Happy Birthday Gavin!
This is a birthday tribute to our sweet, sweet boy. I can't believe that he is 2 already! 
The party is today, so look for pictures sometime this week!Saturday, May 31, 2008
Happy Birthday, My Baby is 2!!!
This is a birthday tribute to our sweet, sweet boy. I can't believe that he is 2 already! The party is today, so look for pictures sometime this week!
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Okay, so I took the whole week to catch up on time with my kids and sleeping, so I am just now reporting on my trip to Texas. The entire trip was fantastic and in order to do it justice and to get it posted sooner, I am going to post it a couple of days at a time! I should have the whole thing covered by the end of the week! hahaha
Day One
My flight Thursday morning left at 6:05 a.m. so I stayed Wednesday night with my friend Bailey who lives near the airport and she was kind enough to take me @ 4:30 a.m.
My flight Thursday morning left at 6:05 a.m. so I stayed Wednesday night with my friend Bailey who lives near the airport and she was kind enough to take me @ 4:30 a.m.
Once I arrived in TX, we had a couple of hours before our appt at the spa so we went back to Brandy's house and rested for a little bit. She took me to the ZaSpa at the Hotel ZaZa in Uptown Dallas and boy were we spoiled! Our appt was @ 11. It was supposed to be 4 1/2 hrs. Well needless to say, we didn't get finished until almost 5:00! What a way to spend my first day in TX. It was so wonderful. We started off with massages and facials. I had never had a massage or a real facial (as opposed to a Mary Kay one!) before and both were amazing!
Then, we had lunch provided from the Dragonfly Restaurant. We shared Crab Cakes, Turkey Club Sandwich, a Fresh Fruit Plate, and French Fries. The fries were so good. I know that sounds silly but think about it...is a high class restaurant going to take the easy way out on something as simple as french fries? NO WAY!!! They had some incredible seasoning on them and they were even good cold! The turkey club was amazing as well. It didn't get soggy at all and had sliced avocado on it that was the perfect ripe-ness (?)!
Next, we were off for our Manicures and Pedicures. They were called "On the Rocks" and they 
really were. We soaked our feet and hands in copper basins that had hot rocks in the bottom. It was really neat, but took a while for me to actually get my feet completely covered for the soaking. ;) The gal played Nora Jones while we relaxed and were pampered...again! The spa was really "Zen-y" and just so much fun!
really were. We soaked our feet and hands in copper basins that had hot rocks in the bottom. It was really neat, but took a while for me to actually get my feet completely covered for the soaking. ;) The gal played Nora Jones while we relaxed and were pampered...again! The spa was really "Zen-y" and just so much fun! 
For dinner we went to Abuelo's, a really fantastic Mexican place. Baby O (that is what we still call Brandy's daughter, Olivia) totally surprised me with her ability to drink from a "to-go" cup of milk with a straw. She is really an awesome listener and so much more calm than my children. I 
think we will just stick to the sippy cups that I bring along with us for meals! Don't get me wrong, my kids CAN drink from a straw and most of the time Peyton gets that privilege when we are out, but Gavin can't grasp the concept that you can't tip it! For dessert we went to Braum's! Braum's is a great ice cream place that you can't get up north.Day Two
Friday our friend Kristen, "The Unsinkable", came over and we ate lunch at Fogo De Chao. Fogo De Chao is a Brazilian Churrascaria. They have an amazing salad bar and then when you are ready for them to serve you meat, you flip over your card from red to green, and Gauchos will bombard you with about 10-15 different types of beef, chicken and pork. When you want to take a break, flip your card to red and they will stop. We absolutely stuffed ourselves, some of us more than others...but of course, we had room for dessert. They have amazing desserts; we each got something different. We had a lot of great visiting, catching up and reminiscing of times of old in the youth group together! It was great.
