Fun on the Wii

Last night we got together with some friends to play games and order pizza. We ended up playing mostly on the Wii which was so much fun! Stephen and I had a blast trying to knock each other out in the boxing game (we won't even talk about who won - heehee). I must admit that it is quite a workout for the arms - mine are kinda sore today.

The guys also enjoyed playing golf and baseball on the Wii, then we got a wild hair and decided to play "Rockband". Here is a clip of our band - I think they're ready to start touring . . .

The girls really had a great time watching all of us adults act crazy. Logan enjoyed playing with his friend, Kooper, during all the excitement.

Teeth!

The girls went to the dentist today for their check-up and got a great report - no cavities! This is the first time they have gone to the dentist and been brave (no tears and no fears). Speaking of teeth, I noticed this morning that both of Logan's bottom front teeth are coming in at the same time - I had a feeling he would be cutting some teeth soon with all the drool that boy
creates! Here are the girls with their dentist and Logan
showing off his new pearly whites. By the way, Lauren is holding her new "pet" snake, Blaze, that I brought back from Schlitterbahn.

Girl's Get-Away Weekend

This weekend I went to New Braunfels with some of the girls that I work with. We did Schlitterbahn Friday and Saturday and then went to the Outlet Mall in San Marcos for some shopping on Sunday. Here is a picture of us as we waited for our table Friday night at the Gristmill in Gruene, Texas - it was a late dinner outside in the summer evening weather (which is awesome in the Hill Country). Saturday night we dined at the Gruene River Grill which was wonderful as well. Schlitterbahn was really crowded, but we got to ride everything we wanted to. We all felt like we were still floating in the wave pool as we laid down to go to sleep last night (you know that feeling). It was nice to get away for a few days, but I was ready to get back and see the fam!

Ruby has been found!!!

Yes, it is official - Lauren "found" her lost beloved pet bug this morning - good ole Ruby. If you go back and read the previous post entitled, "Frogs and Lizards", then you'll know the whole story. She was sitting there eating her cereal this morning when all of a sudden she looks down at the floor and cries out, "It's Ruby!" Of course, I realize right away that this is not the same bug that she was calling Ruby before, however I didn't dare tell her that! She ran and got her bug catcher gadget and scooped him right up. She spent a few moments talking to him . . . I asked her to inquire about where he had been all this time and she replied, "Camp!". Too funny! About 5 minutes later she was ready to release him back to his family outside. I was really surprised that she wanted to do this. Ruby has now been released and we got to gymnastics on time with no tears. I was worried at first that this was going to turn into an ordeal. Here are some pictures of her reunion with Ruby . . .

Also, here is a video of each of the girls at their gymnastics class this morning. I wanted to get some better footage, however, I was holding Logan and he kept trying to grab the camera from me! Sorry the first one is sideways (I messed up something big time!)

Birthday parties!!!

The girls and I went to two birthday parties this weekend - one for their friend Hailey who turned 2 and another for their friend Hudson who just turned 3! I included a video snip-it below from each one. Logan and Daddy had to stay home because Logan was running a fever and wasn't feeling too good today. I thought he might have his first ear infection, but it turns out it's just a yucky cold. Leah is recovering well from her surgery - she goes back to the doctor on Tuesday and hopefully he will give her the "okay" to begin swimming, gymnastics, and all that good stuff again. It has been really hard trying to keep her occupied with something low-key while her sister is bouncing off the walls! Thank goodness we have it almost over with because we were all starting to get a bad case of "cabin fever"! However, last night I enjoyed getting to go out with two of my really good friends that I work with. We went out to a nice dinner at the Cheesecake Factory and then to the late show to see "Mamma Mia". It was really good! I am also looking forward to my "Girl's Getaway Weekend" coming up. We're headed up to New Braunsfels to spend the weekend at Schlitterbauhn, floating the river, and shopping at the outlet mall! I am looking soooooooo forward to it! I'm sure I'll have some fun stories and pictures to share when I get back . . .

