Jackson's last day of school

Today was Jackson's last day of school. I was so sad...I know this is so silly, but I cried when I dropped him off this morning. We have had such a wonderful year, with the best teachers that we could have asked for. We prayed so hard for him to have loving, patient, kind, and fun teachers that would love him, comfort him and treat him like their own. Our prayers were answered with Ms. Valerie and Ms. Marcia in the fall. Marcia left after the fall semester and I was devastated. I realize I was hormonal, but I cried like a baby when she told us she was leaving. I was so nervous about who would take her place, and how Jackson would respond to the change. Once again, God answered our prayers and gave us Ms. Patricia. She is just as wonderful as Marcia was. Valerie and Patricia (& Marcia) were the best teachers and I begged them to move up with the Bunny class to the 3 year old class! I am so thankful that Jackson had such a great first year of school and it was largely in part to these women. He also made many friends and loves them all so much. Last fall, when we would say our prayers at night, he would always thank God for his teachers and his "Jesus friends." I am not sure where he got that, but it made us smile every time he said it. Jackson also fell in love this year. He has a little friend named Bristan (Brissy) and they are IN LOVE!! They hug and kiss when they see each other and he tells people that she is his girlfriend. So cute!

On Tuesday Valerie and Patricia gave us a CD of pictures that they took of the class over the year, and they individualized each CD for each child in the class. It was put to the song "Let them be little" and of course, made me cry! It was such a thoughtful and precious gift. Some of my favorites were of him praying at lunch, hugging his friends, dancing and sleeping on his little nap mat. I will try and download them so I can put a slide show on here.

Here are a few pictures of J with his teachers and friends.

Valerie, Jackson, Marcia on the 1st day of school



Patricia, Jackson & Valerie on the last day of school


Brissy & Jackson


Jackson & Tyler

Rolling over & teeth???

Yesterday Ella rolled over for the first time! She went from her side to her tummy. She was very proud of herself! Here are a few picrues. Isn't she adorable?




I also noticed that she is beginning to cut her bottom two front teeth! I am not ready for this...she seems too little. Jackson was 7 months old when he cut his first tooth so I just assumed that she would be a late teether too. My baby is getting teeth :(
It explains her random low grade fever and fussiness over the past few days too. Slow down Ella bean!

3 year/4 month check up

We had Jackson's 3 year and Ella's 4 month visit today with Ms. Amber. Everything went great and here are the stats:

Mr. Jackson
39 lbs. - 96th percentile
40in. - 91st percentile
Hearing and vision tests were great

Miss Ella
16.3 lbs. - 90th percentile
26 in. - 90th percentile
4 shots :( NO FUN!

Thankfully they are both very healthy and as you can see, we do not have small babies! We love seeing Amber, and the hour drive is well worth it! I meant to get a pic of them with Amber but forgot. Here is one of her with J when he was 6 months old. She is wonderful and we are so blessed to have her. It is so comforting to us to know that she loves our kids and takes the best care of them.

Wonkey

When Ella was born, Jackson was given this stuffed dog. He has had it on his shelf in his room ever since, but never really paid much attention to it. One night last week I was putting him to bed and he told me that he wanted to sleep with it. We tucked him in and I asked J what he was going to name the dog. A few seconds passed and he looks up at me and says, "Wonkey." Uhhhmmm....excuse me? Is that donkey with a w?? He says again, "Wonkey, mommy." And so we have it. Wonkey the dog. He has been lugging this dog around ever since. Makes me laugh...very random.

Memorial Day

On Memorial Day we spent the day at Nanny & Grandpa's house. Mom and Dad went with us for a few hours before heading home, and then we spent the day playing and relaxing. The boys played in Cindy's water fountain and had a ball, played with Jackson's new Stomp Rocket (super cool toy - thanks Tanner, Ms. Kara & Shane!!). They were so cute! I love that they are able to really play together now, it is a lot of fun. Scotty cooked his famous steaks, and Cindy made her famous cinnamon rolls...yum! Ella loved on her Grandpa and fell asleep in his arms, and Jackson crashed at the end of the day in Nanny's arms! Here are some pics from our day.

Jackson loaded up his backpack and tried to take as many new toys as he could

Happy Birthday Jackson!

Our little man turned 3 today! We had an awesome day with family and friends and such a fun birthday party! We had a bounce house, a beach ball sprinkler, a slip and slide, sidewalk chalk, bubbles, hula hoops, and most importantly, wonderful company. Jackson had a great day and played so hard! Here is a slideshow for you.

