The Tall and Short of It

Rolling along...

2012-01-23T12:30:00.000-08:00

I wanted to post a few pictures of where we are staying. I hope it's not boring to you, but I always like seeing pictures of people's surroundings. Makes me feel more connected to them.

Here are the chickens that Esther keeps. While the family was away in Oregon over Christmas and New Years, Josh developed an attachment to these fluffy lil' ladies quite quickly. He especially liked the eggs he got for breakfast (almost) every morning.

Here are some wind-swept trees in the backyard. I love how they are shaped and look so stark yet graceful against the winter sky. Sadly they will be cut down soon, since they have died. But for now I like to look up at them.

My miss Annie bug. She has really enjoyed staying with cousins and learning about how to play with others. She generally is rather a loner, but she has opened up a little more and will imagine lots of pretend games. Today she had me sit with her on a beanbag, saying we were going for a drive. She drove really well! ;) Before I know it she will be driving off to college. Without me. *sniff* Pardon me while I go cry in the corner.

Wesley is my sweet rough and tumble little boy. He's so sensitive to people's feelings, and will give out hugs generously. He also loves to run and jump (a newly learned trick) all over the house and yard.

We have gone for a few walks with this wagon. The kids love it so much. I enjoy the walk and the extra resistance on my arms...before you know it I'm gonna look like Schwarzenegger. j/k

Here is Wesley favorite "uppy". Roscoe is very patient with the kids, even when they try to ride him or pull his hair. That dog deserves a reward in heaven.

Lots of sticks to find and play with!

Annie is making towers here out of lego blocks. She just recently discovered them. I love the smile on her face!

This is a Goodwill find. I painted it and distressed it. The shape really caught my eye, and it's fun to have something bright for our new (to us) house. We will be renting a town-home just down the street beginning February 1st!

This picture is from this morning. Josh had to leave really early for work. Oh yes, Josh has found a contract job about 45 minutes away! We are grateful for the Lord taking care of every detail. :) Anyways I put the kids on the bed with me. After I got up they watched Curious George while brushing their teeth in bed. Two cute little blonde heads. :)

2011-12-29T19:38:00.000-08:00

I hope you guys all had a great Christmas! Early in the morning Josh took his sister and fam to the airport so they could attend a family reunion in Oregon. I was pretty torn about going or staying, but we opted to stay since we just moved. I think there is a good chance of more family visits in the future, so that has helped me when I feel twinges of missing dear ones. We enjoyed a quiet day, opening gifts and making cookies. In the evening while our chicken (fondly named Rosie) was cooking we went out and saw Christmas lights around the neighborhood. We returned home to find that Rosie had refused to cook completely, but we triumphed in the end and had a nice dinner.

I didn't do a very good job of explaining Christmas this year, I think, which was revealed when Annie was asked what Christmas was about. She replied, "Presents!" When asked what else it was about she thought for a moment and said, "More presents!" Oh dear...

For the kids I tried my hand at making felt puppets. They seemed to turn out ok...at least you could mostly tell what they were. There was a tiger, lion, zebra and dog/sheep (that last one is up for interpretation...) complete with googly eyes (my favorite!) glued together with a hot glue gun. I love those things! They make some crafts go a lot faster. It's been nice to create things with my hands again, since I sort of stopped for a while when I started working full time, getting married, having kids...etc. Sort of a re-discovery. I have my eye on a few other DIY projects now...

Annie made cookies with Chloe before Christmas. She had tons of fun. I think sampling the batter was her favorite part. ;)

Stockings! I'm grateful for a dollar store that supplied me with small items to stuff it with.

Trying some chocolate discovered inside. Wesley would not move off this bean bag the entire time we opened gifts up until he opened his present from Uncle John and Aunt Carrie. Something about a big yellow Tonka dump truck...

He said, "ooooh Wesley!" when he saw it.

I think this is Annie's favorite toy hands down. She played with it almost non-stop after opening it. She is hoping it will rain soon.

Had to post some pics of my handsome guys too. :)

Slowly Settling

2011-12-19T11:00:00.000-08:00

We are staying with Josh's family for a little bit while Josh looks for a job and housing. We are so happy to be a part of this sweet little family. They are the type of people who have an impromptu nerf gun war on Saturday morning and will drop everything to help someone.

We've enjoyed walking with their 2 dogs on a nearby trail, making Christmas gifts, visiting the local library for story time, and peppermint tea in the evenings with an occasional game or two. My kids just adore Aidan and Chloe.

It's been such fun discovering our surroundings with people who can give us insight on what's good and where to find things. There is even a Chickfila, which makes the Southern part of me rejoice. :)

Thanks Chris, Esther, Aidan and Chloe!

Watch for Falling Snow

2011-12-17T08:34:00.000-08:00

(disclamer: these photos are not in order and might not be mentioned in the post but I had to put some kind of pictures up at least)

I drove to the library all by myself last week! The kids loved story time, and Annie begged me not to leave. They sang some songs and got to shake some bells, which was Wesley's favorite part.

I'm thankful for a couple main roads that help in case I get lost. :) There is a cute little street that I want to explore with Josh that has little shops and a coffee shop. It's lined with street lamps covered in colored plastic for Christmas. Makes it look really cozy at night.

Speaking of night - it gets super cold here at night, but when the sun is out it feels so warm! There is a spot by a window where I like to sit and just soak up some rays.

There is a little walking path near the house. I took the kids there yesterday and they really enjoyed running down hills and stopping at the bridge to watch the water go underneath. I can't get over how sparkly the snow is with the sun shining on it! Annie has been known to eat it, too. She likes to go wandering through the front yard in the afternoons pretending who knows what. I've been impressed by how well she has adapted so far, since she was my main concern during the move. She really likes to know ahead of time what is going to happen. She is a lot like me! Thankful for an opportunity to grow in being content whatever the circumstances and also to trust our Father regardless of knowing what's ahead or not.

Wesley has fallen in love with Josh's sister's two dogs. He gives them smacks on their bottoms and says Uppy (puppy) fifty million times a day. hehe I think we will need to look into having one at some point. Wes was watching one of the dogs drink water one time, and after the dog left he bent down to try and lap the water just like he saw the dog doing. Ew. We didn't let him, though. We also found some dog food stashed in a toy barn the other day. Saving it for later?

"I Guess He'd Rather Be in Colorado..." ~ John Denver

2011-12-13T12:40:00.000-08:00

It's been a while since my last post. Partly because I've been very busy and partly because we haven't been able to talk about big change in our family until it was official.

We have been praying and seeking God regarding the ministry we served at for quite some time. Josh and I felt maybe it was time to move on, so we fasted and prayed for the Lord's direction or confirmation of staying where we were. Long story short, we are following His direction to move...to Colorado! It's been quite the adventure and learning/growing process. We have seen God provide in little and big ways. Like the time Josh decided to go ahead and pay extra for roadside assistance when he rented the moving truck, which came in handy when the tire shredded in the middle-of-nowhere-Kansas, or when the truck wouldn't star because it was too cold. We've also received some warm weather clothes/shoes for the kids that came just in time.

We just arrived last week to stay at Josh's sister's house until we can find a place to rent. Josh has gotten some job offers that he currently is pursuing. We all like it here and are excitedly exploring our surroundings. The mountains are so pretty in the background, and provide great navigational help, too.

We are looking forward to each step God shows us, while enjoying each moment in His presence.

Another Post. (I never can think of charming titles)

2011-10-04T11:43:00.000-07:00

Between being sick and traveling unexpectedly to Oklahoma for a memorial service I have not been wanting to blog very much. I figured our poor little blog was due for an update with at least some pictures for my mom's sake. Hi mom! :)
Annie has been exploring different fruits and vegetables. Here she is finally okay with eating an apple0. I think they were strange to her for the longest time - maybe it was the peel. Her latest obsession has been clementines. She can eat far too many of those lil' suckers. I don't mind since it's not french fries or candy, so I indulge her.
Umm, Wesley eats almost anything. Especially if it's on your plate. I'm trying to use this to our advantage.
I call this "sidewalk chalk deconstructed." :) In the rain Wesley discovered that sidewalk chalk makes great war paint.
Annie has this adorable froggy raincoat from her grandma that she loves to wear in the rain. She's easy to find, too!
This is on of Wesley's favorite books. It's about a little dump-truck looking for his daddy and he meets lots of different work trucks along the way. It asks the question on each page, "Is this Sammy's father?" to which Wesley says, "NO!" Except...when the dump truck finds his daddy at the end Wesley still insists it's not his daddy.