Second Grade Team Get Together

Last night the team that I teach with all gathered at the home of one of our team members. Her name is Amanda and she just recently found out that she is battling ovarian cancer. We all gathered to show our support for her . . . plus we had a great time hanging out and sharing lots of laughs! Our team will be going from 12 to 10 teachers this year and we were all able to be there last night so that was neat. This really is an awesome group of ladies to work with and I'm looking forward to a fun year of working with them again. The pictures below are of our whole team plus a silly picture of Amanda and Carol - Carol is the one in the crazy wig! Amanda begins her chemo treatments this week and that wig is one that someone let her borrow in case she might need it - we made her promise never to wear it and she agreed - she found another one that is much more trendy!

Just a swingin'

I just had to post this video of all three kiddos swinging together this afternoon (too cute!) . . . especially since the other video was so dark!

Well, things have been busy around our house this week and I haven't had a chance to post until now. Leah had her tonsils and adenoids out this past Tuesday and did great! I am so glad to have the whole thing behind us though. Her doctor was absolutely wonderful and things went very smoothly. She still doesn't have all of her energy back, but each day gets a little bit better. We've been having alot of milkshakes this week which has been fine with me! Stephen makes a great banana-strawberry milkshake. Our friends Wyndel, Leeann, and Hudson came by tonight to enjoy one of these milkshakes with us and to show us the new addition to their family . . . a baby puppy named Sasha - she is sooooooo cute! The video below is of Logan showing off his new racecar swing tonight and the girls playing with Sasha in the backyard. They are really wanting a dog now that they have played with her! Sorry, but the video is kind of dark so it's hard to see....

***Also, an update on my nephew Tyler - he got to go home from the NICU today so Jason and Andrea are enjoying their first night home together as a family! Praise God for that! :)

Baby Tyler

I finally was able to get the pictures of my nephew, Tyler Jace, to post this morning! Isn't he a cutie??? He was born on July 1st weighing 7 lbs. 5oz. His big brother Taylor is so proud! We are praying that he will get to go home from the NICU some time this week - he is doing better and we can't wait to see him!

We love Gordo!!!

I have been experimenting with how to post a video on the blog and I finally figured it out today! In order to hear the videos, you'll have to pause or stop the music on the playlist at the bottom of the blog. I am posting two videos that I took earlier today. The first one is of Stephen at church this morning. He plays this nerdy character called "Gordo Finkenhoffer" and they do skits for the kids on Sundays that teach different virtues and Bible stories. The girls get a kick out of watching him whenever he's in the skit. I used to play a character named "Molly", however, I haven't gotten back into it since I had Logan. What you see in the video is what happened at the end of the sketch - I wish I could have gotten the whole thing . . . it was quite hilarious . . .

This video is of Logan in his Rainforest Jumperoo today bouncing like a maniac! Usually, whenever I try to record him, he stops bouncing, but today I got actual footage! :) He is 7 months old today - still can't believe it!

I have been wanting to post some pictures of my nephew, Tyler, however I am having trouble posting the pictures that were sent to me. He was born last Monday, July 1st and has been in the NICU over in College Station ever since. He has been taken off of the ventilator, but is still receiving oxygen through his nose. He is doing better, but won't be released to go home until he can drink from his bottle (which he is not wanting to do). Please continue to pray that he will make progress and be able to go home this week! Stephen and I went to see my brother, Jason, and his wife, Andrea on Thursday, but we were not allowed to go into the NICU to see Tyler. We are very anxious to be able see him and hold him!

Fun on the Fourth

Happy 4th of July to everyone - hope all of you had a great day! We started the day off by going to the parade over in The Woodlands. We found a great spot with our friends, the Pendlands, and got a TON of candy (like we need it). Here are some of the pictures from the parade below. As you can see, we saw lots of familiar characters including "Hannah Montana". Who would have thought she would be there . . . (needless to say, the girls were in awe). Logan enjoyed seeing everything in the parade, however he wasn't too fond of the loud firetrucks . . .

Then, later in the evening we had some friends over for a cook-out in the backyard. I also got a "wild hair" this afternoon and decided to rent one of those 33 ft. inflatable water slide things at the last minute and it was a blast! I think Stephen enjoyed it more than anyone - we couldn't get him off of it! It was kind of like an inflatable slip and slide with water spraying on you. The kids loved it, however our back yard is now officially a mud pit! We ended the evening with a fireworks show on our street with our neighbors. Let's just say, the kids should sleep good tonight!