2012 In Review

      This is Rylee on January 1, 2012. She could tell 2012 was going to be a great year, and it really was! I can't believe how much she has grown in these last 12 months and how much things have changed, but I can honestly say that everything is right where it should be right now and we are happier than ever. Here is how we spent 2012...

 We spent lots of time in laughter...

We spent lots of time with those we love...

We had many firsts...

We made some big changes...

But more than anything, we spent time together as a family. :)

     2012 was a fantastic year for us! I love my little family, I am learning so much at work and I love it, and I love all the people God has placed in our lives. I can't wait to see what God has in store for us in 2013!



Christmas(es) 2012

       This Christmas has been busy, busy, busy. School got out on Thursday, the 20th, at noon and we were on the road headed to Georgia to visit Ryan's family before 2. We haven't stopped running since. Christmas in Georgia was a lot of fun. We visited with family, ate lots of good food, and opened presents. We stayed from Thursday night until Sunday morning. Sunday morning we headed to Mel, Josh, and Austin's house to celebrate Christmas with them. It was so much fun.

     Monday was Christmas eve, we took advantage of a quiet house that morning since Mary and Bailey were out and opened our gifts from each other. We usually open our gifts on Christmas eve, it's been our little tradition, so it worked out great. Rylee got lots of good stuff, and she had a ton of fun opening her gifts. Ryan and I also got some good gifts, including a new camera for me and an Ab Rocket for him. We are very blessed.

      Monday evening, we headed over to Liz, Brandon, and Kade's house to have the 3 cousins' little Christmas party. They got lots of good gifts, but most of all, they had a lot of fun playing together. They were wild all night and they all enjoyed playing and playing.

      Christmas morning we woke up, opened stockings, then headed to Granny and Paw Paw's for Christmas breakfast. It was great. Again, Rylee got tons of great gifts, and we had a good time visiting with family.

       When we got home from Christmas breakfast, Ma and Pa arrived to celebrate Christmas with us. We were excited to be able to spend Christmas day with them, because it has been 3 years since we've been together for Christmas. It was wonderful. We had so much fun visiting, playing, laughing, eating, and opening gifts.  It was really fantastic.

      Friday evening, we met Nonna and Granddaddy for dinner, then headed to their house to celebrate Christmas with them. Rylee got spoiled beyond belief! She had so many gifts to open that she had to take breaks in between! She loves her Nonna and Granddaddy so, and she sure has them wrapped around her little finger! They spoil her rotten, and I love it! Ryan and I both got several gifts as well. We were very blessed this year.

    We all got a lot of great gifts this Christmas, but the greatest gift is the gift of family. When Jesus was born to Mary, she began the enormous job of raising the Christ. I am forever thankful for that gift, and also for the gift of my sweet little family. We had a very merry Christmas, I hope you and yours did as well!

First Snow of the Season

      Today we woke up to a winter wonderland. It is the first snow day of this 2012/2013 winter season!! Rylee LOVED the snow. She just ran around and around. We went out and played in it 3 different times, and each time she did NOT want to go in but it was COLD out there and she has a bit of a cold, so I didn't want her staying out too long.

    It didn't snow a whole lot, but it was enough to be pretty and to play in. It is so crazy the difference a year makes! Last year, Rylee hated the snow because she wasn't steady enough to walk in it yet.

    I'm hoping this snow day only 5 days into winter is a sign of a snowy winter. Like Rylee's shirt says, "I love snow days!" We're on break from school right now for Christmas, but if it wants to snow several more times during January and February and cause a few school closings, that'd be just fine with me... ;)

Half Birthday

      Happy half birthday to my Rylee Love! I cannot believe that my BABY is two and a half! She is growing more beautiful, more full of life, and more intelligent everyday. I love her with my whole heart, and I am so very blessed to be this angel's mommy!

      Rylee wears size 3T clothes and size 7/8 shoes. She is just over 3 feet tall and weighs about 27 lbs. She wears big girls panties all day, even during naps, but still wears a pull-up to sleep at night, mostly because we still have pull-ups to use. Once they are gone, she will not wear anything but panties 24/7. She is fully potty trained and has not had any accidents in the last month, except when she was sick with a stomach virus. She eats well and sleeps well. Her picky eating has gotten better gradually, but she's still very opinionated about what she eats.