Once we were finished with our meal, we dropped Kristen off, rested for a little bit and then headed to Waco to see my brother in law and sister in law and their family. They live near Austin, so Waco was a good place in the middle to meet up! We ended up at Rudy's, a great BBQ place that James loves (too bad he wasn't there). We had lots of fun visiting, catching up and playing with the kids. Their oldest daughter and I have always had a special bond since she was a baby, their middle daughter and Peyton have SO many similarities from their white blonde hair to their small stature and their youngest boy and Gavin are only 3 months apart. I haven't had a lot of opportunity to bond with Jonaton in the past because I have always had Gavin on my lap and Cristy always had Jonaton. This trip was a little different since I didn't have my kids with me, I could give attention to all 3 of Jared and Cristy's! After a little while, I had all 3 kids on the bench with me looking at bugs, 
eating pickles, squirting corn on the cob juice and looking at pictures of Peyton and Gavin! It was wonderful. It was good to actual see how well Jared was healing from his burns and get hugs from Cristy. They have both always been an awesome inspiration and encouragement for us and this trip was no different. We ended the visit across the parking lot with milk shakes. We had a really good 2 hr visit. It went by really quickly, but the kids couldn't take it any longer and we all had a long drive back home!
eating pickles, squirting corn on the cob juice and looking at pictures of Peyton and Gavin! It was wonderful. It was good to actual see how well Jared was healing from his burns and get hugs from Cristy. They have both always been an awesome inspiration and encouragement for us and this trip was no different. We ended the visit across the parking lot with milk shakes. We had a really good 2 hr visit. It went by really quickly, but the kids couldn't take it any longer and we all had a long drive back home!Monday, May 19, 2008
My trip
I will be updating the blog about my trip to Texas throughout the week, but today I am catching up on my snuggles with my kids!
Just a couple things to note...
*I was greated at the airport by James and the kids and one of the first things that Peyton said was "what did you get for me?"
*I came home to a clean house! no dirty dishes and (hold your breath) no dirty laundry, except for my own! I know what you are thinking, someone must have helped James; Emma came over or something, but NO...he did this all on his own!
So keep checking back this week for all of the wonderful details about my trip. It was great!
Just a couple things to note...
*I was greated at the airport by James and the kids and one of the first things that Peyton said was "what did you get for me?"
*I came home to a clean house! no dirty dishes and (hold your breath) no dirty laundry, except for my own! I know what you are thinking, someone must have helped James; Emma came over or something, but NO...he did this all on his own!
So keep checking back this week for all of the wonderful details about my trip. It was great!
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
All my bags are packed
I'm ready to go...
I will leave you with that tune in your head now...but seriously. I am all packed, the house is clean, the fridge is stocked, the laundry is DONE (I can't remember the last time I could honestly say that!), the kids' clothes are laid out and the Sunday church bag is packed for James (toys, snacks and crayons and coloring books).
So, here is how Brandy and I will be started our day tomorrow. I will post the rest of the fabulous time once I return!
Enhance that gorgeous glow with a day that celebrates you! As simple as that… It’s all about you! Who’s Your Daddy Massage?, Sleeping Beauty Facial, Spa Lunch, Straight Up Manicure and “On The Rocks” Pedicure.
Here is a description of each service:
Sleeping Beauty - Radiance Facial
50 minutes
More than a facial, this is an aromatherapy facial experience! This treatment provides a thorough cleansing, toning and exfoliation, along with a rejuvenating facial massage and hydrating mask to create that special glow! Included in this wonderful treatment is a relaxing scalp massage and a silky, soft layering of creams for the hands applied by light massage.
Who’s your Daddy? – Pre-Natal Massage
50 minutes
Rest as your body is soothed and your skin is pampered with the nourishing properties of essential Rose oil. An inclusive treatment for the mommy-to-be with a complete scalp, face and lower leg massage, that is designed to answer the developing needs of mother and baby. A truly nurturing treatment you both deserve!
Straight Up Manicure
25 minutes
For a man or woman, our soothing natural approach to nail care includes shaping, filing, cuticle treatment, hand massage, natural buff or polish of your choice.
