Happy 30th to my Favorite Brother!!!

I've been so blessed to share THIRTY birthdays with my brother. I have always had a friend, and I am so lucky to have had him throughout my life. He is funny, sweet, hard-working, kind, loyal, handsome, thoughtful and will always be one of my very favorite people on the Earth. He has a unique ability to make me laugh under any circumstance, and until I met Brandon, he was the only one that knew me to the core. I love him so much, and I am so very thankful for him. I am so proud of the man that he has become and the husband and daddy that he is to his two beautiful girls.  I love you, Spencer!  Happy 30th birthday!!!! I only wish that we could still share a cake today! :) I can't wait to see what happens in the next thirty! Our first thirty was so exciting, I can't even imagine what is to come! :) 

(Oh, and happy thirty years of parenting to Mom and Dad!! Thanks for loving us, raising us and sacrificing for us!!! We love you!!!)

Time with Family!!

My Uncle Laverne passed away two Mondays ago. I was at the park with the girls, and I was busy keeping my eyes on Avaree while playing with Felicity, so my phone stayed in the diaper bag. I picked it up as we were walking to the car.  I had several missed calls from my Dad and Brandon. It was one of those moments where I just knew something was really wrong. 
My Uncle had an accident four days after my brother and I were born thirty years ago, so since I have known him, he has had many physical limitations. I know he is walking/running in heaven today, and that makes me so happy! I know it is really hard on my Dad and my Uncle though, as their immediate family is getting smaller. My Aunt, my Granny, and my Paw Paw have already gone to heaven, so it's just two of them left now. Of course, there are also seven cousins and all of our families, but everyone is a little spread out now, so it is hard to get together very often. My Uncle Laverne left a legacy though...and my Uncle Kenneth and my Dad have taught me so much about serving and family. It was always right in front of me, but sometimes it takes something like this to notice it. So very thankful for my lineage and the family that God has given me! :) I will treasure these pictures always!!! 

We stayed at my Aunt Connie's house in Bridge City (her house is next door to the house I grew up in until we moved to Hemphill when I was 13), so it still feels like home to me. Aunt Connie and Uncle Kenneth were precious hosts, even though they had so much going on!

Avaree had a BLAST! She and Aunt Connie read books and played Hi-ho Cherry-O a lot! :)

Of course, she LOVED playing with Colton and Keller! :) This is my cousin, Lauren, holding Felicity, and this is her sweet boy, Colton, making silly faces to make Felicity laugh! :) We had the best time playing with them!

All the kids love to read, and Aunt Connie has lots of books! :)

so sweet! :) This is Lauren's other cutie, Keller! :) They turned five yesterday! I can't even believe that our kids are 4 and 5 now! 

Aunt Connie got Avaree a monogrammed dance bag for her birthday! :) She loved it!!!!

Of course, Felicity got a LOT of attention! :)

So much so, that she fell asleep mid-conversation while Daddy and Uncle Kenneth were talking at the breakfast table! Uncle K had to hold her head up with his arm! :) I'd say she made herself right at home!

Avaree and Keller shared the i-pad well MOST of the time! :)

 Lauren and my sweet niece, Evyn!!!!

 Uncle Spencer and Felicity checking each other out! :)

 Uncle Brandon and sweet Evyn!!! :)

 Beautiful Aunt Shannon and her baby girl!

 Papa, Niecey and the girls before the funeral!

 Papa and sissy!

 The girls faces crack me up here!

 Niecey, Ave and Aunt Connie! :)

 Daddy and his girls at the church! I love these three sooooooo much!

 Somebody LOVES her Uncle Spencer!!!

