Friday, December 25, 2009

Christmas


OK, so once again I'm going to be lazy and just post a link to my photos on flickr. I'll post one absolutely adorable one of Abe just to entice you. Here are tons more of my adorable baby boy.

I've got pictures of our trip to Seaworld we took on Wednesday. It was probably the best trip we've had there yet. The weather was absolutely perfect and even though we didn't get there until noon, we got to do everything we wanted to do and didn't suffer at all from the kids being tired late in the day. We got to build toys, visit with Santa, fed dolphins (which we hadn't wanted to pay for up until now), watched the Sesame Street Christmas show, enjoyed the always funny Sea lion show, and nearly cried at the Shamu show. However, Adelaide favorite thing wasn't any of those things. It was her first ever roller coaster ride.

She kept asking to go on it over and over. Rocky walked her up to the height requirement sign to show her she wasn't tall enough. Being 2 inches shy of the required 38", the attendant said, "it's OK. She can go." Rocky kept asking her if she wanted to back out and she kept assuring him she didn't. Well, off they went. Abe and I watched from the side and I panicked a little as they rocketed off.

As the roller coaster came to a stop, I heard a kid sobbing. I thought for sure it was Adelaide, but no. I saw her jumping up and down with her arms in the air, squealing with delight. Rocky said he wished he could of recording her expressions the entire ride. She was yelling "yes!" and had her arms. When the ride stopped, she said, "Thanks Shamu for taking me for a ride!" It was awesome. It's all the talked about the rest of the day. So cute.

Christmas day was incredible. We started out with stockings and then made a beautifully delicious breakfast (one of my favorites), eggs benedict. After breakfast, reading the Christmas story, and adding our last ornament to our Jesse Tree, we moved on to presents. Adelaide couldn't have been happier with all her gifts-- a doll house, cash register, homemade scarf, puzzle book, new glow in the dark book, etc. And Abe surprising got into it. He kept looking at us with this expression that said, "is it really ok for me to destroy this paper?" The shape sorter was a big hit with both him and Adelaide. I bought it because it was Adelaide's absolute favorite toy when she was a baby (we'd checked it out from the toy library AKA Family Connections many times). He also was thrilled with his new CD player; the kid really loves music.

I hope to do a big update of the kids soon, especially on Abe. He's grown so much in the past 1.5 since I updated-- he sits up, he actually eats solids, he sleeps, he's getting a tooth, he crawls (oh, wait. no. he's still just happily scooting), he "talks" alot more. . . He gets more fun by the day.

Anyway, Merry Christmas 2009 to all!

Monday, November 23, 2009

Desiring God

Christian Audio gives away one free audiobook download every month. This month the book is Desiring God by John Piper. I read it a long time ago and really enjoyed it. I just downloaded it. If you'd like to do so also, just follow the link above and enter in the coupon code NOV2009.

Thursday, November 19, 2009

Abe is 6 months

Well, actually, he's been six months old for a little while now, but I haven't posted anything about it yet. Abe is growing up so fast. I feel like a granny when I say that, but it's so true! Abe is so big. He's finally started eating solids (though he only likes sweet potatoes so far). He is sitting up now though he's still wobbly, and he's about to crawl! I think he'll start crawling in the next few days or weeks. It's all he works on. A couple of weeks ago he was only able to scoot on his back. A few days ago he could only rock on his knees. Yesterday he was only able to scoot backward. Today he started scooting forward. He is determined.

He has also shot up on the growth charts. This time it's in height. Thank goodness. He is around 50th for weight again. Now instead of his height being the 10th, it's now around the 50th too. He grew 5 inches! No wonder he has been waking up so much to eat!

Abe, left to his own violation, wants to eat a few times in the middle of the night. This is a step in the opposite direction. Finally last night I decided to let him cry. It was hard to do but it didn't last too long-- somewhere between 30 minutes and an hour. He proved my point though by going back to sleep, not waking up again to nurse, and not even really acting hungry when he woke up at 7:30. I'm hoping it will stick, and we won't have to go through that again. (Update: Abe didn't wake up at all last night. Woohoo).

