Three Girls and a Daddy

Taking a Break

2011-03-23T19:18:00.003-06:00

Well, as if it is not obvious, I am taking a break from the blog. I am trying to simplify our lives a bit and while I love re-reading the blog entries about the girls, I need to reserve any extra time and energy I have for my family (or myself) and blogging is just not in the cards right now. Thanks to any and all who have visited our little site and I just may be back someday! God Bless!

Disney World

2011-02-22T22:47:00.009-06:00

Christmas at Disney World was magical and special. The Bay Lake Towers at the Contemporary are fabulous and within walking ditance of the Magic Kingdom. Jenny, Ryan, and Ella at Animal Kingdom

A view of Cinderella's Castle

Julianne and Justin - Julianne holding out a souvenier for the parade to see!

We love Minnie Mouse!

Jenna loves nothing more than to run and be free!

DISNEY WORLD 2010!!!

2011-01-12T10:27:00.001-06:00

Pictures to come soon!

Christmas

2011-01-12T10:15:00.003-06:00

Christmas this year was a bit different because Santa Came Early! He came to our house on the Monday before Christmas when Gamma and Gumps were visiting. They came into town to help us with the girls while we raced to Houston for a Deloitte colleague's wedding. We were only gone about 24 hours, but we got to see Houston friends, Deloitte friends, and Woodlands friends as well as Sandy and John. We even squeezed in a nap which was luxurious. It was a great visit and nice to have some time in the car to just talk with my hubby without screaming kiddos in the backseat. We arrived home to a lovely Christmas dinner and happy kiddos. Santa came that night and brought the beloved pillow pets, a unicorn that pokes bad dreams away, and art table, and a kid table, and a few other treats. It was lovely and we are richly blessed.

Santa Came Early this Year!

2011-01-12T10:08:00.000-06:00

Santa Came Early this Year!

2011-01-12T09:56:00.003-06:00

A White Christmas - in the mall

2011-01-12T09:52:00.000-06:00

Christmas Program at CUMC

2011-01-10T10:41:00.003-06:00

Julianne had a Christmas Program this year and it was precious. The kids rang bells as they entered the santuary and it put us all in a very festive mood. Thanks Aunt Jenny and Ella Grace for attending with us! It was nice to have family there.

Picking roses in the background

2011-01-10T10:27:00.003-06:00

We love to pick flowers and display them in a basket for the table!

Chicago/Naperville

2011-01-10T10:07:00.003-06:00

Justin and I went to Naperville, IL to his boss's holiday party in early December. We got to witness the first snow of the season and really enjoyed Naperville. I prefer blue skies and sunshine, but if you have to live in a winter climate, this place is pretty ideal. We also ventured into Chicago and both worked and got to eat some very lovely meals. It felt like 7 degrees and it was so cold I could barely breathe. Dr Seuss outside the children's library.

Lovely old covered bridge.

Near the indian settlement of Naperville.

Justin loving the cold.

An idea of what the downtown looks like.

The girls were at home with Mimi/Papa and had a great time except for getting sick.

Thanksgiving in Williamsburg, VA

2011-01-10T09:43:00.002-06:00

We have had a super fun, but super busy Fall/Winter so far. Justin and I have had 4 trips in 5 weeks and the girls have had 2 trips that time frame, so we had a ball, but are glad to be in a routine at home for ahwhile. Thanksgiving in The Burg was very nice and festive and included lots of fun activities for the kids like a visit to Jamestown, seeing the movie Tangled, and trip downtown to see the parents run a race and getting to participate, to doing lots of art at and cuddling up to watch movies. Here are some great pics of the cousins: Julianne, Noelle, and Jenna (yes, she is brushing her teeth). Julianne and Noelle both insist on wearing pink most of the time.

Jenna trying to be big like Andrew, Jules, and Noelle (but she could not really sit still long enough to watch the movie).

Jenna eating her first Thanksgiving meal - she loved it all. She was also the big consumer of Gamma's ham and cheese casserole!

Brushing our teeth some more - hey, it feels good on a girl's gums while she is teething!

Coloring at the art table.

Trying to be big like Sissy.

Ahhh - Andrew got me!

I don't know how I missed Gumps in this shot as well as Justin, but you can piture them in there !

These two cuties are starting to look alike.

Love Andrew's smile in this picture.

We look forward to getting these guys together again in Atlanta and Hilton Head this May!

BOO

2010-11-12T13:13:00.003-06:00

Let the Party Begin!

2010-11-03T09:11:00.006-06:00

Jenna had a wonderful family celelbration weekend for her birthday (Can't believe she is 1) and her baptism! We had the Williams side and most of the Chatigny side (we missed Lisa and Andrew) and had a wonderful time! We may get annoyed at all of the picture taking, but it sure is nice to have them! Future Williams Christmas card. I must say I love this tree in our front yard.

Gamma and Gumps brought these special hats from Turkey for their older grand-daughters. Ooh la la! Fancy Nancy would be jealous.

The little lady loving her cake from the famed RJ Goodies. Thank you Mimi!

Out to a celebration dinner with a special Barbie book. Gotta love the top lip curled under / show all my teeth smile from our curly girl here.

Uncle Neal and Papa John. Note the enormous margs. Yumm.

Maximos was great and decorated very much to our taste!

More birthday cake shots - sharing with DADA.

Aunt La La with the 2 smallest muchkins.

Aunt Jenny holding down the fort at the swing set.

Mimi and Jenns.

Aunt Jenny and Ella Grace.

Uncle Ryan near the famed Confetti Pit. Jenna looking very protective of her new pull along alligator toy.

Uncle Andrew -bless his little heart. No kids, yet so tired. :-)

Confetti Pit was fun and Noelle insisted on going topless. Oh and I should mention that Noelle called me Aunt Texas and it is my new favorite nickname ever.

Lovely cake shot.

And the smash cake.

Neal, Noelle, Gumps,and Gamma at Fireside Pies! Another great and festive night!

All out of order here.

The big girls had to have boots and hats so off we went - thanks Uncle Neal!

Love my family.

These 2 do look alike sometimes! Mostly Jenna looks like Papa though.

Yipeeeee!

Let the good times roll!

Jenna Turns 1!

2010-11-03T08:59:00.002-06:00

It is hard to believe that Jenna is 1. This past year has been filled with enormous change for our family with a relocation, baby #2, and new jobs for both mom and dad. I have to say that Jenna is a trooper and she reminds me of a "steel magnolia" sometimes - she is busy, she is tough, she is independent, she is beautiful and so so sweet. She lights up a room with her smile. Happy Birthday Jenna!

Fall Time

2010-10-21T08:09:00.003-06:00

Well, we missed going to a Pumpkin Patch with friends last week so we snuck off after work one day and went ourselves. Storybook Village in McKinney is adorable. Happy Fall Friends!

Jenna thinks she is at least 5.

Chicks and Hip Hop

2010-10-21T08:01:00.002-06:00

Our wonderful Mother's Helper, Elyse, got 12 chick eggs for her birthday and we got to meet the very first hatch on the day he was born. He fit perfectly in our Charlie the Chick Book too! SO CUTE!

And...we have a budding Michael Jackson here. Julianne and her friend Avery during their Hip Hop Dance performance. It was so cute.

Where did my baby go? She is so grown up.

They might as well be 12.

Lars, Keely, and Diggy the Dog

2010-10-19T08:27:00.001-06:00

Julianne's Dad used to pretend to be a dog as a child and now Julianne is continuing the tradition. Sometimes she insists on eating on the floor and of course Jenna has to do everything Julianne does! Here we are having our breakfast like a dog. Bow Wow

Keely and Lars - the precious newly weds - well they have been married about a year now... came to visit us! It was so wonderful to see them. Justin found a German festivel in Addison and Lars felt right at home. They even found T-shirts that said, "Prost Ya'll!" We had sausage and pretzels and the girls had snow cones and cotton candy so everyone left happy.

Prost Ya'll!

Sneels and Lars. Wonderful friends who we miss very much!

Beginning of School Year 2010

2010-10-19T08:22:00.001-06:00

We had a Labor Day Party and the girls decided to be puppy dogs. This is Cameron, our neighbor, Elle Barrett, Julianne, and Cara Bade. Precious girls. Kendall Mills - one of Julianne's BFF's.

First week of school. Pig tail braids are hard to do! I impressed even myself! HA HA. If Julianne had enough hot pink, she would wear hot pink every day.

First Day of School, 2010 - Pre-K for Julianne and Beginning Class for Ms Jenna.

Julianne and School BFF, Emery Glickler.

Cape Cod

2010-09-27T21:21:00.005-06:00

Cape Cod this past 4th of July was really great. I really needed a vacation because I seriousely relished every single second and appreciated it - just reading a magazine on the plane or sleeping until 8 am or taking a shower - all luxuries that us moms rarely have. We went to a Boston Red Sox game which is my husband's favorite team and he had never been before, so this was a huge event for him! We did the famous Duck Tour and quacked our way through the city enduring dirty looks right and left from the locals. (Well, to their credit, they were commuting home from work and stressed and tired from the work week and we were well...blocking their traffic lanes and quacking at them....how annoying can we get?) We stayed in Falmouth (not Foul Mouth) and it was a lovely home. We enjoyed the best fireworks show over the water, lots of yummy New England food (fish and chips, lobster salad sandwiches, cape cod chips, ice cream, etc)., whale watching in Provincetown, and an awesome day in Nantucket. One thing we could have lived without was these enormous horse flies on the beach - they were violent!

She Walks

2010-09-14T20:49:00.003-06:00

Ok, well she had just fallen down in this picture, but Jenna can walk! Jenna took her first few steps last week, but only one or two. Today - she took 10 tiny steps after which we erupted in loud and obnoxious clapping and screaming. I think she wants to keep trying so she can hear the cacaphony again. She is quite proud of herself. She also covered my mouth as I was singing her lullabies at nap time - not sure if this means she does not like my singing or maybe my "air was stinky" as Julianne would say, but it caught me off guard so I just laid her down and left the room. Ahhhh, the low maintenance 2nd child.