“On the Rocks” Pedicure
50 minutes
A unique experience! On the Rocks allows you to relax, fully reclined, in our zero gravity pedicure chair. A relaxing and refreshing foot soak is followed by a callus exfoliation, cuticle treatment, finishing with a well-deserved foot massage. Follow by a custom nail shaping and natural nail buff or polish of your choice.
I will leave you with that tune in your head now...but seriously. I am all packed, the house is clean, the fridge is stocked, the laundry is DONE (I can't remember the last time I could honestly say that!), the kids' clothes are laid out and the Sunday church bag is packed for James (toys, snacks and crayons and coloring books).
So, here is how Brandy and I will be started our day tomorrow. I will post the rest of the fabulous time once I return!
Enhance that gorgeous glow with a day that celebrates you! As simple as that… It’s all about you! Who’s Your Daddy Massage?, Sleeping Beauty Facial, Spa Lunch, Straight Up Manicure and “On The Rocks” Pedicure.
Here is a description of each service:
Sleeping Beauty - Radiance Facial
50 minutes
More than a facial, this is an aromatherapy facial experience! This treatment provides a thorough cleansing, toning and exfoliation, along with a rejuvenating facial massage and hydrating mask to create that special glow! Included in this wonderful treatment is a relaxing scalp massage and a silky, soft layering of creams for the hands applied by light massage.
Who’s your Daddy? – Pre-Natal Massage
50 minutes
Rest as your body is soothed and your skin is pampered with the nourishing properties of essential Rose oil. An inclusive treatment for the mommy-to-be with a complete scalp, face and lower leg massage, that is designed to answer the developing needs of mother and baby. A truly nurturing treatment you both deserve!
Straight Up Manicure
25 minutes
For a man or woman, our soothing natural approach to nail care includes shaping, filing, cuticle treatment, hand massage, natural buff or polish of your choice.
“On the Rocks” Pedicure
50 minutes
A unique experience! On the Rocks allows you to relax, fully reclined, in our zero gravity pedicure chair. A relaxing and refreshing foot soak is followed by a callus exfoliation, cuticle treatment, finishing with a well-deserved foot massage. Follow by a custom nail shaping and natural nail buff or polish of your choice.
In honor of The TOT!!!!
In honor of the Tot and her valiant mother, I am posting some picture of Peyton Feb of 2007. This was on her actual birthday, right before we took her out for her birthday dinner...McDonald's! Yes, that is finger nail polish. Not quite sure how she got it open, but there hasn't been a bottle low enough for her reach since!
We thought that this was HUGE, funny yet incredibly shocking at the same time. However, I have been reminded that things could always be worse. Check out my dear friend's blog to see her "morning surprise"! http://www.unsinkablekristen.blogspot.com/Monday, May 12, 2008
A thankful Monday
Okay, so my friend, the Unsinkable has been doing a Thankful Thursday for quite some time now where she usually lists 10 things that she is thankful for. She uses this forum to keep herself in an attitude of gratitude and keep her joy in parenting...something that I feel has been slipping away in me for a few months now. So since I will be on a plane to Texas early Thursday morning, I thought that there was no better day to begin than today. I will probably try and use this as a Monday forum for me anyway...great way to begin my week as Mondays are ALWAYS the hardest for me. James is gone from the house from 6:45 am-9:45 pm on Mondays.
So, after an awesome weekend I am going to start my thankful list.
1. I am so thankful that I had energy enough last night to do a run through on my house before bed because it was so nice to wake up to a clean slate! (in most rooms anyway...if you don't look at the office and Peyton's room ;)
2. I am thankful for the thoughtfulness of my husband. After an extremely busy day on Saturday that resulting in a couple of hot dogs, about 6 hours at a car dealership with a friend and ending with a new car I had thought that he forgot that the next day was Mother's Day. To my surprise, I woke up to waffles on MY brand new waffle iron, chocolate milk (a new fav this pregnancy) and some beautiful flowers. I grew up on waffles. We never had pancakes. When James and I first got married, we didn't have a waffle iron and never ended up getting one. I know that they are extremely cheap, we just never got one. I have been so sick of pancakes lately and just mentioned briefly to him that I had looked for a waffle iron the other day and couldn't find one (it was at a huge church rummage sale). Well, now I have one!!! There is nothing like starting your morning off with waffles with butter in as many squares as you want, drenched in syrup, huh?! hahahaha
3. I am thankful that James even remembered his Gramma with flowers. She came to church with us yesterday and enjoyed a great lunch at our house!