       And she is just the smartest toddler I have ever met. She has such a love for learning and she picks up on everything she comes across. We don't have to sit down and drill her for her to learn new things, but we do try to work with her a little each day, for about 20 minutes each morning, and she just keeps on learning. Her vocabulary is clear and phenomenal, sometimes she says thing that just blow me away. She can identify all of her letters, lowercase and capital, and she knows which sound each letter makes. She also knows that vowels make 2 sounds. She can identify her written name and tell you how to spell it one letter at a time. She knows her full name and age. She knows all of her 2D (square, circle, triangle, rectangle, star, heart, oval, arrow, crescent, pentagon, octagon, hexagon, trapezoid, parallelogram, quadrafoil, diamond) and 3D shapes (sphere, cone, cylinder, cube, pyramid,  rectangular prism, hexagonal prism, octagonal prism). She knows all of her colors, and she knows that red and blue make purple and red and yellow make orange. She can count to 20 with one-to-one correspondence. She shows a lot of signs of pre-literacy, like pointing to each word in a book and saying one word for each word written. Right now, she's learning her days of the week and months of the year. She pretty much knows everything. Haha. Can you tell I am just a little bit proud of my sweet girl?!

Austin's Birthday Party & Zoo Lights

      Yesterday, we had a very busy day, but a very fun-filled day! We celebrated Austin's first birthday with his first birthday party yesterday! It was a great party. Everyone seemed to have a very good time and the kids all had a blast. Austin didn't understand the opening presents part yet, but he got lots of good stuff. I was so mad that I left my camera at home, so I didn't get any pictures of all the fun, but it was a great time. I cannot believe that this little man will be 1 on Wednesday. It really does seem like he was just born! He is the cutest little buddy. He has such a sweet face and smile, he can light up any room. Happy 1st birthday, Austin Charles! We love you!

       After we left Austin's party, we headed to Memphis to go to Zoo Lights. We had so much fun. The girls were absolutely thrilled and they were happy the whole time. We didn't have a single melt down or freak out or even a single tear. It was a fantastic time.

      The lights were absolutely beautiful, and the girls loved them, but they loved the animals even more. Bailey has never been to the zoo before, so we'll have to take her back during the spring when she can see all of the animals. They only had a few animal exhibits open since it was night time. Rylee was amazed by the reindeer, Bailey wanted to keep her distance because of their horns, but she still enjoyed them from afar.

     We rode on a train that went all the way around the little farm animals exhibit, then we rode a tram that went all around the zoo so we could see all the lights, and for the grand finale we rode the Ferris wheel! The girls loved it! It was so high, that we were worried they would get a little uneasy, but it didn't phase either one of them a bit. They were looking out and taking everything in the whole time. It was the bets possible way to end the night. We look forward to going back again next year.

Christmas City 2012

     Tonight we went to Christmas City in Burlison, just outside of Covington, and we had an absolute blast! Liz and I took the kids last year and we had fun, but this year was so much better! The kids were old enough to really react to all the beautiful lights, and plus this year Bailey and Mary got to come with us, too!

     First we went to La Huazteca and had a yummy Mexican dinner. In true-to-form fashion, Bailey and Rylee shared a kid's pizza plate, but everyone else enjoyed their Mexican food. All 3 kids sat in regular seats, no high chairs or boosters, and it was kind of sad how they've grown up on us! After dinner while checks were being paid, Liz and I took Rylee and Kade outside and they were being silly on the chairs in front of the restaurant.

      When we got to Christmas City, Kade headed to go talk to Santa, while Rylee and Bailey went to get their faces painted. When we headed back to meet up, Kade was just getting his turn to sit on Santa's lap. He did not like being so close to a stranger. Rylee's exact words while observing were, "Mommy, I don't want to sit on the old man." Haha! But she decided he was a "nice old man" after he gave Kade a bag of candy. ;) When we got on the train to tour the campgrounds and see all of the lights, the kids were amazed. They all loved every minute of the ride. We stayed on the train and went around the grounds twice because they were so into it. Rylee wanted to stay on the train, and I bet she would have ridden all night long! After we got off the train, we grabbed some funnel cakes and headed home. The kids were thoroughly worn out from a night of Christmas fun.

     I love making memories like this with my Rylee-girl. I couldn't imagine a better job in this world than being her Mommy and showing her all the best things in life. Just judging by her reactions to all the fun things we've been doing lately, I would say that this is going to be our best Christmas yet! It just keeps getting better. :)



My Little Man is Growing Up

       It's sad, but true! Kaden Scott will be 2 tomorrow! We have spent the weekend celebrating his life, and it has been so much fun. This little boy is loved by so many, and it's easy to see why. He is just the cutest! And I must say he's also the most well-mannered. I love him like my own!