Of Boxes, Rocking Chairs, and Balls

2011-07-15T19:54:00.000-07:00

Annie reminds me of a little hobo just playing her harmonica on some dusty curb.

Wesley's cheeks are still very kissable. I think he doesn't mind it too much anymore, and he's started to give us hugs. He runs from dada to mama giving out hugs.
What's inside?
Josh brought a box home from work. He couldn't bring both since they were too big, but he brought the other one later. The kids had such fun playing inside them and visiting it each other. I can't help but think about others who actually live in cardboard boxes for real. May we never think we deserve our blessings.

Wesley observing Josh trimming. He has a thing for wires so maybe he will become a computer savvy person like his dada. :)

We had a tea party for my Grandma's birthday and Annie "helped" make the cake. We had so much fun using our special china and talking. Annie even tried some blueberry tea. We love you Grandma!
It's hard to get a good shot of Wesley and Annie because they wiggle so much! I put the rocking chair back in Annie's room and use it for stories and bedtime songs. The children were thrilled to have a new toy...

After a week of staying dry I declared Annie potty-trained and let her pick a special toy as a reward. She chose a vacuum. A girl after my own heart! :) She's a big helper for mommy and loves to help me clean the house. I think her favorite is either vacuuming or dusting with the wand.
She also loves wearing dresses - it's so fun! I hated dresses as a kid, but Annie likes them and thinks they are comfy. I'm not complaining...it's fun having a girly girl. :)

this is Soccer Annie. She wears her brother's hat (with the strap under her nose for some reason) and kicks the ball around the house. Maybe I should look into preschool soccer classes. She cracks me up with her imagination and sense of humor.

Pictures from May and June

2011-06-10T07:11:00.000-07:00

Wesley is so proud of himself whenever he gets to eat big boy food. Spaghetti is one of his favorites as you can see...
Annie would rather eat a "trifangle" sandwich. She also likes me to cut the bread into shapes with cookie cutters. It makes her interested enough to eat her lunch. It's really hard to get her to eat these days. I guess there is so much to explore she doesn't want to stop and eat.
Annie was playing in her car seat the other day, pretending to buckle herself in. She kept saying she was going to go live with Jesus. I hope she decides to follow Him at a young age, but I also hope she gets to live with us a while longer. :)
Wearing mommy's shoes...sometimes she tells me what shoes to wear, or tells me to put on earrings. I think we have a girly-girl on our hands. Love it.
Wesley has taken to exploring the pantry baskets. He is trying very hard to find something he can't eat, like pretzels.
This is Josh's birthday cake made according to Annie's instructions. It was a yellow "trifangle" cake with yellow frosting, and orange letters. I think I will hand over my duties of birthday cake making to her when she gets older.
Happy Birthday to my sweet husband! I feel a little bad I took the best single man out of circulation, but not too bad. ;) He even does dishes and mops. Dreamy!
At the Ft. Worth zoo. We are taking advantage of the fact we can get the kids in free. Once Annie turns 3 it won't be the case. Of course we will still do fun things...
I think Wesley wanted some time in the lime light.
Josh and I liked this zoo better than the Dallas one. The animals were a lot closer and we could see more. It was a nice way to spend Memorial Day weekend.

Looking at giraffes through the fence.
Annie was trying on her brother's hat. It's a little small missy. :)
Hmm, I'm not sure why my pictures are out of order...but these are elephants! :)

A floor of a thousand miles begins with...

2011-04-29T18:05:00.001-07:00

...a whole lot of laminate from IKEA! After Wesley was sent home from the doctor with symptoms of breathing trouble we decided to replace our old carpet. It had flooded right before we moved in a few years ago and was musty I think ever since. Wesley being so sick helped us decide to finally get rid of it.

It took hours and hours of work. Josh and I were so sore!
Annie wanted to help, so she grabbed Wesley's plastic hammer and started banging on the baseboards like Dada was doing. She always wants to help, it's so precious. :)
step 1. pull up carpet and baseboards
step 2. get really really sick from pulling up the carpet without wearing a mask
step 3. wash the floor
step 4. make multiple trips to IKEA and Lowes to find laminate
step 5. get the materials finally decided upon.
step 6. lay plastic down over cement and add squishy foam on top of that while your wife takes the kids to various stores and playgrounds in between nap times. *note: if laying foam or plastic requires cutting you must employ the resident cutting-in-straight-lines expert, aka Jessica.
step 7. decide how many inches exactly to use on the very first row-last-plank so you can "stagger" the planks. *note: this could take an hour since IKEA instructions are made for people who cannot read and are fluent in pictures.
step 8. decide to finally just cut the last plank against the said instructions and continue laying flooring. *note: try not to wake up your sleeping kids with the mallet hitting the boards in place.
step 9. decide to do the hallway and baseboards a different weekend!

We really like how it looks and are very grateful for the Lord's provision. :)

I also have to say...guys really are better in general at construction type work. I work out and strength train a lot, but I had lots of trouble getting tack strips up with a mallet and crowbar - and Josh made it look easy! I couldn't hold the saw cause my hands were too small to turn the safety off and push the on button at the same time (so it wouldn't even turn on for me). Then I couldn't place the boards very well since it required a long arm span and muscly push to get them in place. It was funny to me seeing the difference, but I was able to help Josh some and make it go a little bit faster than if it was just him. Yay for teamwork! :)

So Happy Together

2011-04-29T17:51:00.001-07:00

I caught a rare moment of the little ducklings playing together without screams erupting. (Annie doesn't understand why Wesley grabs her to "play" and Wesley doesn't understand why Annie screams about it so he, in turn, will yell) I'm pretty sure they will be able to play better soon now that Wesley can walk and imitate Annie.

Here's Annie tickling Wesley. She says "tick tick tick!"
Wesley loves any kind of attention from Annie. :)

Tigger is now tickling Wesley. Annie was saying "Here's your Tigger, Wesley!" I love how they both giggle exactly the same.

Taking a break to breath.
Annie is contemplating her next move.

More tickling ensues. :)
I love watching them play together. I also think it's hilarious how Annie tells Wesley things I will say. Just tonight before Josh came home she ran over to Wesley with his jammies saying "Awight Wesley-Wes, it's time for your jammy-jams!" and ran after him. Wesley of course ran away giggling. :)

Happy Birthday Wesley Wes

2011-04-05T08:29:00.000-07:00

Wesley had his very first birthday yesterday!

I love how inquisitive Wesley is. He also likes to get into stuff on purpose and run away with it.

This is his stinker face. haha He does it to make me laugh or when he is frustrated that he cannot have his way.
Wesley's cake. It sort of melted. But it tasted yummy, so that made up for it.
Wesley loves to play with balls, especially this one. He is using it as a pillow right now. He likes to bang it against his mouth and say "BWAH!". Speaking of him putting things in his mouth: He likes to lay on the floor every now and then and lick it. I have no clue why it's fun to him, but it must be. I have to keep my floors clean or my little vacuum will find it.

He loved his cake. :)
Sweet boy. :)
He liked all his presents. They made noise and had big blocks. Everything a little boy needs.
I don't know why these pictures got out of order. I'm too tired to fix them right now, so I shall leave them as they are. :)
Annie had to show Wesley how the whole cake business was done. She was so excited about his cake that she could barely wait for dinner to be over. She is now talking about her birthday and how she will have HER cake soon. In the meantime she is content to help Wesley enjoy his new toys and play in the backyard with her Tigger.

