Christmas is a coming!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas... at least around our house.

Here is our mantle and tree in the living room.

The hutch in the kitchen all decorated for the season.

The tree in the playroom for all the girls' special ornaments.

This Santa was at my grandparents' home and I always loved seeing it. I am so glad to be able to add it to our Christmas decor now.

The dining room all decked out. I decided to take some Pinterest inspiration this year a get festive with the chandelier. 

Kaylee's tree in her room with a baking theme.

Campbell's tree in her room decorated with everything girlie.

Our house lit up at night. The lights on part of the house were on the roof so the picture is not the best. I appreciate my husband spending a day getting it all put up even though it is not his favorite thing to do.

I love all things Christmas and the merriment of the season! Let the holiday celebrations begin.

It's Party Time!

 Well the day of Kaylee's slumber party finally arrived. I decided to again take the girls to a movie this year but we did change it up a little and went to the drive-in since the weather was so nice. Luckily Rise of the Guardians was playing so I loaded the girls up in Cary's truck and off we went. Somehow I did not get a single picture at the drive in, maybe because we were in line at the concession stand getting funnel cakes, popcorn, drinks, and dippin dots. The choices were endless. We had never gone
to the drive-in before so this was a totally new experience. When the weather cooperates I definitely want to go again. I think it was a big hit with the girls too.

When we returned home it was time for cake and ice cream along with presents of course. This picture is Kaylee with her very first friend she made when we moved here, Chloe. These two have played sports together, attended school together, dance, and church together since the age of 4. They are kindred spirits and always have a good time together.

 Here is Kaylee with Abbie. 

These two have attended dance together as well as church since the age of 5 years old. They have a fun friendship, abby brings out the crazy in Kaylee and I love it.

Kaylee and Anna. 

These girls have danced together, played sports together, and attended school together since they were 5 years old. They act silly together, have each other's back, and really "get"

each other.

 

Kaylee and Maddie

These two girls have the newest friendship of the group. They attend school together and also share a love of sports. I know that there are a lot of memories in the future for these two girls.

It took them a while to go to sleep but they finally accomplished the goal I had in mind for them.
Thank you to all these sweet girls for making Kaylee's birthday so special and filling her days with joy.

Kaylee is 11!!

 Happy Birthday to our firstborn!

 I adore this sweet face!

This year Kaylee got a blue Ripstik, baseball book, and an adult Bible from us.

These navy and silver sequin Uggs from Papa and Nana were probably her favorite though. Like Mother like Daughter.

Dear Kaylee,

         I am so blessed to be your Mom! I can still remember the doctor telling me that I had a girl 11 years ago today. When the doctor placed you in my arms I could not imagine loving you more than I did at that moment but somehow I do. Those big blue beautiful eyes looked at me and my heart melted into a million pieces. I knew at that moment there was nothing in this world I would not do for you. You are one of the best gifts I have ever been given. You mean the world to me and I am so proud of the young lady you are growing into each day. 

        I want you to know some of the characteristics I see in you which are to be admired and celebrated. First of all, you love the Lord. The prayers that pour out of you are so precious and I love that you turn to Him for celebration as well as in times of trial. Next, I am so amazed by the way that you care for others. You want your friends to excel with you at all times. It was so hard for you to celebrate your UIL victories when you had friends who had also studied that did not get a medal. I love that you think of others before your self and how they are feeling. You have the most caring heart of anyone I know. Another great quality is your competitive spirit in sports, fundraisers at school, playing a board game, or grades at school. No matter what goal you are trying to achieve you give it your all and usually end up surpassing whatever you had in mind. There are many more I could list but I am going to end with your love of life. You are always soaking up whatever you are doing at the time. The look on your face of pure joy is infectious. Others cannot help but smile when you are around. You are to be celebrated every day because you are my firstborn and there is nothing that you cannot accomplish. 

      We are so proud of you Kaylee, I cannot wait to see the path God has in store for you over the coming year. You are the joy in my heart sweet girl.

I love you to the moon and back.

~Mom

2nd Grade Thanksgiving Feast

 I was so excited to be able to help with Campbell's Thanksgiving Feast this year. I remember helping with Kaylee's feast in 2nd grade which seems like yesterday but unfortunately was 3 years ago. What? All the children were so excited to be able to wear the costumes they made and eat in the hallway with friends from other classes. It is amazing how excited children can get when they are eating in a different location than normal. I just love days when I get to spend time in Campbell's classroom. I am so thankful for days like today and the wonderful school. teachers, and friends Campbell encounters each day.

