The H family

Happy New YEAR!

2012-01-18T20:55:00.002-06:00

So..exceeded my blog storage. Awesome. Just another thing I needed to take care of. I will post our new year picture. The Hughes ranch fun. We had a blast.

Love you, A

Pinning.

2011-12-11T21:04:00.002-06:00

awwww, Pinterest.

My latest social media addiction. Life can only get better with this organizational tool. For decades I've wanted a bookmarking system like this. WOW. This person that invented this is by far a millionaire at this point. Seriously ingenious.

Behold....a glimpse of my pretty board. If you want to see my entire board..click here. Happy pinning!

Breakfast of champions

2011-12-10T09:57:00.001-06:00

We'll take it! Early morning. Yep. It happens. :) Mommy confession.

Ummm.

2011-12-09T18:32:00.001-06:00

one word: 5T now.

My little model

2011-12-07T06:47:00.002-06:00

Included Hannah Bow in my commercial shoot yesterday. So fun! I call this picture "rockin bow".

My sweet girl is getting so big!! She's literally skipped a size! She went from 3T to almost 5T now. We bought all this 4T thrift clothing and these last few days everything is really tight on her! LOL. So...make note Santa. :)

It's coat weather

2011-12-05T08:13:00.005-06:00

Major coat weather today. I think it's safe to call it "winter".

Things I love about winter...
Hot chocolate..
a warm fire. thank you husband for doing this every year.
not having to worry about my poochy belly...sweaters cover wonderfully.
being cozy and warm in a clean house...
reading books
hot, and I'm talking super hot baths.
the mall..love christmas decorations
the spirit of Christmas.

Have a great day bloggers. Oh..p.s. Thank Lori for always reminding me that small, contained little blog posts make a big difference. My friend Ericka mentioned that she loved the fact that I've been blogging dinky posts. Glad to hear that these little blogs make my friends and family smile. Hugs!

I call these pictures below "My snuggle bunnies".

Daddy's travel gifts!

2011-12-03T08:41:00.002-06:00

We love it when Daddy comes back in town. He always brings the sweetest and most perfect little gifts back to the kids. This was a huge hit! Hannah wants to wear them every morning. Time of this video: Approx. 6:30am..ish...

I call this video: Jingle Bow

Hannah Bow - outfit #78

2011-12-02T21:59:00.002-06:00

Enough said. Little Bow is so fun to shop for. Thanks Lulu. She loves her outfit! She looks in front of the mirror and squeaks.."Peeeeeeteeeeeee'. It's so precious!

I call this picture : I'm 3 years old and PEEETEEEEE.

Happy Thanksgiving 2011

2011-11-28T20:10:00.004-06:00

Thanksgiving at the Hughes ranch. Total bliss heaven. The kids loved every minute of it. A great day! Love you!

Luke's school picture...Kindergarten

2011-11-21T21:55:00.002-06:00

Enjoy!

Momma loves the big boy big girl all day long.

2011-11-18T21:36:00.003-06:00

I sing the title of this blog post to my children literally every day and all day long. My sweet babes.

I'm so excited to celebrate their births tomorrow. They are my little love bunny's and I can't wait to see their expressions and faces.

I love birthdays! I really do! Happy 6th Lukester my big boy. Happy 3rd my little bow chops. Momma loves you!!

I'm back and the side bar is fixed!

2011-11-17T05:44:00.003-06:00

Ok! Here we go. Back to blogging. History making...you name it.

It's 5:45am and I'm going to blog real quick. Here goes!

I call this picture "Christmas card potentional". Hugs!!

We've gone techie

2011-10-08T17:41:00.002-05:00

I call this picture: "Like Father, like Son". Jonathan is our techie. Luke is quickly following in his footsteps. This is an IPAD. Jonathan bought a case that looked like an etch/sketch. It's hilarious. I actually went on a client meeting with this case/IPAD because my IPAD was not charged. I think the client got a little nervous. LOL! They soon realized it was just the case. Too funny!

hi..it's me again. Finding something to blog about. Business currently is CRAZEEE. Add me on facebook and you'll see! hugs!

Daddy...I'm cute.

2011-08-20T12:51:00.000-05:00

Jonathan's latest thing when Hannah bow emerges from her room with a really cute flower dress is "there's my little orphan". LOL! cracks us up. She does look like orphan annie in this dress. So adorable!

I call this picture: "My Ralph Lauren dress". (for real!) Cutie bug!

Wake up call

2011-08-19T12:48:00.003-05:00

Hannah bow wakes up now with seriously dangerous hair. It's hilarious. Luke decided to jump in her cribby and hang out. Coming soon...The BED REVAMP. More to come! Hugs and have a great weekend blog fam!

The days of the week.

2011-08-17T21:15:00.006-05:00

The following three pictures were taken on Saturday and Sunday. View carefully.

The following 3 pictures below were taken Mon-Friday. View carefully.

Can anyone guess whose in charge on Saturday and Sunday?! LOL!

Isn't that hysterical! Makes me laugh. If I posted this on my twitter....I would write something like this #havekidsInYour2o's

Thanks to all my attendants that take such great care of my babies! Love you all so much!

Hugs blog family!! Love you!

Hannah bow and Ballet

2011-08-16T08:00:00.002-05:00

ok...we did it. Hannah bow is officially in her first ballet class. It's absolutely over the top precious! It's called the "mommy and me" class. Of course, it's mommy + Lexie + Blair and me class. LOL! Lexie has Delilah in the same class. What an adorable experience!!!

I am excited to watch Hannah progress. She's so smart and observant. She's going to be truly amazing at everything she does. I can feel this for sure.

The following video is Hannah bow doing the stretch perfectly. It's so cute! I posted the "Pinching" video on Facebook so I'll have to post that one below this one. Hannah bow has a little pinching issue. She's pinched both Delilah and the other little girl in both classes. (sigh)

Blair/I think it's because the little girls do not 'acknowledge" her and we do believe that's the case. Mainly because if she's around a little girl that addresses her and looks at her head on and interacts with her she's over the top excited. But, if you ignore baby girl..."it's going down, down to China town". (as I would say) LOL!

Behold...the cuteness videos. Yes, both of them!! Hugs!

I call this video: "I stretch good".

I call this video: "I pinched bad".

SAHM working moment...

2011-08-15T08:27:00.006-05:00

SAHM = "Stay at home "working" mom". One day Luke asked for his blanket and pillow. 5 minute later he fell asleep. I love my job. Thank you Lord for blessing me with an occupation that can financially bless our dinky family and allow me the privilege to watch my children sleep during the day. Love you so much, A

I call this picture "Sleeping on the job".

My life these days...

2011-08-14T08:22:00.005-05:00

The morning is a great time for me and the kids. I drink my coffee and they like to snuggle as they watch Praise Babies. We get to listen to our worship music and snuggle up. Hannah bow's snuggle time is limited. Miss independence. Luke however is my snuggle bunny and loves it.

Blair (our blessed attendant) took this photo. I'm in love with Blair. If I haven't told you about Blair yet then I must dedicate an entire blog entry to our attendant. She's amazing with our children.

Ok love bugs...I call this photo: Morning coffee. note: Hannah posed smile. So funny!

Hannah's newest "POSE SMILE"

2011-08-02T06:20:00.005-05:00

So here lately we've pulled out the camera and pointed right at Hannah bow. She immediately on cue will SMILE big. It's hilarious. The funny thing is she spreads her mouth like really wide and FAKE SMILES. It's so funny!! So, here are just a few shots of her "POSED SMILE". I will intentionally take the camera several times a day and point at her just to get her to smile on cue. It's so entertaining! LOL...a video below of her on cue smile.

I call these pictures "I pose good".

