The Sanders

Miscellaneous

2011-02-24T22:45:00.006-06:00

I'm not even going to try and play catch up and post Christmas pics...well maybe a few. But only b/c they're photos of my boys who are so dang cute, I just can't not post pics of them.

DD and his new slippers from Holland...really not just made in Holland but bought in Holland.

B1 and his octopus...that starts out small, but you stick it in water and it grows 600%! At least that's what the package claimed.

What my hair is looking like these days....the growing out continues. And I don't do ANYTHING TO IT....not even a hair dryer. Awesome. I know you're jealous.

DD versus the Kleenex box. I'm pretty sure DD won this bout. But I sure did stuff those unused tissues back into the box!

My first ever batch of chocolate covered strawberries. SUCCESS! And so easy. If I knew it was that easy, I would have done it a long time ago. Nothing is better than the chocolate-strawberry combo...Okay, so maybe the Chocolate Coconut Cream Cheesecake from The Cheesecake Factory. Oh. My. Goodness.

"Yo. Be my valentine. You can't resist this."

Fall Fun

2010-11-02T14:52:00.008-06:00

These are kind of in reverse chronological order. So the most recent pics are from Monday...in turned out to be pumpkin day. First we made the dough for our sugar cookies, then stuck it in the fridge to chill. Then on to a run in the park. Yes, I said RUN. Like for the first time in 8 years...not really, but almost, and it definitely felt like it!

Then on to pumpkin carving. We still have a big one waiting to be cut into...maybe tomorrow. Who says you have to have your pumpkin carved in time for Halloween? Maybe we'll make it our Thanksgiving pumpkin.

Then to roll and cut the cookies. Add some orange food coloring to one batch, a little blue to half of the other batch...b/c Bo saw those real bluish-gray colored pumpkins at the pumpkin patch and said we had to make some that color too!

One mouth completely stuffed with cookie, the other laughing b/c Mommy finally let him have a cookie!

Batman sin the mask, and his pumpkin.

At Dewberry Farms, with our MOPS group. We had a blast, with the exception of it being an extremely windy day and we would often get blasted with dirt blowing through the farm. I think I was covered with a layer of grit when we got home.

We rode out to the pumpkin patch on what me and a friend deemed the "immigration bus" (basically a tractor pulling a big covered wagon). If we had shoved about 50 more people in the back, a few dogs and some chickens, and were crossing the border, we would have been spot on.

"I am the ruler of this pumpkin patch! I will strike you down with this pumpkin if you dare cross me!"

This was not at the farm. Mr. T-Rex was at the zoo (from May to end of October)! It was a neat little display, although it would have been cooler if they moved a little bit more. They did make sounds though, and one even had a nest of baby dinosaurs that moved and made squeaky baby dinosaur noises. There were signs explaining what kind of dinosaur each one was, when and where it lived, what it ate, etc. They even had a couple of spitting dinosaurs...that Bo avoided.
Because it was October, the zoo had a small pumpkin patch set up. My boys weren't too thrilled with it as you can see.

Bo riding a legless dinosaur. : )

Meeting God

2010-09-15T10:24:00.003-06:00

B1 and I had a great conversation at breakfast this morning. (After the 10 minute long debate about having 3 snacks for school instead of just 2...and yes, I gave in and gave it to him.) We were talking about the Bible and ended up on Revelations...again.

Me: The Bible is true.

B1: But it is not real.

Me: Yes it is.

B1: It's not real, like me and you.

Me: Oh, you mean like alive, living.

B1: Yeah.

Me: No it's not....well, actually the Bible says that God's Word is living and active. It's doesn't breathe or need to eat or grow. But it's alive in a different way.

B1: (look on his face like "I don't understand".) It has an ending.

Me: Yeah. You know what happens at the end? Jesus comes back to take everybody who believes in him to heaven! That's in Revelations.

B1: Up is space.

Me: Huh?

B1: If you go up from earth, you go to space.

Me: Do you think we'll go through space to get to heaven?

B1: Yeah.

Me: I don't know. I don't think so, but we'll see.

A few moments later...

B1: I'm gonna be shy.

Me: When you meet God?

B1: Yeah.

Me: That's okay.

B1: Not a lot shy. Just a little.

Me: What are you going to tell Him?

B1: About when the hurricane came at our old house, on the old earth, and we had candles.

Man, I love that kid.

How do teenage boys show they love you?

2010-09-13T10:54:00.004-06:00

By secretly camping out on your front lawn, of course!

It was a normal Saturday. Breakfast was done. And playtime was beginning. Then, a knock on the door...at 8:30 AM. Robert prepared himself for combat with the Jehovah's Witnesses. Instead, there were 4 teenage guys and a tent in our front yard!

These guys are part of an accountability group that Robert is leading...guys from the school, where he teaches. They decided that it would be quite comical to secretly camp out in our yard. And it was! They had pitched their tent shortly after 1 AM. We had no idea.

Got Goggles?

2010-09-11T09:47:00.003-06:00

Who knew goggles could be so much fun outside of the pool?

Cute.

Not so cute.

"This is how I roll."

Umm...playgirl bunny? Hopefully not.

First Day of Pre-K

2010-08-17T21:16:00.003-06:00

For the past several weeks, we have been talking to "The Boy One-der" about going to school...you know, to prepare him for something new. Well, he has been super excited. I was telling him some different rules he would probably have to follow and activities that he would probably do, and he was begging me to tell him more! So I haven't been really anxious about him being scared. I guess I was on the other side of fearing he would like it so much, he wouldn't want to be at home (especially with the possibility of homeschooling next year)!

I put an alarm clock in his room, and set it for 6:30. Sidenote: We have NOT been on the early rising side. I hear the alarm going off and go to see if it actually woke him up. He was awake, and after a minute got quickly out of bed. I went back to our bedroom for something, and upon returning down the hallway, I'm met with B1 still in his pajamas, but with his tennis shoes and bookbag on, ready to leave for school. I had to laugh to myself. "We have to eat breakfast first and get your school clothes on." "Oh, okay!"

He had a great first day. He learned some Spanish, checked out a Clifford book from the library, and played some animal game in gym. He also played legos and made a crane.

He was even more excited when I told him that he was going back to school tomorrow! Too cute.

I had mixed emotions. A little sad that I'm not going to know everything that he's done on those days. I have to rely on a 4 yr old's details of a school day. I'm not too sad, b/c of the possibility of homeschooling next year...he might be at home with me again. And I'm not too sad, b/c I'm excited about my new free time! Not super free, b/c I still have "The Daring Deuce" at home, but everybody who has more than one, knows that one is much easier than two! And with him napping, I'll be able to get some stuff done. It's probably good that he's still napping twice a day...if not, I would be really tempted to be out shopping more than I have money to spend!
So here's to my sweet boy's year at PreK and mommy's new free time!

All dressed up and on the way to PreK!

"Normal pic with brother"

Brothers saying "cheese" (this was a brand new trick for DD.)

Fresh start

2010-06-18T23:21:00.003-06:00

Obviously, posting after baby #2 came has been few and far between. But here's to a fresh start. I'm changing a few things, updating here and there, and figuring out some things. Meanwhile, here's a pic of the birthday boy, who turned 1!

"What I DID do today" Wednesday

2010-01-20T22:19:00.005-06:00

Recently (read since Justus was born) Wednesdays have seemed to be days when the "to do" list is oh so long and the "what I actually checked off the to-do list" list is, hmm, oh so short. I got into the habit, like many women, of falling into bed and thinking, "What in the world did I do today?". The thoughts went downhill from there and included words/phrases like failure, waste, wish I had done, should have done, do better tomorrow, etc. And oh how Satan would LOVE for me to continue this defeating self-talk and wallow in self-pity.

Watch out, Satan - I am going on the offensive! Instead of beating myself up at night, I am choosing to begin a weekly Wednesday post of "What I DID do today!" and remember that no matter what is on the list or what didn't make the list, the Lord is pleased with the things I did accomplish...especially all the little things that nobody sees.

I would LOVE it if you joined me on Wednesday nights...not to boast or brag about our accomplishments nor to fret about our lack of accomplishments, but to find encouragement and strength in remembering that we are working for the Lord Jesus Christ and He delights in us!

There are two ways to join. For you fellow bloggers, post a "What I DID do today" list on your blog, writing in a link to my blog. (As far as I understand, a list will come up under my post with the links to your lists....I think!) For those without a blog, just leave a comment with your list.

"What I DID do today"

- I got out of bed! - Halleluyer! : )
- fed both kids a nutritious breakfast and administered vitamins
- folded a load of laundry, attempting to instill some responsibility by teaching Bo how to "fold" and stack his own underwear, and match up his own socks
- stripped Bo's pee-soaked sheets and put new ones on, with a 2nd lesson in responsibility consisting of how to put a pillowcase on a pillow (which took much longer than anticipated...who would have thought that task is so difficult!)
- played cars
- played Hot Wheels
- washed and dried several loads of laundry
- fed a baby several times, gave him a bath, kept his diapers changed and made sure he got the sleep he needed
- fed us lunch and prayed for Haiti
- took a shower!!
- facebooked friends to schedule playdates
- answered several phone calls
- called both sets of parents - one to teach Bo to communicate gratitude for gifts received
- cooked a nutritious dinner for the fam
- washed up 2 days worth of dirty dishes
- killed lots of ants
- wrote and posted this to the blog! : )

Thank you, Jesus, for the health and strength to do these things today.

Jingle Bells?

2009-11-14T23:34:00.003-06:00

Turn the volume up so you can hear.

LOTS of pics

2009-11-08T17:00:00.012-06:00

Starting off...Notice the sand box has a little water in it...or a lot. The cover blew off in a storm and left our sand box more like a "lake" box. Or later on when the sun was out, I preferred to imagine it as a "beach" box. It was actually kind of therapeutic! (Note to self: when you need a pick-me-up, fill the sandbox with water and pretend you are at the beach.) These pics were taken on a day that Bo needed to get outside to burn some energy - it had been raining for several days. So I put him outside and after a while it started to drizzle...see the ripples in the water. He was fine with getting rained on, so I let him play!

Some pics of Justus in his high chair. Pretty soon, high chair pics will show messy food-covered faces.

Here is what usually happens when Justus is under the "gym" and a little fussy, and I tell Bo to entertain him for a little while!

A few cute pics from the pumpkin patch this year. We did not stay for long...I was carrying Justus in the baby bjorn and Bo was running all over the place. He was too distracted by all the pumpkins to sit still for very long for pics, so I had to snap them when I could. And I didn't tell him to sit in the middle of the pumpkins...that's something he did all on his own.

This natural light was great coming through Bo's window, so I grabbed the camera. He was playing in his room, when I heard, "Mom, I'm stuck." He was just sitting in the wagon covered up by all the blankets and stuffed animals. Too cute.

Here is Justus having some tummy time under his gym. Some good shots of the different faces he makes. And of course, with his hand in his mouth...which is a pretty constant thing these days. I think he will suck his fingers like Bo does.

We did not do anything this year for Halloween or Fall Festival or whatever you want to call it. I did however put Justus in Bo's first costume...Bam Bam from the Flintstone's. The next day, I put Bo in it just for fun. It was hilarious.

Here is our Preschool Day in the Country with church. This is where Bo caught his first fish last year. This year, we weren't so lucky.

Just pics - no time for stories!

2009-10-08T21:20:00.004-06:00

Strawberry face.

A little late on the 3 month pics, but they're here now.

Robert's sketch. Click on the pic to see more detail.

The Letter of the Day is...

2009-09-03T20:22:00.009-06:00

This post is mostly for the grandparents, to see the fun things that me and Bo have been doing together. But, ALL are welcome to enjoy our creations, and borrow them for your own kiddos! I say don't be impressed because most of these are not original ideas, but borrowed ones from other cool moms.

A is for...

Ark - This is actually an original idea. Pretty good, huh? It was also our first "Letter of the Week" activity, and I thought it turned out pretty well.

Apple - not an original idea. But we did add real apple seeds to our picture, which is original. I told a friend about our "Letter" activities and she brought over the book, Johnny Appleseed, for us to read. We also ate apples for snack, and had Applesauce and an Apple Cinnamon NutraGrain bar for breakfast one day. We have been working on a letter A bible verse, as well. "A friend loves at all times." Proverbs 17:17 (Thanks, Grammy!)

Anniversary - Okay, so this is not an activity for me and Bo, but it fit so I added it to the post! August 31st, 2009 marked 7 years of marriage for me and Robert. I hear year seven can be a doozy. We shall see...

These are the BEAUTIFUL flowers Robert brought home for me. And they make the house smell so good!
This is my anniversary present! I already used it to make a double recipe of spinach pie. IT - IS - SO - AWESOME! I love it, I love it, I love it.

These were not a "Letter A" activity. Just a craft we did because I had kept an egg carton and thought we could do something fun with it. The little critters used to have eyes, but they were pulled off on purpose by Bo. For some reason, anything that came home last year from CDO with googly eyes, was soon to be de-eyed. I'd love to hear the psycho-analysis of that behavior.

R is for...
This week, we have done the letter, R. Bo actually cut out the R himself (with a little assistance), which is a big deal as he has just started to use scissors.

Road

Rainbow - This activity proved to be A LOT more extensive/complicated than the simple directions implied (or maybe it was my lack of experience making homemade cookies). A rainbow cookie. But it has been fun to have a Letter R sweet treat to enjoy! This is a small sliver of our rainbow, as most of it has been eaten already.

