New Years Eve

Usually the end of the year is a busy time because of the holiday travel and this year has been no exception. Last week we got back into town from Dallas late Tuesday night and then we left for San Antonio on Friday after only two incredibly busy days at home. Christmas Day my sister Grace announced the her and her husband Eric were expecting their first baby. Everyone was super excited for them, Late Thursday morning I got a call from my mom saying that she was at the emergency room with Grace because she had been having some bleeding. Right away my heart went out to her because the same thing had happened to me. Of course the first thing that goes through your mind is that you have had a miscarriage. I waited all day trying not to call my mom too many times to find out what was happening. Finally at around 6 pm they had figured out she had had a miscarriage. The whole day I had tried to be strong and hope for the best, but the announcement broke my heart. I felt so bad for Grace and Eric. I wanted to be there to comfort her but I didn't know how. I could only imagine how emotional this must have been for Grace on top of the cramping pain she was having due to the miscarriage. She asked that we still come down on Friday because she wanted Emily and Ally to cheer her up. I found out at the end of our San Antonio trip that Grace and Eric are going to try right away for another baby. I am glad that they are not dwelling on the sadness of the miscarriage but that they are moving on.
Saturday was the Alamo Bowl! We went to breakfast with Stephen and then we ran a few errands before heading off downtown to hang out before the game. We walked around the Riverwalk and then went to an early dinner at the Republic of Texas . We met up with a bunch of Aggies before dinner and it was fun to catch up with them. At around 5:30 pm we followed the crowd over to the Alamo Dome and Dave and I split off to find our seats. The Aggies around us were really friendly. Even though we sat at the very top in the very corner of the dome, we still had a great time. The Aggies played well but did not pull out the win. It was disappointing but by the end of the game, I was too exhausted to really care. We walked back to the Riverwalk with the other 66,000 fans that had watched the game and met up with Stephen and the rest of our friends. They wanted to go and hang out for a while, but after a couple of minutes of walking, everyone realized they rather just go home. We didn't hit any traffic leaving downtown, so that was nice. We made it home around 1 am and crashed into bed. Sunday we went to breakfast with my mom and dad, Grace and Eric. After breakfast we drove back to Round Rock and Stephen came over for a couple of hours before heading back to Dallas. I ran errands and tried to get ready for the upcoming week. I wanted to get to bed early, but Ally decided not to go down until about 10:30. It was an incredibly fun weekend, but very exhausting. I thought we might just take it easy tonight for New Years Eve, but I think we might be going downtown for a kid-friendly event.
Wednesday night we are driving to Houston so that Dave can see the Tomball facility and meet with the manager on Thursday. I will be looking at places to live with my mom and the girls.
2007 has been an exciting year. I am looking forward to 2008 and all it holds for us. Have a safe and happy New Years Eve!

Just a reminder...

"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who are you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."
Matthew 6:25-34

Back Home

Another Christmas has come and gone. We had a wonderful time in Dallas and we were sad to have to leave. Dave and I decided at the last minute to leave late Christmas night and drive back to Round Rock. We thought the traffic would be lighter and Emily and Ally would have an easier time sleeping in the dark. It worked out really well for us. There were a lot more people out driving than I had anticipated, but it wasn't bad at all. Emily and Ally slept really well, and Dave and I had a great time talking about life. We enjoyed being able to have a day to spend together before Dave had to go back to work. As we were leaving Dallas, Dave and I kept mentioning how thankful we are to be back in Texas knowing that we can come and visit the Weirs again very soon.
Yesterday was supposed to be a relaxing day to end Dave's Christmas break but we ended up running errands all day. Dave and I have been saving up for a new camera and we saw a great deal on the one we had been wanting, so we went and bought it yesterday. It is waterproof and shock-proof, just what we need with two babies.
Dave went back to work today. Last Friday, Dave had a meeting with his boss were his boss told him that the Georgetown store no longer needed him. He said that he looked around and found a location in Houston, Tx that may have a need for him and that he set up a phone interview for Dave today. This was kind of shocking news to both Dave and me. We feel like we are just now getting settled into the Austin area and we finally found a church we love. We do not feel ready to move. On the other side, we are so thankful that Dave's boss found a location in Texas for him to interview at. His boss told him that Hope will always have a position for him. That is really encouraging but it may not always be in Texas. Please be praying for Dave today as he prepares and goes through the interview. We do not want to leave Texas. We are excited about the possibility to live in Houston. We know a couple of people there and we will be really close to College Station.
Tomorrow I am headed to San Antonio with the girls. My sister Grace is in town for the holidays and so I decided to go down early and see her. Saturday is the Alamo Bowl! We found out that Stephen is going as well as a couple of other old Aggies. We are really excited to meet up with them for the day. My mom and a couple of my sisters are going to watch Emily and Ally.
I wanted to say thank you to Jeff and Dorcas for another wonderful Christmas. Thank you for opening your home to our family and for allowing Emily to make a huge mess. We had a great time talking, sharing meals, opening gifts, making cookies and eating them, and watching the girls play around. We look forward to next Christmas!
(If you want to see pictures of Christmas in Dallas, click on the Photos link on the side bar.)

