San Antonio Christmas

When Don got home from his trip on Sunday night, we let Cadynce and Donnie open their gifts from us.  We had them open their smaller gifts first.  Cadynce got a pair of winter boots and Donnie got a pair of shoes.  Donnie wanted to put them on immediately!!  Cadynce was more interested in opening the next present.  Cadynce got a My Little Pony and Donnie got an Elmo doll.  The last gift we had them open went with their big gift.  Cadynce got some pots and pans and Donnie got a few trains.  We told them to go upstairs for their last surprise.  We got the whole thing on video, and Cadynce's reaction was priceless.  After she saw her new wooden kitchen set she started screaming and saying "thank you Daddy, thank you Mommy."  She was pretty excited.  Donnie loves his train table and loves to go around and around saying "choo choo."  It was such a fun evening.  View Album for more pictures.

Donnie 18 Months Old

Donnie just turned 18 months old, and we have finally stopped the coughing.  He's pretty much been an emotional wreck for the past two months.  Between coughing, teething, and "Mommy only", it can only be up from here...right?  That's what I'm going with!  Really, he is the sweetest boy.  If sister is crying, he always tries to make her feel better with a hug.  He brings her shoes to her, and he squeals with excitement when we pick her up from school.  He is so full of love, so I will enjoy this "Mommy only" phase while it lasts.

We had a weekend full of excitement.  We said good-bye to our fish Bubbles who had a short life, we had breakfast with Santa (both kids cried and didn't want to sit on his lap), and we traded our car in for a mini-van.  There is no reason yet for the mini-van...I know what you're thinking!!  View Album for more pictures.

Happy Thanksgiving

We have so much to be thankful for, and it's amazing how a conversation with a little 3 year old girl made me realize HOW much we have to be thankful for.  We've been talking about what we "need" to live, for the last month.  Most of my answers are "no we do not need that to live."  We've talked a lot about being thankful this last month as we were preparing for the Thanksgiving holiday.  We were especially thankful to have family here with us to celebrate.  Grandpa and Mimi have come out for Thanksgiving for the past three years now.  We did something new this year.  We decided to sign up for "Operation Thanksgiving," which is a program at the Air Force base here that allows the public to open up their home to the men and women who are going through basic training.  That was a really great experience for us, and the guys were so thankful for their time away.  We picked up Shane and Austin Thanksgiving morning at the Air Force base and brought them to our house.  The first thing we did was give them our cell phones so they could call their families.  They took turns emailing and then just relaxed on the couch while watching football.  We had a great lunch and got to know the guys pretty well.  My favorite moment was walking into the living room to see one of the guys taking a nap on the couch.  This kid felt comfortable enough in a strangers house to fall asleep...that made my day!  The day went by very fast and soon it was time to take the guys back to base.  We grabbed a fast food dinner on the way, and before we knew it we were hugging them goodbye and thanking them for joining us and making our experience so great.  As always, Cadynce and Donnie had so much fun with Grandpa and Mimi.

This was also the weekend of our 6th anniversary.  We decided to "not" dress up and go bowling.  After bowling we went to BJ's to hang out and have dessert.

We got our tree up on Sunday and Cadynce helped me put the ornaments on the tree.  She wanted to know where each ornament came from...I was in heaven!   View Album for more pictures.

Christmas at Sea World

Sea World is all ready for Christmas.  We went this weekend to check out all the decorations, and to see the Sesame Street Show.  We got there early, so the kids played for a long time on the new playground.  They had a lot of fun.  The Sesame Street show was great and the kids loved it.  They have never been into Sesame Street, but seeing them up on stage singing and dancing to Christmas songs was awesome.  The only character Donnie knows is Elmo, and we he came out on stage he started saying "Mo Mo."  View Album for more pictures.

School Performance

Cadynce had her Thanksgiving performance at school on Friday.  She did such a great job.  She sang, signed, and danced.  Their costumes were everything they had made at school while learning about Native Americans.  Each kid was asked to make up their own Native American name that describes what they like.  Cadynce chose the name "Chasin' Daddy" because that's her favorite thing to do.  During their performance the kids could get up and tell everyone their name and their Native American name if they wanted.  When Ms. Liz asked who wanted to go, Cadynce shot her hand up high in the air.  When it was her turn she got up there and did it.  It was too stinkin' cute to see her in front of a lot of people talking in a microphone.  We were so proud of her.  View Album for more pictures.

