Sami Time

Sami (DJ's sister) was able to come visit us during her Spring Break! Oh man, did we have a great time!

One day we went to Uptown Village in Cedar Hill:


Sami and I both ran in our first 5K while she was here. When we heard that they weren't handing out shirts for the race we decided to make our own. Here is Sami and MJ making MJ's shirt:


Sami won first in her age group. Wowie!! Go Sami!
We also took a trip to the Trader's Village - Largest Flea Market in Texas:
Rudy's BBQ - Of course:
And a trip to Six Flags Over Texas:








On her last day here we went swimming in Irving:

We were so happy to have her here with us! She just like another member of our little family.

Solly-Wolly

Solly-Wolly is what he is called these days. He just turned 6 months, and I cannot believe it. We simply love this little guy around here.

We took him swimming for the first time the other day:

He loves stuffed animals and his blankets. He frequently has a blanket over his head like this to keep him entertained:

Here he is holding a little Potato Head purse like a champ:

MJ did this:

After she did it, she said that he wanted to be "pretty."
He is simply the sweetest little guy. He brings so much joy to our home.

From Stock Show to Snow Show

Last Saturday we went to the Fort Worth Stock Show. MJ loved seeing all the animals.
I am now strangely convinced that we should raise goats.


She also loved this:
(It's a JUMBO corn dog, in case you couldn't tell)

And yes, she, our little porker, ate all of it!!

We were pleasantly surprised to find out that with our admission to the Stock Show we also could get into the Children's Museum right next door!



So that day the weather was awesome, like in the mid-70s. The next week we went from that to this:

Since Christmas, MJ will randomly talk about Frosty the Snowman, so I thought it would be fun to go play with her in the snow and make our own (little) Frosty the Snowman.

Notice the leaves at the base. Those are the shoes, MJ said that Frosty needed shoes so that he could walk. Also note the little snow buddy on the side, apparently Frosty made him.



She loved playing in the snow. I had a hard time convincing her to go inside (I may or may not have bribed her with a treat).

Little Interview

I had a little conversation with MJ this morning. It went a little something like this:

How old are you: One
How old is Mom: One
How old is Dad: Two
How old is SJ: Three
What is your favorite animal: Baa Baa
What is your favorite color: Pink
What is your favorite food: Applesauce
How many brothers/sisters do you have: 2 Brothers
What do you like to do: Paint
What do you like to paint: Red
What do you want to do when you grow up: Dance
Where do you live: Nursery
What is your favorite toy: Purse
What is your favorite song: ABCs
Who do you want to visit us: Santa
Who is Jesus: Oh, baby Jesus?
Yes, who is he: He's a little baby

One of my New Year's Resolutions is to better keep a record/journal of my kids lives. I am just needing to figure out the best way to do so. Any suggestions? MJ is such a sweet little girl. She is a very social little girl who does not like to be alone, ever. (We are working on her playing by herself, but it isn't going so well) She has a great memory and can remember things we did months ago. She is very thoughtful and aware of others. Every time DJ comes home from work she runs to him and says "Hi Daddy, how was work?" At meal time she thanks us for making the food. She is always congratulating others when they accomplish something; every time we go to the store she cheers when we pull in the parking lot and says "Good job Mama, you did it!!" She also is always giving compliments to others. She just now has started saying prayers all on her own, she does a great job making sure she blesses everyone in the family, twice, I cry every time. She LOVES her baby SJ. She is always willing to drop what she is doing to help me with him. She is almost always in a happy, cheerful mood and shows great concern when others aren't happy. I feel so blessed that I am able to raise little MJ and have her sweet spirit in our home every day.

Holiday Fun Overload

We had a wonderful and busy holiday season this year (be prepared for a picture overload!)

My parents were able to drive, yes drive, all the way from Idaho to visit us for the holidays!!
Our fun started with a trip to downtown Grapevine, TX:



We all spent Christmas Day at Megan and Annemarie's house in San Antonio.
Here is MJ finding the Christmas pickle (a tradition carried on from DJ's side of the family):

Opening jammies Christmas Eve:
Christmas Day.
SJ licking every present he got:
Awesome beanie Megan knit for SJ:
Mr. Potato Head family. A HUGE hit:
Christmas dinner:
Doin' some pull-ups with Megan:
The following day we went to La Mision Concepcion in San Antonio. It was built in the 1700's.
We even attended a tiny part of a Christmas Mass there:


MJ LOVES Megan and Annemarie's dogs:
In this pic SJ truly looks like he is mounting Starbuck:
MJ had such a great time playing with Nana and Granddaddy while they were here. Right after they left MJ turned to me and said, "Now who am I going to play with Mama?"
We really appreciated that my parents were able to drive down and spend this special holiday season with us. Thank you also for all the wonderful gifts. We also really appreciate Megan and Annemarie for letting us spend Christmas at their house and for coming to our house for New Years! We had a great time!