4. I am really thankful for my long nap that I was able to get yesterday!
5. I am thankful for the excitement and love that my kids show me! Gavin has always been my cuddler and definitely a mommy's boy where Peyton always has 5 times the energy of a normal person, an extremely loud voice and can be very demanding! ;) She has been using that energy lately in her excitement of coloring! (which is nice because that means that she is sitting still, for a little while at least!) The last 5 days, she has been very diligently working on writing her name. It brings her so much joy to do this. Well, James had written her name on a separate piece of paper and by looking at that she was able to write her entire first name without any additional assistance. This just happened to be on my Mother's Day card. This happened Saturday night when I wasn't home and Sunday morning, she was able to say to me "Mommy, I wrote P-E-Y-T-O-M." (she has a little trouble with M and N, but she just turned 3 in Feb) It was another amazing gift! Gavin also scribbled on the card and the envelope instead of eating the crayons! Another amazing feat!
6. I am thankful that James has taken a serious attempt at helping out with more responsibilities around the house. He has been great this past week just picking up after himself especially his dirty clothes off of the floor and making the bed (since he is usually the last one out of it), but more specifically he has been doing some of the laundry! All of you wives know what a huge thing that is, even if you like to do your own... He has started the wash and even putting away his own clothes!
7. I am so thankful that I have family and friends that care so much about me to expect me to be real with them about "how I am doing" and that offer encouragement, help and even advice! Thank you so much Mom, Cristy, Ina Lee, Brandy, Tami, Dave and Lisa, Judy, Susan, and Mary for being there for me. Your constant thoughts, prayers and phone calls have been wonderful this past week. God really puts certain people in your life that help get you through!
8. I am SO thankful that Peyton has been doing an amazing job with making it to the bathroom! ;) We haven't had an accident ALL week. Now we can work on nap time and night time!
9. I am thankful that James' brother Jared is doing so well after his awful accident last week. I didn't post this last week, but God answered so many prayers for the Abels' family. Jared was camping and was badly burned, flown to San Antonio burn clinic, treated for 2nd/3rd degree burns on his hand and leg. He is now recovering well, not without pain but the special "bondage" that will replace his old skin is adhering well and healing nicely! He has such amazing spirits about this incident and talks so much about God putting people right in the middle of this to help them! Their church family has been incredible!
10. I am so thankful that God has grace enough to cover my mistakes and short comings (?) and that with His help, I can be the woman, wife, mother and friend that He has created me to be!
***Bonus (I have to add this one!) I am very excited and thankful that my trip to Texas is in 4 days!!! I will miss my family dearly, but I am really looking forward to this time! More details about the trip to come...before I leave or once I return!
So, after an awesome weekend I am going to start my thankful list.
1. I am so thankful that I had energy enough last night to do a run through on my house before bed because it was so nice to wake up to a clean slate! (in most rooms anyway...if you don't look at the office and Peyton's room ;)
2. I am thankful for the thoughtfulness of my husband. After an extremely busy day on Saturday that resulting in a couple of hot dogs, about 6 hours at a car dealership with a friend and ending with a new car I had thought that he forgot that the next day was Mother's Day. To my surprise, I woke up to waffles on MY brand new waffle iron, chocolate milk (a new fav this pregnancy) and some beautiful flowers. I grew up on waffles. We never had pancakes. When James and I first got married, we didn't have a waffle iron and never ended up getting one. I know that they are extremely cheap, we just never got one. I have been so sick of pancakes lately and just mentioned briefly to him that I had looked for a waffle iron the other day and couldn't find one (it was at a huge church rummage sale). Well, now I have one!!! There is nothing like starting your morning off with waffles with butter in as many squares as you want, drenched in syrup, huh?! hahahaha
3. I am thankful that James even remembered his Gramma with flowers. She came to church with us yesterday and enjoyed a great lunch at our house!
