Last Sunday

While Mom and I were in Temple, Dad and Mike took Brody to church. Since Namaw wasn't there to read him the funny pages before church, Brody had to find them on his own! We made it back in time to watch the guys play their Sunday afternoon football game. Ann and I stopped by Megan's parents' house to return her doppler and Megan, Derek, and Conner decided to join us in going to the football field. Brody was VERY excited to go to the football field. I had quite the time keeping him out of the game and on the sidelines!
Tyler made a good play so Brody ran out to give him a "bonk" (knuckles).
I had taken a sippy cup of water for Brody to drink, but after watching the big guys drink straight out of the cooler...Brody didn't want water from anywhere else! I finally lifted him up and let him drink from the same spout that 10 other guys just drank from.

Anytime the ball came out of bounds our way...Brody was on top of it! I think he's trying to convince Caleb to tackle him for the ball.

During another water break Mike worked with Brody on his spiral technique.
After the game we all went back to Daddy Steve and Namaw's house to watch the Cowboys play. I know this is a terrible angle...but this is the only picture we got with the entire family while we were in TX...so just know that our hips really aren't that wide...it's just the angle! lol
Mark and Angela got back from a trip to Austin on Sunday evening, so Mike and I got to go to dinner with them! We went to an Italian place (that I can't remember the name of). The food was good (I had salmon) and it was fun to get to sit down and talk with them for a while. We look forward to getting to spend a lot more time with them when we're living down there.

Daddy Steve and Namaw took advantage of their last night with Brody. They lit the tiki torches in the back yard and looked at the moon together (one of Brody's favorite past times).
Then they put him to bed.
We left for home around 10:00 on Monday morning. It was a looooong trip home for Brody...but we made it. There was still snow on the ground when we got to our house and we were happy to see that we still had power! We enjoyed our time in Texas over Christmas...but it felt soooo good to sleep in our own bed again!

Ginger is in Labor!!

Mom and I got to Temple around 5:00 pm. We arrived at the hospital to find that Ginger (who had been on Pitocin for several hours) was still only dilated to a one and was having very light contractions (she didn't really even flinch with the contractions she was having). She was hungry...but otherwise looked like she felt pretty good! As the night wore on, Ginger began to get frustrated at the lack of progress. Jesse tried to comfort her telling her that it was worth it and before long she'd be holding a beautiful baby in her arms.
Then he sat there watching the monitor to see how close her contractions were.
Grandmommy, Mom, and I sat on this couch talking with Ginger, Jesse, and Cindy. Can you believe that I actually had Mom bring me food back to the hospital (I was afraid I'd miss something if I left) and we ate it in front of ravenous Ginger?!? She told us that it was ok...but we still felt like we were doing something illegal! lol
Around 11 pm Grandmommy, Mom, and I went back to Daddy Ken & Grandmommy's house to sleep for the night. We left Ginger with strict instructions to call if things started progressing. When we arrived at the hospital at 8 am on Sunday morning...she was still only dilated to a ONE! Yikes! About 10:30 Mom and I headed back to Arlington since we were driving back to KS the next day. Ginger had a looooooong labor process. McKenna Faylee wasn't born until 7:30 am on MONDAY! Even though we didn't get to be there to video the birth, I'm glad that we got to spend sometime with Ginger & Jesse while they were in the process of having McKenna! I can't wait to get to see her in person!

Park with Daddy Steve

Today Daddy Steve took Brody to TWO parks! I guess one park didn't wear them out...so they went for a second one! Mike and I were at Caleb and Audria's house while they were at the park. Caleb had an Xbox get together with a bunch of guys, so I went to keep Audria and Tricia company. Here are a few pics that Daddy Steve took of Brody while they were at the parks.
"I want to go down the slide...but I want you to hold my hand!!!"
"Wow! This must be a big boy slide! I'll go down it if you'll catch me, Daddy Steve!"