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

I am amazed at how quickly the past 3 years have gone by. I feel like it was yesterday that I was rocking this tiny baby and now my sweet baby has grown into a handsome, sweet, funny, and loving little boy. I am so proud of him and I feel so blessed to be his mommy. God has great things in store for him and I cannot wait to see what it is!

I love you little guy, you are so precious to me!

My Wish by Rascal Flatts

I hope that the days come easy and the moments pass slow,
And each road leads you where you want to go,
And if you're faced with a choice, and you have to choose,
I hope you choose the one that means the most to you.
And if one door opens to another door closed,
I hope you keep on walkin' till you find the window,
If it's cold outside, show the world the warmth of your smile,

But more than anything, more than anything,
My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to,
Your dreams stay big, and your worries stay small,
You never need to carry more than you can hold,
And while you're out there getting where you're getting to,
I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the same things too,
Yeah, this, is my wish.

I hope you never look back, but you never forget,
All the ones who love you, in the place you left,
I hope you always forgive, and you never regret,
And you help somebody every chance you get,
Oh, you find God's grace, in every mistake,
And you always give more than you take.

But more than anything, yeah, and more than anything,
My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to,
Your dreams stay big, and your worries stay small,
You never need to carry more than you can hold,
And while you're out there getting where you're getting to,
I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the same things too,
Yeah, this, is my wish.

4 months

Well, Miss Ella is 4 months old now and more and more fun everyday! She is such a bundle of joy and a bright spot in my day. She is continuing to grow and is becoming quite a little butter ball :) I love it. She goes to see Ms. Amber on Wednesday, but my guess is 16 lbs. Her eyes are still teetering between greenish hazel and brown, no sign of blue in there. She is loving playing in her Exersaucer and she loves to put her hands and toys in her mouth. She still likes her play mat and she loves to kick her legs. Grandpa says that she is running. She is learning to squeal and is still talking to us with her sweet little coos. She laughs a lot and is a very happy little girl. I am trying so hard to fully enjoy her being little, but it is flying by so fast! Much quicker this time...maybe because I know how quickly it goes and how precious of a time this is. I just cannot get enough of her :)She is sleeping really well now, and is beginning to nap better. She is eating 7 ounces every 3 to 4 hours and quickly lets us know when it is time to eat. This child goes from zero to sixty in no time. Ask the employees at Jo Ann's Fabrics....

Here are a few recent pictures of our baby girl. Enjoy!

Don't ever take candy from Heston

Like Father, Like Son

Shadie Tree Design

I just wanted to share with you that Shadie is starting a new business called "Shadie Tree Design." She is making all kinds of things, including burp cloths, bibs, onesies, anything monogrammed, etc. Here are a few things that she has done for me. She does awesome work and I am really excited for her. If you need anything, let me know!



Little Liam in his tie onsie

Fun in the Sun

This was such a fun week for us! We spent so much time outside enjoying the sunshine. On Monday, we went to spend the day with Jazen and her boys, Clayton and Cooper. The boys swam and played outside all day. Jackson loves them and always has such a great time when he gets to see them. Clayton and Jackson have been best buddies since Jackson was born and it is fun to see how they have grown up together. It is hard to believe that J will be 3, and Clayton is 5, and little Coop is almost 2! I hope that we are always close to the Miranda's, they are very special friends to us. Here is a picture of Jackson and Clayton when J was 4 months old and Clayton was 2 1/2.



And here they are now


And little Coop


On Wednesday we went to McKinney to play at Wendy's house with Addie, Lainey, Clayton, Cooper, Micah and Liam. Wendy has a great yard with a little pool, swing set and slides. The kids played for several hours and ate pizza. We had to referee the boys a few times, but everyone came out fine :) Check out my butter bean in her swimsuit! Here are some pics from our fun day. Thanks for having us Wendy!

Jackson's song

Jackson has decided that "Bubbly" by Colbie Caillat is his song. He wants us to play it over, and over, and over again in the car. He started out just humming the tune, and now he knows the words and sings along. He tells me that this is "my song, Mommy" and at the beginning when it says, "Will you count me in?" he asks, "Who said that Mommy?" (every time!)
He is a ball of love and so stinkin' cute :)

Will you count me in?