      Saturday was his birthday party. It was John Deere themed. Even Rylee and Bailey wore John Deere outfits to fit in. It was a huge success. Kaden got so many great toy, and everyone had a wonderful time! The kids played and played and played. The party started at 2 and Rylee and I didn't leave until 8:30 because the kids were having so much fun!

      Today we headed to Chuck-E-Cheese to continue celebrating his big day. Te kids loved Incredible Pizza for Rylee's birthday, so we had to do something like it for Kade's special day. It was a blast. It was way more fun this time than it was for Rylee's birthday, it's crazy how quickly they grow, but they were able to play many more games this time and they seemed to be better able to enjoy all the activities.

    We sure do love this little man and couldn't imagine our lives without his infectious laugh. Happy birthday, Kade-man! We can't wait to see all you become!

Twenty-Three

        Tomorrow is my twenty third birthday, but Ryan and I celebrated it last night since today and tomorrow we will be celebrating Kade-man's big day. Ryan made me a yummy dark chocolate cake, and when I got home from work yesterday he had me flowers, a card, and a gift on the table. These things make me happy. :)

       Rylee spent the night with Nonna and Granddaddy last night. She had a blast. It's fine for every once in a while because they love it and she enjoys it so, but I sure do miss her when she's away! Plus I wouldn't want her getting too spoiled. Haha! As if she isn't already spoiled enough. I love my little princess!

       Ryan and I went to Jackson and ate at Olive Garden and finished up our Christmas shopping. We had a lot of fun. It was a little weird to stay out late and not worry about baths and bedtime stories and such, but it is good to get out every once in a while. Tomorrow on my actual birthday we are spending the day taking the kids to Chuck-e-Cheese to celebrate Kade turning 2. That will be the perfect way to spend the day!

No Santa?!

      "You're not going to do Santa with your child? What's wrong with you? Your poor baby is going to miss out!" No, I am not going to do Santa with my children. Ryan and I decided during Christmas 2009, while I was pregnant with Rylee, we would not do Santa at Christmas with our children. Of course, I am going to tell her the story of Saint Nicholas, and allow her to watch cute little Christmas movies and such that include Santa, but we are not going to do the whole pretending that gifts come from the north pole deal.

       "Why not?" We just don't feel it's right for our family. We feel that most of the time children, and adults for that matter, miss the point of Christmas. Even though it is not Jesus's actual birthday, it is the day of the year we have designated to celebrate his birth. We want to try to keep the focus on that as much as possible. Of course, we are going to give our babies lots of gifts, but our gifts can never match the gift that was given all those years ago in Bethlehem. We also don't want to lie to her and have her develop a sense of mistrust. If she can't believe us about Santa, can she believe us when we tell er about Jesus Christ and about God? She's never seen them either... I just don't want to give her a reason to doubt. I also don't want her to feel like she can ever do anything to earn or lose God's love. The whole Naughty and Nice list thing throws me off. No one can ever be "good" enough to earn their way into heaven. It's by grace alone. If she asks about Santa, I'm going to tell her the truth, and stress to her why it's important not to hurt anyone's feelings by telling them what she knows.

       "Isn't she going to be missing out?" Absolutely not! She still gets PLENTY of gifts. We have our own family traditions to make the Christmas season special. We make a birthday cake for Jesus. We pick out gifts for needy children. We talk about the miracle of Jesus's birth. We spend tons of time with all the people we love. Christmas is such an amazing time of year, why do we need a fictional character to make it better? For our family, it is a great time of year without him. We have friends and family who do celebrate Christmas using Santa, and that's fine. That's their choice for their family. Their kids enjoy it, and it's all well and good, but it is just not a part of Christmas for our family, and that's okay, too.

Happy Thanksgiving 2012

       This Thanksgiving was Rylee's best yet. Last year we went to Georgia for the holiday, and Rylee was really sick with a viral infection that eventually turned into bronchitis, so she didnt have a very good Thanksgiving. The year before that was Rylee's first Thanksgiving, and she was just too young to really enjoy it: she was only 5 months old. This year she really enjoyed all the family time, even if she didnt enjoy the meal. Notice her shirt says, "Eat Pizza?" Haha!

     We headed over to Granny and Paw Paw's house for a fabulous Thanksgiving feast with Ryan's family. It was really great to have everyone together. Rylee, Austin, and Jenna played together while lunch was getting ready, and then we all ate until we were STUFFED. It was great. After lunch, some people had to leave to celebrate the holiday with other relatives, but the reat of us just sat back, relaxed, and enjoyed each other's company. It was a wonderful day.

     This family has grown so much recently, and it's true what they say: "The more, the merrier!" I love this family so much! I could not have married into a better bunch of folks! ;)