Sonic [Favorite Things]

I love Sonic.

All this... $3.12. The perfect after school, end of the week treat.

From Abby's Teacher

Delighted to find this e-mail from Abby's Kindergarten teacher in my inbox today...

Hello, just wanted to let you know Abby is doing great, works diligently, and tries to do her best in whatever she does...

So far, Abby just loves school. Even week two, she still says that "every part" is her favorite part of the school day. She's making friends with all the other girls in her class (I think it's 4 girls to 7 boys or something like that), and she loves learning, doing her homework, and, of course, recess.

On that note, I should go pick her up!

Country Boys and City Slickers

This past weekend, Carson and I made the trip up to my Mom & Dad's so I could go to a seminar on building a profitable business with PPA on Saturday and Sunday. It was a great seminar that really helped me understand the numbers behind running your own business as well as how to market, sell, and all that fun stuff.

While I was off learning, Carson stayed with Mattie and Grandaddy (or "Grandad" as Carson refers to him nowdays). He had a great time (of course). Grandad bought him a little set of golf clubs so they could play golf when he visits, and there were tractor rides and all sorts of fun stuff.

One day when they were driving around in Grandad's truck, Carson said, "Why are there not any other cars around here?" to which Dad explained that they were out in the country where there weren't as many people. Later on Carson proudly declared that he and Grandad were "country boys"... "And what do you call the boys in the cities?" Carson asked. To which my dad naturally replied, "city slickers." So now Carson calls everyone city slickers around here. It made me laugh.

That Picture

This picture still makes me laugh out loud! Lilah, we will miss you! (Taken 9/4/06)

Goodbye

I knew five years ago that this day would come, but it always seemed so far away. Tonight, however, we had to hug some of our very best friends goodbye. Bryan and Terra are leaving in the morning and moving to North Dakota.

Goodbye is never easy, and words seem to fall short when someone has been such a huge part of your life for so long, and rather than getting ushy-gushy, let me just share some of MY favorite memories...

1. How when Abby was a baby she ALWAYS threw up on Auntie Terra.
2. A bird pooping on Collin's head when we went to the zoo.
3. Stuffing ourselves silly with ice cream (or anything else), which we happened to do tonight as well.
4. Laughing.
5. Long talks.
6. Loading up all our kiddos in the mini van and going places -- and talking through insane tantrums, screaming fits, and who knows what else.
7. Friends who were always willing to help out.
8. Playing Mario with Parker.
9. Collin being born.
10. Lots of family dinners, game nights, etc.
11. Getting my belly button pierced.
12. Going swimming.
13. Lilah's crazy pigtails (I need to find that one picture... I'll post it later.)
14. The adventures of "Bobby" and "Lala"
15. Calling poison control when Abby and Collin decided it'd be fun to play with pesticides.

We've had lots of good times and I could keep going...

Thank you, friends, for touching each of our lives in a special way. I know we'll be friends for life. We love you!





At our girls' night, Terra came up with special names for each of us. I thought that was fun and especially sweet. It definitely got the waterworks going! :)

Beach Day

Today my HS girls small group (along with Carson) headed out to the beach for a day of sun and relaxation and it was a blast! I couldn't love a group of girls more. They are awesome in so many ways. It was a great day from the road trip itself, to the laughter and conversation, and (of course) the ocean and the sand.

I hadn't been to the coast in at least five years and Carson had never ever been and I loved it! I don't know why we don't go more. It's just over two hours to Corpus Christi and the beach was free and uncrowded. Great day!

I'm SO Excited!

Blessings

I love when God just blesses you with little surprises.

We'll be going to Cabo in October to shoot a wedding (a huge blessing in and of itself), and I had booked us a regular room. After talking about it, Aaron and I decided it was worth spending the extra money to upgrade to an ocean view room. I was reluctant because it was pretty pricey. However, I e-mailed the travel agent this week to upgrade and she just got back to me yesterday saying she was able to take advantage of a special the resort had going on and instead of paying extra money, we're actually getting $10 BACK.

Thank you, God for blessing us.

End of Day One

I think this says it all.

Abby loved school today. I asked her what her favorite part of the day was and she thought for a minute and said, "Everything was my favorite." She was excited about reading and her notebook that she will be bringing home every day and new friends and her teacher and even the "important talks" they had "about stuff like not giving up."