Christmas Day

Merry Christmas! If you are reading this blog, you are probably very important to us and we wanted to let you know how much we love and appreciate you all. We are sad for the family and friends we have not been able to see this Christmas, but we are thankful that we are able to share it with Jeff, Drocas, and Stephen Weir. I promise that I will post pictures when we get back home. Love you all!

Christmas Eve

Merry Christmas Eve to all! Dave, Emily, Ally and I are in Dallas with Dave's parents and brother Stephen. We are missing Kevin, Katherine, and Lyla dearly but are still trying to make the most of the holiday. We arrived yesterday just in time to eat lunch that Stephen had prepared and then relaxed a bit during the afternoon. We were supposed to go and see our friends Jeremey and Sarah and their two kids (which happen to be the exact ages of Emily and Ally) but Ally is still a little sick and we didn't want to get their kids sick, so we decided to hang out here with Dorcas because Jeff had to go to work. Dave ended up going out with some of his highschool buddies later in the evening and I stayed and tried to get some Harry Potter reading done. I finished book 4 on Friday and I am almost half way done with book 5. I was hoping to have finished by now so that we could rent movie 5, but Stephen is planning to come to Austin next Sunday to hang out with Dave and me, so we may just wait to rent it then.
Today Emily helped make Christmas cookies and it was so much fun watching her. She rolled the dough out and spread flour around and cut cookies with the cookie cutters. She learned quickly and it was neat to see her covered in flour having so much fun. Tonight we are supposed to go to a Christmas Eve service and then after that, I don't know what the plan it. We are having a great time hanging out with the family and watching Emily and Ally be cute.
We miss you Kevin and Katherine!

Christmas is here!

I cannot believe how quickly the time has gone and now Christmas is here. It looks like we are not going to have a white Christmas but at least it will be cold. Christmas time is always a good time to reflect back at all of the things that have happened over the past year. Last year, the Weir family Christmas was in Atlanta. I had a really good time hosting because I was able to throw a few of my families traditions into the mix. Dave and I had just found out I was pregnant and I was struggling greatly with morning sickness and trying to be a good hostess. We took everyone to the aquarium the day after Christmas and that was a lot of fun. The aquarium was very crowded, but I think everyone still enjoyed it. After the aquarium we all went out to dinner and I remember a conversation about everyone moving so that we could be together. No one was talking about anything specific, but we enjoyed talking about how fun it would be to someday live in the same city or even state (and we all liked Texas). Looking at the conversation, we are amazed at how God works. Dave and I are here in Texas and Katherine and Kevin are in Michigan working their way to Texas, hopefully in the next year or so. All we need now is Stephen! ;) So after the Weir's and Rings left, I was put on bed-rest because I had a tear in my uterus. There was only a 50% chance of Ally living. That was an extremely hard time for Dave and I but it brought us much closer than we have ever been. We had to learn to put our complete trust in Christ and to rely on each other for support and strength. I was really depressed during that time as well. In May or June, Dave and I found out we were being transfered to Texas for his job. We were both so excited and so were our families. Ally was born in August and now we are about to approach another Christmas. I cannot wait to see what will happen between now and next Christmas.
When Dave and I first got to Texas and Ally was born, we promised each other that nothing major would happen for a year. It doesn't look like that is going to happen...

