Express Softball

Here are some pictures of the last game the Express played for the season. Kaylee got to do some pitching as well as catching. The girl loves softball! You can put her at any position and she plays her heart out. I am constantly amazed by her ability because I was never one to excel at sports. (I know that is totally shocking to those that know me.) I love watching her do something that she has so much passion for. We are so proud of all your hard work sweet girl!

Cheer Performance

 Each year the girls pick two activities to participate in and this year Campbell picked cheer as one of hers. I think it ended up being a very good thing for her because she got to learn so many new things. Now whether she chooses to participate again next year is yet to be seen but for this year she loved it!
 Campbell showing us her jump at the end of year performance.

Campbell showing off her medal she got for completing the year. I think she was a little excited. I am so proud of her for trying something new.

Saying Good-bye to Mrs. Smith

 This is Kaylee with one of her precious teachers, Mrs. Smith. This sweet lady made the school year amazing for Kaylee and taught her to love writing. Since I taught writing to fourth graders back in the day I know how hard of a task that can be. Mrs. Smith also had a baby boy this year so this picture was taken when she came back to school one day to see the class after being gone for a few weeks. Kaylee was so excited and surprised to see her. Thank you Mrs. Smith for loving our daughter and teaching her so much this past year.

These are Kaylee's classmates for the 2011-2012 school year. I think they were all happy to see Mrs. Smith.

May Farm

The Big Day Campbell had been waiting for finally arrived. It was the day for her school field trip to May Farm as well as celebrating her "school birthday." She was so excited she could hardly stand it! I found out when I arrived at May Farm that Campbell's sweet teacher gives them a stuffed monkey for their birthday. As you can see Campbell loved the money very much and it just added to her joy.

 I am not sure of the name of this goat but some of the other animal names were, Casanova, Dalai-Lama (the Lama), Nemo (because one ear was bigger than the other on one of the goats), Rosie O'Donkey, Dixie Chick (the chicken) and the list goes on. The adults were the ones who got the humor in the names but that did not keep the kids from laughing.

 Each child gets to pick from a variety of animals to hold so Campbell picked the duck.

 Campbell and Ella riding the horse together. They were so happy.

Most of the girls in Campbell's class are pictured here waiting patiently for their turn on the horse.

We had a wonderful day together at the farm. I cannot believe I will not have another field trip to this wonderful place. Ms. May is a true treasure to Wylie and all the children who have gotten to know her over the years. Thank you for the memories Ms. May, I might have to find a way to tag along with the first graders next year;-)

Awards Assembly x2

Warning Bragging Alert: We are so proud of both of our sweet girls and they way they continue to excel in school each year. All we ask is that they do their best. It has become apparent that along with sisterly love comes sisterly competition which includes grades in school. I do not think that is a bad thing;-)

 Campbell with her Academic Excellence Award as well as t-shirt. This award was for her having all A's on her report card this year. Other than perfect attendance which we did not achieve this is the only award they can get in 1st and 2nd grade. I think she is pretty proud of herself.

 Kaylee with her Academic Excellence Award for having an A average on her report card, A Honor Roll for having straight A's on her report card for the year, and her Duke TIP ribbon for being accepted for her perfect scores on her TAAS/TAKS last year.

 Campbell with her sweet friend Ella.

Kaylee and her best bud Reid

Mother's Day

Here are a few Mother's day photos...

My parents came to our house to celebrate the occasion. We had a good weekend of just being together.

Welcome to Our New Kitchen

Well our remodeling project has been done for a while but life has gotten in the way so without further delay here is our new kitchen. Well this picture is actually looking into the living room. There use to be a half wall there with a spindle but now it is open and makes the room feel so much bigger. Thanks again to my friend Larry for taking out that half wall and about 3/4 of the rest of the kitchen on demo day.

Here is the view from the living room into the kitchen. The chandelier is new thanks to a great bargain on Overstock.com. I also got the knobs and pulls for all the cabinets from there too.  

This is my new curtain that my sweet friend Teanie sewed for me. I love it!

