The Caka Life

I have a camera after all!

2011-06-13T23:53:00.003-05:00

While looking for my missing camera, I dug up my old camera that I totally forgot about! I'm so glad we never got rid of it b/c right now (with some new batteries) it's coming in handy!

Now I get to show you just how adorable and hilarious Sydney's (now 6) new teeth are.

Well, okay. This isn't showing her teeth. I just thought it was cute.

HAHA! Don't those just look crazy?! Hilarious.

Oh, and I forgot to mention - she's learned to clap. And is pretty proud of herself.

No Camera :(

2011-06-13T00:24:00.004-05:00

I'm super bummed at the moment because I cannot find my new camera anywhere. I don't know how I lost it so easily! I mean, our house is tiny! How does anything go missing around here? I'm mostly irritated because I'm missing out on some good photo opportunities AND Syndey's *5* new teeth that are almost completely in. She looks hilarious and cute at the same time. And she's grinding those new teeth together all the time, making me go insane! She also says "dadda" and "bye". Too cute! She's also becoming quite attached to her "dadda" - she always reaches for him and many times prefers him to me. Travis is so good with the girls and they adore him.

She and Eliana love each other so much and it just warms my heart to see them playing and laughing together! Of course, it's not always like that. Eliana can tend to be too rough with Sydney when they play. And in turn, Sydney can tend to get a hold of Eliana's hair way too often.

Eliana is getting so grown up! She will carry on the most adult conversations with me and has a great memory. She just insists on doing grown up things because she's a "big girl". She pours her own glass of milk, brushes her own teeth, "reads" books aloud, waters the flowers and tomato plant, sweeps the floor, goes potty by herself, etc. Of course, there are many times I have to remind her that she is getting to be a big girl but there are still things mommy needs to help her with. Like picking up Sydney. That's still a "no-no". Eliana picked her up the other day to sweetly place her over a box of toys, but when she put Sydney down she kinda dropped her onto the corner of the box resulting in a bruised cheekbone. Poor Sydney - Eliana was only trying to be a good big sister.

Well, that's all I've got for now. I really want to keep up with this ol' blog better than I have been. It's definitely more interesting with pictures though. I need to find that camera!

It's been awhile!

2011-05-18T21:38:00.008-05:00

If any of you are still around checking for updates, I'm impressed! It's been a long time!

The biggest reason for few and far between posts is that I'm busy with day to day life. Two little ones keep me more busy than I ever thought possible! But it's a good busy! Next big reason is that our internet has been pretty slow....which makes this blog posting thing really tedious.

But, I'm back! And I'm going to try to give a brief recap of the last several months.

And by recap, I pretty much mean a photo dump. Here goes.....

We've been doing some fun little things, like painting bird houses for example. Eliana loves little craft projects and I'm SO not a crafty type person. I'm trying to get better about creatively thinking in that direction for her sake.

We've also been playing on dirt piles. So fun!

And playing with cousins!! Yay!!

Two little monkeys jumpin' on the bed....

My latest home improvement project. Not much, but even the little things make a difference to me!

Mmmmm...and making "green" smoothies! Frozen banana,strawberries and mango with some fresh spinach, goat kefir, and almond milk! So delicious and healthy!

Oh, and then there's some big things! Like my oldest girl turning *3*! Can't believe it!

And, of course, a party to celebrate!

The monkey cupcakes to go with the monkey-themed party! So fun!

Eliana with one of her friends, her aunt Abby, and her cousin Addie.

And then....this little stinker! Growing like a weed!

And getting into everything! *sigh* When did she get so big?

'Till next time! Hope everyone is doing great!

She's almost crawling!

2011-03-11T18:53:00.002-06:00

Snow in Texas!

2011-02-05T19:24:00.002-06:00

As you can see....we got SNOW! I'm sure any "northerners" reading this are thinking "seriously, that's snow?" This is rare for us, so we get all excited to see just a little white on the ground. ;) Eliana's never seen snow (at least that she remembers), so this was a new experience for her. It was also a new experience for Black Kitty.

As you can see, we have all the proper wear for tromping in the snow. ;)
(Didn't have a single pair of mittens or gloves to be found)

"What IS this stuff?"

Winter Wonderland!!

Love this one of Eliana and her kitty.

Starting to get just a little cold.

After 30 minutes or so in the snow, Eliana was ready to come in. She was fine until I encouraged her to help me build a snowman or make snowballs. The snow made her poor little bare fingers so cold and she started crying. She stood at the front door and told me she needed warm water on her fingers. Definitely too cold for this Texas child! :)

The whole family piled into the truck to drive around town and see all the snow. I know, we're a bunch of dorks. LOL It was fun though. :)

Sickness.....:(

2010-12-17T12:00:00.003-06:00

Eliana is running the 2nd fever of her life. The last time she had a fever, she was around 9 months old. She was so whiny this morning and wanted me to hold her constantly. That just didn't seem normal and when I felt her forhead, she definitely felt warm. I took her temperature and it was 101F. Poor baby - no wonder. So we cuddled, read some books, ate some veggies and fruit, drank water, and then she did this:

Exactly what she needs.

As of right now, Sydney doesn't have fever. I hope it stays that way.

Good morning, world!

2010-12-03T20:19:00.002-06:00

I love it when she wakes up looking so disgruntled. Too cute! ;)

ANOTHER cat!

2010-12-03T00:19:00.003-06:00

Nooooooo!

This cute, fluffy cat showed up last week. I have no idea where he came from or why he's here. But apparently he likes it here. Eliana loves having two kitties now. She calls the new one "mommy kitty" (don't ask me why - maybe b/c it's more feminine looking) and renamed the black kitty "baby kitty". ( I know - she's so creative with the names! ;) So now she thinks the black cat is the new cat's baby.....but they're both male cats. LOL

Queen of Messes....

2010-12-01T19:14:00.006-06:00

Eliana : Mom, can I have some kefir?
Me: Sure! Here you go.
Eliana: Can I drink it in my room?
Me: Okay. As long as you're careful not to spill it.

*2 seconds later*

Have no idea how in the world this actually happened, but she thought it was hilarious. And I diverted my frustration with her by taking pictures.

The girl gets at least 1 bath every day. She's always making a mess out of something or being destructive. I guess that's a normal 2 year old though, right?

Cute Copycat

2010-11-30T16:36:00.004-06:00

Eliana wants to be a baby again. That's all there is to these pictures. She's a big copycat, wishing she were a baby. Or maybe she just can't wait until Sydney's old enough to really play with her.

Thanksgiving Day....(& my newest diet resolution)

2010-11-30T15:58:00.007-06:00

Thanksgiving Day was a really good day! Although it left me looking forward to the days when our girls will be old enough to establish some traditions of our own as a family!
We went to my parent's house for the BIG meal. Ham, lots of casseroles, and of course, PIE. The only problem for me was - I decided to go on a sugar-free diet about 1 week prior to Thanksgiving Day. And I LOVE pie. I know. I'm great at planning. :P My husband agreed to join me in my diet several days after Thanksgiving. He's a good planner. ;)
After some good food & visiting at my parent's house ( and several fun games of knock-out), we drove to Selma and visited with Travis's family. The Aggie/Longhorn game was on the whole time, so that was the main event there. We stayed until the game was over, then headed home. When we finally got home (at 12:30 AM) we crashed!!