My little sickies

I found out that I do not have strep throat which is good and bad. Good because, well, I don't have strep, and bad because now I don't really know what I have. I have been feeling much better the last two days though, and I have had plenty of strength to handle Emily and Ally. Emily is still feeling sick. She walks around holding her head and saying she is tired and needs a nap (for you who know Emily, this is not her normal behavior at all). I have brought her blanket and pillow out to the living room and set her up a bed on the couch. I let her watch cartoons because that is the best part about being sick. Today she seems to be doing better. She is still not running around so I know she is feeling bad. Allison started coughing and having a runny nose yesterday so I immediately set up a doctor's appointment for her. They didn't have anything available yesterday and since she didn't have a fever, I just went ahead and made the appointment for this morning. Last night, Ally woke up really congested and she was having some trouble breathing so I was really glad I had made the appointment. I took her to the doctor and he said she had a swollen nasal passage and he gave her some medicine. He didn't check for strep, probably because she didn't have a fever. So today I have both of the girls close to each other so they can share our humidifier and watch cartoons. Dave and I were planning to head to Dallas on Saturday for Christmas but I think it is going to be Sunday depending on how the girls are acting. Ally doesn't act like she is sick. She is still squealing and smiling like normal. That is really comforting to see she doesn't feel too bad.
The good thing about having 2 sick babies is that they sleep a lot and I have plenty of time to read, but I rather have to healthy babies and no time to read.

Jingle Bells

Strep Throat

This morning I woke up and I knew I would not be able to take care of the girls because I was feeling so bad. Dave was getting ready for work and I asked if he could get the day off. He had to go in and conduct a meeting but he said he would be home before the girls got up. When I got up, Dave told me that Emily was acting kind of sluggish and that she felt really warm. We made her a doctor's appointment and Dave took her to get a check-up. They tested her for strep throat and she tested positive so Dave called me and told me I should go to the doctor as well. I made an appointment and the doctor took a strep test but the results won't come back until tomorrow. I am glad to finally know what Emily has and now she can get better. She has had a cough for a couple of weeks, but she has acted fine, so I thought she was just getting over a cold. I am glad Dave said he would take her to the doctor and that they had an opening today to see her. The doctor said she will be contagious until Friday, but after that she will just be recovering. I am not sure what I have, but the doctor gave me a prescription in case I have strep and a prescription if it is just a bad cold. Please pray for us. None of us want to be sick so close to Christmas and it is stressful wondering if Ally will catch it.

Sick at last

I have finally caught the horrible sickness that Dave and Emily have had for the last 2 weeks. I had a really bad sore throat and runny nose right when Dave got sick, but then I took a bunch of Airborne and I felt normal again after about a day. For the last week or so I have gotten a really sore throat every night right before I go to bed and when I wake up it is still there, but after I eat breakfast and have coffee, it has gone away. Last night while I was making dinner, I suddenly felt very achy but I took some Advil and it went away. When I woke up this morning I felt fine but as I started making breakfast for Emily and me, I was hit with pain all over my body. I have felt horrible all day and Dave couldn't afford any more sick days to come home and help me. He was sweet enough to come home and get me some soup and medicine from the store (since he had taken all of the cold medicine we had when he was sick) and then he traded closing nights so that he could come home early. It was still really hard to make it through the day, but I know as a mom, there are times when I just have to suck it up and deal with the pain.
At the beginning of December, I made a countdown calendar for Emily and each night we have pulled off another day. It is so much fun to teach Emily about Christmas and to see her excitement, even if it is just because I act excited. Dave was reading one of Emily's Sunday school papers they give to parents when they pick up their kids and it was talking about how children Emily's age can't comprehend holidays yet. All they understand is the parents reactions and if you are stressed out about shopping and cleaning and planning, you kids are going to understand Christmas as a stressful time but if you are excited and loving, they will remember that. It is really good to be reminded of that, because I forget how much Emily is learning and absorbing every day. She copies everything I do. She even pretends to drink coffee with me and at meal times, she pretends to pull pepper out of her pocket to sprinkle on our food. She is crazy!
Ally is sleeping through the night this week. I have been putting her to sleep on her back instead of her stomach and that seems to be working for the time. Some nights she will talk for a while before going to sleep. It is funny yet really annoying at the same time. I am continuing to pray that she does not get sick.

