Happy Birthday Jesus!

In effort to reinforce the reason for the season to our children, our church small group spent the evening celebrating Jesus in a birthday celebration. Although Jesus may not have been born on Christmas day, he is the reason we celebrate. We want our children to understand what was given to them so long ago rather than all of those things they "get" for Christmas. The kids enjoyed the celebration and brought gifts for "Jesus" which will be donated to kids that will not get gifts otherwise this season. I am so proud of the kids and the adults that participated in the evening. Families read the birth story of Jesus with some even acting out the parts of Mary, Joseph and the angels. We played "find the stars" and "name that song". It was a lot of fun! A big thanks to Anna for organizing.

This was the best we could do to get the kids to be stand it one place without adults swooping in to reposition.

1-2-3 Break!Fabulous Cookie Cake..Blowing out the candles after singing Happy Birthday!

Makena is 19 Months Old

Makena turned 19 months old on December 6th. I don't know where the time has gone. She is really developing a more pronounced personality. She is learning to have her own opinion and how to voice it. Her vocabulary is growing leaps and bounds. As she turned 19 months old, she seemed to be repeating us more as we said things. We have heard all sorts of words in the last month including "Please", "More", "Thank You", "Elmo" which is sometimes reduced to "Mo", "Black", "Shoes", "Duck", "Kitty", "Bear", "Cow", "Bow", and many more.

There is a funny story I need to capture about "Black Shoes". A few weeks ago, I was getting Makena ready for Ladies Bible Class and was about to put her pink shoes on her and she starts screaming "Black, black, black". I asked her if she wanted her black shoes and she did her little grunt with a nod which means yes and then said "Black shoes". It was so funny, but shows she is developing her own opinions. Needless to say, she wore her black shoes that day. Luckily they matched! :)

I think potty training will need to occur soon after the baby gets here. She is becoming very verbal about "tee tee", so I feel like we are getting very close. We'll see. I am in no hurry at the moment even though it would be nice to only have one in diapers.

She still has a magical laugh. It is truly a belly laugh that is contagious. She loves to dance and bounce. She laughs so hard when Riggins does his bouncing routine. She loves her "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" book which is what we read most nights after her bible story.

We love our little girl and can't wait to see how she continues to grow and learn. She is going to be a big sister soon. I am pretty confident she is going to be a great "little momma". She has taken a great interest in her babies in the past month or two. She diapers them and dresses them (shoes and socks anyways) as well as rocking them and putting them to sleep. I am trying to enjoy every minute of her before baby Brooklyn comes. I am going to have great fun with my girls.

Here are a few pics to mark the day:

A look back...

20092010

Pregnancy: Week 34 Update

Brooklyn and I are continuing to grow and grow. We found out yesterday that she is approximately 5 lbs 15 oz. That means she could be as big as 9 lbs in 6 weeks. Dr. R will check again in a couple of weeks. If I haven't mentioned this before, the reason why we are concerned about her weight is due to the fact that delivery could be tough if she is any bigger than Makena. Dr. R also said her tummy is larger in proportion to her head, which might indicate her shoulders are bigger too. There is good news. She looks perfectly healthy and is head down. Right now our prayer is that Miss Brooklyn and my body are ready before she becomes too big and it is very clear that is the case. She continues to be my little mover and shaker even though I can tell she is getting squished.

As far as my body goes, I have had some groin and lower back pain. I told Stephanie a week ago that I hadn't had any swelling and the next day I has some in my right ankle. I have only had one other day with any swelling but it is still pretty mild and tends to be just in my right ankle which is the ankle I broke a few years ago. Doing great over all!

Hopefully I'll have some pics soon.

Thanksgiving in Rising Star

This year we spent a few days in Rising Star for Thanksgiving. We hadn't been out there in a number of months and knew it would be a few months before we get to go back since baby Brooklyn would be coming into the world in January.

