She's Not Where I Left Her

Seems these days Allie is never where I last left her! She's not crawling yet, but I don't think it will be long. She likes to roll around or scoot herself backwards. She also does some crazy push up where she ends up on her hands and toes with her bottom sticking up in the air. (If I did 100 of these per day I might be in better shape!) And most recently she's learned to pull her knee up under her from the previously mentioned position. I've got to start gathering tiny cars, super heroes, and legos! We're about to have a crawler! Check out her moves:

I start on my tummy...

Then I raise myself up...

Bet you didn't think I could get this high!

I pull my knees up under me...

Then flop over and roll to my desired location!

That's how it's done... for now!

The boys had pajama day at school this week. I remember having pajama day when I worked at a summer day camp. I never liked pajama day. Why would I want to go in public wearing my pajamas looking like I just rolled out of bed? I was always very uncomfortable with pajama days. But the boys liked it, so that's what matters! It was really cold that day, so Spence wanted to wear his fuzzy jammies, and Coleman had to wear a shirt under his. Check out the boots!


And I've been meaning to post a picture of my awesome new bag! I had never found a diaper bag I liked to carry for Allie, so I decided to start looking for a big purse-like bag. While in Montana I found one I really liked at Dillards. On New Year's Day it was on major clearance and Rita bought it for me! Then the old bag tag just didn't work with it, so I found a lady on Etsy to customize one for Allie. Take a look!

Love my cool bag!

And isn't her tag adorable?

Here is a link to her Etsy shop. She custom made the tag for me for $5.00! Gotta love good deals.

I'll probably have an update on life coming soon. I just need to get my thoughts together. And we all know that can take awhile!

Words You Won't See In Websters

Last-er-night (noun) the night preceding this day

Example: Coleman said, "I want to play that same game we played lasternight."

Re-mem-ber-y Game (noun) a game in which players turn over two cards at a time, hoping to find a match

Example: Coleman usually gets more matches than I do when we play the Toy Story Remembery Game that Uncle Brent got him for Christmas.

I Know...

... I'm precious.

But I just wanted to tell you to look at the post below to hear all about my brother's birthday party!

Mission Complete!

Yesterday we experienced an avalanche, a meteor shower, and a flood at our house! Luckily, there were 12 Rescue Heroes here to help us out!


It was Coleman's birthday party! He wanted a Rescue Hero party, so the kids went through a training course, got their "official" Rescue Hero t-shirt and identity, then went on several missions. Brian made an awesome DVD to tell the kids what their missions would be. He included footage of the three disasters they would deal with. It was WILD! But it was a lot of fun too. I was so busy running the training course and getting everybody where they needed to be that I didn't get as many pictures as I wanted.

The birthday cake

Blowing out the candles

Coleman's team getting their mission instructions

Rocky Canyon (Matt) and Billy Blazes (Coleman) holding meteors

Nana ran the hospital where injured victims from the meteor shower were brought

This was the avalanche where they had to dig out buried animals...

...then load them into the rescue basket and pull them up to the helicopter.

Here they are using "sand bags" to build a wall and stop the raging floodwaters

Our Rescue Heroes!

Reunited!

Oh the places he's been! The things he's seen! It's not only true that penguins cannot fly, but they also do not like to go on airplanes. They freak out and hide under the seat, unintentionally getting left behind. But the good people of Salt Lake City found our lost penguin and shipped him back home. What a migration! What a happy homecoming!

7 Months Old

This little girl is sweet, smiley, and oh so lovable! She's also 7 months old today!

Mixed Up Quote of the Day

Coleman told Daddy, "Nothing scares me! Well, nothing except haunted houses. Those really freak me up!"

Birthday Presents

Coleman opened his birthday present from us last night. It was a Star Wars Clone Trooper Blaster Game. Pretty much a gun that connects to your TV and has you shoot droids and other Star Wars bad guys. He loved it!

Excited about his new Star Wars game

Daddy, Coleman, and Spence played last night. Then today as we were coming back from school, Coleman said, "I want to play my Star Wars game again today. Now that I'm 5 I think I'll be better." Daddy printed out a birthday card that showed Coleman what his other present is: going to see a real race! That will be some time next month.

Inside his card, Daddy printed pictures of the race the boys will go to next month (they will have hot dogs and Sprite while there!)

5 Years Old

January 12, 2005

January 12, 2010

Five years ago today I started the journey on the greatest adventure of my life - motherhood! I of course didn't know what I was getting into! Does any new Mom? But I love this life and these kids and wouldn't trade it for anything.