Robert - Not really a Letter of the Week activity either, but it fits. This is Robert's canvas that is primed and ready to be sketched on and painted. As you can see, it is rather large, measuring 72 x 48 inches (or 6 ft x 4 ft). I'll try to take some pics along the way to show his progress. Here we come $50,000 art prize!

This does not go along with the theme either, but here is our new quilt and shams. It's not a great picture - I had to take it in the dark, b/c Justus was asleep in our room. I LOVE the colors, and Robert thinks it is the best cover ever b/c of how it feels and it's weight. It is truly a miracle that we found something that both of us really like - seriously, a miracle.

2-month check-up

2009-08-22T12:54:00.004-06:00

Stats for Justus
weight: 12 lbs. 6 oz. (50%)
height: 23 in. (50%)

He got 2 shots, which he definitely did not like and let us know by screaming and turning blood red. Other than that, he did great...even christening the table!

Justus at 2 months

2009-08-17T22:32:00.005-06:00

Sunday was Justus's 2 month "birthday". He still looks pretty similar to how he looked at birth, except that he has definitely grown, longer and thicker. Some of his dark hair has fallen out, mostly on the top sides and sides, making him look like he has old man hair. He is making eye contact, smiling and "talking" a little, which makes being sleep deprived at least a little more bearable! He is starting to go longer between "meals" and I am thankful for this as it allows me to spend more quality time with Bo. I have noticed that I'm saying, "I can't right now", a lot less than in the beginning. And I can see an improvement in Bo's behavior as a result - not surprising that a little quality time can make a heart softer to instruction!

Updates on growth:
Justus at birth: 8 lbs. 1 oz., 20 3/4 in.
at 2 weeks: 8 lbs. 10 oz. (50%), 21 1/4 in. (60%)
at 2 months: check back on Saturday for an update.

Bo at 3 years: 36 lbs. (90%), 40 in. (90%)
Making progress in potty training! He went to the bathroom twice in a restaurant on Sunday, and has started using the regular toilet!

Brothers

2009-06-29T21:37:00.008-06:00

Evan "Justus" Sanders has arrived!

2009-06-21T21:02:00.003-06:00

Evan "Justus" Sanders arrived Tuesday, June 16th at 1:17 PM. He weighed 8 lbs. 1 oz. and measured 20 3/4 inches. He seems small to us for two reasons - we automatically compare him to Bo at birth and now - so compared to a 9 1/2 lb. baby and an almost 40 lb. 3 year old, he seems tiny!

We are already behind, I think, in the amount of pictures taken of Justus at birth compared to what we took of Bo. We don't have very many of Justus right after he was delivered...but for good reason. Robert stayed by my side during the c-section, which I was and am so thankful for. I was fully awake this time, compared to being exhausted and medically gassed when Bo was born. I heard all the scissor action and was asking the anesthesiologist about everything that was happening. So that was a very interesting experience. I can't decide which one was better right now...awake or mostly unconscious. Maybe I'll write about that later.

Bo is doing okay for having so much irregularity the past week. He was taken care of by 3 different people in 3 days, so my mom could come to the hospital while Robert was finishing up his last days of summer school. Then we came home from the hospital and it was hard for him to understand why he couldn't sit in my lap and why I couldn't pick him up. Then my dad flew in to join all of us, adding another playmate (and some new trucks). Add to all of this that he's been getting in the bed later than usual, and it makes for a confused, cranky, emotional 3 year old. He has been, however, super sweet with Justus, giving him kisses, holding his hands, patting his head, etc.

This is all I can write for right now. More to come later.

Playing "Baby"

2009-06-05T20:21:00.003-06:00

This past week, since Baby Boy Sanders is coming soon, we have been pulling out baby gear, washing clothes, and trying to prepare Bo for some of the changes that are in store. I think Bo knows that his baby brother is going to be here soon, but I believe most of his excitement comes from sleeping in his new tent, his new movie "Cars" and anticipating the arrival of G.G. and Grandad (my mom and dad).

When the baby gear started coming out, Bo was asking lots of questions. So I told him to go get one of his stuffed animals and I would show him how all the stuff works. Some of the animals he brought me were too small and too big, but the one that fit the best was "The Grinch"! So we decided to diaper and dress the Grinch, and he could be our "baby". So the Grinch has been strapped in the car seat, has taken a ride in the swing, and been toted around to pretend parks (in the house) to picnic. Bo has also been patiently waiting for Daddy to clean out the car, so we can put the car seat in and the Grinch can ride next to him! This has all been quite hysterical to watch and pretend with Bo. I can only hope that our real baby bears absolutely no resemblance to our pretend one!

Baby Boy Sanders

2009-05-21T16:12:00.004-06:00

Here are a few pics of Baby Boy Sanders! The face shot above isn't great, because he had been covering his face with his hands.

At my other ultrasound appointments, I'm usually in a room that only has a paper printer. But at my last appointment, I was in a room that had a CD burner, so the nurse burned a CD of the pics for us! So you can thank the nurse for these pics!

I think he is pouting in this picture! Look at those lips poking out!

Here are his arms with his hands up around his face or chin!

I did have one more picture - confirming that he is definitely a boy. If you want to see that picture, you'll have to email me and let me know. Otherwise, I am saving him from future harassment!

Birthday and "Bobby"

2009-05-21T11:10:00.009-06:00

Patiently waiting on his special birthday breakfast. This is the "cheese" smile.

The first serving of sugar for the day - a chocolate covered cake donut.

Bo and Dexter - born 3 days apart.

Another "cheese" smile.

Thinking, "What should I do with this water in my bucket?" or "Is this water or snot dripping from my nose?"
A wild ride on the see-saw!

Digging in the sand pit with Ben, Dexter, and Wilson.

"Happy Birthday to you..." accompanied by the second and third servings of sugar for the day!

2009-05-21T10:09:00.013-06:00

Learning how to use the scissors!

Found this on the camera when downloading...just had to share it! Manly man in the masquerade mask! Nice look!

"Bobby" at the FBBA 80's Party. Another nice look.

Happy Easter...plus

2009-04-12T20:27:00.010-06:00

It's an understatement to say it's been a while since I've last posted an update. Therefore, we have LOTS to share and catch you up on! First, Happy Easter from me and my boys!

We'll start from today and go backwards. So first, Robert's parents have been here visiting for the week. Bo was SOOOO excited when they arrived, and was running around and talking very fast. He gave them hugs and immediately wanted them to "play trains" with him. All this was very encouraging b/c we didn't get to see them a lot last year and you never know if your child is going to remember people they haven't seen in a while. We try to do a good job of praying for all our family and looking at pictures to help bridge the distance gap. Thankfully, they will be back soon after the baby arrives, so this span of time apart will be short.

A huge plus to having them here has been the HUGE HELP they have been! I don't think I washed a single dish the entire week!! And Bo has gotten lots of attention and had two great playmates to play with and who kept him entertained. Many, many THANKS to Grammy and Granddaddy! We love you!

A few updates on Bo...We moved him, over Spring Break, into a new room and put him into a big boy bed. We took him to Target to pick out some sheets and of course, his first choice was Thomas the Train. He is in a bigger room, so all of his toys, including his trains, are in his room, instead of littering our den...of which, both Robert and I are very thankful.

Here are a few pics from an outside photo shoot that Robert did with Bo. My baby is not a baby anymore!

This is Bo's way of saying "cheese" but being totally uninterested in posing for pictures.

Updates on me and the baby. Here are a couple of pics of two new purses I purchased. I am moving up in the world of fashionable accessories!!

Here's the latest pic of baby boy #2 - who remains nameless! We are having such a hard time with this one. We will definitely let everyone know when we get it figured out! This is at 28 weeks. As of April 13th, I am 30 weeks! WooHoo - really only 9 more, due to C-section a week early! Let the count down begin. Although, this pregnancy has really flown by! I can't wait to meet our little man!

Whew! I think that's all for now! If you've stuck with us this far, thanks!

Ultrasound Update...

2009-02-17T21:51:00.002-06:00

Sorry to keep everyone waiting...again. I forgot that I posted about not knowing the health of the baby. Preggo brain.

Everything is fine with baby boy #2. I just wish they wouldn't be so nonchalant about it. I'm waiting anxiously to hear if this baby is healthy or not, and they don't even mention it when I go in for my appointment! I have to ask! And the answer is, "Oh, everything's fine." But, I guess they see a hundred ultrasound reports a day and to them it's just another report, not someone's baby they're worried about.

I couldn't scan the ultrasound pictures. For some reason, the scanner isn't working. Maybe I will take some digital pics of them and see how they turn out.

No other news on the Sanders home front. Except for having a head full of snot - Enter the pregnancy congestion! Plus, sharing everything with what seems like a constantly snotty 2 year old.

Snips and snails and puppy dogs' tails...

2009-02-05T15:35:00.002-06:00

We had our ultrasound yesterday....and IT'S A BOY!! He wasn't very cooperative at first b/c he had his back turned to us. But after a little coaxing from Robert and the tech, he turned and we were able to see his parts. After that, the tech wanted a face shot, but this time he wouldn't keep still! I told Robert and the tech that he was complaining about them being indecisive. The pictures we received aren't very good. There's one that looks scary - I call it the gremlin shot b/c it looks like he's wrinkling his nose and has really sharp teeth. Not the picture you want of your unborn child....too many movies with humans birthing aliens.

The only disappointing thing is that the ultrasound tech was not legally allowed to tell us any information regarding the health of the baby, whether good or bad. She does the ultrasound, then sends the information to a separate office that interprets the info and writes up a report, which then gets sent to the doctor. So I was a little disappointed leaving the appointment and slightly anxious to have to wait on those results. I am going to put in a call to the doctor's office to see if when they might possibly have the report. I have a doctor's appointment next Wednesday, but I would love not to have to wait that long. But, another opportunity to trust the Lord, surrender my desires to Him and to trust that His plan is perfect and good for us. Pray that I won't be anxious during this waiting period and continue to pray for a healthy baby boy!

I'll try to post the pics later...check back if you're interested in the "gremlin" shot. : )

And we don't have a name picked out yet. So don't ask.

Trying to get back to my A-Game...

2009-01-10T22:03:00.005-06:00

So, it's been a little more than a week since we returned home from our Christmas travels. I was not on, what I like to call, my A-game before Christmas and I surely have not gotten it back quickly after Christmas. This includes having the house cleaned up, dishes washed (especially this one), keeping in touch with old friends and being intentional and proactive with new ones. I'll blame it partly on the pregnancy, partly on recovering from our Christmas trip, and partly on staying up too late. Thankfully, Robert jumped in to help with the many, many dishes today, I have done almost all of our laundry, put up our Christmas decorations, vacuumed a little, and saw friends at the library and at a playdate. So, that's a good start. Hopefully, I will continue to pick up momentum and be back on my A-game shortly!

For those interested in the details of our Christmas journeys, here's a quick rundown. Please feel free to skip this part if this is of no interest to you. No hurt feelings.

Dec. 19th - Finally get on the road about 5:30 PM. Arrive in TEXARKANA to spend the night in a hotel. Driving time - 6 hours.

Dec. 20th - Drive to MEMPHIS. Arrive around 3:30 PM. Driving time - 4 hours. Stay at Andy's house, our good friend and fantastic host! Visit with friends. Go to church. Have some good ol' Memphis BBQ at my favorite place, the Germantown Commissary.

**I wish we could have eaten at all of our favorite Memphis restaurants - Bryant's, Ching's Wings, the Chinese Sub Shop and more.

Dec. 22nd - get new tires put on the car in Memphis (b/c Robert found a great deal, not b/c of any bad issues, thankfully), and drive to FRANKLIN, TN. - Driving time - 3.5 hours. Visit with friends, eat a delicious meal, spend the night with our gracious and welcoming hosts.

Dec. 23rd - Enjoy a great breakfast with friends and hit the road for LUGOFF, SC. Driving time - 7.5 hours. (While driving near Chattanooga, see a sheet of ice fly off of the top of an 18-wheeler and smash into the windshield of the car in front of us...no damage done, thankfully, and really cool and kinda scary at the same time!)

Visit with family and friends, go to Christmas Eve service and church, eat some good Mama's cooking, enjoy opening presents with family and celebrating Jesus' birthday, and memorize the many moments of "Hey, Grandad!", "Hey, G.G.!", "Grandad/G.G., come to my room and play!"

Dec. 30th - Hit the road for the long trip back to Texas...first, stopping outside of ATLANTA, to visit with Robert's brother and his awesome family. Keep trucking to MONTGOMERY, AL where we spend the night in a hotel. Driving time - 6 hours.

Dec. 31st - Spend New Year's Eve driving home to TEXAS. Driving time - 10 hours.

Jan. 1st - Spend all day recovering from LAFIR - also known as "Losing All Feeling In the Rearend."

I have no Christmas pictures, b/c they are all on my parents' cameras. But here are a few from our camera.

I decided to make a graham cracker/icing house instead of buy the gingerbread house kits (we'll reconsider this decision next year!) to do with Bo. It ended up being more work than I originally had planned, and Bo wasn't much help as he was more interested in eating the icing and graham crackers, than helping to put it together...imagine that. So the work fell to me, and then to Robert. And being the artist that he is, our graham cracker "house", turned out to look more like a "church". And I LOVED it! Too bad it took so long that Bo had to go to bed before we could decorate it with all the candies I bought. So, this season, we made "The Sanders' First Ever Graham Cracker and White Icing Church".

This is Bo riding the train at the mall.

This is Bo riding the boat with Tigger in Toys 'R Us. Is there a trend here?

He's getting so big! He's not a baby anymore!