 Daddy enjoyed being a jungle gym for the big kids! :)

 Sweet Mattox and his pretty Mama, Monika, and Felicity and Aunt Connie! :)

 We were about halfway to Houston in our loooooong trek back to DFW when Aunt Jamie texted me saying they were having withdrawals and needed to see the girls! So, of course, we stopped! :) It was a great chance to put jammies on, feed Felicity, and (best of all) see our family! :) Thanks for letting us pit stop, D and J! Sorry we couldn't stay longer! :)

The girls actually slept all the way back home! Thanks to Mommy holding the paci in Felicity's mouth while simultaneously holding Avaree's head on my shoulder to keep her from sleeping awkwardly in her booster seat! :) Whatever works, right?! :)

All in all, it was a sad occasion, but we were able to spend wonderful quality time with family that we don't normally get to see! God brings good out of everything!

Interview with a FOUR year old!

Like last year, I interviewed Avaree this morning. I loved her answers. They were mostly quick, very matter-of-fact, and uniquely reflective of her little personality! :) Enjoy!
How old are you? FOUR!
What are your nicknames? "Avaree Grace Pooper Face, Love bug, Snickerdoodle, Precious Angel, and Sister!"
What is your favorite color? "Umm...green!" 
What is your favorite animal? "I like my special horsie, Minimus!"
What is your favorite book? "I like Far Flutterby, Fancy Nancy, and all my Brother Bear/Sister Bear books."
What is your favorite bible story? "When God helps the man find the lost treasure in the field, and then he buys the farm field. Oh, and I really love Daniel and The Lions Den!" 
What is your favorite bible verse? "When I am scared I will trust in you God." --Psalm 56:3
What is your favorite TV show? "Sofia the First, Doc McStuffins, and Jake and the Neverland Pirates!"
What is your favorite movie? "Toy Story"
What is your favorite song? "I love "Oh my Soul" (she stops to sing part of it) and "a Tootie Ta!"
What is your favorite food? "Chicken fajitas!!!"
What is your favorite treat? "Icees and Sprite"
What is your favorite toy? "Thomas and Percy Trains!"
Who is your best friend? "Timber and Pip"
What is your favorite thing to do? "Snuggle with you!!!"
What is your favorite thing to do outside? "Swing or play in my sandbox!"
What is your favorite month? "SEPTEMBER!" 
What do you want to be when you grow up? "A Princess!!"
Who is your favorite person in the whole wide world? "Daddy!!"
What did you like best about being three? "Being a Big Sister!!!" (Yes, I cried.)
What are you most looking forward to about being four? "Sissy's birthday and cake!!" 
:) Love this girl so much!

Happy 4th Birthday, Avaree Grace!!!!

Avaree Grace,
Happy birthday to the first baby to ever call me Mommy!!!!!!!!! I still remember the first time you said "Ma-ma!" My heart soared.  I remember the first time you smiled at me. I remember the first time you reached for me. I remember the first time you crawled to me. I remember the first time you ran to me. I truly cannot believe it has been four years since you came into this world. 
You are spunky, sweet, hilarious, stubborn, loving, tender, talkative, and kind. You are so much your Daddy's daughter that sometimes I look at you and see him. You have a lot of your Mommy in you too. You have the best of both of us. 
I remember hearing that trying to prepare someone for motherhood is like trying to explain swimming to someone that has never seen or felt water. I can attest to that. I'm not sure what I expected, but once they placed you in my arms, I knew for sure that I never wanted to leave you. 

I have loved every stage of your life more than the last. From the moment you came into the world, you have brightened my life in every way possible. You have made me love deeper, laugh harder, appreciate more, and expanded my faith! You made my dreams come true. You made me a Mommy!

Tonight, as I tucked my three year old in to bed, knowing that you would soon wake up as a four year old, tears streamed down my face. You wiped my tears, and you told me that you loved me. I have no words to tell you how you daily reach into my heart and fill my life with such joy! 

Oh how I want to protect you from this crazy world. Oh how I want to shield you from pain and suffering. Oh how I want to guard you from hurt. Oh, how I love you.

