Merry Anniversmas

Dear Hunk-a-Hunk of burning LOVE,
Today we celebrate ten years together. (if you forgot it's not too late to pick up a card on your way home from work...haha!) WOW, hard to believe it's been ten years but it's even harder to believe that we were crazy enough to tie the knot this close to Christmas. I've been thinking a lot lately about our last ten years and the more I think about us the more thankful I am that God made you, my perfect match!
After our first date in Feb. 1999, I knew that you were the man I was going to marry.And it obviously didn't take long for you to see the signs either because three months later you proposed.Of course I said yes and seven months later we were getting hitched! Getting married to you was absolutely the BEST thing I've ever done. We are definitely like peas and carrots and we have just always had so much fun together. Whether we are camping out in the mountains testing the love limits of how many days newlyweds can actually sleep in a tent without showering...lol! (by the way the answer is three..haha!)
Or reeling in sharks in Port Aransas. We have always just had FUN!
We have been together through so many milestones in each other's lives. We both survived turning 30.
Of course for some of us this happened more recently than others...haha!

We also made it through law school while living apart for a semester. I will always be so proud of you for all of your law school accomplishments especially graduating number ONE in your class! (thanks to my love and support of course!)And I can't forget the amazing MIRACLE blessing we picked up during law school. Our wonderful little Rhett Allen!
We've always been there for each other and I can't imagine riding the infertility roller coaster with anyone else. You were my rock through all the failed attempts and what seemed like millions of injections you administered.Every struggle we faced was all worth it when we finally got to hold our precious baby Wyatt Forrest in our arms!
As we look back at the history and memories we have made together, I am more in love with you today than I ever thought possible. We have come so far together just look at the ghosts of our anniversary past.

And a few favorites through the years.

Which finally brings us to the present.

I LOVE you so much and I'm truly thankful that you are still my best friend, soul mate, baby daddy, Buck to this Edna, provider, comedian, guitar playing, song writing, sweet sugar daddy, hunk o' mine! Merry Anniversmas number TEN! Oh and I can't forget about MUSTARD!

Christmas Catch-Up Before Christmas

We took the boys to Bass Pro Shops to see Santa on November 21st. Yes we went super-early but by that time our house had already been decorated for two weeks and so we were in the Christmas spirit. (since we are always traveling for Thanksgiving we always decorate early so that it's totally done by the time we get back home)
We were all having a great time at BPS playing games and browsing around until it was time to meet the big guy. Rhett just jumped right up in his lap and let him know he wanted a Lego train. R has never been scared of Santa and has always just happily gone to everyone. Now W on the other hand had a little more anxiety than big brother. He didn't totally have a screaming melt down fit but he did let us know by his facial expressions that he was not happy with us. Of course being the mean mommy I am I made him stay in his lap until we got a presentable picture.

W survived his encounter with Santa, I'm just hoping that it didn't scar him so much that he has to call the Kindergarten Hammer...AKA Rhett Newman Attorney at Law! Look at our cute "Laller" as R calls it. For Career day on Dec 3rd he decided to go as a little litigator just like his daddy. (except I guess daddy would be the big litigator right? HA!) He carried his binder and library book to school in one of daddy's old Westlaw briefcases and he thought he was big stuff. Of course we did as well.
Rhett has just been amazing us daily by how grown up he is getting. Not only does he want to be an attorney already but he actually lost his first tooth on December 10Th. His two bottom teeth have been loose since before Thanksgiving and we knew it could happen any day. He was already scheduled for his six month cleaning and the hygienist numbed it up a little and just pulled out the one that was hanging by a thread. When she pulled that tooth out I got so teary eyed. I guess loosing his first tooth really makes him getting older a reality that I can't deny any longer.

Our big boy was so excited to have the tooth fairy come for a visit but not excited enough to let me pull out his other tooth. So I thought maybe if I take him ice skating he'll fall on it and it will fall out...just joking. I didn't actually want him to fall but the thought did cross my mind. (don't judge!) In all actuality I have fantastic childhood memories of going ice skating every year at the Houston Galleria and I was hoping to make some of those same magical memories with R.
Unfortunately I made memories but they were mostly of me skating by myself. HA!

After two laps around hanging onto the wall R decided he was done. I did have fun with my boy out on the ice and even had moments where I was so proud of him for letting go of the wall and trying it on his own. I was even more proud of him for not quiting after falling. Once R was done it was time for Michelle Kwan me to strut my stuff. Here I am getting ready to to preform my Triple Lutz.Oh no Jason couldn't snap the pictures fast enough and he missed me spiraling through the air. Well maybe next time. HA!I hope that whatever you and your family are doing to get into the Christmas spirit is a fun and blessed occasion.