4. I am really thankful for my long nap that I was able to get yesterday!
5. I am thankful for the excitement and love that my kids show me! Gavin has always been my cuddler and definitely a mommy's boy where Peyton always has 5 times the energy of a normal person, an extremely loud voice and can be very demanding! ;) She has been using that energy lately in her excitement of coloring! (which is nice because that means that she is sitting still, for a little while at least!) The last 5 days, she has been very diligently working on writing her name. It brings her so much joy to do this. Well, James had written her name on a separate piece of paper and by looking at that she was able to write her entire first name without any additional assistance. This just happened to be on my Mother's Day card. This happened Saturday night when I wasn't home and Sunday morning, she was able to say to me "Mommy, I wrote P-E-Y-T-O-M." (she has a little trouble with M and N, but she just turned 3 in Feb) It was another amazing gift! Gavin also scribbled on the card and the envelope instead of eating the crayons! Another amazing feat!
6. I am thankful that James has taken a serious attempt at helping out with more responsibilities around the house. He has been great this past week just picking up after himself especially his dirty clothes off of the floor and making the bed (since he is usually the last one out of it), but more specifically he has been doing some of the laundry! All of you wives know what a huge thing that is, even if you like to do your own... He has started the wash and even putting away his own clothes!
7. I am so thankful that I have family and friends that care so much about me to expect me to be real with them about "how I am doing" and that offer encouragement, help and even advice! Thank you so much Mom, Cristy, Ina Lee, Brandy, Tami, Dave and Lisa, Judy, Susan, and Mary for being there for me. Your constant thoughts, prayers and phone calls have been wonderful this past week. God really puts certain people in your life that help get you through!
8. I am SO thankful that Peyton has been doing an amazing job with making it to the bathroom! ;) We haven't had an accident ALL week. Now we can work on nap time and night time!
9. I am thankful that James' brother Jared is doing so well after his awful accident last week. I didn't post this last week, but God answered so many prayers for the Abels' family. Jared was camping and was badly burned, flown to San Antonio burn clinic, treated for 2nd/3rd degree burns on his hand and leg. He is now recovering well, not without pain but the special "bondage" that will replace his old skin is adhering well and healing nicely! He has such amazing spirits about this incident and talks so much about God putting people right in the middle of this to help them! Their church family has been incredible!
10. I am so thankful that God has grace enough to cover my mistakes and short comings (?) and that with His help, I can be the woman, wife, mother and friend that He has created me to be!
***Bonus (I have to add this one!) I am very excited and thankful that my trip to Texas is in 4 days!!! I will miss my family dearly, but I am really looking forward to this time! More details about the trip to come...before I leave or once I return!
Monday, May 5, 2008
ok, so it has been a long time...
I haven't posted in quite a while. I would like to say that it is because I haven't been on the computer much due to being focused on more important things like taking the kids to the park, napping when they nap, keeping my house cleaned and my laundry caught up...but that isn't true at all! The truth is that I am still on the computer checking other friends' blogs, just not updating my own.
I have had a rough time emotionally this pregnancy. It isn't because I wish I wasn't pregnant. It isn't because I am sad that we are having another boy. I am extremely happy about both of those things! I am just extremely exhausted, overwhelmed by the daily responsibilities which lead to my huge meltdown last week! Instead of going into detail about THAT one, I would rather focus on the positive that has come from that.
In just 10 short days, I am headed out on an airplane for 4 days of "me" time in the great state of Texas. It is a health and wellness vacation! I will be spending those days with a dear friend of mine from high school, Brandy and her family! She has been so good to me over the last 8 years and now has an entire weekend plus a couple of days planned for us together! Her itinerary has lots of good food and lots of relaxing time on it, including a lunch with another great friend of ours that lives in Texas as well, the one and only Unsinkable! I will go into detail after I return about where we ate and what we did...just know that I am super excited about this trip and it couldn't have come at a better time for me! God always knows what we need and he puts wonderful people in your life to make it happen! Her husband is a great cook and incredibly generous or incredibly crazy for letting another emotional pregnant woman stay at his house for 4 days! (Brandy is also pregnant, so 2 pregnant women getting pampered and eating to their hearts/bellies content is going to be great!!!)