Playtime

Emily, Ally and I just got home from playgroup. I was a bit hesitant to go because I knew I did not know anyone and I was not sure if I was ready to come out of my comfort zone. But then I got to thinking about how we have been in Round Rock for almost five months and I still don't know anyone. I was really surprised by the size of the group and a bit overwhelmed. I am used to the playgroup I went to in Georgia were it was usually just me and two other moms and our three kids. This playgroup had six moms and there were eight kids not including my two. The age groups ranged from 4 months (which was Ally May) to 3 years old. Three of the moms were pregnant. The mom that invited me said there are about 20 moms on the playgroup roster and the size of the group changes every time. She said that sometimes only three moms will show up and other times there are tons of moms. I am definitely not used to being around so many moms and kids. Emily had a ton of fun and Ally could not stop smiling for the first half hour. Ally finally fell asleep half way through so it was a little easier for me to talk to the other moms. I have found out that when you are a mom, it is really hard to sit and have a conversation with anyone because each mom has to keep interrupting the talk to pull their kid out of trouble. If you don't have a kid of your own, you might think that the mom is being rude or just doesn't want to talk to you, but you can't take it personal. I don't think I will ever adjust to being interrupted or having to interrupt the person I am talking to, but at least I know it isn't personal.
I was not able to watch the finale of Survivor last night because Dave was watching TV so I have been trying to avoid the radio and TV today until I get a chance to watch it. I almost ruined it for myself because Yahoo is our homepage on the internet and they were doing an article on the Survivors. Fortunately they didn't have the winner posted. I am looking forward to putting Emily down for a nap and watching the finale.
(The picture today is of Emily and me at the High Museum in Atlanta)

Ever Changing Blog

I want to start out by apologizing to my faithful blog readers for the continued changing of my blog template. I am just trying to find what I like, so please bear with me. Thanks.
The pictures today are of Dave and me when we were dating. I can't believe how young we look!

Today was a normal Sunday for us. We have been going to the 9:30 am service at our church because it is a little less crowded than the 11 am service. The church is so big that it has three services on Sundays. When I was picking up Allison from the nursery, a lady introduced herself to me and was telling me about the New Parents class that she goes to. She was holding a young baby and she said that was her daughter and that she also had a two year old. How awesome is that?! I jumped at the chance to ask her if she knew of any playgroups that I could get involved with and she told me that she actually hosts one. If that is not good enough, it gets better! She lives in Round Rock, just down the street from me! Our church is in Austin, about 20-25 minutes away from our apartment, so the fact that this lady lives so close to me and hosts the playgroup is really awesome. It is such an answer to prayer. I have been praying for a friend here in Austin. It has been hard moving from Georgia were I had such good friends, to being here with two kids and no friends. I am so thankful that I was introduced to this women and that she was so willing to open up to me.
Dave went and picked up Emily from her Sunday school class and he came to the nursery were I was chatting away with my new friend. In the car Dave began to tell me that he cannot believe how open I was being with her and how not-shy I was. If you knew me five years ago, I was extremely shy and I would never open up to strangers. Having two kids and moving away from Texas, my home of 23 years, had made me much more outgoing. If I don't put myself out there, I will not make any friends.
This afternoon we took Emily to the park. It was a bit cold (nothing like you Michigan folks though) but Emily still had a blast. I had to stay in the car with Allison because she wanted to eat, but then when she was being fed, she decided she wanted to look around. I was ok with being in the car though because it was nice and warm. We watched Emily and Dave play around on the slides.
This week seems to be uneventful for us. I guess it is the calm before we go to Dallas. Our plan as of today is to drive there on Saturday but last Friday, Dave got off work at around noon because he ran out of hours (before going overtime). If that is the case this Friday, we may head to Dallas on Friday. Until then, I will slowly be getting ready to go. You have no idea how much work it is to travel away from home with two kids! There is so much stuff to remember.

It's the weekend!