One morning when I got her up she told me that Tigger was giving her hot dogs. And that Tigger gave me one too. I guess it was a dream. She sometimes comes up with funny stories after naps...And just tonight she said there was a man in her closet. Hmm We investigated and there was no man. Just lots of clothes. We prayed and she seems okay. Imaginations can getchya if you aren't careful. :)

Wesley had his one year checkup today at the doctor. He is doing really great. He's healthy, going on in his motor skills and super tall. I think I will be surrounded by tall people in this family. At least they will help me when I can't reach the vanilla at the top of my cupboard. ;)

Annie likes to help me at the grocery store a lot now. She's my little shopping buddy. She will walk with me and help me put vegetables in bags and in the cart. She talks about how we need to get buggy yogurt each time we visit Sprouts. It's her special treat for coming with me and helping. It's just kefir, but it is in a cool little bag she can sip in the car on the way home. Love it.

Speaking of shopping, I didn't realize how quickly the anti-shopping gene surfaces in boys. Wesley really has trouble sitting in the cart unless he a. has a snack or b. is moving If I stop for a little while he gets into mischief. I was looking at something and turn back to see Wesley standing in his seat turned around to pull Annie's hair in the cart below him. haha I love how he is so different from Annie. He is always making me laugh with his antics. Then again, Annie is always making me laugh with her funny ideas. God knew I needed some laughter in my life when he gave me Josh and then the little ones. :)

Sun and Sunglasses

2011-03-04T18:33:00.001-08:00

Here are more pictures for our life recently. We thank God for over all health and just so many little blessings each day!

With the weather warming up and flowers starting to come out we have been enjoying the outdoors more often. Annie will play in the backyard a lot while I'm cooking dinner. Lately she has been having a lot of adventures that include going "up the hill, across the bridge, and over the tall mountain."
We've had the opportunity to enroll Annie in a dance class at a local rec. center. It's been so fun to watch her learn and grow through the experience. She loves to go to her class and requested black dancing shoes, "just like teacher."
Someone found my shoes. Annie is always trying on her mommy's shoes, especially if they heels!
Praying I can be a good example as she watches and tries to be just like mommy.
We took the kids to the zoo recently! This was Annie's second time and she was so excited. We let her ride the carousel, which she thoroughly enjoyed and talked about for a long time.
We met up with Katie and Alley!
This is not a statue.

Miss Alley. :) Annie loves to play with her and Katie.
Gettin' tired. So many animals to see! She was very happy to see the tiger, since she loves her little tigger stuffed animal.
Thanks to Jessica we've got some great pics of the zoo. Oh wait, they aren't animals. ;) (but Jessica did take the zoo pics)

We saw a cute butterfly!
Annie wanted to go inside the fence with the elephants.

We scored some sunglasses at Old Navy. Annie insists on wearing them whenever she goes outside.

Pictures from January

2011-02-14T07:00:00.001-08:00

Wesley doing what he does best: smiling :)
Annie enjoys reading stories. Some of her favorite books are Danny and the Dinosaur and her Children's Bible.

Annie would live outside if she could. The funny part is, she doesn't like her hands to be dirty. I ran outside yesterday because she was screaming like she got hurt. She was just a little dirty. I think this is a great trait to develop when it comes to her room.
Watching the comings and goings of a wide world.

We had tons of snow (for Texas) last week. We all enjoyed sledding and making snowmen.
Our frosty friend!
Annie enjoyed eating the snow.

Christmastime Pictures

2011-01-11T06:40:00.000-08:00

I must apologize for the spastic nature of my post. My alarm didn't go off this morning which makes me feel behind on my day, coupled with a headache and two lively sweet kiddos...but I wanted to update my readers (all...5 of them) with new pictures from Christmastime.

We took a trip to Tulsa to see some family right before Christmas. I was too busy chas-er-playing with the little ones to take pictures, sadly, but we had a real nice time visiting and seeing Josh's side of the family. One of Josh's brothers had come all the way with his family from Germany! I enjoyed hearing stories of their adjustment to life in a different culture. Reminded me of my year in India. I was impressed the cousins all played so well together when the age range was from 2 to 17. At some points I felt more comfortable at the kids table than with the adults. I have to grow up, it's one of my New Years resolutions...

We left a little earlier than scheduled, driving through the evening back to Dallas, but we couldn't handle another night in the hotel room. Wesley is such a light sleeper that he kept us all awake and made for a couple cranky kids the next day. Annie did admirably considering her bothers night vigil, but we all decided being back in our own beds would be better than leaving the next morning.

On to the photos:

We had a surprise visit from my mom and brother over Christmas and New Years! It was great to see them and catch up.
While my family was here we had some friends over to play computer and card games.
Annie enjoyed having Grandma read to her. Note the flowers: Josh got them for me "just because." :)

Grandma gave Annie a froggy raincoat to match her boots. They came in handy this week when we had lots of rain and then snow. I think Annie would live outside all the time if I let her.
Wesley is growing up fast! He is crawling and "walking" while hanging onto things. He just had his checkup last week and is doing real good. He has lost a little weight so he is no longer 90th percentile but 75th. Yeah, we're starving him. ;)

His first word was "Dada." I was a little disappointed, since that was Annie's first word, too. But he quickly learned "mama" after that. Wesley is such a daddy's boy (which is good).

Annie helped me decorate some cookies after this picture. She dumped all the sugar onto them so I had to shake them off. They got a neat design from the procedure, I never would have thought to do on my own! :)
Annie likes to help us wash the car. This was before temperatures plummeted to the 20's and 30's.

Now back to your regularly scheduled programing. Don't mind me. I'll be drinking coffee in the corner.

Love,
Discombobulated in Dallas

Pictures from November/December

2010-12-15T16:27:00.000-08:00

Annie learning to ride her tricycle. She loves to ring the bell.
I've been teaching Annie the piano alphabet, since she already likes letters and music. She so far is learning where to find "A" on the keyboard.
We have a train set that is held together by magnets, and Annie discovered they stick to the metal chair in the living room. She dangled the whole set on that chair! :)
"Awright, sit down. Do you want oatman for breakfast monkey?"
Wesley is almost always happy, only when Daddy crosses his line of sight does he start to fuss. He makes a beeline for the door and Daddy whenever Josh gets back from work, wanting to be held. Loves his daddy! :)Hey there citizen, have no fear - Wesley is here!
He almost escaped out the door one time. Now I'm more careful to watch him.

Thanksgiving day. Waiting for guests to arrive. Annie couldn't believe she was allowed to eat so many snacks and in the living room no less! She ate way too many olives than I care to admit...
Annie watching a game of Stratego.

"Should I tell Daddy I snuck another olive?"
The weekend after Thanksgiving we pulled out the Christmas decorations. Annie has been going around saying, "Remember Christmas? It's the Happy Birthday Jesus! We give Him our hearts. And get presents!"
Wesley just wants to eat the balls.

Alley and Wesley! Thanks for the pictures, Alley...
Josh has been Annie's horsey. She loves to ride around the house and say "Riding that horsey, don't get falled."
We made chocolate caramel cookies one day on a whim. The sad part was they were completely ruined! They were sandy and fell apart. Then the caramel inside became like little rocks. We had to throw them out and make another kind later on. Annie enjoyed licking the spoon, though.

Fall Pictures

2010-11-11T13:26:00.000-08:00

Wesley is a big boy now, eating solid foods. He loves his veggies and has decided not to like rice cereal. I can't blame him...it doesn't taste very good. :)

For some reason Wesley has a love of table and chair legs. He is crawling now (!) and will play happily under the dining room table or coffee table.
Jessica took some pictures for me. I realized I didn't have many pictures of me with my sweet kiddos!
Look at those chubby cheeks!
I really like this one - I think less than perfect portraits are fun.

He's gonna break a lot of hearts... ;)

Annie loves to help me put clothes in the dryer. She comments on almost all of them. "whoa, BIG pants!" for Josh's slacks, etc.