Here is a view of the left side of the kitchen before the remodel. I don't know about you but I am trying to forget it. Then in walked Phil the magician with his company Covenant Contractors and I got this...

 I still cannot believe after 6 years I get to look at this every day.

Here is the right side of the kitchen obviously before the remodel.

 The new and much improved right side of the kitchen. I am over the moon with how it all turned out. I am so thankful for my husband who realized there was a need for a remodel, wanted me to get the kitchen I had dreamed of, never complained about the cost, loves me enough to live through it all, and for writing the checks. Then I am thankful for Phil and his amazing talent, for hiring wonderful workers  to make my dreams a reality, his attention to detail, and for putting up with me through it all. Hopefully I was not too hard to deal with;-) He still answers my calls so I will take that as a good sign.

 This is a closer view of the backsplash behind the cooktop as well as the sink.

Here is the backsplash with the under cabinet lights on.

Here is a closer look at the tile that can be found in the kitchen, laundry room, and guest bathroom.

 Now for a few Pinterest ideas. The above cabinet is where our pantry use to be. It is located in the kitchen beside the dining room. I think this will be a great coffee bar, microwave storage, and serving area. We have loved it so far.

 The next Pinterest idea is this chopping block that is located in a drawer above the trash can. The cabinet maker did such a great job I do not want to cut on it because it looks so pretty.

 I hope you have enjoyed the tour of the kitchen. I am so happy that it is finished and have been cooking away since its completion. 

Bible Bowl Awards Luncheon

 Last Sunday we got to attend an awards luncheon after church for the Bible Bowl Teams at our church. This year they learned the book of Genesis and I do mean learned it! There is nothing about the book of Genesis that Kaylee could not answer. Not only did they got to LTC in Dallas to compete but they also went to four other meets in surrounding areas. The last meet was there best showing. They came home with a 6th Place trophy out of 21 teams that competed. Kaylee even had the highest score of the four in her group where she was one of the younger members. We were so proud of the way she applied herself to this challenge and looked forward to every practice and competition as well. Most of all I am proud of her desire to know God's word better. That really makes a Mom's heart happy.

Each member had a chance to earn points throughout the school year by completing homework, attending practices each week, taking quizzes, designing a shirt, and attending the meets. Kaylee earned the Gold + level which meant she acquired over 350 points. That's our girl, the overachiever;-)

Thank you to all of the people who helped Bible Bowl over the past year and helped make it fun for our daughter. May you all be blessed beyond measure.

Rangers vs Yankees

 Cary and Kaylee got a four game pack of Rangers tickets for Christmas from my parents and April 23 was the first game for them to go see. They already knew it would be a good game because it was the Rangers vs Yankees. What none of us knew when they were purchased was that it would also be the game where Pudge Rodriguez would have a retirement ceremony before the game. I have to say that I was a little jealous that they were going and I was not. When Cary and I started dating and through many years of our marriage this was the man behind the plate at all the Rangers games. He has an infectious smile and incredible gift as a catcher. I am so glad that at least part of our family got to be there and that the Rangers honored such a key member of their organization with such a great tribute. I heard from my family as well as many news outlets the best part was when Pudge decided instead of throwing out the first pitch, he needed to be behind the plate catching the ball. I love that!

 Two of my favorite Rangers, Nolan Ryan and Pudge Rodriguez.

 Another reason it was a great night for Kaylee, Derek Holland was pitching. Unfortunately, the Rangers lost this night but I think it was still a lot of fun for Cary and Kaylee. I love hearing all about the things that went on at the game and seeing the excitement in Kaylee's eyes afterwards. I am so glad that she and her Dad share this love of baseball. Wonderful memories!!

2nd Annual Talent Show at Church

 My sweet friends at church put together the 2nd Annual Talent show a few weekends ago and once again it was a big hit. Kaylee is about to complete her third year of piano and still loves it. I am so glad that she has learned to play so beautifully. The song she chose to play this year was "Sanctuary". I was so proud of her for doing such a great job.

In this picture are the Bible Bowl Teams we took to LTC this year. Kaylee got a bronze medal and her team got a silver. She was so excited and so were we! Way to go Kaylee!!