I think it's going to be a good year. :)

Kindergarten

It was a big day in our house today. Abby started Kindergarten. She did great this morning. I could tell she was excited as she was getting ready -- she took a shower, ate her breakfast and put on her uniform. I think she started to get nervous about all the attention and to-do, though, because from picture taking on, she was very quiet. (This is not normal!)

School started at 8:00 with an assembly with the whole school and then it was off to Mrs. Schneider's class. She invited all of us parents in, too, and we got to see her interact with the kids for a while and then she spent some time talking us through the school's mission, her methods, and what she expects, etc. Then it was almost time for us to go, and we all sat down together for story time. I've really been fine with the whole Kindergarten thing. I'm not sad or emotional about it, but then she had to go and choose the story The Kissing Hand. I have to admit, it made me tear up a bit. It was a great morning and I could tell as we were getting ready to leave that Abby was getting more comfortable. I'm wondering how long it took for the real Abby to come out and if Mrs. Schneider is ready for that. :)

Easing the ache in my soul...

There are a few days in a man's life that will change him forever and forever be burned into his memory. His first catch with dad, the first time he locks eyes with his wife, the birth of his children, and the day he gets a truck.

It's not my first truck, in fact, it's my 5th, but there is something special about this one. Maybe it's the 4 years of driving a Ford Escort, maybe it's that I'm older and can appreciate it more, but whatever it is, this one is different.

Friday, my little Escort died, and so we were forced to being searching for a new vehicle for me. I insisted on truck, though, and it paid off. As of 4 pm yesterday, I am the proud owner of a 2006 Ford F-150. I feel complete again. 5 years ago, I sold a 1991 F-150 and thought I could adjust happily to life without it. The ensuing years were racked with depression, regret, longing... a part of me was missing. No Longer. The wait is over, and life is again as it should be.

The best part? I think I have gained a new respect in my son's eyes. Today on the way home from church Carson said, "Gee dad, I sure do like your truck. Now your a good daddy because all good daddy's have trucks. I love you."

Someday, son... all this will be yours!

School Picnic

We had a big day today (so I'll split it into two separate posts, because the other big thing deserves it's own post). Abby had her school picnic today and finally got to see her new classroom (with her very own desk!) and spend some one on one time with her new teacher, Mrs. Schneider. I can tell Abby is going to have an awesome year and I can already tell Mrs. S is going to be great for her! I'm sure you'll be seeing more pictures on Monday... :)

Jason Mraz [Favorite Things]

Love Jason Mraz and lately I am hooked on this version of "If it Kills Me" from The Casanova Sessions (and because every post is better with media of some sort, here is a video featuring this song as seen on SYTYCD....)

Date Night - Abby + Aaron

So, it was finally here. The night Abby has been waiting for since May... the Jonas Brothers concert. We were given tickets by a very cool friend and had the opportunity to head out for a daddy daughter night. The evening began with Taco Cabana and ended with 17,000 screaming adolescent girls and inbetween was chalked full of stuff I wouldn't have missed for the world. While the Jobros (that's what us insiders call them) were surprisingly engaging, Abby was taken aback by their loudness and asked if I thought they might play a little quieter for her. I said they wouldn't. She seemed sad, but played through. It was a great night. I love my little girl. Glad we had this moment before she heads of to kindergarten in a couple of days. Here is the view from our seats...

Date Night - Carson + Bre

Our "date nights" with the kids are a huge hit in our house. A while back, upon hearing what a Jonas Brothers fan that Abby is, a friend gave Aaron two [amazing, close] tickets to see them in concert tonight. They're still there having a blast, so I don't have pictures of that yet, but here are a few pictures from my date night with Carson. He and I had a fun and relaxing night together. Carson is so laid back and sweet and he's genuinely up for just about anything I want to do (he's a lot like his daddy in that regard). We started the evening with a visit to Inflatable Wonderland where he jumped and fell down over and over again 'til his heart was content. He also made a friend who he played with almost the whole time and they crawled all over the place like they were puppies. Once he had had enough of the "jumpy place" we decided to go eat at Longhorn Cafe and share a burger, some fries, and he even got his own Sprite. (It's so easy to please 3 year olds!) He suggested after the fact going to HEB to get some dessert, but I was able to tempt him home instead with the promise of a movie and his blanket (which finally arrived in the mail today after he left it at Mattie & Grandaddy's house). Now he's crashed out on the living room floor. Great date night!

