asks for Splenda. The lady at the window, who had on the "manager's" uniform said something like, "did you ask for it at the window". We were a bit confused and said no, we didn't know we had to. She left the window, came back and very harshly informed us we were to ask for it at the previous window. Since when did getting two packages of Splenda become such a burden for the drive through window operator? We were so upset and angry at her for about 10 minutes, then all the sudden busted out laughing about it. I'm still a little confused when I think about it. Next time I go to any fast food place, I'm sure to ask for my condiments BEFORE I get to the food window.

From there we headed to Glen Rose, TX, to the Fossil Rim Wildlife Park. It was amazing. I was concerned that we'd pay our money and the animals wouldn't be there. It happens at the zoo all the time. I couldn't have been more wrong. The animals basically charge at you as you can see in the pictures below. It was so much fun. Bexley wasn't even scared. We got to see multiple deer, giraffes, zebras, and the oh so mean ostrich's. I actually got a scratch on my hand from an ostrich pluck. We stopped halfway for a bite to eat and continued on. I would recommend this to anyone with kids. It's an easy day trip from the DFW area, although we stayed the night in Glen Rose to experience Dino Land the next day.

We were a little disappointed in Dino Land, but mainly because Bexley was too little to really appreciate and enjoy it. He was more afraid of these fake, although realistic dinosaurs, than the real life moving animals.

Not even halfway through Bex said, "I wanna go home and watch Barbagins". That's his word for Backyardigans. He was acting tired and we were bored and Bex was too young to dig for fossils, so we decided not to do the Dinosaur Valley State Park. There, you can see real dinosaur footprints and camp, etc. Maybe when he's older.

About 10 minutes after we left, Bexley who was already fast asleep already, began to throw up in the car. None of us had experienced this before. Of course, it frightened him to a screaming tantrum and Brye and I didn't really know what to do. We stripped him down to his diaper on the side of the road and my wonderful husband for some reason had a roll of shop towels under his seat of the truck. We cleaned the carseat as well as we could and put a blanket in it for Bex to sit on. Needless to say we had to smell it the whole way home. Bexley was fine the rest of the way, never went back to sleep and was singing songs by the time we got home. I however, felt like poop when we got home; psychological I think. We had a great weekend and I can't wait to do more of these great things with my boys.

My Funny Valentine

2009-02-18T07:20:00.000-08:00

On February 7th, Brye and I attended a Gala titled, "My Funny Valentine" to raise money for CASA of Collin County, which is where I work. It is an annual event that we attend every year. This year was a little more reserved as you can imagine due to the economy. Dean Martin performed a stand up act and there was a swing band. The craziest part of the night was the fact that a yellow lab puppy was auctioned off for $6,000.00. Can you believe that? The week long trip to France for 10 people only went for $14,000.00. One of the volunteers that I supervise won a tip to the Dr. Phil show for around $2,000.00 Lot's of money was made for our charity and we are really pleased. It's not often Brye and I get to dress up together, although it's much more fun when I'm not six months pregnant! If you are interested in learning more about CASA and especially CASA of Collin County our web address is http://www.casaofcollincounty.org/. I would encourage all of you to volunteer at your local CASA program if there is one. It can be a very rewarding experience.

Rambling

2009-02-02T19:09:00.000-08:00

It's not even been a week and so much has happened. If The Guinness Book of World Records is keeping score of the most weight gained by a pregnant woman in one month whose only carrying one child--I just got my picture in there. I don't know how it happened but there are 11 extra pounds on me that weren't there on December 31. I'm not kidding when I say my belly looks like I'll have a baby in a month. It wasn't like this at New Year's and I honestly don't know where it came from. Brye will tell you he knows and says I'm eating like a teenage boy; and maybe I am. My doctor is not worried and says my total weight gain is fine. I gained in one month what I had the previous 6, how can that be fine? I am really trying but I'm just hungry all the time, and apples are not doing it.

My husband is the greatest (in spite of the comments from above). This past weekend we have over indulged and finally bought the furniture we've been so desperately wanting and needing. New dining room and living room!! AND he put the bunk beds together for Bexley's "Big Boy" room. Bex is terribly confused and doesn't want to sleep in Baby Beau's room anymore. I still have a lot of work to do before that can happen. I open the closets with the motivation to clean them, look at them, and shut them again. I'll get it done. When does "nesting" start?