Compassion International

2010-09-13T09:49:00.004-06:00

This is cool!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ndSnNBj1VNY&feature=player_embedded

Dance Camp

2010-09-09T20:58:00.002-06:00

Summer 2010 will always be remembered by the summer of camps. Bug Camp, Circus Camp, Dance Camp, Vacation Bible School Camp, you name it and we signed up for it Camp. Sofia and Julianne at Princess Dance Camp.

Ahhhh, future broadway stars.

More Pics from Spring

2010-09-08T10:13:00.002-06:00

Early morning shots - Dad and his girls.

Out with friends at Market Street

Jenna after her bottle - nothing separates this girl from her food!

Aunt Lauren and Uncle Andrew before they moved up to Kansas!

Snacks at the pool!

Summer Visit to Spring

2010-09-07T20:42:00.002-06:00

Mom planned a few trips down to Spring this Summer and they included lots of swimming, playing with cousins, and hanging with Mimi/Papa. Dad met us for the weekends and we got to see old friends from The Woodlands.

More Pics

2010-09-03T09:39:00.002-06:00

Jenna in the tongue out/discovering this thing in my mouth stage. The walker stage did not last long before she started climbing out of it.

We had a birthday party for Sally the bunny one day and all of the most important animals were invited. :-)

More shots from W-burg in the backyard - it is as good as a beach! Andrew - don't eat the rocks!!

Ahhh, the pink bucket - coveted by both Noelle and Julianne.

Sweet Jens and Sweet Just.

To Williamsburg for Memorial Day

2010-09-02T13:29:00.003-06:00

Another summer kick off event was our trip to The Burg. We enjoyed some time at the pool, bike rides, a visit from Iwan and Stacey and their adorable twins, lots of fun play in the backyard, and just enjoying seeing the cousins play and have a good time together. Pops, Just, and Jens...on the back porch.

Uncle Neal and Jenna - I think there is some resemblence there!

Justin with Jules and Noelle at "The Club."

Jenna's 1st plane ride! She did great until the end when she had a #2 diaper explosion all over Dad.

Jules is a pro at air travel by now.

Kicking off the summer...

2010-09-01T21:22:00.002-06:00

Julianne in her ladybug Halloween costume from 2 years ago helps mom in the kitchen.

A wonderful visit from the Lacey family. Julianne and Camy played book store, ponies, and enjoyed the backyard quite a bit.

Mady got to ride her first carosel ride at our mall. She loved it! There is a little plastic house in our backyard and Mady recently told her mom that she wanted to go back to that sweet little house in "Zanny's" backyard. I can't believe she remembered the house or me.

Jenna and finger foods as early as 8 months - she is not going to eat that mushy baby food when big sister gets real food! She is a wonderful eater - eating everything from mushrooms to hummus to avocado while Big Sis is still stuck on peanut butter waffle and mac n cheese.

The beginning of our alphabet lessons and my attempt at some home school efforts this summer. We took a letter each week and did activities, made crafts, ate foods, etc that went with that netter. She also got a little book for each letter that I made from a website. We started with A, B and then I read to NOT go in order when teaching letters, so we then did the letters in her name, and then started just randomly picking letters. We are still going, but she has come a long way. My favorite was "N" week. We were in Spring for that week and we went to a bead shop and made a Necklace. We found some Nests at Michael's and little birdies and eggs to go in them and they are a new favorite play thing. We dressed up like a Nurse. We made and ate Noodles. We looked at a picture of Noelle and Neal (cousin and Uncle), etc. We circled all of the Noses in a magazine and made a collage with them. You get the idea. It has been kind of fun. There is also a great website called www.starfall.com that has a great alphabet game for kids. We are doing R this week so Rasberries and Rice Crispie Treats are on the menu.

Ft Worth Zoo

2010-09-01T10:20:00.002-06:00

Well, I am playing a bit of catch up now. We have had a wonderful Summer that kicked off back in May with a trip to the Ft Worth Zoo. I braved it alone with my 2 cuties and eventhough I took a wrong turn, ended up in downtown Dallas, had to stop at a gas station to change and feed Jenna and then another one to let Julianne go potty, and then we got struck in traffic and took a back country road through the rural slums of never never land between Dallas and Ft Worth, we finally got there!!! We aimed to arrive at 10 and got there at noon - not too bad, I'd say. The Zoo is beautiful - Ft Worth is this hidden meca for the cultural arts and their zoo is top 5 in the nation. Lots of rich doners, I guess. Anyways - we had a great time and got to go back a few weeks later with Dad and the Lacey's.

Feeding the parakeets with sesame seed sticks was the highlight! Oh, and ice cream dots.

Just enjoying my ride.

Update

2010-08-28T08:34:00.002-06:00

I am clearly not that into blogging, but here is the latest from Plano, Dallas, Texas as Julianne calls it.

Well, Jenna is just shy of 11 months and she is standing up and waving her hands wildly. She has started shaking her head back and forth (for no) when she is doing something she is not supposed to do. She scrunches up her nose and sort of breathes in and out of it very loudly while she is eating - just to make us laugh. She imitates very well - usually in the backseat of the car Julianne will squeal and a few seconds later Jenna will squeal back. If we make a tooting sound with our mouth, Jenna will do the same in return. She is sleeping through the night as of 9 months - YAY! She goes to school on Monday for the very first time. We will see how it goes!

Cute sayings from Julianne:

"Running around like a chicken with it's FACE cut off" (Trying to say running around like a chicken with it's head cut off)

"Watch my bend back" (For Back Bend)

"Paradise Estake" (For the My Little Ponies Home which is Paradise Estate)

Julianne is in Pre-K this year and can't wait to get back to school.

I am back at work 20+ hours a week for Deloitte and am enjoying it. I am looking for high level proposal writers who will work on the Firm's highest priority propsals.

Justin is doing great - recent trips to Chicago, Kansas City, and Denver. Fantasy Football looms so he is gearing up.

More later....

Jenna 8 1/2 Months

2010-06-25T06:13:00.002-06:00

Jenna is in to EVERYTHING! She loves nothing more than to explore: opening drawers, opening doors, cabinets, pulling up on furniture, violently twisting to get out of our arms so she can MOVE!!! She has developed this little growl noise she makes deep down in her throat when she is frustrated which is not too often except for when she wants to move and can't or is hungry. She slept through the night twice this week for the first time, so that is an exciting milestone. I don't think it will be a reguar occurance, but it was nice. One of the 2 times she slept through, Julianne was up with a bad dream about a tiger, so we got one night with 8 hours a sleep in a row - maybe the first one in years. Jenna is also starting to dabble in table food - tiny bits of banana, bread, pasta, etc and she loves it. We could not get Julianne to eat some ground turkey breast taco meat and Jenna ate it so big sister decided she would try it after all and liked it.

It is fun to see how different the girls are. One thing they have common: both angels.

Posts on our trips to Williamsburg and Houston to see family coming soon....

Spring Events

2010-06-09T08:20:00.002-06:00

We had a gorgeous Spring here, but it was too short. It is already 100 degrees, but the Spring was perfect weather. I will say the humidity here is less than Houston so that is nice - I actually want to take walks in the dry heat vs wanting to stay inside all the time, but it is still BLAZING HOT Texas style. Lots of pool time this summer is the key! Well, back to Springtime - we had Ella Grace's dedication in March and it was great. We had a nice fajita lunch at Jenny and Ryan's after church. Ok, so many many people are now saying Jenna looks just like her Daddy. Depending on who you ask, she is a clone of me, Justin, Papa John or Uncle Neal. So funny. Whoever she looks like, she is a precious angel.

3 Girls and a Dad

The honoree, Ella Grace with her parents and grandparents.

We missed Uncle Andrew, but he is serving his country and all.

Comparing the girls at 6 months!

2010-05-04T16:31:00.002-06:00

Jenna at 6 months...almost crawling...scooting forward and backwards....dying to be mobile!

Julianne at 6 months at the exact same stage....smiley baby.....looks nothing like little sister....

Julianne with Mimi at 6 months of age. Jenna and Jules look nothing alike - I love it!

A few quotes from Big Sister

2010-04-26T21:02:00.002-06:00

Julianne: "Grant (her latest crush) is SUCH a hawk"

Mom: "You mean hunk?"

Julianne: "Yes! A hunk."

________________________________________

My sister had her daughter dedicated this past weekend and before the dedication there were some comtemporary Christian singers leading worship. They were awesome by the way....anyways, after the music worship part, the minister asked the parents and babies to come up and read a verse that they had picked out and they had the ceremony part.....

So today Julianne goes, "MOM! I just saw that place where Ella Grace was on stage with those Rock Stars!"

__________________________________________

There is a retirement home in Plano called Sunrise that we looked at for my grandmother Ninny and now every time we pass it Julianne goes, "Well, I guess Ninny won't be living there since she is an angel now"

She also asked me if she would die someday and I told her not to worry about it because Dad and I would be waiting for her in heaven and she goes, "SO, Jenna and I will be living in the house ALONE?"

Later she goes, "We will probably die at the same time since we are on the same potty schedule" referring to the fact that we usually have to go to the bathroom at the same times through the day.

Going Back

2010-04-24T21:00:00.005-06:00

This was actually before Spring Break when Gamma and Gumps came to visit. I think this is our second Family of 4 picture. This is right before we hosted a dinner party that literally took all day to prepare for, but it turned out delicious.

Gamma and Gumps, Jules and Jens...

The girls with their handsome Daddy.

At Home

2010-04-24T20:53:00.002-06:00

While playing beauty parlor we straightend Julianne's Hair one day and here is the result! She looks 12!