Hmmm. Do any other moms notice the perfectly dry ground around the one little stream of water? But where does Daddy Steve let Brody walk thru in his shoes...when it's cold enough for a coat?!? Oh well. Boys will be boys.
They didn't just go to the parks to play on the playground, Daddy Steve also loaded up the mower! He figured Brody could help out the city by doing a little mowing while they were there. You can't smile while you're mowing...it's work!!!
About 2:00 pm I got a call from Ginger asking if we were still in TX. When I said yes she responded, "Get back down to Temple!!! I'm in labor!!!" So I called Mom who packed up the car, stopped by the park to tell Dad and Brody where we were going, then came and picked me up at Caleb and Audria's house so we could go to Temple. I think Brody was a little worried about food when we left him alone with Daddy Steve. Last time he was left alone with Daddy Steve for a meal he got a jelly sandwich (that's right...no peanut butter...Daddy Steve thought it was too sticky and was afraid Brody would choke on it) and raw carrots (hard for a kid with just 2 bottom teeth to eat)!!!
He shouldn't have been so worried. Daddy Steve knew right where to take Brody for dinner. Taco Bueno!!! I may be mistaken...but that looks like a LOT of food for 2 people (when one of them is only 16 months old)! Daddy Steve told us that Brody said "Hi" and "Bye" to everyone who went in and out the door while they were there eating.
After dinner they stopped by the Rhodes house just to say hi. I think Daddy Steve enjoyed having Brody all to himself for a day.

Genghis Grill

Today was a day of relaxing and just enjoying time with family. Mom and I spent the morning doing W-2's and 1099's for the LRC. After Brody woke up from his morning nap, we met Caleb and Audria for lunch at Genghis Grill, The Mongolian Stir Fry. It was sooooo good! If you live in the DFW area...and you've never been to a Mongolian Grill...this is the one to try! I've been to a few other Mongolian Grills and none of them compare to Genghis! Brody even loved it! I think he ate at least 1/4 of Audria's bowl!

After lunch we made a stop at Costco. Then we went home and spent the rest of the day relaxing. Mike kept the fire going in the fireplace...with the help of Brody. Brody loved helping Daddy go outside and get more wood!

After dinner, we let Brody drive his "mower" down to Ron & Jan's house. They were babysitting Lauren, Katelyn, and Collin so that Matt & Julie could spend the night together in a hotel. The girls were excited to see us at the door. They immediately took Brody, Steve, and Mike to the back porch to play. I got to sit in the living room and talk with Ron & Jan for a while. That was nice! I haven't gotten to see them much this past year since they were in England!

After our visit, we put Brody to bed and then watched a movie (during which I fell asleep on the couch...what can I say...like mother like daughter!)

Lifelong Friends

After a day of relaxing (and going to Kohls for the 4th time since we've been in TX), I got to go to dinner with just girls while Mike went to Caleb's house to help him organize his garage.

I've been friends with Megan and Juli Beth for as long as I can remember. Every year at Christmas we go to dinner at Abuelo's...just the three of us. We talk about anything and everything. This year we suddenly felt old when we realized we'd been talking about health insurance for over 20 minutes! Megan is pregnant and due just 10 days after me, so when we got back to the house we "played baby" (as Megan calls it). She has rented a doppler and we were able to hear her baby's heartbeat and our baby's heartbeat! It was really cool! Then we did the pencil/ring trick to try to see if we could figure out the sex of our babies. (There's nothing like impatient, pregnant women who are dying to know the sex of their baby! lol There's all kinds of online predictors and old wives tales that are supposed to help you figure it out before you have a sonogram.) It said boy for me and girl for Megan. We'll see if it's right in another month...hopefully! (My sonogram is scheduled for February 5th. Let's hope the baby cooperates!!)
They stayed and talked until midnight (well past all of our bedtimes) and then I crawled into bed!