More on the new diet.....
I'm going sugar-free for some personal reasons of my own, but the more I research, the more I feel this needs to be long-term for me and my family. Sugar is out of control in this country ( no wonder this obesity "epidemic" everyone's talking about) and really is more horrible for your body than most people realize. The video below is a lecture given by Robert H. Lustig, MD, UCSF Professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Endocrinology. This 1 1/2 hour lecture is worth watching! Did you know that 100 years ago, the average intake of sugar per individual per day was 16-24 tsp.? Today an average American's intake of sugar per day is 50+ tsp.! Dr. Robert speaks on the "low fat" craze (which we all know means more sugar), speaks against sugary drinks such as fruit juices, and even gets into bio-chemistry to show how sugar is processed in the body. Our bodies process fructose (sugar) as a poison. It's processed directly through the liver and has 7 out of 10 of the negative effects on your body that alcohol does. He says "Parents wouldn't even consider handing their child a beer, but they don't think twice about handing them a soda". It's crazy how very true that is! And sad too.
I still believe in moderation, so once I'm better at controlling my urges for sweets/sugar I will start enjoying sugar once again...in moderation. By moderation, I mean no more than 15-20 tsp. / day ( if that). Except for Thanksgiving, of course. ;)

This is the long version ( I highly recommend you watch it!):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBnniua6-oM

This is the short version ( for people that feel 11 min. is more "doable" than 90 min.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chXCvduiAbs&feature=related

Because I desperately need something to post about besides kids:

2010-10-26T15:11:00.002-05:00

This is what Travis brought home Friday night.

Another guy ahead of him on the way home from work hit this deer and killed it. Travis stopped off on the side of the highway to make sure they were okay (They were - thankfully the deer didn't come through the windshield), then picked the deer up and brought it home. The next morning he skinned it, cut it up and stored it in the freezer as food for our dogs. (I'm sparing you the pictures of that! Be grateful;) Only after he was finished did we find out that this is actually illegial. According to Texas state laws, you are not permitted to take the deer home. You are supposed to leave it lay where you found it. Hmmm....interesting....dumb law in my opinion.

Random post

2010-10-17T22:55:00.006-05:00

I haven't posted any "house" photos in awhile, so I thought I'd update y'all a little on the state of the girl's room. It still needs some work (curtains, rugs, stuff on the walls, etc.) but this is getting close to how I want it. Sad to say, it hardly ever looks this clean but I guess that just means we're living in it. :)

Sydney sleeping on the couch with all her rolls hangin' out. ;)

After I took the above picture of Sydney, Eliana said "Take a picture of me, Mommy"

My mom got to come spend the day with me last week! It was great! Eliana loved her time with Gramma too. Mom taught her how to take pictures with her camera and Eliana thought that was the greatest thing ever.

So now she always wants to take pictures. This is one she took of me and Sydney. :)

Several days ago Eliana found Sydney sleeping on the couch and said "Awwww Mom! Look at Sydney!" I said " I know, isn't she sooo cute?" Eliana: "Mom, take a picture with the camera".

Is it just me or does Eliana's thigh muscle look toned? Haha.

Oh, and Eliana loves playing in boxes of any kind. This was a diaper wipe box that she was trying to sit in and kept falling over in.

So she found a better way to use it. :)

Several more pictures of Sydney.....

She's getting so big already. *sniff*

Eliana's new best friend

2010-09-28T15:52:00.002-05:00

Here is the recent addition to our pet family. "Black kitty" as she named him, showed up in our front pasture about 1 month ago. He was really skinny, wormy, and malnourished. We're pretty sure he was dumped. We started out trying to find a good home for him, but that plan quickly changed when Eliana fell deepy in love with the kitty. :) He's really sweet and has such a cool personality. He loves Eliana - they play and follow eachother around all the time. I think God sent this little cat along at just the right time - how wonderful for Eliana to have a new little companion to enjoy just around the time Sydney was born!

Catch-up time

2010-09-28T15:19:00.006-05:00

So, I realize it's been FOREVER since I last posted. But in my defense, I'm super busy....doing nothing but taking care of two kids. How could two little ones be this exhausting? Quite pathetic of me, huh? ;)

Anyway, I'm finally getting the hang of taking both Eliana and Sydney with me everywhere. They go with me grocery shopping, to eye exams, to doctor appointments, to the bank, to church, when I visit my sister/family, ....the list goes on. It hit me the other day just how much time I actually spend with them. Being a stay-at-home-mom and all, I am hardly ever without them. Even right now as they take their naps, Sydney's 3 feet away swaddled on the bed and Eliana's 1 room away in her crib. They are with me 24/7 . That's the way I want it and I think that's a good thing....but if I think about how attached they are to me right now, it seems insane! I got my first "break" since Sydney was born when I had a hair appointment last weekend. I decided that I no longer have the time and money to spend on highlighting my hair. :( Kinda disappointed about losing the blonde ....but this will be so much more practical and affordable for me. And anyone who knows me, knows I'm stingy and practical. ;)

Anyway, I will stop rambling and leave ya'll with a few adorable pictures of the girls! Oh how I love our girls!

Forgot to mention that Sydney weighed 9 lbs at her 2 week check up! Can't you tell she's starving to death over here! ;)

I used the photo above for our birth announcements.

Can't you read Eliana's mind? LOL I'm sure she's thinking "Man, she cries WAY too much! She's such a baby!" :)

Welcome Fall!

2010-09-28T15:14:00.002-05:00

Yay for hoodies! Fall couldn't come soon enough! :)

Sydney has the best big sister!

2010-09-06T22:54:00.003-05:00

Eliana LOVES her little sister! She constantly asks, "where's shinny?" or says "I wanna hole shinny". She's even content to just lie on the bed next to Sydney and caress her cheeks or kiss her. It's so sweet and just warms my heart to no end. Of course, we have to watch Eliana pretty carefully too. I caught her trying to "hole shinny" all by herself this afternoon. She actually was doing a pretty good job at holding Sydney carefully, but it made my stomach drop for a split second. I really need to keep a good eye on her! :)

This is Eliana holding Sydney for the first time, minutes after she was born. I adore this picture!

And then once we were home!

This picture was taken by a sweet friend of mine. I love it !

I can't believe Sydney's already 1 1/2 weeks old!

Sydney Raine is here!

2010-09-04T23:23:00.003-05:00

Sydney Raine was born August 27th at 6:44AM weighing 7lbs. 9 oz. and 20 in. I'll share the whole story later (maybe), but for now I'll just say that she's a wonderful baby. So easy, sweet, and just beautiful! We are in love!

Shower for Baby Sydney

2010-08-23T10:57:00.003-05:00

My sweet friend, Kristie, threw me a baby shower last weekend. She did such a wonderful job - everything was beautiful. I didn't invite that many people. Maybe there were 20-25 that came (including kids). We ate delicious food, played a few games, and opened gifts. It was great!

Kristie's family also bought Eliana a few gifts so that she felt special. She loved the tigger stuffed animal! Of course, she's looking more like a wild woman than anything in this picture. :)

Me with Kristie, the sweet hostess.

And me with my mom.

A tree frog....

2010-08-12T13:34:00.002-05:00

IN OUR TOILET!

Totally freaked me out in the middle of the night. I noticed this little guy AFTER I used the restroom. Got me wondering....1) How in the world did he get in there? 2) How many times did we use the restroom on him and flush over him? 3) If a frog can get in our toilet (how?), what other creatures could be lurking underneath us while we use the restroom without us even knowing or noticing? Just a little concerned here.....

Finished and Ready for Furniture!

2010-08-11T10:27:00.002-05:00

It's obviously going to fill up quick, with our attempts to cram a bed, bedside table, bassinet, desk, bookcase, and dresser into this room. Yeah, now that I type it all out....not sure it's going to happen....I'll keep you posted.

Some progress...

2010-08-02T15:48:00.003-05:00

So here's where our front bedroom is at right now. Not really that impressive without a before picture, but just imagine dirty, off white paint, animal urine stained floors (so gross!), and a rusty baseboard heater hanging on the wall right underneath that window......
Sometimes I really can't believe we bought a house in this condition!
Since the stain is down as of last night (thank you, Travis!), we now have a total of 3 coats of polyurethane to put down before the next weekend.
It's looking so much better! And we're that much closer to being done with this particular project!