Bexley's hair is either starting to grow on me or starting to grow out after a disastrous haircut that landed me in tears for at least 24 hours. I won't go into detail about it to save my husband from further criticism; I think you can figure it out on your own. I love you Brye.

Getting Ready--Or Not

2009-01-27T19:13:00.000-08:00

I only have three months left of this pregnancy and I am not near ready. Mentally and emotionally, yes; but my two year old consumes me and I haven't even had a chance to think. We have at least bought the bunk beds for Bexley to move into, but they have been in the box in the garage for two weeks. No bedding has been purchased and the room where he is moving is full of "stuff". I really need to get on the ball.

Along with having baby #2 also comes daycare x2=scary. My wonderful husband has been so great about giving me the option of staying home. I think deep down he really wants me to, but then again he doesn't want us to have to change our lifestyle. We have been so blessed at such a young age. The decision has not yet been made and the emotional decision is the toughest. I love what I do and I love my kids. Many of them I just cannot leave behind. It will be a tough decision and one that will require a lot of prayer.

Baby boy #2 is doing great. He is a squirmer (if that's a word) for sure. He is constantly moving and I can only imagine the next months are going to get worse. I have done great on my weight gain---until now. I go to the doctor tomorrow and am terrified. According to several scales I have stepped on, which was my first mistake, I have seriously gained too much weight this month. Not to mention it is below freezing so the sweater and boots I'll have to wear tomorrow will only add additional pounds. Oh well, at least the baby is healthy and so am I!!!

Survival

2009-01-27T19:03:00.000-08:00

We have survived it. The last of the firsts is past us; the first birthday without her, the first holidays without her and the anniversary of her death is now behind us. My sister Jennifer said it best, it is no longer the day she died, it is her Heavenly Birthday and we have survived it. Over the past year I have realized from so many people how important and special my mom was to them. I know how special she was and still is to me but I've also realized how awesome and amazing my father is. This past weekend, on the anniversary of my mom's death, she was awarded as the Childress Chamber of Commerce Woman of the Year. My father and sisters and I accepted the award in her memory and it was my father's courage to speak to the 100's of people present about my mom. One thing he said was that we are now living a new normal. Things will never be as they were; our normal will now be a new normal. He is so strong and I love him so much. You can read the full story here! http://www.childressindex.com/content.asp?ID=1&A=1096

Something extremely interesting happened to me on the way to work yesterday. I don't know if it was irony, coincidence or just simply God speaking to me. I was watching the clock on my car because I knew 8:50 AM would roll around soon. That was the approximate time of my mom's death. Well it did and at 8:53 AM, the song "I Can Only Imagine" came on the radio. This song was sung at my mom's funeral and has been very special to me and my family ever since. I couldn't believe it. I, of course, began to cry after trying to sing along. I had to call Jennifer and talk through it. I couldn't change the channel but nor could I listen to it. I don't know why that happened to me but it really was something special.

I want to say a special thank you to those who also remembered this weekend was a tough weekend for us, it means a lot that you also still remember. Thanks.

2009-01-05T08:10:00.000-08:00

2008 is gone, whew. It was not that great of a year for us. It couldn't have started off any worse with the passing of my mom. It did get better just not easier. We all had birthday's to go through without her, and the birth of another grandchild. Pregnancies, holidays and daily questions only she could answer are still with us. My sisters and I declined to eat the traditional, supersticious black eyed pea given that it didn't do us much good last year. But we do have a lot to look forward to in 2009. There will be two grandbabies born this year. One of us (no names mentioned) will be the big 3-0, another will be turning 1. We will survive yet another year and thank God for what we do have and what he will bring to us this year.

Christmas was good. We started off at Brye's family for a few days and had a great time. Bexley had been there over a week and really enjoys being at his grandparents house, and Kemps house too. He got a basketball goal for Christmas and is really quite good. He takes after his mother. We left Amarillo (in the snow of course) and went to meet my family in Altus, OK. Dad didn't want to be at the house so we went to the cabin. It was neat to be there; we had a tree and lights to help make the place festive. The kids just love being there too. The hardest part was leaving.

For New Year's, Jennifer and Joey were here so I hosted the party. Not much of a "party" but we did have a great time playing Cranium, which took about three hours to accomplish with the humor of the brothers in law. Does anyone know how to spell "waltz" backward? Anyone? Brian? Jodi and Gooch came down New Year's Day and spent the day with all of us just hanging out watching football, enjoying family. The kids were sick of each other by the end of the day, but then turn around the next morning crying for each other. Even today Bexley was asking for Ky Ky.