Happy birthday to my oldest! Coleman, I honestly cannot believe you are 5 years old today. Where have the years gone? You are not my baby anymore, but my amazing little boy. You are smart and funny and thoughtful and loving and so much more. You like sports, computer games, cartoons, video games, books, board games, parks, superheroes, Star Wars, your brother and sister and the rest of your family, and your stuffed animals. When we go to McDonald's, which is almost every Sunday, you say, "I want the usual!" And just in case we forgot you remind us that the usual is chicken nuggets, fries, chocolate milk, a straw, and a new toy. You also like turkey sandwiches, Sprite, chocolate chip waffles, Life cereal, string cheese, granola bars, and yogurt. One of the last things you did that truly amazed me was make up a song about Jesus and sing it in front of all our family and Grandpa and Grandma's friends in Montana. I enjoyed hearing you put into a song all the things you know about Jesus. I pray that you'll learn more and more and He will be your best friend! I could go on and on about how special I know you are, and about all of your interests, but I think this gives just a little glimpse into who you are at 5 years old. You are my favorite 5 year old in the world. I love you!

New Year, New Me?

Allie's New Year's Resolution: Get sweeter every day!

I've been going back and forth trying to decide whether to make New Year's Resolutions and share them or not. I HATE New Year's resolutions! Why? Because I never keep them! I would love to lose weight, eat healthier, get my house organized, be more environmentally friendly, and about 20 other wishful things. But if I write that list out and share it with the world, isn't that like jinxing myself? If no one knows I made them, then no one will know I failed, right?

All that said, it just seems natural that every new year I should set some goals for myself. My wonderful mother-in-law gave me a subscription to Woman's Day magazine, and I've found some great tips for making changes this year. One article suggested taking on one challenge each month. That sounds interesting. And difficult. I tend to have about 7 things going at once, and none of them getting finished! Maybe I could succeed if I focused on one change per month. Here's a site I found in WD that has given me some downloadable charts to use to plan out menus and keep a food journal: TheProjectGirl.com. (Look under Top 10 Posts on the right-hand side.)

So do I do it? Do I write out my resolutions here for all to see? I think I will! Except I'm not going to call them New Year's resolutions. That just reeks of doom. A few days ago in my quiet time I started a list called "What do I desire in this new year?" Then I thought I should add a second column to that list titled "How can I achieve this?" So here it is - my desires for 2010, with ways to make those desires happen in parenthesis:

1. To have a closer relationship with Jesus (daily quiet time, prayer, reading Bible, scripture memory)
2. To be the best wife I can be (Sometimes I focus all my energy on being a good Mommy and wife gets overlooked. Spend quality time with Brian, be an encourager to him, make my love for him characterized by the qualities of 1 Cor. 13:4-8 that I learned in my last Bible study -if anyone is interested I can write more about this later)
3. Develop friendships (pray about it, be active in inviting others to do things)
4. Get healthier (Doesn't this sound much better than lose weight? Make better food choices, exercise, keep a food journal)
5. Organize my house (Make a plan, get everyone on board with the plan, list where things go, stick with it daily)

There it is! Out there for the world to see. Luckily I know you guys would love to support me in this venture, not laugh at me if I fail. I don't expect to lose 15 pounds, become a social butterfly, and have a junk-free house by March. I think I have pretty realistic expectations. I just plan to take it one day at a time. Feel free to leave me a comment asking how I'm doing. I would love it! And I would love to hear if you have any desires for yourself in 2010. Share them in the comment section if you dare!

Greetings From Montana!

Snow! Cold! Brrrr!!! We love it!

Hope you all had a Merry Christmas! We've been in Montana since Christmas Day and will be flying back to Texas tomorrow. It has been a wonderful visit with Grandpa and Grandma. They made sure to have plenty of snow for us. To enjoy some pictures from our trip see the 4 posts below this one!

Christmas Eve and Christmas Day

Santa came to our house a day early this year. He's a pretty nice guy, accommodating Christmas Day travelers like that. He brought Coleman a Bat Cave and Bat Copter and Spence a remote control choo choo train.



Nana and Poppa were at our house to celebrate with us. We went to Christmas Eve services at our old church. It was nice to see everyone, and of course the service was beautiful. Then we woke up Christmas morning at 4:00 to leave for the airport.