We spent Thanksgiving day with Granny B, Papa, and Tyler. On Friday, we got together with the Chambers crew. The boys and Makena got to open a few pre-Christmas gifts since we would be back. Makena's Great Uncle Bobby is helping her get into one of her gifts. Driston, Weston, and Dakota watch in anticipation. I think the boys all enjoyed her (Jacob too, which I managed not to get in the picture). Driston showing her how to open her gifts. She got a great A&M blanket as well as some toys from the gang.Driston and Weston instructing for perfect gift opening skills.On Saturday, Mommy got to visit with two high school friends that I haven't seen in years. Misti and Andi, it was great to see you and your kids. Our trip to Stephenville also included Thanksgiving/Christmas celebration with the Callaway family. Ella is posing with her new outfit on.

Papa and Great Uncle David having some good conversation and yummy coffee.

Another cute pose from Miss Ella.
Great Aunt Nancee and cousin Monica....we missed seeing Sydney.

Makena opening her gifts thanks to her new found skills.

Abby showing off her new headbands!

We are so thankful for our family and the fun times. Wished we saw everyone more. We missed seeing the Carrolls over Thanksgiving too.

Do you have an 18 month old in your house??

Oh the joy!! Makes me laugh!

Pregnancy Update: Weeks 32 & 33

Well we are not quite finished with week 33 but I wanted to go ahead and update before the Thanksgiving holiday.

Week 32: Besides continuing with a bit of a cold, it was a good week. I was reminded that I need to keep up with drinking enough water. I have not been as diligent as I was with Makena. My 32 week appointment went very good. Baby Brooklyn's heart beat was 145-150 bpm. My blood pressure was 110/70 and measure between 32 and 33 weeks, which is on track.

Week 33: This week has brought on some groin pains but seems to be normal side effects of pregnancy. Yesterday I think Brooklyn bruised my rib she kicked it so hard, but no complaints. I hope that means she is a strong healthy little girl, which continues to be our prayer.

Only 7.5 weeks to go! Can't believe it is almost time.

Pregnancy Update: Weeks 30 & 31

I have to say week 30 was pretty normal. Not much changed except me getting bigger. I was able to get over being sick and overall felt pretty good. It was busy (Trunk or Treat and the Aggie game vs Tech...among normal weekly stuff), but enjoyable. We also decided on a name...first name that is...for this precious little girl:

BROOKLYN!!

Middle name still on hold for the moment.

Week 31 started off with the most beautiful shower honoring . A special thanks to my church friends for all they did to make every detail just perfect. Look at how creative they are!! They used the colors and patterns that will be in Miss Brooklyn's room (once we are home long enough to start getting her room ready...yikes!).

Here is the beautiful table full of yummy treats!
Thanks Ladies...Dana, Anna, Me (30 Weeks), Paige, JT, Amy, and Amy...missing Jennifer.

Jeanette (Grammie), Aunt Stephanie, and Katie

Opening all my beautiful gifts. Thanks so much for opening your hearts to our growing family.

Room full of fun ladies, beautiful gifts, and lots of memories.

Wonderful gifts!

Now being officially 31 weeks some changes occured this last week:

- Reflux/Heartburn...Mylanta is my friend. Seems to be mild during the day but about 10pm...wow where is the fire extinguisher?

- Lots of low hip pain started yesterday. Just makes me feel like I can't move very fast.

- Sore throat started last night.

- Still having lots of intense movement. Think of an octopus wearing high heels doing gymnastics. I keep thinking she is going to push through my stomach.

- Rings still fit. Yea!

- Ankle not swelling. Yea!

Can't believe our little one will be here in 63 days (maybe even before). Next appointment is schedule for November 18th. Then the holidays will be right around the corner.