Santa E-mailed Rhett

This is SO cool. Click on this link HERE to see the e-mail Rhett got from Santa last night. Then click HERE so that your children can get in on the fun as well. You'll need to go in and answer a few questions about your kiddo and then the e-mail is sent to you. Rhett was truly just mesmerized by the whole thing and wanted to watch it over and over. It is just really so neat! Let the magic of Christmas begin and don't forget to enjoy every second along the way!

Christmas Card Carousel

I totally heart sending and receiving Christmas cards! I know I'm like many of you who absolutely can't wait to check the mail each day to see everyones beautiful families. I may be ruining the surprise for many of you who haven't gotten our card yet because I'm a loser and they are just getting mailed today...YIKES! (I know this is way late for me) I hope you will forgive me when you get it and see the two cutest little boys.

So here it is our 2009 Christmas card!

I'm behind getting our card done because not only do I design my own but I also do them for several friends, family and my actual customers. My card is always the last one I do but I'm very happy with how it came out this year. (photography for 2008 and 2009 cards done by Glenna Harding Photography)

Last years card with little Wyatt in my tummy

Card for 2007

Thanks for stopping by and Merry Christmas! Click on the Christmas card carousel button above to see more great Christmas cards.

Eleven Months ALREADY?

Well here we are again chronicling another month of Wyatt milestones. Once again I'm just in shock that it's already time for this monthly post. And as you can see by the pictures above it is proving to be pretty much impossible to get a shot of W sitting with all the blocks in place, so it's probably for the best that we only have one more month of pictures with the blocks. I'm planning on stopping at his one year picture. Don't worry you know that this camera happy momma will still be snapping away just without the blocks. Well let's see what all Dub-ya has been up to this month.

• He weighs around 20lbs and is wearing 12month clothing
• He is still wearing size 3 diapers but the next package I buy will be size 4
• He still has six teeth and is trying to cut two more on bottom so he has been full of drool lately
• He is getting braver and braver in the standing and trying to walk department. He can take a step between two objects close together but hasn't ventured out without something to hold on to close by.
• He LOVES to sing and it really seems like he tries to match the pitch of songs he hears. The other day while I was cooking I did the "duh, duh, duh" (the first sounds of the Star Wars Imperial Death March) and Wyatt matched the sounds exactly after I did it. Jason and I looked at each other in amazement that he sang Darth Vader's song...lol (can you tell I'm in an all-boy house to even know that song HA!)
• He is also saying Mama pretty regularly now and some of the time it actually means me.
• He is eating EVERYTHING!
• Still nursing but we are down to about three times a day. We are starting to think about weaning at age one.
• He can climb all the way up the stairs so fast all by himself and he LOVES playing upstairs with big brother. They play up there together while I'm cooking dinner and it has really made a difference in our dinner routines.
• He is still the most strong-willed baby we've ever seen we are trying to reel it in a bit.
• He makes the funniest faces at people in the store. It's a mixture of concern, happy and who are you and why are you talking to me.
• He still squishes up his face and hyperventilates when he's really happy about something and he's always happy when daddy comes home from work.

He is still the best $20K we ever spent...lol (three IUI's and two IVF's) and we wouldn't trade him for the world. We just love our little W so much and his little personality has just stolen our hearts.

Sneak Peak

Click here for a sneak peak of our latest family pictures. If you are in need of a photographer in the Houston area, I highly recommend Glenna Harding Photography. Last year she did our family pictures, my maternity session and Rhett's five year pictures. You should check her out.

Christmas Tour of Homes

This year I'm joining The Nester on the Christmas Tour of Homes. Welcome, please come in! This is the outside of our house and the entryway.

Oh where are my manners...I'm sure you're hungry for a yummy little snack after touring all of the beautiful homes in bloggy land. Please enjoy some of my chocolate wreath and make sure you scroll down for the recipe that will be a big hit at your next Christmas party. While you're enjoying your snack take a look at my Nativities. I LOVE my Willow tree set that my MIL gave me and we even have an heirloom set that was hand painted by my husband's grandmother.

Here is our mantle and stairs.

Here is our main tree with all of our family ornaments on it. When I say "main" I mean only. HA! With an into EVERYTHING baby we only put up one tree but I would LOVE to put up a "pretty" tree in the front dining room. Maybe next year!

We LOVE Advent Calendars and Jim Shore pieces and don't you just heart my little deer?