This is Bo's present to us that he made in his class at CDO. If you can't tell, it's a wreath with berries. The berries are fingerprints. So cute!

This is another craft that the teacher of Bo's CDO class put together for us. I think it's stinkin' adorable.

This is a close-up of the picture - Bo looking down at Baby Jesus in the manger.

Robert showed me how to take some cool night shots. This is on our drive thru Atlanta. I like it b/c the lights look like musical notes floating in the air.

For Moms...

2008-12-17T21:13:00.002-06:00

I came across this video and had to share it. If you are an old mom, new mom or just have or have had a mom, you'll appreciate this!

And thank you, Mom, for everything. You're awesome.

Locked Out of the House

2008-12-11T21:58:00.002-06:00

So here's the story of getting locked out of the house.

I had found a new recipe for pancakes (oatmeal pancakes) the night before. I was so excited about making them, I dumped all the ingredients in the food processor and when I got to the end of the recipe, I realized I was missing eggs - a very essential ingredient. So, I ran over to the neighbor's house (in my pajama pants), telling Bo to stay put and pulling the door behind me. They gave me my ONE essential egg and I went back to the house to finish my recipe, only to find the door locked! I have no phone, no keys and don't know anyone's number besides Robert's cell, which he doesn't keep on b/c he's at school!!!

Bo was inside calling my name. Since he was at the door, I tried to explain to him how to unlock the door (that has no windows - so I couldn't see him and he couldn't see me), to no avail. I normally keep my keys in the same place, so I told Bo to go get my keys. There used to be a pretty big gap underneath part of the door, so I figured he could get my keys and possibly slide them through the gap and I could unlock the door. So off he goes to find my keys. After a little bit, I hear him playing. I ask, "Did you find mommy's keys?" To which he answers, "No." And he no longer wants to come to the door.

What to do now??? First thought, break out a window in the front room. Or go to the neighbor's to see what they say about the situation. Second thought, Robert would not be happy with a broken window, especially in the front of the house, where someone could easily break in during the time we are waiting to get it fixed...and it costs money...very important factor. Third, jump the wooden fence (since we keep it deadbolted) into the back yard and break out a back window, where at least the broken window wouldn't be seen by potential burglars. Go to the fence, realize it is taller than I thought and there's no way I'm getting over it, especially being pregnant.

Fourth and finally, go to the other neighbors' house, who have four kids and ask for help. Praise the Lord for neighbors who are believers!!! They welcome me in, and ask how they can help, reassuring me it's no big deal, that they've locked their kids in the car, left them at home, etc. We get in touch with Robert and the neighbor volunteers to drive to his school to pick up our house key.

Returning to the house, I hear Bo crying and the neighbor coaxes him to the front window and tells him to pull up the blinds, so at least he can see me. He does this, and I see the reason for his crying - not being able to get his pajama top off, which reassures me b/c it means he's not freaking out about being locked in the house by himself. We try to get him to unlock the window, but he's just holding the blind cord, staring out at us.

The key arrives and I am back in the house about an hour after I was locked out. I still have my precious egg, tucked away in the pocket of my sweatshirt. Boy, were those pancakes delicious. I spent the rest of the day recovering from this memory-making episode. It totally threw me off the rest of the day and I felt exhausted. But those pancakes sure were good. I'll just take my keys next time I go to borrow some eggs.

Update on Thanksgiving

2008-12-03T15:38:00.003-06:00

Here are a few highlights, lowlights and things to be thankful for (and not so thankful for) from our Thanksgiving trip...

We started off with a bang...or more like a BARF! Yeah, Bo threw up on the airplane as we were descending. I think it was a combination of too much juice, getting too hot and the plane descending pretty quickly. There were some other passengers complaining of back aches and nausea as we deplaned. I don't think Bo's little body could handle it.

- I am not thankful for the flight attendant who had NO IDEA what to do about the throw up. REALLY?!?!? Has no one ever barfed on your plane before? She asked US what we needed. Uhhhhh, maybe some plastic bags and some napkins. So, genius that she is, returns with 2 plastic bags and TWO NAPKINS! SERIOUSLY. This is not just a little baby spit up. This is at least two sippy cups worth of water/juice with some french fries mixed in (sorry for the graphic details). TWO NAPKINS. Not really helpful.

- I am not thankful for the other flight attendant who didn't think to ask everyone to remain seated while we got the sick kid off the plane. No. Just wait like everyone else while mom and toddler smell like vomit. Thanks. She also asked US if she needed to call someone to come onto the plane to clean it up. No, lady, I'm sure your next passengers will love the smell of vomit in their seat and in the aisle. Tell them you're trying out a new air freshener and ask them for their comments.

- I AM thankful that Bo threw up on the descent, so it wasn't long that we were in the plane after the episode.

- I AM thankful that most of the throw up landed in the aisle.

- I AM thankful for other passengers who were very compassionate and helped by gathering napkins to pass to us.

- I AM thankful that we received NO dirty looks from other passengers! Everyone must have been in the Thanksgiving spirit - and were thankful they were not us!

We spent a great day on Saturday at Robert's grandmother's house to have an early Thanksgiving celebration. There were an aunt, uncle, cousin and his wife and daughter, brother and his wife and 2 daughters, another cousin's daughter, mom, dad and grandmother, and us.

- I AM thankful that nobody was stuck in the kitchen cooking and unable to hang out - thanks to Chik-fil-A and KFC!

- I AM thankful for relatives who LOVE Jesus and always have wise and kind words to share with a younger generation of parents.

Our time with Robert's parents was great. Church, a Thanksgiving service, a little shopping, and a night out to visit with his brother and awesome wife, and a visit from a friend of ours - Robert's partner in Mexico.

- I AM thankful for my mother-in-law who got up with Bo EVERY morning of our visit, so we could sleep in!! She also fed him breakfast and changed multiple dirty diapers! THANKS SO MUCH, Vineta!!

- I AM thankful for lots of toys at the grandparents' house that kept Bo enthralled, so we really didn't have to entertain him.

- I AM thankful for friends of parents that love on my child through gifts and bringing over cool toys to play with! Y'all are awesome and we always LOVE seeing you, Jean and Wayne!

Next post: the day I got locked out of the house

Two new things...

2008-11-18T22:29:00.002-06:00

The big news...I am now officially on facebook. I fought for so long not to be on it, especially with having to keep the blog updated. I didn't want another thing on the internet to be addicted to. But after my brother said he joined, and he is pretty level headed and I trust his judgement (most of the time), and he said he was connecting with lots of old friends, and after much hounding from my good friend, Zeta, I swallowed my pride and signed up. I think it was a good decision...I have already enjoyed connecting with old friends and catching up. So, "friend" me. (I can't believe I just wrote that.)

The bigger news...BABY #2 IS ON THE WAY!! We are due June 22nd, but since we'll have another c-section, it will probably be the week of June 14th (if nothing happens before then). This baby is definitely making me feel yuckier than Bo did, which is why the doctor predicted it's a girl. A boy would be super convenient, since we already have all the "boy" stuff. And I already know what to do with boys. So, I am having some issues with the potential prospect of having a girl. I know...sounds really selfish, since lots of people can't even have kids, but I'm just being honest about my thoughts and feelings. Nevertheless, we are really excited, no matter what we have.

Fall Festival and a Day in the Country

2008-11-09T22:11:00.004-06:00

The church we're attending had a Preschool Day in the Country recently. A retired couple in the church moved out to the country and hosts various groups at their home and property. (The husband told me they were blessed and wanted to use their home/property to bless others - I LOVE these kinds of people!!) We took a couple of tractor-pulled hay rides, made some fall-themed crafts, ate lunch, attempted to take some "pumpkin patch" pictures, and went cane-pole fishing. I was able to meet and chat with a few moms and make a few new connections. It was the perfect day!

Bo LOVED the tractor!! Immediately after our hay-ride was over, he wanted to go again. And he asked for other rides several times during the day.

Bo caught his first fish!!! It was more like the man caught the fish while Bo was holding the end of the pole, but we'll say it counts! And he touched it! It was a blue gill.

This was our attempt at getting a pumpkin patch picture. I wanted Bo to sit down on the hay and on the pumpkins, and he did, but not long enough for me to snap a picture. Oh, well, maybe next year!

This is our little cowboy for Fall Festival or Halloween. We had picked up a last-minute Elmo costume at Target that he seemed pretty excited about. Once we were home, he wanted to put it on twice, but both times he wanted it off about 30 seconds later. I thought he might get more used to it before we left for the Fall Festival, but nope. This time he didn't want to put it on at all! So we opted for the cowboy outfit - once again. So, here's a comparison of our 2.5 year old cowboy and our 18 month cowboy...He's getting so BIG!!

What Do You Know For Sure?

2008-10-28T20:52:00.003-06:00

Now, before you go all crazy about Oprah being on my blog, I have a great point. And I knew it would get your attention. hehehe

So, now that I have your attention...I did my grocery shopping after Bo went to bed Monday night. (yeah for toddler free shopping!!!!) I was in the check-out line skimming over the pictures and headliners for all those "lovely" supermarket check-out line magazines, when I read, in very large print, today's blog title on Oprah's magazine. Boy, was I curious about what I might find in this article. I was tempted to buy it just to have time to read the numerous pages dedicated to this topic. After skimming a few thoughts, I decided it wasn't worth it. But I made a point to remember the little I did read, and to decide this was a question worth some thought.

Two thoughts from others concerning "what they know for sure".

- The real first responders in a natural disaster are the people who go through it. (some lady, who I think is somewhat important somewhere)

- You can't get a good meat pie in LA. (the actor on that new show "The Mentalist".)

I asked myself, "What DO I know for sure?" I think it's extremely relevant right now, with a major election coming up, gas prices roller coastering and the economy - well, who knows what's going to happen with that.

So, I've decided to do my own short list of "What I Know For Sure".

1) I'm going to Heaven, no matter what.

2) Jesus LOVES me. He is very fond of me.

3) When someone loves my child, they are loving me even more.

4) When someone hurts my child, they are hurting me even more. (And making me extremely angry.)

5) Nothing is ever "free". Everything costs somebody something.

6) I'm a jeans and t-shirt type of girl.

7) I do not drink or like coffee, or anything that is coffee-flavored, and I never will. (feel free to check back with me many years from now, if you are at all doubtful that I will stick to this...I dare ya.)

8) "God is good. And everything He does is good." Psalms 119:68

9) You can not get auto or home insurance 3 days before a hurricane is projected to hit your city/town of residence.

10) Only mom can make my favorite meal taste so good.

11) Our nation's priorities - from top to bottom - are backwards. We pay more for entertainment than we do for education. Then we expect the schools, with the little money they do have, to save our children because they're not being raised with the right priorities and character in the home.

Your turn. What do YOU know for sure? I challenge all my blogging friends and nonbloggers to make your own list.

Post-Fire Truck Fun

2008-10-22T21:53:00.003-06:00

No, we are not having a mid-life crisis. We have a Harley store near our house and Robert has gone there several times to take pictures for his photography classes. (At least that's what he says he's doing.) Bo likes going b/c he gets a sucker. Robert and I have really enjoyed the show Orange County Choppers. So visiting the Harley store is pretty sweet. I think we would both get a motorcycle if it was at all practical! My favorite is the first one in the pic, the red one. Maybe if I ever find $40,000 just laying around, I'll get one. Seriously, $40,000.

After the Harley shop, we stopped by Wing-Stop with a coupon for free wings. These were a necessity for our afternoon of watching the "Go Dawgs", as Bo would say. The first pic is Bo having his first ever chicken wing. I don't think he really knew how to eat something with a bone in the middle. The second pic is...well, I don't know what he was doing. Any suggestions?

Fire Trucks are Red

2008-10-13T20:18:00.005-06:00

Last week, Bo came home with a saying that I had a really hard time putting together. It sounded like, "R, D, red", which I thought was, "already, red", which made absolutely no sense to me. A few minutes later while he was playing, I heard, "That spells red" and "Fire trucks are red". Now, my slow brain was finally putting the pieces together...He had learned a song about the color red! So what he really learned was, "R - E - D, red". Since that day, I've had the chance to listen to the song and now we can actually sing it together.

So, I thought the song was appropriate for this post about our visit to the Fire Department Open House. Some friends of ours were there with their two boys - the younger one is only 3 days younger than Bo. They all love playing together b/c they all love the same things - trains, construction vehicles and digging!

One of the treats Bo received at the Open House was a toy fire truck. At one point, my friend pointed out the fact that all the boys were eyes to the ground playing with their cheap, plastic, break-on-the-way-home fire trucks not more than two feet away from the great, big, real fire truck! And I thought, what a true picture of us, our sin and our Great, big God. Eyes to the ground, so consumed with the little cheap, plastic things of the world that only last a little while, that we don't notice being right next to the God who made the universe. What are my toy fire trucks? What are yours?

While you're thinking (and confessing), enjoy the pics...

This was Bo's attempt at obeying "Look at the camera" while wanting so badly to keep his eyes on the oh-so-popular robotic fire hydrant.

Looks like an athletic pose, except with a fire truck and fire helmet, instead of a football and football helmet. I guess he's got the squat down.

Like I said, right on the real fire truck but is consumed with the little, plastic one.

In the driver's seat with the little fire truck.

Mommy got to hold a real fire hose! It was pretty heavy. Bo just liked the water coming out.

Dexter, Wilson and Bo.

Mommy and Bo in front of the fire truck with the really tall ladder.

Next post: what we did after the fire department...

Slacker Blogger = Slogger

2008-10-11T14:56:00.005-06:00

So, before anybody else gets a chance to give me this label, I will go ahead and label myself. Ha, I beat you to it! I win.