Our last minute schedule....

2010-07-29T14:38:00.002-05:00

For the next several weekends, we are working on getting our house ready for the baby right up until my due date! AND have a wedding we really want to attend, the weekend OF the due date! Please stay in there, little Sydney! Just until Monday, the 23rd....please.

This is how it goes:

Weekend of -

July 31st : Sand floor of front bedroom, start the stain and seal process (which will last the entire week with 3 coats of seal minimum).

August 7th: Tack down new shoe moulding on finished floors, tape off trim and paint. Touch up the walls. Take all "construction" supplies to the barn.

August 14: Attend the baby shower a friend is throwing me (10-2). Move and arrange all furniture in the front bedroom AND the whole house. Nail transition piece on the floor between bathroom and hallway. Hang curtain over bathroom closet area.

August 21 (my due date by conception) : Attend Travis's cousin's wedding in San Antonio.
August 22 ( my due date by cycle): Attend "refresher" Bradley course.

Summer Fun

2010-07-27T12:55:00.004-05:00

Eliana enjoyed the pool, sprinkler and chasing butterflies for over an hour this afternoon. I had fun too! :) We even got to play in a summer rain shower for a few minutes before coming inside to dry off and clean up.

Trying to spray mommy holding the camera - such a little stinker.

She said "I'm strong, Mommy!".

Getting a drink from the sprinkler.

One of the poor butterflies that got chased incessantly.

Eliana's 2 year portraits

2010-07-20T18:20:00.003-05:00

I just realized that I never posted the soon-to-be-big-sister's 2nd year portraits taken back in April! After 45 minutes of trying to get her to sit still and look at the camera, we got a few cute ones....

Baby Excitement!

2010-07-20T17:37:00.003-05:00

I'm officially not working ( doing massages) anymore as of 4 days ago. My midwife told me to rest for the next couple weeks and try to stay off my feet more.
I can't believe I'm 4 1/2 weeks away from my due date! That seems like no time at all for everything I still want to accomplish before little Sydney's arrival!

I can't wait to see her for the first time! To hold her. To feed her. To kiss her sweet, soft little baby cheeks. I can't wait to share in this joy with my family - especially Travis and Eliana! I wonder what she'll think of the new baby.... I hope she loves her. I can imagine her wanting to help a lot. I'm going to try including her in everything possible. She can get the diapers and wipes for me, help me rock her, talk to her, pet her sweet little head... I hope they're best friends!

I'm really hoping for the perfect birth experience this time! I'm trying to be realistic and not get my hopes up. I know now how quickly things can go wrong and I've heard the horror stories. If everything goes well, I want a peaceful water birth with my husband in the tub with me to help me cuddle and kiss the baby immediately after being born.

For right now though, I'd like little Sydney to stay in my belly for another 4-5 weeks. I have lots to do and I may panic if she tries to arrive early. :)

Independance Day Festivities

2010-07-07T11:47:00.004-05:00

Travis, Eliana and I drove to Shiner in the afternoon to spend time with family for a few hours on Saturday. Nothing much to report, but everyone had a nice time eating and visiting until the late hours of the night. I DID get some really cute pictures, including some of the girls (Addie and Eliana) going "swimming". :)

Cousins DD and Bryce swimming in the big pool and playing football with "Uncle Travis" on the side porch.
Waiting with great anticipation while Granny airs up the pool.

The cows across the front pasture.

Staying out of the way while Granny fills the pool.

Fireworks! Eliana was scared at first, which surprised me. But then I realized, this is probably the first time she's really ever seen or heard fireworks! She warmed up to them pretty quickly and enjoyed the show.
Here she is in Granny's arms:

And Daddy's shoulders:

At the end of a long evening....she's getting sleepy.

Eliana dancing with her "baby"

2010-07-02T17:24:00.002-05:00

This is an old video I dug up. (By old, I mean a month or two ago)

Eliana loves to dance.

Fun in the Rain

2010-07-01T14:12:00.002-05:00

Here's my girl, my afraid-to-run-through-sprinklers-for-fear-of-water-in-eyes girl, playing in the rain and splashing/standing in puddles all morning. Didn't see that one coming!

My Little Climber

2010-06-11T23:58:00.003-05:00

Every now and then....she kinda scares me. Although, it was so adorable how cool she thought she was. :)

Our baby

2010-06-11T17:07:00.005-05:00

We finally have home internet again!!! So, I am hoping to resume the blog updates on a regular basis. I really miss keeping up with it.

I think the first entry back should be about our soon-to-be addition to the family.
Here's a sonogram picture of our little girl!:

Yes, it's another girl - Eliana will have a little sister! Her name is Sydney Raine and we're expecting her in about 10 weeks. She appears as healthy as can be and is very active! I can't wait to meet her!

Time is really flying though. I hope to have this house in decent order before little Sydney arrives. The majority of the house is finished (floors, baseboards, most of the furniture), but we still have that front bedroom to refinish floors and paint. I'm trying not to feel too stressed about all we have left to do, but it's not working. :)

2010-02-01T16:29:00.002-06:00

Since I've been without home Internet for what seems like ages now, I obviously haven't been able to update my blog much.....which is okay. I'm so busy these days...
Tomorrow I'm going to my first appointment at Austin Area Birthing Center. I've considered them long and hard, and have now decided to go with them for this birth and prenatal care.
I'm anxious and excited to (hopefully) hear the heartbeat tomorrow!

Ponytails

2010-01-15T19:13:00.002-06:00

Today was the first time I thought to fix her hair in two ponytails. I have no idea why. It's so cute - I should have thought of it a long time ago. (of course, they're a little uneven. I have some improving to do :)

New Baby (doll)

2010-01-11T11:10:00.001-06:00

Eliana is getting ready for the new baby. ;)

Hannah's "Apartment Warming"

2010-01-11T10:51:00.004-06:00

Hannah just moved into her 1st apartment several weeks ago. I helped organize an aparment-warming party for her. It was great! We invited some ladies from church and had a wonderful time.
She received some great gifts!

Had great fellowship and food!

And played a couple fun games before people started leaving around midnight!

It was pretty difficult to get a good picture of everyone, they were always laughing about something. It was a great party - tons of laughing and fun!

Happy New Year Everyone!!

2010-01-01T21:21:00.002-06:00

Can't believe it's 2010!! So much has happened this past year, it's ridiculous! A lot of good and some serious, hard struggles. But God has been beside us every step of the way and blessed us in so many ways!
2009 ended with some incredibly hurtful things going on in my life. But it also ended with some really wonderful things! And the best one is that Travis and I are expecting baby #2 in August of this year! We are both so happy and excited and feeling blessed! God is sooo good!
Now if I could just start feeling better....morning sickness, fatigue and dizzyness....I'm starting to remember how not-fun pregnancy can be. :)

I've been on a long break...

2009-12-18T22:16:00.003-06:00

I realize I haven't entered a blog post in over a month. I just haven't felt in the mood lately. There's stuff going on - I just don't feel like sitting down and writing about it. Maybe the new year will bring about a renewed interest/love of blogging for me. Right now, not so much. Sorry folks ....(all 2 of you)...I'll be back soon.

