December Fun

We've been staying very busy this month! And as usual, I'm behind with my blogging! All of these pics are from last weekend...Enjoy :)

We went to ICE at The Gaylord Texan with Grandma Sabrina, Gigi, Uncle Shaun, and Aunt Stephanie. Landon had a great time! Brrrr...it was freezing in there!

Landon's cousin Olivia turned 1-year-old last weekend! Her party was held at The Mansfield Activities Center and the theme was The Very Hungry Catepillar. Aunt Jess and Uncle Beau went all out and the party was a huge success. The kiddos had a blast!

Our friends, Derek and Andrea had a Tacky Christmas Sweater Party last weekend, too. The outfits were wonderfully hideous :) Chris won 1st place for his beautiful turtleneck & vest.

Fun-filled Thanksgiving weekend!

Wow! It is Sunday night and I am wiped out!! This has been a very fun, but super busy Thanksgiving weekend. I started out the week baking and cooking and cooking and baking. I'm used to cooking because I cook dinner for my family all the time, but this baking thing...not so much. I have never seen so much flour, sugar, eggs, spices, etc. all over my kitchen. What a mess! And it didn't help that Landon was right in the middle of it every time I started on something new. At one point, he poured an entire cup of powdered sugar all over himself and said "It's snowing!" Nice! Oh well...he had a blast helping me with all of the pies, cakes, and goodies, so it was all worth it :)

On Thanksgiving day, we headed over to Chris' dad's house for our first Thanksgiving. It was very nice and relaxing. We stuffed ourselves full of all the traditional Thanksgiving food and then plopped down on the couch to watch the game. Here's a pic of the kiddos right before we went over there. I wish I could get one with all 3 smiling, but at this point, I'm lucky if I can get one with all 3 just looking in the right direction :)

The next day, we enjoyed Thanksgiving with my dad's side of the family at my grandmother's house. Nommie (my grandma) just recently found out that her cancer has returned from years ago, so she isn't quite feeling herself these days. The chemo is really taking a toll on her body, so I took on quite a bit of the Thanksgiving dinner this year. My aunt Valerie and I did lots of cooking and baking (as you read earlier) so Nommie could just sit, relax, and enjoy her grandbabies. Even though she wasn't supposed to do anything...she still insisted on doing some of the cooking. That's a grandma for ya! All of the food and desserts were wonderful and we had a great time visiting with everyone. Here are the girls sitting on Nommie's quilt. Landon ran away from me every time he saw me getting out my camera, so unfortunately I didn't get any of him. Little stinker! And oh yea...please say a little prayer for Nommie. She is very optimistic about this and has beat it before, but your prayers are still greatly appreciated.

Saturday afternoon we took Landon to the Texas Tech vs. Baylor game at the new Cowboy Stadium. Johnna and Heather took care of the girls for us while we went. Thanks ladies! I hope the divas didn't give you tooooo much trouble! We went with the in-laws, Chris' brother and wife, and his other brother who goes to Tech. We had great seats, the stadium was amazing, and Landon had a blast. College football games are so fun! I love watching the band, cheerleaders, and dancers the most :)

Landon and Grandpa...and half of Grandma

My attempt at a family pic. Chris would not be serious...therefore, neither would Landon :)

Sunday morning, Stevi had a brunch for all of us girls and our kiddos. Emily is about to have her baby boy, Nicolas...so she was wanting Sophia to get some play time in before they are homebound for a while. Plus, Kendra was in town for Thanksgiving, and this was a perfect chance for her to see all of our sweeties. She lives in San Antonio so she misses out on most of the kid's events like birthday parties and stuff. We drank mimosas and chit-chatted while the kids played and played and played. All three of mine passed out the minute we got home. Here is our attempt at a baby group shot. It was absolutely hilarious trying to keep them all on the couch for enough time to take some pictures. There are 14 kids here, and that's not even all of them! Some of the mommies couldn't come. Wow! We are some baby-having chicks!

When the kiddos got up from their nap, we decorated for Christmas. The girlies just sat and watched while Landon not-so-carefully placed ornaments on the tree. He was SOOO excited about decorating the tree. But, he doesn't get why we have to wait to open presents. He says, "But it's Christmas time?" And then I say, "But it's not Christmas DAY yet." And then he says, "Then why do we have Christmas decorations?" I just don't think that he gets that it's a month long thing leading up to Christmas. He just thinks since the tree is up, it must be Christmas now. I'm sure he'll be asking me everyday if it's time to open presents :)

The sisters watching brother decorate.