Right now I feel like I did when Allison was first born and we brought her home. I did not sleep well at all last night, or any other night this week. Allison is still sleeping in Dave's and my room and she is such a noisy baby. She has slept on her stomach since we brought her home from the hospital because she would not stay asleep any other way. Allison has learned to roll over both ways and she keeps rolling over in the middle of the night and waking herself up. She fusses until I go and turn her back onto her stomach and as soon as I lay her down, she rolls onto her back and starts to fuss again. I have tried letting her just cry until she falls back asleep but that usually takes about 5 minutes, and in the middle of the night, that is a long time. I desperately want to move her into her crib in Emily's room, but I don't want Emily to have to deal with Allison's noises. I am just not sure what I am going to do.
My mom and sister came up from San Antonio yesterday and Dave and I got to go out for the evening. We had a nice dinner at P.F. Chang's and then we went to Target to do some Christmas shopping. We finally found Emily a couple of things that won't drive us too crazy. This morning we all went out to breakfast and then we came home and watched Emily run around for a while. After my mom and Jennifer left, Emily and I went to the grocery store. I thought Emily was going to be cranky because she usually is after my mom leaves, but she did great. The store was pretty crowded, but we got everything we needed. I was super excited because I had a bunch of coupons and I saved almost $30 with them. Dave and I have been taking out grocery money in cash and we have a weekly budget with that. Any leftover money we get to use to eat out during the week, but with formula and diaper purchases, we have not been having any extra money to eat out (that hasn't really stopped us from eating out though, thus affecting the rest of our budget negatively). It is a really good feeling to be able to save that much money and still get everything we needed.
We don't really have any other big plans for the weekend. It is really nice to have Dave home today since he has been working every Saturday since we moved back to Texas.
I cannot believe that Christmas is next week! This time next week, we will be in Dallas with Dave's family. We are really looking forward to getting a way and seeing loved ones (we will miss you terrible Kevin, Katherine, and Lyla!).

Girls just wanna have fun

Short and sweet, hopefully

This week has gone a bit slower than I would have liked. I think it is because my mom and my oldest sister, Jennifer, are coming to visit tomorrow and they volunteered to babysit so Dave and I can go out on a date! I have been craving some good Chinese food so we are going to go to P.F. Chang's. I am also excited that my mom and my sister are going to be here. I have been busy trying to clean our apartment this week. I divided up the work so that I did not become overwhelmed with everything. I don't usually clean the whole apartment just because my mom is visiting, but it really needed a good cleaning. I even went outside, barefooted, in the freezing rain to sweep the front and back porches. Today I did the last of the cleaning in the guest bathroom. It feels good to have a clean apartment. Hopefully it will last a couple of days.
Emily and Dave are finally feeling a lot better and now I think I am getting sick again. I went to bed last night with a really sore throat and when I woke up, it was worse. I don't feel sick anywhere else, so hopefully it will go away.
Dave and I are really excited about seeing the Harry Potter movie that finally came out on DVD but I have not read the fourth and fifth books yet so Dave has agreed to hold on renting it until I finish. I haven't really had any time to read though. I started reading the series during the summer when I was pregnant but I got burned out after the third book. I tried to start the fourth one but it is considerably thicker than the first three and I need a break. It is really hard to find time to do anything with two kids needing my full attention. My goal is to have the next two books ready by next weekend so we can rent the movie.
I found out my friend Amy is having a boy! Congrats Amy!

Busy Day

I would not call myself a neat-freak, but I definitely like to have a clean and orderly house. Since Allison was born, I rarely get to clean the way I would like to. Yesterday I was determined to get our apartment sparkling clean. Unfortunately I was only able to get the master bathroom clean and the laundry done. That does not sound like a lot when you look at my list of things to do including the guest bathroom, vacuuming, dusting, mopping the kitchen floor, Emily's room and so on. Every time I got on a roll, Allison would wake up or it was time to feed Emily, or the phone would ring. By the time I had finished those two tasks, it was time to start dinner. I thought maybe I could get more done when Dave got home, but he called around 4:30 to tell me he had to make a delivery run and he would probably be home around 7. Well, at around 7 I got a call saying they had just got to the drop-off sight and he was going to be late. He did not get home until after 9. Dave usually has to close once a week and he gets home after Emily's is in bed. I am fine with that, once a week, when I can prepare for it. I usually have an easy-to-prepare dinner for that night and I know I will have to put Emily to bed by myself. But when I am not prepared for Dave coming home late, it throws me off course. I end up having to neglect something or someone and it is extremely hard. Allison or Emily might have to wait a while to eat and then they get fussy or I might not get to start on dinner for myself until after Emily is in bed. It is very frustrating as last night was. I was completely worn out from cleaning and running around after the kids. I know Dave is an incredibly hard worker and he doesn't come home late on purpose. I just don't know how to handle the random late nights.
Today has been a bit more mellow. Dave has to close tonight which is hard because he got home late last night. He has not seen Emily since Sunday and he probably won't see her until he comes home tomorrow night. I am prepared for him coming home late tonight. I still need to get some cleaning done, but I know not to expect too much. I know Emily and Allison are much more important than cleaning.
Today my pregnant friend Amy is finding out the sex of her baby. I can't wait to hear what she will be having and I wish so much that I could be there with her. She was such a good friend to me when I was pregnant (and even when I wasn't) and I wish that I could return the favor. Amy, I miss you and it was great talking with you last night.