She was with our Speech therapist and I had the camera from afar..she immediately SMILED and was ready to go! LOL

Another tooth!

2011-07-30T22:16:00.003-05:00

Lukester lost another tooth. He's on a roll. That's 2 bottom teeth center...right next to each other. wow. This time he would not allow me to pull it out. He did it! Smart little cookie!

He's getting so big. (sad momma face here)

ok...I'm speed blogging today. I call this picture below "cheap entertainment". A squirt bottle of water. Hugs!

She is watching us like a hawk!

2011-07-24T10:37:00.004-05:00

Baby girl is really starting to show her disposition. She loves to copy momma, daddy and brother.

For example.

She want to wear Daddy's hat now. She wants to wear brothers shoes and shorts. And then...her latest thing is getting into my closet and asking Blair (our attendant) to put my underwear on. She will diligently try to keep them up. It's hysterical.

So, here you go. I call this picture "Big girl panties"

Our 6 year anniversary

2011-07-18T22:24:00.003-05:00

Wow. It's been 6 years. I would blog risk to say...6, very long and hard years. However, God is good. For those that know me and all about the "stuff"...you know there is no logical explanation other than the Lord. We give you all the glory my love.

I love saying with a warm heart....I love this man above here. I love Jesus more...and I love Jonathan. Exactly the way I want it. Perfectly. Love you facebook family. God is glorious.

We had a wonderful trip out of town just the 2 of us visiting friends. Man I love traveling with Jonathan. We are so perfect together. Thank you Lord!

Much love, A

P.S. I call this picture "We have zero clue what the exact date our anniversary is". No..we are not kidding. July 28th..or 29th. We can't ever remember. It's a long story. We love that about us! Hugs!

Uh huh.

2011-07-12T20:53:00.002-05:00

I can't possibly explain in words what this little cherub does to my soul, to everyone's soul.

It's painful. I call this picture "it hurts bad loved ones...we got it really, really bad".

Daddy and Hannah bow

2011-07-04T08:58:00.002-05:00

Daddy & Hannah bow time.

I call this video "Rock, Rock...rocking in the chair".

July 4th 2011 - The Hughes family ranchette!

2011-07-04T06:45:00.005-05:00

Happy 4th of July blog family. If you are not on my facebook then here is a glimpse. We had a blast at Grandpa/Gma Hughes house! We call it the Hughes ranchette. The kids love, love it! My mom went with us and we were happy to see Lulu come! Luke finally ventured out with momma and it was so sweet. He loved gliding across the water on his back. Hannah bow however wanted to SWIM!!! She hated being in the floaty and demanded to be out. Once James got her out and she was gliding across the water she stopped whining! LOL. I'm enrolling the kids in the ELMER swim school next week for swim lessons. Can't wait! Ok! Hugs!!

I call these pictures "RED,WHITE and BLUE with a splash of pool".

Me below with my new swim suit!

Me and Luke swimming!

Luke..you ready?!

Hannah bow and Lulu

Luke loves to splash

For your entertainment "Brother & Sister"

2011-07-01T20:45:00.005-05:00

Ok, so I finally got Luke & Hannah on video where you can really see what they are like together. Luke "tolerates" sister now and sister "jumps, kicks, sits, bites and bosses her way around" brother.

it's really funny! Needless to say, life has gotten so much better since Luke is so patient with his precious sister now! LOL! She's my terror half the time.

That said....Enjoy. It's quite lengthy..but I had to post it.

I call this video: "See you later HannahBOW".

Luke lost his 1st tooth!!

2011-06-29T06:08:00.002-05:00

Hey blog family, guess what! Luke lost his 1st tooth today! It was hysterical because I kept saying to Luke "Luke, go awwwww". He finally opened wide and I said "momma fix it". I immediately pulled it right out. It literally has zero 'tug'. LOL! It was ready!

My favorite part was when he realized I had his tooth in my hand he stared at it and then ran to the nearest mirror. It was Hannah's mirror that was hanging on the gate. He stared and stared. Then, an hour later while eating a muffin, he went back to the mirror and watched himself eat his muffin. LOL! So cool. I told him the tooth fairy was coming but he literally had no clue what I was talking about. We've never discussed the tooth fairy!! I'll have to work on that. In the meantime, enjoy!

I call this video "TOOF Luke". (in honor of Ericka!)

Seriously?

2011-06-27T21:58:00.004-05:00

I call this picture: "Picture taker, you're fired".

I swear I would have never picked the size of my butt out in a line up people. I feel so much more skinnier than this? Am I in denial? Wait. Don't answer that. Move on to the next bloggie. Love you. A

Please note: Below my little love bug was running to VBS classroom. I'm in total love with my running boy. Can't wait to share more about what's happening with Lukester! I'll save it for later this week. Hugs!

Umm, yeah.

2011-06-25T20:40:00.001-05:00

Big boy is **NOT** a baby anymore. WOW. When did this happen??

I call this picture "KIDDO".

Happy Father's day

2011-06-19T20:59:00.004-05:00

I am blessed with an amazing father to my children. I thank God for this everyday.

The things I love about my husband and his fatherhood:

He has 2 older children Jonathan and James and does his best to support them in their adult life. They are my stepsons. I wished I had a picture of the both of them with Jonathan (a recent one) and I'll work on this!! He really loves them and tries to help them make wise decisions. I so love this about him.
1) He showers the children with affection and words of affirmation.
2) He watches the kids interests and amazon packages arrive quite often reflecting their latest hobby...or fad! LOL. (plastic birds, shoes with strings, rosary's for Hannah so she can put around her neck, the stuffed animal of the month, big princess mirrors so that Hannah can hold up a mirror to see herself). The list goes on and on.
3) Holiday decor. Enough said!
4) He's intensely advocating. Don't mess with papa bear.
5) He rough houses on the floor with Luke.
6) He wakes Hannah up every morning with snuggles.
7) Most important to me: He doesn't see special needs in our children. They will always be flawlessly and miraculously made to him. This gift is from God. I give God all the glory.

Love you Jonathan Hughes. You are truly a gift to our dinky family.

Below, Jonathan giving Hannah morning snuggles and the picture below this Jonathan is running with Luke to see the birds fly away.

I want to freeze my baby girl.

2011-06-17T19:51:00.003-05:00

Yes. It's true. I want to FREEZE this size, age, chubby,piggies, diaper butts,toddling,baby talk,hugs all day, and baby cheeked smiles.

I want to freeze her.

I call this picture: "DEEP FREEZE".

p.s. note: she likes to put bubba's socks on. She signed 'socks' and says 'socks' now. she's amazing!

Our first piano recital!

2011-06-12T13:39:00.006-05:00

Piano Recital! Many of you know that Luke and Hannah are in piano lessons. Luke/I have been in piano lessons for quite awhile and we decided to go ahead and put Hannah in the lesson mix on Thursdays. My children are so bright!!!

Luke did amazing!! His piano teacher said "Luke may very well end up just being that amazing performer when there is an audience". We were in awe. He will fight us playing goody goody stop stop during practice. it's maddening at times. But then when there is an audience my child plays goody goody stop stop all across the key board!!! LOL! it was amazing!

Hannah bow "Bowed" and played one note. ADORABLE. I actually played a little rendition of popcorn and peanuts and I don't have this on video. (sorry) But, my teacher said I played flawlessly. Like son Like daughter Like momma. LOL! They were amazing!

If you turn up your volume you will quietly hear Luke playing. It's precious! Love you!! Until next time..Practice, Practice!! :)

I call these pictures "Piano cuteness".

I call the video "Piano perfection via Luke".

note: They bow before and after. :) Adorable!

I walk now. I'm big.

2011-06-10T08:29:00.003-05:00

Big girl is a walking machine! A little surprise for my Luke fans at the end. :) P.S. I've lost my voice over the last week. Allergies!!

