The Party!

I have pretty much decided there will be no more birthday parties at our house, with maybe the exception of Quin's first birthday. It just isn't worth cleaning and stressing only to have everything messed up in a matter of minutes. From now on we will go somewhere for the party, and come home and be done! We did this with Braidy's party and it was the best. Simple and stress-free and I know EVERYONE (especially the birthday boy) enjoyed it 10x more!

We met at the fire station. One of my best friends from high school is a fireman, and he was so wonderful to let us invade his station for a little bit. The kids just explored and played in the trucks. They tried on helmets, headsets, "drove", climbed up the ladder, looked at the giant tires, and even got to see the truck in action. About 1/2 through the party, they got a call, so a few of the firemen left on the call. The kids all loved hearing the sirens and seeing it all in action. They were back in about 10 minutes, but it was still exciting! Fireman Justin even let us get into the 'basket" and go about 110 feet up in the air! Braidy LOVED it and thought it was the greatest thing ever. He is still talking about "going way up high in the sky on the firetruck!" We had a great time and we are so thankful for Justin for doing this for Braidy. He will always remember his 3rd birthday party!













After the fire station we headed to Holly Hop's Ice Cream Shoppe where the kids got to pick out their ice cream cones or sundaes. We ate ice cream, danced to some juke box music, opened presents, ate cupcakes, and ran around and had a ball! The kids were all so sweet and really enjoyed themselves. We were the only ones in the ice cream shoppe, so it was great....and the ice cream was YUMMMMY!

Three Years Old!

Three years ago today, at 5:43 PM, our sweet Braidy Spencer came into the world and I became a mommy!! Three years have gone by in the blink of an eye. What a treasure he is.

I love this age. He talks and talks and talks and says some of the funniest things. I definitely laugh on a regular basis because of him. Even when I'm getting frustrated or mad at something he's doing, he knows how to make me laugh even when I don't want to. I love laying in bed with him, "pretending" to be asleep and "snoring"...and we'll both just get so tickled and laugh until we are crying. When i'm putting him in bed or BACK in bed at night, he'll get me to come back by saying "I just want to give you hugs and kisses". Or he'll trot in our room after getting out of bed (we are trying to kick this habit) and he'll say "I want you lay with me for two minutes".

I love that he has a sweet spirit. I love that he shares pretty well. I love that he has manners and knows how to use them. I love that he adores his baby brother and knows how to make him laugh and laugh. I love that he looks up to John and loves to play with him. I love watching him learn new things. I love hearing him talk about things we did weeks and even months ago. I love seeing him so excited about the simple things in life. I love that he could and does eat his body weight in watermelon, or any fruit or veggie for that matter. I love hearing him say "I think it's going to be hot out there today!" every single time we get in the car this summer! I love that his imagination is beginning to take off. I love hearing him say the prayer before dinner by himself. I love his hugs and kisses. I love that he loves being with his daddy, helping him do anything and everything. I love spending my days with this little guy. Braidy, we love you so much! I hope you've had the best birthday ever!!

This morning we continued our tradition by making pancakes and putting candles in them. For lunch LuLu had us over for steaks, broccoli, and corn (Just what Braidy said he wanted....broccoli was first on his list). We had cake, opened presents, and played with Crockett! This evening we went and fed the ducks and played some at the park! Special day for a special boy!

Here are some pictures from his birthday!

The Hour of the Turtle

The other day as we were headed out on a quick coffee run, I drove past what looked like a turtle in the middle of the road. I stopped, turned around and sure enough, it was a little turtle! Luckily, I have LOTS of random "supplies" in my car (aka lots of junk that doesn't belong there)....so we found a play "hard hat" and I went and rescued him and we took him home. The boys were in awe of this little turtle. Braidy carried him in, and John put him in the grass. They would just watch him, poke him with sticks (on the shell) and were just amazed by it. We'd go out every few minutes to "find" the turtle. It was FAST too...whoever said turtles were slow had never met our Mr. Turtle. However, after lunch we went out to find it and it was no where to be found. We looked all over and even went next door to see if it sneaked through the small hole in our gate. We never did find it, but i feel pretty sure it's next door and as far away from 2 little boys as it could get. John was certain it was "hiVernating"...Hopefully we will find him again soon. HE was GREAT entertainment for the couple of hours that he was ours!

Fourth of July, 2011

For the 4th this year, Crockett, Jess and Chris came down to visit! We were both bored and so we were so happy they could come and spend a couple days with us. On Sunday we cooked out burgers. Monday morning we loaded up and went to the Parade. The boys loved it...it was an interesting parade, but the boys enjoyed it quite a bit! Braidy and Crockett just watched and clapped for everyone as they walked by. They all looked cute and festive in their red, white, and blue. After the parade we put the sprinkler under the trampoline and the little boys stripped down and they all jumped and wrestled on the slippery trampoline. Good fun with the cousin! We had a great weekend. The best part might have been the SMORES BARS Jess and I made. They were sinful. So good. I meant to take a picture, but they got eaten up too fast....mianly by myself!!!

Quin's "Only Child" Week!

While the older 2 boys were in Houston, Quin was an only child for the first time ever! I think he loved it, but missed his brothers too! It was pretty quiet around these parts, but he got LOTS of loving....and all of mommy's attention! While it was just us, we:

hung out with my BFF Tabor Touchstone (he moved back, yay!!!!!) - look closely, they're already telling each other secrets!:



practiced our rolling and scooting...he's quite the mover now...he rolls and slithers EVERYWHERE!:



snuggled lots before bedtime (there's just something so sweet and peaceful about a freshly bathed baby in their jammies), and


took a trip to dallas to get my brothers back, and we got to go to the ZOO!




What did momma and daddy do with only one child? Momma read a few books. we went on a date to the Parade of Homes while LuLu babysat Mr. Quin, we enjoyed time alone with Quin, missed the heck outta J and B....but enjoyed a little R&R, too! We are lucky to have a Nena and Pops who want to spend an entire week with two very active and energetic boys! I know they will treasure these memories forever!

Father's Day 2011

We were lucky enough this year to have both my dad and Ryan's dad here in town for Father's Day, as well as Ryan, of course! We (it was a group effort) cooked beef tenderloin, a garlic cream horseradish sauce, some mean green chili potatoes, and salad for lunch. It was delicious! The daddy's especially enjoyed it. After lunch Braidy and John were heading back to Houston with Nena and Pops for the week, for Nena and Pops Camp! They were super excited and we were excited for a quiet week also! We took a few pictures, but didn't get all we wanted because it was pretty rushed after lunch to get out of town, since there was a LONG drive ahead. Happy Father's Day to Ryan, Poppa, Pops, and Papaw! We are so blessed to have each of these men in our life. We love them all dearly!