Happy 45th, Mom! ( and the latest bad news)

2009-11-15T22:17:00.003-06:00

We had planned on surprising my mom with a meal, cake, ice cream and gifts after the service at church today. Butttt....Sarah broke her collerbone yesterday! She was rollerblading at the skating rink and fell hard on her shoulder which broke her collerbone and ripped the ligament in her shoulder. An ambulance took her from the skating rink to Brackenridge hospital for the evening to take some x-rays and make sure she was okay before going home. She is most likely going to need surgery, so please pray for her and the recovery process. Sweet Sarah has remained completely optimistic and decided that since she's always wanted to learn how to write with her left hand, now would be the perfect time to do so. Especially since she will still have the same amount of schoolwork. Poor thing. :(

Back to Mom's birthday plans....since Sarah had that skating accident and was doped up on pain killers, Mom was staying home from church Sunday morning to be with Sarah. So we all decided to bring the party to her. It worked out really well and we all had a great time - lots of food, talking, laughing....just good old family time together!

Continuation of House Project + Yard Project

2009-11-15T21:32:00.002-06:00

These last several weekends, Travis and I have been working around the yard clearing where our yard fence is going to be built. We need to have it built by early next year for when we put cows back out here - we're going for that agricultural exemption once again. We had several rotten trees that needed to be taken down because they were close enough to inevitably fall on the newly built fence at some point. Our biggest project was the 100+ foot tall Cottonwood in our front yard. We cut the rotten side down quite easily, but the clean up took a really long time. We also uncovered a Copperhead snake hiding under some logs.

This is our continued house project - baseboards and door trim lying out to be painted.

And after the first coat of paint. Can't wait to get the floor cleaned up and get those baseboards on. Our house still isn't put together properly.

We got our piano back!!

2009-11-05T23:41:00.002-06:00

My friend, April, gifted us this piano when we got married. When we were packing up to move back to Round Rock, April took the piano back to her house until we figured out where we were going to live permanently. Now that we've bought this house, we had the piano moved back here!

Popcorn girl

2009-11-03T18:05:00.006-06:00

When Eliana woke up from her nap completely cranky this afternoon, I knew exactly what to do : pop some popcorn. The girl LOVES popcorn. She would eat herself sick on popcorn! I love the way she methodically eats it out of that little cup, looking so content. She even scraped the bottom for crumbs and asked for another cupful of the stuff. Of course she got it - who wants a cranky 1 1/2 year old on their hands?

The (almost) finished product!

2009-10-29T21:15:00.002-05:00

We still have some touch-up painting to do and the windows/doors need to be trimmed. Other than that, we're finished!! After receiving our next to final bill, we've decided to wait on getting our hardwood floors refinished. Maybe in a couple years we'll invest in that. For now, we'll just make the best of what we have.

Yummy!

2009-10-29T13:12:00.003-05:00

This is the first salad I've ever grown myself! And it was delicious! :)
I've never been able to grow anything ever - everything always dies, usually due to neglect and forgetfulness. Well , not this time! I may have a green thumb after all! ( of course, lettuce has to be the easiest thing to grow....hah)

(Notice our new countertops in the background! - I'll post more house photos later)

It's raining, it's pouring.....

2009-10-26T23:01:00.002-05:00

The "pond" that has formed in our front yard over the past week of on and off rain:

Hog Eye Festival

2009-10-26T22:49:00.002-05:00

This is the first year that Travis, Eliana and I went as a family to the Hog Eye festival in downtown Elgin. It was great! There was a barbecue cook-off, carnival, food, live bands (which weren't that great), a petting zoo, pony rides, a car show, and lots of booths full of locally handmade items!
Eliana went on her first carousel ride and loved it! She went with Travis first, then tried out the boats, then back to the carousel (with me the second time).

Just random stuff.....

2009-10-20T17:12:00.004-05:00

Look who showed up at our house last Thursday!

Isn't he cute? I spotted him showing off for our lady dogs. The scenerio was causing our dogs to be in quite an uproar. I though they were barking at a squirrel at first, but nope - at this cute little guy. I took him the next day to Bastrop County Animal Control. It made me really sad to do that. He deserves a good home and there's not much hope for him at the animal control, but we just could not keep him. We're pretty certain he was dumped on our road. No one living near us recognized him. Unfortunately, dumping animals happens a lot out where we live. It's so awful! And he was such a sweetie - even loved Eliana.

Speaking of Eliana....this is one of her latest hobbies: On first impressions, I'm sure you're thinking "Wow, she's already potty-training?". But no. She just like to sit on the toilet....just sit. Weird kid, I know. I guess it makes her feel like a big girl, but she has yet to pee in there on a regular basis. It's only happened twice so far, out of the many times she insists on sitting there. I think she mostly likes wiping with the toilet paper. Maybe I should stop letting her make it into a game. But then again, I keep thinking if I encourage it, maybe she'll potty train sooner.....I don't know.

And this is her popping bubble wrap for the first time! Very fun activity for a little 1 1/2 year old! :) Well, even for a 22 year old ( yes, I admited it).

I spent too much at Walmart today...and other news...

2009-10-13T18:21:00.003-05:00

I had not been to a Walmart in such a long time that I kinda forgot why that's a good thing....until...I went today and spent waaayyy too much money. Not stupid money - I will use everything I bought, but still....
These adorable boots were one of the items I just had to buy. I may or may not have bought an additional pair of boots of a different color and style...

I mean - can you blame me? How cute are those!
Here are our new cabinets - stained and finished!! Next step - countertops!

The end is in sight!!

2009-10-06T17:25:00.003-05:00

This was taken Saturday, while Travis and I were painting the house. My mom kept Eliana overnight for us, which was really great! We got a lot accomplished that first evening, including a decision to switch from yellow to blue in the kitchen and from green to yellow in the living room area. Unfortunately, that decision was made after paint was already purchased and on the wall. For some reason, I always have a difficult time picking the right colors to match the ideas I have in my head. After picking up Eliana at church the next morning, we went to get some different colors of paint with the plan to try again. Shorty, Travis' mom, came out to help us paint and/or watch Eliana. That was such a help! We finally finished painting on Monday - all that's left is a little touch-up where the ceiling and walls meet.
Hannah and Nicole came out for a visit Monday night! It was such a spur-of-the-moment thing, and it was so great to spend time with them! They stayed until they felt their homework couldn't wait any longer, and then headed back into Austin.

This morning was definitely busy, as you can see. Trucks backed to the road. Our cabinet people and electrician came out and worked all day.

The cabinets aren't finished yet and we're still waiting on the appliances. But it's coming together and I'm getting excited to finally have a kitchen again!

Grapes and Yogurt in the AM = One messy, but very happy little girl.

2009-10-01T11:57:00.003-05:00

She loves to eat! And when she gets to dip her food, it's that much better. :)

1st of October

2009-10-01T09:18:00.002-05:00

I think I'll always remember the first of October. This day, exactly a year ago, I received the horrible call that my father-in-law had died suddenly from a heart attack. I was the one that made the call to Travis. He came home from work as soon as he could and we went to be with his mom in Shiner. That week/weekend was one of the hardest we've been through since we've been married and the first time I ever saw Travis really cry. Even though I knew Pat Caka for only a little while, I grew to love him and I still miss him dearly. We all do - there's still an empty hole where he used to be. Everything has changed since his passing and we're constantly reminded of what we're missing. I would have loved for him to see our sweet Eliana grow up - he was so proud of her.
There is such great comfort in knowing that we have a sovereign God, who ordaines everything to happen according to His perfect will. This wasn't what we would have wanted, but God knows better. God is always good and He heals the broken hearted.

Relaxing Weekend at the Lake....ahhhh....

2009-09-29T12:48:00.002-05:00

Doesn't this look like a great place to be over a "no-commitments weekend"? This is the same wonderful place that I've posted about before on Lake LBJ. Adriana and Nicole's grandparents graciously let us come visit again and again...and again...well, with Ana and Nicole's invite obviously.
This time it was only Nicole, Hannah, Melissa ( an old friend), Melissa's baby Abigail, and me. It was a great time getting to relax and just enjoy the outdoors on the lake. I spent a lot of time with Nicole - talking, laughing, star gazing, etc. It was great! And where was my baby, you ask? She spent her first weekend with her Granny C. and the cousins - Bryce and Addy. Didn't mean to plan it that way necessarily, but it worked out wonderfully. And of course, I think Travis enjoyed his alone time at home, getting things done around the house. All in all, a pretty good weekend.