Allie's first airplane trip

The boys watching a movie on the plane

The flight went pretty well. We just lost one stuffed penguin and left one puddle of urine on seat 6C. Once we arrived at Grandma and Grandpa's, it was present time!

One of Allie's favorite gifts was a rag doll

Coleman and Spence each got Army blankets. They were super excited!

Coleman said this was the best Christmas ever. I have to agree with him. It's such a blessing to be able to spend time with both our families. And this year was special because Allie made our family complete! Merry Christmas!

Sledding!

What should every kid from Texas get to do at Christmastime? Go sledding! Luckily Grandma had lots of winter gear for us: heavy coats, mittens, snow pants, and snow boots. And Grandpa knew the perfect hill to slide down. Coleman, ever the thrill seeker, loved it! Spence wasn't too sure, but he went down a few times.

Dressed for the occasion

Ready to slide!

Daddy and the boys

Daddy and Spence

Coleman going by himself

What an adventure!

More Good Times In Montana

Not only did Coleman enjoy sledding, but he's become a real game lover. Aunt Jeani sent Coleman a game called The Ladybug Game. He's had so much fun with it! He found a checker board and asked Grandma to teach him how to play checkers. Then he saw the Chess pieces and asked what that game was called. He wanted Daddy to teach him how to play Chess. So Daddy did! And Coleman knows all the moves and is starting to learn strategy. He tried to get Grandma and Mommy to learn Chess, but our brains couldn't handle it! That will have to be a Daddy game! He's also been playing Sorry and enjoying it. But I can't get over him understanding and enjoying Chess!

An intense game of Checkers

Allie is also enjoying her visit. Here are a few pictures of what she's up to.

Bathing in the kitchen sink

"Walking" around in her bear suit from Uncle Brent and Aunt Dre

Snow baby!

Her 5 minutes in the snow

Great Northern Carousel

On every trip to Grandma and Grandpa's, we visit the Great Northern Carousel. The boys liked it more than ever this year. Coleman always wants to ride the dinosaur that looks like his dinosaur Puso. And Spence chose the frog for his first ride. Even Allie got in on the action!



Thanks Grandpa and Grandma for always having such fun activities for us to enjoy on our trips to Montana!

Merry Christmas From The Piks

Merry Christmas from our family to yours! I hope you are enjoying this wonderful season. This has been an amazing year with ups and downs and blessings galore! There have been many changes for our family during 2009. If you follow this blog, you know most of what has happened to us this past year. From silly little daily incidents, to the challenges of raising three young children, to major life events. I record it all here! If you are new to the blog, I've linked back to some of this year's posts throughout the letter.

This past week I've been thinking about what to include in this Christmas letter. I was rereading some posts from last year and saw that by mid-February I was already sure that this would be a Christmas letter kind of year! We had started out the new year with a trip to the ER. On January 1, 2009 I dislocated Spence's elbow and Brian had to take him to an emergency clinic. I initially thought I had broken his wrist after grabbing his hands and swinging him back and forth. The doctor diagnosed him with Nursemaid's Elbow and was able to pop it back into place. A few weeks later, Coleman was diagnosed with an inguinal hernia and surgery to repair it was scheduled. But a couple of weeks before his scheduled surgery, he woke up crying and in pain. After a call to the doctor, we decided his hernia had become incarcerated and we had to rush him to Texas Children's Hospital for emergency surgery. The procedure went smoothly, although it was a little traumatic for Mommy, who was about 21 weeks pregnant. Those two events would have been enough excitement to last the whole year!

The first half of 2009 I spent being pregnant. I tried to enjoy every minute of it and laugh about crazy comments I heard from people. We decided not to find out if we were having a boy or a girl. I thought that was really fun. Coleman wanted a sister, and Spence was hoping for a brother. Brian thought we would have a boy, and I didn't have a feeling either way. We chose the names Cooper Bradley for a boy and Allie Vaughan for a girl. We were both surprised to hear my doctor say, "It's an Allie!" Allie arrived on June 17th, 2009 at 7:27 a.m., 6 days before her due date. It has been so amazing watching the boys love on her over the last 6 months. One of the first things Spence did when we brought her home was to bring her his favorite blanket and cover her up with it. And Coleman hasn't stopped kissing her yet. They definitely love their little sister!

The summer was a big adjustment for us, going from 2 kids to 3. We had lots of visits from family to help out though. And before long our family of 5 became our new normal. I can't even remember life before Allie! I truly feel like the most blessed Mommy of all.

