Merriest of Merry Christmases

...to you!

Mamas and Babies...

go together. I came across this sweet boy playing with the Nativity...I heard Mary "saying", "My babee, my babee." to which baby Jesus answered back, "Aye yav yoo!"



Way. Too. Cute.

According to Abby

Perhaps you haven't met...this is Grampa Rob. His hobbies include sitting on his pink plastic couch and petting his horse that actually whinnies when you push on its head.

This paper sculpture was recently bestowed on me with great pomp and fanfare. After offering the appropriate accolades and "ooo"s, I ventured several guesses as to what it is...nope, wrong, no, nope again---"Moooom, it's a tummy ache!"

The Rest of Thanksgiving

Okee dokee, quick, before it's Christmas, here's the rest of Thanksgiving! :) Playing in the...snow? Hmmm...I thought this was TX? Yup--snow all day! We felt right at home!

The turkey was all snuggly warm in the fryer! (Grampa Rob, manning the fryer, however? Not so snuggly warm.)

Gramp Rob, warm again!

Add a trip to Chuckee Cheese, a little skee ball with Uncle Rick, pizza, shopping, Jeopardy-the-one-you-play-at-home (I'm NOT a trivia game fan at all, but this one--super fun!), and almost a whole week of being in bed before 9:30, and there you have the recipe for a fantastic Thanksgiving Week '07. Thanks so much, Rob and Pat, for your hospitality and everything!

Chip off the ol' block...

Sweet dreams, boys...

Woot!

Woot, lookie here! I found a moment, sitting in front of my computer, with a charging part thingy plugged into the wall and working ok, with nothing else that HAS to be done exactly this moment! Like the new look of the blog? I'm not sure about it-a little...plain or blah or something--I'm sure I'll change it out again before too long.

So, I know I won't have time to do a full run-down right now, so catching up will have to happen in bits and parts over the next little while.

Thanksgiving! Our annual pilgrimage to Abilene usually includes a trip to Abilene Zoo...we say hi to the flamingos...

(Aren't these pics of the fam walking together fun? I'm sure I've got 500 that all look the same...)

Happy Thanksgiving Mr. Bear!

Gotta pay a visit to the stars of the show, the giraffes...SO fun to feed them! Abby's not brave enough, but lucky for her she's got a brother who fears nothing! She handed him the crackers and he poked his little hand through the fence with the offering...out came the loooong black tongue, and the squeals and giggles started. Alex got a giraffe kiss a time or 2...Abby would say, "Here Alex! Do it again, here's another cracker!"

Happy Thanksgiving, Giraffes!

We tried to feed the ducks, but this is what we found:

FISH! Apparently they figured out how the ducks were getting so fat and came looking for their fair share of hook-free food. Gross. I've never seen so many fish in the same place before, and being so weird! There were hundreds of them--these pics aren't even getting them all.

And that was our Abilene Zoo Trip of '07! I'll be back with the rest of the trip and other odds and ends! I hope you're all enjoying your weekend!

What????

December? Really? Oh my cows!

That snuck up! Sorry for the lack-o-post. I've been having issues with my computer charger part thingy. So I'm never sure if I have a charge, or if I can get one, or when the computer will die and stuff. And I'm just plain behind in general, uh, as usual.

The biggest thing I'm behind on (which makes ME a BIG Behind, if you know what I mean) is thanking the Chastains, Sr. for a wonderful, wonderful Thanksgiving week. We enjoyed our time so much, the kidlets are still talking about it, and already looking forward to the next time we can be together. (I've got the pics to prove the goodtime part, but I've got to transfer them to another computer so I can be confident that the computer won't shut down in the middle of uploading them to Blogger.) Thank you, thank you, thank you for the hospitality, food, rest, and general fun-ness--all of it was just exactly what the doctor ordered. Thank you!

And now...back to being behind. Or A behind, whichever...

Nothing Much...

Busy :: Making

Busy :: Discovering (first snow this year!!)

Busy :: Being Together (some favorite people)

Busy :: Forming an Identity :)

Busy :: Growing Up

5 Years Ago...

2 kids and 25 pounds ago...

(Honeymoon pic!)

we had no idea how happy we'd be 5 years later.

Bj, I'm so grateful you chose me.

Have a wonderful day, Grandpa Rob!!

Aaaaaanddd...we're back!

Ok, sorry about the break in the action. We just kinda got taken over by meetings, being busy, sick and...stuff for a while there. We didn't have to make the Urgent Care trip, thank God. Ears seem fine, we're just dealing with runny noses and coughs now--almost done, I think. I'm ditching the alphabet (not that I COULDN'T make it, Mom, I just don't want to--it's stressing me out. :) )

The weather has been absolutely perfect lately. So beautiful! Abby's been practicing riding her bike a lot and is getting good! She looks so grown up pedaling along! She's also discovered glue sticks and scissors...there are bits and scraps all around the house, and gifted "masterpieces" adorn the fridge. She's really enjoying "school"--we enrolled in an Early Childhood Family Education class here at the elementary school--there's sibling care provided for Alex (which he LOVES...it's usually only him and one other little boy, very close to his age, in a HUGE room, FULL of the coolest toys!). When we get to class (on Monday mornings), there's a half hour of free playtime, then "circle time" (sing songs, teacher tells a story or does a puppet show, etc), then mommies go in a different room for grown-up conversation (!!!!) while kiddos (all 3 years old) stay and play. She's a little shy still, and doesn't always completely participate, but at least she wants to go back, and she doesn't fuss when I leave for the Mommy Time!