Little Abigail sleeping in the hamock, with Hannah on the dock in the background sunbathing/working on school homework.

Melissa and Abby.

Sweet Nicole.

And still more progress.....

2009-09-23T18:35:00.002-05:00

Here are some more photos from the progress over the last two days. Yesterday, the guys insulated the exterior walls. Today, they hung the sheet rock.

This is what's left of our kitchen at the moment. Everything that was in the cabinets and pantry are piled in the guest bedroom, mostly on the bed. Our "kitchen" sink is now the teeny, counter-less bathroom sink. The house feels very un-functional at the moment.....to say the least.
It's been interesting trying to keep Eliana from touching the insulation - I guess pink and fluffy must be one of the most tempting things for a little girl to touch.

We're starting to get a better idea of what it's all going to look like when it's finished! Exciting!!

I will never understand the things that entertain little kids for hours......

2009-09-22T11:05:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, Eliana played with the grill for most of the late afternoon. First, she was fascinated with opening the lid and putting blades of grass and rocks inside the grill. Then, she discovered that it had wheels and could be pushed around the yard. Somehow, that was so entertaining for her. I stopped the whole thing when she started learning how to push the grill over and make the charcoal spill onto the ground.

Mount Bonnell

2009-09-21T14:02:00.002-05:00

My friend Alivia and her new husband visited us over this last week. She lives in Ohio and we got to know eachother mostly as pen pals. The only other time I had ever seen her in person was 7 years ago when Mom, Hannah and I took a detour through Ohio on our way to Pennsylvania. It was so great to see Alivia again and to meet her husband!
Mt. Bonnell was one of the places Alivia, Colt and I visited while they were here. I had never been, even after living near Austin for 11 years now. It was beautiful!

More progress...

2009-09-21T13:39:00.006-05:00

Before:

After:

Before:

After:

And here's Travis tearing the cabinets out of our kitchen to save some money. In the process, he also broke a hot water pipe which flushed a rat snake out of the wall. Such wonderful memories we'll have....

Our new (old) highchair

2009-09-09T09:26:00.003-05:00

My mother-in-law came to visit over Labor Day which was really great! We don't get to see her all that often, so it was nice to have some time together. She brought us some canned pears (yum!) and an old (80+ years old) highchair that her father used when he was small. She painted it and put the cute cushion on it for Eliana. I think it's adorable!

The renovation begins....

2009-09-01T16:21:00.003-05:00

Here is some shots of the progressing renovation on our kitchen/living/dining room.

This is Day 1 , before they got started on the demolition. This is the wall that separated our kitchen area from our living area. The wall included some cabinets and a pantry.

This is the same wall, just from the opposite side.

After Day 1 was over, the house looked like a skeleton.

Day 2 , they completely took out the middle wall and re-framed the ceiling to give us another foot in height.

Well, just scare us half to death why don't ya?

2009-09-01T16:13:00.006-05:00

We turned our backs for 1 second and there she was, on the top rung of a tall ladder! We weren't quite as shaken when we realized how tightly she was holding on (which is why we took the time to get a photo :). Then she wanted to do it again, and again, and again....with our supervision, of course.

The 1st step of this tedious process is completed!

2009-08-22T13:07:00.006-05:00

Take a look at the pile of rotten beams the levelers pulled out from under our house!

It took them six days to completely level the house and replace all the decayed beams with treated lumber, but they are finally done! They worked VERY hard and charged us less money than anyone else around! God is good!

So, here comes the next project - knocking out the wall between the kitchen and living room, and raising the ceiling by one foot!

Fun, fun!

The cute little rascals in our life

2009-08-21T12:03:00.003-05:00

This is the little guy that hangs out in the tree near the front of our house. He gets real comfy too. We get a kick out of it.

This is our growing litter of puppies from the planned breeding we did this year. Tell me they aren't cute - I dare ya!

Eliana's new ride

2009-08-15T01:38:00.003-05:00

Travis got his dad's old 4 -wheeler working again and we've been using it around the property. It's also Eliana's new favorite thing to do. I don't blame her - it's pretty fun to cruise around on.

We are homeowners yet again!

2009-08-10T14:48:00.006-05:00

After a 4 month process, we finally own this house + 11 acres! I never thought we would buy it because I hated it from day one (what color is it anyway?). But I came around and now believe that with some money, time, patience and a little TLC, we can make it into a beautiful home. Am I dreaming? Maybe. But despite the first impression, it does have some potential. The first step is leveling the pier and beam part of the house. Then we are tearing out the wall that separates the living room from the kitchen and raising the ceiling by 1 foot. After that, we may have enough money left to replace all the sheet rock and paint. Everything else after that, including floors, windows, appliances, and the exterior of the home, will have to come later as time and money allows.

As for an update on Travis's hand.....it's healed!!! Finally! He just has another week or so of rehabilitating his hand ( his wrist and fingers are VERY tight) and he will be cleared to go back to work! We're just about out of money, so this is good news! :)

Lake Bastrop!

2009-08-07T22:10:00.003-05:00

Last week, my parents invited us out to Lake Bastrop! They were camping there for several nights and thought it would be fun if we could join them. We went out there Wednesday afternoon/evening and had so much fun that we went back to visit again the next day! We swam in the lake, played volleyball, went letter-boxing (ask my mom) which included some hiking trails, and ate supper together. It was great!

I can't remember which of boys were out in the canoe in this picture. Their floaties kept floating away, so they kept paddling out to retrieve them.

Aunt Elisabeth took her out into the deep water. We forgot to bring her swimsuit, hence the stylish diaper.

Eliana is enjoying her daddy time

2009-07-27T00:13:00.002-05:00

I don't know what she will do when he goes back to work.

Blueberry pancakes for supper.....

2009-07-24T00:12:00.002-05:00

....and apparently for her ear??

Yep - you saw that right. Don't ask me....gross, I know.

Kids.....

Summer Fun!

2009-07-23T23:43:00.004-05:00

Yesterday afternoon, Travis and I took Eliana to the public pool in Elgin. She had a blast - mostly running around on the "no running" signs along the side of the pool. Keeping her in the kiddy pool was sometimes a challenge, but it was easier this time than last because we remembered to bring some toys for her to play with. Travis got to soak his swollen, still broken, hand in the cool water for awhile, which he said felt great.

After several hours in the sun, we headed over to McDonalds for some chicken nuggets and play-time for Eliana, and a little supper and relax time for Mom and Dad. We never (seriously, never) do this, so it was a really nice thing to be able to sit and relax for awhile while Eliana enjoyed the playscape. There were some other kids there (several really close to her age) and she really enjoyed playing with them. While we were there, the rain started pouring....awesome! We need it so badly! Almost as soon as we made it back home, our power went out for several hours. All the lights, air-conditioning, electronics, freezers, ....well, you know how it goes. I don't know why I thought the power going out was such an adventure as a kid - now, it's just plain annoying. Soon after the lights going out, I put Eliana and myself down for bed. We were both pretty tired.

We finally hung the swing!

2009-07-22T12:59:00.005-05:00

Granny C. bought Eliana this swing before the New Year. It took us 7 months to get around to it - but it's finally hung and she loves it!