I call this video: Fake cry walk.

Plant watering.

2011-06-06T21:58:00.002-05:00

LOL. I was scanning through pics and saw this picture of Luke.

I call this picture "I only wish it was what it really looked like...that would be MY DREAM for SUMMER!".

Enough said. Love you!

Hannah & Luke hair play

2011-06-05T09:41:00.002-05:00

Basically, here's the rundown. Hannah loves to sneak up on Luke and play with his hair. Then she will weeble wobble off balance on to his entire little body.

I call this video: "This happens quite often during the day...Luke loves his sister". (lol..we think?) LOL.

Please note: TILT HEAD TO YOUR LEFT 90degrees. It's called the video directional yoga stretch. Feels good. Try it.

Preschool graduation! Lukester is heading to Kinder!

2011-06-04T08:42:00.007-05:00

It's here my bloggies. Big boy is heading to Kinder! Can you believe it?

I showed up the last day and took Hannah bow with us! OMEEEGRACIOUSNESS. This child loved it!! Can you say Hannah bow Pre-K! She will love it.

Luke was so excited to see me and said "Momma, sit on the rug" as he patted the rug next to him. I immediately walked over there and he got in my lap!! So precious! I so loved it.

Ms. Bird (Luke's teacher) gave him a book and hugged him and said her goodbye's as he's heading to Kinder to a whole new teacher/classroom. Really made me sad!! He's been there since he was 3. :((((

So, off to big boy school we go next year. Here are some pictures my nurse/attendant took of us that day. I want to point out...I looked amazing. :)

Here you go! Love you! I call these pictures "Goodbye Pre-K".

Please note: Hannah bow crawled over and sat on the rug with all the other kids. She sat right in front of this little hispanic boy and would not leave. She just sat right in front of him (away from the focal point where the teacher and kids were looking) and awkwardly stared at him the entire time. It was hilarious. Poor kid! She definitely made it obvious he was special in some way. All the kids were staring at them both. LOL!! Way to go Hannah bow...the uncomfortable awkwardness with people will get better as you grow older. Just like her MOMMA!! LOL!!

The Hannah bow stare down below. LOL!! THE ENTIRE TIME PEOPLE!! LOL!!
Another view of the Hannah bow stare down...look closely below.

Below Luke is dancing during the song. His teacher has told me he has always done this from day one. He dances round and round while the other kids just stand there on there little color squares assigned to them. My son however....dances around. Yes, we strive for normalcy...but I gotta tell you...I'm ok with Luke dancing. God is good...period.

We've gone crunchy.

2011-06-02T21:18:00.004-05:00

So, a few things. First off, I miss my mims. Many of you know that are my friends on fbook that my grandmother Mimi passed away. We had an amazing funeral. I just wanted to edify her and say that she would love this post. I could hear her laugh at me as I explained this post. I could really make her laugh. I loved it. MIss you Mims.

That said, this last week...we've gone crunchy. LOL. OK. The rundown: My new attendant Blair who is freaking amazing suggested that we go to cloth diapers for Hannah bow. She mentioned that she read in a DS book that it takes these kids at least 2 years to really "get" the whole potty training gig. So, I said..ok? Really? She's like...yeah, I'll do it for you during the day. Insert serious brownie points here!!

I'm like. OK! Awesome. But please note Blair...when you leave, we go disposable. She totally agreed that would be a great choice. I mean seriously..when me/Jon are on shift these kids are lucky to get a bath! LOL!

That said, we got our samples of cloth diapers in from this website: http://www.fuzzibunzstore.com/

I loved it. They are SOO CUTE!! This will easily save us $135/mth or more??!! Isn't that awesome! WHOOT WHOOT! insert happy face. And they are adorable on her! We just ordered another 12 pair!!

So, Blair says as we were inspecting the diapers when they came in..."you've gone crunchy". I said "what?". She said, you are granola now. LOL. OK?! Cool. I like crunchy. LOL!

Now, the poopy situation. I must confess, we are working through this? Have no clue what to do. I'm sure Blair is on top of this? surely? right?

At any rate, behold CLOTH DIAPER BUTT. Seriously..everytime we put an outfit on her, fix her hair or put anything on her that is "new"...she will waddle to the mirror and inspect herself. It's her new thing. Totally cracks me up. She's such a diva!

I call these pictures: Crunchy butt.

Our plants/flowers are beautiful

2011-06-01T20:36:00.002-05:00

My husband Jonathan is a MEGA GREEN THUMB. Like..GIGANTIC KELLY GREEN APPENDAGE TYPE STUFF.

If I had the patience, I would post a ton of these pictures I took. However, my life is busy and I'm trying to blog 1x per day.

I call these pictures: "thank you for the compliment but I must confess, It's all my husband". LOL!

Brother and sister

2011-05-31T19:31:00.001-05:00

Their newest thing. I'm in love. I love it!

today.

2011-05-30T22:07:00.004-05:00

How does this happen? People let me leave my house looking like this. Do you see these shoes? How does this type of stuff happen to me now. So embarrassed.

My picture reality:

1) I'm a mother. I'm exhausted.

2) I do more work than my husband when it comes to the kids.

3) I'm sleep deprived.

4) I'm hungry. I'm dieting.

5) My children are first. Me last. (gotta get this under control)

6) My solution: Go on vacation.

My family picture. Less husband. (he dodges a picture at all costs). I look like h***. And, the kids are totally not interested. The driveway is my only background.

I call this picture: "I'm forcing myself to post this so my children can see that that HAD A MOTHER!". Lord, give me family pictures this year....please! :) Love you, A

Happy Mother's day PENNYHOPE.

2011-05-06T08:36:00.004-05:00

Hi mom! This picture was taken in 2001. SCARY! LOL> Isn't it awesome!

Just wanted to say that I love you and Happy Mother's Day. Here are a few things that I know is truth about my momma:

1) She is genuinely kind and warm. There ain't no fakeness about my momma.

2) Looking back, my mother never frowned upon people of any race or kind. She just treats them "as is" and for this I am forever grateful. I'm convinced this is why crazy and normal are attracted to me. She judges not and loves all that come across her path.

3) She is a neatnick in her late age. She refuses to accept the messy house stuff when we were younger but demands that all has a place in her older age. LOL. Truth don't lie.

4) She dislikes confrontation. A prudent thing that I wished I had gotten a dinky bit of. :)

5) She is organized and efficient. Seriously...an amazing work ethic. Again, I am forever thankful momma for this.

6) She is vulnerable and strong at the same time. A really crazy mix. She is the expert at shaking the dust off her feet and moving on. God's grace is evident 4 sure!

7) She always tucked me in at night and said she loved me. A wonderful memory.

8) She is proud of her children's accomplishments and loves to bask in it.

9) She is always present when you talk to her.

Lastly, she loves to dress pretty and feel pretty. I absolutely adore this about my mom. I can always count on her to be updated and gorgeous. This inspires me!!

What I know is truth. If you meet her and cross my path...you will say to me "I really love your mother".

I can't tell you how many people have said this to me in the last 40 years. I have learned that she truly is unconditionally wired to love you under any circumstance. God just graced her to do this. Hence why you will say "I just love your mother" to me.

Thanks mom for loving not only me but for loving everyone around you unconditionally. As I get older I see how powerful this attribute was to me and my life. This present personality is truly God's gift.

Love you so much,

Pippip. (I remembered you calling me this! LOL)

Princess of Texas. :)

2011-05-01T15:35:00.004-05:00

Kiss!! Love you!

Ok...my little princess watching the princess.

My memory from when I was a little girl: I remember my mom getting up early and saying "wow, she looks so pretty, look at that dress, wow...".