Jenna's first swing in the backyard! She loved it! She will let me swing her for a long time whereas Jules always wanted down after 2 minutes. Jenna, you also love stroller rides, car rides, playing with real objects like watches, spoons, my jewelery, Julianne's Hair, etc.

Check out the rolls on her Left Leg! Love chubby babies.

Errr, Julianne's new sunglasses. Sort of makes her look like a bug.

Almost crawling! Soooo close!

Spring Break

2010-04-24T20:43:00.002-06:00

We headed down to Spring for Spring Break and got some good playtime in with old friends and Mimi/Papa. It was hard coming back to having no help during the looooong days, but we sure enjoyed it while we were there! Dad joined us toward the end of the week and we got to go to our annual Passover dinner at the Shapiros house. It was a great week!

This is Papa doing either "Ride a Little Horsey" or "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom" I am very proud of my Dad for getting this contracting gig, but I selfishly miss him very much!

Playdate with my friends from The Woodlands! Ellie, Sydney, Emma, and Julianne.

Ethan and Julianne at Stockard's 3rd Birthday Party - they were flirting shamelessly. Julianne is very enamored with boys.

Me and Robyn with Simon and Jenna.

Cousins at the Dallas Arboretum

2010-04-24T20:32:00.003-06:00

Jenna and Ella Grace take in some sunshine at the Dallas Arboretum. It has been a gorgeous Spring and this place is quite lovely~~right on White Rock Lake.

We are sooooo cute!

Scene of flowers...

The tulips were just so pretty. We had a nice picnic of pb&j's. The wind was sort of whipping around and every time the wind blew Jenna and Ella Grace sort of got startled and gasped for air, but then they would smile and giggle. They also like to grab eachother's hands.

Play, Play, Play

2010-04-24T12:49:00.002-06:00

The beginning of sisterly play. Jenna is 6.5 months and is in the 45% in weight and 75% in height. She is starting to look like her Uncle Neal in my opinion. Sorry Papa. Maybe she will morph back into John Williams again a bit later. Whoever she looks like, she is an angel with a huge smile and long eyelashes.

The playgym becomes a tent! Jenna adores her big sister. She cranes her neck constantly when Julianne is not in the room looking for her. When we drop Julianne off at school and Jenna is in the backseat by herself she fusses way more often than normal, but it still isn't very much.

Easter Sunday. This was a hectic Easter with us rushing to Houston for Ninny, but the Easter Bunny was good to Julianne bringing plenty of goodies, some sidewalk chalk, and a fake pet hamster. This is the only pet I want for a long time eventhough Dad is asking for another dog. DAAAAAAAAAAAAAD!!!

Two of Julianne's favorite new friends from school - Grant and Emery. This was at Going Bonkers - one of the neatest indoor play parks in America. :-) Man, this place has a lot to offer.

Kyle, Cara, and Grant - more great friends over at our house for a playdate complete with pizza and oreos. Healthy much. Well, we did have fruit too.

Ninny

2010-04-15T16:35:00.003-06:00

Ninny on Christmas morning in 2008 at Jenny's house here in Dallas. She loved her silky robes and coffee. Mom always made sure she had plenty of gifts to unwrap. She taught us how to play 42 and stayed up late with us kids. She was VERY young at heart, loved to learn, and had an infectious smile.

Ninny at Julianne 1st Birthday Party in The Woodlands. She was always up for a good time and was always dressed in such a classy way. That Ninny had style, grace, and modesty.

Not sure why this is so tiny, but this is Ninny on the day Julianne was born. Julianne was Great Grandchild #7 (I think). Now there are 13 GGC (I think).

Ashley and Karl's wedding in Puerto Vallarta, MX in 2005. An amazing and wonderful family memory. Justin and Ninny always teased eachother - they had a very sweet relationship.

Ninny and me on the Sea of Galilee. As a retired Methodist Minister Ninny led tours to the Holy Land and took me with her when I was in high school. She went 42 times. We went all over Israel and Egypt and hit Rome on the way home. One of the best memories of my life.

Pic we took of ourselves in our hotel room in Rome.

So, Ninny passed away on Easter after my mom and uncle Mike told her it was time to go. We kept telling Julianne that we were going to Houston to celebrate Ninny's life. The entire week Julianne kept asking, "when is Ninny's party? or when is Ninny's celebration?" She kept everything light and festive at the Visitation by annoucing to everyone, "NINNY DIED!" She did not really know what she was saying. At the burial she and the other little ones danced around the flowers and it was really quite a beautiful day and sight. Ninny will be greatly missed, but we know she is at home in heaven with her family and friends that have gone before her.

Ella Grace

2010-03-09T15:16:00.001-06:00

Here is a fairly recent pic of our niece, Ella Grace! She is weeks younger than Jenna. We are so lucky that we get to see her once a week. She is precious.

The Latest from Plano

2010-03-09T15:10:00.003-06:00

Our first family of 4 picture.

Julianne's birthday weekend - opening gifts -yay for mermaids!

Build A Bear was quite a hit! Julianne chose to build a puppy dog and others chose bunnies and bears. We followed the party with dinner in the food court and a ride on the carasol. Turning 4 was quite fun and Jules is not shy about telling her age.

In line to stuff the animals! Julianne's puppy got a heart from each of her friends.

The pull apart cupcake cake - yummmy!

The Latest from Plano

2010-03-09T15:04:00.003-06:00

Jenna's first bites of Rice Cereal! She loves it!

Princess Jens with those cheeks - I want to just eat her up!

Julianne often tells me, "Mom, Jenna needs to feed." ... and so she helps with the feed.

Julianne's attempt to make Jenna cool.

Julianne's cousins, Noelle and Andrew from Georgia! They had a great time!

The Latest from Plano

2010-03-09T14:56:00.002-06:00

Jenna finds her thumb! Other news on Ms Jenna:
*She has found her feet and loves to look at them, suck on them, and is so flexible!
*Jenna had her first rice cereal and sweet potatoes at 5 months old - she stares longingly at us while we eat food, so she is ready.
*Jenna laughs out loud on a daily basis at Julianne
*Jenna loves her exesaucer and bounce a roo and being able to be in the upright position
*Jens is so precious and chubby - she gives huge smiles to us and especially Dad when he comes home at the end of the day
*Her favorite word right now is "Aggooo"

Our Angels

"Mom, it is not fair to tell little girls NO."

As always, Papa is the very best playmate.

Oh and Daddy is a good sport too! We are 2 peas in a pod.

Wow

2010-02-20T14:05:00.002-06:00

Wow - I think this is the longest I have ever gone without a blog post - I have been feeling sort of Passive Aggressive about my blog like - "haha, I don't have to update you if I don't want to" and "I don't have time for this, so I am not going to do it anymore" and "who really wants to read about this stuff?" etc.....but.....my guilt is winning and my desire to record the girls lives is beating my negative attitude. So, my apologies to my 3 blog readers that I have been so absent.

We have had a wonderful visit from Neal and Lisa complete with a trip to the Ft Worth Stockyards and a night out at their UT friends' house which was lots of fun. They got to see our new house and meet Jenna which was nice. The only really funny thing I remember was Julianne screaming, "NOELLE, I am Talking to YOU!!!" and Noelle tuning her out. The girls are much like their fathers - one is demanding and the other escapes into her own world and zones out. HAHA.

Jenna has started rice cereal and loves it! She continues to be the smiliest, happiest baby I have ever been around and now belly laughs at Julianne. Jules reads books to Jenna and plays little games with her like peek a boo and Jenna just adores her.

We have had a wonderful 4th birthday party for Julianne at Build A Bear that included dinner from chick fil a and a carasoul ride. Every single one of her classmates attended which was unexpected and she had a few other new friends and one old friend there - it was a great time. Mimi and Papa were there for much of the week saving me from pulling my hair out. Justin has also been a big cheerleader for me lately and is so helpful when he is home - I could not do anything without him that is for sure.

I will have some pictures very soon!

Weekend with Friends

2010-01-19T18:29:00.003-06:00

We were so lucky to get to hang out with the Chappells (thanks for visiting guys!) and the Mills this weekend. It was officially half of Suppa Club from W-town. Geez, I miss those guys. Saturday night we went to a hole in the wall Italian restaurant in an old house in Ft Worth (while 2 sitters watched 6 kids) and it was great. We all spent the night at the Mills after having had some wine with din din....on Sunday everyone came to our place and the girls went shopping with 2 of the 6 kiddos. Not Bad! It was a great weekend. Michael has a new look I thought I would share.

Scenes of a wonderful Christmas

2010-01-07T07:11:00.004-06:00

A little tree and ornaments just for Julianne! What a fun project Mimi!

Another shot of the holiday cuties and our new niece, Ella Grace

The new Plano - ites

Wow! A wondeful Ready Read Book from Gamma and Gumps - something that will be in use for a long time and a fabulous gift idea - fun and educational!

Jenna mostly ate and slept through her first Christmas, but Jules gave her this lovely Christmas bow to get her in the spirit!

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas - and we got it! Maybe this play session in thin pj pants and thin gloves was why we got bronchitis - ummmm, I need to learn how to dress myself and my kids for cold weather - the layering is just annoying in my opinion. Oh well.

Ohhh la la! A bike from Mimi and Papa which Julianne literally rides around in our house - around the circle of the downstairs. When it warms up maybe we can actually ride it outside! Great gift!

Santa brought the 3 requested items for our little Jules: The Swimming Puppy with goggles, the Pink Barbie house, and a ballerina mouse (how on earth did he find that?!?!) Great job Santa! Yes, our child has a lot of toys and yes she plays with them all - after all, it is her job to play.

Jens with her precious belly and in my favorite outfit.

OK, Santa does not get all of the cookies I decorated!!!