Yes, he is decorating for Christmas in a Halloween shirt....the hubby's doing.

There's that cheesy grin...

Sweet Baby Girls!

The sisters are getting so big and sooooo fun these days!! Don't yall think they are looking a little more different now? They have really developed cute personalities. Chris, Landon, and I are having so much fun with them lately. They are sitting up on their own now, so they are able to entertain themselves much easier. I can just plop them down on their bottoms, give them a few toys, and they're happy for a good 30 minutes. They are alike in so many ways, yet so different as well. Here are a few characteristics of each twin:

Allie (left):

*very much my "go with the flow" baby .

*doesn't like me out of her sight for too long. If she see's me walk across the room, she'll shout out trying to get my attention.

*getting very mobile...she rolls all around the living room. I bet she'll crawl before Emily.

*has one itty bitty bottom tooth that just broke through.

*loves most anyone...not shy at all.

*HATES loud noises...I have to vacuum when she is sleeping or in another room with daddy.

*loves all baby food...I haven't found one she doesn't like yet.

*she is the smaller of the two girls.

*laughs hysterically at Landon and Haley (the dog)

Emily (right):

*Although she is perfectly content in familiar environments with familiar people, I think she might be my "slow to warm up to new things/people" baby. She seems nervous when random people ooh and ahh at her at the mall, while Allie smiles at these people.

*not quite as mobile as Allie yet, but has better balance when sitting independently.

*she would sit in the bath all day if I'd let her...maybe she'll be my little swimmer :)

*always wants to be first...she gets PISSED if I hand Allie her bottle first. It's seriously hilarious.

*has two itty bitty bottom teeth that have recently broken through.

*like her sis, she too HATES loud noises. She has a nervous breakdown just at the sight of the vacuum cleaner.

*she is my picky eater so far...she prefers fruit and gags with most green veggies.

*adores her bro and dog sister

These two baby girls have Chris and I wrapped around their little fingers. Honestly, I never thought I could love another child like I love Landon. Even when they were first born...I knew I loved them, but I still questioned myself. I remember feeling guilty about spending so much time with them when Landon was used to my undivided attention. I must admit...it did take a few weeks to FEEL the same love for these girls that I had for Landon. Like I said, I knew I loved them with everything in me...that is motherly instinct. I just hadn't developed yet what Landon and I had. But, let me tell you, the bond has been made and I love these sweet baby girls more than life itself now! It absolutely melts my heart when I walk in the room and their faces light up with joy and excitement. I mean...these girls stiffin up and literally shake with excitement when they see me! It is the best feeling ever! It's funny how God puts just the perfect amount of love in your heart :)

Fun weekend with my boy!

I got to spend some good quality time with Landon over the weekend. It's few and far between when he gets me all to himself, so we soaked up every minute of it. Friday was super busy for us. I picked him up from school, we went as fast as we could to the haircut place and Target, zoomed home to get into our party clothes, and headed out to Grapevine for Hayden Bella's 3rd Birthday Party. I must give props to Cara (Hayden's mom) for the place she chose for the party. It is called Paradise Pond. It is in downtown Grapevine, and it is PERFECT for a 3-year-old birthday party. Landon, along with every child there, had a absolute blast. Sorry about the large amount of pics, but I am totally impressed with this place and I have to show you why!

Party room

Tunnel

Mini rock climbing wall

Room full of blocks

Room full of dress-up clothes

HUGE climbing aparatus

Bounce House/Slide

Basketball video game

5 kid bike thing

little bikes that went down a slanted track

climbing toy

a room full of car and truck stuff

We stayed at the party for a few hours, and then headed back to Arlington to go to Johnna's house for Thanksgiving Craft Night (aka Mom's Sit Around and Sip Wine and Gossip While Kids Run Around Unsupervised Night) Just kidding...we watch them while we drink our wine and gossip :). The kiddos made cute little handprint turkeys and had so much fun playing in the backyard. They played till about 10:30 or so. By the time we got home and Landon got his bath, he was wiped out! Thank you for another successful craft night Johnna!

The rest of the weekend was spent Christmas shopping, cleaning, relaxing at the house, and selling our dining room table! We were given this dining room table (and hutch that you don't see in the pic) by Chris' mom about 6 or so yrs ago. It is very nice, but we just NEVER use it. Now that we have 3 kiddos, we are slowly running out of room for toys, baby stuff, etc. A few friends of mine use their dining room as a play area, so I decided that was a pretty good idea. Not to mention, it is my only choice. I don't "love" the idea of our dining room being full of toys, but it's much more functional for our family than a big huge table sitting there that never gets used. We just have so much kid stuff and nowhere to put it. So...we sold it and it's now a play area!