2010-10-26T09:12:00.000-07:00

We just got back from a trip to the park. Annie loves slides of all sizes, so I am trying to visit our local park more often. The weather is slightly cooler so it makes walking not a huge chore. Josh will play soccer on the weekends a lot of times, so we all tag along to play on the swings and "slippery slides" as well. It's a bigger park so Annie doesn't get bored very fast. She is always sad when we leave, but it seems to help if she says "bye bye" to the slides.

Annie is quite the chatty little girl these days! She is always talking or singing and asking questions about everything. She currently is learning the sounds letters make, and that prompts questions about the sounds other items make. For instance she wanted to know what a heart says. So I told her it says "I love you". Then she wanted to know what the living room says. I was stumped with that one.

Annie also likes to refer to herself in third person unless she is getting something or attempting some physical feat. ie. "I do it!" "I get the Tigger." Etc.

Her nemesis is a spoon. She is trying to master the art of getting that utensil to her mouth without losing the contents in the process. I have to give her step by step instructions or she gets super frustrated. So we will sit at lunch and she has a bowl of yogurt with blueberries and I'll tell her "Okay, look at your knuckles. Grab the spoon. Scoop! Lift it up! Bend that elbow. Bite!" over and over. I'm hoping she gets the hang of it before she has to eat soup or something at a friends house. haha

Wesley is quite the charmer. He likes to smile and coo at us (if he has eaten anyway). He is sitting up now and getting up on all fours. He hasn't quite figured out crawling but he is very close. He loves his daddy, too. If Josh walks by Wesley will kick up a fuss until Josh holds him, even if I'm already holding him. I'm trying not to let it hurt me. haha

He is also the proud owner of two new teeth! He was so cranky for about a week and then two teeth popped up. Go figure. He enjoys eating veggies and fruit, but has decided he doesn't like rice cereal. I can sympathize.

Wesley also likes to do things to Annie and see how she will react. I can't believe that has started already! He grabbed her foot one day and she squealed making Wesley look up at her with and expression of curiosity. He loves noise of any kind, so I'm sure Annie will supply him with plenty.

Sorry for the lack of pictures. It has been so busy here I haven't taken the time to snap photos. Hopefully I can get some up here soon!

Life with Kids (all 5 of us)

2010-09-12T08:45:00.000-07:00

Wesley has learned to roll over onto his tummy. The only trouble is he gets stuck. Then I turn him over. Then he rolls over. Ad infinitum.
Moving his arms so fast it's a blur.
"where did i put my pacifier?"
love those cheeks!

My two favorite men.
This cute girl has been with us helping me lots around the house. It's fun to have another adult to talk to during the day after singing the alphabet song more times than I can count.
Annie likes playing with her inflated star floatie inside.

She has to have her favorite Tigger around wherever she goes. Here Tigger is out getting some sun. They spent a few moments of quiet meditation looking at the fence together.
Annie has loved all of Tigger's stripes off, and he is getting real threadbare. It reminds me of the velveteen rabbit.

Wesley is quite interested in food (and drinks). If we don't watch during dinner he will grab a fistful of potatoes...

Jessica made me a fall cake for my birthday. She did an amazing job!

Annie studying the funny pages in the Sunday paper.

2010-08-15T09:26:00.000-07:00

I found another picture of us at Annie's birthday zoo visit. It was so hot out, poor Annie was pretty lethargic. She loved the animals, despite her expression.
This, my friends, is Wesley. He is only 4 months, but is wearing 6 month clothes and is 18 lbs. We just took him to the doctor last week and found out he is 90th percentile for height and almost 95th for weight. Big boy! He has a very happy disposition and loves to see people. He laughed so hard at the doctor, too. I blessed by my two happy children.

I love that tummy!
This is Annie's choice of wardrobe one day after I put her shorts and shirt on. She loves her apron and elmo slippers...
Recently there was a party at the ministry where we work. I wanted to go so much and take Annie on the waterslide, but I was sick. Josh said she really liked it!

Lots of fun toys on the grass. They came back sufficiently water-logged and ready for dinner!

Happy August!

2010-08-07T13:32:00.000-07:00

This is what happens if you leave an unopened can of coke in a very hot car in 100+ degree weather. Soda bomb!
Josh made a block house for Annie, complete with a laboratory and garage.

Annie loved it!
It took Josh 15 minutes to create...and only 3 seconds for Annie to dismantle it. :)

Annie's 2nd Birthday

2010-07-29T15:03:00.000-07:00

Annie had a butterfly themed family birthday party this year. She loved her "blue cake" and all her new fun toys to play with.

We took Annie to the zoo on her birthday as well. She loves animals and really enjoyed seeing some live ones. She came home and said the monkeys were so silly.

We are so happy to have you Annie! :)

We really are here...

2010-07-29T14:49:00.000-07:00

I know you thought I disappeared never to return. As you can imagine, life with two youngsters keeps me busy and I tend to put off blogging as a result. Thanks for not giving up hope! Here are some pictures of our recent family happenings...

Wesley went through a humongous growth spurt...I mean really big. He is in 6 month clothes and is barely 4 months old! He is my little baby whale.
Annie tried on a new dress from her cousin.

Wesley is a very happy baby. He loves to smile at people!
4th of July waiting for fireworks to start.
Annie liked the fireworks a lot, but she was more interested in the glow-in-the-dark sticks some boys were playing with.
For those of you who have forgotten what I look like. ha. Sorry to bring up painful memories. ;)

This is reminiscent of my hair after a blow dry. ;)

The Long Awaited Pictures

2010-06-26T18:21:00.000-07:00

Here are some of the pictures my sister-in-law took when Wesley was two weeks old. I can't believe how tiny he is in these! He grew really fast and is now super chubby. (Warning this could be a long post) There were so many good ones I had a hard time picking what to post. Thank you Esther!!
"Open wide!"

Cousins

Toesies...

Family Picture

2010-06-14T08:03:00.001-07:00

Picture update :)

2010-06-10T09:50:00.000-07:00

My sunshiney girl :)

Cheesecake for Josh's birthday.

Roly poly baby!

Josh and Patrick replaced a part on the car...I forget what it was exactly, but it works great. :)

I have a picture of Annie sleeping just like this when she was little.

Recent happenings...

2010-05-23T11:53:00.000-07:00

Since it has been a hectic two months I haven't updated our blog for a while. We have been getting used to a new normal with Wesley around. I forgot how much attention babies require. It is neat to see parallels in some ways with our relationship with our heavenly Daddy. For a long while (okay it was 5 weeks, but that is a long time!) Wesley wanted to nurse every single hour. I was constantly reminded of the verse in Peter saying we ought to desire the pure milk of the Word like newborn babes. It's a fight right now to get time to read the Word, but the Lord has been faithful to provide snatches of time here an there where I can get away to spend time with Him and read.

Wesley is such a happy baby! He recognizes us and will genuinely smile at us. It's so cute to see his wide open grin. He also loves the ceiling fan as much as his big sister used to. He will stare at it and coo. He's already 7 weeks old today! It has gone by fast. The only time that seems to drag is night when he wants to eat and I want to sleep. Isn't it nice that our Father doesn't sleep ever? So we aren't disturbing Him at 2 am when the baby just won't go back to sleep and we are praying for the little guy just to close his eyes and stop grunting. :) Wesley is doing very well though, for a nearly two month old. He usually wakes up 3 times a night to eat and usually goes straight back to sleep. It's a blessing to have such a contented baby! It makes things easier when caring for both children at once.

Annie just loves her baby brother. She will help push him in his swing and carry on one-sided conversations with him. She also loves to pat his back and say, "Hey hey, little man." Like she sees us do when we burp him or calm him down. She is such a sweet and caring little girl. :) I've been teaching Annie how to help me a lot more, too. She will hand me clothes to put in the washer and then puts the wet clothes in the dryer. Every time I ask if Annie wants to help Mama she comes running eager to help. It's so sweet! She just recently learned to throw trash away as well as put recycling in the garage bin. I'm slowly allowing her to help with silverware in the dishwasher, since she tends to go overboard and try to touch everything in there. She also likes to watch me cook. Once we made cookies together! It's so fun to watch her grow in abilities and give her new challenges. She learned to brush her teeth and will ask all the time for "Elmo toogrush?"