Check out the squash that was grown especially for Gamma!!! It was wonderful! The feast of squash, lamb, potatoes, sally lund bread and not to mention breakfast which was a fabulous cranberry ring and crostada (sp?) was all wonderful - really - Gamma cooked for like 24 hours straight (oh and her famous oatmeal cookes were a fave too) - and we very much appreciate the wonderful meals and sharing them with Mimi and Papa too. Thank you!

My cousin Ashley and her family stayed with us for 2 nights before Christmas and Julianne and Parker decorated cookies together and played pretty well. Ash made us some great pizzas, we ordered sushi one night, Jen came over with Ella Grace...

All in all, it was so nice to have so much company and family around.

We hope to have a Christmas Party next year with lots of new friends. I am not used to having to be so aggressive to meet people, but I am determined. I never realized quite how socially needy I must be (in terms of needing people like oxygen)...I guess I have always been spoiled to know people or have my parents around. I hate being alone now - I am SO grateful for our friends that we do have here and I am sorry if I call you too much! We think we found a chuch to plug in to, so that will help!!!

Now we get to look forward to Lauren and Andrew coming this weekend for a Dallas Stars game. Brent and Elizabeth come next weekend and we will hang with the Mills (Goooo Suppa Club (well, half of us!), and Neal, Lisa, Noelle, and Andrew come late Jan. Feb will bring the Lacey clan and Julianne's Birthday so lots to look forward to. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other until it feels like home....

Holidays

2010-01-06T20:43:00.003-06:00

Mildred Frances Culpepper Parker Hicks Turns 90!!! AKA Ninny....my grandmother on my mother's side - what a nice celebration! Here are some pics:

Great Grandchildren

Children and spouses. Nice smile LARRY!

Grandchildren and spouses (plus Jenna)

I still need to download pics from Christmas, but we had a wonderful holiday with Gamma and Gumps who were here for 5 days. We really enjoyed making some memories in Plano and in our new home with them. We got to spend actual Christmas day with Mimi, Papa, and Gamma, Gumps which was very special indeed. It was also a WHITE Christmas for us which was a first for our married life (I think it snowed one time in Philly when we used to go there, but never in The Burg or Houston or Atlanta)!!! So, that was really fun - Jules made snow angels, had a snow ball fight, and tried to build a snowman!

My mom planned an amazing 90th birthday party for her mother the day before New Year's. It was very special to have the whole Parker side gathered and Julianne had a blast w/ all of her 2nd cousins. It really was such a lovely event.

Jenns

2010-01-05T07:40:00.004-06:00

Julianne has frequently been called Jules by us and has now nicknamed her sister, Jenns. I love it - Jules and Jenns.

Jenns here is what you have been up to lately at 3 months old (I can't believe it!):

*smiling HUGE at anyone who smiles at you
*your eyes are SO expressive and happy
*you are starting to babble and gurgle and try to talk to us
*you love to kick, kick, kick your legs, but you do not like tummy time very much
*you love your bottle and make this relieved sound when it is finally in your mouth
*I don't even know when you have woken up in your swing b/c you don't make a peep - I just check in and when your eyes are open, I find you discovering your hands - mainly trying to eat them
*you are cutting a tooth on the bottom and drooling like a champ
*you are only eating once in the middle of the night - thank you, jens!!!
*you have made this crazy time in our lives as easy as you possibly could have - thank you, jens!!!
*we are madly in love with you

My Beautiful Girls

2009-12-17T10:09:00.002-06:00

Lately Julianne wants to be wherever Jenna is - under the play mat, in the bassinet, in the swing, etc. We are trying to teach her to be gentle, but self control is hard for a 3 year old! I thought this was a sweet picture of Jenna looking at Julianne. Jenna smiles the biggest at her sister. Jenna is eating and sleeping like a champ - thank God!

A Picture of our newest niece, Ella Grace

2009-11-26T13:54:00.002-06:00

Ella Grace is home from the hospital. She kept her parents up most of the first night, but did better the second night. Suffice it to say, there is no rest for the weary for a while.

Her cousin, Jenna, on the other hand, went from 10 pm to 4 am last night! Woo-Hoo! However, she does have conjuntivitis and an ear infection at 7 weeks old. We met our new ped this week. She is now on meds and feeling better. Actually, I had no idea she was feeling bad, but took her in for congestion and eye gunk. We would have never known she had an ear infection, but glad we caught it!

Do Your Part!

2009-11-26T13:50:00.002-06:00

So one of the most rewarding charities we have given to is Compassion International - see link below. You literally can scroll through pictures of thousands of precious kids who need a sponsor for $34/month. This tiny amount of money literally transforms their lives. They get to go to a special Compassion School in their village every week and also any extra funds goes towards their families needs - food/blankets/etc. They only ask you for additional money (via email) for birthday and Christmas and we ususally just give $30 extra. Other than that, you can become a pen pal with your child. Our childs name is Irene from Kenya and she is very smart. Some day I hope Julianne and Jenna can start writing to her. Anyways, here is the link if your heart leads you to do this:

http://www.compassion.com/

Nothing (medical) is ever easy for the Williams Girls

2009-11-23T10:18:00.002-06:00

The good news is Ella Grace has arrived and is a healthy, beautiful little girl. As I said before, she weighed in at 6 lbs. 7 ounces, 19 1/2 inches at 1;07 p.m. November 22. Jenny has had a diificult time, but is recovering. Her contractions started before she was dialated. She had a 34 hour labor, then the doc discovered the baby was face up instead of face down. The granola doctor didn't call a C-section, but (this is gross) had her hand in the birth canal turning Ella as she progressed down during the pushing stage. Then after the birth, Jenn developed a form of pre-eclampsia which happens post partum!! This means her blood pressure shot up to 212/100 plus and her body was at risk to "shut down". Serious stuff. She is now on meds to stop that, so pray all will progress well today.

Ella Grace Zimmerman has arrived!

2009-11-22T22:05:00.003-06:00

My sister, Jennifer (Jenna's namesake) and her husband Ryan had their first daughter today around 1 pm. Ella Grace was 6 pounds, 7 oz and 19 1/2 inches long. She has a full head of dark hair and has the sweetest little face ever. Her features are just perfect. Jenny labored for more than 24 hours and has post eclampsia (never knew this could happen, but it is like pre-eclampsia, but happens after the baby is born)....Blood pressure is real high and lots of pain, but thank God they diagnosed it and she is on meds and feeling much better. Childbirth is just so miraculous and so freaking painful. Anyways, praise be that Jules and Jenna now have cousin #3 and the first cousin on the Williams side!

My youngest sister Lauren Elizabeth (Jenna's other namesake!) whose link is on my blog, and her hubby, Andrew, (Agamoo) find out where they will spend the next 4 years in the JAG - tomorrow. A HUGE day for them! Their first choice was Tacoma, Washington so we will see! My mother was actually born at this base in Tacoma!

My folks are truly going to be empty nesters starting July 2010. Lump in throat. What is WRONG with me???

We look forward to seeing Justin's parents this Christmas here in Plano! They just got back from Germany and are truly world travelers! :-)

Settled - NOT

2009-11-20T09:10:00.002-06:00

For some reason with this move to Dallas, I am obsessing over being "settled" - I think it is because since June of this year (6 months) we have been talking about moving, planning a move, actuallymoving, or unpacking and all that is involved with starting over. I am ready to be settled, nested, in one place...you get the point. We are finally in our new house in Plano, TX and I love the house - I could not ask for a more perfect home. Now - can we please stay in this one for more than 2 years? God, I hope so. I hope we are here for 20 years. If you think that sounds ridiculous - you have not been through a move with a newborn baby and a toddler...not just a move around the corner either - a move to a new place where you don't know where the grocery store is and you can't find your own house after finally finding the grocery store! I am ready for things to feel familiar and homey, but I know we have a long way to go.

I do think the potential here is great for raising a family and enjoying a new place. We will desperately miss The Woodlands and our friends and family there, but thankfully we are only a drive away - albeit a long and hard one with 2 kiddos.

Julianne started her new pre-school yesterday and I walked her in with a huge lump in my throat, but a big, fake smile on my face for her sake. I think fake smiles may be necessary for awhile. Anyways, she seemed to love it. I was allowed to join them for the school play and Thanksgiving feast which was adorable. We are going to visit the church where her school is - Christ United Methodist Church of Plano this weekend. The faster we can get plugged in somewhere, the better. We are SO excited that our friends the Mills and the Andersons are near by so we have some wonderful friends near by - a huge comfort. Julianne already got to spend a day with Kendall at the Mills house last weekend and loved every minute of it. OH, we have a sweet 11 year old girl next door who is marketing herself as a "Mothers Helper" - she charges $3 an hour to come play with Julianne while Mommy unpacks and takes care of Jenna. We had her come over 2 days ago and Julianne loves her already. This is a blessing - truly. I know I have been spoiled beyond measure living so close to my folks and having a built in babysitter anytime I needed one - and they are still in town waiting for the arrival of Jenny's baby, Ella Grace, and helping me every day as I try to get unpacked. When they drive away - back to Houston - well, I can't even talk or think about it right now. I am finally going to have to "go it alone" as many people already do - but again - I have to adjust to it - and it won't be easy for this girl or for Julianne. I don't say this to sound negative, but truthful and honest. I am excited and I know this is where God wants us and I am thrilled beyond measure for Justin's new job - but that does not make moving easy.

Jenna is 6 weeks, but I feel like she has been with us forever. I feel she is neglected by me b/c once she is fed, I stick her in some contraption be it a swing or bouncy and don't pay attention to her until it is time to eat again. She plays by herself and puts herself to sleep. She is a low maintenance child by genetics or by necessity or just by the simple fact that mom and dad don't have time right now....once we are "Settled," I hope to spend some quality time with her.

Thanksiving and Christmas will probably be a blur for me this year - I may not even remember them, but I will try to enjoy them nonetheless as I know I have a lot to be thankful for.