1/2 Marathon Weekend

This weekend Jeff and Julie came to visit.  Don and Jeff ran the half marathon together again this year.  The guys did great finishing the race in 1 hour 40 minutes and 27 seconds.  We had fun watching the guys at the race.  We saw them at mile 3 and mile 8.  After seeing them at mile 8 the kids took a bathroom break and got a little time to run around and get out of the stroller.  We headed to the finish line to meet up with the guys.

Cadynce and Donnie had so much fun playing with Uncle Jeff and Aunt Julie.  They got to watch Cadynce at gymnastics.  Cadynce would be in the middle of doing something and then yell over to us, "Aunt Julie, am I doing good?"  She loved having an audience.  We had such a fun weekend.  View Album for more pictures.

Cadynce & Donnie at the Zoo

I took Cadynce and Donnie to the zoo this week.  This was the first time they had been together since Donnie started walking.  They had so much fun looking at the animals together.  We spent most of our time watching the hippos.  Donnie was running from tank to tank yelling "fish" while Cadynce was watching after the eggs that were about to hatch (they weren't real).  They had so much fun exploring the zoo together, and I can't wait to take them back.  View Album fore more pictures.

Air Show

We went to the air show here in San Antonio yesterday.  All Cadynce talked about was touching an air plane, and she wanted to touch it while it was in the air.  Donnie got pretty excited when he saw them flying so low as we were parking.  We walked around and looked at the air planes they had displayed, and we got to walk through a C-5.  Both ends of the plane were open so we just walked from one end to the other.  Cadynce wasn't too impressed because I don't think she knew it was an air plane...at least not one she'd ever seen before.  We were able to get food and watch the Thunderbirds with the help of Don's work.  We were totally hooked up with great seats, great parking, and free food.  During the Thunderbirds show they had music playing so the kids were mostly dancing and playing with a balloon they found.  Cadynce really had fun wearing her ear plugs, and Donnie would run to me any time it got too loud so I could cover his ears.  We had a great time at the Air Show.  View Album for more pictures.

Halloween Fun

We carved our pumpkin just a few days before Halloween this year (we usually get a little too excited and our pumpkin is shriveled up by Halloween).  But, it really wouldn't have mattered this year because we forgot to put our pumpkin outside!!  Oops.  Cadynce had a great time this year getting all the "gooey" stuff out of the pumpkin.  She was not afraid to get her hands dirty and our big pumpkin had a lot of insides to remove.  Cadynce requested an angry pumpkin, and that's just what Daddy gave her.  This pumpkin also had ears and nostrils.  Donnie was not too interested in the pumpkin, and mostly he just wanted to climb up and down on the kitchen chairs.

On Halloween night we went to our neighborhood clubhouse where they were having kids games, crafts, and activities.  We played a few games and then headed back home to trick or treat.  In San Antonio, the weather is so nice that most people sit in front of their houses to hand out candy.  We sat at our neighbors house along with 4 other neighbors.  We all had dinner together in the driveway while we waited for the trick or treaters to come.  We took Cadynce and Donnie to visit the neighbors down the street.  Cadynce was Pinkalicious and Donnie was a lion.  Donnie did not like having his costume on so we gave him a sucker and he was quiet the rest of the night.  Cadynce and I ran from house to house, and we ended up going around the whole neighborhood while Daddy put Donnie in bed.  I felt like I was a kid again.  At almost every house the person would say "You are a beautiful princess."  And each time Cadynce would say, "I'm not a princess, I am Pinkalicious!"  And each time I had to explain who Pinkalicious was.  My favorite house was a woman who had two baskets sitting out.  She told Cadynce she could take one thing from each basket.  She picked candy out of one basket, and the other she looked in, then she looked at me with a perplexed look on her face.  She picked up something and showed it to the woman and said, "Is this play-doh?"  The woman said, "Yes it is.  Do you like play-doh?  Would you like to take it with you?"  Cadynce replied, "No thank you, I have some at home."  The woman and I couldn't help but laugh at her response.  We made it home with a full bucket of candy, and Cadynce informed me that we needed to look through all the candy and make sure it was ok to eat. We sat with the neighbors handing out our candy until trick or treating was over.  It was our best Halloween since we've lived here.   View Album for more pictures.