Abe's attempts to scoot forward:


Abe's jumping skills:


Abe's sitting skills:

Monday, November 02, 2009

Trick or Treat


We had a great time trick or treating with friends on Saturday. The kids had a blast, and we had a great time after they were all in bed hanging around the fire pit at the Benefields. We had a monkey, caterpillar, 2 princesses, a cowboy, a pirate, a fairy, and the most adorable Dorothy ever in our group.

A snapshot of the chaos.

The chubbiest caterpillar ever.

Why do I get no cooperation from my family for photos? Geez.

3 out of 4 looking at the camer and smiling. Chocolate bribes must have been involved.




Adelaide and Kate. Adelaide was a monkey obviously. I thought she'd be bummed she wasn't a princess too but she wasn't at all. She was so pumped to get to wear the monkey suit that has been hanging in his closet since last Halloween.


Before trick or treating we all ate dinner out on the deck at the Benefields. The weather has been perfect!

BFF!

Sunday, October 25, 2009

Too Good to Not Link To

Ah, the Livingston Parish Fair. So many good times there especially for Rocky growing up showing livestock. Even though it opened while we were in Louisiana recently, we didn't get to go :(. Our friend, Brandon, took these great shots that captured it perfectly. Brings back memories.

Friday, October 23, 2009

Pumpkin Patch

We headed to our favorite pumpkin patch again this year. We had about 30 minutes of light, the mosquitoes were bad, and Rocky wasn't there to help with the photos (or be in them), but I think we still got some good shots. I love this pumpkin patch. If you live in Cedar Park or North Austin, you should check out the Cedar Park First United Methodist Church. All proceeds from the pumpkins go toward missions. The volunteers are super friendly, and it's a pretty nice location. They aren't crowded and the pumpkins aren't just stacked on a sidewalk like alot of "pumpkin patches" are these days.

Here's some of our favorite shots. Adelaide's good buddy Kate was in a few. She definitely has better posing skills than my kiddos.


why does she insist on this goofy "cheese" face when she actually does pose.

Nice shot of Kate.




I like this picture. I think it's because they are actually starting to act like a brother and sister and it shows here.

I think Adelaide was starting to get fed up with picture taking or her brother.

Does anyone else think Abe looks like a middle aged high school gym teacher in this picture?

They are both almost smiling and almost looking in this one. I'll take it.

Thursday, October 15, 2009

Adelaide. Oh Adelaide.

Where does she come up with the things she says?

In the car the other day:
Adelaide: "I have my own house. Actually I have 3 houses. . . and 2 phones.

Talking to Rocky yesterday:
"Dad! Our skin matches."

To me the other morning:
"I dreamed about ice cream last night. It was chocolate. . . Can I have some?"

And my favorite recently was today when she went to get her flu shot.
The nurse was concerned that Adelaide wouldn't hold still enough on my lap and kept telling me I'd have to make sure Adelaide was still. Adelaide kept saying, "I will be still." The nurse kept telling me. Finally Adelaide said, "I will be still, and I won't cry either." So the nurse went with it. When she stuck Adelaide, Adelaide had a sharp intake of breath and then said, "I told you so." The nurse agreed that she had been right. She was very proud she held still and didn't cry. She kept talking about it all day. She even ripped her band-aid off a little while later saying it didn't hurt anymore.

Thursday, October 08, 2009


Abe keeps us entertained. Even when we are absolutely worn out or frustrated with him for some reason, he flashes his huge grin and wins us all over.


Abe still hates to ride in the car. He's getting better but he still doesn't like it. He was giddy after he got home after our long drive from Louisiana. He was so happy to be out of his seat.


Here's how Abe is getting around these days. He went on to go across the room but I won't bore you with the entire video.



Adelaide thinks she is the best flipper in the world. She gets so excited and wants me to watch her over and over again. She won't flip until she knows she has an audience. It's so cute.