Campbell with her sweet friend!

Fort Worth Field Trip

The middle of November I had the pleasure of going on a field trip to Fort Worth with Kaylee's class. Kaylee was excited to ride in a chartered bus while I was excited to ride with a friend and catch up on life. (Parents had to provide their own transportation)

 Our first stop was the Titanic Exhibit which was very informative. It was amazing to see the items that were recovered from the wreckage. There were china plates that did not have a single chip in them, crazy! Another amazing item was a bottle of perfume that they had in a display that you could actually smell. At the beginning of the tour each person was handed a boarding ticket at the beginning of the tour with a passengers name from the actual Titanic voyage. At the end of the tour you got to look and see if you survived along with whatever family members they listed that were with you. This was a big hit for the class. I am happy to say that I survived the wreck along with my children and husband. There was also an IMAX movie about the Titanic which showed how the items in the exhibit were recovered by a well trained team. I would have loved to have been able to spend even more time in the exhibit looking around. I find the whole Titanic experience very interesting.

 Our next stop was the Fort Worth Zoo. We had been running behind all day due to a late start that morning so we had to run through the zoo in about an hour. When I say run I really do mean run. None of the kids seemed to care and our group did manage to see a lot that the zoo had to offer. By the time we loaded back up to head home my legs were pretty tired. All in all it was a great day to be able to see Kaylee with her friends laughing and having so much fun.

 Random shot of a zebra I thought turned out well.

Me and my girl!

It was such a fun day and I am so thankful that Kaylee still wants her Mom to come with her on a field trip. Memories abound from this wonderful day.

Schwab Trip 2012

Well every year I look forward to the Schwab Conference Cary attends because it is usually the only trip the two of us take alone. Also it is somewhere different each year so we do not even have to decide where to go. This year they held the conference in Chicago. Cary had been there before but I had not so it was a whole new experience for me. We flew out on Saturday and checked into the Hard Rock Hotel which was very close to the Magnificent Mile (aka lots of shopping). Of course, the first thing on our list was to find some authentic deep dish Chicago pizza. We found Giordano's within walking distance from our hotel and it was delicious.

 I am so thankful we cannot get pizza like this in Abilene thought because I would be there everyday. I don't think that would be good for the diet.

 Looking toward the Magnificent Mile from our hotel.

On Sunday afternoon we took a stroll around the Lincoln Park Zoo which has free admission every day. It is a really neat old zoo that is in great condition. It was nice just to walk around and explore the area a little bit.

On Sunday Cary surprised me with tickets to the "I Love Lucy" musical that was being performed. It was so good. We ended up sitting next to the nicest lady from Albuquerque, NM who was adorable. Afterwards we went to a supposedly great Chicago steakhouse. Well it was okay but I definitely think Perini Steakhouse in Abilene serves a better steak and definitely at a better price. I learned from this restaurant that they like to pack a lot of people in a very small area too.

On Monday we headed to the Field Museum. Cary thought it would be a good idea to walk since it did not look too far. Well it ended up being pretty far especially when it was so cold and windy. The museum itself was incredible. There were too many exhibits to even name, which is why we spent almost four hours taking it all in.

At least on our way to the museum we got to take in a lot of sights like the famous "bean".

 On Tuesday we went shopping before Cary had to go to start the Schwab Conference he was actually there for. Since I was missing my friends I had to get a picture of me with the Lego "Friends" statue in the Lego store. We also managed to make it to the American Girl store and Macy's. This was the activity(Shopping) I enjoyed the next few days during the time Cary was in the seminars. The main shopping area was decorated for Christmas while we were there so it was neat to see the daily progress as the transformation took place. I have to say of all the places the cafe at Neimans made this girl very happy at lunch time as a break from the shopping.  During the evenings we went to dinners with different companies who he does business with and luckily over the years they have become friends of mine too. Who can complain about nice restaurants and free meals, right?

After I got my husband back we spent a day at the SHED Aquarium which was amazing! It was so interesting to see so many creatures up close. I cannot wait to take our girls there someday.

A picture Cary took at the observation deck of the Field Museum, I think.

 Our last night in Chicago we went to The Capital Grill which is one of our old favorites from our time in Dallas. The food was much better than the first steakhouse we went to and our waiter even gave us a free appetizer. when we go back they will definitely be seeing us again. Thank you Chicago for a great week! We look forward to coming back again one day.