More Pics of Bundle of Joy, Jenna and Big Sis, Julianne

2009-10-14T20:02:00.002-06:00

Sweet sisters. Tired Parents.

Jenna Elizabeth is here!

2009-10-08T07:53:00.003-06:00

JENNA ELIZABETH CHATIGNY ++++ 9 POUNDS, 1 OZ++++20.5 INCHES++++10/2/09

One week ago tonight, my water broke - it was not this huge gush that people talk about, but a slow trickle that got bigger and bigger. After waking up Justin, paging the doctor, adding a few things to my hospital bag, then telling Justin it was a false alarm, then calling the doctor again, then telling Justin it was time to go to the hospital - we grabbed our 3 year old around midnight and headed for Memorial Hermann. Mimi and Papa met us there to take Jules back home and Justin and I went in for a long night in the Triage room. I was hooked up to monitors to check my contractions as well as to monitor Jenna's heartbeat. We waited in that room from midnight until 7 am (being told that 3 other mothers had to deliver before me for urgent reasons). The contractions did get to a point where I needed pain meds and so I was pretty loopy when they wheeled me in to deliver. The main things I remember are: Justin's teary and excited eyes that I stared into while they cut me open, hearing the 2 docs and nurses go "WHOA" as they delivered Jenna ("She is huge!!!" and "Look at that head!"), and hearing her sweet cry that seems to take forever to come. I remember feeling that sweet relief of having that huge baby out of my body. Her apgar scores were 9 and 9 and that made me feel good too. While in the recovery room I was not impressed with the 2 nurses tending to us and for some reason I got fixated on that - the one caring for Jenna and checking her out had this huge frown on her face and she seemed very put out and I kept asking, "Is she OK? Is everything OK???" and then she would look at me like I was crazy. The other nurse caring for me was being way too stingy with the pain medication and I basically felt like my incision was on fire until she gave me a bit more...I mean, it is not every day you have your abdomen cut open! Our stay in the hospital was very good overall and our main challenge was and continues to be Jenna learning to latch on to the breast feeding routine. Oh and the little oinker eats every 2 hours, so no real down time between feedings. We are struck by how much more calm and comfortable we are this time around.

We feel very blessed to have 2 beautiful, healthy girls and our family feels complete now. Big sister is doing very well and we are trying to give her special attention time as we can. I know she is ready for mom to be able to do normal things again like go to the park and pick her up, etc so I am anxious to get healed and start living again!!!

Hope to have more pics soon.

OH, and our other family news is that we are moving to Dallas. More on that later, but picture this: New job for Dad, New House, New Baby, New City. Could we please have a little more change in our lives?

Love, The Proud Mom of Julianne and Jenna

Prego Picture

2009-09-30T12:59:00.002-06:00

I got this picture from Lauren's blog and thought I would show how gigantic I am. This was taken at Jenny's Houston baby shower. Jenny is about 7 weeks behind me which is fun. Everyone thought Lauren was glowing, but it was not a 3rd baby on the way - just sweat! I am way bigger than this now. This was about a month ago. The Subway sandwich cashier asked if I was carrying twins. I can't breathe. I need oxygen. Julianne thinks I am an invalid. I just cannot wait to have this baby. I don't care if she screams all night long for 3 months - I just want her out of my body. OK, I may regret saying that. God, please give us a good baby! Healthy first, then a good baby is what I mean of course...Looking back, Julianne really was a "good baby." She just had some medical issues that prevented her from sleeping (reflux and horrible ear infections). The ear infections ceased completely right after her 2nd birthday once we got her tubes. We should have had tubes around her first birthday, but decided to see how the year went - big mistake, but you live and you learn. Granted that was 2 years of not sleeping, but that is behind us. She still has reflux and it still wakes her up, but she knows now that "the burn in her throat" is just food or milk and can go back to sleep. Otherwise, she really was happy and very easy to play with/distract/etc. Being the 1st child, she is pretty demanding of our attention....saying, "Wanna play with me?" about every five minutes....but if we tell her that we can't or that we are busy she can play very creatively alone for a good long time.

Yesterday she said 2 funny things:

To my Dad, "Papa, do you wanna play for heaven's sakes?!?!"

To Justin,"My name is not Julianne. It is Big. Sister. Chatigny"

We do have some big changes in our family that I can report more on after this Friday.

Big Sister

2009-09-15T11:59:00.002-06:00

Well, my camera's wireless card is on the fritz so I cannot download new pics right now, but I do have some cute stories about Julianne. She is SO excited to become a big sister and talks about it daily. I think she senses big changes in our family with mom's growing belly and just the stuff that goes along with getting ready for a new baby - washing little clothes, wiping old toys down, setting up baby books, having diaper showers, etc. My diaper shower will need to be a separate post when I can put pics up, but it was so lovely and perfect. Thank you Jenny, Lauren, and Mom!

So here are some things Julianne is saying:
*I am going to be the first one to hold Jenna - no one else can hold her
*I am going to take care of Jenna - bathe her, put her little clothes on her, get her some toys, feed her some milk
*Mom, when Jenna pops out - I will be the one to catch her
*Mom, can you and Dad go upstairs and let me take care of Jenna by myself?
*I love my little baby Jenna

You get the idea - she is already in love with this little person and wanting to help out. Call it her age or just her inherent sweetness, but I think she is going to be a great big sister and helper!

Random, but we always have really interesting conversations in the car on the way to school and today she asked me,"Where does our voice come from?" and "What is beneath our skin?" When I told her bones, and muscles, and blood, she goes - "Oh, I like blood!" Lol.

Also, she has lately been telling Justin and I that we have 3 or 4 choices and will list them off with her fingers (You can either have popcorn or a popcicle or.....while counting down on her hands).....

And to report on activities, she is enjoying her pre-school which is T and Th from 9 to 2 and taking ballet/tap on Wednesdays. She loves it and I cried when they did this little mini routine for us. She had her hands on her hips and was shaking back and forth and had this little shy/embarassed look on her face that was priceless. As all of you parents know, the pride and love is just overwhelming at times! There are a few little bullies in her class at school and I have already conferenced with the teacher about them - yes, I am one of those mothers. :-)

Ok, more later and I hope for more pictures soon!

Some Pics from this Summer

2009-08-21T21:52:00.002-06:00

During Gamma and Gumps visit, I came upstairs to the gameroom to find my bra suspended between the 2 gameroom doors. When I asked Julianne, "What is that?" she very calmly replied, "it's your bra mom. the one for your bobbies." I had to chuckle.

Great visit w/ the grandparents from VA~! Much fun was had playing with Gamma's new curlers - note there is one in each person's hair in this pic.

A play date with my cousin Lana and her 2 precious Kiddos - Ethan and Alyssa.

Great pic of Jules and Papa

Julianne and Jack at Safari Stop.

Major Birthday Party Event

2009-08-21T21:38:00.005-06:00

Ethan Shapiro had his 4th birthday party at the Houston Zoo and it was quite an event! As you can see Jules got to have her face painted with anything she wanted. She chose a butterfly which may have something to do with the fact that her "Big Girl" Room (newly painted pink) is a butterfly and flowers theme. The kids got to meet a few animals up close and personal - one being a huge garden snake that had teeth, but no poison. Gamma and Gumps joined us at the party as they were in town for a few days and a great time was had by all. It's all about giving our kids experiences, right? Well, this was a great one. Thanks Robyn and Rob!

The Birthday Boy, Rob, and Jules

Let's get one more picture of that butterfly! She kept feeling her face for it long after we washed it off.

The snake talk

Mom, it feels "Oooookey!"

Observations

2009-08-18T21:41:00.002-06:00

I just read on my friend Kacy's blog that one of her girls thought she saw Jesus (well, it was a Middle Eastern person dressed in traditional garb). This cracked me up beyond belief and reminded me of a few observations Ms. Julianne has made lately:

*"Mom, you have a big, fat belly" (which she does kiss often)
*When she sees overweight people she asks me, "Is that man full?" or "Does that lady have a baby in HER belly too?"
*"God made us all different colors, mom! I am white and pink!"
*"Why does that boy have on earrings?"
*"I like that boy, he is so cute." Justin loves these comments!

Like I Said, San Antonio Summer

2009-08-06T09:52:00.007-06:00

Over the 4th of July Weekend we had our first and last family trip (meaning just our immediate family of 3) to San Antonio or more specifically the Westin La Canterra in the Hills of San Antonio. It was a great resort complete with multiple pools, restaurants, and activities for the kiddos. They did smores in a firepit every night for the kids as well as face painting and firewords for the 4th of July. We really enjoyed just being together and hanging out at the pool. We ventured to Sea World one day which Julianne loved of course. Justin had up his sleeve to stop at the Shiner Bock Brewery which we did as well.

So this brewery only employes 65 people and they produce like 150,000 bottles of beer a day. Huge 18 Wheelers were standing by to cart the beer all over TX and beyond.

The hotel pool that we still miss!

View of the Adult pool

Ok, so most mornings we ate dry cereal that we brought with us, but this morning we splurged for Julianne and got her a TX shaped Belgian Waffle - yummmm.

Lunching by the pool

Sea World Sea Lions

1st Roller Coaster Ride - Jules and were in the first pair of whales. After it stopped she screamed, "AGAIN!" like 50 times.

Shamu was awesome

Lots to take in for a 3 year old. She talked about it for days. Great trip, family of 3 and soon to be 4!

