Sugar n Spice and everything Kelly

Christmas Day Catch-Up

2012-01-04T09:47:00.000-08:00

Wow, I really start catching up on this blog, then before I know it, time has past and I haven't even done my Christmas update and it is January!! Here is a run down of our Christmas Eve and Christmas Day festivities:

Grammie, Popo, Bits, Gram, Jim, the girls and I all went to Christmas Eve Service at Cottonwood Creek Baptist Church:

The girls got to go to the front of the church to hear a Christmas story being read. It was about the birth of Christ according to a camel. It was cute, and the kids all looked so cute listening to the Children's minister reading it. On the big screens they put the pictures up so all the kids could see:

It was a HUGE group of kids:

Then, on Christmas Morning, Santa left Kyndall and Avery each an American Girl Doll closet (well the Target brand closet), and Kyndall had given Avery a Target brand 18 inch doll to go with her closet. Kyndall already has an AG doll that she got for her 5th birthday.

Emery got a Teddy bear that plays Peek-a-boo with her. She LOVES it. It will raise its arms up and say, "peek-a-boo, where are you?" and "Hello Cutie-Pie" and then when the round of Peek-a-boo is over it will say, "again, again, let's do it again"

Emery also got a playmat which Avery loves to play with her on! She got it early, but it was a Christmas gift!!

They got A LOT of great presents, and love every one of them....but I am posting this during a lucky time where Avery and Emery are napping so I am limiting the pics so I can sneak in a shower and get some other things done before they wake up and need me!!!

I also had to give a double thumbs up to the Silhouette Cameo machine I got this year. It is used for cutting shapes and words out of scrapbook paper, vinyl etc... It is SO MUCH FUN!!!

I cut a mustache out of vinyl and stuck it to a coffee cup to make it funny and fun...

And....I am already thinking about Valentine's day...here is my idea, not 100% sure if we will do this or not...but on the Cameo, you can "print and cut" meaning I printed the hearts on cardstock and then sent it through my cameo to cut around it in the shape of dice (I got the design off of www.silhouetteamerica.com and just downloaded on my software and voila!! Fold this beauty together, add a little glue and what a cute valentine. You can open the top flap and I will put a single rolo inside with a note that says, "I like the way you roll, Happy Valentine's Day!"

Anyway, back to Christmas.....We celebrated Christmas Day with my parents and Grand parents....I am so blessed to have them here now. Mom and Dad are still trying to sell their house in Lubbock, so if you could send up a prayer that they sell it quickly we would be so thankful! Grammie and Popo already live here so we get to see them a lot more often than before!

Here we all are after present opening and Turkey eating:

What an amazing 2011. A lot has happened with our little family:

1. My family is moving here

2. We had Emery (who is 2 months old and already has celebrated her first Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year...whew!

3. Kyndall started Kindergarten

4. Avery started Preschool

5. We got a new car so we could fit everyone in!

6. We went to Disney World with the big girls (Emery was there, but I was preggo with her)

A lot of other interesting things have happened, and our year has definitely been a fun and exciting one....we are ready for 2012 and so happy to see what it has in store for us!!!

Emery is 2 months old!

2011-12-27T18:10:00.001-08:00

It is hard to believe she is 2 months old already!!! She can smile, play on her playmat, hold her head up on her own for a long time, weighs 11 lbs., Sleeps from midnight til 4:30 and then til 7:30, LOVES her mobile, and is very loved by her big sisters, mommy and daddy!!!

The Crafty side of Christmas and a little visit to the Big guy from the North

2011-12-24T18:33:00.001-08:00

Even though this Christmas has been a little hectic having a newborn, I did get around to making it a little crafty!! First was this wreath for the mantel...inspired by Pinterest of course!

Then, I made the girls' teachers each a coffee cozy and embroidered their names on them:). I paired that with a travel cup from Old Navy and gift cards to Starbucks!

Next up was our nieces and nephews, which we gave gift cards to. So I made each of them an ornament with their name on it and a pocket in the back for the gc.

For my sweet baby, I made some Christmas bibs...here she is modeling one of them! How cute is she???

Oh, and a little pic of her getting in the Christmas spirit with her santa hat Gram brought her:) Thanks Janet for the fun little hat...she loves it!!!

Finally, I didn't forget my big girls....They LOVE arts and crafts so I found this cool idea off Pinterest:

(click on the picture to go to the website for a tutorial....I kind of tweaked it a bit for my girls...but easy to follow and turned out great)

I appliqued a cute silouette picture on the front and embroidered each girls' name on their own tote:

It has a pocket on the right side and elastic on the left to hold colored pencils, crayons, or skinny markers:

It is made to fit a composition notebook and I found some that have a space for a picture at the top and lines for writing at the bottom...Kyndall loves to write and illustrate stories. She can write a few words and tries to sound out the ones she doesn't know. She almost always remembers her punctuation too:)

We opened them early because we had church tonight, and I wanted them to have something to do while we were listening to the preacher....I think they liked them!! Look at those smiles!!!

Okay, on to this year's Santa visit....

It started out great! All 3 girls ready to tell Santa what they want for Christmas and Avery even promised to get her picture taken this year (she screamed and cried and opted out last year):

Don't they look happy and ready to visit the sweet old man?? Well, we got there and Kyndall sat right up on his lap, Emery calmly laid in his arms, and Avery screamed and ran to Bits and yelled to Santa, "I don't want to go over there, I am scared, Don't come over here Santa!!!" and this is the picture we got:

Oh well, maybe next year!!! But don't worry, Kyndall told Santa what Avery wants for Christmas!!! I do love this picture:)

It's a Holly Jolly Kelly Christmas!

2011-12-20T13:08:00.000-08:00

Well, we had another super fun time celebrating Christmas with Jim's side of the family a little early! It was fun to see everyone, eat DELICIOUS food, and exchange some gifts. Here are some pics I got from Grandpa of the evening!

Allison and Sue talking to Emery and Jim hanging with Allie!

Here, Paul is watching as I am about to try an olive stuffed with garlic...it was interesting! Check out the sassy scarf my friend Jenny Garland made me for Christmas!!!

I drew Bill's name for the adult gift exchange and got him a personalized beer holster (check out his leg) so he could party hands free with his friends!

Here are all the cousins with Grandpa....how cute!!

I made each niece/nephew a personalized ornament with a giftcard tucked in a special pocket I made on the back!

Emery loved hanging out with Uncle Bill. He is finally engaged to Allison!! Woo Hoo!!

What a fun time we had! The girls got ALOT of fun toys and clothes...and Kyndall's big gift was a fish tank from Grandpa!! So be on the look out for a post showing Kyndall's first ever pet that is her responsibility! She even got to spend the next day getting all the things she needed for the tank and it all set up with her Grandpa...which was like a whole other gift to her getting to spend the day with him!!!

Oh, and Emery had a pretty fun 1st Kelly Christmas too! Check out that lil' grin!!!

Some Sweet Pictures

2011-12-14T15:15:00.000-08:00

Thank you to my favorite Photographer, Kim Peichel, for Doing yet another outstanding photo shoot of our newborn! I taught her oldest daughter in 2nd grade and she has taken all my girls' newborn shots. Here are just a couple of my favorites:

We also had her do family pics....I love how she captures the girls:

It's officially documented in pictures...Kelly party of 5!!

Thanksgiving Recap

2011-12-10T13:46:00.001-08:00

I know I am WAY behind on posts...but 3 kids keeps me pretty busy!! So here is an update...first we had Avery's Thanksgiving Feast and Program:

Luckily Avery is right there on the front edge, so we could see her really well!!!

And how sweet is this???

We were so proud!!

Bits and Gram came...

And so did Grammie and PoPo...we are so blessed to have them here now so they can come to these fun activities with the girls:)

Then it was Kyndall's turn to show off a Kindergarten Feast and Show:

Sorry about the blurry pic....but super cute anyway:)

Kyndall and her super sweet teacher Miss Carboni....she LOVES her:)

Family pic...see Em peeking out from the stroller:

And everyone came to Kyndall's Feast too!!!

Finally, we got just a few pics from the famous Kelly Thanksgiving. We love visiting with this big bunch! Here are some highlights:

All the cousins minus Emery...who was sleeping!

Alex and Aunt Allison holding Emery:

Grandpa with Emery!!!

Oh, and some other big news.....our Mazda Tribute that we purchased after Avery was born just didn't quite fit all 3 girls with their car seats anymore...so we bought a new car!! Yep, that's right...we got a Black GMC Acadia. We LOVE it. First of all, Avery can buckle herself up, she and Kyndall LOVE riding together in the very back (and can be kind of loud without driving me nuts), and Emery can be in her own seat (middle row has bucket seats instead of a bench seat) and not have her 2 sisters kissing/touching/messing with her during the ride from place to place!!

Halloween 2011

2011-11-13T19:28:00.001-08:00

Well, Halloween this year was definitely a crazy one for the Kelly Fam!! Pre-Emery, Avery had her first ever "school pumpkin patch" full of fun, games, snacks, picking pumpkins and decorating them! I got to go to this one while still pregnant with Emery...just the day before my c-section!!!

However, I had to miss Kyndall's first ever big school pumpkin patch:( I had a hard time with that one. This took place 2 days after Emery was born and I was still at the hospital. Luckily, Jim is the best dad ever and volutneered to go, take pics, and help out with all those sweet Kindergartners. Here are some pics he captured of the study trip. Oh, and he said it was in Frisco and there was a craft station, hay ride, science center, and maze....super fun!!!

Finally, We were all home to enjoy Halloween. Emery and I stayed behind with Gram to hand out candy...while super Dad took his big girls trick-or-treating!! They had a blast!! We kind of dressed Em up so she could join in the fun...with a pumpkin hat I made her:) Avery was Tinkerbell, and Kyndall was a Heritage High School Cheerleader!!

Life has been fun, but hectic with 3 sweet little girls...thanks to our family and friends for dinners, their help, and lots of prayers!!! We hope you all had a great Halloween too:)

Welcome, Emery Jane Kelly!!!

2011-11-05T10:12:00.000-07:00

We are blessed beyond belief to welcome a very healthy, beautiful little girl to our family! On October 26th, at 11:02am, the best Dr. (Dr. Robert), nurses, and staff at Baylor Frisco delivered little Miss Emery Jane! She was 8lbs 5oz and 20 1/2 inches long. She is an absolute doll and we are all in love with her already!! Her big sisters are the sweetest and most helpful girls ever!!! Enjoy some pics!

Ready to Go!

Jim got "footprinted"

My amazing Dr.!!

Gram with her 3 grand daughters!!

Avery has some kisses for Emery!

Emery Jane Kelly

Look at Kyndall's face here!! Priceless!!!

Grammie with Emery:

Bits holding his newest Granddaughter!

Jenny and Emery!!!

Brad with Em:

Grandpa with his newest granddaughter!

Intaly and Emery:

Janette and Emery:

Janette's daughter Rayne with Emery....already great friends!!!

Janette and I were preggo together and both due in Oct., but Rayne decided to come a little early...here we are holding each other's babes!!!