Double trouble!

Today Allison rolled over onto her tummy and I looked down and realized I had taken pictures of Emily in the same pose Allison was in. I immediately grabbed the camera and started shooting. They really do look like sisters!
This weekend has been low key and somewhat relaxing for us. Dave had Saturday off, finally, but he was still feeling sick so we just decided to take it easy. I took Emily to the grocery store with me and I thought I would be fighting a ton of traffic. We live right across the street from HEB Plus which is the greatest grocery store ever! Unfortunately we also live on Hwy 79 which runs towards Hutto and there is nothing in Hutto so they all come to HEB Plus. The store is always packed. I usually try and go in the evenings when I hope it will be less crowded but there are always people everywhere. But Saturday morning, the store seemed almost empty. I am still not sure why there were not that many people there. Emily and I had a good time going up and down the aisles looking for food. I let her help me pick out a couple of veggies at the front of the store which turned out to be a bad idea. Every time I parked the cart she grabbed something off the shelf to put into the cart. Overall it was a good trip, probably the quickest I have had since Allison was born.
Today we went back to Grace Covenant Church which Dave and I really like. We put Emily in their new 2 year old class which is more like a Sunday School class for the 2 year olds than a toddler class. They teach them a lesson and sing songs instead of just letting the kids play the whole time. Emily really seemed to enjoy it. We also put Allison in the infant nursery again and they said she did really good. She was asleep when we went and got her. The worship has been really good and we are ready to stop searching for a church. We are hoping to find new ways to get more plugged into the church because it is rather large.
This week looks to be uneventful but with 2 kids, you never know what might happen. Dave and I are super excited about Christmas coming up and going to see some of our family. Also, we are counting down the days until we go to the Alamo Bowl. 20 days and counting!

Diaper Time

Ok, you know your a mom when you have changed 4 poopy diapers before noon. I am not sure what the girls ate yesterday but today, it was all in their diapers. I don't hate changing diapers. I wouldn't say I enjoy doing it, but it is not something that is hard or that I dread doing. The only time I don't like it is when someone is helping me out for the day and I get spoiled not having to change the girls every time they need a new diaper. I am looking forward to Emily not needing diapers anymore, but for now, I will continue to change at least 6 diapers a day if not more. I cannot imagine what it was like for my mom who had 5 kids under 5 years old. It is something to look up to.
Today we are experiencing the not so pleasant side of Texas. It is a whopping 77 degrees outside and it is supposed to be 83 degrees tomorrow. It is December! Fortunately we had a cold Thanksgiving for the first time in a really long time. I would love to see snow for Christmas. I have only experienced snow twice in my life. Once when I was about a year old and then again during the first Christmas I was married. Dave made fun of me for being so excited about the small amount of snow that had fallen in Dallas over Christmas, but I couldn't help it. It was a rare experience! It also got back up into the 70's that same week, but hey, it was fun while it lasted. I'm dreaming of a white Christmas!
Speaking of Christmas, we found out that Kevin, Katherine, and baby Lyla will not be coming to Dallas this year. We are extremely sad and disappointed but we have also been prepared for the news. Katherine had a c-section and the baby came a little later than expected, so we knew it was likely for them not to come. We are praying that their transition into parenthood will be smooth and that they will be able to visit sometime at the beginning of the year.
(The lovely picture of the day is of Emily at lunch time. She had a cookie and most of it ended up outside of her mouth. Silly girl!)