18 Months Old

I can't believe how time flies! We have been blessed with our baby Makena now for 18 months. She is a true blessing in our life and it going to be a great big sister to Brooklyn. As most know, kids grow up way too fast. I really feel like not a day goes by that she does or says something new. Here are some tidbits about Makena at 18 months:

With Riggins:
- She has learned how to tell Riggins how to sit and if the number of times she says it indicates how many times I have to say it, we need to work on his commands.
- She loves Riggins enough to put a hat on him or dress him up in her necklaces.
- Although he is very good with her, she does get stepped on or knocked over occasionally and the tears stream until Riggins wants to lick them away for her. He is so sweet.
- She tries to call him with her hand but you can't really get Riggins attention without a verbal queue.

Physically:
- 33 inches tall (90th percentile)
- 23 lbs (25-50% percentile)
- Walking and almost running.
- She has been climbing stairs for awhile but she is learning how to pull up on the couch, chairs, etc. We played at an indoor play area this week and she was a little cautious with climbing the stairs and going down the slide but by the end she was pretty comfortable.
- It is so cute when she wants help to get up on something she'll attempt to get up there then pat her bottom indicating she needs a little nudge. Precious.
- Her hair is coming in a little more but still not long enough for a clip.
- Teeth: 2 bottom teeth in completely; 4 front top teeth little over half way in; 4 molars partially in; 1 addional bottom tooth just appeared at the surface.

Eating:
- She is kinda hit or miss on what she will eat but overall eats good. She loves grapes, crackers, and cheese, but will eat broccoli and a few other veggies.
- Drinks milk and water at this point.
- Likes Sonic ice. It's a new treat in our house.
- She always eats a good breakfast. Favorites include Cream of Wheat, Oatmeal, waffles, cinnamon rolls, and fruit.
- Eggs: seems to have no reaction to baked in egg now. Tests indicated her level of allergy initially was 4.44, which is a class 3. Dr. T will test her again at 2 years old to see if her allergy is going away.

Church:
- Loves to go to bible class and has enjoyed going to ladies class with me and spending time with her class mates.
- She has continued to be good during worship service. She stays pretty occupied and quiet most of the time.

Words:
- She will now say hi and bye (selectively) and wave hi and bye more consistently.
- Include Mama, Dada, Dog, Diaper/Dye, Shirt, Shoes, Sock, Eye, Teeth, Mouth, Bath and I am sure many I don't recall at the moment.
- Signs Milk, Please, All Done, Apple

I can't believe how much she understands. She may not be able to communicate it back it but she knows so much. She loves to mimic mom and dad from cleaning to putting on deodorant. She loves to play chase and loves to be rescued if she things someone is going to get her. And her laugh, what can I say it is the best thing in the world to hear! It is so happy and joyful.


Makena in the Daddy limousine going to the Aggie/Tech game.

She wants to treat everything like a chair. Here she is trying to sit on the cement ledge under the bench in the stadium.

She loves her Aggies!

Govenor Rick Perry makes an appearance at the game.

Hanging out with Mom!

Full house!

Daddy's pic of Fuller (#8) catching a touchdown pass against the Red Raiders.

Big girl sitting in her chair visiting with our friends Stephanie and Sherry.

"I BLEED MAROON!" Makene fell at the game and cut her upper lip. She recovered very quickly but needed a nap on Daddy's shoulder to fully recover from the trauma.

Makena with Daddy and Brad!

Family photo.

Here she is on her 18 month day at the Aggie game against Oklahoma University. Too bad Mom didn't take her good camera that day. She looked so cute in her new hat and coat. It was cold!

Love you baby girl!

Discovery Center Fun

Miss Jenny invited us to the Frisco Discovery Center for story time, crafts and activities. It was a lot of fun. Here is Makena with her "leaf" art work. Isn't she such a big girl?

Jackson riding the tricycle with square wheels.
And Colten...

Makena will make anything a chair...it is a new discovery for her.

The girl that loves her "ruff ruffs", which is what she calls them these days.

She thought they loved to fetch as much as Riggins does, so she brought them any ball she found on the ground.

Figuring out how the maze works...

About to do some building...

What a great day with great friends!