Aunt Al with Emery (by the way, she and my bro-in-law Bill are engaged now, YAY!!!)

Uncle Bill and Emery

Diane with Emery

Jim with Emery

Emery being a little cutie!! Grammie got her this outfit:)

At home, Avery is enjoying some Emery watching time!!

Love my new girl!!

My friend Kate with Emery!!

Amy and I were preggo together due a week apart and she had her little man the week before Emery came!!

Boosterthon Fun Run

2011-10-21T14:04:00.000-07:00

Well, we have survived our first ever Elementary School Fundraiser. It was a "Fun Run" (now to me, those 2 words don't go very well together, but whatev) Kyndall had to raise pledges by asking people to donate money for each lap she ran. Grammie and Popo, Bits and Gram, and Jim and I all donated $1 per lap. The super fun part of that was she got 3 prizes for having 3 pledges....and they made a huge deal in class about it and that made her feel super special. The money goes towards putting a shade over the playground, which totally makes me happy. In this Texas Heat, they need some shade. Jim totally thought she would make it like 5 laps and poop out....not so!! We all owe 28 dollars. That's right folks....my girl is a runner. She was PRECIOUS. I was so glad I went, too. She kept running over to me and giving me hugs and high fives. It was completely worth it to drag my 9 month preggo booty up to the school and cheer her on. I even did the last lap with her (walked). Luckily, my mom came too, so Avery was distracted a little and I got to capture a few good photos:

Action shot:

Look at that beautiful smile!!!

I am so proud of her. She seems to put her all in everything she does. She only walked like 2 laps....the rest she ran. That is how it seems school is going as well. She may not do things perfectly, but she tries her hardest.

HHS is the Best!! Let's Go....Coyotes

2011-10-17T08:18:00.000-07:00

On Monday,October 10th, we had Kyndall's first ever Parent/Teacher Conference. I won't lie, it is a little weird being the "mom" in the conference instead of the teacher. A lot more fun, though to hear how your child is doing socially and academically. Kyndall doesn't quite know all her letter sounds yet, but she does great quality work, listens really well, has met some fun new friends, and is GREAT at patterns and numbers. On that day, they didn't have any school, so I signed her up for "Coyote Pup Cheer Clinic" with the Heritage Highschool Cheerleaders. The best part was Kate, her little bestie signed up too! So later that week, at the JV football game the girls got to wear their cheer shirts and do some pre-game cheers and halftime show....here are some pics we got:

The little sister besties came along to root for their big sisters:

Their attention span was pretty short:

I don't know if you can see Kyndall, but she is on the front row smack in the middle:

They had a blast! Thanks Heritage HS for putting this together...the girls LOVED it!!!

Playing Catch up over here....

2011-10-08T14:09:00.000-07:00

Well, Avery started Preschool on September 8th this year. She is going on Tues/Thurs and LOVES it. Her first day of school was quite different than Kyndall's....she could barely hold out at the door here for me to snap a couple of quick pics:

Here she found her name to "check" in the first morning:

And she was a happy girl after school as well....

It has been a fun and interesting experience sending her off. She LOVES it a lot. The first day, she came home and told me her teacher said "angry words" to her. I asked her what she said and Avery replied "get in your chair". I guess Avery was roaming around checking things out. Then the next day, her teacher pulled me aside and said that Avery had the sweetest little heart and had given her chair up for a little boy who was throwing a fit because he didn't like where he was!! The last interesting thing I heard about was that she to put "into trouble" for throwing wood chips at the playground. I love this girl...she keeps it interesting around here:) My favorite thing about preschool at CCBC is her coming home and singing praise songs she learns there....

Next, my sweet friends Jenny and Janette threw an amazing shower for me on Sunday September 11, 2012. Lots of friends came, AMAZING food and decorations were there, and they threw it in a nail salon so I got a great pedicure....perfect way to celebrate Emery Jane coming on Oct. 26th!! Enjoy the slide show:

Jim had a big Day on September 17th....he turned the big "35" The girls picked out an icecream cake from DQ (which was super delish by the way) and we spent the day celebrating what a super great Dad, husband, and all around great guy he is....we love you Jimmy!! Oh, and here are a couple of pics of him with 2 of his favorite girls:)

And now I think you are caught up....18 days until Emery Jane comes!!!

Avery Meets her Preschool Teacher!!!

2011-09-07T14:50:00.000-07:00

I can NOT believe it, but Avery is officially going to Preschool tomorrow!!! She was super excited and couldn't wait to get dressed...I let her pick out her shoes, how cute huh!!!

Kyndall was pretty proud of her and kept telling her how "proud of you I am Avery". I think she thought it was pretty fun to show Avery around since she went there last year:)

This is her teacher Mrs. Peggi

and her other teacher Mrs. Cheryl

She ran straight over to her little bag and pulled out her official KidCare t-shirt right away!

Looked at all her papers....

and gave me a HUGE smile!! I think she is excited about preschool:)

We went to the Villages of Allen and let the girls play a little afterwards...in the big maze...

Then in the cute little play houses set up like a mini town...too fun!

Finally, we met Bits for dinner at Cheddars before going home!!

I think that was the highlight of the day for them!! I can't wait to post about her first day of Preschool and let you know how much fun she had!!!

Off to Kindergarten!

2011-08-22T15:06:00.000-07:00

First, I would like to start out with the "after school" picture, because it makes me so happy that she looked like this when I picked her up versus

This when we were going to school this morning:

She was SO nervous. She hardly ate anything:

Until I finally got her to request something...and when I made everything she asked for I got this:

Of course, you know who, was happy to eat her mega-breakfast this morning with her big sister:

Then we packed her big-girl backpack with:

This is the outside of her new lunch kit that fits inside her lunch box...it was plain so I jazzed it up with some paint pens:

Then we filled it with (left) pretzels and rolled up cheese and turkey bites that I put on a swizzle stick.On the right side we had an egg, grapes, and a trailmix dessert of marshmallows and chocolate chips. She requested all but the grapes, and ate all but the grapes:)

Then we added her snack for snacktime...I totally saw this on Pinterest and HAD to make it for her first day of school snack:

It was a little snack baggie of goldfish, marshmallows and craisons. I had Kyndall make her own "butterfly" out of the clothespin and we clipped it fancy like this!

After that the whole family walked to school!

Even Daddy came with us....have I mentioned what a wonderful, amazing Dad Jim is on here yet, well he is and we are so blessed!!!

This was us dropping K off at her classroom door:

Then she found her seat and started working right away:

She is so precious!! Check out how hers turned out when she got home:

Here is the other paper she came home with...a self portrait of her on her first day of Kindergarten:

How cute that she got her purple shirt and her denim blue skirt right!! She gave herself quite a hair cut though:) The rainbow lines are where the kids sat at group time...she said that she sat on the yellow line.

After dropping her off, Avery and I went to the library to eat breakfast with the other Kindergarten parents...it was called the "boohoo, yahoo breakfast". I even met a few new friends! One lady has a little girl in Kyndall's class, so that was nice. Then for the rest of the day I checked the clock every 10 minutes and left at 2:30 to drive up the street to the school to pick Kyndall up....school gets out at 2:50...so Avery and I waited in the car for 20 minutes before Kyndall was released:) What can I say, I was SO ANXIOUS just to see her face! I didn't really get emotional until I was sitting there waiting, just wanting to see her smile and come out happy and okay.

So, you know I was happy when she came to the car with a HUGE smile on her face ready to tell me about her day! You better believe Avery was happy to see her too:) I was so glad she had a great day that I made her re-pose in front of the door and took a pic since she was so happy!!

Success!! Here is the interview I gave her after school:

What School do you go to? Mooneyham Elementary

What grade are you in? 1st grade, no Kindergarten

Who is your teacher? Carboni, or Boney-car, no it's Carboni

How old is your teacher? 7?

Who are some of the new friends you met? Kate, Olivia-a different Olivia that the one who I went to her birthday, and Josie

What did you learn about today? I learned about being nice and kind

What do you think you will learn about tomorrow? About Jesus (melt a Mom's heart...I wish you were learning about Jesus there:)

What was the BEST part of your day? Learning on the computer

What was the WORST part of your day? Playing on the Playground because I didn't really want to play on the playground. They didn't even have any swings.

Do you want to go back tomorrow? YES!!!

And, she wants to "buy her lunch" tomorrow. She is so sweet, she said, "Oh, I really like your lunch Mommy, but I think I want to try the line tomorrow". So I put some money in her account and can't wait to see what she wants to do on Wednesday! It was a bittersweet day today, but I am so thankful the Lord put her in Miss Carboni's class and she LOVES school (so far) and LOVES Miss Carboni!!

Kindergarten Meet the Teacher

2011-08-18T19:36:00.000-07:00

It is official.....Kyndall went to "Meet the Teacher" Kindergarten Orientation tonight and is ready for the year! She was super excited to wear her Fedora hat:

Outside of the school, but promptly removed it as we went inside. Oh well, that is probably the "good manners" thing to do anyway right?

Avery, however, was ready to try it on for herself.....

They were both VERY well behaved during this rather long orientation. First, we went inside the cafeteria and they told us EVERYTHING we need to know about Kindergarten, lunch, drop off, pick up and behavior expectations. During the long explanation, they took all the "future" kindergarteners out of the room for a little game and short movie. I couldn't believe my Kyndall, who freaks out leaving us in new situations, just walked right on out with all the other kiddos and then came back to us with no problem! Whew, I think she really might be ready for this...

Next, we went to her classroom to bring our supplies and meet her teacher, Miss Carboni. She was SUPER nice and had a Minnie Mouse voice. I have prayed all summer that God would put her with the perfect teacher to meet her needs and help her to feel comfortable and love school, and so far it looks good friends...

Here is Kyndall meeting her for the first time:

And here they are being so nice to pose for me to take the ever popular "1st pic with my new teacher"....

Doesn't Kyndall look super happy here? You would think she was forced to take the pic, but she actually went over there and stood nicely....oh well, we'll laugh about this later!! Or now, I kind of laughed now:)

Her first day is officially Monday and I THINK we are all ready.....More updates to come!!!

It's Waddle Time...

2011-08-16T19:38:00.000-07:00

Oh yea....that's me....just starting out my 3rd Trimester. I am officially 29 weeks pregnant, 20 lbs heavier, and I think Emery is LITERALLY trying to break out. She is moving around like crazy (even as I type)....which is good so keep up the gymnastics kiddo!!! Let's see, my Siadic Nerve (if you don't know what that is, lucky you) is killing me...so I am waddling already...seriously, it is kind of funny. I am anemic so I have to take iron pills and I can't get enough milk, snicker bars, and bananas...ha! I had a sonogram and Emery was measuring 3 lbs when she is supposed to be 2 1/4...hmm gonna be a big one again folks:) Kyndall was 7lbs 15 oz, and Avery was a whopping 9lb 4 oz little chub. I wouldn't have it any other way. 9 weeks left ya'll...wish me luck!!