Regardless, I don't really think about blogging unless I have new pics to post...since this blog is mostly about Bo anyways. And Robert has been taking our camera to work for his digital photography class, so I haven't been able to take any pictures here at home. So there's my excuse. But maybe, just maybe I will start thinking about blogging about things other than Bo that don't require pictures. Here's hoping...

Here are some highlights of the last couple of weeks...

-I'm going to a Wednesday night Bible study for women.

-My grandmother (Mimi) turned 90 and my parents had a party for her. We could not go, but were able to see everybody at the party via webcam and wish Mimi a Happy 90th Birthday.

-We had Bike Day at CDO. Talk about a little bit of chaos! Thank goodness each age group had their own time to ride around the parking lot. Ages 2 to 5 would have been a bit much. Sorry I don't have pictures...Just picture in your head, about 30 2 to 3 year olds riding around a small circular drive for about 15 minutes.

And probably the thing that I was most excited about during the last two weeks is....

Now before you go and say how sad my life is that I would be excited about a TV show...Really, this is the ONLY show that I would give anything to be able to do. Who wouldn't want to travel around the world in a race to win 1 million dollars?!?!?!

That's all for today. Check back tomorrow for pics from our morning at the Fire Station Open House! Here's a sneak peek. I promise Bo really did have fun.

Train Ride

2008-09-26T17:09:00.004-06:00

Last Saturday we went on a fun family outing to a park where an organization of train lovers gives free miniature train rides. I found out about it just through searching the internet for fun, local, free activities for kids! And since Bo LOVES trains, I thought this would be perfect. And really, the day could not have been better!! We left about 9:30 AM and arrived shortly after 10. Since the hurricane we have had some really great weather and this day was no exception. We waited in line for our first ride for about 20 minutes. Talking with others in line, we found out that the line normally stretches out and around the building and you may have to wait for an hour to ride, not to mention that it's usually blazing hot! Because of the hurricane, we had great weather and a much, much shorter wait!! We didn't even have to wait for our second ride! The only thing we didn't get to do was ride the train with the steam engine. I guess we'll have to wait until next month - the free rides are only on the third Saturday of every month.

Power Restored!

2008-09-20T19:52:00.003-06:00

After approximately 7 days and 13 hours, our power was restored. And let me say, I don't think I would have lasted much longer. I know that it could have been much worse. And I know that there are still people in Houston without power. Not to mention the state of Galveston island, which is officially "closed" according to a sign we saw today, while traveling on the interstate.

Here's our story...

Robert was out of school on Friday before the storm, and we spent most of the day watching the news and preparing for the hurricane. The winds kicked up around 9 pm with occasional gusts and got worse as the night went on. We put Bo to bed in his crib, but transferred him to his pack 'n play in the hallway around 9. I prepared my sleeping bag in the hallway and laid down around 11:30, getting through 2 songs on my iPod before it died - one preparation I wish I had remembered to make. I woke up occasionally and heard the winds, trying not to let it worry me. I was awoken early by Robert turning on the radio to hear the damage reports, and Bo saying, "I'm ready to get up."

Being in Sugar Land, we were on the calmer side of the storm. By God's grace, our house didn't get damaged. We had a few large branches that were either on the ground or hanging from trees. And a good bit of our fence was blown down.

We spent much of Saturday inside as the winds were still gusting in the morning. Bo and I took a short walk around the block later to look at the damage and just to get out of the house, as Bo was getting a little stir-crazy. We didn't see much damage to houses, just a few trees down some branches down or hanging and lots of leaves and debris. It wasn't until we went out that night that we saw this right outside our neighborhood...

We went to Sam's on Monday to find some ice. But we had to go to two other stores before we found milk, some of the last few jugs, and the bread aisle was completely empty. Tuesday, the big trucks arrived with ice. And Thursday, they had ice, water and MRE's - army meals...which I don't think I'm brave enough to try.

As I said earlier, I was getting closer and closer to the line of "okay, I've had enough". And I did say that I know it could have been much worse. This whole week without electricity actually hasn't been that bad. One reason is that God brought us some cooler weather. We opened some of the windows and enjoyed some cool breezes. We spent some great time outside as a family, since school was canceled for the week for Robert. Bo enjoyed helping Daddy wash the cars and helping Mommy rake the leaves and sticks.

Another reason it was not so bad was the generosity of our Christian brothers and sisters. Saturday, Sunday and Monday we were at different friends' houses grilling out the various meats and seafood that were thawing from everyone's freezers. Tuesday through Thursday we were fed by a local church who opened their doors to the public with free food, air conditioning, free WiFi and plenty of plugs to charge phones, laptops, etc. I really don't know what we would have done without the generosity of these people. I definitely would have come to the "I've had enough" line much, much sooner.

Hurricane Ike

2008-09-12T14:01:00.003-06:00

It's 3 PM and we just heard the wind outside for the first time, and I am expecting the rain to start at any minute. It was super nice this morning...sunshine with a nice breeze, around the low 70's. Bo and I went for a walk around the neighborhood. He was enjoying pushing one of his ride-on toys for a little while, but soon was more excited about looking for stop signs and fire hydrants. So I had the pleasure of carrying the thing back home.

There were only a few houses with boards on the windows, but there may be a few more by nightfall. I heard an electric saw up the street when I went out for the mail.

I took a trip to the bank this morning and saw that most of the stores and restaurants were closed...except for Denny's. Robert made a trip to Home Depot, to find that it had closed at 8 AM, so he made his way over to Lowe's for some plastic sheeting. We've gathered some supplies - water, canned goods, flashlights/batteries, a radio, etc., just to be on the safe side. We are expecting to lose power, but I'm not sure for how long. Our biggest concern is flying debris that could damage windows and trees falling on the roof. The wind is expected to be at max 100 mph. It's a category 2 hurricane, as far as I know, right now, and may get up to a category 3. But it's also a very large storm, taking up 80% of the Gulf of Mexico.

This will be my last post until the storm passes. It's expected to make landfall early tomorrow morning (Saturday) between 1 and 3 AM and be gone by Sunday. Pray for the Houston/Sugar Land area. Also pray for those that decided to stay on the coast...I'm afraid they aren't going to make it through this one.

I will update the blog as soon as possible after the storm passes - depending on our power and internet situation. Thanks for your prayers.

Part Two of catching up

2008-09-09T21:54:00.005-06:00

So, after moving, we headed to the beach...Destin to be exact. It just so happened that Destin is pretty much a half-way mark between here and where my parents live. So we met in the middle! We had a great vacation with my parents and grandmother. It was a great escape from the mess that we had in our house...so much of an escape that I didn't take any pictures. BUT, before you say that I'm an awful parent for not documenting our vacation, my dad and mom took plenty of pictures...that I'm hoping to get copies of. So, the only one on this computer is of us on the youth beach trip. Anyways, the vacation was just what we needed.

Coming back to a mess of a house was not on our list of "things we are excited about".

Alas, Robert started school and is getting to a place where his body is slowly catching up with his feet. He has been busy, busy, busy! But that is to be expected for a first year teacher. We are slowly adjusting to a school schedule, after being in a ministry schedule for so long.

Another big, new event is that Bo and I started last week at a Children's Day Out program! I am working as the music teacher on Tuesdays and a "floater" on Thursdays. I know, get all your laughs out now. Teaching music to toddlers thru 5 year olds. So, this year I'll be singing a lot of "Jesus Loves Me", "If You're Happy and You Know It" and "This Little Light of Mine". Keep laughing.

So, I am on Robert's computer and thought, "There are probably not any pictures on here I could use for the blog...but let me just check." This is what I found. I think Robert was "practicing" his photo skills for his classes. I had no idea. Sorry, honey, this is too funny.

Fencing or sword fighting with golf club.

Who knows...really.

"I love golf club."

"Me and my golf club are one. He helps me think."

And We're Back!!

2008-09-03T22:21:00.002-06:00

Wow. Way too much happening in the last 2 months to give full details, so I've created a time-line...

July 13 - last day of Robert's youth ministry job

July 14 - start packing (probably should have started this sooner)

July 17 - moving guys come for the big stuff, church guys come for the boxes

July 18, 19, 20, 21, 22 - These were long days...

Go back and forth between new home and old apartment (too many times) getting everything else that wasn't previously boxed and moved (pretty much the whole kitchen, plus lots of other random stuff)

Go back and forth between Lowe's, Home Depot and Sears searching for a washing machine, dryer and refrigerator (trying to get a good deal)

Eat at Chik-Fil-A every other day, b/c we had no refrigerator and to take advantage of their free Wi-Fi, b/c we had no internet

Play "The Jungle Book" on the computer (b/c our TV wasn't set up yet) for Bo about a thousand times to keep him entertained and out of the chaotic mess of moving boxes and stuff

Have sweet, sweet friends take Bo off our hands so we could really get some work done

Kill numerous ants, spiders and roaches (the last of these are definitely bigger in Texas)

Clean, disinfect, de-germ, vacuum, mop, Clorox entire house

Have several different "fix-it" guys come by for a broken dishwasher, a broken oven and non-working electrical outlets

So much fun in so little time! And there's more to come...

Here's a random pic to enjoy while I try to find the memory card with all the most recent photos. Robert and Bo blowing bubbles on our old porch.

Airplanes...again.

2008-07-03T18:53:00.005-06:00

As I said before, I only got one picture of our family at the beach. HOWEVER, I forgot that Robert took some pictures of a little father-son outing they went on when we were in Florida. To give me a break and some play time on the beach, Robert took Bo to the Naval Aviation Museum. How much fun for a two-year old to be able to see full-size airplanes and helicopters up-close and get to sit in the cockpits!! So here are my boys enjoying their day...

"May-day, may-day, I think I'm hit. Pull up, pull up!"

"I'm trying to fly here, Dad."

FWI - flying while intoxicated?

A long time ago, before we even had Bo, I think, I found these popsicle molds on clearance. I finally took them out for a nice summertime treat! Yummy raspberry lemonade popsicle on a hot, Texas day!

I really think my child is a genius sometimes. This is what I found on the fridge. Don't know what the "E" stands for. Maybe it's a message...what do you think?

Update on the housing situation: I think we finally have something. Long story, maybe for another day.

Bummer - 2x

2008-06-25T10:54:00.003-06:00

The first bummer is a pretty big one. We had to terminate the contract on the house. Too many major issues and the seller couldn't budge on price or offer any money for repairs. So, I believe the Lord has something better for us in store. I am not so disappointed, only frustrated that we have to start the process over again, which is prolonging the unknown. More time to practice patience and perseverance! Oh, how I love these lessons in godly character.

The second bummer is not so big. We only took one picture of our time at the beach (and it's not even on our camera)!! So we have no pictures documenting Bo's time on the beach or at the pool. There are good reasons...the biggest one being that I was with Bo by myself most of the time when we were on the beach, and I didn't feel like I could take pictures of him and keep him from drowning at the same time. He is just fearless when it comes to the water. Which is a blessing that he is not screaming bloody murder b/c he doesn't like the sand or the waves. But, I had to be the mother eagle, hovering over him as he would just take off by himself towards the water.

All in all, we had a great time digging in the sand and watching Bo enjoy the ocean. It is definitely exhausting taking a toddler to the beach!

So, what activities are exhausting for you, but well worth spending the extra energy?

I'll leave you with a picture of Bo enjoying some pancakes, made with freshly picked blueberries, given to us by some dear friends.

Big News...

2008-06-14T13:29:00.004-06:00

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No, we are not pregnant. We are MOVING!! Robert has accepted a position teaching art and photography at a small Christian private school in a city called Sugar Land. It's just outside of Houston. (see map) We are really excited about this new job as it gets Robert back into art, which is a huge passion and a huge talent of his. Something some of you may have never known about him! He is a quiet man and definitely not one to boast.

The Lord has provided greatly for us in our search for a home. We put in a competing offer (which later we found out was the lower offer) on a house, and they accepted ours! As my good friend and mentor, Jody, would say, "God's fingerprints are all over this!" Through the process of transitioning and house hunting, I found myself becoming anxious (fear) and have been convicted of my lack of trust that the Lord would provide. Not that I was constantly not trusting, but it was very easy to fear that, well, frankly, I wouldn't get what I wanted! How selfish! Gross. But a quote from the little book entitled, Jesus Calling, helped me in my times of fear..."Let trust and thankfulness stand guard...". Trust to drive away fear and thankfulness to drive away discontent. I think whatever our situations, this is always a good word.

So, we are definitely excited about getting out of apartment living and into a nice little neighborhood, with a community pool!! We also have a great backyard (see below)and am so excited that we won't have to drive to the park just to play outside! And, a friend from church lives in the neighborhood, and her 2nd son is Bo's age! Why was I fearful and lacked faith?

Lord willing, the inspection will go well and our closing date will be on/around July 11th. Robert will start his new job Aug. 7th or 8th.

Also, Lord willing, we will be leaving tomorrow (Sunday), to head to Pensacola, FL, for our high school beach trip. We are meeting up with our old youth group from Memphis! I am so excited to get to go to the beach, and see old friends! This will be Bo's first extended time at the beach, so I am excited to see how he likes it!

Finally, I leave you with this...I call it, "Camo Cowboy Conductor" or "What happens when a toddler picks out his outfit in the middle of summer".

Happy Birthday, Bo! Again.

