Summer Vacations

In August we were fortunate enough to go to St. Martin in the Caribbean with the family: My parents, Cory, Brandon & Jess, and Jamin, Me, and Devin. Kristi and her family weren't able to go so it fell short of a family reunion...we missed them. But we had some really fun moments with Devin.

This is the view from the balcony of our room. You could hop over this wall and be on the beach. Gorgeous.

Me (without makeup) and Jamin on the other side of our balcony. Just look at the crystal clear blue water!

Lounging around

There was this little lighted pier right off our balcony that Devin loved to hang out on. A little nerve wracking with all the large and jagged rocks waiting to catch him if he fell over the side.

It took us a full 24 hours but he eventually grew to love the sand and water.

The kids just before sunset.

Scooter patrol. Ever since Jamin and I went to St. Martin on our honeymoon we have rented scooters. It's the only (and of course the coolest) way to get around the island. Of course now with a kid in tow and one on the way, I stuck to the car with the old people. :)

Devin about to be bowled over by a wave.

This was fun. He let loose at this beach and just kept running into the water, getting knocked down, then running back up to the dry sand. After about 5 times of this you would be walking a little crooked too.

I also have to mention the airplane rides. I was amazed. We were on 5 different airplanes and sat in the airport for an entire day on our way home. He was an angel. He slept on every plane ride on my chest (a first) or played quietly with his new toys. And he even took a nap on the seats at the gate while we were stuck in the airport terminal for 8 hours. It was a huge success!

Updates

Ok, I know (once again) that I haven't posted in FOREVER. I just wanted to inform everyone that I'm going to play catch-up. So expect several updates over the next few days...lots to come!!!

Disappointed

Ok...so I gotta say I'm disappointed with Breaking Dawn. I know a lot of you haven't read it yet so I won't give anything away. I just wanted to express my lack of enthusiasm. I was incredibly excited for this release. I did nothing but read all day Saturday so I was able to finish early Sunday morning. I was entertained enough that I wanted to keep reading and finish the book. But when it was all over, I couldn't help but feel disappointed. Not because it was over and there would never be another book, but because it just didn't do it for me. There were several times in the book where I was like, WHAT?!? Why did she do that?!?! It just seems like she lost a lot of steam with each new book. The first one was INCREDIBLE, but each one after that lost a little something. I don't know. What did you guys think???

Who's Excited...

For Breaking Dawn!!!!!


I know I'm peeing my pants with the anticipation of reading the book. And only a few hours to go!!! WOOHOO! I have already cleared my schedule and assigned baby-watching duties to Jamin for Saturday and Sunday. I can't wait! I'm just about as excited as I was for Harry Potter...almost.

It's A...

GIRL!!!

Rumor has it...

That I'm pregnant...and that would surprisingly be a rumor that's true. I'm not sure why I've waited so long. Maybe because this one was a complete shock and I still haven't got used to the idea...or maybe because I wanted to wait until I had some concrete evidence (whether to convince me or you, not so sure). Either way, I decided it's time to make the announcement. So... We're having a baby!!! Yay!!! I'm about 17 weeks along and here is a sonogram picture I got a week ago. We still don't know what it is (it was too fuzzy to tell) but we will find out for sure on the 29th. I'll try and inform everyone before the baby actually gets here. :)

I Love Summer!

Ok, so I know I have been absent from the blogging world for a while now. I don't have a good excuse either, I just didn't want to blog! Not a whole lot has changed, so you won't be getting an update...sad, I know. I will post a few pictures of what we have been doing lately. It's not much, just enjoying this hot Texas weather and that big blue cloudless sky!

Rats or Squirrels?

As it turns out, our attic (the one with the rattling tin door) has become home to a family of squirrels. I guess it's comforting to know our upstairs neighbors aren't rats, but seeing as how they both belong to the family of rodents, I don't know how relieved I am. What it comes down to is they both have claws and they both scratch against the walls. Cute or not, the squirrels have to go.


This is the light right outside our bedroom window. As we discovered yesterday, the silver mounting piece has become separated from the brick wall and the squirrels go in and out via the hobit-hole opening behind. And yes, there are squirrels plural. This is the mom and she has at least two little babies that I've seen. Precious, I know, but annoying none the less.

Tag...I'm It!

Oh boy oh boy! I love being tagged (minimal amounts of sarcasm). I get to discuss all the interesting things about me...who knows, maybe I'll even discover what those are. Here we go:

MY FAVORITE THINGS around the house

My favorite thing in the kitchen is... My ultra vintage florescent light fixture. It finally died out on us a few weeks ago so when the maintenance man announced he would have to replace it, I actually got my hopes up...no more flickering eyesore! But in he walked with A BRAND NEW florescent light fixture...I didn't even know they sold those anymore!?!?!

My favorite thing in the bathroom is... uhhh...running water...a toilet that flushes. That is a comprehensive list of the perks of my beautiful bathroom.

My favorite thing in the bedroom is... most definitely our tempurpedic matress topper. Ahh...who sleeps on a regular old mattress anymore. It's like falling asleep on a cloud of marshmallows!

My favorite thing in the living room is... my one of a kind, completely original, painting that hangs just above our couch. My incredibly talented husband Jamin painted this for me and I absolutely love it!

My favorite thing in the bedroom closet is... oooh oooh...it's gotta be the tin trap door to the attic that rattles every time the wind howls. Or wait...maybe it's the rats, or possibly even squirrels, that scratch and scratch just when you're falling asleep. It's just your everyday closet. :)

My favorite thing in the pantry is... definitely our pantry door. It's the 8th World Wonder. At only 11 and 3/4 inches wide and 80 inches high, it's the perfect hiding place for children seeing as how most adults coudn't even fit through the opening!

My favorite thing in the "office" is... Office??? If the nook in my bedroom's bay window where my desk and computer resides counts as an office, I would have to say the fan sitting on top of my printer. You see, at only a foot away, it not only helps cool me as I sleep in my cozy bed at night, but it also provides the white noise that I have come to depend upon for a good night's sleep.

My favorite thing in the baby's room is... my baby, of course! He is fast asleep in his crib right now giving his mom the necessary time required to complete this fascinating survey!

Now let's spread the joy: I tag KRISTI, JESS, MOLLY, JACKIE, and HEATHER.

A Trip to the Dallas Arboretum

We had such a great time today! Wait...this sounds vaguely familiar. Oh Yeah!!! That's cuz it's exactly how Amanda titled and started her post today. Aghhh...of course Amanda beat me to the post about the Arboretum...but it's all good. Now I don't have to explain what it was and who went. If you want details, read Amanda's blog. :) Here are some GORGEOUS pictures for everyone's enjoyment.

This is the entrance to the Arboretum. Isn't it beautiful?

Devin was so excited to be outside surrounded by flowers within his finger-plucking reach that he even posed for a few pictures for me!

Just my son being cute. :)

Not so cute. He was insanely angry because Cole was ganking his strawberries. Geez Cole...it's not like Devin had an entire bowl full or anything.

The amazingly bright azaleas...or so my mother informed me. I don't know what they are, nor do I have a square inch of soil that belongs to me, but I want some.

This is for you Amanda...what were you doing? (JK...this was my fault)