In other news, my big girls are doing great. Playing with friends, playing with each other and just finishing off the summer in style. I will be posting some fun pics of them soon, because Kyndall has Meet the Teacher night on Thurs. night so she can meet her Kindergarten teacher...WHAT!!!....that is right...she is going to Kindergarten, and I have a feeling that my pregnant self is going to be shedding some tears. Where did the time go?? Well, I thank God every day that I am and was able to stay home with her and my other girls so I could soak up every second of their lives until I send them to school.

Kyndall and I went shopping for back to school clothes (and got Avery some too, but she isn't quite ready for shopping yet) at The Children's Place on Sunday after church. Kyndall HAD to have THIS purple fedora hat:

To go with her new outfit. She wants to wear it to Meet the Teacher....let's see if she does. She looks absolutely DARLING in it. She is my fashionista!! Avery has some matchy-matchy outfits to go along with Kyndall. Check the blog on Friday for a rundown on the fun night!!

Now, I am going to bed and putting my feet up so they won't swell up on me:)

Pandamania!!!

2011-07-25T11:59:00.000-07:00

Guess what?? It is time for VBS!!! I LOVE Vacation Bible School. I went as a child and loved it and now Kyndall is going this week:) This is actually her 3rd year to go. The Corners Church puts on a fantastic week of crafts, songs, and learning all about JESUS!! What is even better, her sweet friends are all in her little group with her!!!

Here are Kate and Kyndall posing before their first day of VBS!!

Avery went to brunch with my sweet friend Niki and me while we waited to go pick up Kyndall....she kept asking if we could got get her YET!

Here are Avery, Niki and I posing at La Madeline....poor Avery is almost hidden behind the belly babies!!!

All was well when we went to pick up Kyndall and Avery's bestie Sara Paige was there....girly screaming and hugs ensued:

Then they grabbed hands and ran to get their big sisters. Avery sang, "we are best friends, best friends" all the way to the Sanctuary....too cute for words..

I can't wait to see and hear about all the things Kyndall learns and does this week in VBS! And don't worry, Avery is having a playdate with Sara Paige tomorrow morning while their big sisters are enjoying their Pandamania VBS.....maybe tomorrow morning will go by faster for her:) She sure does miss her sister when she isn't around!!

Avery visits Dr. Chen

2011-07-21T15:25:00.000-07:00

I took Avery to her 3 year old well check and what do you know? She failed her eye exam:( Jim is near sighted, all his family had glasses, and my dad had glasses too. So the poor thing didn't have much of a chance did she? I, however, have great vision and so does Kyndall (minus the exotropia thing, but her vision is perfect). Speaking of exotropia, Avery went with us on that visit (which is the same pediatric opthamologist we took Avery to) so as soon as she walked into the office, there was no hesitation....she just hopped in the exam chair and gave me a big smile (she is used to many pictures by now).

Dr. Chen (who is awesome I might add) said she had 20/40 and 20/50 vision. She is near sighted and has an astigmatizm. But, it doesn't really affect her everyday life right now and Dr. Chen said she didn't want to give her glasses this young if she wasn't struggling. So we will go back in February for a re-evaluation unless she starts showing signs of discomfort and frustration.

They did dialate (sp?) her eyes and Kyndall and Avery got to go to the "train room" to wait 30 minutes for her eyes to do just that...ugh.

This was Dr. Chen checking Avery out one last time after dialation to determine for sure whether to recommend glasses or wait:

Avery thought that machine was SO COOL! I totally forgot to bring her sunglasses though and when we walked outside she was practically blinded by the sun. So my big 'ole pregnant self had to carry her in the dead heat to the car!! What a trooper though, and Kyndall was such a great helper....I'll keep everyone updated when she ends up with her "little 4 eyes"

Guess what Grandpa made....

2011-07-18T13:01:00.000-07:00

You may or may not know much about my Father-in-law, but one thing you HAVE to know about him is that he is amazingly creative and an awesome carpenter! He has made so many things/furniture for our house and for us. He has made baby furniture, helped Jim build a playset in the backyard, our entertainment center, kitchen table, gliding bench, cooler, chess table, chinese checkers game, and I know there is more, but my mind is blank. Well, he has outdone himself lateley...check this beauty:

That is my NEW custom made jewelry box!!! It is beautiful....I mean BEAUTIFUL!!! Check out all the details he added (beading, K, border and knobs!!!) I am IN LOVE with it....It holds all the jewelry I have!!! I am the luckiest Daughter-in-law EVER! Not only is he creative and thoughtful, but an amazing FIL and Grandpa!! I had to brag on him a little:)

Not only did he make me my jewelry box, but he customized 2 smaller ones for the girls so they could have their very own!! He even bought them little rings to put inside theirs!!! They LOVE theirs too:)

Thanks Grandpa for making us the BEST Jewelry boxes EVER!!! We love you:)

Banana Splits are THE BEST!

2011-07-15T09:09:00.000-07:00

Kyndall, Avery and I went out on the town the other day in search of white chenille fabric. You would have thought it would have been easy to find with all the fabric stores around here but we drove from one to another all afternoon with no luck! So I decided I was craving a banana split when I saw Braums across the street from our last fabric shop. The girls were hot, tired and hungry...so it was perfect! There is a history with Braums, Grammie and used to go eat there together as a special treat. We would get their burgers, fries and then every time we would split a yummy banana split!!

And who can resist one of these babies:

And you know, they are EXACLTY the same as always. That is the best thing about Braums. Now, I will tell you to avoid the Braums in Plano off of Parker...it was pretty dirty:( Even the girls thought it was (tables, restroom) the food, drinks and trays seemed pretty good though. I would go to the one on McDermott and Alma if you are in this area. Kyndall was not so sure about a banana split though, she said, "I want a banilla (vanilla) scoop in a cone" so I told her that she had to try the b-split and if she still wanted the vanilla cone I would get her one.

After she tried it, she was hooked!! And Avery's favorite thing in the whole world is ice cream so she was in Heaven!! They had a little mini grocery store there too...so Kyndall just HAD to go get fixin's for our very own banana splits from home....check out the flavors the girls picked out!

This beat-down hot Texas weather definitely calls for some banana splits in our near future again:) You know bananas have potassium, and ice cream has calcium....in my mind this is a SUPER healthy snack!! ha!!

When the kids are away...Mommy will play!

2011-07-06T21:29:00.000-07:00

We went to visit my parents and Grandparents over the 4th of July to celebrate Grammie (more about that to come on Saturday) and spend time together. The girls wanted to stay with my parents for a few more days while Jim and I came home...

We kissed them goodbye and headed back to McKinney! First, we had dinner with Jim's Dad that night, which was super fun...love Olive Garden's new Chicken with Parmesian ravioli...yum!

Then, I got a day of eating lunch at Cafe Max...double yum, and fabric shopping all morning. After that, I met up with my sweet Preggo friend, Janette, and we took our big ole selves to the nail salon and got pedicures...ahhh

Then, I got to go on a hot date with my hunk of a husband that night!! We ate at the Grand Luxe in the Galleria Mall!! What a fun time we had just enjoying each other...and of course talking about our sweet babies who were in Lubbock!!

Whew! That was a pretty great day, right...well then today, Wednesday, I slept in til 8:30, read my book for an hour, then got up and around. At 4:00, I picked up my friend Jenny (and her little one Harper) and we headed our to eat at Breadwinners with our sweet friend, Lisa!! Now, I had to manipulate a pic of all 3 of us because I forgot to bring my camera in for the restaurant!!

Then, Jenny and I headed to the cutest little shop in Dallas called The Shabby Sheep and took the most FUN beginner crochet class!!

Oh yeah, check my hard work out!!

Harper couldn't keep her cute lil' eyes off my handi-work

Next up?? I think I'll make this!!

Well....maybe I need more practice for that!! Click on the pic to see this girl's etsy shop...she rocks!!

Anyway, I have had an AMAZING 2 days full of relaxation, dinners, friend time, husband time, and NOW I get to go pick up my sweet girls!! I thought I would want more time, but I sure do miss their sweet voices, loving cuddles, and cute little faces! I will definitely let them go visit their Bits and Gram anytime they want, but it sure is nice knowing they'll be back in my arms tomorrow!!

Baby Update!

2011-06-25T12:25:00.000-07:00

What is more fun than being pregnant with your 3rd baby?? How about being pregnant with one of your best friends in the whole world!!! Due the same month!! I have actually been blessed with a few friends who are all pregnant and due near me....so we can all be big and eat like crazy together:) I think our husbands might have to form a support group with all the emotions going around!!!

Janette and Me showing off our Halfway there baby bumps!!

How far along: 22 weeks

Cravings: baked potatoes, turkey and cheese sandwiches, popsicles, and PRINGLES and M&Ms

Weight gain: about 15lbs so far

Gender: So we had a little fun with this one:)

First, we went to a 13 week screening and they told us they were 95% sure we were having a _____. We had them write it in a card and I took it straight to one of my besties Jenny Garland. She then baked us a cake (pink in the middle for girl and blue for boy):

She brought the cake over and luckily family was in town...so I made everyone dress in either pink or blue to guess what we were having...Jim wore red because he doesn't have a pink shirt...

Then we cut the cake (after Avery insisted we sing Happy Birthday first! HA!!) And we got:

Girl!! Then I was a little worried it might not be that accurate so I am just now telling this story after having my 20 week sono and they confirmed FOR SURE we are having another girl!!!

Name: We are 95% sure we are going with Emery, or Emory. Won't that be cute, Kyndall, Avery and Emery?

We are all super excited for October to come around so we can meet her!! Looks like we are going to officially schedule the c-section for October 25th!! I better get sewing if I am going to make a bunch of frilly cute stuff for her huh!!!

Guess who is 5!!!

2011-06-23T17:27:00.000-07:00

I can hardly believe it, it doesn't seem possible. But 5 years ago on June 18th 2006, which was; Father's Day (Jim's first official one to be exact), The last day of the US Open (we watch golf), and the 6th playoff game between Miami Heat and Dallas Mavericks (Heat won that year, Mavs ruled this year!! Woo Hoo...I digress), and my sweet, precious, little baby Kyndall Ann Kelly was born!!

and........5!!!

She is my precious angel. Loving, Caring, Creative, Honest, Silly, Tenderhearted, and Beautiful!!! She astonishes me everyday with the way she looks at the world around her. Kyndall is the BEST big sister in the world. This year, she wanted a "Build-a-Bear" party with her friends, so we had 10 of her sweet little friends come and build some bears to celebrate her birthday:

This was the crazy dance they all had fun doing:)

Then we had the family and a few friends, The Johansons, come over to celebrate low-key at home. Janette Johanson and I have been BFF's since College and they have recently moved to McKinney just down from us!!! Their daughter Reese has the same birthday as Kyndall, so we went to their party in the morning and had them over to Kyndall's in the afternoon!!

Grandpa, Daddy and Kyndall listening to her new Ipod!!

Bits and Gram gave her a big girl Barbie bicycle!!

Grammie, Gram, Kyndall and I went to the American Girl Doll Store and Grammie got her an American girl doll, then we ate at the Bistro!!

