So many blessings to catch you up on....

1. Brandon is now on staff with FBC Hurst (http://www.firsthurst.com/) He will serve as the associate music minister, while his more specific duties entail leading the praise team, youth choir and orchestra. All aspects of the ministry happening at FBC Hurst are aligned with what we believe and we are sooo excited to join with the wonderful team there! We couldn't be more thankful or happy for this new chapter in our lives!!! There have been sooooo many prayers raised on our behalf, and for that we are truly sooooo grateful!!
2. Avaree is TEN MONTHS old AND she got her first tooth. (No, she has yet to let me get a picture of it.)
3. Brandon has been home for the last week or so and we have gotten some wonderful family time (hence, my desire to actually BE with my family and not on the computer typing a blog, ha!)! It will take me a couple of more days to get all of the posts written, but we have had a wonderful couple of weeks that I want to share with you! Also, we will get to have Brandon on the weekends again!!! THIS IS WONDERFUL news. This means that we will get to be a family on Friday nights, Saturdays, AND Sunday afternoons. Week nights are very short and don't give either of us enough time with Avaree, so it killed me when Brandon didn't get to be with her on the weekends either--especially during the school year! When you have a little girl that grows and changes EVERY DAY, it means the world to us to have that time together--as a family! Thank you, Lord!!!

I'll leave you with a few pictures of the pumpkin doodle on her 10-month birthday!

She pulls up on her own to play the piano... :) (Who needs a stool?)

She loves playing with her Daddy!

She is slightly obsessed with Lois and chases her round and round and round the house! You can see how  Lois (Uncle Spencer's cat) feels about this! :)

Hot-Dog dancing with Daddy and then Mama! :)

cheeser... :)

Stay-tuned for pics from our latest road trips. School starts in two weeks (yes--i am already crying about having to leave my baby girl), so our summer adventures are coming to an end.

Wonderful Weekend! :)

We had a WONDERFUL weekend!!! :)

On Friday, we got to have lunch with Jamie at The Galleria!!! :)

Then we picked Daddy up from the airport!!!!!!!!!!!!! (The following pictures are from the parking lot!!)

"Mama, are you sure this is my Daddy?"

"Okay...I believe you!"

"I love you, Daddy!"

Saturday morning we had brunch with Uncle Spencer and Shannon!!!! (Daddy had to work...) During bruch, Uncle Spencer and Avaree practiced high-fives and she did it several times in a row! :)

Saturday afternoon we got to visit with shea-shea, Uncle Scott and Karrington!!!

"Karrington...I will give you kisses!!"

"Oh Uncle Scott....., I love your glasses!"

Saturday evening...Avaree helped Mama find something to cook for dinner!!! :)

and crawled over Daddy to get what she wanted... :)

Sunday after church we got to have lunch with the Dekats and the Tingles!!! :)

Sunday night we got to go see Daddy's students perform in their Homecoming concert. (Well, Daddy got to see them. You'll see the view that Mommy had--hehe...but who could complain?) :)

Monday morning we got to spend time with Daddy and go to the park before he left for work! YAY! :)

What a wonderful, happy weekend!!! Avaree's tricks of the week: Giving High-Fives, On command (wet) kisses, crawling over and around and on top of EVERYTHING, standing up by herself for several seconds at a time, and laying her head down to go "night night" on anything that is soft (a cloth diaper, a pillow, a blanket, etc.)! What a fun week this has been!

Happy Birthday--from Avaree!

Avaree wanted to wish a few VERY SPECIAL people Happy Birthday!!!

Happy Birthday TODAY to Avaree's Popa (my dad)!

Hapy Birthday SATURDAY to Avaree's Gigi (Brandon's Mom)!

Happy Birthday NEXT THURSDAY to Avaree's Granpapa (my stepdad)!

Avaree loves all of you very much and is sooooo blessed to be your granddaughter! :)

Stay tuned for August's immediate family birthdays: Niecey, Granmama and Uncle D!

Trip to Hemphill and Mama Time!

Avaree and I have had some good girl time since Daddy has been gone, but we are oh so excited to pick him up from the airport tomorrow afternoon! :)

Avaree and I got to go to Hemphill for a few days last weekend and we had a ball! Avaree had only been to Hemphill once and she was only 3 months old, so I very much enjoyed sharing a piece of my history with her!!! Everything in my room is exactly the same, except for an added crib--ha!

I was concerned about how Avaree would do on the trip without someone in the back seat with her, so on the way there, I timed her afternoon nap perfectly and she slept for two hours! Then, my Mom met us in Longview and drove us the rest of the way so that I could sit in the back seat with Ave! The drive back was a different story, but the drive there was very pleasant! In fact, the drive there was even therapeutic for me as it reminded me of my college road trip days... :)

Enjoy the pictures!

My Mom turned our old exercise room into a playroom for her grandchildren (well, for Avaree and her future grandchildren!). She is so talented: She painted a mural of bright colors and included all the things that Avaree likes!

The cat on the wall is Bella! :)

This is my brother's contribution! He's so talented too! Love the bass, Uncle Spencer!

Mom picked out all of Avaree's favorite songs on the piano and Ave loved it!

We played outside and we played outside and we played outside. And...when we came inside, she cried.

One of Avaree's latest tricks is dancing! You can't really tell, but the frog next to her sings and dances--she is dancing to the music! :)

Granpapa made Avaree a swing and boy did she ever love it! If anyone went outside without her (i.e. just opened the door), she would start crying until someone took her out and she would lean toward the swing!

Cheeser! Avaree and I have been so busy playing and I have been so focused on getting pictures of her on my phone to send to Daddy that I have neglected to take many on my camera. Oh well...her eyes are probably thankful for a few days without that bright flash! :)

Brandon is in the first flight group to land at DFW tomorrow (yay!!!!!!!!!)! Please pray for safe travels for everyone!!!!!! We are SOOOOOO excited to see our Daddy!!

Boston Mission Trip

We got up early this morning to take Daddy to the airport. Well, that's a bit of an untruth--we did get up early, but not necessarily to go to the airport! :) Avaree's teeth hurt her all night so she was up a lot and then for good at 5:30. Daddy was too excited to sleep, so he was up at 2. I woke up several times between 2 and 5am listening to Brandon laugh at "Whose Line is it Anyway" and listening to Avaree talk on the monitor! :) Needless to say, we got to the airport early and enjoyed visiting with Daddy's kids and fellow leaders!

Please pray for safe travels (there are 6 different flight "groups" and a total of 265 youth flying to Boston today), effective ministry opportunities, successful concerts that share the gospel, and a smooth, fun trip for everyone involved! We will miss our Daddy!!! He'll be back next Friday at 4pm.

Avaree posing with Daddy and our good friend Ryan!

Thanks for your prayers everyone! I'll keep you updated as I hear from Brandon!