Broken hand update

2009-07-17T00:35:00.003-05:00

It's been 5 weeks and 6 days since Travis broke his hand. In some ways in seems like he's been at home with me for FOREVER. But at the same time, I'm surprised at how fast the time really has flown. Anyway, this coming Monday (the 20th) was supposed to be the day he would go back to work. We went to the surgeon's office on Monday the 13th (my birthday - I'm 22 years old now) to get the cast removed and found that his bone is healing much slower than expected. Ugh. We were so bummed. The surgeon is having him come back in 3 weeks to re-assess the progress, but as of now she's suggesting another 4-6 weeks in a cast. This means that he also won't be going back to work for a least another month.

On the positive side of this, we're getting to spend lots of family time together, finish some projects together, and just do things that we wouldn't normally have the time to do. Eliana especially enjoys having her daddy around. :)

Just a random picture. Because I thought it was cute.

I should feel ashamed.....

2009-07-01T12:01:00.002-05:00

but I don't.

This is the first snake I've ever shot. It was harmless and we weren't going to kill it at first, but then it started to slither up our front porch. I'm sorry, but I don't like any snake - no matter what kind - living amongst us or near us. They can live un-touched out in our pasture or even in our tank behind the house, but I don't want them under or near our house.

Apparently, the dog bucket is better than the swimming pool

2009-07-01T11:59:00.001-05:00

I give up!

2009-06-22T17:16:00.003-05:00

I cannot come up with good titles for these things! Let's face it - I don't have a creative bone in my body.
Anyway....I had to post these pictures of Eliana. She was walking around the yard for at least 30 minutes, picking up rocks to put in her bucket. The bucket never got too full because she would dump them and start over. I just thought the whole thing was so cute!

I'm pretty sure that is dirt around her mouth. yuck.

Hannah bought her this handmade dress at the Hogeye Festival in Elgin last Fall. It fits her great now and I love it!

Spring Poles are Fun (usually...)

2009-06-10T22:22:00.007-05:00

Last Saturday morning, Travis broke his hand while hanging a spring pole in a tree. We spent several hours in the emergency room, and then were sent home with Travis in a splint and a reference to an orthopedic surgeon.
Yesterday we went to the surgeon. Travis was fitted with a cast and doesn't need surgery as long as the bones don't move within the next week. If the bones do move, then he will need surgery to put some pins in his hand to keep the bones in place. His hand will take approximately 6 weeks to heal. So obviously, he won't be able to work at all until it's back to normal.
Here are some pictures to give you an idea of what exactly happened during Travis' hand-breaking incident.

The rope is tied to the tree, the chain is looped around the rope, the spring is supposed to be attached to the chain, and then at the end of the spring is the rawhide. A wonderful toy for the dogs to play with.....only it wasn't low enough for our little Scarlett. So Travis moved it lower, pulled on it (very hard) to make sure the rope was tight enough and....WAPP! the end of the spring came loose and hit him on the top of the hand breaking one of his Metacarpals. We still have no idea how that spring came off the chain - but it did.

Poor Travis. :(

Baby Cardinals

2009-06-03T11:22:00.005-05:00

Last week we discovered that the bird's nest outside Eliana's window was a Cardinal's nest. The male and female Cardinals were seen flying in and out of that nest quite a bit. Last weekend, I was able to witness the little birds hatching! It was awesome! The sad thing is, 2 days after these shots, when I went to check on the little birds, they had disappeared completely. We think a snake ate them, because there was no disturbance of the nest at all. Apparently (after researching), Cardinal birds have a low survival rate because of the fact that they build their nests so close to the ground. Makes sense. I'm bummed though. I was looking forward to watching them grow their feathers and begin flying on their own.

Mark's Highschool Graduation

2009-05-25T18:57:00.004-05:00

My brother Mark graduated from highschool last Saturday with his fellow students from One Day Academy! Travis, Eliana and I went to the ceremony in Austin along with the rest of my family and my grandparents who flew in from out of state to be there!

Immediately upon arriving at the ceremony, Eliana wanted to sit in the row with Aunt Elisabeth. She really likes Elisabeth - it was SO cute!

It's been great spending time with Grandma Elaine and Grandpa Richard ( My mom's Mother and Stepfather (my grandma's first husband, my grandpa David died in November 1999)) from Phoenix, Arizona and Grandma Gennie (my dad's Mother) from Chicago, Illinois! We don't get to see them but maybe once in a year or two.

Beautiful Nest

2009-05-20T17:53:00.003-05:00

Everytime I walk past this nest a little mama bird flies away. I have no idea what kind of birds these are, but they sure make beautiful little nests.

Walking video...

2009-05-20T11:12:00.003-05:00

I'm finally posting a video of Eliana walking!

Enjoy.

(oh, and ignore the crazy hair ;)

Babysitting

2009-05-06T19:04:00.003-05:00

Today at 7:30 AM my next door neighbor, Paige, dropped off her granddaughter Vaydin for the morning.
And let me tell you.....it wasn't an easy morning!
I seriously don't know how mothers of more than 1 baby at a time do it!
Although, if I had two Eliana's it would have been a tad easier. Vaydin was very whiny, clingy and hard to make happy unless I was constantly holding her. That made it very difficult to tend to Eliana which in turn made Eliana kinda cranky and clingy as well. Ugh - so not fun.
The only time they were both happy for any extended period of time was when I crammed them both into my 1 seat stroller and took off down the road for a 30 min. walk. They were full of smiles for that - SO cute! And I was so happy when they went down for their naps! Ahhh...

After this experience, I'm not exactly opposed to another kid. Let's just say we're not rushing things over here. :)

Walking

2009-05-03T20:46:00.004-05:00

These are nothing special. Just pictures I took today when Eliana wanted to go tramping through the tall grass and wildflowers after church. She can't walk very well on un-steady ground yet, but she tries and it's so cute! Sometimes, she gets so excited that she's walking and starts showing off and acting goofy which, of course, makes her fall. It's so fun! I'll post a video of her walking soon.

Brushy Creek Park

2009-05-03T20:32:00.003-05:00

Yesterday, our church folks all gathered for a picnic at Brushy Creek Park in Austin. It's a great park with swing sets, playgrounds, a river (people brought canoes and kayaks), walking/hiking trails, volleyball courts, and a water area with sprinklers and showers for little kids. Since Travis is out of town (Oklahoma) at a dog show for the weekend, my mother-in-law Shorty came to the picnic with Eliana and I. It was great!

Knowing how much Eliana loves water, y'all should be able to guess what the main attraction for her was. Yep - the water sprinklers. She could have done it all day. She loved it. The evening before, she had begun walking on her own, so she was excited to run around on her own. I, knowing she was still unstable, wanted to follow her around and hold onto her so she didn't fall on the concrete.

Of course, nothing ends the day quite as good as your own balloon to hold...for as long as you want to. Anytime she crosses her legs, that means she is very content. And content she was.

Swimming

2009-04-30T14:46:00.003-05:00

It's been so hot and humid outside today - it's not pleasant to be outside for anymore than a minute or two. But, it was a perfect day to try out the new pool. The water was kind of cold, but Eliana still loved it.

The Snakes are Back!

2009-04-25T22:50:00.004-05:00

Today while Travis was mowing the grass, he almost stepped on this:

Yikes! This snake was in the process of eating the head off a baby bunny when Travis disturbed it. He called me on the phone (I was in the house) and asked me to run the shotgun out to him.

It looks like another yellow bellied water snake, like the one we killed last summer, but we didn't take the time to really look good until it was dead. I'm one of the "the only good snake is a dead snake" kind of people. Here's a closer shot....and the belly was yellow. Maybe you can help me with this again, Mere.