Finally, a pic of me with my sweet 5 year old and her brand new American Girl Doll. What a wonderful birthday to celebrate a wonderful princess!! We love you, Kyndall, with all our hearts and are enjoying every second of watching you grow up to be a beautiful young lady inside and out!!!

Ballet, Tap and Tumbling with our Besties!

2011-06-14T11:24:00.000-07:00

Kyndall has done ballet classes on and off since she turned 3. This summer we decided that Avery was old enough to join her big sis. My friend, Jenny, found the cutest dance studio that had a combined ballet,tap and tumbling class for ages 3-5. So we decided to put all our girls in the class together...and boy did they have fun! Check out the cute pics I captured:

Getting ready to tumble:

Avery was doing her own thing here:

The big girls:

Kyndall was stretching:

A shot of Avery and Sara Paige trying out the moves:

Here are 2 videos that Jenny took of the girls dancing...the first is ballet. You can see how the little girls are just having fun...dancing and enjoying themselves. They bigger girls are having fun too, but they are really trying hard to do the moves. It was so much fun to see them all enjoy in their own ways. As you can tell, the music was sweet and the teachers were so sweet and patient. What a fun thing to watch!!!

Sister Dance Class from Brad Garland on Vimeo.

Here is a little snip-it of their tap dancing portion. You can see Kate in the white, Kyndall in pink next to her, Avery and then Sara Paige:)

Dancing Divas from Brad Garland on Vimeo.

Well, Hello Summer!

2011-06-07T12:58:00.000-07:00

Well, Hello there summer!! Right after Kyndall's graduation we decided to head into summer in full force! We took a road trip to Amarillo (to visit Grammie and go to a Bridal Shower) I didn't get many pictures there...only one it seems...and I stole that from my friend Stephanie!! Stephanie and I were BFF's in Middle School and have gotten back in touch via Facebook (yay!). We got our kiddos together for a super fun playdate:

We also got together with my good friend Sidney and her son Colton...but I didn't get any pics and neither did she...guess we were too busy catching up and chasing kiddos:)

We also spent that time visiting Grammie and Popo...what a wonderful time we had there...wish we had actually taken more pics:)

Then it was off to Lubbock for some fun!! Kyndall had fun pulling Avery in the little wagon:

Avery had fun helping Gram water plants (maybe she'll be better at gardening than me:)

Then it was back to McKinney to celebrate some birthdays! This was Ellie's 5th birthday party at Chuck-E-Cheese. There is a great pic of the whole group with Chuck-E...but Kyndall refused to go near him! It's okay, I understand....He IS a little creepy looking if you ask me. And Kyndall says, "A mouse is supposed to be small, not like him" Ha!

Kate is friends with Ellie too...so she was at the party!!

We have also made several trips to the pool!!

And...Kyndall's friend Kiley had her 5th birthday Luau at the Beach Pool in McKinney...so fun!!!

We also seem to be spending a lot of time loving on little baby Harper:

She is so precious and makes me want to have my baby NOW!

Finally, we went to the splash pad with our Garland girls too!

Whew! We are trying to enjoy the summer and get out of the house a little....how is your summer going???

It's my day!

2011-05-19T19:16:00.000-07:00

Well, it is the end of the year and it was a super special day for Kyndall. It was her Preschool Graduation!! CUTE overload in this post!!! First of all, were they wanting all the Mommies to cry when they did a slide show of these???:

I mean, come on, don't you think I am realizing how fast she is growing up without them doing something like this!!! I'm pregnant...let the tears flow!!! Anyway, I want you to remember this post in September, where Kyndall looked like she was going to ball her eyes out on her first day of preschool and now look at her...happy as can be with her teachers:

Ms. Kari

And:

Ms. Alichia

She came down the aisle to graduate in her sweet little hat:

Lined up on stage to sing their final preschool songs:

Then Sat down and waited patiently as a class to get their diplomas:

Kyndall got hers for being "Miss Creative"

We are so proud of our little graduate!!!

So we left the graduation and told Kyndall we would take her anywhere she wanted to go to celebrate Graduating Pre K and being such a sweet, smart, precious little girl. She said, "because it's my day today!" Yes, love, it is YOUR day today!! She likened it to Mother's day and how I got to choose everything. Sure, enjoy little one!!!

So what is next? Oh, that would be Big School Kindergarten. Do you know what you have to do to register for Kindergarten? Let me tell you, gather your child's SS card, Birth Certificate, shot records from your Pedi, fill out a 2 page info sheet, bring in a water/gas/electricity bill to prove you live where you live, and YOUR driver's license...whew. Then take it up to the school (with your future little kindergartener) and let her see/meet the people there. Success!! Kyndall is super excited, the school is cute, clean, and the staff was super friendly. Now, you would think since I am a former teacher (6 years teaching 2nd grade before my sweet girls) I would be very confident and happy to drop her off there. WRONG!! When did she get big enough for kindergarten? How did this happen, I was right here all along and am still not ready to send her off. But, I will be by August right? Until then I will be praying that God gives her an amazing teacher that will nurture her, love her, and teach her so that she is as happy there as she has been at home with me these last 5 years. I love my big girl!!!

Here is a slideshow of some highlights of her year at Cottonwood Creek Baptist Church's Pre K!!

Baby Update

2011-05-08T12:02:00.000-07:00

Well, I thought I would give an update on Baby-on-the-way (yes, we are still trying to come up with/agree on a name!!)

Stats:

* I am 15 weeks pregnant

* We did a screening at 12 weeks and they are guessing the baby is a girl !

* I am starting to feel fluttering, but not a whole lot of movement.

* My belly button totally started poking out at 14 weeks...seriously, a little early don't you think?

* My cravings right now are baked potatoes (can't get enough) Sweet tea (I make decaff and drink it ALOT), tator tots from Sonic, and Taco Cabana breakfast tacos (yum!!!)

* Our top names right now are: Emery, Evelyn, and Capri, however we are not even close to making a decision and are adding/subtracting names constantly!

* Kyndall's name suggestions have been: Rose, Teddy, Nina and Carolina Rose

*Avery's suggestions have been: Daddy...yep Daddy....guess who she adores:) Pretty sweet huh...Kyndall agreed with her:)

I will have 2 more Disney posts soon and a post about Muffins with Mommy fron Kyndall's Preschool and Mother's day highlights soon!!

Hollywood Studios....on day 2

2011-05-03T10:37:00.000-07:00

Wow, we had a fun time at Hollywood Studios....We saw 3 shows; The Little Mermaid, Disney Jr., and Beauty and the Beast. Avery and Kyndall liked The Little Mermaid the best, but I LOVED Beauty and the Beast!!! Take a look at our pics for more of what we did there!!!

As we walked in, Kyndall ran to the deer for a pic! Ha!

Cute pic of Kyndall and Daddy watching Disney Jr. program:

How fun was Disney Jr...here is the Jake and the Neverland Pirates part....gold dablooms came falling from the sky all over us when this part ended!! Too fun!

This was the girls' favorite one...it was too dark to take pics in the show...and we couldn't use flashes:(

Kyndall, Avery, Jim and I were watching this lady chocolate coat all the candy from outside, she waved us in and let Avery and Kyndall make their own Chocolate covered Strawberries!! How sweet huh!!

Beauty and the Beast. What a great performance!! I loved that it was free but felt like a real play...2 thumbs up!!!

Ha! Avery and I were in awe!!!

Finally, we got our custom ears! There were a lot to choose from, so it took awhile to pick the perfect ones out....I thought the girls picked great!!!

Oh yea, we even got them personalized!!

Kyndall loved hers too:

She picked silver for her name on the back:)

We had a long, fun day at Hollywood Studios!!

We went home, and Jim took the girls for a swim while I napped with our youngest:) We were exhausted!!

Our Disney World Vacation: Epcot

2011-04-30T16:24:00.000-07:00

Highlights of our time at Epcot:
*As we walked in, Avery asked us how to kick the big ball (Epcot's main attraction), she wouldn't let it go, so we told her only giants could!
*Kyndall had a Mickey Mouse figurine called "Vynlmation" and got to trade for a new one at each gift shop!
*Had dinner with the Princesses in Norway....the girls were starstruck!
*Avery met Ariel and told her to watch out for Monsters!
*We waited for an hour just to meet and get pics with Tinker Bell and Terrence....yes we love our sweet kids!
*The girls liked Epcot okay, but I definitely think that Magic Kingdom was their Favorite place!
*We ate at Japan for lunch..yummy!
*We loved that all the people who worked at the countries were actually FROM the countries....All the people who worked there were super friendly and made the park definitely a fun place to be:)

Kyndall's Spring Sing and Open House at Preschool

2011-04-28T11:08:00.000-07:00

Okay, you will have to back up with me a month and let me FINALLY make a post showing Kyndall's SUPER cute, Super sweet, and Super fun end of the year Spring Sing and Open House at her preschool. First of all, I must say that they do a wonderful job of organizing, teaching and loving on these precious children. God is evident in all the teachers/staff at Cottonwood Creek Baptist Church's Preschool program. Here are some highlights of the event!

Sorry about the darkness...but here is Kyndall on the risers getting ready to sing with her classmates:

Daddy and Avery ready to watch Kyndall!!

Kyndall showing her Rainbow book of colors. Inside it showed all the different colors she learned....

And here is a close up of Kyndall singing and doing her motions! I couldn't upload the video....need to get my super busy IT husband to help me figure that out:) But I thought this was a super cute action shot!

Party of 5

2011-03-27T15:59:00.000-07:00

So, Our MIDDLE child wanted to make an announcement on our blog for us:

That's right folks, we are excited and blessed to announce that below you will see one of the first pictures of the newest member to our family!! We now are, "Kelly, party of five"!!! Little Baby Kelly is due on October 31st (but because I have to have ANOTHER c-section he or she will be making an appearance at least a week earlier than that!!!) When we took our youngest (hee hee) to the Dr. last, the heart rate was 170 whoa!! and we are moving into the 10th week (almost the end of the first trimester!!!)

Of Course, Kyndall was super excited to announce her new sibling as well!!! Cutest EVER t-shirts courtesy of Stephanie from Ashlyn Grace Designs on Etsy!!! Also, one of my dear friends from college!!! Kyndall wants a baby "brodder" and Avery wants a baby sister!! Daddy and Mommy think either one would be great!!

So to wrap up our announcement, we are expecting a baby in October. He or she was definitely on purpose, and I am feeling pretty good so far. I haven't gained much weight because I only want like chicken noodle soup and fruits right now. However, thankfully, I do not have morning sickness I am just super tired. So if you call me in the afternoon or around lunch time and I don't answer...it is because Avery and I are napping. And if you call after 8 pm....I am in bed!! I'll keep you all posted as often as I have any news!!

Vroom!

2011-03-23T15:35:00.000-07:00

Kate and Sara Paige came over again for a fun playdate!! The Barbie Jeep was the highlight I think. I forgot to grab the helmets. But the girls were going on "slow" speed and were buckled up!