In September, we rented a beach house close to Galveston to celebrate Rita's birthday. It was a wonderful family reunion! The 5 of us, Rita and Gale, my Mom and Dad, Brent and Andrea, Rita's brother-in-law Lyle, and Rita's niece Rhonda and her husband Mark all had a wonderful weekend of relaxing, hanging out at the beach, and walking around Galveston. I couldn't have asked for a more wonderful family. We only wish more family members could have joined us! Hopefully we'll get to do this again.

We signed Coleman up for soccer this past fall. It took him several games to warm up to this new situation and decide it was fun to play. But once he started, he didn't want it to end! It was great to watch him play and have a good time. He scored two goals, and one of them was even for his team!

At the end of October, Brian's company ran out of money. He continued to work for them for a few weeks, but when they were unable to pay him, he decided to leave. Since then, Brian has been working hard on some new ventures. He started up a company to sell the oral cancer device that his former company makes. He has several salesmen under him and is doing a great job! Also, he and a former colleague are starting up their own medical device company. He has a job offer from another former boss, but we have to wait to see if the grant money comes through. This has been one of those times where we have had to cling to our faith in Christ and know that He has us in His hands. He is taking care of us and has great plans for us.

The kids are a constant source of entertainment and keep us on our toes! Coleman will turn 5 on January 12th. He is smart, funny, and a great big brother. Spence turned 3 in November. We are in the middle of potty training, which has good days and bad days. I have to say it is one of my least favorite Mommy duties. He is our messiest child by far - always covered in either chocolate, yogurt, or snot. And Allie is now 6 months old. She is such a happy, laid back baby. I guess the third one just has to go with the flow! They are our biggest blessings!

So as we are in the midst of this most glorious holiday season, we celebrate the gift of Jesus Christ our Savior. And as we see the end of another year, we thank God for all our blessings. We praise Him for the highs and lows. We place our faith in Him to carry us into this new year and meet all our needs. What a wonderful feeling to know that He has amazing plans for us in this next year. He has amazing plans for you and your family as well, and we pray His blessings in your lives! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Please leave a comment even if just to say, "Merry Christmas!" I love to see who is reading about our family!

Catching Up

Wednesday we spent the day with Candice, Paul David, and Judson. We had so much fun! The boys all entertain each other while Candice and I enjoy visiting. It's great! We'll have to enjoy ourselves before the babies become mobile! I got a couple of pictures, and you can go to Candice's blog to see more. She's a much better photographer than I am!

Our sweet little June babies (I think we've decided on an arranged marriage. Maybe some time in 2032?)

All the kiddos

Thursday night was Coleman's school Christmas program. He was Joseph! And what a precious little Joseph he was! Of course there were no speaking parts, but he sat at the manger with Mary and sang and did the motions. The program was really cute. I'm sure Brian will post some video later. But for now, here are a few pictures.

Coleman as Joseph, surrounded by wisemen and shepherds (we didn't have a view of Mary from where we sat)

He sings! He moves!

Later in the program they took off the costumes and sang for us again

And today is our 11th anniversary. Happy anniversary Brian! I love you! We combined our anniversary trip this year with the beach house getaway we had back in September. Today we were just kind of lazy and lounged around. Brian's present to me was cleaning out the garage so I can park my truck in there. That's what I asked for!

Tomorrow I'll post our Christmas letter. Hopefully I can get my thoughts together a little better than I've been able to today.

CCP From DD

Oh yeah, it's the Chocolate Chip Pizza from Double Dave's!

Spence, aka Messy Marvin

It is so delectable, yet someone manages to get more chocolate on himself than in his mouth! That's our Marv! Just a coincidence that he had that shirt on. And that I happened to have my camera in my bag.

Happy Birthday Brian!

Happy birthday to the best husband I've ever had! OK, so that doesn't really mean much. How about this:

Happy birthday Brian! You are an amazing husband and Daddy. I know things are a little rough right now, but you are handling it all so well. I am thankful that you know our future is in God's hands. However, you also know that you can't just sit back and something will fall in our laps. You are using the intelligence God gave you to make things happen! I am blessed to have had you stalk me 12 years ago, marry me 11 years ago, and have 3 wonderful children with me over the past 5 years. I love you and hope you have a wonderful birthday!

A Tradition Continued

Last year we "elfed ourselves" and shared it with everyone. This year we have a new elf in our family! Check out our two dance videos below!

Our Family of Elves

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We've Been Elfed Again!

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