Spinning Games

This morning Daddy Steve, Mike, and I headed to the store (yes...the day after Christmas). Mike needed ammo and I wanted to look at a nativity scene that I'd seen at Hobby Lobby. Then we dropped Mike off with Caleb so they could go to the gun range. I know that Carl went with them...but I'm not sure if anyone else did. Of course, they didn't take any pictures. What were they thinking?!? lol

Dad took me to lunch at Taco Cabana (yum!) and then we went back to their house to play with Brody. Daddy Steve made his own version of a sit-n-spin for Brody. Brody loved it and wanted to do it "gin" and again!
Daddy Steve and Namaw babysat (yet again) for us tonight so that we could go over to Caleb and Audria's house to play games. Mark and Angela met us there along with a bunch of other people. We had a lot of fun and lots of laughs! I'm sorry to say that the guys beat us in every game that we played!! Arg.

I don't think Mike and I have had this much adult time (without kids) since before Brody was born!

Christmas Day 2007

Brody came down stairs and headed straight for the tree. I wonder how he knew that the 4-wheeler under the tree was for him? He didn't even wait for us to show it to him...he just pulled it out from under the tree and hopped on! As you can see, it's John Deere green and (just as Daddy Steve & Namaw were hoping) he immediately started calling it his mower. He loves going on the riding mower with Mike, so everyone had hoped that this could be a winter alternative to mowing with Daddy. When he pushes the button it'll go forward (at 2 mph), however, he hasn't learned to steer yet so he runs into lots of things (especially when he rides it in the house)! He was just as excited about what Santa left in his stocking....2 toothbrushes!!! Not only did he brush his own 2.5 teeth; he also wanted to brush Daddy & Mommy's teeth! Here is is brushing his teeth and Mike's teeth at the same time. That's talent ;)
Mike surprised me with a pregnancy body pillow and 2- 1 hour massages for Christmas!!! While I was excitedly talking to Mike about the massages (and not paying attention to Brody), our son was busy climbing on top of the mower seat and jumping off!!!

GG and Sissie came over later in the morning and stayed for lunch. I think they had fun watching Brody play with all of his new toys. Before they left he had to give them a "bonk" (fist to fist). They got a kick out of that.
Tonight Caleb and Audria invited us to their house for Christmas dinner. Audria made a delicious meal for everyone to enjoy! Carl & Tricia and David & Daina (Audria's parents) were also there to celebrate with us.
Brody and Mike enjoyed the fire. It's hard to believe that Caleb and Audria just moved into this house a few weeks before Christmas! Can you imagine having Christmas dinner at your house just 2 weeks after you moved in and having your house look like you've lived there for 2 years?!?
Brody was excited to open yet another present (from Caleb & Audria). This was a manly present...tools!!! Considering the fact that he goes to sleep with a toy screwdriver in each hand...this was a perfect gift for Brody!
We didn't get to stay very long after dinner. It was a long day for Brody. It's amazing how much different this Christmas was than last year. Last year he didn't really care about opening gifts (or even playing with them). This year he said, "WOAH!!!" and "WOW!!!" as he pulled the wrapping paper off of each gift (before he could even tell what it was)! It was so much fun to watch his enthusiasm!

Christmas Eve in Temple

Today we got to spend the day with family in Temple. We headed for Temple around 8 am and arrived to the wonderful smells of Christmas dinner! Here's a picture of most of the family. Sharon & Sheila left before we took this picture. We were also missing Bryan (he had to work) and Tyler & Ann (who were in Indiana). I think Cindy (behind Mike) thought this was the "make a funny face" picture! lol We let Brody open 2 of his Christmas presents early. This morning he got a pair of wranglers and a cowboy hat from me and Mike. Somehow he still doesn't have a big enough darieair for size 1T slim jeans! Even though they were a little saggy...he looks super cute in his cowboy getup.
Everyone hovered around the kitchen waiting for dinner to be ready. Dave (who loves to spoil all the little ones...canines and humans alike) gave Brody one of Grandmommy's rolls (I could live on those rolls) while we were waiting and that's all Brody wanted to eat for the rest of the day! Here's a picture of Cindy and Grandmommy cookin' in the kitchen.
Brody had a lot of fun when it came time to open presents. As he'd rip wrapping paper off (before he even saw what the gift was) he'd be saying, "Wow!" It was so cute! He got jammies & Elmo slippers from Jesse and Ginger, sheets for his big boy bunk beds and a Veggie Tales movie from Daddy Ken, Grandmommy, & Sharon, a cute Dallas Cowboys ornament from Dave & Cindy, and the horse pictured below from Bryan and Brady. In the picture below he's telling us what noise a horse makes!
Cousins: Staci 12.5 weeks pregnant and Ginger 36 weeks pregnant.
It was a beautiful day, so everyone got a turn taking the cowboy outside to play. Sharon and Grandmommy walked around outside with Brody helping him pick up pecans. When he came back inside...he had pecans in his shirt pocket, all his jean pockets, and even in his diaper (ouch)!