School Parade

Today, all the kids at Cadynce's school got to dress up as their favorite storybook character.  Cadynce dressed up as Pinkalicious.  After signing her in at school, we waited outside at the pumpkin patch for the kids to come out and parade around, and to show off their costumes.  The kids were so cute, and Cadynce was all smiles.  She was so excited to walk around with her friends and wave to Mommy, Daddy, and Donnie.  View Album for more pictures.

Pumpkin Fun

This weekend was our weekend to get a pumpkin and visit the apple orchard that has all kinds of fun things for kids to do.  We call it a pumpkin patch, but really the pumpkins are brought here from New Mexico.  It's a beautiful 45 minutes drive, and it's the same place we visited last year.  View Album for more pictures.

Our Little Vacation

We had our first solo vacation since Cadynce was born.  Don's parents were so kind and SO brave to spend the weekend with Cadynce and Donnie while we went camping.  That's right, we decided to skip flying to some resort or a more "popular" vacation site.  We drove to the Hill Country about an hour and a half away and set up our tent.  We brought our bikes along, and we went exploring before it got dark.  We decided to check out the biking/hiking trails this place is so proud of.  I would call it more of a hike your bike kind of trail.  I started to get a little nervous as it was getting darker, and we were not familiar with the trails or the life that was surrounding us.  Don told me he saw a wolf and I was kicking myself for not bringing my mace.  We made it out alive and with a little daylight left.

Saturday morning we went for another hike your bike, but we decided to try a different area that was supposed to be easier...WHATEVER!!!  I think it was actually harder, but at least we knew what to expect this time.  It was like a roller coaster of rocks that we had to either push our bikes up or try to keep them from sliding down.  It was actually a fun adventure and we loved the challenge.  We left the campgrounds to have lunch at a cool place that overlooked the lake, and then we visited a winery.  I've never been to a winery and it was not what I expected at all.  I was bummed that they didn't have tours of the place on weekends, but it was a very relaxing enjoyable place to hang out.  That night we went for one more bike ride around the park this time.  We stayed on the road that took us all the way around the park.  We saw a fox and lots of deer along the way.  We spent the rest of our evening sitting by the fire listening to music and talking.  Our trip was awesome and we can't wait to take the kids camping with us next time.  View Album for more pictures.


Grandpa and Mimi kept pretty busy while we were gone.  They went to Chuck E. Cheese, the park, Toys R Us, and the mall.  Donnie scored a new train that he can ride on or he can sit and play with the alphabet blocks.  It sings, plays music, and teaches the alphabet.  He is really loving his new train.  Cadynce actually wants to go outside to ride her new four wheeler.  She had no trouble learning to maneuver her four wheeler so I think we'll start teaching her to parallel park next:)  View Album for more pictures.

Stitches Are Out!!

Today was the day Cadynce has been dreading since getting her stitches put in.  The whole way there she was about in tears about getting them out and saying she didn't want it to hurt.  She kept asking me if it was going to hurt.  I told her it I wasn't sure and it might hurt a little, but we were going to take her sheep in so she could hug him if it did hurt.  The crying started before the nurse even touched her, and it continued as she cut each one out.  He poor sheep about lost his head.  In the middle of her crying she requested that I sing Jesus Loves Me...that poor nurse had to listen to me sing!!!  It didn't take long, but it was long enough!!  We got out of there as fast as we could.

Cadynce Update

I took Cadynce to the dentist today and four of her teeth are loose.  They took x-rays and everything looks good.  They think her teeth will tighten up on their own, but we have to keep our eye on them to make sure they don't turn brown or get infected.  She doing great and she really loves taking care of her stitches:)

All Stitched Up!

Last night while playing outside Cadynce decided to stand up in her little wagon.  Now Cadynce knows why I told her not to stand in it just the other day.  My words are are never enough for this girl...she likes to learn the hard way.  The wagon slipped from under her and she plummeted to the ground.  Her chin took the hit.  I was inside while this all happened and Don brought her inside so we could check her out.  Her mouth was quite bloody so we were trying to figure out where it was coming from.  She must of hit her bottom tooth somehow and her gums were bleeding.  We looked at her cut under her chin and thought she needed a few stitches.  Don took her to the urgent care which is close to our house.  She did pretty well, but when they had to stick her with a needle several times to numb her and had her restrained she wasn't too happy.  They got her all stitched up and then Don needed a little TLC.  He asked for a little water and they looked at him and told him to lie down because his face was yellow.  They gave him some gatorade and he quickly got back to Cadynce.  On their way home they stopped for some ice cream which always makes everything feel a little better.  What an evening!  Cadynce felt pretty good this morning, but her teeth are pretty sore so she doesn't want to eat food right now.  She had a couple of yogurt drinks before school, and I sent some yogurt with her to school for snack time.  We go to the dentist tomorrow to check her teeth out, and to make sure there's nothing wrong.   She's doing great, and I think she's enjoying her boo boo.  Yes I did take pictures!!  View Album fore more pictures.