We haven't tackled potty training yet, but I'm sure she will be excited to learn how. Annie had been getting bored with her toys as she was growing out of a few, so I wanted to give her some new stuff to learn. When she gets bored she tends to get into trouble. I planned on getting her a little potty this week, but both she and I have contracted colds. That combined with lack of sleep at night makes me want to wait until a better time. Honestly there's no rush...

ps. Josh's sister took some adorable pictures of Wesley when he was 2 weeks old...once I figure out how to post them I will!

Snapshots of life

2010-04-23T08:55:00.001-07:00

Annie loves her baby brother. :) She will bring me things for him and tell him "sssshhh" when he is crying. So sweet.
Daddy and Annie in their "tent" they made in the living room.
Josh was raking the yard while Annie helped put the clippings in the wagon. She is such a helper!

My three favorite people. :)
Sporting her uncle Patrick's shades.

The weather has been great for Annie to play outside. It helps her to be occupied since I can't always play with her right now. Many thanks to Jess for watching her lots!

Love this smile!
My mom is so happy to get to see her grandkids. :)

Soaking up Some Sun

2010-04-10T19:04:00.000-07:00

Here are some more pictures of life lately.

It's nice to be home from the hospital and adjust to life with another little one. Wesley has been very good and sleeps most of the time. I forgot how much a newborn needs his rest! We praise God for him being healthy and content.
Jessica took some pictures of Annie while she played outside. The weather has been great so she has gone outside a lot!

It took a few days, but he finally is opening his eyes more.
Annie likes to run up to Wesley and yell "baby Wesley!" and run away. She likes having him around and watches whatever we do with him.

We took Annie to the park today since it was so nice out. She is big enough now to really enjoy the toys and slides. It's fun to watch her abilities grow. :)

Wesley James Hewitt has arrived!

2010-04-07T18:25:00.001-07:00

Our little Wesley was born on Easter Sunday night and weighted 8lbs 3oz. He's a big one! More pictures to come...

More recent pictures

2010-04-03T18:57:00.000-07:00

Caution this post is rather long. Thanks for everyone's patience as I have less motivation for blogging at this point in my pregnancy. We will update as soon as we can when the little one arrives!

We took Annie to her first Easter egg hunt with some friends last Thursday evening. It was super windy out! It was a community event so there were lots of people there. The hunt was over in like one or two minutes.
While we waited for the hunt to begin Annie played in the petting zoo.
She loved this bunny! She would pet it and then run to look at the chickens, then come back and pet the bunny again. Josh said it had really soft fur. Annie really liked watching the ducks, too.
Annie with her five little eggs she found. She caught on really quickly! It was hard for Josh sometimes to keep up with her and make sure she didn't snatch the eggs from other little kiddos about to grab them off the ground. Josh and I were surprised she had so much fun, but glad she wasn't overwhelmed and enjoyed it. I mean that's the whole reason we went.
I made hot cross buns on Friday. I was sad they didn't turn out exactly as they were supposed to, but they tasted good. That's what counts right? :) Jessica iced them beautifully.
Since Annie had so much fun Thursday we met some friends this morning at another egg hunt at a Church nearby. They had a huge bouncy slide the dads and girls enjoyed.
Annie saw it right away and kept pulling us over to it. She was so sad when we had to leave.
There were less children here, and a whole lot more eggs to look for - so this time it was a nice leisurely walk around a field. That's Jessica's cute foot in the photo too. She took these pictures. :)
Annie liked the empty eggs a lot, but she also picked up a lot of eggs with candy. We had to hide the candy in the car so she wouldn't ask for it.

In other news, we were blessed to have help painting the baby's room! The old color was a sort of dingy tan and we changed it to light blue with white trim.
Thanks to all Katie's intern girls for their help! And Katie too. :)

Yay! Jessica is here! She's been a huge help to me and Annie just loves her. :)

2010-03-11T13:14:00.001-08:00

We have enjoyed some nice sunny weather lately! A few days this week were over 70 degrees and boy did we love it. Annie got to play outside for long periods of time and gave her a break from being stuck indoors after being sick.

She was fascinated by the fence.
There was a man doing yard work across the alley.
I found some sidewalk chalk for Annie. I drew a few things for her and then she proceeded to add to them. Later on in the week she played with a drawing sketch pad and drew fish, horses, and monkeys. It looked like scribbles and lines so when she said the names of the animals I thought she wanted me to draw them for her on the pad, but Annie pointed to her scribbles and repeated the names. I was so proud of her! :)
We celebrated my sister Katie's birthday at the end of February. I had this wonderful idea for a cake, but the fondant refused to cooperate. I think it all went well in spite of it though. :)

Annie loves to flop on pillows and declare "Night night!" and the bounce back up again so she can flop on the pillow again.

Cockla?

2010-02-16T13:39:00.001-08:00

Annie discovered the joy of chocolate today. I had some chocolate pudding I gave her after she finished lunch. She was in the process of playing outside, but she would walk back in the house every so often and ask for "cockla?".
Out in the sun!

Back for more. Notice her hat which she put on herself. It really is supposed to fit with the flaps over her ears, but she prefers it this way.

Her trusty Tigger takes a sun bath.

More Snow Pictures

2010-02-16T13:27:00.001-08:00

Meet Rocky our snowman. :)
He was a lot more brown, but we added some white snow to help him look more snowmanish.
I liked how the snow was on the tree branches the best!

This is a little tiny snowman Josh and I made with Annie. She finally started getting interested in the snow and playing in it. She even put the snowman's head on. :)

Josh's foot...It was really deep snow! I heard that the DFW airport got 12 inches - a record for North Texas. It was quite a treat.

Snow!

2010-02-11T09:02:00.001-08:00

We woke up this morning to see a blanket of white on the ground! It was a nice surprise. I didn't think it really would until later today, but it has been snowing non-stop all day! Annie enjoyed looking outside at the snow falling.

After breakfast we went outside to play. Annie didn't really like the cold snow very much, and refused to walk in it.
She liked playing with a stick to hit the snow, since her fingers didn't have to touch it. :) After we went inside the first thing she said was, "books?". She was glad to be inside and warm. I'll have to teach her the art of building a snowman later looks like. :)

Pictures from January

2010-02-08T05:59:00.000-08:00

Annie likes to dance with her toys now. Her favorite is Tigger, but she will pick up her huge Pooh bear (see previous post) or a sheep, etc . and dance around with it. I love how she is such a girl. :)
This is the porch light...Josh replaced the light in January and we found these bugs in the light. Pretty gross, but Josh insisted on taking a picture to document the discovery.
Annie got a hand knit scarf from Aunt Esther which she loves. I put it on her and this is what she did as I took pictures. Super baby model. haha

Family picture! Thankfully it's too dark to see exactly how huge I am right now. ;) This boy is going to be bigger than Annie I'm pretty sure.
Annie loves shoes of all types. She found her aunt's high heels one day and went clomping around the kitchen in one.

Lately we have all be trying to stay healthy with the winter colds going around. Thankfully it looks like we are in the clear for now. It's kind of hard to take care of a sick baby and be sick yourself...Parenting demands sacrifice and it goes much easier if you are willing to give of yourself. It's a constant thing to learn, but I am grateful for a gracious God who helps in our weakness!!

Josh is at a week long computer training session in Dallas right now. He gets to come home at night, though. Yay!

I just keep waiting for this little one to be ready for his big appearance. I can't imagine my tummy getting any bigger, but I have 2 more months left! He likes to move around much more than Annie did. It's usually a nice thing, but if I eat something before bedtime he stays awake for 1 1/2 hrs. I need to time my snacks better. :)

We had my sister Katie come stay with us for about 2 weeks while her roommates were away. It's hard to be in a big house all alone, so we let her come over to our place. It was lots of fun! Poor thing did get sick, though, the last week of her visit. Thankfully she is doing better now and on the tail end of recovery.

