It's A....

Easter weekend we went to the big reveal party for Blake and Courtney's baby.

Michael and I dressed the part and logged our vote.  We proudly wore our pink shirts HOPING for a girl*, even though we had both deep down changed our minds and were leaning towards boy.  Avery never doubted and said Aunt Courtney's baby is a boy. 

 

I have never been more THRILLED to be WRONG! 

And I do love that Avery was right. 

We are getting a baby BOY cousin!! We are SO EXCITED!!  Baby Cooper will be so precious! 

If you are a person who likes to find out the sex of your baby you should totally have a party like this.  I thought it was so fun.  We got to have cake and ice cream along with a side of excitement and suspense.  We had to wait until the cake was cut and then check out the inside frosting to see a hint of blue or pink.  It was so FUN, did I say that yet?  This was way better than trying to get Michael, Avery and Hank to squeal and be excited after a brother to brother "Hey Michael, they baby's a boy, his name is gonna be Cooper."  I got to giggle and squeal and be all excited with other girls who giggle and squeal!

I also loved the Easter egg reveal of the name.  Great job guys, it is a precious name!

I can't wait to see 3 little boys running around the back yard wherever we gather having so much fun and getting into all kinds of trouble.  I know they will be such good friends.  I am over the moon excited for my boys to have a cousin so close in age to play with! 

Thanks Blake and Courtney, this little buddy is answer to my prayers that my little buddies would have friends in the family to play with!

*for the record of course the only thing Michael and I really care about is that we get to be an Aunt & Uncle!  we couldn't care less about if it is to a nephew or niece, and we already have tons of boy toys so Cooper will LOVE to play at Aunt Abbe's house! I hope!!

Rules Are Meant to be Broken

this is not a statement i usually live by. 
i am a very typical "type a" first born.  i almost always follow the rules.  but my senior year in college i broke them twice.  and my mother even approved, she as a fellow first born also almost always follows the rules and encourages the same for her girls.
the first rule breaking resulted in the only time i have ever been fired.  the summer before my senior year i worked at camp shiloh with kiddos from rough neighborhoods in nyc, long island, ny and a very special bunch from a rough area in connecticut.  it was an amazing experience!  i got a call from my boss for one of my school year jobs as an RA, i know my nerd rating just went up 10 fold, that our annual retreat had been moved up and i would need to leave camp early to attend this super fun (insert eye roll here) event.  i decided to break the rules and stay at camp to honor my commitment to the kids and camp.  so my understanding and compassionate boss fired me, love her!
BUT i am so glad she did.  because it lead to the second major rule breaking experience.  after one semester with a pot luck roommate in on campus apartments i decided to break the rules and move off campus to live with my friends. 
it was one of the BEST rule breaks ever!  i talk about my roommates like we lived together for years even though it was a few short months.  they were such great friends letting me in mid school year and crash with them all the time before the move was official, too!

a lot has changed in the last 10 years, but boy am i glad that we can pick up where left off and feel like it is 2001 again! 

 even if it is a beating to try to be cute when it used to be so effortless.

 maybe because precious little punkins like these keep us up at night.

and a big thanks to this guy and his photographer buddy evan for putting up with a whole lotta girl time with no complaining. 
the shiner may have helped a little.  :)

 let's not wait so long for the next reunion roomies!

3-1

i have a favorite 3 year old boy


i have a favorite 1 year old boy


and i love them with all my heart. 
but there is one boy i love more than my 3 year old or my 1 year old and today he turns 3-1!

happy birthday MAW i wouldn't want to share this amazing life with ANYone but Y-O-U!!!!

**thanks to lisa woods for another round of fab family pics**

the gateway word

avery has entered in to the wide world of little boy potty mouths. 
he loves to say things like poop, tee tee, toot you get my drift.  we are often reminding him that those are bathroom words and not appropriate for outside the bathroom. 
saturday morning after we ate breakfast avery said to me "hey mamma, let's go in the bathroom and say ugwy (ugly) words"  i did really good and made it around the corner before i cracked up laughing. 

we have discovered that just like there are gateway drugs that get you started down the wrong path avery has a gateway word that gets him started.  wanna know what it is???


Stinky Pete

thanks mickey mouse clubhouse who knew you would provide the gateway word for your biggest 3 year old fan.

F-U-N

We have had so much little, excuse me BIG kid fun lately!
Last week we had a celebration of young children!  It is a great day of family worship followed by a lot of celebrating by little people!
Avery had a blast sliding

and riding a pony!

He also loved the traditional bounce house and riding on the little train, but I missed those photos.  I know you're shocked.

Then we went to the Fort Worth Zoo!  It was SO nice.  We had a blast and got to see so many cool animals, while hanging out with my work BFFs Amie and Melanie. 

They also had cool dinosaur exhibit we were able to enjoy!

While we have had all this big kid fun I have been so thankful for my sweet stroller boy!

Not many little brothers are happy to ride along and enjoy the show!

Go Rangers!

In between the sprinkle and Avery's birthday party Michael and I got to have some fun all our own!

This year we got to celebrate opening day with the Rangers!

It was so much fun!

We got to tailgate and enjoy the game with our favorite Rangers fans (except Avery and Hank of course)!  We also enjoyed these fans' parents and some other church friends. 

There was a flyover!

The National Anthem field display was awesome!!

And THEY WON!!!!

Thanks for a great day Rangers!  We hope we get to follow you all the way to the playoffs again this year!