2008-06-03T19:15:00.005-06:00

My friend, Nancy, and I decided to have a joint birthday party for Bo and her son, Ben. Their birthdays are 3 days apart. I really wanted to be able to celebrate with some of Bo's new little friends from church, so that's why we celebrated more than once. If this trend continues, Bo is going to think it's his birthday all the time - which means more cupcakes and more presents. He is still asking for more of both.

We had a construction vehicles theme because both the boys love them. It was great to have somebody to split the responsibilities with! I understand now why some parents are so reluctant to have these parties...especially at their own houses! Thank goodness the weather was nice, so we could have our party at the park! It worked out great! Even the pizza delivery guy delivers to the park!

Bo decided he only wanted the icing...giving me back the slobber soaked cake part after he was done licking.

This is our little friend, Ben, really enjoying his cupcake!

This is some of the chaos of a 2-year-old's birthday party...mom's wiping, boys with sticks...not too bad!
Remember our butterfly princess? She and Bo really love each other...most of the time. She was really sweet to him at his party, pushing him around in his big dump truck...what more could a man want? A ride in a big dump truck courtesy of a cute older woman, while enjoying a cupcake?

Trains, Planes, and Automobiles...and Drawing

2008-05-27T21:02:00.004-06:00

First of all, a HUGE thanks to all of you who showed your love through commenting! Much love back to ya. I just needed some reassurance that at least a few people were reading and keeping up with the Sanders. Thanks to all of you who read...now I know you are out there.

There have been some things that I thought Bo might be obsessed with before, but this is a new record. He received the blue engine and the coal car for his birthday from Uncle Jon and Aunt Amy while we were in GA. Ever since then he has been asking about "more trains" and "more track". Knowing that he couldn't really play with only one piece of track, we ordered a set, "The Wild West Set" and eagerly awaited its arrival. It arrived last Thursday, and no exaggerating...he has not stopped playing with it. Questions/statements like, "Are you ready to eat?, Do you want to go to the park?, Do you want to go swimming?, Let's go take a nap," used to be answered with an emphatic "yes", for the most part. Now the answer is, "I want to play with trains." One great benefit is that I actually have gotten a lot done around the house with him being so enthralled with these things. It's also just fun to watch him play, and start to pretend. He's growing up so fast! I feel really, really blessed....he's an awesome kid.

The Engineer

How many helicopters do you see? Multiply that number by about 52 and you get the number of helicopters I've actually drawn the past couple of months.

As you can see, we know the Sesame Street characters. It was fun learning how to draw them. You never know when that might come in handy someday!

To all the ghost readers of this blog...

2008-05-15T17:25:00.003-06:00

This is me asking nicely...

Would you leave a frickin' comment...please?

Thanks...

From the writer who needs to feel a little bit more connected.

Happy (fill in the blank) Day!

2008-05-13T21:25:00.005-06:00

We took a trip to GA this past week...for several reasons. The thing that got us there was a wedding of a dear friend of mine, Kelli. We met at PC, shortly after I stepped onto the campus. We were introduced by a mutual friend, and I think the first thing she said was, "I am so pumped that a Christian is here to play on the basketball team!" Talk about making someone uncomfortable. What we both didn't know yet was that I really wasn't a Christian! The Lord used her greatly in my life to lead me to Him. I was so happy to be able to be at her wedding (finally!) and see her step into this awesome journey of marriage with her man, P.D. Congrats, Kelli and P.D.!!! We love you! Happy Wedding Day!

Happy Birthday! ...my father-in-law's on the 4th and Bo's on the 9th. I don't know how old my father-in-law is b/c he refuses to tell us, but Big Bo turned 2!! This is Bo waiting for the cake. He had woken up early from a nap...when that happens, he cries in a mad way for like 5 minutes and you can't do much for him. Robert got him to calm down with some Doritos...go figure...hence the orange stuff on his mouth and hands.

With a little help from my brother-in-law and sister-in-law, I managed to successfully make my very first Elmo cake. I'm pretty proud of how it turned out...I worked dang hard on it.

This is Bo while we were singing Happy Birthday. I think he figured out we were singing for him. It was really cute.

This is Bo concentrating really hard to blow out those 2 candles. He got the first one pretty easily...the second proved to be more challenging.

This is after, oh, about 3 pieces of cake! He's just saving some for later.

How much fun is bath time with 3 babies when splashing is allowed? The girls are thinking, "There is an extra person in our tub tonight...and it's definitely not mommy or daddy."

This is what 3 kids in the back of a Camry looks like.

On Bo's actual birthday, we got to go to the Atlanta Zoo. It was a lot of fun, although somewhat stressful with about a gazillion school groups there. We did get to see some animals that we don't have at our zoo here in Houston...some gorillas and a rhino, and probably some others I can't remember. Here are Abby and Bo posing at the meerkat exhibit. A little too early to really understand the whole head in the hole concept.

Happy Mother's Day!! Here are the beautiful Sanders moms.

"Hey, where's the rest of my cake?!?!" says Bo. "Don't look at me, I only had one piece," says Granddaddy.

And finally Happy 5th Anniversary to Jon and Amy (May 10th), and Happy Baby Dedication Day to little Julia!

Busy and Business...

2008-05-02T21:34:00.004-06:00

So, sorry once again for not posting for a while. Things have been really busy around here. And blogging always takes a back seat to all other things. Although I do continue to check other people's sites for updates.

So what has happened since April 9th? Bo and I went to SC for a week for the purpose of seeing my brother, sister-in-law and niece. We sent them off on the 22nd to Belgium to be church planters. They will be there 3 years before their first "furlough" or "home assignment" or whatever you want to call it. They have lived in San Francisco since before Robert and I were married, and we've gotten to see them on average twice a year. So I thought, "It won't be a big deal for them to move to Belgium, since we only get to see them twice a year anyways." Well, it is. Belgium is not anywhere in America or North America (for those of you who struggle with geography) so it makes a difference. Even with our newly acquired webcam (aren't we fancy?!), and all the technology of email, long-distance phone calls, etc., it is still different. I can't say I've cried after they left (part of me won't let myself do that), but there is a sort of sadness in knowing they are so far away. BUT I am also very, very proud of them and the commitment they are making to growing the Kingdom around the world! Here's the most recent picture of them I have on my computer.

What else?...We had a GREAT missions conference at our church...not really AT our church, since we don't own a building, but you know what I mean. Fred Harrell from City Church in San Francisco was the speaker. He challenged us to be a missional church, which means in one aspect that the members can't just be consumers, but we have to be "bringers". I knew that, but needed a reminder and a little motivation. How about you? Are you a consumer at your church or are you a bringer?

What else?...we've also battled runny noses and sinus infections. How fun. Bo got a runny nose while we were in SC, and proceeded to pass it on to Shelby, my niece. Because we only had one humidifier, we put them in the same room one night. How hysterical! For a while, we heard them both laughing and talking to each other. About an hour and a half later, we heard only Shelby singing. Then we heard, "Bo-Bo, you hear me?!? Bo-Bo, you HEAR me?!?" I think that was the funniest thing ever. I went into the room and Bo was laying down with this look on his face that said, "Would you please make her be quiet?!?" Precious and priceless moments.

Maybe this is why they pass colds so easily.

One more thing...I am forever grateful to Audrey's brother, who passed this special little song on to my brother, who then lovingly passed it on to me.

CAUTION: The title of the song, "Business Time" is not referring to work, so precede at your own risk. (Mom and Dad Sanders, this means you might not want to watch)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGOohBytKTU

Enjoy more songs by "Flight of the Conchords" on youtube, if you can handle it.

Much love.

A Visit from G.G.

2008-04-09T13:55:00.003-06:00

Yeah for G.G. coming! She spent her spring break with us and we all had a great time! Bo especially loved all the new "Easter" treats he received and having someone else to entertain him.

Before nap.

After nap.

This is Bo's new tricycle and helmet. He LOVES them! Many thanks to G.G., Grandad, Grammy and Granddaddy for an early birthday present!!! I am thankful for the push and steer handle on the back...a necessity for keeping your back in good working condition! Here Bo is multi-tasking...reading and bicycling. What a prodigy. Not really...he can't propel himself or steer on his own yet...hence the adult push handle. Eat your heart out men...only as a toddler can you ride a bike in your underwear and not be arrested.

This is Bo's post-Easter sale outfit. We actually didn't make it to church on Easter b/c of a 24-hour stomach virus. And last Sunday it was too hot to wear pants and long-sleeves, so here we are this past Sunday in our nice Spring attire. Thanks to G.G. for the cute outfit and my friend Nancy for the consignment shoes - a perfect match!

March Madness!!!

2008-03-21T20:37:00.002-06:00

Can I just say how much I LOVE the NCAA tournament? I believe it is, out of all sporting events - collegiate and professional - the most exciting to watch bar none. Robert and I are not huge die-hard fans of any team, although we do have our allegiances and preferences, nor do we hover around the TV for any or all sports seasons. But this tournament is definitely the exception. Our dear Bo, I fear, is and will continue to be stripped of normalcy for the next couple of weeks. By the end, I fear Robert and I will be fighting over who has to change Bo's diaper, figure out where he is or what he is doing, so we won't miss a minute of the underdog's potential upset. It's just beautiful...I love it. And if anybody is curious, I have 3 different brackets - my winners include Memphis, UNC and UCLA.

SKIP THIS NEXT PART if you don't like potty talk!

Update on Bo: the diarrhea is still here. I shouldn't say diarrhea - b/c it's not ongoing throughout the day...so I've now labeled it just runny poo...and it's dark, dark green. We now believe it is either a result of teething or he ate something non-edible that he is having trouble passing. Hopefully it is the first of the two. I did call our pediatrician's office and the sweet nurse gave me two pieces of news I did not care for. First, just wait it out. Second, it could be what's normal for him right now....GREAT. Thanks...alot. Hopefully it will be gone soon.

Nausea, heartburn, indigestion, upset stomach...

2008-03-17T16:00:00.004-06:00

You got it...diarrhea! What a great jingle.

So, Wednesday was my birthday (happy belated birthday to me!) and a sweet friend had called Robert to offer to babysit OVERNIGHT so we could celebrate into the wee hours of the morning...just kidding. When we were getting ready to go, Bo decided to ruin our plans by having diarrhea. That little devil! Not knowing if it was the load of craisins he ate or a virus, we decided against handing him off to the babysitter. Good decision. He has had no problems during the day or night, but in the mornings, we've had some messes. I think it's finally gone...knock on wood. So while we banned ourselves from public play areas, and as the temp. outside shot up to a balmy 85 degrees, we decided to do some porch clean-up. Still enjoying the awesome sunshine, but secluded on our porch, we added in a bucket of soapy water and some sponges and voila!...so much fun.

Notice the huge, sagging diaper...thank goodness for swim diapers!

"Mamas, don't let your babies grow up to be cowboys"

2008-03-07T21:18:00.006-06:00

So I think we have gained new ground in what it means to be Texan. This past Thursday we attended the Houston Livestock and Rodeo Show! We didn't actually get to see the rodeo because that part happens in the evening and this outing was more for Bo's enjoyment. And I think you can tell by the pictures, he had no problem enjoying himself! There was tons to see and touch and do. Pony rides, petting zoos, carnival rides (not running due to inclement weather), pig races, mutton bustin' (click here to find out), cow milking, etc. We ended our fun with a nice cheeseburger, chili dog and french fries lunch with a funnel cake for dessert. Good day for the Sanders, bad day for the digestive system.

Parking = $7
Admission = $7/adult
Pony Ride = $5 (outrageous!)
Cheeseburger, fries, chili dog and funnel cake = $20

Wearing your kid out at the rodeo so he naps for several hours = priceless

2008-02-18T14:33:00.003-06:00

Bo found my Christmas socks...enough said.

Note: These are "fun youth events only" socks. Not "I like to wear these with my embroidered Christmas vest and dangly jingle bell earrings" socks.

Happy (belated) Valentine's Day!!

2008-02-15T13:58:00.004-06:00

I was hoping to get this on the computer yesterday, but the day was busy...We are currently searching for another place to live. We like our apartment...actually, we love our apartment, after seeing some of the other options yesterday! But Robert would like to be a little closer to some of the schools he visits and I would like a little green area so Bo and I could play outside, without having to get in the car and drive to a park. If we find something else, great, if not, no big deal.

Also, Valentine's Day is also the date of me and Robert's engagement. So Happy Engagement Anniversary to us!! Some of you are thinking, how cheesy to get engaged on Valentine's. So before you start hatin' on us, there was really no choice. Robert was in the states for a missions conference (at the time he was living in Mexico City), and it was the only time we would see each other before he came home in May...much too late to start planning a summer wedding. So he planned an elaborate dinner complete with his mom's fine china, candlelight, music, luminaries and of course, the proposal. A very special time that we get to celebrate on top of celebrating Valentine's. At the very least, it helps us remember the date we got engaged!

Bo has started blowing bubbles in the tub. It's even more hilarious when there is no more water left to blow in!

Here is Bo taking his temperature. I think he's a little confused. It's not a navel thermometer.

I think Bo has inherited some of Robert's love and talent for art. He is always asking to draw now. Here he is after an artistic session with the markers. Praise the Lord for washable markers!! Also notice, the one sock on...also part of his artistic flair, I guess.

Dedicated to our Wonderful Parents...

2008-01-31T14:19:00.000-06:00

Don't send a lame Starring You! eCard. Try JibJab Sendables!

Funny or scary?

2008-01-25T21:27:00.000-06:00

The first thing that is both funny and scary is Bo saying the word "octagon". He received a shapes puzzle for Christmas and we have been working on learning the names of them. Forget circle and square, but octagon and diamond are a piece of cake for this kid. And he even associates the octagon with the stop sign and says "stop!" It's amazing and scary what they learn. You can also add "basketball goal" to the list.