Early in the am before the light was out, we watched in stillness at the TV for hours. I think I was more enamored with my mothers thoughts than what was on TV looking back at it. I was taken by my mom's awe I believe. I thought "hmm, a princess". I had never thought of such a thing.

So, I recorded the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate this week. Little Hannah bow was at the TV watching with me.

I said "Hannah bow, look at the princess. You will be a princess someday just like her".

Meaning, yes, I do believe God will pick a gorgeous amazing husband for my Hannah bow.

Will you pray with me on this? I would love your prayers.

Love you!

Our summer will look like this....

2011-04-12T21:26:00.001-05:00

Heading towards: Squirrel park; swings; and special park. (we have names for our destinations) Yes, she really does keep her sunglasses on this entire trip. It's hysterical. Luke is loving the park time!!

Hannah video...

2011-04-05T19:09:00.003-05:00

I call this video "Itsy Bitsy". And, forgive the RUSH. I am rushed today.

Love yoU! Luke is next!

I'm back in town.

2011-03-08T21:07:00.003-06:00

I'm back. What a whirlwind trip. Once again, I'm thankful for my clients and the work God gives me. I absolutely love what I do. It's a gift from God. I know it.

That said, I'm wiped. I love to work...but wow, shooting a wedding can really exhaust you.

Ok. So, a few things to update.

1. Hannah is taking 6 steps at a time!! It's so coming!! It's adorable to watch her through this walking process. I love to watch the unbalance, balance, tipping over, trying again. So adorable with her big diaper butt.

2. Luke is eating pickles. Random. I know. But seriously, the kid wants DILL PICKLES or SWEET PICKLES and will ask for more! It's crazy!

3. Jonathan was contacted by his company as they want to write an article on his volunteer services in their company newsletter. Really neat! We were thrilled to see his big company support the Shriners cause. So cool.

4. My Mimi is in the nursing home deciding on if she should have heart surgery. Yes..a biggie here. Please pray. I will write a separate blog post on this when I know more.

5. My sweet friend and BFF DEB needs prayer. She's really feeling alone right now. Divorce will do this to you. Pray for her.

Ok..so far that's what's going on in our dink fam.

Love you...be back. A

Big girl got an ouchie!

2011-03-02T19:40:00.002-06:00

And no, it's not brother's fault! LOL! He came out clean on this one! LOL!

She pulled down the toy shelf on top of her and it literally nipped her on the corner of the eye. I was freaked out. My attendant called me and intro'ed the call by saying "don't freak out". LOL. Ok?!!

Behold...Hannah's ouchie. I call these pictures "she's about to walk and we are in trouble". !!

Daddy does because....+ a surprise.

2011-03-01T20:25:00.004-06:00

Daddy (my husband!) does because...He loves it. He volunteers, loves helping and it's doing amazing things for our children and the children of our future. Below is Jonathan volunteering for the Shriners National pancake day! All proceeds were given to the Shriner hospital for Children. Awesome!

Also, Mommy does because she's learned to support, trust and follow (by God's help for sure!). And! I got a surprise today!. Dr. Robertson. A father figure to me in High School saw that I was at the local IHOP supporting Jonathan. There are many words to say about this and after today I realized how blessed I am that God picked me up and showed me His mercies through people. Dr. Robertson is one of them. He gave me a key chain 25 years ago and I still have it. He saw it. God blesses. Thank you Dr. Robertson for filling in that unconditional gap that I so desperately needed at that age. I love you.

I call these pictures "BLESSED"> Thank you Lord.

Daddy's girl

2011-02-26T21:39:00.002-06:00

Baby girl has daddy wrapped. It ain't pretty. I call these pictures "Daddy hair". And, if I wanted to give these a 2nd name it would be "Daddy gonna kill mommy for posting bad morning hair pictures!". Guess that's what you get when you don't check the family blog often! LOL!

Baby girl cracks me up

2011-02-26T09:02:00.002-06:00

I call these pictures "Wedgie butt". She's my sweet girl. love you!

Back from Vegas. Wow.

2011-02-24T22:00:00.003-06:00

An intense trip. I feel very good about my profession and love what I do. This trip was CRAZEEEEE. Got to spend some time with Tisha and that was awesome. I worked my buttox off and sold like a banchee for Kelly Moore. It was so FUN!

That said...I came home to my babies and hubby. It's been great. I missed them greatly.

My mimi is in the hospital again. If you could pray I would so appreciate it.

Love you,
A

I call this picture "Luke huggin the mimers". This was an amazing story. I'll share later. I just love this picture. Love you

Off to Vegas..

2011-02-18T20:17:00.002-06:00

Hey Bloggies...I'm off to do a Bridal Show tomorrow and then literally getting on a plane to Vegas. By 9pm tomorrow night I'll be sitting in a Vegas theatre ready to watch Cirque Du Soleil with 5 gorgeous women photographer friends. Should be much fun!

I'm praying for energy and a smooth trip! Please pray! I hate leaving my precious family. It's getting so hard to leave my babies. Lord, help me with this. Ok, below. Miss Heather. She loves our babies a lot. She's one of our attendants and we love her. Hannah is especially attached to her. It's really funny. I took these this am when I saw that Heather dressed Hannah in these overalls I got a couple of weeks ago when I was in NYC. I could not help myself. Big girl sportin the Texas attire. Gotta train her up right. LOL!

Enjoy! I call these pictures "Thank God I have an attendant that I trust". HUGE PEOPLE!

Kiss da momma

2011-02-16T21:56:00.002-06:00

Ok...This is truly a video that is heart melting. My baby kissed da momma on the lips for the first time in his life!! At 5 years old Luke decided to take my face, angle it right at him and KISS ME and MAKE THE "MMMMMMMWUA"> Sound with it!!!! LOL!!

I was sitting there and all the sudden he came up, grabbed my face and intentionally kissed me on the mouth. It was adorable. I about died! After he got the reaction from me I immediately said "Heather..you gotta get this on video" and threw her my phone literally! Hence why the sideways view. Dang those iphones!

The funny thing about this day is that he did it over and over. And, he even tried to stick his tongue in my mouth!! LOL. I kept my mouth shut tight on those! LOL. But, after the day was over...all DONE. The next day I said "Luke..give momma a kiss". He ran. So funny!!!!

So, I had my day of glory. Loved it. Love my baby boy. I call this video "MMMMWUA" in Luke's sweet voice.

Goody Goody STOP.STOP.

2011-02-15T19:13:00.004-06:00

I'm taking Piano lessons along with Luke. We are doing the Suzuki Method . Basically what that means is the parent and the child practice together. I learn how to play right along with Luke. It's really quite neat and I'm becoming quite addicted. I love playing the piano! I think it suits me because I have always had really long fingers. I love it!

That said, here is my rendition of Goody Goody stop stop. It's what my teacher is currently teaching me. Jonathan makes fun of me and sings it along with me when I play. Most of the time..very obnoxiously. You'll hear HIM singing in the background singing "please please stop stop, please please stop stop". LOLOL!!! freak.

I also have an assistant today. Her name is Hannah bow pianO.

I call this video "Goody. Stop.".

Sherrie's Berries arrived at our door!

2011-02-14T22:13:00.002-06:00

After a really, really, really long day...these arrived at our door this afternoon.

Thank you sweetie...I love them!! Happy Valentine's family and friends!!

Valentine's day

2011-02-13T20:25:00.002-06:00

Year...2005. Our Bahamas honeymoon picture. I look slim and pregnant. LOL. (is there such a thing?)

At any rate, this picture is profound to me. I look at pictures like this pre-Luke and think..wow, my little mind and heart have no clue as to what's about to come.

If an angel could have appeared at my bedside this day we took the picture...I think she would have said this in preparation.