Coming back to work was hard. Bex did not want to get up, neither did I. Nor did he want to stay at daycare. Case was there, but that didn't matter. Two weeks at home with Momma, or "mom" he now calls me, has spoiled him rotten.

In the midst of all the holiday festivities, life does have to be normal. I had a doctor's appointment on the 31st and to my surprise I only gained three pounds over the holidays!! Baby Carter is a little big for his age weighing a whopping 12 ounces!! I only have four months left of this pregnancy and about 12 months of work to do to get ready. It has flown by so fast. Am I really ready to be a mother of two?

Farewell Texas Stadium

2008-12-30T12:36:00.000-08:00

On December 20th we celebrated Joey's 40th birthday with a Cowboy game, the last game ever to be played in Texas Stadium. Other than the fact the Cowboy's should have just stayed in the locker room for the game, it was a wonderful time. We had venison, venison and more venison thanks to Brye's fabulous hunting skills. We tailgated for several hours prior to the game and barely escaped the worst cold front of the season so far. Our seats were as high as you could get which worked to our advantage given the weather. The mile walk back to the car was blistering cold and according to Julie the coldest she'd ever been in her entire life. The Farewell ceremony was pretty neat, kind of boring at parts, but they did actually turn the lights off with the fans still in the stadium which I thought was pretty cool. The Cowboy's lost but we had a fabulous time. Thanks Jenn for coordinating this wonderful trip, Happy birthday Joey and Farewell Texas Stadium.

It's A . . .

2008-12-30T12:23:00.000-08:00

I am so far behind on my blogging so you're getting several posts at once!! On December 17th, Brye and I found out we will be having another boy!! Yes, I have the Carter Curse. In the past four generations of Carters, only two girls have been born. I'm very excited though. Bexley is going to be a great big brother and he is so boy, I'm not sure a girl would be able to keep up. Brye says they'll be best friends and if they turn out to be anything like my sisters and I they definately will be best friends. Our next task is the name game. I of course have picked out a name, but I'm just waiting on my other half to get used to it. We are trying to get Bexley used to the idea of having a baby brother, but he is not quite there yet. He knows theres a baby in mamma's belly, but also thinks there's one in daddy's belly and his own belly. Hopefully when mamma's belly gets bigger he'll begin to realize it.

The Word of the Week. . . . "Ration"

2008-12-03T19:17:00.000-08:00

Our first Thanksgiving without our mother was as successful as it could be. My three sisters and I were in charge of the five day long menu and grocery list for 22 people, 5 of those being teenage boys. Needless to say there were several meals days where the word "ration" was used in conjunction with portions of food. We also used the phrase, "you snooze, you lose" at breakfast almost everyday. I think we went back to the grocery store three times for milk, ice and butter. Midnights at Allsups for "gut grenades" was the guys hotspot. The food however, was absolutely delicious; our mother was a great cook and taught us well. We have no idea how Nonnie did it. She was amazing. I have to admit we had a really good weekend. Thanksgiving dinner was great.
Friday, the kids got to play in the park, then we went to enjoy the festival of lights in City Park as well as meeting Santa. Bexley wasn't too thrilled, so no Santa pics to share yet.

Somehow we were able to get all 14 grandkids together for a group picture. It was quite an experience and not one single picture was perfect, but these were the best I could get. I guess that's the fun of it though.

Bexley's 2nd Birthday!

2008-11-25T13:41:00.001-08:00

On Saturday, we celebrated Bexley's 2nd Birthday. I can't believe it's been two years. Bex is becoming so independent (or at least he thinks he is). He is talking so much and very well. I love him more and more every day. Anyway, we had over his very best friends; Jordan, Case, Korbin, Madelyn (or Adelyn as Bex calls her), Sophia and Grandpa and Jo Jo. We had fun with our fireman hats, but the best part was the swingset Bex got from his grandparents. Thanks Daddy for working so hard to put it together for the party. I have to say thank you to Jammi Palmer for the slide show you are able to view here. She is my photo guru and I love it. Someday I'm going to have to pay her. Thanks james, love you.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

I've been tagged

2008-11-20T08:23:00.000-08:00

Thanks Sharon, here goes!