I love you with every fiber of my being. I am so very thankful and blessed that God chose me to be your Mommy. I feel so blessed to have that honor, and I pray daily that I would be found worthy of such a role. 
May you continue to love Jesus and seek to know him more. May you always have the innocent, uninhibited faith in Him that you have now. 
I love you higher than the sky, deeper than the ocean, wider than the horizons and back again!
Love, Mommy

My Dancing Queen

Avaree started dance lessons last week, and she LOVED it! She has been SO, so, so excited!!! Since we bought her leotard and shoes, she has wanted to wear her leotard all day long! :) I let her wear it a few days at home, and of course it complicated quick runs to the bathroom, but she LOVED it! :) These pictures are from before her first dance class!!! :)

 I cannot even express to you the confidence that she had walking into the studio! She was SOOOO ready! :)

 "Mommy, that's enough!" :)

 They don't allow bows, so I had to at least do a braid! :)

 Warming up in the foyer with some interesting jumping jacks!!! :)

 Look at these sweet little feet! :) She is taking ballet and tap for 55-minutes every Monday afternoon!!! 

 She walked into her class, put her bag down, and sat on a star--like she knew EXACTLY what to do! I was trying not to have panic attack, and she was perfectly fine!!!!!!!!

 Talking to new friends! (She knew NO one there, and she made friends immediately! )

 Look at that happy face!!! :)

 This was before her second class! :) She looks so grown up to me here!!!!

 Don't you love the Sofia tennies with her tights? :)

We get to watch the last ten minutes of class on Monday, and I CANNOT WAIT!!!!!! :) Thank you to Papa and Niecey for paying for her lessons! :) SHE LOVES IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Felicity is Growing: 5 months!!

I'm sure this sounds redundant at this point, but I honestly cannot believe that my littlest angel is five months old today. She has come so far, and she brings us such joy! 

Eating: Felicity still eats every 3 to 3.5 hours during the day! Brandon tried to give her rice cereal for the first time last week, but she spit it all out and wanted nothing to do with it! (I'm secretly happy to keep her little longer--hehe! I know we will try again next month though!) Therefore, she is still exclusively breastfeeding. It is so nice to have the luxury of flexibility with her feeding. For example, if she is happy and playing, I can stretch her feedings longer, or if she needs to take a nap, but is set to eat in twenty minutes, then I just feed her a little early, and then she can take a long nap instead of a fifteen minute cat nap! :) I feel very fortunate to be able to be home with her!

Play: Felicity grabs her toys with both hands now! She loves to hold her lovey, her baby, or her blanket. She pretty much always has to have one of them--especially if I am not holding her! Her latest trick is that she can take her paci out of her mouth and/or put it back in her mouth! This is HUGE! Avaree never took a paci, so this is a new world for me, but I recognize what a huge blessing this is for her sleep! :) She is soooooooo close to rolling over, but she just hasn't yet. She also loves to sit in her bouncer for 10-15 minutes at a time. Her favorite thing is to just be with us. As long as she can see us, she's pretty happy! :) Although, this week she has become quite the Mommy's girl. Her favorite toy is her hands! ;)

Sleeping: Felicity's sleeping is very similar to last month's update. She usually goes to sleep between 8 and 9, and she sleeps until 3-4 am. If I dream feed her around midnight though, she will sleep till around 8 or so! Sometimes Mama just needs to go to bed early, and the dream feed doesn't happen! :) Her bedtime routine is bath with sissy, jammies, reading and prayers in Ave's bed, and then I feed her and put her to sleep. This is usually the only feeding that she falls asleep on. During the day, Felicity usually takes two significant (~1 to 1.5 hour) naps and several (20-35 minute) cat naps. 

Clothes: Felicity is wearing 3-6 month and some 6 month clothes! She is still in a size 2 diaper. I got the girls their first set of matching dresses (and they're monogrammed--be still my heart), and that has been really fun! :)

We call her Felicity, sissy, baby dolly, dolly, lovey, boo boo bear, sister, stister, and sometimes Licy. She's the whole family's little baby doll, and we love her so much! :)
Looking Forward to: Felicity is being dedicated at church next weekend! We are also looking forward to several milestones that are just around the corner: rolling over, sitting up without assistance, eating rice cereal, and making more memories together!!!

WE LOVE THIS BABY GIRL SO MUCH!!!!! :) :) :) :)