Donnie's Trip to the Zoo

While Cadynce was at school Donnie and I went to the zoo.  It's been a while since he had been, and I got to see the zoo through his eyes.  While I love to look at the animals, Donnie sees everything but the animals.  He looks around to see what he could climb, what hill he could run down, or what steps he could practice on.  I just followed him around and let him explore.  He wasn't real impressed with the animals, and he just looked at them not knowing what to think.  There was nobody at the zoo so I just let him do what he loves...run!  View Album for more pictures.

All Boy

It's been really fun seeing how different Donnie and Cadynce are (when Cadynce was Donnie's age).  I have learned that I need to have my camera with me at all times because I never know what Donnie will do next.  This morning we went for a walk to our playground, and Donnie could have cared less about the playground equipment.  So we walked over to the rocks where Cadynce likes to play.  Next thing we know Donnie is in a pretty deep puddle that is between the rocks.  His shoes and socks were soaked...again!  That wouldn't be a problem, but they are the only shoes that fit him now.  He played there the whole time.  He got out of the puddle and climbed on the rocks, then stepped back down in the puddle, over and over and over again.  He found some rocks and really had fun throwing them into the water...I wish I had brought my camera!  I plan on looking like a tourist the rest of his life so I don't miss those little moments.  (We did make a trip to the store today and bought him some shoes since the other pair are in the dryer most of the time.)

Yesterday while Don was mowing the grass, Donnie decided he wanted to help.  He loves pushing his little mower around the yard (or street).  He is a very busy kid.  He is either going, going, going or he is taking a nap...no in between with him.

We Love the Rain!

This is what a boy looks like after sticking his face in a puddle.  All this rain has given us hours of fun outside playing in puddles, and I love watching Donnie open his mouth and try to catch the rain on his tongue.  We've been out when it's been a torrential down pour which brings out the differences in the kids. Cadynce would like an umbrella and Donnie runs around giggling as he gets completely soaked.  Yesterday was the dirtiest I've ever seen Donnie.  He was jumping in the puddles, sitting in the puddles, and sticking his face in the puddles.  The fun ended when he wanted me to pick him up...not gonna happen!  We went straight to the bath tub.  View Album for more pictures.

My Baby is Back!

It's been a long six weeks, but Donnie is back to himself again (I almost forgot what he was like!).  Yesterday when he woke up from his nap he was Mr. Personality.  I'm so happy to have my little guy healthy and crazy once again.  We dropped Cadynce off at school this morning and then we went to the park to play.  He did as much climbing as he could, and then we went for a walk through the woods.  He loves the outdoors.  While on our walk he looked for every bump, hole and rock to step in, on or over.  My goal is to use the time Cadynce is at school to explore with Donnie and do what he loves.  It's his time to have ALL of my attention.  His vocabulary has exploded in the past month (I'm probably the only one who knows what he's saying).  I feel like he's this giant little boy...I think he's really tall right now for his age.  I just stare at this cute little boy and I can't believe he's only 15 months old.  Well, I could talk all day about Donnie, but I will spare you every little detail about him.  On to Cadynce...

Cadynce LOVES school.  She is only there on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 9-12.  She is excited to go, but she's always excited to see me when I pick her up (that's not something I'm used to).  When we get home from school we have lunch together, and we talk about her day and everything she did at school.  She loves her teacher, and when I pick her up from school she is always sitting with Mrs. April reading a book...today she was sitting in her lap with a look on her face that showed she was completely into the story.  I could see the questions forming in her expression.  She is curious about everything and wants to know how everything works.  We've talked about surgery, car accidents (we see many), and what to do in an emergency.  If I fall and knock myself out, I know I am in good hands.  She knows who to call and our address to get them here.  We have such great conversations in the car!!