Another one of those wonderful people has been my husband. He is taking time off of work in order for this trip to be possible. He will be spending some great time with the kids. They don't get very much "daddy only" time and I think it will be great for all of them!
So, I thank God for a husband who realizes that it is important to our entire family for me to have some emotional health and wellness time, for friends who are so generous to me, and for my mom who always tries to remind me that I am worthy of some me time, even if it is just 5 minutes locked alone in the bathroom with my Bible!
As mothers, we neglect ourselves WAY too much to tend to the needs of others and that is actually detrimental to our entire families. I actually laughed at Brandy when she called me 4 or 5 weeks ago and asked me to come down for a "Girl's Weekend". I told her that it was impossible! I couldn't have been more wrong! God was able to use her to help me even when I didn't realize I needed it so desperately!
Since the trip has been planned, I have had more peace, had more drive to complete my daily "tasks" and more joy to spend time with the kids and let other things like laundry go for a day! I had been in a very rough place and had lost my Joy! I was letting the stresses and responsibilities of my marriage, motherhood and daily life crowd out the joys and blessings that God was trying to give me every day!
I am excited about this new path forward and look forward to being the woman that God has called me to be!
Please be praying for me as I take hold of this new start!
I have had a rough time emotionally this pregnancy. It isn't because I wish I wasn't pregnant. It isn't because I am sad that we are having another boy. I am extremely happy about both of those things! I am just extremely exhausted, overwhelmed by the daily responsibilities which lead to my huge meltdown last week! Instead of going into detail about THAT one, I would rather focus on the positive that has come from that.
In just 10 short days, I am headed out on an airplane for 4 days of "me" time in the great state of Texas. It is a health and wellness vacation! I will be spending those days with a dear friend of mine from high school, Brandy and her family! She has been so good to me over the last 8 years and now has an entire weekend plus a couple of days planned for us together! Her itinerary has lots of good food and lots of relaxing time on it, including a lunch with another great friend of ours that lives in Texas as well, the one and only Unsinkable! I will go into detail after I return about where we ate and what we did...just know that I am super excited about this trip and it couldn't have come at a better time for me! God always knows what we need and he puts wonderful people in your life to make it happen! Her husband is a great cook and incredibly generous or incredibly crazy for letting another emotional pregnant woman stay at his house for 4 days! (Brandy is also pregnant, so 2 pregnant women getting pampered and eating to their hearts/bellies content is going to be great!!!)
Another one of those wonderful people has been my husband. He is taking time off of work in order for this trip to be possible. He will be spending some great time with the kids. They don't get very much "daddy only" time and I think it will be great for all of them!
So, I thank God for a husband who realizes that it is important to our entire family for me to have some emotional health and wellness time, for friends who are so generous to me, and for my mom who always tries to remind me that I am worthy of some me time, even if it is just 5 minutes locked alone in the bathroom with my Bible!
As mothers, we neglect ourselves WAY too much to tend to the needs of others and that is actually detrimental to our entire families. I actually laughed at Brandy when she called me 4 or 5 weeks ago and asked me to come down for a "Girl's Weekend". I told her that it was impossible! I couldn't have been more wrong! God was able to use her to help me even when I didn't realize I needed it so desperately!
Since the trip has been planned, I have had more peace, had more drive to complete my daily "tasks" and more joy to spend time with the kids and let other things like laundry go for a day! I had been in a very rough place and had lost my Joy! I was letting the stresses and responsibilities of my marriage, motherhood and daily life crowd out the joys and blessings that God was trying to give me every day!
I am excited about this new path forward and look forward to being the woman that God has called me to be!
Please be praying for me as I take hold of this new start!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