Hi Andrea. You look pretty. I love your little belly. You are going to have a gorgeous haired son. He's going to steal your heart. And that's ok. God created him to be the love of your life. God wants to bless you. That man below hugging you..well, yes, you were nervous that day. And, you will ask the Lord in about 1 year from this picture "what the ***did I do?". It's ok..., a lot of time will need to pass before you say "I think this is ok". But, don't fret...God has dispatched a ton of prayer warriors your way. This little boy of yours is special. You will learn a lot and you will become desperate. God wants you to be desperate for Him. Work on that.

Oh..also, see that tree above your head. You won't notice this now, but in about 6 years God will bring forth a passion of photography in your heart because you won't be able to take your baby out for pictures. You will get frustrated and start learning photography. You will get to stay home and He will bring clients to you. You will love what you do. So that tree above your head will annoy you when you see it again 6 years later. And you will say "the light was horrible..and there was this huge tree over our head?". Give God the Glory for that like your husband tells you too..ok. Don't be prideful with God's gifts...be humble for they are His.

Ok...I think I'm done for now. It was nice talking to you. Oh....one more thing. You will have a daughter named Hannah. She will bring a huge light in your home. Sometimes..it will be so bright that everyone will have a hard time seeing pain. So, get ready..you may need sunglasses.

Ok, must run. Oh..and that one thing that you think about every so often...God already forgave you the day you were born . Receive it. Jesus says Hi. Hugs, from Angel...yes, the one that said to you 10 years ago in your dream..."why can't you just let it go". That was me. Nice to see you again.

P.S. Please throw away those hideous shorts/shirt. You over wore them a lot.

Love you blog family....Love you Jonathan. Your wife, A

≈

Valentine Social

2011-02-13T07:32:00.003-06:00

Hi Bloggies, our Valentine Social was last night. Jonathan is always getting invited to these fun parties for the Shriners and we have been going to some of them. It's been fun. We meet new people every time we go and we always walk away talking about how cool some of these people are. Some are elderly that have amazing pasts. Quite amazing. So fun to hear!

That said, here's our Valentine picture. I call this picture "DUO POOCHY BELLY". Get it? Me/Jon both have these profound belly's that poke out. We are totally addressing this. We literally told the waiter at the mexican food place to take the CHIPS away and off the table. We are seriously working on this friends..we are done. LOL> Love you!

Destructo baby.

2011-02-09T21:04:00.005-06:00

Let me just set this up for you. Jonathan and I have been laughing these last few days when we walk into a room. You will hear one of us explain "Hannah BOW..destructo baby!".Her mission in life is to pull out, reorganize, throw over her shoulder, chew, wad, crunch, lick, squeeze, and pretty much tangle anything that comes into her sight. Truly..our destructo kid.

These pictures below literally capture it LIVE IN PERSON> I walk in and she's found the diaper bag. How she dragged it to her room I have no clue. Apparently it was in the toy room and she somehow snuck off with it. She's EXTREMELY SMART.

Trust me...she SNUCK OFF with it. She knew she was busted in advance. So, she quietly crawled off with it to her ROOM where she knows there is little supervision.

SO.....Here it goes. Read on. I call these pictures "Destructo Hannah Bow".

**keep in mind, she pulled out all her clothes from her drawer as well!". Those are clean clothes!

The diaper BAG.

A SHOE!

ohhhhh, a baggy.

Hmm, spoon.

I'll try it.

No taste. Toss over shoulder, ohhhh, momma's headache bottle.

shake, shake, shake

What else??!

Anything??

A banana food jar. Hmm, ok.

I'm hungry.

OH NO>>>>>MOMMIE!!!!!

I'm not here! You don't see me!!

My day.

2011-02-08T20:04:00.006-06:00

I just needed to post about how much I love my son. He's my world. He's perfect to me. And I love him so much.

It's been a very hard week. My Luke grounds me.

Love you,

P.S. If you can, please pray for my BFF. I love you Deb. God is the only one that will never fail us. For this, I am thankful. Love you so much.

STINKER POT.

2011-02-07T19:49:00.004-06:00

The rundown.

1. No, we did not watch the Super bowl. We are just a family that does not enjoy football. :) (I love that about my husband!!)
2. We are dreading the 'so called' forecast of new ice.
3. Hannah is wearing Shiny pants.
4. Behold, Stinker Pot face.

When she doesn't get her way she gets this crazed look and shakes back and forth. I was able to get this yesterday!

I call this picture "Shiny mad pants".

Cabin Fever ended...we hope?

2011-02-05T19:50:00.003-06:00

I know. I affirm you. I look amazing in this light. Jonathan took the picture. The kids were vegging out with me and watching Sesame Street. It was so sweet. They just sat there real still and let momma hold them tight. At one point I tried to get up and Luke said "NO" and hugged me tighter.

Insert MELT HEART. Of course, I stayed. :) GLADLY!

Here is the ONE picture of me during our staycation. Luke got out today and walked; Jonathan went to work and we ended the day with me/Jon going out to eat for a bit by ourselves. WE DROVE..it was amazing.

The first picture below I call "Snuggle momma".

The bottom 2 pictures were taken 2 days ago when the kids were begging to go outside and I had to tell them it was too cold. I call those pictures "outside".

Hugs!

Snow staycation.

2011-02-04T10:01:00.004-06:00

I call these pictures "SNOW GO". Please....GO.

As you can see, the babes love the snow. I had to get a few shots of this for Luke & Hannah bow because if God keeps them in Texas for as long as me/jon..then they might possibly not see this again in another 25 years. At least that's how long it's been for us!! WOW! Isn't this insane!

I do love my son!! Desperately!!

2011-02-02T21:59:00.004-06:00

There are things about motherhood that ail me. Literally.

1. Adequate Childcare

2. Lack of Sleep

3. The Mommy Guilt.

Focusing on #3 today. It's horrible. The mommy guilt consumes me. I really want it to go away. I feel it's something I really need to address. Mainly because I feel this way when I go take a freaking BATH people. Something ain't normal there? Right? Affirm me please.

That said, let me play the story out here.

I go to blog.

I browse through the pictures.

I see 10 of Hannah's pics doing something like seriously adorable then the internal guilt demon dialogue whispers over my shoulder:

..wait, you haven't blogged Luke in a while.

..yeah, but these pictures of Hannah are so cute.

..people are going to think you love Hannah more.

..that's not true..I'm desperate for my children.

..but Andrea, look at your blog..newcomers are going to think you have 1 child.

..no, I don't. I have 2...you don't understand, it's just that Hannah is doing more by the day, Luke had his 2 year blog moment.

..Ok mom, blog what you want..but shame on you for posting 5 entries of Hannah to one of Luke's. Shame on you bad BLOGGIE MOMMY.

End of dialogue.

I call these pictures "please guilt demon..go away..I really loathe you". (I'm being serious..I loathe this stuff..drives me mad!". It's all lies people!

Can you tell I'm snowed in. Oh Lord. Help me. Love you. Signing off.

Behold, my baby and his 2nd shift nurse. Yes, he's adorable and amazing. I love you LUKE!! MOMMY LOVES YOU!!

Baby girl getting close and risky!

2011-02-02T05:00:00.001-06:00

Hannah bow is getting close. She's starting to stand for about 2 seconds on her own. She realizes she's doing it and will laugh with this really nervous laugh like "what am i doing? It's kind of fun...but I'm nervous!". it's really cute.

This is Krystal her PT. (physical therapist) We love her. She our miracle worker. We are blessed with such great therapists. My kids respond so well to her!!

So, behold..big girl trying to walk solo. I call these pictures "rainbow walking stockings".