Tubes in Donnie's Ears

Yesterday morning we took Donnie to have tubes put in his ears.  We were at the hospital at 6 am and they took him back at 7.  We were in the recovery room for about 10 minutes and the doctor showed up.  It took less than 15 minutes to put the tubes in his ears.  When he woke up they said I could go pick him up and the first thing he said was "Daaaadaaaa"  while trying to hold his head up.  He was still pretty out of it so I sat with him and gave him a juice box.  He chugged the juice and when it was empty he threw it and started screaming.  They brought him another one and he was still mad so he squeezed it all over us.  Then he was mad about the thing on his toe that was monitoring his pulse.  To make it worse all he wanted to do was walk.  He kept screaming "walk" and squirming to get down.  It was just a few minutes and they let us go home.  It was a quick and easy visit.  His tubes should stay in for about a year.  Hopefully we don't have to deal with any more ear infections and I can have my happy little boy back...it's been a while.  View Album for more pictures.  Click here for videos (unrelated to ear surgery).

First Day of School

This morning was Cadynce's first day of school.  She was so excited this morning when she woke up.  We were busy all morning getting ready until it was time to leave.  When we got to school I signed her in, cleaned her hands, then she finds her name tag to give to Mrs. April and tell her good morning.  I hardly even got a kiss good-bye from her...she was ready to have fun.  The kids are free to play with whatever they want for about an hour.  There is an art room full of all kinds of stuff (paints, play-doh, crayons, markers, stamps) and they are encouraged to do whatever they would like.  There is a bigger room that is full of different activities, toys, and imaginary play.  They have snack time, chapel time, and outdoor play before meeting with just their class of nine kids and their teacher.

While Cadynce was at school, Donnie and I got to sit and read the same book over and over and over again without any interruptions.  He kept saying "ith.  ba-ba" which means "Sis, bye-bye."  We then went to playgroup, and he got to have some play time with the other little ones.  Soon it was time to pick up Cadynce, and Donnie was so happy to have his "Sis" back.  They giggled at each other the whole ride home.  When we got home Cadynce said, "thank you for taking me to school Mommy."  View Album for more pictures. (I wish I had control over the order of the pics in the album...they are not in order).

Labor Day Weekend

What a long weekend!  I'm not sure why it seemed so long because Don was out of town until Sunday afternoon.  Sunday night we went to the 11th annual Labor Day weekend party that a co-worker of Don's has each year.  There were so many fun things to keep all the kids busy (bounce house, slip n slide, pool, and video games).  They had lifeguards on duty to watch the kids while swimming, and also hired people to do the cooking and serve drinks.  It was one awesome party and we all had fun.  We took Cadynce with us and decided to have our neighbor come over and watch Donnie.  We thought he would be too young for the fun and he would be miserable if he went...that was a good decision!!  Two 12 year old girls asked if they could take Cadynce with them to play and they kept her busy the rest of the night.  They carried her everywhere, and they took really good care of her.  I think they had just as much fun as she did.  We stayed until Cadynce was cold and wanted to get dressed (about 10 o'clock).  She ran her mouth the entire ride home asking how strong is God?  Can God pick up a house?  Is he strong enough to pick up a car and a building at the same time?  We laughed for the whole 25 minute car ride home.  That little mind isn't so little sometimes!

Monday night we had several of our neighbors over for a "Bring Your Own Meat to Grill" party.  We brought our grill to the front and everyone brought their own food and cooked it up. We sat in front of our house and enjoyed hanging out with our neighbors for a couple of hours.  We've got some great neighbors and we're constantly making excuses to make them come and hang out with us!  View Album for more pictures.  Click here for video.

Preschool Open House

Today we took Cadynce to see her school and to meet her teacher.  All they did was play for about an hour and Cadynce did not want to leave.  Her two favorite things were play-doh and the play kitchen.  She instantly claimed a baby doll as hers and she spent a lot of time cooking and feeding her baby.  Her teacher is Mrs. April and she is great.  We are so happy with this school, and we can't wait for her first day next Wednesday.  I will be the stalker mom who takes a picture of every moment of the day.  View Album for more pictures.

Let's Get Wet!