Kyndall drove first (not pictured) and only went a little way to show Kate how, then said, "I'm going to let Kate drive since she doesn't get to at home" Pretty sweet:) Kate was an awesome driver too:)

Then the little girls decided it was there turn and chased Kate down!! Luckily Kate is pretty sweet and great at sharing...

Soon...Avery and SP were joining in the fun! SP tried to drive but couldn't quite get the pedal/steering wheel coordination and was happy to control the radio while Avery drove them around the yard!

Yay Spring!! We are loving playing outside with friends!!!

Zoo with our friends

2011-03-20T17:57:00.000-07:00

We had a super fun St. Patty's Day (except for Kyndall was starting to get a little cough) we went to the Dallas Zoo with some good friends and all our kiddos. It looks like such a big group, but it was super fun and the kids were so good!!

The whole group

Kate, Aubrey, and Kyndall

Kate and Kyndall checking out the animals

Sara Paige and Avery=BFF

Avery and I were posing before we watched them feed the lions:

Jenny and I wimped out a little early with our girls, but the rest of the group stayed ALL day and totally had a blast!!! Love the zoo with my sweeties and good friends:)

Exotropia Update

2011-03-16T10:45:00.000-07:00

You might remember my Post about Kyndall having Exotropia (click on the word post if you want more details). Jim and I prayed about it and decided that before we consider surgery we would get a second opinion. So we took her to Prosper Family Eye Care and got just that! Dr. Stacie told us that she has exotropia in both eyes and they easily pull in and out of alignment. However, she can correct or straighten them out on her own. She said that if it was her daughter she would observe more and wait on surgery until she can't control it on her own. She said that there is a chance she will always be able to control it. So we'll just keep observing and praying for guidance:)

We did find out that she has large pupils and that is why she squints so much in the sun. The Dr. recommended a good pair of sunglasses that are polarized and have UV protectant...so we got both girls some good ones from their office....Check out their super sassy barbie matching sunglasses:

Fun With Grandpa!

2011-03-14T14:18:00.000-07:00

The girls and Jim went to visit Grandpa (Jim's Dad) on Saturday while I was hosting a shower for my good friend Jenny.

First, both girls gave Mae a little love before they left!!!

Then, they went to this awesome park and played:

Finally, they fed the ducks with Grandpa!

I had to show this pic of Avery...she has been asking for a pony tail lately and so I try to slick her little hair back in one. She LOVES her little ponies!! She says it is like Kyndall....cute!

Grandpa always gives the girls super fun treasures and sent them home with 2 eggs that you soak in water and they "hatch" into little chicks. They have been in the water for 2 days now and the girls LOVE checking the progress of their "real pet chicks". He also gave them some funny glasses to wear! All in all it was a super fun day!

Donuts with Daddy

2011-02-19T12:47:00.000-08:00

Get ready for Cute Overload!!! Kyndall's preschool had Donuts with Daddy Thursday morning. So Jim took Kyndall to Preschool and got to stay for Donuts and entertainment:)

Here they are on their way:

All the kids Sang a little love song to their Daddies....too cute:) Notice Jett next to Kyndall, she talks about him ALL THE TIME!!!

They made their Daddies these little Alien things that said they were Out of This World:

Then they made this sweet little book...here is the cover:

It says: My Hero.....My Dad

And inside there were a bunch of fun questions they asked the kiddos about their dads! check out how Kyndall answered hers!!

My Daddy is: 4 years old.

My Daddy is: 4 feet tall

She drew a picture of him.

His favorite sport is basketball.

His favorite TV show is Basketball.

His favorite food is Cookies

His favorite color is: blue, pink, purple

Where does your Dad work? In an office

What does he do at work? Works on computer and eats his lunch

When I grow up I want to be: A fashion Designer (Remember this post?)

What do you like to do with your dad? Play Hide and Go Seek

If your dad was a superhero who would he be? Superman

What superhero would you like to be? Supergirl

My dad is my hero because: He is never mean

Pretty sweet and cute!! If don't already know, she is a MAJOR Daddy's girl. So this was one of her best days ever!!! It was his too....he was talking about how much fun it was and how cute the things Kyndall made him were:)

Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-14T06:54:00.000-08:00

These were our Valentine Cards this year! We totally stole the idea from 24-7-365 blog.

All I did was take a pic of the girls holding their hands out. Then I used Picnik to fancy up the photos and printed them on regular copy paper. I then stick glued them to a rectangle of construction paper and used an exacto-knife to cut slits for the suckers. Finally, I had Kyndall write her name on them:

What a cutie huh!! She worked hard. We did these all day Saturday. Then all of a sudden out of the blue Kyndall had flushed cheeks and a fever...ugh. She felt horrible all day Sunday and this morning she is doing better but still at 100.5 without tylenol. If her fever doesn't go away by this afternoon we'll head to the Dr. Avery woke up this morning with a fever, chills and is just plain pitiful:( I was bummed for Kyndall, look what she helped me make her teachers too:

Here she wrote them a message on the back an attached her Valentine cards to the front:)

Oh well, she can give them to her teachers when she gets back to school. Since they were a little under the weather and their Bits, Gram and Grammie gave them LOTS of candy and fun toys for Valentine's day....we gave the girls:

Monogrammed heart pillow, fancy locket necklace, card and some York Peppermint Patties....they LOVE Yorks:)

Here is the front and back of the pillows:

Kyndall and Avery LOVE pillows and stuffed animals....they were really excited to get these....They are sweet girls. They were pretty mellow, both being sick and all. So I better go take care of them and give them some cuddles! We hope you all have an amazing Valentine's Day!

Oh, P.S...my sweet husband gave me a dozen beautiful roses when I woke up and was supposed to take me to a fancy dinner....but since the girls are sick...we'll reschedule. Maybe we won't have to wait so long with crowds then right???

Avery's Birthday Slideshow!

2011-02-13T09:17:00.000-08:00

Well, my little baby turned 3! What a sweet little girl she is. She is spunky, funny, cute and fills our home and hearts with lots of laughter and love! We had a Butterfly Birthday party for her and we had a super turn out! Aunts, Uncles, Granparents and friends were able to make it despite the fact that we had ice and snow all week long and Dallas pretty much shut down for 4 days before the party!!! Enjoy the slideshow featuring all our family and friends! We hired Gregg the Balloon Guy to do a magic show and make balloon characters and he was AWESOME!! I would 100% recommend him and would definitely hire him again, what fun! Our cupcakes came from Sweet Art Bakery in McKinney. Sarah, the owner, and I taught together and then both had our older daughters at the same time. She started baking yummy treats and I started sewing...ha!! Her cakes/cupcakes etc...are so delish!! Thanks to everyone who could make it, Avery had a wonderful time celebrating turning 3!!!

Avery Turned 3!!!

2011-02-09T19:31:00.000-08:00

First of all I am a slacker, I know, but thankfully my good friend Janette isn't. I stole this little collage of pics from Avery's birthday from her blogpost. She got some GREAT pics, don't you think? I have more pics that I will post about VERY soon, but until then here is a sneak peek of her birthday bash!!! I love you my sweet big girl 3 year old:)

Thank You Grammie!!!

2011-01-31T13:29:00.000-08:00

Avery LOVE, LOVE, LOVED the new outfit she got from Grammie for her Birthday!!

She did a little happy butterfly dance in it!!!

And don't forget about Kyndall too:)

Thanks Grammie!!!

Cheeseheads and Beauty Salons

2011-01-30T20:20:00.000-08:00

We went to a friend's house to watch the Packers play last weekend (they are from Wisconsin so we were rootin' for them:). The girls had a blast! Avery was her usual happy-go-lucky self:

Kyndall was in Heaven while she and Kiley were getting their hair and make up done by the big girls!

And finally, I have started a crafty blog ( you may or may not know about it) where I share tutorials, have a link to my Etsy shop where I sell some of the things I make, and sometimes do give aways. I just did a blog post about how to make this EASY Valentine flower shirt....if you want to see my post about Kyndall's new shirt click on her pic!

If you just want to visit my blog home page find my button on the right hand side of this blog and click on it (it is blue with a K in it). Or you can click HERE. Next week, I am teaming up with my super sweet friend, Renee, and we are giving away an item a day Monday-Friday. I am going to start the "week-of-give aways" on Monday, so check out my crafty blog each day for either my give away or hers!!

My Lil' Helpers

2011-01-21T12:29:00.000-08:00

I don't know if you know, but 4 year olds and 2 year olds are happy helpers. I mean, occasionally they don't really want to clean, but for the most part, when you ask them to help they not only do it, but sometimes even break out in a "clean up, clean up everybody everywhere" tune while doing it! I don't want you to think my kids are perfect and never throw fits or whatever, believe me, they are good at those, but helping cook, clean etc...they like it right now:) Here are some examples:

They love to help their Daddy bake Oatmeal cookies:

and clean with their Gram

They like to help Grandpa read their Vreaders

Uncle Paul too!

And they LOVE (especially Kyndall) to help Mommy sew!

And I love that too:) Click here if you want to visit my other blog and see what Kyndall helped me make!

I am so thankful for my sweet Lil' Helpers!

The Kelly Girls are Rockin'

2011-01-19T14:34:00.000-08:00

I was trying to think of a creative name for this post....and since all I could think of is, "Avery was rockin' out for us" or "Kyndall is rockin' her new booster" I decided to add some definitions so as not to confuse anyone!

Rockin' - Playing music in an upbeat manner:

Avery is Rockin' the microphone and keyboard:

Rockin' - Having, using, or wearing something new and exciting:

Kyndall is Rockin' her new big girl booster seat!

All these definitions are in my own words....Kribster's Dictionary!

Little Fashionista

2011-01-15T14:35:00.000-08:00

I acquired a super sassy dressform awhile back to use when sewing different projects. Kyndall LOVES her....I mean LOVES her (we named her Helga).

Helga:

So when Kyndall went to buy Avery's Pillow pet Christmas present she saw this at Bed, Bath and Beyond. It is a Jewelry organizer dressform in a fancy dress. It is $20.00. We were sure once she got it she would be disappointed.

So while shopping at Toys R Us we found this beauty...They were on sale for 50% off at the time so we may have paid $6 tops (Jim swears it was just 5). And we thought, well, if she doesn't like it we only wasted a few dollars....little did we know....

She would LOVE her, name her (Lisa) and dress her all...the...time! I mean the girl can design some outfits. There is a slit in the back where you shove in the ends of the fabric (which are rectangles) and you make them look like they are wearing dresses, shirts and skirts, belts.etc....And lucky for her I have a STASH of fabric scraps that work perfectly!!

Lisa:

She even made her a little bed out of the container we store her in!

Every outfit was designed and put on entirely by Kyndall...wow! Who would have thought this would be the MOST played with Christmas gift she got and that it was so pre-school friendly. All her friends love Lisa too:)

And here is Avery and her bestie Sara Paige smiling at each other!! The pic is really blurry, but super sweet:)

Kyndall is definitely on the creative side....and it shows when she plays with this! Project Runway here she comes!!!

Life's a Beach....