Back from NYC

2011-01-31T18:39:00.003-06:00

Hi bloggies...just got back from NYC. My favorite city...but you already know this. :)

My client was in this adorable little Village in Long Island. Absolutely charming. I felt like I was in the movie Ground Hog Day. This place was so precious. The snow was insane but we managed through it. We rented a car and drove! A new one for me after going to NYC all these years on business. It really proved to be great. Loved it!

That said, had a great trip and the client was a delight. I got to photograph a ton of kids and what fun that was! This is me below in the heart of Times Square. I love this picture. I've never been able to get a wide angle shot of me. Finally! I took my pro camera in and did it. Isn't it cool?

I call this picture "My favorite city with me in the middle".

note: tight black pants and bulky jacket. Not flattering. Oh well..I'm living free this year!

This was the view from our hotel in Long Island. So fun!

Of course, I wanted to get a good shot of St. Patricks off 5th Avenue. Isn't it gorgeous?

Had a great trip! See you soon NYC. Love you!

My day.

2011-01-26T20:43:00.005-06:00

Hi friends.

I'm off to NYC for a client trip. My client emailed me and said "hope you have warm clothes...it's 7 degrees here". Whoadeeehooeeee. Ok. Eeks. Nervous about that.

So, I go to Target thinking I can buy a nice big, thick black sweater. Umm, not. There were swim suits, swim pull overs and short sleeved shirts EVERYWHERE. I'm not kidding. What the heck? It's JAN. in Texas? What has happened with this retail timeline? Do they average out what most states run temperature wise and then just go for it in Jan. for the summer attire?

It's COLD in TEXAS? Makes zero sense. literally...NO SWEATERS in TARGET.

So, I just go home. Too tired to drive to the mall and I'm winging it. I'm wearing all black in layers everyday. LOL.

Ok bloggies...love you. Thank you for praying for the below blog post. I love you so much for it. I'll update via facebook as I know more.

I'll end with a visual. Here is my wall hanging I ordered today for my studio. Kind of excited about it. I can't wait to show you full blown pictures of our little makeover. So fun!

Hugs!

The size of this bad boy. 40x40. Huge. So fun! I call this picture "Please Lord, I hope this looks good". :)

Facebook note

2011-01-23T21:11:00.001-06:00

I wrote a note on facebook. If you are on facebook and you are my friend. Then, you know. Love you and thank you for praying.

Coming home on the O2 video.

2011-01-19T21:28:00.005-06:00

Hey blog fam!

Ok, The first video is Hannah going home from the hospital Monday. Yes...I only had my iphone and it's sideways. I can't seem to fix this? I would suggest turning your head completely sideways to the left..this will really help the visual presentation. LOL! Then..make your chiro appt! LOL!. kidding..sorry. feeling a little nutty today.

Also, the 2nd video after that one is from today on her way to the Pulmologist. She's doing great! She's officially on 1/8 liter. We hope to wean off by Friday!! We are so excited.

That said, *I will get this on a good upright video because Hannah bow dances in her carseat. She cries if we turn the music down! It's totally precious. It's definitely a must do video very soon!

I call these videos "I dance in my carseat". Love you!

P.s. Luke is very needy right now with mommy. He really struggled with Hannah not being home this past weekend. I think it was his way of worry for her. It's really sweet. We explained very clearly she was sick and was coming home. That seemed to really help.

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Baby girl home and on the big O2!

2011-01-17T19:45:00.003-06:00

We are home blog family. We are home! Whew. You cannot believe the relief. We covet our home during times like this. Jonathan is wiped on the couch and I'm blogging with my son's voice in the background and Hannah bow snoozing away.

Thank you Lord for your kindness. I'm overwhelmed. Even in the midst of my depravity heart and frustrations...*You* love me. Oh...the sweetness of God people.

Truly precious to me. I covet it.

Love you blog family. I'm thankful right now. Praise with me.

Behold...Hannah bow. I call these pictures "Hannah bow 02 Cute".

Stress.

2011-01-16T16:27:00.008-06:00

Just got home. Jonathan and I are taking shifts. Unfortunately, we have no family support to help us. The only one that offered was my mom and guess what...my grandmother broke her wrist on Friday "day"and we entered the hospital on Friday. A total bummer. Mimi is ok...but it's really hard on my mom.

IF YOU READ MY BLOG YESTERDAY...then thanks for your comments.

I DELETED THIS PARAGRAPH.

I was raging. I'm taking it off.

I feel better. Thank you for loving me where I'm at.

Love you,

Well, she's hospitalized

2011-01-14T22:03:00.006-06:00

Baby girl was hospitalized this am. She was breathing at 88% oxygen and when they put O2 on her she hiked up to 99%. They took it off...3 seconds later..down to 88% again. Repeat 3x over an hour.

At this point, we transported in an ambulance and after a long day...she's finally asleep and daddy is taking the night shift.

She's our big sweet girl and such a trooper. We are so proud of her and how she can have such a sweet smile through this. They are taking blood tests tomorrow to confirm RSV and/or bacterial infection.

Currently, we think it's viral.

Pray for sweet girl. We love her so much and it really hurts to see her not feeling good and collapsing when she's sitting up. It would break your heart if you saw it in person.

The upside: 1st hospitalization since birth. A true miracle for a special needs child. God is GOOD to us and we know it. We give Him the praise and Glory for our baby.

Love you blog family....here are pics below from today.

P.S. My husband is amazing during times like this. When I say he leads the pack..I ain't exaggerating. He's a machine in the hospital environment. A well oiled machine. He's got this gig down and I seriously could not have asked for a better mate during times like this. I'm very thankful.

Be back....prayers coveted.

Hair pony provided by Aunt Lisa and of course Aunt Lisa was there Johnny on the spot to take me home. I am so thankful for her. Love you honey!

Dr. said "lungs with decreased breathing"

2011-01-13T15:39:00.002-06:00

On Oral steroids, pulmicort and zopanex and praying it gets better. She's really having a tough time.

Pray for baby girl. The amount of stress I've dealt with in both children with their "needs" are at an all time high. I really need help.

Really need them to get better. Thank you so much for praying.

Love you ,

Snow day and recovering...

2011-01-11T20:18:00.005-06:00

Well, Lukester is feeling better. He has not coughed as much today and I totally give God the praise. Thank you for praying. We need a few more days of ABX in Hannah bow and I pray she feels better. Man...this has been 4 weeks of ****!

That said, todays' theme is "Squirrel in the snow". Luke said this about a cajillion times! LOL.

We bundled him up right outside the door while he played in the snow. Inside/outside fashionable wrapped in blankets. :)

I call these pictures "Snow Globe".

P.S. Pray for Hannah bow please......

Baby girl and big boy...not feeling well at all.

2011-01-10T22:06:00.002-06:00

Pray for my children please. My little "who" below here is really struggling. Ent doctor said today her tonsils are so large that they are literally almost touching. Her right ear tube is MIA and she's coughing so bad.

Luke (not pictured) LOL..he dodges the camera, has had a cough going on 3 weeks people. 3 weeks. 2nd round of ABX for both kids and Jonathan and I are really wanting them to get better.

It's really hard on us. Love you..please pray blog family. Love you, A

Grand Ball fun!

2011-01-09T09:49:00.009-06:00

Jonathan is involved with the Shriners and volunteers for them a lot. So, they had this big Grand Ball to honor the new president of the organization. So, Jonathan wanted me to look gorgeous and took me to Nordstroms! I felt like pretty woman showing him all these dresses and he picked this dress out for me! I loved it! He even went back and bought me this clutch purse you see below and the jewelry because I was homebound with the kids. I was so impressed with his selections!! My metro guy!

So here we are! Cleaned up and refined. We had a blast. Afterwards we were hungry and ventured over to Uncle Julio's with our new friends that we've met these last couple of events. So fun.