Dave tried to teach Brody how to do the "boot skootin' boogie".
Caleb showed Brody how to roll down the grassy "hill" that all the cousins used to roll down when we were little. Somehow it seemed much steeper back then. It hardly even looks like a hill to me now! Brody enjoyed it though.
Next it was Daddy Ken's turn to watch Brody. He started to take Brody into the backyard...but Brody was too fascinated with how the gate worked. Daddy Ken said that Brody opened and closed the gate many times.
Somehow we forgot to take a football to Temple (actually...I think the guys forgot on purpose because they were so sore from Sunday afternoon's football game) so they decided to substitute Brody for the football. This made the grandmas very nervous...but the guys sure had fun doing it!

The visit (as always) seemed too short...but it was wonderful to get to spend time with family.

Christmas at Ron & Jan's

One of the jobs that Brody LOVED doing while at Daddy Steve and Namaw's house was getting the paper each morning. Namaw would ask him to go get the paper and he'd hurry back to the house saying, "Namaw" over and over until he put the paper in her hands. Then he'd anxiously wait (and cringe) as she'd fill the bag with air and smash it (making a loud pop)! We went to Pleasant Ridge Sunday morning, then the guys played football, and then it was time for Christmas dinner at Ron & Jan's house! I guess when there are lots of kids running around we forget to take a big family picture...but we did get a picture of the kids! Here's Collin, Lauren, Brody, and Katelyn.
Ron & Jan have lots of toys for the kids to play with on their enclosed patio. Here Katelyn was trying to keep Brody from putting the baby on the grill!

Collin and Lauren on a sit-n-spin that Collin got for Christmas.
Lauren and Katelyn with their dolls from GG. Aren't their dresses pretty (Lauren & Katelyn's)?!
While in England, Jan made a bunch of cards for GG by hand. They were beautiful!
Before we headed to bed, Lauren wanted to read one more book to Steve. It's amazing how well she reads!
We enjoyed visiting with everyone over dinner. Since I didn't get a picture, I'll just list who was there: Mike, Staci, Brody, Daddy Steve, Namaw, Caleb, Audria, GG, Ron, Jan, Matt, Julie, Lauren, Katelyn, Collin, Jon, Cindy, and Josh! We were just missing Tyler and Ann who were in Indiana.

Couples Christmas Party

If you're ready for a post that's NOT about Brody...this is your post.

Tonight we went with Caleb & Audria to a Christmas part at Brett and Amanda's house! They invited a lot of their friends from when they were in the youth group (which happened to be all the kids that were in high school when Mike was working with the youth group at Pleasant Ridge)! It was fun to get to see all of them again...and still a little strange to me that they're all grown ups (well...most of them! lol) Laura even has a baby! We had fun playing games (Catch Phrase, Mad Gab, etc) while most of the guys watched the Cowboys game. We were even able to convince the guys to play a game of Mafia (if you're not sure what that is, just ask any youth minister or teen) while the football game was still going on.

Here's Mike and Caleb with Chris (who Mike and I haven't seen in YEARS!!!)

Claire (who lives in N. Carolina), Rinn (who lives in California), Laura, and Amanda (who both still live in the DFW area)
Audria and Staci
Yay! A picture of just me and Mike (well...and the baby in my belly! lol)
I just had to post this picture. I love the expression on Mike's face! It's soooo sexy! Maybe I should just keep this one to myself...but no...I wanted you all to see how sexy my hubby is!!!