Before

After! (the hideous rug will be removed as soon as I find a replacement)

October Fun!

October was a very fun month! We stayed pretty busy the whole time, and now that it's over...November is gonna be even busier! I just love fall and all of the hustle and the bustle that comes along with it!

A few weeks ago, we went to Southlake's Fall Festival. Landon had so much fun jumping in all of the bounce houses, getting his face painted, and eating junk.

The child LOVES Spiderman!

Weeeeeeeee!!!!!

After the festival, we went to my in-laws lot in Southlake where their brand new house is about to break ground. It's going to be AMAZING! Here Landon is sitting on a tree stump. I think this pic of him is too cute!

Heather and Scott had a Halloween party on Friday night. It was so much fun, complete with spooky decorations, tasty munchies, delicious Witch's Brew (trashcan punch), and fabulous costumes! I had a great time with all of my besties! You won't find Chris in any of these pics...he refuses to dress up :( Party Pooper!

Me with my Rock Stars, Johnna and Amy

Me with my Navy Girl Kara and Starbucks Chick Nicole!

BFF

Most of the girls minus some.

Me and the dead prom queen Kimmie

BFF

Cute Costumes!

Halloween was a pretty busy day for us this year. Chris let me sleep in (Thanks babe!!) because I was feeling that witches brew for a little while Sat. morning :) We started the festivities at Ben Teague's (Johnna's son) 2nd Birthday Party! It was in a big gym inside a church. All of the kiddos and some of the parent's dressed up in their Halloween costumes. I LOVE the costume idea that Johnna has thought of for Ben's party each year. It gives us all a chance to see all of the kids dressed up b/c we all do our own thing on Halloween night. Everyone was super cute! They had balls everywhere to play with and a huge bounce house. I think my hubby had just as much fun as the kids. He played basketball with the kiddos and some of the other husbands the whole time. Everyone had a blast and Ben got some great gifts! Thanks for inviting us BFF's! We love yall!

After the party we came home, napped, ate, and got Landon back in his costume. We then headed over to Nommie and Poppy's house (my grandma/grandpa) for some trick-or-treating. I like going over there b/c it's much calmer than my neighborhood. My neighborhood is totally packed full of kids (lots of teenagers unfortunately), and since my babies are so little, I just wanted it to be more low-key. It turned out perfect for my family. We let Landon go to about 10 or so houses and the girls followed along in the stroller. He loved saying "Trick-or-Treat" and loves that he has a big bucket full of candy even more.

I took about 432374278 pictures trying to get a good one of all 3. Here are a couple that made the cut and weren't deleted.

My precious little Spiderman. I learned this year that the days of being able to pick Landon's costume are over. I'm NOT a fan of Super Heroes, but Landon insisted on Spiderman this year. I had this precious little outfit that my mother-in-law got in China. I was gonna paint on a little mustache and he was gonna be a chinaman. Well...he had a different plan and wanted nothing to do with my precious (and authentic I must add) costume. Oh well! It's a kid's holiday and I let him win. I must say he makes an ADORABLE Spiderman! Don't you think so?

My girls had such serious expressions the whole night. Not much smiling going on. I think they were either in shock from all of the weird masks and stuff they were seeing that day or they were just totally dead bread from lack of naps!

Ha! Chris put his hat on Allie, and I thought it was too cute!

About to head out for the prize...CANDY!

6-months-old!!!!

Wow!! I CANNOT believe Emily and Allie turned 6-months-old yesterday!! That is just crazy to me. It honestly feels like it was just yesterday when I was sitting on my couch on bedrest waiting for these little luvies to get here. And now they are halfway to a year??? No way! I have really started to grasp and embrace this whole SAHM thing. It took a bit of getting used to, but I am loving it now! I have taken on what I call a "part-time part-time" job. I am mentoring new teachers for the AISD. It is only a few hours a week, so it's not even enough to be called part-time, but it's a nice little break for me and I get to still be in the classroom, which I LOVE.

Soooo...the sisters had their 6-month well check yesterday and everything is perfect, but I knew that :) They are very average sized baby girls, which is great because a lot of times, twins are small for their age. Here are their 6-month stats:

Emily:

weight: 15 lbs. 11 oz. (50th percentile)

height: 26 1/4 in. (50th percentile)

head: 17 1/2 in. (75th percentile)...big noggin :)

Allie:

weight: 14 lbs. 15 oz. (30th percentile)

height: 25 1/2 in. (40th percentile)

head: 17 in. (50th percentile)

Here are some pictures of us at the Dr. yesterday, which was an adventure. I had to RUNNNNN through the parking lot in the POURING rain carrying two carriers by myself. We were all soaked :)

You can't tell, but they are all wet here, after dashing through the pouring rain. Those carseat cover things didn't do nothin!