P.S. The Flying Fez is the name of his group because they drive the kids to the hospital. It's pretty amazing.

love you!

Me and the babes...

2011-01-07T20:18:00.002-06:00

I was blessed with the Shuffields coming in town! We had the most amazing time ever! Here's a sneak peek of Tisha's pics! I love finally having pictures of me and the kids!!

This is one of many that I adore. I'm currently blowing up now and printing wraps for the walls next week. Can't wait to get them in.

Thank you Shuffields..I'm in love with them!!! LOVE YOU!!

Picture of....

2011-01-03T20:47:00.005-06:00

This picture was supposed to be about the hat. FYI. LOL!

Luke's recital

2011-01-02T19:36:00.002-06:00

Over the last 2 weeks Luke has recited "Twas the night before Christmas" to me. It's the first page of the book we read and it's sooo cute. I've desperately tried to get this on video and in our failed attempt to get it all this video totally cracked me up.

I call this video "NOOO, NOOOO, NOOOO...THANK YOU".

Ringing in the New Year with the Big M.T. (see below)

2010-12-31T07:38:00.007-06:00

I am about to blog some pictures that I hope either blesses you or motivates you or quite possibly motivates me more to do something about this.

The harsh reality of where I am this coming year is that I'm going to be 40 and out of shape. I refuse to say fat because to be quite honest...I don't feel FAT as much as I feel OUT OF SHAPE. It's really getting to me and Jonathan is really feeling the same way about himself. We both are starting to feel the affects of having small children in our forties AND 30 lbs overweight. It's catching up to us. We are ALWAYS TIRED. Seriously. ALWAYS TIRED.

That said, I felt the affects of it during my photo shoots this past summer with my seniors. I work very hard on my seniors and I push myself to get the best shots. Unfortunately, I would come home and feel like I was hit by a truck. Again...a harsh reality that age is upon us.

So...I've decided to post my reality. I have an extreme muffin top. I get asked about 3x a week (depending on how much I go out in public) if I am 'due' and 'when is the baby due?'. NO KIDDING. It's ridiculous. You can ask ANYONE that is close to me in anyway and they will tell you it's true. In fact, my close friends are getting sick of me hearing it! LOL. At one point, I started texting friends "it happened again" just to prove the point that there are more 'stupid' people out there that actually ask this question so freely. (forgive me for calling people stupid...I'm sorry)

Ok..that said. Here goes. In my defense before you look at these pictures, I do look acceptable from the straight on front view. And, I actually look amazing when I jump and my body is all stretched out combined with the straight on front view. LOL! I think we would all look amazing if someone took our arms and legs and stretched them out like stretch man! We would get thinner in minutes. (laughing here again)

So..behold the BIG M.T. in print.

My resolution: "Please God, give me the discipline to get IN SHAPE for my children". that's my truest heart. I want to be healthy for my children. Period. I think that's a great motivator people. I dedicate this blog to my friend Denise...She did it last summer. I can do it! love you honey.

Me and Jonathan...see it poking out? I would most definitely photoshop this before posting on Facebook. Yes...I photoshop myself A LOT.

Folded down M.T. Not attractive. It's actually resting firmly on my legs. (sigh) LOL. In my defense, I'm preparing to jump 2 inches. :) hey..I tried to jump higher.

Stretched out picture below here. Don't you think I look skinny here? LOL again...

Above and below reveal it perfectly. MY BIG M.T. Sometimes I call it post Hannah weight..and most times I call it my BIG M.T. You know you need serious intervention when you give your body part a name.

Lord, help me PRAY about this everyday and give me the discipline to get rid of this thing! I'm ready. PLEASE! Thank you for listening blog family. If by chance you could pray with me...I would covet your prayers.

Love you and HAPPY NEW YEAR. P.S. Did I mention the kids are amazing?! LOL! I needed to be selfish on this blog entry. I need prayer! love you again!

P.s.s. PHOTOGRAPHY BY THE SHUFFIELDS in BRADY, TEXAS. THEY ARE AMAZING..you can see their work ..click HERE. Love you Shuffields!!

Hannah loves.

2010-12-29T21:43:00.001-06:00

Curious Buddies.

When she's having a bad day or a fussy butt day, we turn on Curious buddies. You are guaranteed at least 30 minutes of freedom. :)

I call this picture: "Backside buddies".

Goals for 2011.

2010-12-27T21:10:00.008-06:00

Time of day: 3pm.

Shirt of choice: His jammy top from the night before.

Shoes: His monkey house shoes.

Temperature outside: Have no clue.

Age of kid: 5

Where is his sister? No clue.

The million dollar question: What do I look like? No comment.

Judgement: go ahead...I'm numb and exhausted...hey, at least I'm the historian here.

Goals for 2011: Be a better mom. LOL! (enough said)

Post Christmas and exhausted...

2010-12-26T21:30:00.010-06:00

A hodge podge of pictures of Christmas day. We are tired!! how about you?!!

In short, Christmas was good. I got Jonathan a Breville milk steamer for Hot Chocolate from William Sonoma and he loved it. I got an IPAD. Yes, the best. Of course...it's Jonathan! I'm in love with it! The kids made out like bandits and of course we ended with a great dinner and family. So fun.

In no order what-so-ever.

Josh allowing Hannah bow to wake up slowly! Luke/Hannah playing with their $2.00 toy and ignoring their big ticket items. (don't you love that?)

Family around the table. I cooked healthy this year. Carrots, green beans, ham, mashed potatoes. Normally I do cheesy casseroles but opted to skip it this year. My veggies were a hit!

Lulu loving on her bow chops. Me/Josh below blowing in Luke's hair. He loved it! LOL.

Jonathan has felt really ill these past 2 weeks. Christmas Eve was hard for him to get going. So, we decided to stay home. Jon's dad & family came to us caroling at our door. I love his Dad & family. They are precious to us!! It was sweet. The picture of me/Jon and the kids was a tripod picture at 7am on Christmas morning. Yes, we look TIRED! LOL.

Luke above diving on his presents! LOL..and Mimi! She is looking great. I was so excited to see her. So many thanks for praying for her health.

Lastly! Our newest Tradition thanks to our Sweet friends the Shuffields and their amazing momma Jackie Kiss Kiss. We were so honored when Jackie gave me her baby Jesus to start having the kids open every year. I had to video our first tradition. Every Christmas, we will have one of the kids open this present first and have them read scripture (when they can read) of Jesus' birth and how He came to save us! See video below. Thank you Jackie...we love you so much!

Twas the night before Christmas Day...2010

2010-12-24T22:16:00.005-06:00

Santa did good.

I call these pictures "Zoo meets Pink". You can definitely tell we have a BOY and a GIRL.

I can't wait to see Luke's face!! Hannah will be on a mission to get that door! Luke will just swoon over his mammoth animals.

Love you blog family....Merry Christmas!

Our first official Christmas present.

2010-12-24T08:13:00.002-06:00

Luke gets it this year. It's amazing, awesome and more awesome. We are thrilled.

That said, Luke struggles with 'new' things. In the last several months, He will embrace a 'new' thing if we give it to him for a moment. But then, he'll start freaking out and say BYE, BYE _____(insert item here) and then proceed to throw it across the room and run, hit, knock things over, etc. It's very frustrating for us as a family as we truly want to see his excitement and we **know** that he's excited. He just gets overwhelmed with the transition of having a new item. Does this make sense?

So, our new Christmas game plan. Dispatch "Mindy". Our speech therapist. She's amazing. She's attentive, gifted and truly **cares** about the well being of our child with the 'little' things. She goes out of her way to help us as parents. It's a blessing from God. I give Him the glory as I truly realize after today how much the little things mean to our family.

So, this video is your Christmas present Mindy. I did not give my therapists anything this year. Why? I honestly did not think about it until just now. Wow. Bad mommy. At any rate, I hope this blesses your Christmas holiday.