If you have boys then you will understand why this was my BEST purchase of the season. The Lego Advent Calendar and Lego Christmas Toy shop have been the biggest hits around here. My son has been an angel at school just so he can open up his Lego calendar to see his daily surprise.
Each year I have struggled with how to display all of the wonderful Christmas cards I get and a few weeks ago I stumbled across this post over at Life is Glamorous and Fabulous. As soon as I saw her creativity I knew this was my solution. Next year I think I'll spray paint the tree branches red, but I'm just so happy with how it turned out. Please don't panic if you don't see your card on the tree I have them facing both sides. Well if you don't see your card because you haven't sent it yet, then what are you waiting for, I still have bare branches at the top...HA!As promised here is your recipe...

In a large bowl dump 1 bag of marshmallows, 1 bag of chocolate chips and 1 stick of butter. Melt all the ingredients in the microwave for 5 minutes. Stir the above ingredients until it looks smooth an chocolaty. Now stir in the Golden Graham cereal until it is all coated with the chocolate mixture. Next spoon out on a platter to form a circle. Decorate with red and green M&M's and make a bow for your wreath out of Fruit by the Foot Fruit Roll Ups. Voila, this has been a major hit every time I take it somewhere. I make a variation of this for Halloween as well.
Thanks again for stopping by, please come back anytime! Click on The Nester's link below to continue the tour.

"Dude, You've Got to be Kidding Me!"

Well I guess Al Gore's Global Warming theory has finally made it to Houston...HA! There was absolutely nothing warm about our snow day but it was filled with more fun than should be allowed. The snow started coming down right after I dropped R off at school around 8:00 and didn't stop until the evening. I had to pick R up for a Doctors appointment at 11:00 so after I dropped him at school W and I headed to the store to pick up all the ingredients to make my mom's homemade hot chocolate. When we made it back to R's school everyone was there picking up their children, it was CRAZY! As soon as R walked outside to witness the snow coming down he said, "Dude, You've got to be kidding me!" You could literally see the excitement and joy just oozing out of his body. Once we got home and bundled up we made a snowman complete with Jason's Halloween mullet. Once W was down for a nap R and I headed to the golf course with all the neighborhood kids for a serious snow ball fight. We had so much fun pelting each other despite our frozen phalanges. It was nice when we finally came in and warmed up with the best hot chocolate in town. All of the excitement reminded me of the sweet videos I got of Rhett during last year's tiny snowfall. I will never forget that sweet little voice proclaiming, "It Might be Christmas Momma!"
The boys got up early this morning and headed out to the golf course with our neighbors and slid down the hills on rubbermaid lids. As you can see they had a total blast! Our snow is melting quickly this morning but believe me we soaked up every second of FUN possible. Thank you God for giving us this time to stop and just enjoy playing as a family enjoying these fleeting little moments.

Turkey Time in Texas

Okay yes the stereotype is true...we all shoot things in Texas!HA!

And yes sometimes we go a little gansta when shooting...lol! Attention all you burglars who read my blog if you break into my house you will come to face to face with one of the above weapons and yes I might even turn it sideways to shoot you...but that would be for effect only! HA! When we aren't shooting things down here in Texas we are busy raising the two cutest blessings God has ever given!

We celebrated Thanksgiving out at "The Barn" aka "Deer Camp". The kids all LOVE the freedom of running all over the country like kids raised in a barn do...lol! W LOVED crawling all over the country as well. I'm still not sure how many rocks he may have eaten...ha!

We really just had a wonderful Thanksgiving and we are just so Thankful for being blessed beyond measure! Thanks Grandma and Moopa for such a wonderful time!

Fabulous Giveaway

Here is an opportunity for you to give and get all at the same time. Click HERE to see what I'm talking about. I hope the creativity and giving spirit of this sweet blogger will raise mucho dinero for Compassion. Well what are you waiting for go and check it out!

All Aboard!!

After spending Thanksgiving with Jason's family we drove to meet my family for a quick trip to the North Pole. Luckily the Polar Express can get you there in less than an hour and fifteen minutes! This little excursion to the North Pole is becoming a fun family tradition for us and I just wish everyone could experience the magic of the train ride. We all just had a blast singing Christmas carols, drinking THE BEST hot chocolate EVER and getting to meet Santa at the North Pole. I'm just so glad that we were able to go with Grandpa, NeNe and all the cousins. The Polar Express story has always been a special book to my mom and family and I know it meant so much for her to get to share her love of the story with her grandchildren. Click HERE to see if there is a train ride near you.
I've still got a lot of Thanksgiving pictures to share, hopefully they will be up tomorrow. Baby boy is waking up and we have exactly one million errands to run today to try to catch up from being out of town for so long. So hang in there with me and I promise I'm going to do my best to get the blog all caught up by the end of the week!