That's pretty much all that is going on for us lately...maybe we'll get more pictures before our little one arrives. Annie moves so fast nowadays we have trouble getting good pictures of her!

Little Snippets About Annie

2010-01-25T09:09:00.000-08:00

I can't believe how much Annie is growing and maturing. She's a little girl now, with a little baby left (for her mom's sake). Every day she is learning new words and coming up with hilarious games. I'm so thankful for her!

Last night it was almost bedtime and Annie was in her nightgown playing. We had some music going and she spotted her huge bear on the floor and started dancing with it in circles. That thing is almost as big as she is, so I'm quite impressed she could pick it up and hold it so long. She then proceeded to put the bear to bed saying, "night night bear" and bringing Tigger over to it so the bear could sleep properly. (Tigger is her favorite stuffed animal for bedtime)

She loves to take care of her stuffed animals like they were her babies. She never was really into baby dolls, but I guess her monkey makes up for it...

Annie likes to have us chase her and tickle her or toss her in the air. She will run by us and make sure we are following her, while she shrieks at the top of her lungs.

She is learning how to use a fork and spoon. For some reason she calls all utensils "bl-ah". She's got the fork figured out pretty well, but she can't quite get much on the spoon. She loves practicing though!

Annie loves bubbles and will try to pop them as they fall to the ground. She gets so excited and giggly that I have to make sure she doesn't fall over.

Once Annie had a bunch of books all over the floor. She was trying to walk to the other side of the room, but they were in the way, so she picked up her skirt (really!) and waded across. I wish so much we got video of the incident...

I love you little Annie!

Christmas Pictures!

2009-12-29T13:03:00.000-08:00

On Christmas Eve it started to snow quite hard. (Can snow be hard? hmmm) Josh took some pictures to record the event since we figured it wouldn't stick. This is Texas after all...

Christmas morning we opened presents and just enjoyed each other's company.
Annie couldn't believe that some of the pretty things under the tree were for her. It was so fun to watch her reactions.
Manly present. :)
An alphabet puzzle for Annie. She loves letters, though she calls all of them A or B or E.
She got so overwhelmed at one point she just lay in the wrapping paper for a rest.

Later we played out in the snow (that did accumulate). This is the first white Christmas on record in like 80 plus years! It was a wonderful gift from the Lord. :)

Our snowman. Annie first asked if it was a duck. When I told her no she asked if it was a moose. :)
He threw too many snow balls at me. He is lucky I let him back in the house!
She just looks innocent...but behind that cute smile is a cold icy snowball with your name on it!
I fell in love with this adorable red trike while looking for Annie's gifts. There was only the display trike, though, and I looked at a few other stores before settling on this one. It's a little big, but hey it's not going anywhere and Annie tends to grow. ;)
She loved it! She kept standing next to it saying thank you and pushing her Tigger on it. She especially likes the bell. :)

2009-12-24T06:38:00.001-08:00

Have a Merry Christmas!

Image credit: Nativity Story: Jaimie Trueblood

2009-12-22T12:46:00.000-08:00

I was immensely blessed by this blog post: More Important than Your To Do List

It seems like the past couple years I have been under so much stress to "get everything right" for the holidays; baking the perfect food and getting the perfect gifts, when in reality it is simple celebration of our Savior come to earth and rejoicing in His goodness. I know that of course in my head, but how often does it play out truly in my heart? Jesus did not have a feast on his birthday, or a warm home to welcome Him. He came in order to die for people who sinned against him, God of the universe.

I love this song by Downhere: (You can also hear it here)

How Many Kings

Follow the star to a place unexpected
Would you believe after all we’ve projected
A Child in a manger

Lowly and small, the weakest of all
Unlikeliness hero, wrapped in His mothers shawl
Just a Child
Is this Who we’ve waited for?

Cause how many kings, stepped down from their thrones?
How many lords have abandoned their homes?
How many greats have become the least for me?
How many Gods have poured out their hearts
To romance a world that has torn all apart?
How many fathers gave up their sons for me?

Bringing our gifts for the newborn Savior
All that we have whether costly or meek
Because we believe
Gold for His honor and frankincense for His pleasure
And myrrh for the cross He’ll suffer
Do you believe, is this Who we’ve waited for?
It’s Who we’ve waited for

How many kings, stepped down from their thrones?
How many lords have abandoned their homes?
How many greats have become the least for me?
How many Gods have poured out their hearts
To romance a world that has torn all apart?
How many fathers gave up their sons for me?
Only One did that for me

All for me
All for you
All for me
All for you

2009-12-20T12:39:00.000-08:00

It seems this Christmas time has been super busy. I think being gone for Thanksgiving made it feel as if I was running behind on things. As it was, it took me about a week to decorate the house and Christmas tree. One day I would pull down the Fall stuff on the piano and dust it. The next day I would try to put more things out, but I just have been real tired with the baby. Pretty soon I'll be in my third trimester!

Here are some photos of recent happenings:

We attended the Gospel for Asia Christmas party. It was quite fun - though we left early since Annie started getting tired out. There was another party the next night, but we opted out since Josh was feeling sick that whole day.
Don't they look so nice? :)

Annie "reading" to Daddy.
Yesterday she asked for Josh to read to her and she stayed snuggled up to him for quite a while. It was so adorable!

I wrapped most of the presents today and Annie had to investigate. :)

My baby is a little girl! Sad, but nice at the same time.
Annie has loved getting to play outdoors. Now that the ants are hiding underground I don't have to worry as much about her getting bit. She likes to find rocks to sort in piles and sticks to "stir" the leaves or rocks.

Josh playing on the computer. It's nice to have a computer guy for a husband. He fixed my printer so I can print my coupons. yay!

Random Aspect of Annie

2009-12-11T09:06:00.000-08:00

Annie likes to walk backwards sometimes. She will leave a room and say "Bye bye", slowly backing out. She needs a beeper like big trucks.

Tidbit

2009-12-04T08:09:00.001-08:00

We were allowed a "preview" of our little baby yesterday. It was so neat to see the little one moving around. We found out everything is going just fine and that we are expecting a BOY! :) We are very excited and happy.

Thanksgiving in the Great White North

2009-12-04T07:05:00.000-08:00

We enjoyed spending Thanksgiving in Canada. I took a while to post this because we had trouble with pictures, but it's all better now. :)

Josh could keep up with stuff back home with his super cool laptop.
Cozy morning! It got pretty cold there, but not like I expected with tons of snow and ice. We would have had trouble visiting Niagara Falls and such if it was that bad, so we were quite happy.
We decorate the house for Christmas. The guys left this job to us ladies while they blasted aliens down in the basement...

Annie "helped" Auntie Katie put the lights on the tree.

The finished masterpiece!
Annie had a ball running through the house. She was really good and kept away from things (in general) that should was not allowed to touch. One of her favorite spots was the entryway where we kept our shoes. She is 100% girl and loves shoes, so she hung out there and "arranged" them or brought them to us to try on.
We got to see Niagara Falls while there - but we had to bundle up considerably. We were thankful for the snowsuit my mom got for Annie. She looked really cute in it, sort of like a pink marshmallow. :)
We had to hold both her hands to keep her with us since the snowsuit was slippery and we kept her hands in the mitten part. That's a leaf stuffed into her mitten because she was forever stopping to pick up leaves but couldn't with her hands in the mittens.
Dad pulled buggy duty. :)
My weird and happy family. :) I love them!
The Falls! This was Josh and Annie's first time to see it. There was a lot of mist that day. It felt like it was raining the closer you got to the falls because of all the mist.
We stopped at Timmy's to warm up and have some yummy coffee/hot chocolate (Canadians don't know what cocoa is) and Timbits (donut holes).
Annie had teddy grahams. She loves them so much because they are shaped like bears. I will give her one and she will exclaim, "Bear!" and give it a kiss before eating it.
Grandma reading a book to Annie.
The guys waiting for the turkey to be ready.
Some stranger was there, so we had pity and fed her.