2011-01-11T15:00:00.001-08:00

Well, it is if you are 4 and 2 and have wild imaginations! Kyndall got her and Avery dressed up in swimsuits, then took out their deflated swim floaties (which I had to blow up) and threw a beach party!Meanwhile, outside it looks like this:
Hope everyone else's life is a beach right now too!!!

Stylin' Snow Princesses

2011-01-09T11:37:00.001-08:00

It snowed today in McKinney....huge, beautiful, soft flakes...perfect for:

Checking outGathering and throwing snowballs!

Posing with:

A Snowball

A Snowman!

Or a Fancy Snow-Princess!!!

(Notice the pink crown on her head)

Your Sister

And even Mommy!

What a fun day in the snow!

Our Lubbock/Amarillo Christmas in Pictures

2011-01-04T17:45:00.001-08:00

Well, this was taken in Angel Fire, NM in October, but it was our Christmas Card pic...Thought I would start the post with this one:)First we went to Lubbock....and on Christmas Eve, Grammie and Popo came. They brought the girls some gifts and Jim and I decided to give them one early...Avery thinks she sees something!

She does! It was a Barbie Jeep for both girls to share!! Grammie and Popo gave them safety helmets...and....

Their very own cameras!!!

Both girls riding together:

A little relaxing bike ride for Bits and Kyndall

Christmas Morning sitting by Santa's gifts

Don't fall in Kyndall!

Go-go my walkin' pups for the girls!!!

I think they were happy!

Avery opened the pillow pet Kyndall gave her and was super excited!

We got Avery a 10 piece cleaning trolley with real working vaccum...yes we did!

They got A LOT more loot like e-readers (kid versions), baby dolls, puzzles, playdough, clay, cute and super soft blankies, and I know I am forgetting ALOT...be they loved them all and are enjoying them everyday!

Here is Kyndall on a stroll with her Pup!

Then they went Pecan pickin'

And had some Gram snuggle time!

Then we went to Grammie and Popo's house in Amarillo:

Here is a rare pic of just Jim and I....I love him:)

The whole gang....except Uncle Jerry and Aunt Gay ( Uncle Jerry was feeling sick) and Todd, Sophie, and her boyfriend Trevor...they left early and didn't get in the pics!

Left to Right, Top to Bottom: Popo, Uncle Rick, Bits, Kyndall, Me, and Jim, Grammie, Aunt Kristen, Gram, Avery

We had an amazing Christmas with our families this year! We hope everyone else did as well!!!

Someone Missing?

2011-01-02T18:08:00.000-08:00

How cute huh? Kyndall loved Santa this year....Avery didn't! While Kyndall hopped in Santa's lap Avery screamed "Out! Out! Go out!". Santa looked at me and said, "Just her?" I said, "I believe so this year, this one might hurt you (refering to Avery screaming in my arms" He said, "Are you sure, she won't bother me?"!! Sweet Santa, I just couldn't make Avery do it. It would have been too traumatic I think:) Oh well, maybe next year.....

Kelly Pre-Christmas Bash

2010-12-29T18:18:00.001-08:00

We had so much fun as usual with the Kellys' celebrating Christmas a little early!

The girls liked all the presents being brought in!I got a snuggie, YAY!

The girls got princess dress up, pretty pretty princess game and princess scooter, aquadoodle, a Dr. kit, Barbie Camper, and Barbie dolls!!

I love this pic of their cousins with Grandpa:

Back to front: Joe, Dani, Grandpa, Alex and Jack

We wanted a pic of ALL the kids....Avery REFUSED....

So I asked her if she would take a pic if I sat on the couch next to her...notice my knees in the right side of the pic! You could say Avery is a little strong-willed....oh well, we got the picture and my kid isn't a pushover (that will be a good quality in the business world right??)!!!

What a fun Merry pre-christmas we had!!

Happy Birthday Jesus Party

2010-12-17T18:01:00.000-08:00

Preschool is out for the Christmas Holidays! Wahoo! And to kick it off, they had parents come to Chapel with their kids and a "Happy Birthday Jesus" party! It was so fun! Here is Kyndall and her class in front of the tree! Too cute:)Close up!

Daddy and Avery at Chapel...Avery was mesmorized...and may I add that my husband is super handsome!!
Kyndall was showing us the movements to the songs...sweet huh! This is baby Jesus

Again, my super handsome husband posing with the girls before he had to go back to work...let the party begin!

First, was the craft....a candy cane picture frame...and the room mom read them a story about the meaning of candy canes...Kyndall really got a lot out of it. She draws them and talks about how they are shaped like a J for Jesus and look like a shepherd's staff too!

Then was the book exchange...Kyndall got a cute book called, "I love you because you are you"

Finally the goods!! Cupcakes please:) They even let Avery have one!

The End!

Gingerbread Houses and mini playdate

2010-12-14T10:15:00.000-08:00

My friend, Mariah, is a party host extraodinaire. I mean it, every detail is covered. Not only covered but done in a beautiful and creative way. Needless to say, we LOVE her parties! This year, she had a Gingerbread house decorating party and it was amazing as usual. I was sick, so my friend Jenny took Kyndall with her daughter Kate (Kyndall's best friend). Sara Paige (Avery's best friend and Jenny's other daughter) came to our house for a mini playdate.

How cute is her set up:

Hard at work with Mrs. Jenny and Kate decorating:

All done!

Kyndall with her sweet friends Kate and Aubrey(Mariah's daughter)

And here is trouble 1 and trouble 2 all dressed up and pushing their babies!

Kids love Jim....Jenny calls him the baby whisperer:

For more pics of the party check out Mariah's blog

Merry Mainstreet

2010-12-12T09:31:00.001-08:00

This year, we decided to go to Merry Mainstreet in Frisco for the annual tree lighting and Mainstreet lighting. It was COLD!! I mean COLD! It is really fun, they have vendors, a fake ice skating rink (where ice skaters performed) and 3 stages set up where the choirs of the different Frisco Elementary Schools came to sing (Cousin Jack was singing so we wanted to be sure and see that!)

The girls saw real reindeer:Kyndall took her pic with Rudolph:
And Frosty:

But Avery wouldn't go near them....she is a loud screamer ya'll...LOUD!

It was so cold we left before the lighting of Mainstreet and the Christmas tree...but we had a blast anyway:)

Spirit Day in December: Crazy Hair day:)

2010-12-10T17:05:00.001-08:00

Every month at preschool, Kyndall has a "spirit day" where she wears her Kid Care t-shirt and then there is a "theme" September was crazy hat day, October obviously was wear your costume, November was Pajama day, and this month was.....

Crazy Hair Day!!!

Kyndall was SO excited for crazy hair day, until it arrived. All of a sudden that morning she said, "I don't want crazy hair Mommy". I told her that she would be missing out and that all the kids would have crazy hair, was she sure??? So she said, "Welllllll how about 1 ponytail". Okay, so I put a pony on the very TOP of her head per her request. Then, she and I found all her fun hair ties and just kept putting them in!! She loved it....and she fit right in at school....there are some pretty creative Mommies out there...I have good ideas for next year:)

Of course, lil' miss Avery did not want to miss out on the fun!
She showed Kyndall's teacher, who raved over her crazy hair!! Too fun

Key Fob Give-Away!

2010-12-06T14:22:00.000-08:00

It's that time of year again...and we are all searching for great, unique gifts for our friends, family, teachers, and gifts for Holiday parties. I ran across these at a craft show and knew I had to make some for gifts for my friends and family. Soon, people started asking if I could make some for them to give as gifts....so I thought I would offer them on my website.

They are great stocking stuffers, perfect for giving with a giftcard (just punch a hole in the giftcard and attach to the ring), and great for yourself! They fit around your wrist, and are big enough to find in any bag:) I carry one now and am so glad I have it!

Go to www.kristikelly.com for more info about ordering!

Right now, I am giving 2 away, your choice, on my friend's blog:
http://www.thejohansonjourney.blogspot.com/

To win, just go to that link and follow her instructions! If you win, you can also have it embroidered or monogrammed for free!! Good Luck!

If you don't win, they are $8 each or 2 for $15
(embroidery is free for the holidays!)

Just email me at info@kristikelly.com and place your order!

Black Friday = Family Movie Day

2010-11-30T10:38:00.000-08:00

We decided after our super fun Thanksgiving that we would take our girls to the early bird showing of:

Tangled

on Black Friday.

We got a HUGE bucket of Popcorn, a HUGE drink to share, and sat back to watch the show:

Avery ate WAY too much popcorn and got a belly ache....but still had a great time and sat through the movie really well

Kyndall was absolutely fascinated....she watched the whole movie like this:

(except for the couple of times when it got exciting and she stood up)

As the picture below shows, it was so FUNNY. We loved it...even Jim. It was quick-witted, innocent, heartfelt, and one of Disney's better Princess movies.

I LOVE Disney movies, but sometimes they can be a bit scary; wicked queens, voodoo in Princess and the Frog, and witches etc....

This movie was a total feel good movie. It kept your attention the entire movie, showed love, sacrificing your own wants and needs for someone else, and it portrayed innocence and hope. I would 100% recommend it! I even think the boys would like it...it has an ornory horse, a funny and mischievous unlikely hero, and there is a mean old lady, but she isn't too scary:)

After the show, Kyndall kept asking me why some old ladies are mean!! I told her it was just that one;)

Go see it!! You won't regret it!!!

Our Big Fat Kelly Thanksgiving

2010-11-29T17:28:00.001-08:00

I am thankful for many things in my life, Jesus, my sweet husband, my 2 adorable girls, my parents, my friends....and of course the Kelly family! We have Thanksgiving every year with Jim's family. It is SO MUCH FUN! It is loud, funny, wild, delicious, and just plain awesome!!

I walked into the kitchen before our big Lunch and found only the Kelly men in there preparing!! Love it!!

Here is a pic before we all sat down to eat:

After dinner, Kyndall and Grandpa set up a game of Chinese Checkers...

Clockwise:
Cousin Alex, Uncle Bill, Grandpa, Kyndall, Cousin Dani, Allison, and Cousin Jack

Then Avery joined:

Dani, Cousin Joe (home from Chapman University in California), and Allison

Kyndall's perspective of Aunt Sue:

Kyndall's Perspective of Daddy and Avery:

Mommy, Kyndall, and Allison

Uncle Bill and Kyndall...wow they look serious:

All Grandpa's precious Grandkids....LOVE THEM!!!

I want to frame that picture!!!

The highlight was definitely seeing everyone, especially Joe who has been away at College since September. We have a lot to be thankful for and the Kelly family Thanksgiving is definitely one of the best days of the year!! Can't wait until next year!!!

Finger Food Feast

2010-11-22T10:44:00.000-08:00

The highlight, by far, of this fall HAS to be Kyndall's Thanksgiving program she performed at her Preschool, Cottonwood Creek Baptist Church Kidcare. It was BEYOND cute. It is called the "Finger Food Feast". In each class, the parents were assigned various "finger foods" to bring, I got off easy with 2 bags of potatoe chips. There was fruit, veggie trays, cheese, crackers, chips, small sandwiches and desserts. The best part was that Jim could take off and join too!! So Jim, Avery, and I met up at the church and had to go and find Kyndall's class table. Then we had to find her place settings she made:

(This is a turkey she made and the feathers are each of our hands: Jim, me, K, and A, Kyndall traced them and cut them out all by herself!!!)