Girls' Weekend

The first weekend in November I had the privilege of getting out of town with some of my dearest friends. We went to Gruene and managed to get some shopping done in San Marcos too. I would say the trip was a huge success. I had always heard about Gruene but never actually been there. What a fun place! We enjoyed a delicious meal at the Gristmill and even heard some great music outside of Gruene Hall. I cannot wait to go back. We may need to take a trailer to hold all our bargains next time.

 My precious friends...

Lori, Megan, Erin, Me, Kelly, Amy, and Amber

Halloween 2012

Here are my two favorite girls on Halloween this year. Poor Kaylee was recovering from the flu so she got to stay home with me while her sister trick or treated with friends. Do not feel too bad for Kaylee though. I went and bought all her favorite candy and two of her sweet friends brought her by a special treat too. She also enjoyed seeing all the little kids in costumes that came to the door for candy. although it was not the best Halloween it was definitely not the worst either. Happy Belated Halloween everyone!

ACU Homecoming 2012

We were so excited around our house when the weekend of ACU Homecoming came this year because it meant we would get to spend some time with some of our very best friends. They are those friends that when you see them it is like no time has passed at all and you pick right back up where you left off. Our children love each other and are the same ages which makes it nice. It was a wonderful weekend and I cannot wait to do it again very soon. We miss them so much!

 Trinity, Kaylee, Trenton, and Campbell

Mark, Stephanie (aka Honey), Me, and Cary

Corn Maize

 On our way home from the wedding we took a detour through Lubbock and went to a corn maize I had read about online. It was something we do not have in Abilene and looked like a lot of fun. The picture above is of the maize design we actually walked through. I was so thankful for my husband and the way he can read a map that day because we did not make but two wrong turns and were able to correct them without much time wasted. I do not know how someone would begin to come up with these designs in the first place. I figured out very quickly I had the wrong type of shoes on, not to self wear tennis shoes next time.

 Here we are at the end of the maize. Notice Kaylee has her shoes off, again a lesson learned in proper shoes for corn maizes. They were so excited when we finished the maize though.

 I always love a good picture of the girls walking holding hands. This is the image of love I try to remember on the days they are yelling at each other.

 Kaylee and Campbell had a lot of fun putting their heads through the different cut outs.

 Campbell on the barrel train while Kaylee was shooting corn out of a air gun.

 We also got to go on a hayride through a pumpkin patch and actually pick our own pumpkins off the vine. They had white pumpkins, orange pumpkins, gourds, and various other types of pumpkins. It was so much fun. There was also a horse ride, smaller maize, and petting zoo to enjoy.

Our family in the pumpkin patch. What a great day! I am so glad that we stopped and enjoyed some family fun on the way home.

Family Wedding in Brownfield

 Well this past weekend was so much fun! We had the honor of attending and participating in Cary's cousin, Samantha's wedding in Brownfield, TX. It was so great to spend a few days with family and Campbell even got to be a flower girl for the first time ever along with her cousin, Chenna. They had the best time running and playing in those dresses, as well as walking down the aisle perfectly.

 Here is Kaylee before the wedding with her Aunt Rae-Rae who was a bridesmaid. Don't they both look great?

This picture is of me with one of my favorite women, Cary's Grandmother, Betty.

The weekend was filled with lots of love and laughter. It is always so wonderful to go to a wedding and relive the the day we took our vows. Praying Nick and Samantha have a lifetime of joy and love ahead of them. 

Wylie Homecoming 2012

Now that Kaylee is in 5th grade I found out Homecoming takes on a whole new importance in the form of a mum. Of course, I did not know this until the day before so I had to give myself a crash course in mum making. Never having done that before I think I did an okay job. I thought the boys gave the mums but evidently if there is no boyfriend (which I am glad we do not have one yet since we are just in 5th grade) the Mom gets to buy it, make it. Most of Kaylee's friends do not have or want boyfriends so that lead to a lot of crafty Moms. Here is the photo evidence to prove my craftiness.

I love these two girls and the friendship that they have had for several years now.

ACU Football

Now that school has started you will find us at football games on the weekends. One of our good friends is the new head coach at ACU and we are so excited for him and his precious family. Of course, we have several other friends connected with ACU football we are always excited to support too. Here are some of our favorite photos cheering on the Wildcats.

 Campbell with Mallory

 Kelly, Me, and Megan

Kaylee with Anna