My Prego Sister

2009-07-28T21:24:00.005-06:00

My sister Jenny and I had visions of tons of pregnant pics together since we are only 7 weeks apart and both having girls.....well, that has just not happened due to timing of visits etc. Sooo, here is a picture of her cute belly on her mission trip to South TX about a month ago. She says she is even bigger now. I think she looks precious. My other sister Lauren and Ryan's sister, Chelle and another good friend are throwing Jenny a Baby Shower in Dallas at the end of August and since Jenny and Ryan picked polka dot bedding, we picked this cute invitation from Swoozie's to go with the theme:

I am not big on details

2009-07-28T13:01:00.002-06:00

Anyone who knows me well knows I am not big on details - I don't care about exact dates, timing things to perfection, making lists, etc.....never have been. I am a big picture girl with a focus on people (at least that is what Myers Briggs tells me)...For better or for worse, that is me - take it or leave it, but.....I am counting down the days until the end of this pregnancy - I can't tell you if I am in week 29 or 30, but I can tell you that when I get my due date next Wed at my obgyn appt, I just may add one of those pregnancy ticklers to my blog! If I had to guess, my due date will be somewhere between Sept 29th and Oct 2nd. I have never been more ready for a date to come in my life. I am short of breath, having all kinds of pains in my hips that feels like raw nerve exposure, I am up every 2 hours at night (yes, I will be ready for a newborn as far as no sleep is concerned), I am having contractions from about 5 pm to 10 pm every night, and am unable to do much of anything past about 3 or 4 pm besides hope for the end of the day to come soon. Suffice it to say that I will celebrate never being pregnant again - blame it on my short torso or my zero pain tolerance (again, something you are born with), but pregnancy is horrendous in my opinion. Of course it is worth it in the end though. I just have soooo much admiration for those women of our grandmother's generation who had 5 to 10 kids to help out on the farms - can you imagine??? Well, this will be my one and only whine session, so glad that is out of my system. Oh, and the baby's name is....Jenna Elizabeth Chatigny. We are not big into surprises either - can you tell?

A Game of Hope

2009-07-27T20:15:00.002-06:00

If you have 5 minutes, this story is well worth your time. Think a football story can't make you cry? Maybe we could all root for someone who needs us - I know I will. :-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HuxejhBOCOo&feature=related

Justin's Man Trip to Montana

2009-07-21T19:43:00.006-06:00

I am so glad Justin got to have this get-a-way with buddies - he needed it and deserved it. I am not trying to win the cool wife award, but I always encourage Justin to take guy trips because he comes back refreshed and we get to have that "excitement" feeling of seeing eachother after being apart for a few days - very healthy, I think! Here are some pics of my handsome hubby in the wild:

San Antonio Summer

2009-07-21T19:12:00.004-06:00

I loved going to San Antonio growing up - it always felt festive, alive, historical, and just so colorful. Julianne had not 1, but 2 trips to "Sand Tonio" this summer. The first was with Mimi, Papa, and Aunt Lauren while Dad was on a Man Trip to Montana. It was a great trip complete with a visit to the San Antonio Zoo - built in an old rock quarry during the Great Depression to give men work. We also went to the Alamo, rode a Riverwalk boat, ate lots of great Mexican food, went swimming, etc. Jules was calling Aunt Lauren, "My Friend" by the end of the trip. Everyone helped me out a lot in caring for Jules as I started to feel very uncomfortable in the heat and at night on this little get-a-way. Thanks for a great vacation guys!
Remember the Alamo!

Japanese Rock Gardens and Waterfalls

Enjoying some local music - we were told it would cost $5 before they started singing. Geeesh.

Pouting while Lauren and I tried to get lottery tickets to Wicked that was playing in an old theatre- we did not win the lottery tickets - oh well!

The Zoo!

Hippos up close and personal!

A Leopard

Along the riverwalk before the boat ride

Funny

2009-07-01T00:40:00.003-06:00

Well, Julianne and I are officially holding full out conversations now. She still uses words slighty incorrectly which I hope lasts a long time because we get such a kick out of it. 2 examples:

"I am FURIOUS in my heart" for when she is feeling angry

"Mommy, you cute" for when she is feeling affectionate towards me

She also keeps noticing how my belly is growing and likes to say that I am "HUGE" which is music to a mother's ear - not.

Fairy Tale

2009-07-01T00:36:00.001-06:00

This just made me laugh - it came in an email chain forward - gotta love 'em!

A married couple in their early 60s were celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary in a quiet, romantic little restaurant. Suddenly, a tiny yet beautiful fairy appeared on their table. She said, 'for being such an exemplary married couple and for being loving to each other for all this time, I will grant you each a wish.' The wife answered, 'Oh, I Want to travel around the world with my darling husband.' The fairy waved her magic wand and - poof! - Two tickets for the Queen Mary II appeared in her hands. The husband thought for a moment: 'Well, this is all very romantic, but an opportunity like this will never come again.I'm sorry my love, but my wish is to have a wife 30 years younger than me.' The wife and the fairy were deeply disappointed, but a wish is a wish. So the fairy waved her magic wand and poof! the husband became 92 years old.

End of the year activities

2009-06-17T11:36:00.004-06:00

I had lots of pictures to download from the end of the school year, so here is a sampling: Pajama night at school in May - basically an open house for parents, the kids wore their pj's and they showed a movie and served milk and cookies in the big banquet hall. The kids thought this was SO cool!

We just HAD to bring our flashlight

Ms Kim - I honestly don't think she will ever have a better teacher than Ms Kim! She is the sweetest, warmest person and Julianne always includes her in nightly prayers, "Bank you for Ms Kimmmmm."

Water Day at school in May. A chance to get crazy on the playground with water and shaving cream. We now play with shaving cream in the bath tub.

Last day of school cookie party:

Eli in the green shirt is Julianne's first boyfriend. She insists that she will marry him someday making her dad crazy!

Award Day at the gym --- Julianne was the only one who would NOT do her tricks out on the floor in front of the audience. I think we may actually have a shy girl on our hands despite being outgoing as a youngster - I know I got more shy as I got older and so did my sisters....we will see!

Running to me for moral support rather than doing her summersault!

Playing with Emma at the fountains at market street - who needs a swim suit?

Creekside Pool

2009-06-12T16:26:00.003-06:00

Well, summer has officially begun and Jules and I hit the pool today for the first time during the week. I just have to take a minute to brag on the newest pool in The Woodlands called Creekside. It is incredible - beach entry for the little ones with splash fountains, a huge giant mushroom in the water for shade, a big watery jungle gym in the middle of the pool with slides that Julianne can go down, a lazy river that flows around the entire place, tons of green space around it with playgrounds...I felt like I was on vacation. The pools and parks around here are simply amazing and I am just really starting to appreciate them as she gets older and we are able to do more and more. I am also grateful we can be outdoors 12 months out of the year - OK, if you are outdoors in June - August, you better be at the pool, but you know what I mean. I am just feeling very blessed today to have spent a wonderful day with Julianne. I am feeling emotional about spending my last few months alone with Jules before the next baby and once baby girl #2 gets to a certain age, this Mommy is going back to work (if this economy ever improves - unemployment is not getting any better) , so our days are numbered so to speak - which makes you appreciate them all the more.

Williamsburg

2009-06-09T18:30:00.003-06:00

We have been back about a week and a half from our trip to Williamsburg and Dad has already been to NY and back. Crazy! We had a great trip to VA and Julianne really got to do some special things like ride on a horse and buggy and go to VA Beach! We enjoyed a day at the pool on Memorial Day, a nice dinner out with Neal and Lisa, a great retirement party for Pops, bike rides, convertible rides, visits to downtown, great dinners in and out, a trip to VA Beach and Norfolk for a great boat ride. It really was a much needed getaway and change of pace. Thanks to Gamma and Gumps for a fabulous time in the Burg!!

Exciting News

2009-05-19T20:38:00.002-06:00

We were thrilled to find out that Baby #2 is another Girl!!! We know girls, we love girls, we have stuff for girls, and we are so happy. And I know what a beautiful thing it is to have a sister. :-) Of course there is that little voice inside that says, "Darn it, we will never have a son," but God knows what He is doing and we are thrilled. The baby looks healthy in her measurements so that is always comforting to hear. She is positioned head down and facing my back...she was curled up in a little ball, feet crossed, hands covering her face and she would not (despite tons of poking and prodding and the ultrasound tech saying how stubborn she is) turn her head to give us a picture of her face. Therefore, Dr. G is letting us have another ultrasound in 3 weeks before he head's off to Italy for 2 weeks. Yay. Julianne is very excited, but had been saying she wanted a brother to call her "stinky Julianne." I have assured her that sisters can tease eachother too. The baby is measuring about 4 days ahead, so due date of October 6th, but with a scheduled C-section, this one could even come in late September.

Other family news: I landed a part time job as a Brain Trainer for a company called Learning RX. I am very excited and start training in June. I will be working one on one with kids who have learning disabilities - the method behind Learning RX is to retrain the brain (not just put bandaids over the problems) and the owners are 2 former teachers frustrated with the lack of resources in the school systems. Learning RX is a national company and this branch in The Woodlands is #65 in the US. The hours are mainly afternoons from around 3 to 7 and on Saturdays. I will work about 15 hours a week, but it takes awhile to build up to that. I am excited and nervous at the same time...

We continue to pray that Justin holds down his job in this tough time and Deloitte doesn't lay off a 2nd member of our family tossing us into homelessness w/ no medical insurance while expecting baby #2. No, not a stressful time at all! Wink.

9 Years and Mother's Day

2009-05-12T15:00:00.003-06:00

Last week was pretty special as we celebrated our 9 year anniversary! I met Justin downtown for an evening out (rare these days) - we went to the Red Lion, a British Pub, for drinks and then to Houston's for dinner. Houston's was our favorite place to eat in Atlanta and they are on every corner there, but here there are only 2 and they are both "in town." It was a nice distraction from the every day and I am grateful for 9 wonderful years - Love You Lu!