Baby Bumbo

Allison is growing everyday. We are finally able to put her in her bumbo seat which she actually really enjoys. She has good neck control and her head rarely bobs back and forth. I can't figure out if Allison is doing things sooner than Emily or if time is just passing more quickly because I have 2 kids. I think that Allison is just trying to catch up with Emily. She loves to watch Emily and she even giggled at her for the first time yesterday. I am not sure what Allison thought was so funny, but she was laughing a lot. Emily usually ignores Allison unless she is in a really good mood. Lately though, Emily has been sick so a good mood has been hard to come by. Dave has also been really sick. I thought we were both getting better and Dave even went back to work yesterday, but I think he overdid it too fast. He had to stay at home again today because he felt so bad. I am still hoping Allison will not catch what we have. It would probably be really hard on her poor little body.
Tonight I let Emily bring her stool into the kitchen so that she could "help" me cook dinner. She did a good job of pouring ingredients but I warned her not to touch anything on the stove because it was hot. I turned around to wash a few dishes and of course Emily touches the lid to the pot full of boiling food. I was actually really surprised that she touched it because I have always been able to explain to her why she shouldn't do something and she usually obeys. I think that the older she gets, the more independent she is becoming and she has to try it out for herself. She can't just take my word for it anymore. Well, a couple of minutes later, I let her sprinkle some ingredients into the pot and a few landed on the counter. She was trying to pick them up and accidentally touched the edge of the pot. I think I should stick to letting her help with cold dishes for now.

New niece!

Finally, after much anticipation, my very first niece has arrived. Lyla Katherine Ring was born at 10 pm yesterday to the proud parents Kevin and Katherine (Dave's sister). I think Dave and I are most excited about the fact that Emily and Allison will have a cousin who is in their age group. I was trying to explain to Emily about how she has a new cousin named Lyla and she kept getting it mixed up with Ally. I hope and pray that the girls will be able to grow up together and be great friends.

Today was a big day for Emily. She has her very first dentist appointment. Emily has had some dark brown spots on her teeth and they seem to be getting worse, so I knew it was time to schedule a visit. Plus, I think you are actually supposed to take them when they turn a year old, but I missed that boat by a long shot (I think being pregnant and on bed rest, moving to a different state, and having a baby are a good excuse to not have time to take her though). I was so nervous about taking her because at her 2 year check-up at the doctors office, she flipped out and would not let the doctor touch her. I thought there was no way she was going to let the dentist look inside her mouth because she does not even let me do that. Well, it turns out she did awesome. Usually they do an x-ray after the kid turns 3 because any younger and the kids freak out, but Emily let them take an x-ray and she did great. Next she laid down in the seat and let the dentist polish her teeth clean. He said the spots looked like they were from an iron supplement and that they wouldn't cause cavities. Since I don't give Emily iron, the only thing they thought it might be was the Flintstones vitamins we sometimes give her. She loves them so we use them as a treat if she has been really good. The dentist was able to remove 90% of the spots. Emily let them do as they pleased in her mouth. She was such a trooper and she didn't cry or act scared at all. I was so proud of her. I am also relieved to know that I didn't do anything wrong to give Emily the brown spots. I am brushing good and using the right toothpaste. Next step, potty training. Something I have been dreading for quite a few months now. I have had encouragement on my friend Amy's part because she was successful at it (thanks Amy!). I really am not procrastinating, I just decided I want to wait until January since we have been traveling so much these last few weeks and into Christmas. I was hoping my mom would have some advice, but she can't seem to remember how she managed to potty train 7 kids.

Sick days

On Sunday, Dave and I realized that we had no age appropriate toys for Allison. We had gotten rid of most of Emily's toys when we moved because most of them were thrift store/garage sale finds and they were not worth taking up space. I got on Craigslist and was able to find this awesome Baby Einstein play gym. Allison seems to love playing in it and it will keep her entertained for a short period of time.