Donnie is 15 months old today!!  I decided to take out all the sand from the sand table and fill it with water.  As you will see, Donnie loved it so much he climbed right in.  That's not exactly what I had in mind, but he has had an ear infection for over a month now so he deserved a little fun.  It was a like a bath on stilts!  Cadynce wasn't all that into it because it required getting her hands wet, and when her hands were wet she couldn't open the door, and when she couldn't open the door she couldn't get inside to dry them on a towel...waa...waa...waa!  View Album for more pictures.  Click here for videos.

A Busy Weeekend

We had a busy and very fun weekend.  We started Saturday with an early meeting at church (with free child care), we went to a birthday party, and ended the evening at a high school football game.  We spent a few hours on Sunday at Sea World enjoying the waterpark, and then we enjoyed some much needed rest time at home.  Sunday night we had another meeting at church, and after the meeting they had food and live music so we hung out and listened for while.  View Album for more pictures.

Don's Birthday Celebration

I LOVE birthdays!  We tried to make Don's day a very special day.  Last week I attempted to take a picture of me with the kids to frame and give Don to take to work.  It went as I expected, but we got a few good ones.  I told Cadynce that it was a secret and we were not going to tell Daddy.  Don came home from work, and the first thing out of her mouth was that we took pictures for his birthday.  The morning of his birthday we got up early and had a nice quiet breakfast together.  Later in the morning, I took the kids to see him at work where we surprised him with balloons, cookies, and his present.  He was very surprised.  When we got home Cadynce and I made him a chocolate birthday cake.  When Don got home we went out to eat and then came home to enjoy the cake we made.  We lit a candle and Cadynce sang Happy Birthday.  It was a fun day.  View Album for more pictures.

Trip to Austin

We drove up to Austin Saturday morning to stay with our friends Jeff and Kelly.  We had a short delay after Don stuck his finger in Donnie's mouth and made him throw up all over himself.  (Donnie apparently was trying to eat a wipe).  I ran in Wal-mart to buy him a new shirt and shorts.  Way to go Daddy!!  We got to Felker's and got ready for the pool.  We swam and ate lunch then went back to the house for nap time.  The little guys napped while Cadynce and Aiden watched a movie.  That night their babysitter came over and we went to listen to a Texas Country band play.  Don and I did a lot of dancing, and I think we fit right in making fools of ourselves.  Sunday morning we had breakfast then just let the kids play for a while before heading back home.  We always have so much fun with the Felker's and the kids always play so well together.  View Album for more pictures.

14 Months Old

Donnie is 14 months old and the cutest little boy I've ever seen.  He is getting quite a vocabulary using 19 words (I won't say how many Cadynce was using), and he knows 15 signs.  I want to emphasize that he KNOWS 15 signs...he refuses to use them.  I think he's pretty tall right now.  Every time he's standing eye to eye to a little kid I always like to ask how old they are, and all of them have been 18 or 19 months old.  I like to imagine him at least 6'3".

 He decided to really fight back yesterday when Cadynce took a toy from him while we were at the park.  She grabbed it out of his hands and he hit her with both hands as hard as he could, then he grabbed her shirt while she was trying to get away.  All we could do was laugh...we have been waiting for this day.  Donnie has been tossed around, sat on, pushed to the ground, kicked, pinched, and a whole lot more (by Cadynce of course).  Donnie has become a tough kid in the last 14 months thanks to his big sister.  Even after all of that, he loves his big sister.  He wants to do everything she does and he loves to just be with her.  He loves to swim, loves animals, and loves to play outside.  He would stay outside all day if it wasn't so hot.  He is an awesome little guy and melts my heart with every smile.

A Good Week!

My mom came and spent a week with us.  We had a good mix of hanging out and staying busy.  She played a lot of doll house with Cadynce over the week and told a thousand stories.  Some of the fun things we did this week included a play/musical, The Snake Farm, and the dinosaur display at the museum.  Don and I also got to enjoy a few date nights along with a late night walk around the neighborhood every night.  It was a fun week and we enjoyed the company.  View Album for more pictures.

Donnie Walking

Donnie has discovered his love for walking...finally.  He walks ALL DAY LONG!!  He is doing a lot of talking, and his favorite word is truck.  He is not into signing like Cadynce was at his age, and the only sign he signs all the time is airplane.  Donnie loves music so we've been having a dance party every night while we wait for Don to get home from work.  Cadynce has quite the moves, but I'm not sure who she learned them from.  She looks like an angry dancer who is ready to fight.  The last several days Cadynce has been pushing Donnie around in her baby stroller and they both love it (Donnie has only fallen out once).  View Album for more pictures.  Click here for videos.