Anyway, we went back to mowing and picking up sticks for another hour or so. When I reached down to pick up one of many sticks, I saw something right next to the stick and jumped back! Yep, you guessed it! Another snake:

This one looks like a poisonous Copperhead to me, but I could be wrong! It's hard to tell. Of course, if we didn't blow the heads off each time, it might be a tad easier to tell. :)

So folks, it looks like the snakes are back and in full force. Pray we make it through the summer. ;)

Sweet Potato Fun

2009-04-24T16:28:00.004-05:00

Eliana can't get out of her highchair when the tray is pushed in all the way. So yesterday, I set her in the highchair, gave her some boiled sweet potato, and left for several minutes to do something. I came back to this:

I guess she wasn't too hungry???

The sweet potato was EVERYWHERE! It was matted in her hair, in between each finger, in her fingernails, in and on her clothes, she was completely covered. Needless to say, she had a bath immediately after this photo was taken.

I shouldn't be too surprised about this though. It seems to be quite the trend recently. This was her 2 weeks ago with her avacado:

Telephone

2009-04-24T16:18:00.005-05:00

She loves talking on the telephone she got for her birthday!

Happy birthday, Eliana!

2009-04-20T12:27:00.006-05:00

Eliana's 1st birthday was yesterday. I can't believe she's already 1 year old - crazy!

Saturday we had her birthday party at my mom and dad's house in Cedar Creek. Family and a few close friends were invited. We grilled hamburgers and hotdogs, ate cake and ice cream, opened gifts and played games. It was fun!

Travis' Aunt Kathy made Eliana a bathtub cake for her birthday since she LOVES taking baths. I thought it was really cute!

Of course, Eliana got her miniture version of the bathtub cake to eat/destroy by herself.

The aftermath.

She didn't get too messy. Of course, it helped that she was having fun throwing the cake at everyone else.

Eliana and her cousin Addison eating together.

Getting ready to blow the candles out.

Eliana opening gifts...with help.

Sitting on the trampoline with Addy, Elisabeth and Abby.

All tuckered out, after a long birthday.

Another House Update.....

2009-04-17T07:42:00.003-05:00

Today is the closing date on our Round Rock house! Travis is going now to sign the closing papers. In the last 2+ weeks, we've had additional issues to work out with the buyer, the biggest one being that our house didn't appraise for the taxable value OR the price we were selling it for. There ended up being a $3,000 difference to be made up. Fortunate for us, the buyers (for the first time ever) worked with us, and met us halfway. There have been other minor things along the way, but now, we're almost finished! It's almost off our hands! That wonderful house is almost gone! I'm so happy for that, but a tad sentimental. Travis and I's first year of marriage, my entire pregnancy with Eliana, and so many other things took place in that house. I have fond memories of it. But - on to the next chapter in our life! I'm so thankful that headache is gone! God has blessed us!

We're still not sure what we're going to do about this rent house we're living in. The foundation will need some leveling and repair. I've been having foundation professionals come out and look at the foundation. I've received 4 estimates so far and may get one more. This house has tons of potential. We just want to make sure we don't get in over our heads.

Wild Baby Bunnies

2009-04-17T07:32:00.003-05:00

Last weekend, Travis was mowing the lawn when he stumbled upon a nest of baby bunnies. He accidentally crushed one bunny with the lawn mower wheel - it was so sad. Although the little guy looked like he would die soon on his own, we didn't like seeing him suffer, so we....well, let's just say he was put out of his misery. :(

We brought the other three bunnies inside until Travis was finished mowing and could restore the nest to being a safe place for them. I wanted to keep them so badly, but after researching what to do with wild bunnies, it was obvious that the best thing for them would be to put them back where we found them.

It was great having them in the house for a while though. They were SO soft, and their ears where so little and cute! Eliana was fascinated with them and kept making soft cooing noises, like she knew they were little and cute. She was very gentle with them too - it was sweet.

Professional Photos (Finally!)

2009-04-01T18:43:00.005-05:00

Today we went to have Eliana's first professional photos taken at Sears in Austin. We had a really difficult time getting her to hold still and smile at the same time. Despite the constant struggle, the photographer got a few cute shots.

Afterwards she had a good time showing off for the 2 year old boy that was getting pictures next. He was a little shy and she was the opposite - very bold and flirtatious. First she waved, then she clapped, then she did what we always called "being an indian" growing up when she made a monotonous noise with her mouth while moving her hand on and off. I don't even know how she learned that last one. I didn't teach her that. It was all very cute though. She's becoming more and more outgoing.

To all family: If you would like prints of any of these pictures, just let me know (1) which ones, (2) how many, and (3) what sizes and I'll get them printed for you.

Little Rascal

2009-03-31T14:01:00.002-05:00

When I asked her why she was throwing all of my pajamas out of the drawer and onto the floor, this is the face she gave me:
The little rascal.

Recent News

2009-03-28T16:08:00.004-05:00

Last weekend we were gone out of town to a dog show in Liberty, Texas. It was a great weekend - beautiful weather, lots of "dog friends" to talk to, a clean hotel room, and several ribbons (even in the "Champion of Champion's" class for Sevin and Pumpkin)!

While we were gone over the weekend, the lady who was going to buy our Elgin land decided to back out of the contract. It's a long story...but in the end, she doesn't want to buy our land anymore. We were actually somewhat happy about that turn of events since it was only our RR house that was forcing us to sell the land in the first place. Now that the RR house is hopefully going to sell, we don't need to sell our Elgin land anymore! Assuming that everything goes through okay with the Round Rock house (anything could happen between now and the 19th), we are planning to keep our Elgin land!

We have entertained the idea several times of putting an offer on the rent house we're living in. It's definitely a "fixer-upper", but it comes with 5 acres and it's right next to our other land. So, we're thinking of combining the two pieces of land (making it 11.5 acres), filing once again for an agricultural exemption , and beginning to slowly but surely fix up this house making it more suitable to live in. We're still mulling it over, but it's seeming once again like a good idea (despite my dislike for this house in it's current condition).

The 24th of March was mine and Travis's second wedding anniversary! Time has really flown - I can't believe it's been *2* full years since this day:

At the same time, so much has happened since that day, it seems like we've already lived half a lifetime together. Funny how things seem sometimes, huh?

Anyway, Travis had this week off work, so we've been able to spend lots of time together. The 24th, Shorty came from Shiner to help watch the dogs and Eliana while we had a night out together ( the first time in FOREVER ). It was so nice! First, we ran some important errands, but then we went to dinner and afterward to a movie. That's something I definitely think we should try to do more often. It's hard when things are so hectic to take out time to do things together.

We've had so much rain lately - it's been great! Everything went from dried up and brown to this:

Isn't it beautiful?

Birthday Plans (and other stuff)

2009-03-19T10:05:00.002-05:00

Today marks exactly 1 month until Eliana's 1st birthday! Crazy! I can't believe how fast these last 11 months has flown by! She's becoming less of a baby and more of a little girl with every day that goes by. It's been so fun to watch her grow and I love her more and more every day!But now I have the daunting task of planning her first birthday party. Probably not so daunting for most people that are good at planning events, but I've never done something like this....and I have to admit, I'm a little intimidated. I'm probably going to keep it simple and limit the invites to family and really close friends, but still..what do you do for a 1 yr. old's party that they won't even remember? I was thinking barbeque, finger foods, cake, ice cream, maybe a couple games....? My mom and mother-in-law both offered their homes for the party since we're not really settled anywhere at the moment. I was thinking more of having it at my mom's place since it's kind of half-way between us and Shiner (where Travis' family lives). Any ideas are welcome - I need help! :)

Remember the post about my "wonderful" froggy bank savings idea? Ha. That was the biggest joke. Since September of last year I've saved.....wait for it......*$19.92*! Seriously? Ugh.

Anyway, I decided that money would be better spent on the expenses for her birthday party, especially since we don't have a lot of extra money right now for stuff like that.