Louisiana

We spent the past week in Louisiana with family and friends. We also went to celebrate the retirement of our hometown church's long time pastor. It was good as always to see everyone. As an added bonus Adelaide is still in Louisiana with family so I'm having a week with just one kid. I miss her, but she's having a great time and I'm able to get alot more done. I've purged clothes, toys, etc. I've run errands. Somehow I haven't gotten as much done as I'd hoped, but I think I was too ambitious. I need to remember I still have one kid and he's been needy this week. Here's some pictures we took while there.


We spent an afternoon at the Bluebonnet Swamp. Here's some pictures from our visit. Unfortunately with 2 kids and family in tow, we were too loud to see lots of animals. We did see a couple of rabbits and snakes though.


This snake fell out of a tree only a few feet away from us. Yikes.

It is absolutely so beautiful in Louisiana. I forget how much I love it.

My mom doesn't really have many toys for the kids. That's OK though. Adelaide entertains herself with whatever she can find.

On Saturday we celebrated my dad's and Rocky's dad's birthdays. We stayed at the park for about 4 or 5 hours. Adelaide had a wonderful time. It is so amazing to see how Adelaide can make friends anywhere. She buddied up with so many people while we were there. It's so nice to see how well she socializes. Abe did pretty well himself. We turned a couple of lawn chairs into a pack n play and he set up camp, napping for 2 hours through all the hustle and bustle.

I LOVE this picture. Love it. Adelaide got so excited when I said, "say cheese," she slammed her hands down, knocking Rocky's glasses in the process. I love both of their expressions.

This is one of the most hilarious things I saw this trip. This was the crane game and the entrance to a restaurant we went to. Instead of a lame stuffed toy, you are trying to catch lobsters. If you win, the restaurant will cook it up and serve it to you. Awesome.

Abe is all over the place these days. He has learned to roll onto his back and then instantly takes off scooting backwards. He has figured out how to get where he wants to go.

Abe is big enough for the doorway jumper now. Crazy. He loves it so much. The first time we put him in to he stayed there happily for about an hour.

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Big Girl Bed

After seeing her BFF in a big kid bed, Adelaide decided she wanted to sleep in one and wanted to sleep in one last night. So we dismantled her crib spur of the moment and put her mattress on the floor. She only got out three times which we figured was pretty good for our kiddo. She slept in the craziest positions during the night, half on and off the mattress most of the time. Tonight we assembled a toddler bed for her, but the rails aren't stopping her too much. Currently her legs are dangling over the edge of the bed and her head and at the foot. Tonight she didn't get out at all though and fell asleep pretty quickly. I'm so proud of her.

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

oops

Forgot some photos. These are all from tonight. Both kids were in bed and asleep by 7pm. Weird but I'm not complaining.

Abe pretty much always has his tongue out these days. Cute.

Adelaide "eating" her "ice cream" during her bath. She said it was ice cream with blueberries on top. Oh boy. What a kid can do with a ball and a birdie.

I have the hardest time getting a picture of Adelaide's actual smile so here are some. She actually is starting to cooperate a little.

Once again, hard to get Adelaide to stop moving long enough for a photo, but I love her smile in this one.

Photos

I just uploaded lots of photos.

I also wanted to add that the weather has been awesome. Being from Louisiana, I never thought I'd want rain as badly as I have wanted it here this summer. Today Adelaide said, "the grass likes the rain. the flowers open their mouths and drink it up." How poetic.

sportin' Adelaide's headband.

Adelaide wanted to wear her baby like I wear Abe so I found another use for her blanket. I love this picture mostly because of her expression.

Adelaide wanted to give her brother hugs.

They are the sweetest siblings ever.


Adelaide has been doing everything with her Gideon's Bible including brushing her teeth.

Good times with our friends the Hurleys.

Adelaide with one of her best friends, Eliana. Adelaide listed out her best friends the other day-- Eliana, Kate, and Ave-- by age I might add. It was super cute.

Adelaide is far from a tomboy but she has been playing with cars pretty much nonstop. Here she is hugging her Bronco loaded down with two "moms."

Morning cuddle time with Abe.

Abe isn't hating his carseat quite as much. However, if he falls asleep in his seat, his eyes still pop open as soon as we stop moving. I am becoming more and more of a homebody because of it.


Abe wearing one of many shirts from his grandparents.