He's also learning that tissues are for blowing your nose. We now have to keep the kleenex box out of reach or else Bo would be blowing his nose every five minutes...and not so much being successful at the necessary wipe of the nose to get it clean. At least he's using a tissue and not his shirt sleeve...yet.

Of the many pre-baby convictions we thought we would not budge on, you can add TV to the list of things we have budged on. In the midst of lots of colds and lots of rain, Bo has probably watched Sesame Street maybe 10 times (over a couple of months time). AND HE ALREADY KNOWS WHO ELMO IS!!! We were looking at Christmas pictures on the computer today, me asking him the names of our family members, when all of a sudden he says, "Elmo." There were presents in the picture with Elmo wrapping paper. Amazing. Scary, and amazing.

This video definitely falls into the funny category.

One question: What are some creative indoor activities for toddlers with colds when it's rainy outside????

To Infinity and Beyond!...and back.

2008-01-17T21:30:00.000-06:00

Many apologies for the few who take the time to check on us through the blog. It has been a little over 2 months since I posted. I decided to take a break from it over Christmas, but I guess I could have warned you about that.

If you can't guess from the title, our Christmas travels were complicated and long. Good, but long. We boarded a plane with 3 suitcases, a stroller and a car seat all headed to Atlanta. Not to overshadow the positive, our blessings were the flight was only 1 hour 45 minutes, Bo had his own seat, and all the luggage arrived on time. In short, our itinerary:

Dec. 18th - Fly to Atlanta (spend 2 days with Robert's brother, Jon, sister-in-law, Amy, nieces, Abby - 3.5 years and Julia - 9 mo.)

Dec. 20 - drive 2 hours to Macon (spend a week with Robert's parents and grandmother)

Dec. 27 - drive 2.5 hours to Augusta where we meet my parents, have a Chick-fil-A lunch and then drive 1.5 hours to Lugoff, SC (spend a week with my parents, Mimi (my grandmother), brother Tanner, sister-in-law Audrey and niece, Shelby - 2 years old)

Jan. 4th - Board a plane in Columbia, SC with 5 suitcases (notice how many we started with), a stroller and a car seat to fly back to Houston.

Some highlights included:

our walk around the neighborhood with Abby as Bo rode in style (obsessed with bikes, tricycles, anything you can ride)
watching cousins play (and fight) together
Bo's new vocabulary - basketball (favorite word), mine, bat (as in baseball)
going on two dates to the movies and one double date - YEAH for grandparents that love to babysit!!
Bo sitting with the other kids during the Christmas Eve children's sermon - so cute!
the first Christmas Bo actually helped unwrap presents - even if they weren't his!
being taught how to make homemade cinnamon rolls by my sister-in-law, Audrey
of course, precious mealtimes and hang - out time with family and friends

We arrived home exhausted and glad to be back in our own beds after 18 days! Of course, we caught a cold and spent the next week with sore throats and stopped up noses, another reason the blog has not been updated. Nevertheless, we are back to "normal" and getting back into the swing of things. Holidays are very special times, but getting back to routine is another kind of special.

His new red corduroy shirt...he got to where it our first Sunday back in Houston, b/c it was cooler, not cold, but cooler.

Our walk/ride around the block.

Bo kept giving his Grammy hugs, one right after the other, about 10 total. It was cute.

The best of Bo's dress-up outfits and the best of Mom's funny faces.

Halloween Fun

2007-11-15T22:24:00.000-06:00

I'm not as quick as others with posting cute halloween pictures. But better late than never! Our halloween fun started with trips to stores to complete Bo's cowboy outfit. We already had the vest and the hat, but went to Toys R Us for the horse (which Bo loves to ride around our apt.), Academy Sports store for the bandana and cowboy boots, which double as rain boots!, and Walgreen's to find our trick or treating pumpkin. Robert was on his way home from setting up for our middle school fall retreat, so our gracious friends, the Rasplicka's, let me and Bo come over to trick or treat with them in their neighborhood. Their youngest daughter, Betsy, is 4 1/2 and LOVES Bo. She hugs and kisses on him and likes to "manage" him, as Betsy's mom says. She was dressed as a "butterfly"...which her mom later described as a trailor trash princess! Still so cute!

Robert was able to meet us after the house to house fun, and we went out for a late dinner.

The cowboy and the "butterfly"

"I'm the new sheriff in town."

"Giddy-up horsey."

Happy Birthday, Tanner and Happy Half-Birthday, Bo!

2007-11-09T19:00:00.000-06:00

Happy Birthday, Tanner! We love you!

In honor of your birthday, I thought about how I could make this a special post about you. Maybe, I could make a list of 31 things about you that we love. But, then I thought, 31 things is a lot, too much some might say. Then I thought maybe I could make a list of 3 things we love about you and 1 thing we don't so much love about you. But it's your birthday, so I thought telling you the things we don't like is not too birthdayish. So here are 4 things we love about you...3+1=4!

1)You are really smart, and we are all really proud of all that you've accomplished.

2)You're a great dad and a great husband. (from what I've heard)

3)You are a gifted leader...even though I was the one you just had to practice your skills on when we were growing up. I guess telling people what to do eventually comes in handy.

4)You have great tastes in movies...the majority of the time.

Hope your day was special!

It just so happens to be Bo's half-birthday! We usually don't celebrate half-birthdays nor are we going to tell our kids when they are 3 and a half, or 5 and three-quarters. There aren't many things more annoying than a kid who gets a one-up on another kid because he says he's three-quarters older. Just my opinion. Moving on, I figured 1 and a half is a pretty big milestone. He's definitely a toddler, not a baby anymore. And he's definitely making his opinion known more often. And he's definitely testing his boundaries. But, he is still a sweet boy who blows kisses and likes to cuddle when we read. He's a big boy...literally. In the 90th percentile for both height (33 3/4 in.) and weight (31 lbs. 8 oz.). If he keeps this up...watch out!

Impromptu Trip to San Francisco! (Part 1)

2007-11-09T14:57:00.000-06:00

Obviously, from the title of this post, you've picked up the fact that we took a trip to San Francisco recently. My brother and sister-in-law (Tanner and Audrey) received two free tickets earlier this year from being bumped from a flight. The tickets were going to expire at the end of the year, so they flew me and Bo out to visit for a week! So great to be a stay-at-home mom and have the flexibility to fly last minute...and so great to have a husband that lets me take off on the spur of the moment across the country! The time we spent out there was precious for several reasons. One, we live far away, and don't get to see each other often. Two, since we live far away, the kids don't get to see each other that often either, so it was great for Shelby (turns 2 this month) and Bo to be together, especially at this age, and for us to see them playing together and loving on each other! Three, Tanner and Audrey are moving to Belgium in April to be missionaries. So any time we spend together is sweet, knowing they will be even further away next year and the years following.
Here are pictures from our visit to the pumpkin patch, which also included live animals!

Shelby and Bo with the cows.

My big boy posing for a pumpkin picture.

He was saying something when he lifted his hands up to this scarecrow. Who knows what he said, or what was going on in his little brain. Probably something ingenious.

My Little Angel

2007-10-19T21:05:00.000-06:00

Bo's First Official Haircut

2007-10-19T20:13:00.000-06:00

I call it the first "official" haircut, because it was actually done in a salon. The first technical haircut was done by Robert in our bathtub and only included a handful of snips to the front and back. Bo did amazingly well in the salon called "Little Lords and Ladies", which is actually a children's clothing boutique with a small haircutting parlor in the back. He got to sit in a monster truck and play with a little stuffed dog. He was really cute. Robert shot some video while we were there, so maybe I can post it later. So here are the before and after shots. He looks like such a big boy!

BEFORE

AFTER #1

AFTER #2

Fun time with Grandparents!

2007-10-06T12:12:00.000-06:00

This past week, Robert's parents came to visit us...well, maybe more accurately, they came to love on Bo! I think Bo really enjoyed having somebody different to play with in the house. They arrived on Thursday around noon (flying of course). Our first destination was lunch at one of Robert's favorite places...Pappa's Burger. Even though I don't eat burgers most of the time, I do enjoy this restaurant...especially b/c they have really good things that aren't burgers! And they have really good milkshakes! So, anyways, back to the visit...

Friday, we went shopping for Bo, played in the castle at the mall and had lunch at California Pizza Kitchen...which I do love.

Saturday, it was girl's day out. Vineta and I went shopping at the Galleria...a huge mall here with about 375 stores. It's more of a tourist shopping experience than everyday shopping. But we went to some of my favorite stores...the LOFT, Gap, Pottery Barn Kids, etc. Then we met Bob, Robert and Bo for dinner at The Cheesecake Factory!! SO GOOD!

Sunday was church, after which Bo got a fever which ended up spiking a couple of days later to 103.2. But then it gradually just went away. No other symptoms or anything! Weird. So since Bo was sick, we stayed inside for the remainder of their visit (with the exception of a few trips to stores). Which normally would become miserable, but since the grandparents were here, it was great.

A couple of fun things for me...I didn't clean up a single dish (Thanks, Vineta!!!) while they were here, I actually got to take a few naps, and me and Robert were able to go to a Collective Soul concert! Robert is actually good friends with the brother of the guys of Collective Soul, so we got four free tickets and backstage passes! We invited Jonathan and Mary, a newlywed couple from our church who are volunteering with our middle schoolers. They are a lot of fun!

Bo and Grammy reading. Bo is obsessed with books right now. I'm serious. The majority of the time he's awake, he wants to read. Maybe, he'll be a genius.

Me, Robert, Jonathan and Mary with Collective Soul...how cool are we?!?!

Sweet grandparent picture...Grammy, Bo and Granddaddy

Bo's First School Art Project

2007-10-06T10:44:00.000-06:00

Our Women's Bible Study at our church started recently. It is for all-aged women, so our small group is pretty diverse. We are doing a study called, The Ways of Wisdom, written by Kathleen Buswell Nielson. She is the wife of the President of Covenant College at Lookout Mountain, GA. I think it is going to be a good study, although very different from the studies I did in Mother's Heart back in Memphis. The study is definitely more-in depth as far as actually "studying" the Scriptures go. There is very little commentary, if any, and no application questions. So it definitely takes more thought to actually apply what the Scriptures are saying. I hadn't realized this until the 3rd week, because I was so used to the practical things being laid out in front of me. And I realized, after hearing all the deep thoughts that my small group shared, that I had just been filling in the blanks. So this week, I will definitely be more diligent and intentional in my bible study time. I think the running joke for the bible study is that we won't so much be wiser when we finish the study, but we will definitely know when and how we are being foolish!!

All that said, Bo brought home his first art project from the nursery! How fun! It is currently hanging on the fridge...I couldn't resist!

Babies and politics

2007-10-06T09:49:00.000-06:00

Wanting to add some video to my blog, I thought these two would be a good first attempt. Both were sent to me by my dad. Here are his thoughts on the political video.

"Here’s a man who will stand for what he believes, no matter who’s watching or who’s listening. I suspect that he is a REAL MAN. The head of Men’s Fraternity in Little Rock is Rick Caldwell, who has taken a 90 day leave of absence from MF to be a senior advisor to Mike Huckabee, his college roommate. I spoke with Rick on the phone the week before we kicked off MF and learned this. I plan on watching Mike very closely in the year ahead."

A change will do you good...

2007-09-13T22:01:00.000-06:00

So, I decided to change the way the blog looked. Go ahead and put in your two cents on what you think about the change. Also, check out our new list of "Links we love". (I'll be adding some more in the near future.) The only link on there now is "The Loop" which is our middle school outreach meeting. Our first meeting was held this past Sunday. I was a little nervous about it for several reasons. I was probably most nervous because I had to lead worship. I got the same feeling that I used to get before my high school b-ball games - butterflies in the stomach, dry mouth, a little nauseous, and having to use the bathroom several times before warm-ups. But it went well. Our girl on staff, Amy, sang with me, so that made it better b/c I wasn't up there by myself. I was also nervous b/c I haven't had that much experience with middle school students, and to be honest, I never really wanted any experience with middle schoolers. But that fear was also shed when they showed up and were actually excited to be there! The other fear involved how many students were going to show up since it was our very first meeting...I wasn't expecting many. But we had a good number. All in all, I think everybody had a great time! I think the Lord surprised me in all of these areas. Maybe I should trust Him a little more next time!

Other important and fun things that happened...of utmost importance, Robert and I celebrated our 5 year anniversary on August 31st! I feel like it's a pretty big milestone. We celebrated by going to a restaurant called Brennan's. It was pretty fancy shmancy...the kind of restaurant that has some words on the menu that you can't read b/c they are in a different language. We don't visit these kinds of restaurants too often, so it was a treat. I have some pictures from that date on my phone, but I'm still trying to figure out how to transfer them to the computer. Dang technology.

For our anniversary, I gave Robert tickets for us to see Alan Jackson and Brooks and Dunn in concert!!! Robert has always wanted to see Alan Jackson, and the concert just happened to be the Friday after our anniversary. So I thought it would be a perfect gift...it was! We were able to go out without Bo, have a fun dinner at Johnny Rockets in this cute little outdoor shopping place, and enjoy a good show with great music. And concerts are just fun anyways!

This is what happens when you let a 16-month old loose with markers to decorate cards for Grandparents Day!! God bless the person who figured out how to make markers "washable"!

Labor Day, decorating, and a little cowboy action

2007-09-05T21:01:00.000-06:00

We celebrated Labor Day by going to the park! (And so did lots of other people!) This is the park I have been going to on a regular basis. It was fun to have Daddy with us this time!