Camping

Friday night we set up the tent in the living room for Cadynce and Don to sleep in (it was too humid outside).  We had movie night with smores, and after the movie Cadynce just wanted to go to sleep (which never happens).  She was so excited to sleep in the tent.  They even slept in there ALL night!!!  I think she's ready for the outdoor camping trip.

Saturday morning Cadynce and I signed up for a class at one of our parks to learn about animals.  We had a lot of fun making crafts and doing all kinds of activities.  Donnie decided to start walking full time.  He was more than ready and he's doing really well.  He puts his right arm in the air while he walks which is pretty funny.  View Album for more pictures.  Click here for videos.

First 4th of July party

A few weeks ago we went door to door inviting our neighbors to our 4th of July get together.  We were so happy with how many of them came.  We got to meet a lot of our neighbors we had never seen since we moved here.  We rented a waterslide for the kids.  Cadynce was not into the slide part at all!!  Don and I had fun on it though.  We closed out the evening watching fireworks with our neighbors while Cadynce and Mikayla ran around throwing their poppers.  They were so cute when they sat in a chair together to watch the fireworks.   View Album for more pictures.  Click here for video.

Gymnastics Class

Cadynce had her first day of gymnastics class and she did pretty well.  It's once a week for 45 minutes.  She had a lot of fun and she can't wait to go back next week.  Click here for video.

Track Meet Monday...

Cadynce showed great improvement in both her running and her long jump.  There were quite a few more kids this week and we brought along our friend Blake too.  Cadynce took second place in the 50 yard dash and jumped 3 feet this week.  We got done just in time for the flash flood.

Donnie has also dabbled in walking this week.  I've caught him on occasion taking a few steps to get somewhere...unfortunately my cheering, screaming, and jumping for joy doesn't make him want to do it any more.  Click here for videos.

The Race

Every Monday night during the summer a local high school has a little track meet for all ages.  We went for the first time and signed Cadynce up for the 50 yard dash and the long jump.  I wasn't sure how she would do because she likes to be first in everything.  We talked about it the whole drive over, and she was so concerned that the "big boys with long legs" were going to beat her.  We told her she would only run against kids her age and all she had to do was run as fast as she could and do her best.  Cadynce had an absolute blast and wanted to race again right after she finished.  She won third place and was given a ribbon (that ribbon almost slept in her bed last night, but we made her hang it on her drawer).  She did great in her first long jump attempt.  Each kid got three attempts so while she waited for her next turn Don had her practicing in the grass on how to jump off one foot and land on two.  Don was in heaven!  Click here for videos.

Father's Day

Daddy,

Thanks for making Father's Day such a fun and special day for our family.  We had a yummy breakfast at Pericos.  You and Mommy had a weird breakfast, but we had pancakes...mmmm!  After our naps we went on the best bike ride ever!  Thanks for taking us to Dairy Queen and to the pool.  We hope your Father's Day was as special as ours.  You are the best Dad in the whole wide world and we love you so much.  View Album for more pictures.  Click here for videos.

Love,
Cadynce & Donnie

Indiana Trip

We flew back to Indiana for a week to see our family.  It was a great week filled with non-stop playing and very little sleeping.  Cadynce and Donnie were busy all week long playing with Grandmas, Grandpas, Aunts, Uncles, and cousins.  View Album if you have lots of time!  Click here for videos.

The New Addition

Don added a slide to our swingset for Donnie's birthday.  He did an awesome job and we are so happy with it.  Cadynce is really enjoying it right now, but I know it won't be long before Donnie is climbing up by himself.  View Album for more pictures.

Happy Birthday Donnie!!

Donnie turned one at 5:22 am today.  We celebrated yesterday taking the kids to Sea World Water Park.  The water park is a perfect place for Donnie to crawl around in the shallow water.  He loves being in the water.  He has started letting go while standing up and is now saying car and dog.  It's amazing how this all just happened overnight.  Cadynce and I went to the store to pick out a present for Donnie.  The first shelf full of balls we passed she looked at them, looked at me while scrunching her nose and said, "I wewwy don't like ANY of those balls." We kept looking until she found the perfect ball for her little brother.   We also got him a lawn mower and his own cell phone (he's been playing with Cadynce's purple fairy phone). His big gift from us was adding a slide onto our swing set.  We figured out how we wanted it to look and then Don went and bought the lumbar and built it.  It took three days, it's done, and it rocks!!!  Pictures of the finished product will here soon.  We had such a fun day...I can't believe my baby is ONE.  View Album for more pictures.  Click here for videos.