We opened presents the next morning after Thanksgiving. Annie was happy just to cuddle with grandpa.

It was great to see everyone! Annie did very well on the plane rides, and we got a free seat for her both ways. We got stuck at the gate while the plane was being repaired on the way home, but after we got in the air Annie fell asleep. Thank you for your prayers otherwise we'd all be lumps by the time we landed! :)

Misc. Pictures from Recent Times...

2009-11-10T13:54:00.000-08:00

Josh replaced the starter on our Honda last month. Yay for husbands who know how to fix cars!
Annie sweatin' to the 80's.
Annie's favorite pastime...
Snuggles with Daddy.

Enjoying Fall Weather

2009-11-03T07:32:00.000-08:00

Put Your Little Foot Out...

2009-10-29T09:45:00.000-07:00

Annie is officially walking now! She started a few weeks ago and has been practicing ever since. She just let go of the couch one night and started walking off! It's fun to see her toddle around and learn how to balance while picking toys off the floor. She loves to walk around with a ball in her two hands saying, "Ball! Ball!!"

Today I was in the kitchen and had placed her car seat in one corner. Josh is out of town right now, working on his parents' house to get it ready for winter, so I am without a car. Thus the car seat is in the kitchen. Annie loves to sit in it with a collection of toys, soaking in the glamor of sitting in the car seat in the house without be strapped in! She then proceeded to take my measuring cups and spoons out of the cabinet (one of the cupboards I let her get into) and one by one placed them in her chair. She looked so adorable walking back and forth from the cupboard to the chair.

Annie is learning the concept of "putting away". I showed her how to put the measuring cups and spoons back into their proper place while saying "putting away!" like it was the most fun thing in the whole world. ;) Then she caught on and usually does it when I prompt her, while saying "AWAY!" every now and then (Annie not me).

It's so fun to have a little girl! We're hoping to find out soon whether she has a baby brother or sister arriving in April.

October Photos

2009-10-13T06:52:00.000-07:00

After two or three weeks of being sick with various ailments I'm back to blogging. :) We finally were able to visit the pumpkin patch to take some fun pictures. The surprising part was they did not have an actual "patch" of pumpkins like I am used to, rather they placed already picked and cleaned pumpkins in a large field. Voila! No mud and mess! :) They had lots of fun little spots for kiddos, and I think if Annie was a little older she would have enjoyed it more. Her favorite part was picking up straw from the ground and playing with the "balls" (pumpkins).
You know how hard it is to capture wild babies?? We put this little stinker in jail right away. ;)

Playing in the hay.
She was also always losing her shoe.
I love this picture! Baby on a mission.

Our little pumpkin in the pumpkins. :)

Annie's expression here cracks me up.

With auntie Katie and Snoopy!

2 years ago

2009-10-01T15:55:00.000-07:00

Two years ago I married the my best friend. It has only gotten better! I love you dear...

(I ought to have posted this on the 29th, but life happened.)

Annie Discovers Pumpkins

2009-09-29T14:14:00.000-07:00

I was going to cook a sugar pumpkin the other day and decided to let Annie explore it first.She thought it was a ball.

I think she is saying "ball" here. Please ignore the trash. Thank you.

We want to take Annie to a pumpkin patch soon...more pictures to follow. :)

Recent Pictures

2009-09-21T07:22:00.000-07:00

Here is a smattering of pictures from our month so far. We had a long week of rain that was actually quite refreshing after the summer heat. Our little Fall garden got it's fair share of water for the time being.

Josh found this snail crawling along the house during all the rain.
I made German apple pancake to celebrate the Fall weather. It makes the house smell so good!
Annie loved to watch the rain fall and the birds out our front window. She looked so cute that morning I took a couple pictures of her...

Sleepy head.

Annie loves stuffed animals. I thought kids would like actual toys better, but I guess it's just cause Annie is a girl and likes soft fuzzy things like her mommy.
This morning Annie was drinking water through a straw. I've let her drink water before from one, but this time she held it all by herself.

She did great and didn't even spill it till a long while later. Maybe I should get her a sippy cup that includes a straw.

She's all girl

2009-09-11T07:55:00.000-07:00

I forgot to add to my last post...
Annie has been obsessed with shoes. She tries to put mine on her feet and on my feet all the time. It looks so cute to see her little toes in my high heels! I wonder if she will try to borrow mine when she is a teenager. Hmm...

The other day I caught her trying to put my purse strap on her shoulder. I helped her put it on and she looked so proud of herself to be just like mommy. She has tried to put her daddy's laptop bag on her shoulder as well, but the way she did it the strap just went over her head. I think we get more entertainment watching her than anything else!

Pictures!

2009-09-11T07:07:00.000-07:00

Annie enjoys "helping" me in the kitchen. Her favorite thing to do is open the baking cupboard and find all my measuring cups and spoons to bang on the floor. A few times she found some small metal bowls that made a beautiful crashing noise. The louder the better!

Last Saturday we cleaned out a car a friend has been letting us use. Annie inspected it and gave us gold stars. ;)

Musing

2009-08-29T09:04:00.001-07:00

I've noticed that I will crave something and once I have it, I never want it again. Has anyone else had that problem? It's great when the thing I was craving was beef ramen, but it's sort of sad if it's a healthy food. If this keeps up I'll need an IV. Actually I've noticed with my fruit craving that it doesn't go away. Just, please don't mention beef ramen anytime soon. Thank you.

Josh is also accepting sympathy cards for his various trips to the store. "Honey can you get me strawberries and gummy bears??"

Update

2009-08-27T18:10:00.001-07:00

We went to my first doctor visit Wednesday. I was trying to put it off until necessary since I just finished seeing doctors for various things. I really like my doctor though! The only problem was the nurse walked away with almost half my blood...I guess kids don't realize how much their parents sacrifice for them until they become parents themselves.

We get to see the little one next week on an ultrasound!

I've been doing pretty good and am not as sick as with Annie. I've been craving fruit like crazy and taking a nap when Annie is sleeping. Yay for her still taking two naps!

Coming Soon

2009-08-27T18:08:00.001-07:00

In April there will be an addition to the Hewitt family! We have been praying for the Lord to bless us with another little one and are so excited to find that Lord willing we will have a healthy baby around April 11th. :)

2009-08-22T18:32:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. I have been tired and staging a one woman rebellion toward blogging. I do that sometimes. :) So I've decided to change my ways and post some pictures. The first ones are of Annie playing with bubbles that her aunt Katie got her. The next ones are of her in an old t-shirt of mine. Doesn't she look so cute?

A few pictures from our trip to Kansas

2009-08-11T15:24:00.000-07:00

We spent the weekend on a support trip visiting friends up in Kansas. It was so nice to see our friend Julie again! The trip went very well and Annie even endured the 9 hour car ride better than we expected. :)
At the coffee shop where Julie works. It was such a neat place with lots of room and interesting decor. I told Julie she needs to start one in Dallas.
A little boy there fell in love with Annie.

Play Time!

2009-07-30T06:15:00.000-07:00

We had the opportunity to watch one of Annie's friends last week while her mommy went to the dentist. It was so fun to have another little girl around! Here are a few pictures from little Ava's visit. PS. the string you see is from Annie's birthday balloon.Annie enjoyed playing with Ava.
I wonder if Annie is applauding Ava's standing abilities. Annie just started "walking" around hanging onto the furniture, while Ava is a full blown walker!
Sweet girl!
Annie would follow Ava around and try to do the same things she did. Maybe she will try walking now!
"My mom has these really cool things inside - sometimes she opens the door and lets me look!"

Pictures from Annie's Birthday Party

2009-07-22T11:25:00.000-07:00

One Whole Year!

2009-07-17T09:09:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Annie! It's hard to believe a whole year has gone by...Mommy and Daddy are so happy we have you and love you very much!