Daddy taking Bo down the slide. I think Robert is concentrating on holding on to Bo!

Bo hasn't been in swings much, but this time he definitely enjoyed it! Plus, there were lots of things going on around us that he was very interested in...so curious about what everybody else is doing!

So, here are my decorating skills put to the test. I really like these pillows and thought they would go well with our leather couch. What do you think? Seriously, leave a comment and let me know if I passed the test.

Bo has started to find more enjoyment in wearing hats. They still don't stay on for very long, but he'll ask for help to get them on his head. He was laughing pretty hard (hence the face that looks like he's kin to the Marshmallow man from Ghostbusters). I was counting to three, saying "DRAW!", pulling my imaginary guns out and making shooting noises. He thought it was hysterical! COWBOY UP!

A box, a tub and a fort

2007-09-05T20:16:00.000-06:00

"Fox in sox and Bo in box!"

So, Bo figured out how to get in the tub by himself. I heard him playing in the bathroom (which is pretty normal for him), then heard a little noise. I found him like this. Looks like somebody got caught.

"Come on water! Come out! I know you're in there!"

"Maybe this will help. I see Mama and Daddy doing something with this thing to make it work." (thankfully, it's too hard to turn for him...for right now!)

After seeing a friend's blog, I stole this fort idea. Thanks, Amber!! Yes, I made forts when I was little but I thought Bo would be too little to enjoy it just yet. Boy, was I wrong! Yeah, for a great idea to make the "after-nap crankiness" go away!

My 100 List

2007-08-29T12:34:00.000-06:00

For all three people who actually read my blog, here is the much awaited 100 list. My educated guess is that this little exercise will be easy for me...based on the fact that I think a lot of myself! I'll let you know at the end of this if my hypothesis was correct.

100. Don't know why, but I wanted to start at 100 and work my way to 1. What does that tell you?

99. I am a Christian...born - again, believer, saved by His grace, washed with His blood, a member of the Body of Christ, child of God, daughter of the King, co-heirs with Christ...however you prefer it - I'm it.

98. Most of the time, I don't act like #99 or believe it.

97. Like I said before, I think a lot of myself.

96. Based on #97, I constantly have to remind myself of the verses, "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others." Philippians 2:3-4

95. I am married to Robert. This Friday (Aug. 31st) will be five years!

94. We met in Guadalajara, Mexico in the summer of 2000. He was working as a missionary. I was on a college missions trip.

93. I knew he was the one that I was going to marry.

92. I admire Robert for his loyalty, his selflessness in serving others, and his integrity...qualities that I often lack.

91. I remember saying before we married that I wanted to be a "helper" to him. After marriage, I confess that I have been irritated at the very things that I said I wanted to help him with. Imagine that.

90. We have a son, Bo, who is 15 months old. He is an awesome kid! I love to hear him say new words or imitate sounds we make. Even at times when I am getting frustrated, he makes me smile and I can feel nothing but love for him!

89. Just recently I have rethought my plan of having children close together. My original plan was to have them 2 years apart (Lord willing). But I would maybe like to do a few things before I get pregnant again, therefore putting my children farther apart in age.

88. Those things include - going on the high school beach trip this next summer and maybe even the high school missions trip.

87. Depending on the length of the high school missions trip, I think I would be pretty anxious about leaving Bo for such a long period of time.

86. I really love going on missions trips! I have been to Guadalajara and Merida, Mexico and to Ukraine.

85. I have also visited Tunisia, where my brother worked for two years; Mexico City, where Robert lived while we were "dating"; Cancun, the honeymoon; the Bahamas (see #83); and London, to tour for a day at the end of the Ukraine trip.

84. I LOVE to travel and see other countries and cultures!

83. My very first plane ride was when I was a sophomore in college. We went to the Bahamas for a basketball tournament.

82. I played basketball at Presbyterian College, a Division 2 school, for 3 years.

81. I love it that my college mascot is the Blue Hose! (if you want to know, email me.)

80. I quit playing basketball my senior year so I could lead a discipleship group.

79. I tore my ACL my freshman year of college...playing basketball.

78. Both of my grandparents on my mom's side died my freshman year of college, nine days apart. It was the second time I experienced the death of someone close to me.

77. The first was when we lost my 8-month old cousin, Michael. I believe that God is good and perfect, but I don't think I will ever understand the death of a child.

76. I became a Christian the summer after my freshman year of college. I was at Summer Beach Project, a spiritual growth opportunity led by a college ministry called Campus Outreach.

75. The Lord used a chart to change my heart. It contrasted the characteristics of a proud heart with those of a humble heart. I checked off every characteristic on the proud heart side.

74. I still struggle with my pride.

73. I think I am right the majority of the time. Most of the time, I am. haha.

72. The toilet paper should go over the roll. Not under. I change it, even in other people's houses!

71. I don't make my bed in the morning. Never have, never will. I will make my children make their beds. And maybe even mine.

70. I really do not understand why we have weather people on the news every day, especially every five minutes of the news program (except for when hurricanes are coming). I can look outside and tell you what the weather is.

69. I never wash my face before going to bed.

68. And if I'm really tired, I don't brush my teeth either.

67. I hate, I mean, HATE, going to the dentist.

66. I usually have a high tolerance for physical pain...except for mouth pain.

65. My brother and I have basically the same recurring nightmare. It involves my teeth breaking into little pieces, so much so that they are making me gag. They don't stop crumbling until I wake up, always feeling my teeth to see if they're still there because the nightmare is so real.

64. We have this dream because my mom used to tell us our teeth were going to fall out if we didn't brush them. Thanks, mom.

63. I'm not one of those girls that talk to their moms on the phone everyday. It doesn't mean I love my mom any less than girls that do.

62. I don't like to talk on the phone, unless it's accomplishing something or it's with a far away friend to catch up.

61. I admire my mom so much for going to college when I was in third grade. She still cooked, cleaned and got us where we needed to be, all while being a full-time student. I really don't know how she did it.

60. Being a mom has made me appreciate my mom so much more.

59. I LOVE being a mom! I love it that I have the opportunity to teach a child all the things I think are important. Although some days, it also scares the crap out of me.

58. I'm also scared of heights, but only when I'm supporting myself...for example, tree climbing, ropes courses. Even though I'm scared, I still do it. Well, not so much tree climbing anymore.

57. I can sleep with the lights on. But I can't sleep if I don't have something covering me, even if it's burning hot.

56. I can sleep through my husband's loud snoring, thunderstorms, even a hurricane. But I wake up if I hear my son cry.

55. I LOVE storms! The lightning and thunder and pouring rain and dark clouds. It's awesome. But I don't like driving in the rain.

54. I cracked my elbow when I was five playing duck-duck-goose. To this day, I get anxious if I have to play it.

53. I broke my right thumb twice. The first time in 7th grade, roller skating. The second time in 9th grade, playing softball.

52. I've had stitches once, but only because of major surgery -ACL. Not because of accidents.

51. When I was in 3rd grade, I was stung about 13 times by a swarm of yellow jackets. Not fun.

50. When I was two, my hands were burned really badly by hot water from a kitchen faucet. Parents - turn your hot water heaters down.

49. I'm kinda like a guy, in the fact that I like to brag about all my injuries and scars.

48. In all my years of playing sports, I have never sprained my ankles. And I'm proud of it.

47. I'm a wuss when it comes to spicy food. I don't like to sweat or have my nose running when I am eating.

46. I like to think that I am tougher - physically, mentally, emotionally - than I actually am.

45. I don't cry in movies, and I usually kinda laugh to myself at people who do. Sorry.

44. I have a good sense of direction if I'm by myself. If someone else is in the car, I usually rely on them.

43. Even though I grew up playing sports, I'm not an avid spectator or a die-hard fan of any particular team. The only thing I HAVE to watch is the NCAA tournament.

42. If I turn on a game in progress, I almost always cheer for the team that is losing. I love cheering for the underdog.

41. I don't understand die-hard fans. In fact, I think it's kinda silly.

40. I LOVE comedy. I love jokes. I love laughing. I enjoy watching NBC's "Last Comic Standing".

39. Sometimes I think I could be a comedian. I think I'm a pretty funny person.

38. I also think I could be an actress. But not in a drama. Or not in anything where I had to cuss or be naked in any way. But that doesn't leave much to choose from nowadays!

37. I was one of those students that didn't study a whole lot, but still made straight A's. I also didn't read most of the books I was supposed to for my English classes, but still managed to write decent papers on them. Sorry.

36. I once mopped the top of the freezer sections in a Food Lion near Myrtle Beach, SC during my summer employment as a stocker. It was disgusting.

35. I grew up in a really small town (pop. approx. 6,000), but I really like living in a big city. More shopping and entertainment choices.

34. I saved two kids from drowning. Once when I was just a little girl, and once when I was a lifeguard. I can still picture their faces and the fear that I saw in their eyes. Parents - teach your kids to swim.

33. I have a love/hate relationship with fashion. Mostly hate. I love it when I get a new outfit and it makes me look and feel really good. I hate it when everything I try on makes me look and feel bad. I also hate it that fashion is used to define people. I often wish that everyone wore the exact same thing, so we couldn't judge and stereotype each other by what we wear.

32. I didn't grow up with cable TV or a satellite dish or TiVo. We don't have any of those now, and we have no plans for ever getting them.

31. I like to be hugged, but I am slow to give them out.

30. I LOVE to take naps.

29. I would like to get a tattoo, but everyone who loves me won't let me.

28. I can get addicted to things pretty easily. That's why I don't gamble, drink or play lots of video games. I once lost $13 on a quarter machine at an amusement park. I was on it for most of the day, forfeiting the time that I could have been riding rides.

27. I have never been really comfortable around older/elderly people. I just don't know what to say or do. I wish I did, so I could have enjoyed my grandparents more, and learned from them.

26. I absolutely HATE superficial conversations. They exhuast me. But being in ministry has forced me to learn how to have them.

25. I hate making major decisions. I always fear choosing the wrong thing, even though I believe that the Lord is in control.

24. I grew up Baptist, and am very thankful for that. I love the fact that I know a lot of Baptist hymns, and I want to pass them on to my children.

23. I fear committing to new things, because I fear that I won't like the new thing but I'll still have to do it for a long period of time. It keeps me from doing a lot of things.

22. I really want to be good at cooking. I get really frustrated when I follow a recipe and it doesn't turn out like it's supposed to.

21. I also get really frustrated when I've taken something out to thaw for dinner, and it's not thawed when I'm ready to start cooking.

20. I was voted "Most Athletic" for my high school Senior Superlatives. I pretty much thought I deserved it.

19. I've recently recognized that instead of having an attitude of thanksgiving and service, I have an attitude of entitlement and deserving. It makes me mad at myself. I want to change, but don't know how.

18. I was voted "Miss Congeniality" in my high school pageant a record two years in a row. The first time, I was shocked. And I have never admitted that the second time, I kinda tried to win it. And yes, I was in a pageant....twice.

17. I think I want to have at least 4 kids. And sometimes I think about having a multi-racial family. But sometimes I think I only want these things because I admire the parents of these kinds of families and think that they have taken on a noble task.

16. I really want to be an outdoorsy person. Camping, rock climbing, hiking. I didn't grow up doing these things, but really want my family to do them. So right now, I'm just a wannabe outdoorsy person. I have two pair of Chacos to prove it.

15. I don't sew, knit, crochet, do needle-point, make scrapbooks, decorate, make stationary, do any kind of crafts, own my own business, grow flowers, make home-made jam or bread, etc. I am TOTALLY okay with that. Although sometimes I wish I could just hem my own pants or sew a button on.

14. I can pretty much learn how to play any musical instrument with practice. So far: piano, snare drum, french horn, trumpet, trombone, guitar, a tad bit of mandolin, and I'm sort of learning how to play the djembe (like an african drum). I didn't say I remember how to play all of these, but at some point I knew and with some refreshment, I'm pretty confident I could play them decently again.

13. M & M's are by far my favorite all time candy. So crunchy on the outside and smooth and creamy on the inside. Only recently have I started to enjoy the dark chocolate ones. And they're healthy too!! I also enjoy the peanut kind.

12. I LOVE watching movies. Mostly romantic comedies, comedy, drama, action, thriller, but definitely not horror.

11. I LOVE music. I listen to different types depending on my mood.

10. I really enjoy game shows and reality TV competitions and trivia. Anything from Jeopardy to The Amazing Race to Cash Cab.

9. I would really LOVE to be on the Amazing Race. I'm seriously trying to figure out how to get on it, but I just can't figure out how to justify leaving my child at home while I'm away.

8. I do not drink coffee. Ever.

7. I rarely drink anything but water. Except for the milk in my cereal.

6. I think people that have to have their "Coke" everyday have an addiction, because they are depending on a substance to make them feel better. I know I'm offending a ton of people right now, but remember I'm always right. : ) Feel free to leave a comment and try to defend yourself.

5. I LOVE ice cream. Something about the summer makes me eat a lot of it. I mean a lot.

4. I really do love my sisters-in-law. They are both genuine and compassionate women, who teach me a lot about being a loving and supportive wife, and a frugal and intentional mom.

3. I'm one of those people who need time to themselves.

2. I would much rather be really hot than really cold. I thank the Lord He moved us to Texas and not any state north of West Virginia!

1. I believe that even though technology has increased the ways we can "connect" with each other, we are becoming more and more disconnected as people on a personal level. Therefore, we need to be very intentional in our relationships to listen and care for one another.