Mother's Day weekend was nice too - Justin had a conference at the church Friday night and Saturday so Jules and I camped out at Mimi and Papa's to spend time with pregnant Jenny and Ryan as well as Aunt Lauren. Julianne played her heart out with everyone and for the first time ever was modest with being nude....after her bath Friday night she told Uncle Ryan that she was naked and he could not see her and she slunk away with the towel wrapped tightly around her (whereas at Christmas she ran around Ryan and Jenny's house with wild adondon naked as a jay bird). I guess she is growing up. We met up with Dad (finally) for dinner that night. On Mother's Day we went to church and lunch, the 3 of us and to one of the pools that opened up. It was a very nice weekend and I think we both feel refreshed and rejuvenated.

We have speaker at the church on Thursday night (a man with no limbs who travels the world inspiring people and who couldn't need some inspiration during these times???) and Supper Club on Friday Night at the Chappells new house, so should be fun. Next weekend we head for the Burg! Time is flying!

A few cute things:

*Justin and I were having one of many serious discussions we have had lately and Julianne yelled, "GUYS....stop argu-menting!"

*Yesterday we were on a walk and we told her she could not take a gazillion ponies with her and she said, "GUYS....I am fruster-bated."

*She tries to negotiate with us and will ask, "Is that a deal?"

*She is terrified of the smoke detector on her ceiling - it has a green light and she tells me it is a green eyed monster.

Visit to East Texas

2009-05-12T14:10:00.002-06:00

We had a great visit to Cameron and Leslie Carlile's lakehouse. Cameron's parents own 4 vacation homes - all of which could win awards for architecture and decor - so we felt pretty lucky to be in such a beautiful place with lavish grounds complete with a waterfall, a playground, tractors to ride, and a gorgeous lake. During the day we hung out on the boats or in the water and at night we put the kids to bed and sat out on these huge verandas that overlooked the water - it was very relaxing. The whole place was geared towards grandkids so there were bunk beds, small life vests, videos, and books - which just made it that much more cozy.

Cam and Les are due with another baby in October as well and we are predicting boy for us and girl for them. Grant and Julianne had fun chasing eachother, but they are clearly into very differnt things: Trucks VS Ponies. Maybe they learned something from eachother.

Helping Daddy Plant Flowers

2009-04-25T15:37:00.003-06:00

Chatigny Family Visit

2009-04-25T15:21:00.004-06:00

Neal, Lisa, Andrew, and Noelle came for a visit last weekend! Noelle and Julianne got along very well and Andrew was as happy as a clam pretty much the whole time. The kids were just precious together. We can't wait for cousin #4 to be born. We enjoyed a cook out, a night out for Justin's birthday with friends, and an Astros game. I won't mention that we almost got flooded in The Heights and Lisa had to talk me out of a panic attack as we drove through flooding waters. It was a great visit and we look forward to The Burg in May!

Easter Weekend

2009-04-16T09:17:00.002-06:00

Crawfish Broils, Birthday Parties, Multiple Egg Hunts, and Church filled Easter Weekend. On Sunday Julianne came with us to "Our Class" which was the sanctuary. Justin really wanted her with us on Easter rather than in the nursury. I thought this was a great idea too. Julianne really was an angel during the service. During the singing she was dancing like Stevie Wonder (eyes closed and rocking back and forth) and at one point during several "alleluias" in one song, she was holding a pony in each hand raising them up to the heavens. She was making everyone around us laugh - thank God we were sitting near people who loved children! After church we ate at one of our new favorite restaurants in Houston called Ouisies Table. It reminds us of Horseradish Grill in Atlanta.

http://www.ouisiestable.com/

One more story about Jules - she is going through some kind of minor separation anxiety and has started crying before school, swim lesson, etc. When I was comforting her and singing her this song called, "Mommy Comes Back, She Always Comes Back," she cut me off and said in her most dramatic voice: "WIPE MY TEARS AWAY MAMA!" It was her way of being strong, so I wiped her tears away and she was fine.

When we tell her "no" or snap at her she now says, "You are being mean at me" or "You don't love me anymore" - Can we say, JUSTIN??? She is her father's drama queen daughter and I love it.

Happy Easter

2009-04-10T20:57:00.002-06:00

Happy Easter! What a special time of hope and praise. Enjoy this weekend!

Bluebonnets

2009-04-09T15:25:00.004-06:00

I have wanted to take pictures of Julianne in the bluebonnets every Spring since she was born and 4 years later, we finally got out there! Julianne thought the wind was hilarious - look at that hair! Thank you to Mimi and Papa for sponsoring this little day trip and helping us capture these moments!

Neighborhood Easter Egg Hunt

2009-04-04T11:53:00.003-06:00

Caroline and Julianne! Go Girls!

We had our Neighborhood Easter Egg Hunt this morning and Caroline's birthday party this afternoon, so big doings this Saturday. :-)

Paker comes to visit

2009-04-04T10:39:00.002-06:00

We hosted my cousin Ashley and her kids (Parker is 2 and Taylor is 7 weeks) for a whole week. Julianne and Parker have a love/hate relationship at this point, but we still had a good week. We went to the zoo and got a great view of 7 giraffes. Julianne also pretended to be a baby like Taylor much of the week hence the carseat picture.

Missing Camera

2009-03-19T20:21:00.002-06:00

My camera is missing so no new pictures to post. It must be pregnancy brain, but I cannot find it anywhere. I am hoping with Spring cleaning it will turn up, but if not, we will be in the market for a new one. Sigh.

The Lacey Family came to see us last weekend! It was raining cats and dogs and freezing (we all thought Spring was here for good - not) but we had a great time. Camryn and Julianne played non stop for 4 days. They painted with watercolors, dressed up like princesses and acted out the movies, and we even found them playing a potty game that we think helped Julianne finally go potty! YAY! After Julianne went potty she told me that, "now she needs to go to Disney World." I wish. We treked down to the Houston Rodeo and the girls enjoyed seeing a sheep herding contest, petting huge pigs, cows, and bunnies. All of the outdoor pony rides and carnival stuff was closed due to rain, but they got the idea. Madelyn is just a precious joy to be around - so happy and easygoing. She fell in love with Julianne's tool kit - screws, hammers, you name it - she was into it. So cute. Thank you guys for coming to see us - it was a huge effort and we are missing you already!

Other updates: I am 11 weeks pregnant. We had out last Fertility Doctor appointment this week and so I am off the shots, pills, and patches which were all hormone treatments. Now that the placenta is formed, it takes over the hormone production and distribution. I know - TMI. We both predict we are having a girl and yes, we are thinking of names - everything from Maya, Ava, Keira, Charlotte, Alexandra, Caroline, Joline have crossed our minds. Just kidding about Joline - that name came from an American Idol country song performace and it is the worst name I have ever heard - hope no one is offended. :-)

We have been on Spring Break this week and have been bored mostly. Looking forward to activities and school next week as well as a visit from my cousin Ashley and her family of 4 the next week.

The latest Julianneisms:

*2 popular words are aggravated (pronounced with a b rather than a v) and important: i.e.
"I am "aggrabated" right now!"
"This toy is very important."
*The song Love Story by Taylor Swift is her favorite song - she dances to it every time
*She asked her Dad what is a Single Lady (she heard this term in a song) and he replied in terms she could understand, "It is a lady who does not have a prince yet."
*She calls Daddy "our prince."
*She still wants to marry her friend Kendall Mills who we got to spend all day with today b/c they are in town - it was the best day we have had in a long time! So fun!

Cardboard Testimonies

2009-03-08T21:05:00.003-06:00

Something special happened at church last week that they put on youtube....I have since seen that many churches have done this exercise and put it on youtube, but it is inspirational and empowering to see....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zThXUvK-zCk

The Latest

2009-03-01T19:27:00.002-06:00

Well, Julianne is expecting a baby sister or brother in October of this year. Before we had really told anyone she announced to her class that "Mommy has a baby in her tummy, just like me!" Her teachers very privately asked me if it was true, but the word was out - at least at school. When we first saw the baby's heartbeat she started singing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" because it looked like a flickering star or candle flame. Every few nights she asks to talk to the baby so I lay down on the floor and she lifts up my shirt and sings/talks to the baby - I have heard words like: God, thankful, tiny, my little ponies, etc. It is so cute. Lastly, I told her that the baby would drink milk from my bobbies some day (we were talking about this because for a few days she thought the baby was growing in my "bobbies") and she yelled, "No! I want to drink milk out of your bottles!" We are about 8 weeks along. I am exhausted and horrified by most smells...the nausea is starting in the evenings. I am still taking progesterone shots at night and I can't begin to explain how painful they have become, but it is worth it - every poke and prod!!! We pray for a healthy pregnancy and that mom can be a good mom during this pregnancy to Julianne!

Valentine's

2009-02-17T19:01:00.002-06:00

One of our sweet neighbors had a Valentine Party complete with crafts and decorating cupcakes. She served Strawberry Soup which was fabulous along with pink milk, pink muffins, etc. It was quite a treat! Julianne gave out Valentine's here as well as at school and she calls her Valentine's her "mail." Mom and Dad had a Mardi Gras party to go to on Valentine's, but we had a little family celebration on Sunday.

We had our Suppa Club Friday night and it was my turn on dessert duty, so I did chocolate fondue with strawberries, bananas, angel food cake and rice crispie treats - it was a hit (yes, I am proud of myself). I did not mean for it to be a Valentine's theme dessert, but it sort of turned out to be one...

Just thought this was cute. A typical bath for Julianne consists of bringing ALL of her ponies in with her. The princesses in the background were not allowed to come in the water, so I propped them up to watch the ponies. While in the tub, Julianne comes up with all kinds of imaginary situations with her ponies - they go on adventures and she talks, babbles, screams, laughs the entire time. She usually plays "Mommy and Darling" with a pair of ponies.

More Birthday Pictures

2009-02-17T18:54:00.002-06:00

Thank you to all of our dear friends and family for making Julianne's birthday so very special - from phone calls to her birthday treats to her joy of seeing her friends and family at her party, she is a lucky little girl. She is immensely blessed by all of you and the love she feels from you!