Her New Bed

Grandpa & Mimi Visit

Grandpa and Mimi came to visit for the weekend.  Cadynce was so excited she drew them a picture, helped me make cookies, and put on the perfect dress.  She had a great time playing with Grandpa and Mimi all weekend.  We got to do a couple of really fun things like the 'movie in the park' and the 'rodeo'.  Grandpa and Mimi also bought Cadynce a big girl bed for her room.  She loves it, and it looks great.  We finished out the weekend with a trip to Sea World Water Park.  It was our first time and we plan on going back often.  View Album for more pictures.  Click here for videos.

Movie Night!!

Cadynce and I had movie night on Saturday night.  It's one of her favorite things to do.  We rented Alvin and the Chipmunks (her choice of course) from Redbox (our favorite place), and we went home and started our movie night routine.  First, we have to get Donnie in bed, and then I get Cadynce all ready for bed.  Next, we pop our popcorn, pour them in our bowls and run to the couch screaming with excitement.  I'm not kidding, she goes totally bonkers on movie night.  The joy this night brings her makes it all worth it.  She was pretty funny this time as she kept asking, "is the movie over?"  I would say "no" and she would say "oh yeah, I forgot, movies are long."

Finally!

Donnie has finally shown some interest in walking the last few days.  He has started pushing around his little push toy, and he's getting pretty good at it.  He also just learned to climb the stairs.  I showed him how to get down the stairs once and he got it right away.   We practice every day going up and down our long stairway.  I want him to get really good because if he falls down our stairs he's in serious trouble!!  Click here for video.

Cadynce was Intrigued!!

Cadynce is the queen of stalling before nap/bed time.  Today was no different, and as she was lying in her bed she told me she had to go to the bathroom.  We were so close so pulling the covers up that I got a little annoyed.  I told her if she didn't go she had to give me a friend (stuffed animal).  That's how I know she really has to go:)  She called for me when she was done, and I went in to find that Cadynce experienced her first diarrhea.  This probably isn't something I should be blogging about, but it was so funny watching how interested she was in it.  I told her to flush the toilet and she responded with "Mommy wait!  I want to look at it for a minute." Then she folded her arms on the toilet seat and rested her chin on her arms as if she was watching a fish swim.  I didn't want to forget this moment so I ran for the camera.

A Great Mother's Day Weekend!

We had such a fun time this weekend hanging out as a family.  We had Donnie dedicated at church on Saturday along with 24 other kids (so you can imagine how long that took).  While Cadynce and Donnie were napping, Don and I spread compost all over the front yard.

Sunday morning we went to a new place for breakfast called The Egg and I.  I've actually been several times while living in Colorado where the original restaurant was started.  It's been a long time, but it was just as good as I remember.  At breakfast, Don gave me a letter from Cadynce and Donnie that he wrote.  I was totally choked up reading the letter from Cadynce and was just about sobbing while reading Donnie's. Don was so proud of himself as I was wiping away the tears.  We did a lot of playing outside this weekend and treated ourselves to ice cream to finish off the weekend.  View Album for more pictures.

Felker's Visit

Our friends came to visit us and see our new house last weekend.  They moved to Austin a year ago and we've been trying to find a time to get together.  We finally made it happen and it was great seeing them and watching the kids all play together.  View Album for more pictures.

Donnie 11 Months Old

My little bundle of joy is fascinated by everything.  He wants to know what everything is and goes around pointing and saying "ooooo" in a high pitch voice.  He is starting to catch on to sign language, but he likes to pat his mouth when referring to eat,  more, and milk.  He did crawl over to me a couple of days ago and sign eat...it was such a proud moment I couldn't help but go crazy and smother him with kisses.  He is a crawling machine.  He likes to stand and cruise a little, but mostly just loves to crawl.  He just learned to open the kitchen cabinets so things may start to get messy very soon.  His favorite word is "ball" and he pretty much has a ball by him at all times.  His favorite part of the day is when "Dada" comes home.  I love to see how much he loves his dad.  If we talk about Daddy during the day he crawls to the window and looks for him.  My little guy is growing up so fast and I'm so happy I get to spend every day with him!