**If you are going to watch this video, you must watch it until the very end. It's soo key to see the end result. And yes...HE KEPT calm after the video stopped rolling. We are so excited!! Love you Mindy and thank you for **caring** about our dinky little dysfunctional family.

Christmas Eve, Eve

2010-12-23T21:26:00.003-06:00

House is spotless. All things are in place. Christmas lights are on. Food is bought. Presents are wrapped and most importantly...Laundry is done! YES..it's true. AND THE DISHES! :)

A very happy momma.

We are slowly feeling better from our sickness and by God's grace and mercy...we will all be well on Christmas day! THANK YOU JESUS.

Thank you Lord.

So...behold, my sibling piano video.

I call this video "Pester piano Hannah". She loves to pester brother and stick her index finger in his face at all times. It's hilarious. Notice Luke desperately trying to control himself from freaking out on her. LOL!

Love you blog family...May your Christmas be blessed.

Nighttime entertainment!

2010-12-22T19:29:00.006-06:00

Hi bloggies! You getting ready for the Holidays? We are almost there....and wow, I can't believe Christmas is upon us. This Christmas is one of reflection. We've got lots of family and friends that are in need for prayer, help, provision and God. If you are reading this...I do ask that you pray for an unspoken prayer in my heart. God knows.

That said...this will always cheer my friends and family up! Hannah bow *has become* the groceries! She started shopping but now we are taking her for a ride in her shopping cart. As you can see.....she loved it! You must watch the video. It's hysterical.

Love you so much! A

I call these pictures and video "I go shopping momma".

Luke works super duper hard in PT

2010-12-19T10:53:00.005-06:00

Because I've been a slacker blogger, I'm trying to catch up to some fun events that happened over these last few months.

One in particular is Luke's progress in PT. (physical therapy). It's been amazing to watch and we are so thankful for his therapists. We are in awe of what they can get Luke to do! it's really pretty awesome.

That said, here is a glimpse of his hard work. He's our love bug. We are desperately in love with him and his accomplishments. I guess mainly because we think "wow..it's a miracle". Everytime.

Behold..Lukester! I call this video "Mountain furniture..and Luke".

Hugs!

She finds it...she keeps it.

2010-12-17T20:17:00.003-06:00

Every now and then Hannah bow will find something on the floor that we have no idea where it came from. In this particular case, I am convinced this did not come from me. I have about 5 women a day coming in and out of my house.

Well, she found *this* and starting crawling around. My attendant Becca was like "ummm, mommy, look what I found and won't let go of". We laughed out loud!

I immediately tried to take it from her and she freaked out. We both laughed again out loud!

Total time Hannah held on to the tampon: 2 hours.

I call these pictures "Tampon Toy". LOL!

p.s. We are growing her bangs out. It's a mop mess most of the time!

6:15am piano.

2010-12-16T20:14:00.004-06:00

I call these pictures "Jammy piano". Luke/Hannah are in love with this thing!

Piano has come.

2010-12-15T22:58:00.006-06:00

Our true love came to us. 1 Gorgeous piano and 2 dinky kids and a partridge and a pear tree.

It's here. It looks fabulous and we are all officially in piano lessons! I'm loving it. Jonathan is loving it and the kids adore it.

Lord, make us musical. :)

P.S. After my attendant Becca dressed Hannah and entered the room I immediately said "OMG. Hannah looks adorable...put her on the piano right now Becca".

I call this picture: "Stylin' Hannah bow on the piano". (yes...her shoes flash lights when she walks or taps them) She is so Lulu.

2 years. Yes..2 years.

2010-12-14T04:00:00.001-06:00

Let me set this up for you.

2010-12-13T20:55:00.003-06:00

Brother takes a bath.

Sister follows brother everywhere. She really wants to be his friend.

Me and Attendant Becca watch sister get desperate. We laugh hysterically because YES..she really did this.

of course what you don't see are 2 hands waiting to catch her.

I call these photos: "NEVER LEAVE HANNAH EVER.. ALONE for 1 second". Although it's funny...it's really scary!! PHEW!

This girl is gonna be a stinker pot people! WE ARE IN FOR IT WHEN SHE WALKS!!

Decoration prayer

2010-12-12T10:05:00.004-06:00

When I see this I think "Lord, let my children watch their daddy and see that he works hard to make them enjoy their holiday".
that's my heart when I see such simple things. Oh....and "Lord, please protect Jonathan on those steps!!".

Motherhood surrender.

2010-12-12T09:11:00.005-06:00

I have surrendered today. I just said "forget it, I'm done". Actually...I said worse. I'm sparing you my depravity.

This is one of the few things that no one really prepares you for when entering motherhood. You give up.

You just say "I can't deal with it today" and let the mess tumble and roll. So, Hannah bow is our destructo kid. She pretty much makes a mess everywhere she goes. It's really funny.

Notice our med hanger on the inside of our pantry door? Insane.

Love you...and Happy Sunday. And yes, we should be at church. Thank you Lord for giving me the grace to just "be" today. I know you love me and I don't have to earn it. This is a precious grace I desperately need.

Went on a dinky trip.

2010-12-11T22:15:00.003-06:00

I've been going to visit friends over the last 2 years. I met my friends all because of this blog. Seriously.

It's an awesome God driven story.

I love these friends. Jim and Tisha. Greatly. I don't need to say much because it's a true treasure in my heart. We've added a few since then and it's just getting better.

Love you Sarah/Sterling. AND LISA!

Hugs, hugs

Picture taken of me in Brady,Texas last week by the most amazing Lisa Allen. So much more to come!

Thanksgiving morning picture

2010-12-10T08:57:00.002-06:00

Our Thanksgiving morning picture at Grandpa Hughes' house.

Luke hijacked Betty's pink flamingo out of her yard. Yes, we left with it.

Hannah was a complete angel.

Mom/Dad. Stressed.

Happy Thanksgiving. hey...it's a blog. I have the right to be late, go backwards and make zero sense today.

Love you! :)

The trick.

2010-12-10T08:54:00.001-06:00

The Trick: Get haircut and drape animal cape over him.

Result: Good boy.

Hannah passed!

2010-12-04T20:23:00.002-06:00

I think if I could have a reality show, my family would be highly paid. Literally when I tell you it's a circus in my home...I mean it.

I have no time to blog the everyday...I wished I could. But, I have time to blog the major events.

Hannah passed her last swallow study. She's been in Vital Stim for 12 weeks and she passed thin liquids officially.

Here are her pre and post pics of the study. (in no order..btw)

note: She has NEVER taken a paci. EVER. However, one day she decided to copy Luke. Now, she just bites it and thinks she's cool. I love the picture where you can see her TEETH! LOL! Enjoy.

I call this pictures "PACI PASS". (she passed the study with her paci) I'm sure you got this. LOL! Love you!

Standing tall

2010-12-03T20:20:00.002-06:00

Just about every day now I walk out of the room and then back to find Luke standing extremely high on 'something'. He stands tall on chairs now, his little table in his room and now his eating table in the living room. Our nurse Candi is finding the same thing.

As you can see, sister is watching the whole thing go down.

I call these pictures "Hannah's mentor". LOL. Yes, she's studying his every move. We are in for it blog family. Love you!

Hannah bow shops now.

2010-12-01T20:02:00.003-06:00

Hannah bow is shopping around the house now. It's absolutely adorable. I love watching her little short stuff legs move ahead with intentional balance. She's very intentional and very SMART. I'm thrilled everyday to see her evolve into this precious toddler. It's precious to the max people!

Ok...I call this pictures "I walk with my shopping cart now".

I call her "my slice of heaven".. Truly. We are so blessed. Love you!