Happy to be naked and dry :) Allie on left...Emily on right.

Chubbers.

Waiting for Dr. Hull

That's one unhappy camper :(

Some catching up to do

Wow...it has been way too long since I've blogged! I think 3 weeks to be exact...and that is unacceptable! I'm gonna do my best to be better at this :)

We've been staying pretty busy around here. The girls are growing up so fast...they are already almost 6-months-old! And Landon is a big 3-year-old now :) I love watching my kiddos go through all of these fun stages, but I just wish it would slow down a little. I swear it seems like it was just the other day when I was taking down all of the Christmas decorations, and now it's already time to put them all out again! We aren't having anymore kiddos (Chris thinks otherwise, but I guess he's been smoking crack or something cause he's got another thing coming), so I'm trying to take in all of this sweet baby stuff while they are still little chubby joy bundles.

I'm really enjoying being a SAHM. It's definitely a very hard job, but we've got a little routine down now that's working great. I've taken on a part-time job as a mentor for new teachers with the AISD. The school district called me out of the blue one night wondering if I would be interested in mentoring. We had been thinking about getting a part-time babysitter anyways so I could get things done like grocery shopping, errands, etc. I'm sure you can imagine what it's like trying to do ANYTHING with two infants. IMPOSSIBLE! Sooo...we hired Amy (who is amazing) to come over twice a week while I meet with new teachers and run errands. It's a nice break, as well.

Landon still goes to preschool from 9-4 everyday. He LOVES school and learns sooooo much while he's there. I've tried keeping him home with me a few times just to see what it would be like with all three kids, but by the time 10 am rolls around and the girls are demanding so much of my attention...he is asking to go to school :) I've been asked by a few people, "Why does your son go to school if you stay home everyday?" My answer to them is, "Have you raised twin babies and a toddler? And do you know how important it is to me for my children to be exposed to education at an early age?" Landon thrives on attention and being entertained. There is no way I could give him the attention he receives at school when I'm constantly feeding, rocking, strolling, bathing, changing, etc. not one, but two infants. Plus...whether I had my girls or not, I think by age 3, all children should be in some type of school environment. Being a teacher, I know how beneficial it is to their future success in education. Anyhow...I am thrilled about how much he loves school and how much he learns everyday :)

Enjoy some pics of my perfect children.

These first 7 pictures are from a few weeks ago. Chris and I took Landon to Incredible Pizza for a day of games, rides, candy, food, all kinds of junk :) He had a blast! It's like a huge Chuck E. Cheese, but wayyyyy better and lacking Chuck E. who Landon is terrified of.

This was THE SLOWEST car track thing ever. Landon was less than thrilled about the turtle-paced red car.

Although he LOVED the miniature bowling!

The camera did something weird to his eyes in this one...it looks weird to me.

Landon and daddy played several arcade games.

And they played a round of miniature golf, too! It was lots of fun!

A few random pics of the girls. Emily is on the left in every picture, and she's the twin in the single pic, as well. Girls are becoming quite the chubbers.

My mom (Nana) and I took Landon to his very first movie today!!! It was quite the experience :) We chose to see Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs...mistake. I should've known it would be over his head considering it's in our 3rd grade reading book. I was less than impressed with the movie (or the small portion that I saw). I have read that story like 678 times since I taught it every year for 7 years, but the movie is NOTHING like the book...and when I say nothing, I mean ABSOLUTELY nothing. They should have called the movie something else. Anyway...Landon had me laughing the whole time. He kept shouting out, "It's dark!", "Where's the meatballs?" and "Where's my movie?" And I mean SHOUTING...over and over again. I was like, "This is your movie." He didn't get it...I guess he was expecting Dora, Diego, or Wonder Pets. Then he wanted to have a long discussion about the turkeys he saw at the ranch with Nana that day. He didn't get that there is NO TALKING in a movie theater. His body kept getting folded up into the chair, too. He would shout (in his very hick accent),"Momma...this chair is like the Rangers!" because they folded up like the ones at the stadium. Mom and I got a kick out of him the whole time :) He lasted about 45 minutes and then we went to the arcade for a minute. It was a fun first experience :) Check out his cheesy grin he keeps doing for the camera...