Daddy brought back Gamma and Gumps

2009-02-17T18:45:00.004-06:00

Daddy returned from NY with Gamma and Gumps! Julianne was watching out the window for their car when they pulled up. She immediately had to show off her tricycle riding abilities and then we had a nice walk to Rico's. Gamma and Gumps thought they had come to Mexico due to the blue skies and sunshine and felt like getting a margarita. Unfortunately, Gumps got very ill that night and lost his margarita to toiletville. Gumps was in Dallas for the week, but Gamma got to spend the week in our "routine' if you can call it that! Just before the big 3rd birthday at Pump It Up. Thank you so much for being here and for my scooter!

At the Family Birthday Party Friday night! This was the highlight of the week for me!

Out to lunch with the ladies in Tomball, TX.

Catching Up

2009-02-17T18:29:00.005-06:00

I have not been the blest blogger lately due to being a bit tired in the evenings, so I am playing catch up!

Julianne started swim lessons at FINS 3 weeks ago and she is a little fish! She is in a semi-private lesson for 30 minutes once a week and it is a highlight of her week. FINS has adult instructors who teach swimming to kids year round and it is quite the professional place. Daddy has been able to come several times when he has worked from home and Gamma was our special guest last week!

2 weekends ago, Daddy went to NY for our nephews baptism. Julianne and I were sad to miss the festivities, but glad Daddy got to go and enjoy a few days off from work, being in the NE, and seeing his family. Julianne and I met some friends at Rico's on that Friday night and they had face painting, balloon makers, and live music - love that place!

On Superbowl Sunday, we headed over to Jack's house for some good food and some football. Ok, the kids and Tracy and I did not watch the game at all, but Dave gave it his best effort amdist the chaos. For some reason the kids stripped to their undies and started playing harmonicas - it was a highlight of the evening!

Julianne Turns 3!

2009-02-11T08:24:00.003-06:00

Julianne had a great birthday celebration this year. We had a family party Friday night complete with Gamma, Gumps, Mimi, Papa, Aunt Jenny, Aunt Lauren, and mom, dad, and June. Gamma made cupcakes and Julianne helped decorate them - well, she ate lots of sprinkles and icing which counts for something, right? She had her party at the Pump it Up bouncy place and a great time was had by all! Julianne felt very special and greeted all of her guests wtih a big hug. We went from her party to Simon Schapiro's first birthday party, so we all had a nice nap that afternoon!

Aunt Jenny, Julianne and Aubrie sliding
Mom and Jules - The My Little Pony theme went to her outfit too - I know - over the top, much?

A few sayings at age 3:

* I know "everybing"

*I'm not afraid of "anybing"

*This bathroom smells disgusting! (Kroger)

*Bathroom humor has started - What do you want for dinner, Julianne? Response: "poo-poo"

*What is your last name, Julianne? Response: "poo-poo"

*Loving as always, she still tells us that we are her best friends and that we will always be in her heart.

*Her swim teachers name is Ms. Alyssia, but she calls her Marissia.

*Doctor Haggerty is still Hagga Docertdy

*She now requests cold play and Jimmy Eat World - we sing the words in either Cat or Dog, so we Meow or Bark to the music - it is lovely!

*Favorite Cartoon - Tom & Jerry

Party is coming!

2009-01-26T17:59:00.004-06:00

So I ordered My Little Pony Birthday Invitations from a Web Site that must have been a fraud. They took my money and ran - so to speak. My mom rescued me and had these adorable invitations done last week, so we will have one for the scrapbook. I was just going to send an email! Julianne is very excited about her Unicorn/My Little Pony/Pump It Up Party. We seem to have lots of themes going here, but we will just roll with it.

Julianne told Uncle Andrew at his birthday dinner that she was 2 right now, but that she was turning 3 at Pump-A-Jump (where she is having her party, but it is Pump-it-Up).

On another note: I am wearing a black and white striped shirt today and Julianne goes, "Mom, you look like a zebra!"

I want to live at the toy store

2009-01-24T22:20:00.002-06:00

So, Julianne and I checked out a new toy store near our house to get some birthday gift ideas and boy did she have some! In fact, when we were leaving, I said, "we have to go home now to Daddy and June" and she said, "No, Mom, I want to live at the toy store!"

I truly think I am still 50% kid (I get this from my father who will play "bunnies" endlessly with Julianne) because I really want to play with the toys and read the kiddie books too - Even more, I love the thought of taking her to Disney World, Sea World, Splash Town, the Circus, etc. - that stuff just makes my heart sing and to see her little face light up and enjoy it and relish in it makes it sing BIG (as Jules would say). I mean let's face it, we all have a very limited number of years in which to be a kid and be "carefree" and then it is the real world and having a child allows us to slip back into that kid mode even though it drains our pockets dry - it is WORTH it.

In conclusion, I want to live at a toy store too!

Victorian Mother with a Child

2009-01-20T23:31:00.003-06:00

I saw this picture on someone else's blog and really loved it. It reminded me of how important it is to pray for Julianne and with her as well. When I feel inadequate as a mother or as a wife or a Christian or just as a person, I find solace in praying and in God's promise to never forsake us. Sometimes the "world" can truly pull ones spirits down - just listen to the news for 5 minutes - local, national, world - it doesn't matter - it is all - for the most part sad and depressing. It is such a comfort to me that there is a God who cares so deeply about us, everyone who is suffering, alone, poor and cares about every decision we make. Justin and I have some tough personal decisions to make and so I put my faith - never in the world or the people in it - but in God and his future for me and for us.

I Am Not Kidding!

2009-01-18T22:53:00.004-06:00

Julianne still tells us that "we are not a good idea" if we are asking her to go to bed or eat dinner or some other task that she dislikes. Now, she also says, "I am NOT kidding you" when she is trying to be serious or express to us what she does NOT want to do. It is all I can do not to start cracking up.

A few other cute Julianneisms:

*I was laying down with her the other day and she started telling me that she loved my eyes, my ears, my hair and she would pat each one. Then, she goes, "I love your Whole Body!" I thought this was rather kind given that no one else has said that to me in ages!!! :-)

*She likes to run around naked after her bath yelling, "I am FREE!"

*She pulled out a tiny piece piece of wax from her ear and said, "I found a buger in my ear."

*She tends to like boys....of all ages....the other day she met a pair of boy/girl twins and asked their mother what their names were....the mother replied, "Carter and Olivia" and Julianne proceeded to put on what I call her "flirty but shy face" and goes, "Hiiiii Cawterrrr" and completely ignored Olivia. Poor Olivia.

Graduation at The Little Gym

2009-01-18T08:54:00.003-06:00

Julianne's gymnastics class had a ribbon ceremony and graduation after 17 weeks of hard work and coming a long way. The kids started off going to class, running around like wild monkeys, not listening, not following instructions, and not knowing how to do anything. Now most of them can follow directions, do certain signs in sign language, do a forward roll, a monkey jump (which is the beginning of a cart wheel) and a donkey kick (which is the beginning of a handstand)....let's face it - this is really just for fun, but I am happy she is getting some skills out of it too! We are going to do another class through June and then maybe do something else....Goooooooooo Little Gym! :-)

Challenge

2009-01-12T17:26:00.003-06:00

Potty Training is a challenge. As with everything I do, we have been transitioning slowly, steadily, and surely over the last 4-5 months. We finally went to big girl underwear over the weekend and I thought we had mastered the #1 part until we had an accident all over the booth of the place we ate lunch today. We are also terrified to go #2 on the toilet, but we have made strides. Our reward is Skittles and I am thinking we may need to switch to something even better. At least by the time she turns 3 she will probably be 95% potty trained! We will see.

AGAIN?

2009-01-08T19:33:00.004-06:00

Julianne got very used to Justin being around for the 2 weeks of Christmas break. When he went back to work on Monday, she asked, "Where my Daddy go?" I said, "He had to go back to work." On Tuesday morning she asked, "Where my Daddy go?" I said, " He's back at work sweetie" and she screamed, "AGAIN???" I tried to explain that he works Monday through Friday and will be back with us during the days on the weekends, but she was very sad and concerned that he was back at work - "again." It was too cute.

Another cute Julianne-ism is that she calls us "guys" right now.

One Last Jingle Bells

2009-01-05T17:27:00.002-06:00

Ok, I know Christmas is over and we are all spiraling into a deep depression because of it (well, I am), but here is one last Jingle Bells to enjoy. Julianne led the family in a lovely rendition complete with a nose pick.

Movie Reviews

2009-01-03T13:02:00.003-06:00

I am a wanna be movie buff, so here are some reviews for anyone interested:

Seven Pounds: B+...Interesting Story, great acting, keeps you guessing until the VERY end which drove me a bit nuts. A movie about redemption that sort of breaks your heart.

Gran Torino: A- ...Clint Eastwood plays a total hard a$$ who hates everyone and is sort of "dead" among the living. The accolades this movie is receiving in the media caused me to expect more than I got, so lower your expectations and this is worth seeing.

Yes Man: C+...Good rental, funny with a serious message to not let life pass you by by saying NO to everything.

The Tale of Desperaux - Going to see this next week with Jules!

Safari Stop

2009-01-03T12:54:00.002-06:00

This is the Safari Stop/Indoor playground at Julianne's school and our church. Frazzled mom's spend a lot of time up here in the hot summer or occasional freezing winter day when the elements will not allow for outdoor play. There is a cafe right outside that serves coffee and lunch foods so you can't ask for a better set up. Well, I had the bright idea of having Julianne 3rd birthday party here as it would be cheaper than a jumping place, but you have to be turning 4. As we say in our family - BIZZZ. So, we are having her party at Pump It Up or as Julianne likes to call it Pump-A-Jump. I am sure it will be great! I am looking forward to someone else doing the set up and clean up. Woo-Hoo!!!