Family Rodeo Day

We went to the rodeo again on Saturday to see Brad Paisley. As you can see from all the photos, we have gotten a lot of wear out of Lauren's cowgirl shirt which she loves. This time we all went with our friends Terry and Jennifer and their children Mason and Tyler. Tyler and Lauren are six weeks apart and have been great buddies. Lauren and Tyler had a great time at the carnival riding the ponies and various other rides. The adults on the other hand were wishing it was a little cooler. Only in Texas can we experience this wonderful unpredictable weather!

Justin will be 11 weeks old tomorrow! Oh how time is flying. He has the cutest smile that he shines upon you whenever you talk to him. He just melts my heart everyday! We have a busy weekend ahead of us with birthday parties and Easter gatherings which Lauren is very excited about. We hope that everyone has a wonderful Easter and remembers what this time of year is all about.

John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."

Let's Rock, Part II

After much trying, I was finally successful at posting a video. This is Lauren and her friend Angela at the Hannah Montana concert. As you can tell, Angela is quite the Hannah Montana fan and knows all the song lyrics. They are too cute.

Let's Rock!

Well, a lot has happened since my last post. On Friday, when Justin was 9 weeks old, we started putting him in his crib in his room to sleep at night. Up to this point he has been sleeping in a cradle in our room. He is doing great and it hasn't disrupted his sleep schedule at all. Today he has been very interested in his hands. He stares at them and tries to get his whole fist in his mouth to suck on.

On Sunday, Lauren and I went to see Hannah Montana at the rodeo with some friends and she had a great time! While they were setting up the stage after the rodeo events, Lauren and her friend Angela were yelling "Please come out Hannah Montana, Please!" Both of the girls were dancing and singing to all of the songs. She is growing up too fast!!! At times she drives me crazy with her stubbornness (I don't know where she gets that from!), but most of the time I just look at her and watch her and think where has my baby girl gone. She was such a big girl tonight. She put her dirty dishes in the sink after dinner and helped clean up all her messes in the living room, playroom, and her bedroom and then picked out and put on her pajamas by herself. We try hard to teach her how to be a big girl, but then it makes me sad that she is already so independent.

Yee Haw!

This week has been rodeo week at Lauren's school and they have had all kinds of fun activities for them. This Sunday I will have the pleasure of being surrounded by thousands of screaming young girls when we go see Hannah Montana at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. Lauren has a friend that invited us to go with them and she is really excited, even though she doesn't know any of the songs. I don't think she has ever even watched the TV show, yet she can recognize all Hannah Montana merchandise and points it out at the stores. She sure gets great publicity and marketing! Anyway, I am looking forward to seeing how she acts at the show seeing how she loves to dance, sing and be Miss Drama.

Justin had his two month check-up yesterday and he is doing great. He is now 9lb 13 3/4oz and is 22 1/2 inches long. He had to get 5 vaccination shots and one oral vaccination but he took them like a champ. This morning he discovered his thumb for the first time and he was sucking away. I have mixed feelings about this. I think it is great when he can pacify himself and I don't have to keep putting a pacifier in his mouth. On the other hand, when I want to end the pacifier habit I can physically take the pacifier away which I can't do with his thumb. Lauren has always been a thumb sucker and did not like the pacifier. Fortunately she only sucks her thumb at night and when she is ready to go to sleep. Now she just does it unconsciously when she is asleep. I am sure Justin will let us know his opinion on the topic fairly soon.

Where have the past two months gone?

Well, Justin is 2 months old today. It seems like I just had him! It is amazing how fast babies grow and learn in the first year of their lives. Right now he is at the wonderful stage where he makes mommy feel like she is the most interesting person in the world. He stares at me and gives me huge smiles when I talk to him. He is trying so hard to talk and after much trying, he will often let out a little "oooh". Tomorrow we go to the pediatrician for his checkup so I will report back with his progress.

Our little ags

I am going to backtrack a little. We recently spent the weekend near College Station with several of our closest friends and their families. We had a great time! Between 4 families, we had two 3 year olds, a 1 1/2 year old, an 8 month, a 7 month, and a 7week old. The kids had a great time together, as did the adults. We went to an Aggie basketball game and the kids did great! We have all been blessed with wonderful children. It seems like not that long ago we were all in high school together and now we all have families. Sometimes it all feels so surreal. Time is flying by, sometimes too fast. When I look at Justin and Lauren, I often wish they could just stay this age. Not that I am not looking forward to the wonderful times to come, but I love and cherish their innocence right now and the joy they find in everything. On a similar note, now that I am 30, it is hard to believe that my next milestone is 40! I still think of high school and college as not being that long ago. I guess I need to wake up and face the facts, I am getting old! At least I am having a great time doing it.

Soccer season has begun

Today was Lauren's first soccer game of the spring season and what a beautiful day it is! This is her second season to play. Her play today was much improved compared to that of last season, as much as it can be for a 3 year old. In the fall, we had to try all kinds of bribery just to get her to run down the field and not hold hands and carry on a conversation with her friend. Today, even though she is still a little too timid to get in the middle of the struggle for the ball, at least she was following the pack everywhere. They are all cute to watch at this age. One of her friends was playing goalie and took a bow after she stopped a ball at the goal. Kids are wonderful!

Our First Blog

Well, it seems that blogging is the thing to do, so I think I am finally going to jump on the bandwaggon! This will be a great way to document and share all the wonderful moments we have with our two angels, Lauren and Justin. We are so blessed! Check back often to see what we have been up to. I am looking forward to becoming a blogger.

Dawn