I finally scheduled an appointment for Eliana to get professional pictures taken at Sears! I planned on doing this when she was 1 month old, then at 3 months, then at 6 months or 9 months. Everytime I almost scheduled something, I looked at my limited time and budget and decided against it. So finally, I'm going for it! I received a birtday coupon in the mail that gives us a 100% discount on the session and a free "birthday bundle". Maybe the pictures will be developed in time to hand out at her birthday party! Family always appreciates pictures. :)

Eliana finally fits in her baby Crocs that her Auntie Albert bought her. Usually anything in miniature size is adorable - especially baby shoes - so I thought I'd post a picture of them. I figured that Alissa especially would appreciate this since she think Crocs are the greatest shoes ever invited PERIOD! Not.

All Eliana

2009-03-14T23:39:00.003-05:00

Granny Caka came to visit us over the weekend! Eliana definitely enjoyed spending time with her....as did Travis and I! Visits from Shorty are always nice.

I felt mostly guilty over letting her lick all the cake batter off the spatula. But, a spatula full of cake batter is one of the best things ever to a kid ( I remember - I was a kid once :), so I gave in....and it was SO cute!

And this...well, I'm proving to y'all my obvious obsession with sleeping pictures. Can't help it!

Crazy!

2009-03-14T23:06:00.002-05:00

I know I haven't posted much this month. That's been mostly due to either not feeling like it, or being too busy (mostly the latter one).

On the 11th, just several days before the day (the 14th) we were planning to move back to our Round Rock house, we got an offer on that house! It was a really good offer, and after a counter-offer, we accepted! Yesterday evening, we sat down with our realtor and signed the papers. This is going to sound ridiculous, but I wasn't sure at first if I was happy about it or not. I mean, I knew it was a great thing and a wonderful answer to prayer, I guess I was just tired of trying to adjust mentally to all the quick changes in my life recently. I tried so hard to be content with going back to RR and thought of all the positive things about it to the point where I was almost looking forward to it in some ways. So, it was a little mental re-adjustment once again when I realized we weren't going to be moving there. But....nonetheless, a very good re-adjustment! God is so good!

So, this is how things are scheduled to happen for the time being:

*March 25th is the official closing date on our land here in Elgin. The "opt-out" period is over and we're going forward with it. In the meantime, we have to pull any of our belongings off the property and erect a fence along one side of the property. That should take at least 1-2 days. Thankfully, Travis is able to take a vacation week off work through that whole week!

*March 16th starts the "opt-out" period of the contract for our house in RR and ends on March 25th at midnight. In the meantime, I need to get all the utilities turned back on for the inspection/appraisal.

* If the buyers don't opt out, our closing date for the house in RR is April 17th.

* Our rent here in Elgin is expired April 15th(ish). We are thinking of asking for a 1 mo. extention.

In the meantime, we are looking very actively for some property to buy in the Elgin/Bastrop/Cedar Creek area. We are looking to finally find that "perfect" (if there is such a thing) piece of property with lots of trees and privacy and at least a decent house with some potential. If we find the perfect property minus the house, we've been considering pulling a mobile home onto the property to live in until we can build a small house. That was an option we didn't have with our other land, since mobile homes were restricted in the deed.

Anyway, that's the craziness that we've been dealing with lately. Please remember us in your prayers. We have a lot of important things to think about and decisions to make in the near future.

Climbing

2009-03-06T17:16:00.003-06:00

Eliana is climbing on things now!

These pictures aren't impressive or anything. I just happen to think it's cute when she does new things.

Just because....

2009-02-28T23:03:00.000-06:00

I love watching her sleep.

Picture Post

2009-02-26T17:17:00.003-06:00

This is pretty much just a picture post. I don't have much to write about. Obvious by looking at the pictures, Eliana was with me at work again today. Needless to say, I didn't get a ton of stuff done.

Oh, and she had terrible bed head! I didn't have time to comb it down or fix it before we left this morning. At least we didn't have any customers in the store. :)

Life is Fragile

2009-02-25T17:51:00.003-06:00

I barely know the receptionist at our pediatrician's office. I don't even remember her name. I do remember how pregnant and cute she was getting and I remember our several excited conversations about the upcoming arrival of her baby. I was so happy for her - she was planning on this one being her last and they were waiting until the birth to find out the gender. Today Travis had some bad news for me (he delivers to her office & knows her better than I do). On the 17th of February, she went into labor (attempting a natural birth), had complications, was rushed into an emergency C-section, and lost her baby girl.
Hearing that just made me sick. I wish there was some way I could alleviate her pain. I can't even imagine the grief you would experience with a loss like that. I don't even know how I would have handled something like this happening to me. And it very well could have!
I am so grateful right now that God kept Eliana safe throughout our whole birth ordeal. Sometimes I forget how fragile life is! Boy am I going to hug that beautiful, clingy, little girl hard tonight! I love her! I don't know what I'd do if I lost her.

Please pray for the lady who lost her baby several days ago. Pray that God would be with their family during this time of grief and that He would heal their broken hearts and draw them close to Himself.

Updates...

2009-02-25T09:35:00.003-06:00

There are several things I need to update y'all on.

* We got an offer on our land! It's a decent offer and I think we are going to accept it! We are so thankful to God that our land is actually going to sell soon! Everything is so uncertain in this economy - to be able to sell the land so quickly is such a blessing.

*We are definitely moving back to our house in Round Rock until it sells. We are not taking anymore risks - we just can't afford to. Even if we would get a renter in it, that obviously has not shown to be 100% safe. What if they bail on us too? Then we're stuck with two mortgage payments yet again. We're not going to let that happen again. So, we're going to move everything back and camp out there until it sells. This time, we're going to do everything the safe way.

I have such a tendancy to be really down about this last year of wasted time and money. All we went through this last year trying to make our plans work out just seems ridiculous now. We have nothing to show for it - it was a waste! We're moving back to RR and will be starting this process(of moving to the country) all over again. But, it's not a waste. With God, nothing is truly a waste. We made the best decisions we could under the circumstances last year and it didn't work out. But God planned for that to happen. Through all of the hardships we went through, He was using them to work His will in our lives, teaching us things, and helping us grow. It's not a waste....because God wanted it to happen that way. He had a purpose behind everything (seemingly) going wrong. He's in control and things have happened according to His will and for our good. When I look at it that way..... the right way, it doesn't feel so bad.

* Eliana is developing the inevitable Separation Anxiety. Up until 1 week ago, she's been perfectly fine with strangers and hasn't minded me leaving her with someone else. I thought maybe she would skip this phase. Nope. Now she cries (not for very long, but still...) when I leave her in the church nursery, when I leave her with her babysitters, when I put her down to get something done, etc. To be perfectly honest, it's kind of annoying. She's getting so clingy. But, I know it's perfectly normal for her at this age, so I'm trying to hold her more and assure her that I'm coming back. It's not bad at all yet - she stops crying as soon as she's distracted, so I'm hoping it won't progress.

This video is badly recorded. I had to set the camera down on my stomach to use both hands, so the camera is bouncing around -which is annoying. But, it's so fun to get her laughing on video. I thought at least the Grandmas might enjoy that. :)

Purple Doghouse?

2009-02-18T14:48:00.004-06:00

How funny is this?

Travis has been using scrap lumber to make some more doghouses. When he used some of our leftover house paint to seal them, he thought it was off-white. Not until he was almost finished, did he realize it was light purple.

One of them goes to Aldany, since she's a girl. :)

Happy Valentine's Day!

2009-02-14T13:10:00.004-06:00

We love you!

Sleeping Beauty

2009-02-12T17:12:00.002-06:00

Eliana's babysitters (our good friends), are all coming down with strep throat. Yikes!

So, once again, Eliana is at the store with me. After a somewhat cranky afternoon, she finally fell asleep.