After we sat down, the preschoolers all got on stage and sang THE CUTEST songs ever Thanking God!! The pics of that are at the bottom of this post. Then Kyndall came and ate with us:

Here is Kyndall as she and her classmates were going up on stage:

Notice she was a sweet little Indian and made her own little dress to wear and head dress with feathers....too cute

I couldn't get the video to upload...sorry! Come see us and we'll play it for you!! Have a Blessed and delicious Thanksgiving!!!

Yesterday

2010-11-12T18:20:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was quite a day....

First, we dropped Kyndall off at Preschool in her PJ's, slippers, and spirit shirt. It was wear your PJ bottoms day...too fun:) I made Kyndall's bottoms out of that super soft minky fabric you make baby blankets out of...she changed out of them as soon as she got home!!Then I took Avery and we met up with my friends Jenny, Mariah, and Melinda at the park to play and feed the ducks. It was so fun until some little stinker of a boy came straight up to Avery and spit a big 'ole loogie on her! Can you believe it?? And she actually was minding her own business playing with Sara Paige at the time. Boys are rotten sometimes. The boy's Daddy got him, but you know, he didn't ever even say he was sorry....gross, just gross!!

Then I needed to make my friend 2 diaper bags for baby gifts. So I set up a "design wall" by pinning fleece fabric on the wall and cutting out shapes from different fabrics for her to put up on there. Quilters use these to lay their pieces of fabric on to plan out their quilts before sewing them. I think maybe Avery might be a quilter someday, this kept her pretty busy while I cut, ironed and sewed my bags!

Here she is ironing her fabrics to put on the design wall:

Here are the 2 monogrammed custom diaper bags I made! Whew...we had a busy, busy Thursday and Friday:)

Preschool Pumpkin Hunt

2010-11-02T16:09:00.001-07:00

Kyndall's preschool put on a Pumpkin Hunt/Game day instead of a Halloween party this year. The kids had a blast! The parents were invited to watch and take pics, so of course Avery and I had to stop by. Avery was in awe, and Kyndall just lit up when she saw us there. She gave Ave a huge hug and then ran back to the line where she was supposed to be.

The teachers were pretty sweet too, they let Avery try out the tunnel in the obstacle course so she could do it like Kyndall....

What cute little Pumpkin heads! This is most of Kyndall's little class....I labeled the only ones I knew for sure...Kyndall seriously looks like a big girl standing in line for the games!!

Go Kyndall!!!

Obstacle Course

Hula Hoop Toss

This is everyone listening to the directions of the teacher...you can see Avery sitting behind everyone listening too:)

This is Kyndall shooting hoops!

It was too cute to see Kyndall interacting with her little classmates and having a fun time!

Halloween 2010

2010-10-31T18:35:00.001-07:00

TaaaaDaaaa.....

They were Princess Fairies!!

(notice Kyndall wearing her favorite cowgirl boots)

I think this is my favorite picture of the season so far...what sweet looks I captured them giving each other!

Hope everyone had a fun and safe Halloween! The Kellys sure did:)

Scare on the Square

2010-10-30T19:17:00.000-07:00

We always love a good visit from Bits and Gram AKA my parents! Jim and I had a meeting this year during Scare on the Square, which is a Halloween activity that they have every year on the Historic McKinney Square. Kids dress up and go from shop to shop and Trick or Treat. My parents took the girls this year since we couldn't!! They all had a blast:)

Kyndall decided to be a cowgirl for this event ( notice this is the 2nd costume she has worn this year....wonder what she'll want to be on the actual day of Halloween:) Grammie got her the cutest pearl snap shirt and cowgirl skirt with REAL cowgirl boots and we added a cute little dress up cowgirl hat!!! Oh, and her trusty horse was a party favor from my friend Mariah's twins 2nd birthday party!!

Avery has had this Pooh costume for a while and just decided on a whim this would be her costume for this event!!

This shot cracked me up!

Taking a break to check out her loot curbside....

Dallas Zoo

2010-10-29T10:59:00.001-07:00

I love having fun friends. And I love that my fun friends have sweet kids that my kids adore :) So my fun friend Jenny and I took our troops to the Dallas Zoo. We picked a GREAT day to go. The weather was a little cooler and it was overcast so we had a blast checking out all the animals and attractions. I would 100% recommend this zoo and we will definitely be back!!!

The start of our day:

Kyndall and her friend Kate

The zoo train

How fun are little girls who actually think they can move big boulders like this?

Petting Zoo

The girls had their maps and were showing us the way to go!

They even had pony rides...this was Kyndall on Lil' Joe. She got to ride 2x because Avery yelled "Noooooooooo" when it was her turn.
Pretty fun time with some sweet friends....

The Big Orange Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-24T08:50:00.001-07:00

I love the pumpkin patch in Celina, Texas. It is too cute! We try to go every year. This year, we went with my good friend Laura-Marie and her son, Jameson. Avery and Jameson really enjoy playing together so it was a pretty fun little field trip!

(Check out the outfits...I made some skull and heart twirly skirts for the girls, then used freezer paper to stencil another skull for the shirt. The girls painted the skulls on their shirts themselves!! Totally easy and fun activity...for the how-to, check out my friend Jenny Garland's Video Tutorial HERE!!)

First, we got some cups of animal feed and fed all the goats, sheep and cows....Avery LOVED that part
But Kyndall didn't think much of it. She was a little spooked at first, but eventually would feed/pet the "babies".

Then came the hay ride!! What fun:)

Avery, Kyndall and Jameson

Avery had to get a better look at the farm/pumpkin patch:

Finally, we got to go to the patch and pick out their very own pumpkins. Kyndall wasn't too impressed with the first couple of activities, she wanted to pick her pumpkin out the whole time. She ran all over the patch looking for the perfect one!!

Avery and Jameson walked up to the first row and grabbed the first one they got their little hands on!!

Avery was posing with her pumpkin:

Finally got Kyndall to sit with her pumpkin too....

Look at Kyndall's scary pumpkin:

Both little monster pumpkins!

We had such a fun time.....until next year:)

Dress Up Day at Preschool

2010-10-21T17:38:00.001-07:00

Can you tell how happy Kyndall was to get to wear her costume to Preschool today??? She just HAD TO HAVE a purple tutu from Walmart with matching fairy wings for her Halloween costume (this was back in Sept) so I bought them. Last night, before bed, I started getting them out for her to wear to school and she said, "No Mommy, I want to be Minnie Mouse". Sue, my sister in law had given this little outfit to Kyndall when she was Avery's age (2 1/2) and she still adores it. She twirled around and danced and couldn't be happier in this costume....(it almost made me want to wear one too). Of course Avery had to put her fancy tutu on as well! She was a Pirate Princess as she helped me drop Kyndall off this morning. So I had to get a pic of them both:)

Hope your day was as fancy as ours!!

Oh No!! Awwww!! How Sweet!!

2010-10-19T16:33:00.000-07:00

Oh No!

Avery got a hold of the scissors one night and decided to whack her hair off....She is paying tribute to Pat Benatar and Joan Jet with this asymmetrical hair do. Don't worry, the scissors are all stored on top of the refrigerator now!!

Awww...
It is official! Avery's crib has been taken down and she is officially sleeping in her big girl (toddler) bed! Yay Avery, you are becoming such a sweet big girl!! This is a pic of Kyndall and Avery helping Jim tear down the crib!!
How Sweet!
By accident, I found out Kyndall has learned the sweetest little prayer song at preschool. I am so happy I chose Cottonwood Creek Baptist Church's preschool program for her.

Life is definitely full of interesting happenings these days at the Kelly household....and we are loving every minute of them!!!

Celebrating Fall in the Mountains

2010-10-15T10:19:00.000-07:00

Wow, if you want to dive into fall and show your kids what it looks like, go to the mountains. AMAZING!!!! The leaves change before your eyes, crisp air all around you, and at night you see stars in the sky like nowhere else in the world! We went to Angel Fire, New Mexico with my parents and grandparents. We stay in a big cabin and just have fun relaxing, shopping in Taos and Angel Fire, golfing, playing, and eating at some yummy places like Michael's in Taos and The Roasted Clove (date night) in Angel Fire. We took a TON of pics and just had a great time. Golfing with Dad, Jiml, and a local guy named Jim:

Lots of driving!!!

Park fun with Kyndall and Grammie

Sweet

I love my girls

Daddy and Avery

Just swinging on the porch

Avery

Campfire!!!

In Taos:

Twirls play area in Taos

Fun at Twirls with Daddy

Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory Bear in Taos

4 Generations: Me, Grammie, Mom and the girls

The whole group!

What an amazing time we had!! Thanks Mom and Dad for doing this each year and letting us come along:)

Lubbock Weekend Visit

2010-09-22T14:43:00.000-07:00

For Jim's birthday this year, we went to see my parents in Lubbock. Jim got to celebrate his birthday by doing one of his favorite things ever.....we went to a Texas Tech football game. It was Tech vs. UT and the best part was that since my parents live in Lubbock we get to stay with them, they babysit, and we got a super fun night out!!! Grandparents are the greatest aren't they? To top it all off, my Dad's company, Texas Farm Bureau Insurance, sponsered the game and we got to go for free!! Woo hoo!!! First we got to spend some time visiting with my parents and Grammie and Popo. We also got to eat dinner with some good friends of theirs Sharon and Elvis. They even brought over a red tricycle for Kyndall and Avery to enjoy!! So sweet huh???Grammie and PoPo with the girls

Bits and Gram with the girls:

Grammie, me and Mom

Jim and I gearing up for the game (notice my red nails so I could spice up my guns up!)

I dragged Jim to an AXO tailgate. Got to see some of my old sorority sisters and a super sweet Alumni who does this every home game with her husband:)

It was a "red out" game where all Tech fans wore red shirts to the game...pretty fun huh!

Jim and I had to get a pic of us in the stands! I am so glad I married a Tech Alumn so we can enjoy games together and root for the same team:)

Thanks Mom and Dad for Jim's super thoughtful birthday gift and a wonderful time as always visiting with you!!

Look Who's 34!!!

2010-09-16T15:25:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Jimmy!!! We love you very much and hope you have a super day!

****The post is one day early due to computer availability on actual birthday...Happy Birthday on September 17th!!!****

First Day of Preschool!!

2010-09-09T16:39:00.000-07:00

Well, guess who started Preschool today? At first, she was a little nervous, but gave me a smile at the door anyway....Then we got to the school, and she walked in the room, but wasn't happy about it....

I asked her to let me take a pic of her sitting in her seat so I could show everyone what a big girl she was, and I got the pouty lip! (All the while, Avery was trying to play with the toys they had set up for the boys and girls to play with as they came in the room!)