Here is what happens when I leave Allison too long in her new play gym. Too cute!
Today marked another milestone in Allison's short life. She rolled over from back to front and Dave got to see it! She has been rolling over from front to back for a couple of weeks now, but we have not actually witnessed that until this past weekend. Now she can roll both ways. It is kind of scary because this is just the start of mobility. I can't remember when Emily started rolling over. Today Dave and I watched one of Emily's home-videos. She was about 6 months old and I cannot believe how different she looked and acted. She could not talk at all and she was just learning to crawl. It was so much fun to look back on what life was like then. Dave and I both laughed at how easy we had it compared to now.
This morning Dave and I both received a call telling us that Katherine has gone into labor. We are both very excited and so anxious to hear back from them letting us know the baby has arrived safely. They have been in my prayers all day. I am praying that Katherine has the strength she needs to get through labor, that Kevin will also have the strength to comfort and support Katherine, and that Baby Ring will have a safe and healthy delivery. (We love you guys and hope all is going well.)
Today has not been a very good day for our small family. Emily has been sick since Friday with a cold. It is impossible to keep her from sneezing and coughing all over everyone and everything, so of course, yesterday Dave and I both came down with the cold. We both had trouble sleeping last night and I woke up at 3 am to hear Dave throwing up in the bathroom. I think he had just taken too much vitamin C. Dave called in sick and he slept for most of the morning. Of course one of us has to watch the girls and since Dave seemed to feel the worst, I took on the challenge. I took some Airborn and I felt alright the rest of the day. I am exhausted but I think I am over the worst part. Dave seems to be doing about the same. Hopefully we will get a good nights sleep. As for Allison, she has shown no signs of being sick, yet. I am praying that she does not catch what we have.

We're going to the Alamo Bowl!

Last night it was decided, Texas A&M is going to play at the Alamo Bowl! This is especially exciting because the Alamo Bowl is played in the Alamo Dome which is in downtown San Antonio. It did not take much consideration before Dave and I decided we both really wanted to go. We got tickets which are above the nose-bleed section, but we are still super excited to be able to go and see the Aggies play. My parents live in SA so they have offered to watch the girls so that we can have the night off. It should be a fun time. Living in Georgia, we were not able to see any of the Aggie games because they were not on regular cable. Since we have moved back to Texas, Dave has missed most of the games, including the ever so famous battle against the Longhorns, due to having to work so much. We are both excited to be able to go and actually see the Aggies play. A year ago, we would never have been able to image an opportunity like this, at least without it costing an arm and a leg.

SAPD

It is official ladies and gentlemen! My brother Andrew is now a San Antonio Police Officer! I would like to dedicate this post to him and to let him know how proud I am of his huge accomplishment.
Andrew is my youngest brother. There are only 2 boys out of the 7 kids in my family (I would have a third brother, Joshua, but he died shortly after he was born due to heart complications.). My oldest brother and sister were gone after they graduated from high school, so Andrew grew up being the only boy amidst 4 sisters. We loved to torture him and get him in trouble and since my Dad promised him punishment if he ever hit one of us, we loved to try to make Andrew mad. But Andrew did not need our help to get into trouble. Andrew was very much a problem child. He threw rocks into our neighbors pool, broke our back sliding glass door, was expelled from school about 5 times before he even got into high school, broke just about every bone in his body, and the list could go on and on. My Dad had both eyes on Andrew at all times. I cannot remember a day growing up when Andrew was not spanked for something he did. He may not have always done something wrong, but my Dad was determined to make sure he did not even think about it. As I have gotten older, I have seen Andrew mature in many ways. He is not the same little boy looking for trouble. He is a grown young man who has gone through rigorous instruction and training and is now an officer of the SAPD. On Friday November 30, we were able to see him graduate from the Police Academy and be sworn in as an officer. I could not have been more proud of him. Please pray for his continual safety as we all know how dangerous it can be to be a police officer.
I have one short story to share about Andrew as well. One afternoon when I was younger, my sister Grace and I were pretending to be lifegaurds and we told Andrew to jump off of our dresser like he was diving into a pool. Well, of course he could not resist a challenge and he jumped off and broke his arm. Since Andrew got hurt a lot, my mom did not believe that he had broken his arm. She made him go to his room and I could hear him screaming for about an hour. Finally my mom decided that since he was making such a big deal, he must be in a lot of pain and she took him to the emergency room. Sure enough he had broken his arm. Grace and I got in big trouble that night and we never pretended to be lifegaurds again.