Catching up with a slideshow

Feeding time. . .

Always exciting to introduce new flavors to Reese! Wait until we show you her set of lungs during dinner time.

Left in the dust

This was our family's second year participating in the "Race for the Cure." Originally, we had not made plans to run the race this year. Kyle called me 2 weeks prior and said that his firm was promoting it this year and they would pay for our registration, would I want to run? Can I just say other than running at the beach this summer I haven't gotten back into my running routine since having Reese, not to mention I am nursing the wee babe. Yet, I agreed. We signed up for the 5k non-competitive run. Like we would compete with 3 kids in a jogger stroller, right? I got 2 runs in in preparation. That means I ran around the lake in our neighborhood. Not a big lake. A man made lake. You can probably see where this is going. The race started out with us as one big happy family but it didn't end that way. Even after Kyle asked how I was doing after the first mile and I said, "Good. I'll probably run the first mile and want to walk a little of the 2nd". (To my good friend Leslie, are you so ashamed to have trained for a 1/2 with me and this is what I have amounted to? You must move back here.) Kyle's response, "that's fine we're doing this as a family I'm not going anywhere". Fast forward 5 minutes and I kid you not I can't even see him through the crowd any longer. I can't recall exactly how it happened but after walking together for a bit I picked up me feet and started running again along side Kyle. We started weaving in and out of walkers and runners alike (mind you 30,000 people attended) and pretty soon my eyes where jumping around looking for a caucasian pushing a purple stroller with my 3 kids in it. He left me. He didn't even look back. We hadn't talked about this! We hadn't made any plans for "in case we get separated." My cell was in the jogger stroller with him. I guess we meet at the car? I guess I'll miss out on crossing the finish line with my kids (they love to get out and run across the finish line). I guess I'll miss seeing my kids faces light up as they funnel through all of the tents handing out free stuff after crossing the finish line. Did I mention that's the real reason we run the race? I guess I'll celebrate crossing the finish line with some newly made friends on the run? What? I am so frustrated but of course I can't channel that frustration in to running faster. So, I am a wimp and a loner. I dig deep and run the rest of the race. I cross the finish line alone and start looking for my little family again. Easily, I find them on the side of the road and everything is fine. We make the stroll down "free be" lane together. This is were I begin to, sarcastically, remind Kyle that he left his poor wife behind and that a real "leader" looks out for the "follower", blah, blah, blah, and then I remember I married the most competitive man alive and I wrongly assumed that he checked his competitiveness at the car when he pulled out the jogger stroller and loaded 3 kids into it! Whatever! We had a great time. Jaden and Ty both took turns running along side us. It was adorable to watch their determination to keep up with us.

Your eyes have not deceived you. Those are, in fact, soccer cleats on Ty's feet! He is the man.









Ahh, the reunion.

I am alive. . .

Contrary to those who think I have fallen off the face of the earth, I am here. Hurricane Ike did not run me off. Okay, so I hadn't posted for months before he hit but he is one of my reasons for returning to the blog. I am back to blogging because, as you can imagine, oh so much has taken place since, when was my last post? June? That's horrible. I have got to keep up with this journaling for my children's sake. I have heard rumors that there are companies who will turn blogs into books! Scrapbooking and journaling all in one? I love technology. However, don't ask me to text. I am horrible.

I have a lot to catch up on. Stay tuned. Here are some updated pictures of my 3 joys!



Jaden 8 years old







Ty 4 years old







Reese at 4 months

REESE IS PACKIN' IT ON

There's not a lot to report about the "Reester Bunny", she eats, sleeps and you know what. However, she recently had her first jean day, which made for way to many pictures. She is currently sleeping 10 hours at night with no feedings ( knock on wood). It may be a fluke, but we are nearing almost 2 weeks of the much appreciated habit. And she helps Jaden and Ty continue the ancient tradition of sibling rivalry (vying for time with baby sister). She is such a good baby. A picture (or 10) is worth a thousand words so I'll let her cheeks do the talking!

TY'S LESSON LEARNED THE HARD WAY

Recently, Ty and his buddy Holden caught a few frogs in the back yard during their morning play date. They played hard with the poor things. After a while my heart went out to the warty toads and I asked the boys to set them free. Ty couldn't part. So, he asked if he could put it in his bug catcher. Unfortunately, I agreed. The poor thing was forgotten and left to bake the rest of the day in the blistering hot Texas sun that was bearing down in our back yard. The next time Ty stepped foot in the back yard it was around dinner time. He came running in with tears streaming down his face saying, "my frog is dead, I thought he was sleeping but he is dead!" I have never heard my boy cry like that before. It was from the heart. But mostly, I have never seen such a shriveled frog! I swear that thing shrunk less than half it's body size in a matter of 5 or 6 hours. I could have snapped it in half it was so crispy! Anyway, the events that followed were pretty adorable. Ty and Jaden held a ceremony for the frog. They used a pot of mine that I hadn't gotten around to planting in. They had a burial for the frog, complete with leaves, berry's and flowers. There was even a prayer offered. It went like this, "to our dear kind friend who has passed this day, amen" (paraphrased from the movie Indian in the Cupboard, which they had recently seen). It was heartbreaking and adorable all in one!

JADEN'S NEW DO

With the sticky, hot summer heat approaching us here in Texas we have decided to chop off Jaden's hair. The stylist had a shorter plan. Jaden and I had the old fashioned "hair grows back" talk. She felt as though she looked like a 2 year old. We came home, restyled it and flipped it out. Now, she says, she looks like a teenager and loves it. She even has bangs. I think I like the idea of her looking like a 2 year old, "tween" has a whole new meaning over here. It is adorable on her.