I've been awake for a while now
you've got me feelin like a child now
cause every time I see your bubbly face
I get the tinglies in a silly place

It starts in my toes
and I crinkle my nose
where ever it goes I always know
that you make me smile
please stay for a while now
just take your time
where ever you go

The rain is fallin on my window pane
but we are hidin in a safer place
under covers stayin dry *(safe) and warm
you give me feelins that I adore

It starts in my toes
make me crinkle my nose
where ever it goes
i always know
that you make me smile
please stay for a while now
just take your time
where ever you go

What am I gonna say
when you make me feel this way
I just........mmmmmm

It starts in my toes
make me crinkle my nose
where ever it goes
i always know
that you make me smile
please stay for a while now
just take your time
where ever you go

I've been asleep for a while now
You tucked me in just like a child now
Cause every time you hold me in your arms
I'm comfortable enough to feel your warmth

It starts in my soul
And I lose all control
When you kiss my nose
The feelin shows
Cause you make me smile
Baby just take your time now
Holdin me tight

Where ever, where ever, where ever you go
Where ever, where ever, where ever you go
Where ever you go, I'll always know
Cause you make me smile here, just for a while

My boys fishing

My friend Jaime sent this to me from the birthday party a few weeks ago. I absolutely love it!

Happy Mother's Day!

A baby asked God, 'They tell me you are sending me to earth tomorrow, but how am I going to live there being so small and helpless?' God said, 'Your angel will be waiting for you and will take care of you.'

The child further inquired, 'But tell me, here in heaven I don't have to do anything but sing and smile to be happy.' God said, 'Your angel will sing for you and will also smile for you. And you will feel your angel's love and be very happy.'

Again the child asked, 'And how am I going to be able to understand when people talk to me if I don't know the language?' God said, 'Your angel will tell you the most beautiful and sweet words you will ever hear, and with much patience and care, your angel will teach you how to speak.'

'And what am I going to do when I want to talk to you?' God said, 'Your angel will place your hands together and will teach you how to pray.'

'Who will protect me?' God said, 'Your angel will defend you even if it means risking its life.'

'But I will always be sad because I will not see you anymore.' God said, 'Your angel will always talk to you about Me and will teach you the way to come back to Me, even though I will always be next to you.'

At that moment there was much peace in Heaven, but voices from Earth could be heard and the child hurriedly asked, 'God, if I am to leave now, please tell me my angel's name.'

God said, 'You will simply call her, 'Mom.'

I am sure you have read this before, but I wanted to post it for Mother's Day. It is so sweet, and makes me teary every time I read it. I have been really thinking about Mother's Day over the past few days and for some reason I feel so much more affected by it this year. It's not that the past 2 years were less special, they were very special, but I told J that I think it is because I feel so complete as a family. All week, radio stations, talk shows, emails, have been talking about moms and the impact that they have on their children. It caused me to really think about my mom, and me as a mom. As for my mom, wow. What a lady. We have been through so much together and I am so very grateful and blessed by her. She is kind, loving, sincere, funny, and gives so much to all around her. Even through the rough times, I love her and thank God for her daily. She has taught me many things that have made me who I am today and I am thankful for that. I am also so blessed to have Cindy for a mother-in-law. She is so wonderful to me and treats me as her own.

My mom used to always tell me that I would never know how much she loves me until I had a child of my own, and she was right. I did not fully understand that love until I had Jackson. Now, having Ella as well, my heart is full of so much love. I cried yesterday because I was thinking of God's love and how unconditional, unending and deep it is. He loves me so much that He trusts me with these children. That really got to me. That is a big responsibility and I pray that I can always do my best and that I will raise them to know God's perfect love. Raising children is the most fulfilling, wonderful, fun job, but not always the easiest job. There are challenging times but I would not trade it for anything in this world. My babies are everything to me. Jackson is my smart, caring, silly, witty, handsome little love bug, and Ella is my sweet, beautiful, smiley little angel.

I also wanted to share something that my dear friend Jazen sent me today. I absolutely love this.