8 TV Shows I Love To Watch:
1. Gray's Anatomy
2. ER
3. Private Practice
4. Lipstick Jungle
5. The Backyardigans
6. Sunday Football
7. House
8. Channel 8 News

Favorite Restaurants:
1. Dos Charros
2. Boston Market
3. Baker's
4. Pei Wei
5. Chili's
6. El Fenix
7. Rockfish
8. El Sombrero in Childress

8 Things That Happened Today:
1. Made breakfast for Bexley
2. Took Bex to his 2 year well check
3. Reminisced with Sabrina Lathram-Dorris
4. Came an inch from t-boning a dodge ram who ran a red light in front of me.
5. Had lunch with my two favorite teenage girls
6. Emailed an old friend (sorry Amanda)
7. Completed four court reports for work
8. Gossiped with Angie

8 Things I am looking Forward To:
1. Bexley's 2nd birthday party
2. Baby Carter #2
3. Being with family for Thanksgiving
4. Christmas Shopping for family
5. Coffee with Poppa
6. Cowboys football game on 12/20
7. Wearing my new UGG's
8. Being pregnant with Jodi

8 Things On My Wish List:
1. To see my mom again
2. A big family of my own
3. Healthy children
4. No stress during the holidays
5. Happiness
6. A pay raise at work
7. To fit in my old clothes come June
8. My dad happy

8 People I Tag:
1. Jennifer
2. Julie
3. Jodi
4. Jammi
5. Jenny
6. Shada
7. Ashley
8. Sarah

Go Dawgs!

2008-11-20T08:11:00.000-08:00

Better late than never. Back on November 8, my nephew Curry's football team, the Southwestern Oklahoma State University Bulldogs play the Texas A&M Commerce Lions in Commerce, TX. Commerce is only a little over an hour drive from McKinney so we all packed up along with Julie and Jodi and their families and Cousin Sarah and Olivia and headed to commerce to watch the game. The Bulldogs did end up losing, but Curry had a great game. The kids loved yelling, "Go Curry". After Curry's game we rushed back to McKinney to watch Texas Tech vs. OSU. Sarah is an OSU graduate so she was a little outnumbered here in McKinney. Brye had not joined us for Curry's game and instead went and bought a brand new flat screen TV so we could watch the game. Really? Anyway, it was a great game for Tech, sorry Sarah, and a wonderful time for family. Now, everytime we watch football, Bexley says, "Go Curry, Go Texas Tech, Go Cowboys" all in the same sentence. Poor kid is so confused.

A Special Thank You

2008-11-05T19:53:00.001-08:00

I just want to take a few minutes to share some thank you's to some special people in my life and my family's lives. This past weekend we (my dad and sisters) were invited back to Childress to the Pregnancy Outreach Center's annual fundraiser. We were told that the fundraiser was going to "mention" my mother's contributions and work to help found and run the Center. What we were not told was the outpouring of heartfelt gratitude we all received from everyone. I know my mom was special to me and I've heard people tell me that my mom was special to them. What surprised me were some of the people I didn't realize my mom had touched and how they expressed that. At one point in the night the entire room gave my family and my mom a standing ovation. I learned after the evening ended that the person who actually led the standing was someone I didn't even know cared. There were many others there that I had never met that made sure we all knew how important my mother was. I just want to say a special thank you to Angie Husband for inviting us to this event as well as Susan Davidson, Pam Horton, Jay Parmer and all the others on the board of the Pregnancy Outreach Center who cared so much for my mom to honor her at an event like this. I do hope you were able to raise the money you were going for. It was a very nice night and we all had a really good time. Thank you so much, and God Bless.

Happy Halloween

2008-11-04T12:55:00.000-08:00

With Bexley being two years old, I felt that this was the last year mommy gets to decide what the kid is going to be for Halloween. So at the last minute we changed our mind and our little Bexley was transformed into none other than Bam Bam Rubble himself. He made a perfect Bam Bam and as soon as the club was put in his hand he was hitting everything in sight. We started the day off with a Halloween party at daycare. Then we trick or treated at the courthouse with Madelyn. Our next stop was the "Scare on the Square" in McKinney. It was very organized and kids were walking single file down the sidewalks for candy. Not Bexley, he knew exactly where to go and didn't care who was in his way. He just walked right up to the person giving out the candy and got his share. That only lasted until he saw the choo choo train taking kids for a ride around the square. Of course, we got in line and waited a good 20 minutes and every time the train came back for more kids, Bex got excited, then upset because it wasn't his turn. Finally he got his turn on the train and loved it.

