Avery goes to Kindergarten!

It's official: Avery is a kindergartener now! In one way it is hard to believe that the precious little baby girl I held in my arms 5 1/2 years ago is big enough to go to elementary school. But then we have watched her grow and learn for those 5 1/2 years as well and we have known for awhile that she would be ready for it when the time came. It makes it a little easier knowing that she loves to learn, make new friends, follow the rules, and likes structure and stimulation. I learned a long time ago that I could not possibly provide all that she needs here at home-- at least not without making a full time job of it! Scott and I began looking at some private schools this summer for her to attend until we move to a new neighborhood, and we decided on Harvest Christian Academy. It has close to 300 students K-12 and appears to provide a good balance between the academic and spiritual. She has been going for a week now and so far she really likes it. She is all smiles when we pick her up, is already making friends, and has started praying for her teacher every night. It is an adjustment of course and she is sometimes tired or in need of one-on-one Mommy time after being away all day, but overall she is doing great. Here are her 1st day of school pics. The first day was free dress (no uniforms).

On her first day we took the whole crew with us up to the school, which was no small feat. Definitely couldn't have gotten everyone up and out the door by 7:35 without Scott's help. It made me really tankful that Scott is able to take her to school every morning on his way to work! They let all the parents come in the classroom to get their children situated and then we stayed for the 3 pledges- to the American flag, the Christian flag, and the Bible. Then I had to hug her and tell her to "Have Fun!" with a happy look on my face without tearing up. I was proud that I actually did it! Then they had a short reception/meeting for all the Kindergarten parents complete with boxes of Kleenex under the chairs. Then after a few tears in the car, I hurried off to get Kendall and I some breakfast before taking her to gymnastics. The first day was a half day, so I picked Avery up at 11:30 and we met Scott for lunch at Pei Wei.

Here she is on her second day with her cute little uniform on. That's my big school girl! I am so proud of you Avery!

Panama Week

Every year Scott tries to go on a mission trip to provide dental care for those who don't have access to it and/or cannot afford it. This year he went with Global Hands of Healing to Panama at the beginning of August. Maybe I will be able to convince him to carve out some time to post some of his pictures from the trip on here and to journal about it, but for now I just wanted to document a few of the things that the kids and I did while he was away. I tried to keep them busy and do some fun things that we don't normally do to help the week go by faster. We spent a lot of time with my parents on the two weekends that Scott was gone. That was a big help and allowed us to do some neat things like go to a birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese, go to Mimi and Poppi's church in Coppell, and go to Rainforest Cafe. The girls also had a sleepover with their Mimi and Poppi one night while Judson and I spent the night at Embassy suites in Grapevine. My Dad and I took the girls swimming twice at the hotel and they surprised Judson and I on Saturday morning by showing up for breakfast at the hotel. My sister-in-law was also in town for the week, so one day we met her and my mother-in-law at the mall to let the kids play, eat Chick-fil-A and shop a little. We also took the kids to Let's Jump one day and let them burn off some energy there. It was a fun-filled week, but it sure made me glad that I am not a single parent!

After taking Avery to a birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese, we spent the rest of the day on Saturday at our house with Mimi and Poppi. Avery loves to make Judson smile and is really good at it!

Judson loves to smile at and talk to his Mimi

At my parents house after church on Sunday. I inadvertently dressed all the kids in brown so we had to get a picture!

Relaxing on Sunday afternoon. Judson and I are on the couch in the background.Monday night we rented Chronicles of Narnia and ordered pizza. We had a pizza and pajamas picnic.

My parents came over Wed after work to help out a little. My Mom did some activities with the girls including making peanut butter playdough. We all went to dinner at Dickeys and then had some ice cream from Braum's to top it off.
Judson and his cousin Eva at Let's Jump on Thursday. They slept and ate while the Mason, Avery and Kendall jumped, slid, and ran around.
Mason loves Avery and they played together almost the entire time at the jump place. Avery was ticking him in this pic.
In front of the waterfall and rainbow at Rainforest Cafe. Kendall was just a little scared of the gorillas at first, but she got over it pretty quickly and we all had a good time.The girls were too captivated by this alligator to look at the camera. They thought it was funny that he had pennies in his mouth.
Avery all ready to go swimming at Embassy Suites. The water was a little colder than my Dad and I would've liked, but we eventually got used to it and the girls sure did have a good time.

Silly poses in the hotel room before swimming on Saturday morning.

Judson is 2 months old!