LIFE

is EXCITING!  I AM GOING TO BE AN AUNT!!!!  I am so excited to meet Blake and Courtney's little bit this fall!

is TUBULAR.  Hank got tubes in his ears.  I thought it was going to be a great fix all, but he has green goo draining out of his ears with tubes so I am feeling less hopeful.  Poor little buddy. 

is BRUTAL.  Avery giving up his passy has been down right awful.  My child who easily and peacefully went to bed any time now sleeps very little, very pitifully.  I am tempted to give it back every single day.  I think the number of spankings he now gets in a day has gone up by at least 1000%!

is VERTICAL.  Avery informed me that if he was 3 and a big kid and didn't need his passy that he was big enough to stand up if you get my drift.  Wow.  I can't get used to walking by and seeing that, or assisting with direction as needed.  Some days I still can't believe I am a boy mom, it is crazy!  It is pretty hilarious when you think about it though.

is SMOKEY.  Someone is puffing on a breathing treatment every single day morning and evening and often in between, spring weather has pros and cons I guess. 

is FUN.  We have so much fun playing outside every day!  This spring weather is phenomenal and we are making the best of it.  I am amazed at how much fun Hank has just crawling around outside, I know use the swing to almost lull him to sleep before nap time on a very regular basis.  Avery has a blast with his scooter and bicycle as well as rocks and sticks, too.

is HARD. Michael's parents are getting a divorce. It totally and completely sucks. It brings out the absolute worst in family dynamics. It breaks my heart. I never dreamed that the first people I knew well to get a divorce would be family. I dream every night about the situation. I think about it every day. I truly HATE this sin and what it has done to our family. I am not giving up hope though.  I pray every day that God will help us all learn and grow and make something good come out of this bad. 

is BUSY.  I always used to say Michael's not "that kind of CPA" that is crazy busy until tax day.  But, now he is "that kind of CPA" as well as so many other kinds of CPA.  I have to say while it is so hard I am so thankful.  Michael's business has been such a blessing!  I am so glad I get to sit back and watch Michael's dream to have his own business be realized.   

is LAUGHABLE.  The other night Michael told Hank to sit down in the bathtub 15 times.  The 16th he popped his bottom and sat him down.  Hank stood up again and quickly popped his own bottom. 

is SUSPENSEFUL.  We get to find out Easter weekend if the new baby is a boy or a girl.  I am thinking GIRL!  It is wishful thinking, I have nothing to base this on and I am a terrible guesser, but I am 100% okay with it and I hope I am right. 

is FLEETING.  I am constantly amazed at how quickly the boys are growing and changing.  I think each of them develops a little more every day.  I love seeing how they grow and change.  I am so thankful for the precious people that they are and I am so thankful I get to be their mom.  I hope I don't screw it up too bad, good thing I am not doing it alone. 

is LIFE.  Remember to enjoy it.  Sometimes I forget it is a gift that I should truly be thankful for every single day!

Super Fun Sprinkle!

You may remember that a little over a year ago my fabulous sister Linde and some great friends had a sprinkle for me! 
A sprinkle is a mini shower perfect for a second baby that needs some special loving and a few things to call his or her own!
A few weeks ago I got to host the most fun sprinkle!  Here are the reasons this will always be one of my favorite parties ever!!!

1-A GREAT honoree!
She was great because she actually said what she would like, in a very sweet not demanding way.  When I said you can have the following 3 choices for a party style she actually said oh that sounds fun to her favorite choice, not I don't care whatever you want. 
AND, she even sweetly requested the addition that made the night. 
She was also so appreciative of every single detail of the night, I mean every single one in the most genuine manner! 

2-GREAT co-hostesses.  I love to be able to say will you do this, exactly my way, and have friends that know me and love me and comply.  :)

3- A GREAT theme!  If you know me you know I LOVE a good theme and the opportunity to embrace it. 

4-A GREAT girl to welcome!!! (Can't wait to mee you little P)

So, we had a fabulous Happy Hour Baby Shower with a Wii Dance Party!!

 My new favorite craft, the balloon wreath!

I found these a swoozies and couldn't resist.  They say "why limit happy to an hour?"  I think that is an excellent question!

Linde helped me decorate our "pub menu" with paisley designs to fit with our happy hour theme and a sweet baby girl's nursery.  We had rootBEER floats, and punched up pink LADY lemonade to drink.  We snacked on pizza two ways, hot wing dip and potato skin dip for our bar snacks as well as peanut m&m's and chocolate mousse to make sure the pregnancy cravings were met!

 We had extra dancing shoes for anyone who needed them. 

 And a cute table, if I do say so myself!

We had a great happy hour y'all!

Third 3 Year Old Installment!

At last the birthday party post! 

I have to admit this third birthday party stressed me out a little bit.  For reasons too long to go into it is VERY important to me that both of our boys feel absolutely equally loved.  I want them both to think they are the favorite!  So, it is really hard not to compare parties.  But, I think the first birthday is a big deal and after that it is my goal to scale back the party scene a little.  I mean a 3 year old party should be super fun to the 3 year old, but not a sweet 16 MTV style.  :)

So, I decided to take my cues from the honoree.  However, that was a little harder than I thought.  When I asked him what he wanted to do at his party he would say "celebrate and have balloons!"  I could never really get a theme idea out of him.  So, then I decided our theme would be Avery's favorite things.  He said his favorite things were 1-big kids 2-playing at the park!  So, we had his party at the park with some big kids and of course our families!

Avery requested a cookie cake with m&m's and thank goodness Mrs. Fields came through!  I love this picture because it captures the delight and surprise that Avery had when it was finally his birthday! 

I am sure our friends were also thrilled with the "treats" Avery chose to send home with his friends.  Sprite, cheetos and m&m's!  We are health nuts at our house.  :)

Avery had a great time celebrating his third birthday with all his family and several sweet friends.  And for the record, next year I think I am combining parties so that it can be exactly even!