So Kyndall gave Avery a sad sweet hug goodbye, as Avery was still eyeing the toys on the table again! Avery didn't want to leave and Kyndall did! Go figure:) No tears though!!

While Kyndall was at school, Avery and I had a playdate with Piper and Caleb Mathis...While the Mommies planned for our first MOPS meeting, the kiddos played some games together....Love Avery's strategy to pick up all the butterflies that were on the ground. She didn't cheat it says you can do that in the rules:)

When I picked Kyndall up, she looked at her teachers and said goodbye to them, then looked at me and said, "I love Preschool, can I go back tomorrow?" Sweetest words I could have heard. She rattled off stories and activities she did, then we went to pick up her cousin Dani from highschool and we all celebrated a great Thursday at Yogurtie for some fancy Yogurt!

Meet The Teacher night!

2010-09-07T20:30:00.000-07:00

Wow, what a crazy thing to see your baby's name on a desk tag for her to sit and learn and go to school! I can't believe Kyndall is old enough to go to Preschool. We are taking her to the one at Cottonwood Creek Baptist Church this year 3 days a week. She was SO excited to sign up for Preschool and has been waiting and waiting all Summer long to get to finally go! We went to "Meet the Teacher" night and found her spot at her table:Then Kyndall went through the items there which were a new T-shirt, a chance to win $100 off tuition this month, and some letters from her teachers (for the parents) and guidelines on procedures etc....

Her "Lead" teacher is Kari Korth and has a daughter named Kendyl...that was pretty cool!!!

Here is Kyndall telling her teacher how to spell her name and Avery's name.

The Assistant teacher in her class is Danielle Thompson...super sweet as well. I really enjoyed meeting these ladies and look forward to them teaching Kyndall this year!

There was also a small craft show (emphasis on the word small) which Jenny Garland and I decided to enter...hmm...DUD!!! I made $15 and Jenny made $10....and we spent it all on food, boo!!

But back to Kyndall.....She really seemed excited and a little nervous. Then we got home, she went to bed and I heard SOBBING. So I went upstairs to find her totally balling her eyes out because she wants to stay home and play with her sister. I mean how sweet is that? I knew they were close and enjoyed each other, but she is really going to miss being with her. I let her know that it was not all day, and Avery would be napping for most of the time she was gone, but she is still pretty nervous. She starts her first day on Thursday, so hopefully by then she will feel a little better about it. I will be praying for peace and calmness for her and her worry to be wiped away. It breaks my heart to see her this upset about Preschool, but I know that once she starts she will be happy and excited about going....I'll keep you all updated!!!

Weekend Family Get-away

2010-08-31T11:12:00.001-07:00

Kyndall came up to me a couple of weeks ago and said, "Mommy, can we go to see Shamu again and ride the roller coaster?" I thought, why not, right? So I called Jim and he agreed it would be fun to have a weekend Get-away and take the girls to Sea World again. Last year in April of '09, we took the girls for a family vacay to San Antonio and South Padre Beach. We went to Sea World (click on "sea world" if you want a quick peek back to that post) then, and Kyndall LOVED it...Avery was indifferent. Kyndall was just a smidge too short for the Shamu Roller Coaster and has mentioned SEVERAL different times since that trip how bad she wants to go on it! She also LOVED seeing Believe, the Shamu show and all the other sea creatures....so......

Jim set up a hotel and we drove there early Sat. morning...straight to Sea World and Kyndall was ready to get going!! Here she is pushing Avery in the Parking lot:The infamous pic with Shamu....we still have to do a family shot....the girls aren't exactly comfortable going "kid only" yet:)

First stop was the Shamu Roller Coaster...wish I could have gotten a better shot, but my little camera didn't do movement shots well: Kyndall went once with Jim and once with me...Ave was a little too short this year, maybe next year!!!

On to Believe!! Wow, I love this show:) So did the girls!!

Then we took Avery on a few rides she WAS big enough to go on:

Dolphin Cove:

And the final show was Azul with Dolphins and Beluga Whales...incredible!!!

Avery was pretty done for the day after this one, so we checked out the sharks and bought them some toys before leaving for the day. 5 hours at Sea World put us all to bed early that night!!!

My favorite part of the trip, besides watching the girls have a blast at Sea World, was shopping at the outlet mall in San Marcos and eating at The Gristmill in Gruene, Texas on the way home!! Here is a pic of the girls peeking out the window like they did last year, only being super sweet and lovey this year:) I love my sweet family and had a wonderful mini-vacay with them!!!

A Couple of Firsts for Both Girls!

2010-08-17T06:20:00.001-07:00

The girls are so close in age (19 months) that fortunately they get to share a lot of "firsts" in life. For example, we introduced ribs to them for the first time a couple of weeks ago:

Man did they love 'em!! The whole slab was gone between the four of us! Smiles on everyone's faces!! I thought it was pretty cute to watch them devour them...so I shared!!!

I really felt like these 2 events went well together...because after a mess like that in you mouth you are due for a visit to the dentist. I know, I know, 4 is pushing it for the first dentist visit....I should have taken Kyndall WAY before now. But I didn't and I am taking her now so on with the story..... Kyndall was a little skeptical about everything...and of course went first. Between refusing to lay down for them to clean her teeth and spitting water at the hygentist we made it through her cleaning and fortunately the dentist (Dr. Tim from Texas Pediatric Dentistry) said she had wonderful teeth not a cavity in sight! They were really good about explaining the different tools and letting Kyndall touch them and play with them a little before they cleaned her teeth!

Next up was Avery. Isn't she lucky to have a big sister to watch and pave the way for her? First off, she got to play with Ali the Alligator (who had a full mouth of perfect teeth) and she laid right down and opened her mouth wide for the cleaning...no spitting, no crying, no putting up a fight. She just kept saying, "I do it like Kyndall". How sweet is that?

Then she got to check out Ali's teeth....it was too cute!!

Then Avery picked out a rubber dentist duckey and Kyndall picked out a super bouncy ball and after Dr. Tim told Avery her teeth were wonderful we left! Both girls did super and I really liked that practice!!

Lubbock Bound!

2010-08-14T16:14:00.000-07:00

Kyndall wanted to go and visit her Bits and Gram (my parents). So the girls and I packed up (poor Jim had to stay and work) and headed to Lubbock for a couple of days! We had so much fun...Grammie and Popo came and made some yummy corn on the cob (do you know a little sugar in the water pot really makes the corn taste super yummy).....

My parents were "kitty sitting" for their friends and the girls LOVED it! Especially Avery...she was enamored:

My parents also bought a little pool to splash in!! Total hit with the girls:

Sitting with Bits:

Playing Princess with Popo:

Kyndall swinging with Grammie and the kitty she named "Barbie Princess"

Avery and her Gram!

All in all is was a wonderful trip! The girls can't wait to go back and hopefully Jim can go next time!!

Exotropia

2010-08-02T11:25:00.001-07:00

Exotropia: An outward turning of the eye. It may occur only when the child is daydreaming, ill, or tired. Parents often notice that the child squints one eye in bright sunlight (this is to compensate for seeing double).

We had noticed since Kyndall was about 2 1/2 that she kind of squinted one eye in the sunlight, and when the flash would go off for some pics. Here are a couple examples of her squinting:

2 1/2 years old

3 1/2 years old

4

Her left eye squints, and if she is out in the sun for a prolonged period it gets REALLY obvious. We also noticed when she was getting tired, sometimes her left eye would look away so her eyes looked like they were looking in 2 different places. We decided to take her to a pediatric Opthamologist, Dr. Catherine Chen so we could find out if this was serious. And it turns out that she has what is called, Exotropia (defined above). There is about a 30% chance it will heal on it's own and a 30% chance she would need surgery. If it stays like it is now, which is also what could happen, surgery is not recommended. For Kyndall, there is no other option to help correct it. So we are praying that it heals itself.

Kyndall was a Princess Pirate while being examined by Dr. Chen:

They even had a train for the girls to play with while we waited on Kyndall's eyes to dialate:

This was the final examination before she gave us her diagnosis:

We are going back in 3 months to keep track of her little eye!

Vacation Bible School

2010-07-30T19:53:00.001-07:00

Ahoy Mateys!!!

What an incredible week for Kyndall!! She went to The Corners Church for VBS (Vacation Bible School) this week. Avery isn't quite old enough to go yet, so she and I had some quality time together. Two of Kyndall's best friends, Kate and Kiley also went this week and they all had a blast!!!! It started out a little rough, Kyndall has really been having a hard time leaving me lately (no matter where we are or what we are doing) which breaks my heart when she cries as I leave her. She usually gets over it pretty quickly though. On Monday when I dropped her off, a sweet lady had to pry her screaming and crying off of me. Wow, that was not fun. But when I went to pick her up she was so happy and excited (whew). They learn stories about Jesus, his disciples, sing songs, play games and of course eat yummy snacks! On Thursday, the "Pirate Teacher" as Kyndall called the Director (who dressed as a pirate to go along with the High Seas theme) told the story of Christ dying for our sins and how we could ask him in our hearts and have everlasting life in Heaven with him. Kyndall went to the front and prayed with her teacher...so sweet! Then she came home and said, "Momma, I prayed and asked Jesus to my heart and you know what?! They are having a party in Heaven now!!!" Oh how I love her sweet, innocent, precious, little heart!!! After Monday's drop off the rest of the week went really smooth, Kyndall was super excited to go everyday and even wanted to walk to her group by herself! Tonight they had a family night where you could come and see a video of all the kids and hear them sing their songs. Kyndall was so proud to take us, and we were so excited to see her so enthusiastic! Yay for a fun week of VBS!!! Thanks to The Corners Church for providing such a warm and loving environment!!!

After VBS Yogurt run with all our girls!! Could they be any sweeter? I think not!!

These two are becoming besties!! They really enjoy each other....what fun friends we have:)

Kyndall posing with all her crafts she made!! Look at that face:)

Kyndall and Kiley were in the same group together!! This is their teacher Annie...who they LOVED:)

Kyndall's Birthday Party Recap

2010-07-11T07:45:00.001-07:00

I know, I know, where have we been, why have we been neglecting the blog??? All I can say is it is summer and we are taking full advantage of playing in the sun and enjoying the summer. I haven't taken the time to post all the pics sorry!!! For Kyndall's birthday celebration this year, she had a super fun day. Grammie took her to Sweet n Sassy to get her hair and nails done before the party. Then she had a party with her friends after that. We decided since Kyndall's favorite thing in the world to do right now is craft, that we would do that at her birthday party! We went to Kids N Art in Frisco and each child got to paint a small canvas. They all painted a dolphin and had a blast. The staff was incredible and took care of everything. Since Kyndall wanted a Barbie themed birthday, I made a Barbie birthday cake for her (thanks to my friend Candace for helping me with that one:). I also made each child their own apron with their name embroidered on it so they wouldn't ruin their clothes when painting(but Kids N Art will supply aprons if you don't want to make or bring your own) All in all, it was a sweet and fun time! Here are some pics of her and her friends! Oh and I almost forgot one of the most fun parts......face painting!! The artists that work there painted all the kids' faces!!! How fun:)