Quotes to Remember: Date Night

Me: Carson, where do you want to go on our date night tomorrow?
Carson: Starbucks. And maybe pizza.
Me: Anywhere else you'd like to go that's maybe not food?
C: Mmm... Sonic.
Me: Okay, after we get food and drinks what do you want to do?
C: Let's go grocery shopping.

Quotes to Remember: Hyper

Yesterday Abby came home and was bouncing off the walls. Aaron told her, "Settle down a little bit," to which she replied...

"Daddy, I'm not being hyper, I'm just being FUN." :)

Snake Farm

Abby was none too thrilled about standing in front of the crocodile cage for a picture. :)

Eww...

I've fallen and I can't get up!

My mom drove in last night to bring Carson home from his weekend with "Mattie & Grandaddy". Today we got to take the kids out to the Snake Farm in New Braunfels. I managed to play through the fact that snakes absolutely totally freak me out in the worst way and we had fun! I went there years ago when our family came here to SA for our family vacation and they've added even more animals, etc. My favorite had to be the porcupine. He was huge and oh so cute. (Never thought I'd say that about a porcupine!) Abby was most terrified of the Petting Zoo, of all things, but she always has been. Carson thought it was all pretty sweet and tried to carry on a conversation with the talking parrots who would say "Hello" and would laugh, "ha ha ha ha". It was hilarious. Good times were had by all, we had a quick lunch, and then Mattie had to head back home. Now everyone's sleeping and I need to get some work done. I'll post pictures from Carson's weekend later on (and from Abby's week last month).

Summer Fun

Anniversary

Aaron and I have been married for six years (+2 months). I don't know what we were thinking getting married in June. I guess we didn't have the foresight to realize that Aaron would be in full time youth ministry and to know that I would be a wedding photographer. So sadly, we weren't able to celebrate our six years in June, but last night we finally got a night away and it came at a good time.

We stayed the night downtown on the river at the Hotel Contessa. This is one of our absolute favorite places to stay. It has a uniquely urban, uniquely Texas feel and it's awesome! To top that, all the rooms are suites and I love having seperate living and sleeping spaces. For dinner we decided against all the overrated Riverwalk cuisine and headed to Texas Land and Cattle for some juicy steak. Afterwards it was back to the hotel for a dip in their amazing rooftop pool with a skyline view. (I can't believe I didn't get pictures!) The rest of the night was fun and relaxing as we walked around downtown and enjoyed each other's company. (We did happen to find ourselves mere feet away from a KC and the Sunshine Band Concert, as well as the Dallas Cowboys bus, and another set of busses loading at the Westin which we later discovered was Green Day) It was a fun night.

This morning, being without the kids, we got to sleep late (like, until 7:30). We had a leisurely morning, watching ESPN (Aaron) and reading the paper (me) before packing up and checking out. I was thrilled when Aaron took me to eat breakfast at the Guenther House. I'd heard it was great, but had never eaten there. It was every bit as good as I had hoped. The rest of the morning was spent driving around our favorite parts of town (King William, Monte Vista, etc.) just like we used to when we had nothing else to do.

I feel so blessed to have such an amazing husband who loves me like crazy and takes care of me and who is so much more than I ever dreamed I could have in a husband. I love you, Aaron!

Fruit

We're enjoying a nice, relaxing Saturday without a whole lot to do. Abby and I sat down to a juicy bowl of cherries (which I just discovered that I actually do like) and they were just so pretty, I had to take a picture, of course.

As I was sitting here, it came to mind how much the Bible talks about fruit, so I decided to do a little search to see what came up, and I was really challenged by one of what I know are many verses.

A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit...Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them. Matthew 7:18-20

or

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Galatians 5:22-23

I find myself really challenged to ask... Am I living this way? Are these "fruits" evident in my life? What does the fruit of my life say about who I am... or who I am about?

These are all questions I can't answer in a day, rather, I need to be asking myself these questions constantly. I've settled too much on lukewarm Christianity, and we all know how appealing that is. Thank God for grace and the opportunity to fail and keep trying, and for being loved more deeply than we've ever known through it all.

Pat Green

I am beside myself with excitement because we just bought tickets to see Pat Green at Stubb's in September! One of our favorite artists at one of our favorite venues?! I'm in heaven. :)

Ahh...

Uncle Moose is buying Reagan's love. :)

Japanese Steakhouse

Tonight Aaron and I had the priviledge of going out with an awesome group of people to Tokyo Steakhouse. I haven't been to a Japanese steakhouse since I was a kid and it was a lot of fun! I forgot my camera, so here are a couple pictures from Aaron's phone.