Alex is usually crabby at me when it's time to leave his buddy and room full of toys. He's started getting out of his crib, which is a joy (note the sarcasm?). He hasn't figured out how to be subtle yet though...he'll get out of his crib after bedtime, flick the light on and start playing with noisy toys...he's busted pretty easily. He's insistant that he be called "Doot Doot"--he'll correct us if we call him anything but. He says "No! DOOT DOOT!" when we slip up and call him Alex or Baby, or Sweetie, etc. Everyday he has more to say.

PICS!!:
This is why I rarely shave my legs...this was a mommy-shower-time activity. I took these after removing the steak knife...Abby said, "I used the knife to open it! It was VERY helpful!" I'm sure it was...(they're HUGE cottage cheese fans, by the way.) No need to bother with bowls, or even spoons for that matter.

Some favorite playthings:

Waiting for Daddy...

Sunny fall days!!

Bj is still busy, busy with work. I've also picked up another day a week at work, so our time together is precious. Our 5th anniversary is coming up next week! He's already given me an anniversary gift, and it's a good 'n!!! A SCOOBA!! I don't think he realizes it, but he's given himself a little competition--I LOVE this thing, can't get enough! I would highly recommend it to ANYONE! I can nap and wash the kitchen floor at the same time! Yippee!

Anyway, I'm in floor heaven lately I guess--besides an effortlessly clean kitchen floor, Uncle Rick installed some killer new carpet for us! It's a dream come true and looks sooo fantastic! I love vacuuming it. The whole place looks bigger, brighter and cleaner, yay! He's the bomb, thanks Rick!

Okee dokey...I've got some videos trying to upload, but they may be too big...we'll see! Have a fantastic week!

Just stopping in to say "Hello, we're alive." Barely...battling the sickies this weekend/week. A trip to Urgent Care may be warrented tomorrow--we'll see how little ears are feeling in the morning.

We've been trying to adjust to the fall shift toward busy-ness. I'm reluctant to drop the summer ease for what feels like the more time demanding fall run around, and it's taking a bit for us to "find our groove". The balance between "have to", "want to" and "should" is so delicate, something is perpetually falling between the cracks. I suppose that's a sign that there's too many "somethings".

I've got many pictures and a couple videos waiting for upload, so I'll be back with more and better stuff soon--just wanted to poke my head up and give a wave! Hope everyone's weeks are going well!

J is for...

Oh the JOY!!! Sometimes I see some textiles that take my breath away. I've almost cried over fabrics...I get that twirly feeling in my tummy and--just can't even stand it! There's my embarassing secret. 2 things can overwhelm me emotionally--the kids and fabric. :) SO, when I saw this:

Well...surely you understand! ;) Unfortunately, it's $120 at Urban Outfitters. Right. So, I've officially begun the hunt for the right fabrics to give the same feel. There's more satisfaction in doing it yourself anyway, isn't there?!

The relative success of my Etsy shop has allowed for (squeal!!) a rash of guilt free fabric buying! These were today's acquisitions:

Don't you LOVE them?? I know you do! The pink version of the green one was featured in the October issue of Martha Stewart Living...another one of those "take your breath away" moments...it was a feature on pieced and quilted crafts, by Joelle of one of my favorite online shops, PurlSoho...see how beautiful?

I think part of the Take Your Breath Away Factor has to do with the "I can DO that!!!" feeling. Knowing that I can really make something THAT wonderful, with these very same hands that are usually shackled to the monotonous tasks of dishes and diapers.

I also found this:

on clearance at Urban Outfitters...those are little mod-vintagy birds pirched on those leaves! Fantastic! I swooped that sucker up faster than you could say Jiminy Cricket! Haha! Last one too, or so said the "availability checker"!! Hmmm...not sure what its extreme makeover will be yet--maybe some throw pillow covers, possibly a skirt? Part of a quilt? Oh, the possibilities!

This was also a super-score today from Fabric.com...a jumper for Abs?

Ahhhh...that feels better! Bj just says, "I don't get it." when I'm spouting joy over fabrics/textiles/craftiness. But when I put it here, I can at least imagine that someone is reading and appreciating along with me--maybe even feeling a little twirly?

So, thanks to my Etsy shop for all the J is for Joy!! Go check out Etsy and buy handmade!

That Time of Year...

Colors are all so much brighter in the fall--the sun is so gold, the trees are all decked out in their finest, the air is so clean! There's always such a promise of change, something new around the corner--fall is laced with anticipation!

We took a trip to the orchard this week--the weather was absolutely perfect. Alex started out like this:



But it didn't take long for him to wake up! We had such a fun time--feeding and petting the critters, sampling the apples, browsing the shop, playing on the tractor, the maze, just enjoying the day!!

These guys are so friendly and nice! We enjoyed them lots!


Such a sweet puppy!!



"He really likes you, Mommy!"

The sheep however...not so friendly. Didn't even say "hi".

And this is me after waiting for Blogger to upload all the pictures!!

Everybody have a great weekend, full of bright colors, crisp air and anticipation!

I've received some complaints about the banner still being too wide...sorry about that! I'll edit it as soon as I get a minute!