My hypothesis was correct. It was pretty easy to come up with 100 things about myself. I actually could have added more! I told you I think a lot of myself. Hope you enjoyed the list! I now challenge you, Mom and Dad Smyrl, Mom and Dad Sanders, Jon and Amy, Tanner and Audrey, and all family and friends to come up with your own lists. Will you accept the challenge or are you chicken?

Trip to SC (the finale)

2007-08-22T20:11:00.000-06:00

WARNING - There are no baby pictures in this post...it's all about me. Continue at your own risk.

Sooooo, I promised that the next post would be about the activities I did in SC not centered around Bo. Here it is.

So, first off, was my 10 year high school reunion! It's so weird to think that 10 years have already passed since I graduated. Even weirder is where I am in life after 10 years...married with a kid, living in Texas. And weird seeing everyone else grown up...or some not. To set the stage for my personal experience at the reunion, I have to say number one that I'm not one of those people that came out of high school with deep friendships - the kind that last through college and you end up being in each other's weddings. (there is one exception which I will discuss in a minute) Number two, I really hate superficial conversations. Number three, I am rarely around alcohol and dance clubs, because I live in a church bubble. So with these three things combined, my experience at the reunion had the potential of being, shall we say, AWFUL....talking about nothing with people I haven't kept in touch with who are drinking, mostly in excess, and dancing, mostly too close to one another.

BUT, it was actually fun. I did a lot of praying before I went. At one point I actually felt kind of nauseous because of not knowing what to expect. But seeing everyone from high school was actually enjoyable. Finding out what everybody is doing with their lives was quite interesting. Some highlights were: One of the guys in our prom date group is an eye doctor; I got invited by my prom date (who is married and has a kid) to come visit his family in Savannah, GA and go out on the lake in his boat!; of course, seeing cute pictures of everybody's kids; and hanging out with my old basketball teammates and our coach. So, I ended up having a good time.

Next, I was able to hang out with my childhood best friend, April, or as I have always called her, Apes. Before getting married and moving away, I missed her birthday for several years for various reasons - like being out of the country, not like I just forgot. But this year I was able to be with her on her birthday, and I was really glad. We always end up talking for a really long time and it's always good, deep conversation. I wish we could do it more often. I also got to see her family, who are like second parents to me, since me and Apes spent the night together so much growing up. They still make fun of us for playing in the dog house, making them watch our puppet shows, and acting out the lyrics to wildly unfamiliar songs such as "Buttermilk Biscuits." If anyone is familiar with this song, let me know. It would be a miracle.

I also traveled to good ol' Clinton, SC to my alma mater, Presbyterian College...home of the Blue Hose!! (if you don't know, look it up) On my way, I stopped in Chapin to visit with my college friend Zeta and her husband, and see her new house. It was a short but sweet visit. (love ya, girl!) In Clinton, I was able to meet up with my childhood friend and college roommate, Kat, who is married and about 10 days away from having her first baby! It was really fun to see her pregnant! (still praying for that little girl to arrive safe and healthy!) And fun to see the college town again. We ate lunch together and talked all about her pregnancy and being moms. Then we met up with Kelli, the girl who discipled both of us in college. It's always sweet time with her. She's in college ministry so she always asks really good questions. Thanks, KK, for taking time to hang out with us!
(Suzanne, if you read this, don't be mad. I stopped by the house, but y'all weren't home!)

I think that's about it, other than doing some shoppping (got some great deals on Bo's clothes at Kmart!), having the kids pictures taken (plug for Portrait Innovations - they rock!), and taking Mimi (my grandmother) to the eye doctor and the dollar store...and about a hundred trips to Wal-Mart.

Next blog - my 100 list.

Trip to SC (part 2)

2007-08-12T19:29:00.001-06:00

WARNING: There are naked baby pictures in this post.

So, more on the trip to SC. We had a blast!! My sister-in-law, Audrey, and niece, Shelby, made the trek to SC from San Francisco. (Don't worry...they are normal.) Shelby is about 5 months older than Bo, so it was fun to watch them together. We played in the baby pool, blew lots of bubbles, did sidewalk chalk, played in the sprinklers, blew more bubbles, and played in the water hose. Can you tell we love water and bubbles?

Sidenote about bubbles: The non-toxic bubbles are really non-toxic. This is proven by the fact that Bo, being a little inexperienced with the actual "blowing" part, thought that he was blowing when in fact he was actually sucking in, thereby injesting a fair amount of "Magic Bubbles" liquid. He did manage to blow some rather nice bubbles from his mouth versus the bubble wand. End of sidenote.

Mom, otherwise known as G.G. to the kids, taught them how to smell and water the flowers. They LOVED playing with the water pitchers. Bo wasn't quite strong enough to actually tip the pitcher over so the water would come out. He was better at watering the flowers, without the water.

Next post will be "Trip to SC (part 3)" and will include all activities enjoyed without Bo.

Everyone enjoying being outside.

Mimi and Audrey

Shelby loved to dump a lot of water in her face.

Bo in the pool.

Bo - after dumping water in his face.

Dad/Granddaddy

Naked Shelby, Audrey and the "who would have thought this could be so much fun" waterhose.

Bo watering the watering can...go figure.

More fun with the watering cans...who knew?

Trip to SC (part 1)

2007-08-12T18:42:00.000-06:00

For those of you who check the blog often, my apologies for not posting in a while. I do have a very valid excuse...this time! Bo and I went to South Carolina for 2 1/2 weeks!!! We stayed with my parents, whose internet has been out of service for a while thanks to a severe storm. Not checking email or being able to "surf the Web" felt rather strange, but was definitely a good thing in our technology-obsessed society (said the girl with the blog). It allowed me to do other things like read the newspaper...imagine that!

The first event we enjoyed in SC was getting to visit with Robert's parents. We invited them up to visit since it's alot easier to travel to SC from Georgia than to Houston. It would be quite a waste to be so close and not get to see them. Here are some pictures from their visit.

Granddaddy, Bo and Grammy

Grammy blowing great bubbles!

"Learn how to use that broom, grandson. You need to earn your keep around here."

Climbing...

2007-07-17T16:42:00.000-06:00

So, while my parents were here visiting, Bo figured out how to climb up into our den chair. It is lower to the ground than most chairs making it more accessible to little people. I think he has now staked his claim on the chair, going from chewing on it to sitting, standing and drooling in it. Must be a male thing. : ) He has taken a few tumbles out of the chair, despite me teaching him how to get down feet first. But my thought is that he'll eventually learn what not to do. Learn by experience, right?

Sitting in my chair with a nice cold sippy cup of milk. What could be better?

Sometimes standing is better.

Maybe going down this way will be easier.

Or maybe I should just nosedive right off the front. That would feel awesome.

GOOOOOO Georgia Bulldogs!

2007-07-17T16:21:00.000-06:00

Here's how these pictures came about. First, I found the overalls at a consignment sale in Memphis. This is kind of unheard of since almost everyone in Memphis cheers for Tennessee, Auburn, LSU, Alabama, etc. So I grabbed them thinking, "They do look kind of rednecky (and I can say that b/c I'm from SC and know what rednecky really is), but I can't pass them up. And I think Robert will approve (which is always the final question when purchasing anything). Second, you are probably thinking, "Why does the kid have on overalls when it's blazing hot in Houston??" Well, my friends, this week is VBS week for our church (more on that later). When I picked up Bo from his class, the teacher told me to put him in pants or a sweater the next day because the room was quite cold. I thought, "I don't even know if we have any pants that fit him. We are in Houston now...what do we need long pants for?!?!" So, into the closet we went and found the overalls. And I must say they are well worth the pictures. On a side note, if you look closely, the overalls are a bit tight in the front because Bo's stomach is so big...already looking like a typical Georgia fan, beer gut and all. Hope you enjoy!

Time flies...

2007-07-02T16:15:00.000-06:00

When you're having fun!! Lots has gone on since the last post. Bo had his one-year check-up...a little late, but it's done. He weighs 27 lbs. (75th percentile) and is 31 inches tall (90th percentile)!! What a load! I definitely feel sorry for the moms whose kids weigh in the 100th percentile! Anyways, Bo is healthy, to say the least, and has picked up a few words...mama, daddy, cracker and tickle.

My parents came to Houston for a visit. It was alot of fun! We shopped, ate barbeque, watched movies, ate authentic mexican food, shopped some more, ate more barbeque, went to Galveston for the day (to shop and eat seafood and see the beach!), and took lots of pictures. Here are a few.

Bo and G.G. reading the Peek-a-Who? book.

GO GAMECOCKS!

"Howdy, m'am. I'm a cowboy."

Spaghetti Face!

2007-06-18T20:30:00.000-06:00

Classic pictures that all parents should take.

The Petting Zoo

2007-06-18T20:08:00.000-06:00

Since Bo is fond of his Touch and Feel Jungle Animals book, I thought he would surely love going to the Petting Zoo (a special event hosted by the local library). I was expecting something a little bigger than what was actually there. There was a small fenced area containing all the animals, which included several goats (big and small), a couple of donkeys, a deer, a sheep, a chicken, a rabbit, and what I think was a small hairy cow. Into the fenced area, add all the kids and the adults and the ranchman. So quite a crowded space for a one-year old. As you can see, he wasn't much into touching or feeling them! He did however manage to take a quick splash in the water bowl of the animals...GROSS! All in all, I'm glad we went.

birthday presents!!

2007-06-08T12:30:00.000-06:00

So, I'm posting for the second time...a month later! I always want to have some pictures when I post and we don't take pictures every week, hence not posting for a month. Maybe I can try to update without some pictures next week. That said, here are some pictures of Bo with a great birthday card from our friend Brooke in Memphis. Thanks Brooke!! As you can tell he loved the card. I've got a copy of the picture for you waiting to be printed and then mailed.

Bo's Review of Books

2007-06-08T12:25:00.000-06:00

He also received some great books from Uncle Tanner, Aunt Audrey and cousin Shelby. Thanks for such a great birthday present!! Three classics - Goodnight Moon, Guess How Much I Love You, and Pat the Bunny - and two others - Peek a Who? and Touch and Feel Jungle Animals.

Here's Bo's synopsis on these books:

Goodnight Moon - Mama reads it to me, but I don't know if I like it yet or not.

Guess How Much I Love You - Too many words for me to sit still for right now.

Pat the Bunny - I love this book, especially the peek-a-boo with Paul page. I also like to wave bye-bye to them at the end!

Peek a Who? - I like helping mama turn the pages of this book. The small cut-outs on the pages help me to grip the page. This is a short book, based on the concept of peek-a-boo (obviously). For example, peek a MOO! for cow. The others include peek-a-BOO! for a green ghost, peek-a-ZOO! for a group of zoo animals, peek-a-CHOO-CHOO! for a train, and peek-a-YOU! with a mirror at the end.

Touch and Feel Jungle Animals - My favorite part is tickling the hairy orangutan!! The other pages include smooth frog skin, scaly snake skin, a toucan's hard beak, the velvety fur of a tiger.

The tub

2007-06-08T12:22:00.000-06:00

Not only does Bo love the pool, but the tub and shower as well! Because of his love for the water, I have now added olympic swimmer to our list of potential careers for Bo. The others are dentist, because of his fondness for sticking his hand in our mouths; or maybe an ENT doctor since he likes to grab our noses too!; or musician, because of his interest in mommy's guitar and his bee bop band toys.

Here is my little rock star, spiked hair and flashing that smile for the fans!!

Or maybe an exhibitionist? Sure is a great pose!

Bo's First Pair of Walking Shoes

2007-06-08T10:00:00.000-06:00

So since Bo is walking, I figured it would be a good time to invest in some shoes. Mostly for the reason of not wanting him to walk around on dirty, glass-littered concrete, as he did while waiting on a table at a restaurant recently...oops. So, yes, we went to Stride Rite, after striking out at all the discount and athletic shoe stores. Did I mention that his size is EXTRA WIDE?! So here he is striking poses with his new shoes (or should I say sandals) on.

"I told you I'm going to be a rock star."

Work that catwalk!

Get in my belly!

Our Sleeping Prince

2007-05-14T21:43:00.000-06:00

Had to get a picture of this. So sweet. But also not a happy camper when he wakes up and his leg is stuck between the slats!

Bo's First Birthday

2007-05-14T21:11:00.000-06:00

Even though I am excited to be in Houston, I so wished we could have been in Memphis to celebrate Bo's 1st birthday! We missed celebrating with all the people who knew Bo "in-utero"! We did have a special celebration at the church office, and were blessed to have some special friends with us (some of Robert's new colleagues). It was sweet of them to be there to wish Bo a happy birthday and to eat some cake. I made a homemade carrot cake from a recipe out of the family cookbook. I must say, it was delicious!

Bo was a little overwhelmed. He was in a new place with some new people, who were laughing and watching him. The frown was a result.

He loved the cake, and got just a little messy!

to the pool!

2007-05-14T20:29:00.000-06:00

Praise the Lord there is a pool at our new apartment complex! We keep hearing that the summer months are unbearable in Houston, so we will be visiting the pool often! Bo loves the water! He likes to splash and play on the steps, and ride in his baby float (a great gift from his G.G.!). The only drawback is the time it takes to change him into his swimmie diapers and swimsuit, and grease him down with sunscreen.

Packing up

2007-05-14T16:28:00.000-06:00

Just a few pics of our house in Memphis during packing time. A few words to describe that situation: awful, stressful, not fun, cramped...you get it. Thankfully, I had some great friends (thanks MJ and Dana!!) to take Bo off of our hands a couple of days, so we could go full force at getting packed up. Don't know what I would have done without them!