Being a mom can be the most fulfilling and rewarding experience we as women will ever have. However, we all know that there are times when it is challenging, disappointing and there are times when it feels like the loneliest and most thankless job in the world. As I was trying to decide what I wanted to say to each of you this Mother's Day, I wondered what Jesus would say to me and to you if we were to talk to him about being a mom. So humor me here, but this is what I imagined Him saying:

"My beloved, I have loved you since the day you were formed in your own mother's womb. (Psalm 139:13-16) I have watched you grow and mature and become a mother yourself. Remember that time you looked at your baby and your heart filled with so much love that you thought it might burst? I was there, and I feel that way about you. (John 15: 9-17 )Remember that moment when your child did something that you knew was so amazing, but you dared not share with anyone because you knew that no one could really understand how great this small accomplishment really was? I was there, and I rejoiced with you. I also rejoice over your accomplishments great and small. (Luke 15:8-10) Remember the time your heart was broken because your child was disappointed and hurt and you couldn't give them what they needed? My heart broke too, but you both remain in the palm of My hand.
(Rom. 8:28) Remember when you worried that you weren't doing enough, that you aren't a good enough mother, and that you have "messed up" ? Well, I chose you to be the mother of your child for a reason. (Psalm 127:3) Please come to Me and listen to Me and I will show you the way. (John 10:3-10) Remember the time you cried alone in your room about the problem that seemed too much to bear? I was there to wipe your tears and comfort you. All you have to do is ask. (Matt. 7:7) I know this journey can be hard, confusing and wonderful all at the same time. I know that you think no one understands. I do, and I am molding you to be the person I created you to be. (Phil 1:6) Trust Me, walk with Me, and I will hold your hand and lead you to the blessings I have in store for you. Beloved, I have much in store for you if you will just follow ME, and lead your children to Me as well."

Happy Mother's Day to all of the mommies reading this. As Jazen said to me, "Know your worth."

Catch up

I am feeling so behind! This post may be a little bit long, but I wanted to catch up on last week. Last Wednesday we went to spend the day in McKinney and met Aimee, Lainey, Meredith, Reid, Carlien, Micah and Liam at the park for a picnic and some playtime for the kids. We happened to choose the most windy day of the week! We were sitting on our blanket enjoying the day and noticed that they had the spray park on and Carlien and I warned the boys to stay away because we did not have swim suits. Minutes later we see them heading for it and plotting their escape for the water. Needless to say, they went for it and although I was a bit annoyed at the fact that we did not have a change of clothes, it was hilarious. As a kid I would have wanted to do the same thing. We had a wonderful day and it was great seeing Meredith and Reid, who we do not get to see too often anymore. Jackson always loves to see his friends and I am so thankful that he has so many sweet little buddies.

Caught in the act


Mischievous boys

Reid & Lainey

Ella and her boyfriend, Liam

Pretty Lainey


The weekend was busy with having the Parkinson's over for dinner on Friday (so fun!) and with a birthday party for Zane on Saturday. His party was at his grandparents (Chip and Zana) and was a fishing/horseback riding party. It was a great time and Jackson loved going fishing with Daddy. They made smores and ate hot dogs and had a big time. Jackson loves Zane and wanted to follow him around the whole time. It was cute. I forgot my camera so we do not have any pictures :(

Jason was in Vegas for a few day for a conference so we met Aimee and Lainey at the mall on Sunday to play and shop a little bit. Monday I had to take the kids to the doctor. Ella has been pretty congested and I was beginning to worry a little bit so I took her in. She was fine, just a cold, but I ended up having to take Jackson down to get x-rays of his sinuses. He has been snotty for months now and nothing has been working to clear him up. He has been on 2 different rounds of antibiotics that have not worked and so Amber wanted to see what is going on. She was afraid that his adenoids were enlarged, but were not. He has extreme infection in his sinuses and is now on a 3 week antibiotic to hopefully knock this out. I feel so bad for him, that has got to be miserable! Bless his heart, he probably does not remember what it is like to feel normal because this has been going on for so long now. Anyway, that night YaYa and Heston came for a slumber party. The boys played and we bathed them all and got them down and we cooked dinner and talked for hours. We laughed so much and had the best evening. We even saw a fox! No, I am not crazy, and it was not the wine. I told you about the time that Jason saw the fox when we were remodeling the house. Well, he (or a different one) came back. We were sitting in the living room and I saw something move outside (the light was on and shines back into the trees). It was the fox! I was so excited, I ran outside to see him (as if he was going to hang around) but he ran off. He was so pretty, I had never seen one in person before. I hope I get to see him again. Jason called as I was putting Jackson down to tell him goodnight. Jackson asked him to say his prayers with him over the phone! I peeked at him and he sat so still with his eyes closed the whole time. It was such a sweet moment and made me proud :)

J is home and we are so happy, we missed him so much! He went to the M&M store (Jackson's absolute favorite thing) and brought him this airplane that spits M&M's out when you turn the propeller. Jackson played with it all night and I think he ate 2 bags of M&M's...imagine what it was like trying to get him to go to sleep!