4th of July

2009-07-08T11:22:00.000-07:00

I don't have pictures because I was a slacker during Independence Day and refused to take any. We did have a wonderful day, though! We decided to watch fireworks the night before since we had planned to visit some friends 4th of July evening. I think it was the best firework show we've ever seen! They were real close and spectacularly arranged. (don't ever ask me to write ads, you'll just end up with bad descriptions like that one) There was music playing as well to go with the light show. Annie loved them! We were nervous she would cry, but after we told her how fun it was she decided she liked them and would clap. Josh said her jaw dropped open when the show first started and one could hear little sighs of delight coming from her open mouth. Too cute...

We had family and friends over the next day for a BBQ starring Josh's new grill. It makes the best grill marks ever - and the meat turns out just right! We played some games and watched our entertainment (Annie). After all the excitement we didn't go to the party that night after all. Hey we're old married people now - we can use that excuse!

Hope your celebrations were memorable.

All Dressed Up for Church

2009-06-29T07:40:00.000-07:00

The Felling of a Tree

2009-06-19T07:05:00.000-07:00

...Really just it's branches. The storm I posted about previously caused our tree in the front yard to split. Josh spent the weekend cutting the branches up and bundling them on the curb. We sure appreciated our neighbor's help and chain saw. It would have taken Josh a week if he just used his little saw. We're set with firewood now!

Ghost Stories and Stuffed Animals

2009-06-12T08:09:00.000-07:00

We had a massive thunderstorm blow through on Wednesday which included our power going out. Annie found the flashlight intriguing and played with it until bedtime. It looks like she is trying to share a ghost story.

Annie loves stuffed animals. This morning after I picked her up from her crib she insisted on carrying these two around wherever she went.

Family Resemblance

2009-06-08T10:02:00.000-07:00

Annie learns quick!

A Fun Challenge

2009-06-08T08:48:00.000-07:00

Josh and I are aspiring to be vegetarians for 30 days. You can read about it here: http://mommyb33.blogspot.com/

Who knows, maybe we will give up eating meat all together, but I doubt it. I love the variety of non-meat foods and recipes so this should be a nice challenge for creativity.

GFA Retreat

2009-06-08T08:00:00.000-07:00

Our family attended the GFA retreat down in Houston. Here are a few photos of the event...

A Visit from the North

2009-06-03T07:41:00.000-07:00

Jessica and Patrick have been visiting from Canada the past 2 weeks. We are all very excited to see them - especially Annie...

Chewing It Over

2009-05-22T07:02:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures to make you smile on this Friday morning.One of Annie's favorite teething toy is her binky.

It helps to chew on something while pondering questions of life.
There's just something peaceful about a baby sitting in semi-motionless state. Almost as peaceful as watching a baby sleep.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Painting

2009-05-21T13:35:00.000-07:00

My grandfather painted this for our dining room. The colors match the area very well. It's special to have something he made - all of his paintings are amazing!
Closeup.

Seeing the Light

2009-05-21T13:32:00.000-07:00

Here is the light Josh put up last week. Love it.
See how it lights up the counter and stove space? Yay!

My Handyman

2009-05-19T07:19:00.000-07:00

I just have to brag on my husband for a minute...

Besides the fact he is cute, he also is a great handyman! He has fixed and replaced many an item in our house, leaving me amazed at it's potential (the house). I admit I was skeptical at first when we moved in, because I couldn't see past the white walls, but Josh has made me see the light! Literally in this case.

We visited our friendly Ikea and were marveled at its marvels last week when lo and behold we found a track light that is perfect for our kitchen! It was less than a smaller track light would cost elsewhere and included more light bulbs.

We excitedly took it home and Josh attempted to install it. We joyfully threw out the old fluorescent light that had been dying a slow painful death, and Josh set to work. After an ingenious method of screwing it into the ceiling (which was lacking studs in the area in question) he gave me the honor of flipping the switch.

Nothing happened.

We were quite disappointed, but Josh fiddled around with the wires and called his dad for help. I think it's nice asking for help doesn't bother him. We tried again but the light just would not work. Josh checked every wire (they were just fine) and concluded the light was to blame. We returned it a couple days later and got another of the same kind.

The same thing happened.

Then Josh had an idea. He always has ideas and they usually are good. He taped some wires together and voila! The light worked perfectly!

It's so fun to go in the kitchen at night and flip the switch to find I can actually SEE the counters to make dinner. Josh is officially my hero.

Thank you honey!

I just had to post this...

2009-05-14T15:41:00.000-07:00

Hope it makes you smile.
Have a great weekend everyone!

Discovery

2009-05-06T14:40:00.000-07:00

I found the best way to have time during the day for chores is to ensure that your child has accompanied you on multiple outings the previous day as well as the morning of the day you have chores in mind. The child will then sleep most of the afternoon. She will also be very happy to see you when she wakes up and you have just accomplished two things in one day: Chores and a happy baby!

*sigh*

Now if I can just come up with activities for a crawling 9 month old that don't require money and being outdoors.

Annie's Wipe-out

2009-04-28T14:09:00.000-07:00

Annie discovered how fun it is to remove wipes from the tub one at a time. She would play with one and see another sticking up from the tub and proceed to pull it out. This went on until she had quite a pile at her side! Let's just say mommy has enough loose wipes for an army. Do armies use wipes?

Ps. We are greatly enjoying the "new" clothes - thank you Teressa!!

Easter

2009-04-25T07:57:00.000-07:00

We spent the day at Annie's great-grandparent's house. Josh just arrived home from Arizona driving around 36 hours to get back. We kept things pretty low-key. :)

Our recent life in Pictures...

2009-04-05T10:37:00.000-07:00

And she's off!

2009-03-26T07:41:00.000-07:00

Annie started crawling yesterday! It's not the classic crawl just yet, but she's mobile. Now we have to watch out for cords and sharp edges. Last night she was crawling towards our shoes and trying to eat them. Maybe she needs more fiber in her diet. ;)

She also just got her second tooth!

Recent Achievements...

2009-03-22T08:16:00.000-07:00

One of Annie's favorite hobbies nowadays is looking at books or magazines with (or without) Momma. She especially loves pictures of people. We were looking at a magazine the other day and she picked out almost all the people on each page. She would giggle and make happy noises, trying to give the people kisses.

She also picked out a strawberry lemonade cheesecake. That girl has good taste!

Annie is sitting up great and trying very hard to crawl. She gets up on all fours and rocks back and forth. When there is a toy she wants that is too far away she tries scooting over to it but usually scoots backwards.

How did she get this far when she was just a newborn like 2 days ago?? I told her she has to stop growing and must remain officially 4 months old. ;) I love each stage she has gone through and am looking forward to the others, but it is rather sad to leave behind one stage right as we were getting used to it.

Cool Guys Camping Trip

2009-03-12T06:54:00.000-07:00

Josh went on a guys' camping trip a couple weekends ago. They had a lot of fun up in the "mountains" of Oklahoma. Here are some pictures from the event. Warning: please be advised this is a very long post. You may want to grab a cup of coffee.

The tent my wandering nomad slept in.
They got a fire going as quick as possible that morning. I hear it was in the 20's during the night!
One man slept in a tarp under the stars. He originally was in a hammock, but had to move to the ground because of the wind.

Golden grahams and milk in an inventive cereal bowl.
The guys went hiking in the "mountains" (more like large rocky hills)

The goal of their hike (reaching those two boulders)

The two boulders up close.

A land bridge they crossed.

They saw lots of cool wildlife.

Staying warm wasn't too hard next to this baby!

Cooking a healthy breakfast... ;)

The nomad himself

Look! It's a heart!
They hiked up to a dam that day.
Fighting over a water bottle with their shadows.

My man came back sunburned and tired, but very happy. :)

February Pictures

2009-03-10T08:18:00.000-07:00

Annie has started sitting up on her own

WHY??
That camera sure looks yummy mommy!

I love the look on Annie's face in this picture...
Trying to grab the camera while I'm not looking
Exploring dandelions with daddy

We saved the flower from an untimely death by baby drool.