2 Months Old

At 2 months, out little guy is busy growing and is getting to be more and more fun. He started smiling between 6 and 7 weeks and now smiles all the time. He has also started to coo and try to talk to us in his own little way. He is beginning to figure out who is who and is taking a little bit of interest in toys and things with music and lights. He especially likes the lion wrist rattle on his car seat- he smiles and tries to talk to it a lot. He is still eating about every 2.5-3 hrs during the day but has some longer stretches at night. He seems to be falling into a pattern now of going to bed @ 10:30 or 11:00, waking up around 3 to eat and then not eating again until 7 or 8, although sometimes I have to put him in bed with me around 6 to help him sleep a little longer. When they are this age it seems to be constantly changing though, so who knows what his nighttime routine will be in another week or two! At his 2 month check up he weighed 13 lbs 5 oz (86%ile) and was 24 inches long (87%ile), so he is still a big boy! Of course Scott is hoping he will stay that way so he will have an advantage in sports. Lots of people comment that he looks really long or that he looks older than 2 months. In fact, he is already starting to grow out of his 3 month clothes because they are too short in the straddle. Here are some more pics of our little "Jud man" at 2 months.

Judson is constantly getting loved on by his sisters.

Smiling at his Poppi when we were on our San Antonio trip

Listening to Avery sing him a song

Hanging out with Momma on the porch while big sisters were swimming. You can actually see his blue eyes in this one! All of us brown-eyed girls are hoping his eyes stay that way.
Our pediatrician said it was OK to go ahead and use the Bumbo seat for short periods of time to help that little neck get stronger. The girls thought he looked so cute sitting in a chair.

Working with Daddy

My sweet boy- I could just eat him up!

San Antonio Trip

Last weekend we took a quick family trip to San Antonio. Scott has a perio conference this time every year and since it was at a really neat, family-friendly resort we decided to take the whole crew, including my parents, along. We stayed at the Westin La Cantera, which has several pools including a water slide, s'mores at night around the fire pit, bounce houses and more. We mostly hung out at the pool while we were there and enjoyed having the grandparents along to watch Judson. Saturday night my parents had a picnic at the hotel with the kids while Scott and I went out to dinner at Brio for our anniversary. It was delicious and we had a nice time getting away for a little bit. When we returned we all sat out on the balcony of my parents room and watched the fireworks from Fiesta Texas across the street. After a little more swimming on Sunday morning and lunch at one of our favorite San Antonio restaurants, Canyon Cafe, we made the trek back up I-35. It was a fun little trip and we made some neat memories with our family!

Judson smiling at his Poppi

more smiles for Mimi who is behind the camera

Avery had a blast going down the water slide

Kendall standing under the waterfall and getting ready to jump to her Daddy

Scott and Kendall going down the slide. By Sunday she was going down all by herself.

Avery and Kendall enjoying the view

They loved climbing on these big rocks in one of the hotel courtyards.

In the hotel lobby, ready to go out for our anniversary

Happy 12th Anniversary! Is it possible that it's been that long?

Scott and Judson getting massages in the hotel room from the girls. What lucky guys!

One Month

Judson- one month old

Our little man is one month old now! In one way it seems like he has been around forever, but in another way it seems like time is flying by and he will be 6 months old or a year before I know it! Since he is our last, I find myself really wanting to cherish every stage and every minute I have with him. I wish there was a way to bottle up the way it feels to hold him in my arms so I could take it off the shelf later and experience it again. Despite the chaos we have around here at times when one or more child is crying, whining, or behaving badly, most of the time I am feeling so blessed-- truly like my cup runs over. And thankfully, the girls have adjusted really well for the most part and are being great big sisters and helpers.

At one month old, Judson is 11 lbs (80th %) and 22.25 in (70th %), so he is busy growing and is obviously a good eater. Right now he is eating about every 2.5-3 hrs during the day and has at least one 4-5 hr stretch at night. He has been going to bed around 11, waking up to eat between 2:30 and 3:30 and then again between 5:30 and 6:30, and going back to sleep until 8 or so. Definitely no complaints with that for now! Unfortunately, he has been having some tummy issues on and off, but when that's not bothering him he is a pretty chilled out little guy. He likes to just look around and take it all in. And even when his tummy does hurt, he usually just fusses or cries a little here and there, no incessant wailing or anything. He sits in his little bouncy seat or lays in his Nap Nanny and lets me take showers, cook meals, and help the girls out with things in relative peace. Some things he seems to enjoy at this point are being held by Avery and getting attention in general from his sisters, taking walks in the stroller, taking a bath (no crying for this little guy), and of course, eating. We are really looking forward to the smiles and laughs that will soon come and having some true interaction with our precious Judson!

Life is so hard!

dressed up like a little man for 2 family birthday parties

Judson and his cousin Eva who is 3 wks olderalert and ready to discover this big world

Father's Day

Father's Day 2011

A few years ago we started going down to Riscky's BBQ in Sundance Square to eat lunch with my family on Father's Day. I think it is now an official tradition since we have gone there the past 3 or 4 years in a row. The food is great, it is never too busy, and there are always good picture-taking spots close by. This year we went out to the patio after we finished lunch and discovered some really neat spots to explore and take pictures. After lunch and pics my parents came back to our house with some Braum's ice cream for everyone and Scott and my Dad opened their cards and gifts. Happy Father's Day to 2 of the best fathers I know!