On the way home we stopped at the Lloyd's to see the wonderful display Sharon had done. Bex was a bit frightened at the monsters in the front yard, but was oh so thrilled at Cadburry their pet bunny. He got to feed the bunny a carrot and thought that was just the coolest thing ever.

We ended the night going through the neighborhood with the Palmer's and had a really good time. His pumpkin was so full of candy, he didn't even want to carry it. He was so pooped at the end of the night and went to sleep without a fight. It was a good day.

And 1 makes 4!!

2008-10-23T07:21:00.000-07:00

Three months down, six more to go; we are having baby number two! Brye and I are very excited and sadly, Bexley isn't sure what a "big brother" really is yet. He will find out soon enough and I'm not sure if it's going to be easy. He is so jealous of the dog being in my lap, I don't know what he'll do with a baby. However, he loves his cousin, Baby Joie, so I'm hoping for the best.

Anyway, Baby 2 is due May 8, 2009, on my neice Jorja's third birthday. Brye and I are still struggling on whether I'm to go back to work or stay home. I never imagined myself being a stay at home mom, but a non-profit organization doesn't really pay the daycare bill. I have to admit being a mother of two is a lot scarier than just a mother of one. Will I really loves this one as much as I love Bexley? Can I juggle two year old tantrums and newborn cries at the same time?

The other side to all this is that I no longer have my mom to lean on and ask questions. She'd be the one to reassure me of course you will love the second as much as the first. She'd be the one who was there to catch me when I felt like I was falling. I know she'll be there, just not the way I want her there. I actually had a dream the other night that I went to a prenatal appointment and the baby's heartbeat was irregular and I was hospitalized. My mom was there. I guess that is God's way of reminding me she really hasn't left me; she's here.

Thankfully I have a fabulous husband and three wonderful sisters that I know will be here for me and a mother in law that I'm sure will be here too. It is wonderful to have such a great family.

Birthday's at the Pumpkin Patch

2008-10-19T20:12:00.000-07:00

Jordan is starting off right. The entire weekend focused around her birthday; just like her Aunt Jaime likes to do. We started off with a Friday night dinner at Chuck E Cheese, then spent the day Saturday at the Pumpkin Patch. Sunday morning we had breakfast at Julie's and watched football all day. The cousins, with the exception of Kyler and Baby Joie, got to hang out with each other as did three of the four sisters. We missed you Jennifer. Oh, and the brother's in law too. It was a good weekend.

Enjoying the hayride

Aren't we lucky no one was allergic to hay?!

If he ends up at UT, I'm bribing him with this picture someday.

Feeding goats!

My beautiful little boy!

Jordan and Jorja talked to each other the entire time.

The bouncehouse was the hit of the day.

Did anyone see any pumpkins? Well if the kids would be still long enough to get a good picture. . .

"Come on Bex, look at momma."

"Bexley, I'm over here."

"Seriously, will no one pose for a pumpkin picture?"

Big Tex 2008

2008-10-19T19:55:00.000-07:00

If you can believe this, I had never been the State Fair until now! We decided a spare the moment trip on a beautiful Sunday afternoon would be great family time after my business weekend in Austin. Bex had his first funnel cake, roller coaster, and of course that huge and I have to say, very scary ferris wheel. Bexley loved it while I got a little more quesy every inch up. It was a great day!

Bexley loved this more than we did. It was so high!!

He wasn't quite sure at first, but really loved it!

6th Photo in 6th File

2008-10-15T19:02:00.000-07:00

I've decided my first photo posting could only be the latest trend. However, I have a lot of explaining to do. First of all for those of you who don't know Brye, he can be very anal. Our files are sorted alphabetically, not chronologically. Now for the photo explanation. When we lived in England a comedian by the name of Peter Kay redid a old song titled "Is This The Way to Amarillo". Somehow it got very popular in London and when all our friends realized we used to live in Amarillo, they became fascinated. Not to mention they also thought Brye ironically looked like Peter Kay. So on one of our trips home, we took this picture to share with our British mates. So here it is.

If I Have To

2008-10-15T18:29:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I can barely keep up with my myspace page and somehow I was talked into starting this blog. Thanks to Jammi and all my sisters having one, I now have no choice. So here it is and we'll see how it goes.

My beautiful and precious little boy got his first "no-no" report at daycare today. He hit another child in the face with a puzzle. Where does he learn these things? So for punishment he did not get to watch Backyardigans when he got home from school. It was absolute torture; more so for me I think. I don't know if I'll ever get used to being mean.