Project Life: Weeks 24 & 25

June 13 - 26:

Tuesday, June 14th

Claire always has a hard time not jumping in if she's around when I'm taking a chair picture of Will, but it almost always results in at least one cute photo!


Wednesday, June 15th


Someone is teething - check out that drool!


Saturday, June 18th
A&M Girls Weekend!


Wednesday, June 22nd

Claire took a big spill on the playground, so I went to school to check on her. I arrived just in time for the visit from the Reptile Man. Claire thought it was pretty funny when Mommy held a snake!



Sibling fun!


Thursday, June 23rd


I had a great companion helping me out with registration at Backyard Bible Club.


Friday, June 24th


Will's first time sitting up in the cart - what a big boy!

Saturday, June 25th



Today we went to a birthday party for our neighbor friends Ellie and Clare, and another neighbor took this photo of Robert and Will watching the kids taking swings at the pinata.

A&M Girls' Weekend 2011

I have a group of friends from college that I truly cherish and adore. Although we live in different cities and are busy with our lives as wives and mothers, almost all of us were able to get together last weekend in Allen/McKinney. I love, love, love these girls (should I start saying "women" instead?). It's so nice to have friends that no matter how much time has passed, you can immediately pick up as if you just saw each other a few days before. I planned to take a lot of photos, but ended up with one. :) We mostly spent time talking about our families, how we spend our days, future plans, etc. Girls, we MUST do this again next year - I don't want to wait another 3 years until our next reunion!

From left: Melissa, Anne, Lindsay, Courtney, Jill, me
Not pictured: Angi, Megan (we missed you!)

Once again, getting caught up

We are coming off of the busiest weeks we will probably have for a few months, combined with a teething baby who is still figuring out how to sleep through the night, which means the blog is way, way behind. I'm getting caught up, though! I've put the updates in chronological order, so here are links to backdated posts in case you missed them.


Will at 6 Months

Grist Mill with Grace

A belated birthday present

Project Life: Week 20

Dancing Queen

Project Life: Week 21

We have a playset!

Pierce comes back

Project Life: Week 22

Beach trip

Fiesta Texas

Project Life: Week 23

Will at 7 Months

Happy Fathers' Day!

First Puffs

Happy Fathers' Day!

Last week the kids and I took a few pictures for Daddy, and this is what we came up with:

It took a few tries (like 60, maybe?) to get a good set, but it was totally worth it. I printed each photo and put them in a frame with 3 5x7 openings for Robert's office. He was definitely surprised and really liked his present. I think we may have started a new tradition.

First Puffs

Someone is teething (as evidenced by the copious amounts of drool on his shirt)!

Since he's getting some teeth, I though Will might like to try some puffs.

Those little buggers are tough to pick up!

He wasn't sure if he liked them, but they kept him busy for a little while so I could get Claire started on her dinner. We'll keep trying - I know they will eventually be a favorite snack (if his sister doesn't eat them all first).

Will at Seven Months

Will turned 7 months old on June 11th!

As I've said before, and I know I will say again, this boy has completely captured my heart. He brings so much joy to our family, and I think he's pretty happy with the family that he's got. :) Claire is his favorite person - there is still no one that can make him laugh as hard (or as frequently!) as she does.

He is still a happy and easygoing little guy, especially if you keep him fed. :) He is still drinking about 5 bottles of formula a day and eats solid foods twice a day - usually a jar of Earth's Best breakfast food in the morning and a serving of organic fruits and/or vegetables with cereal in the evening. He likes to eat, and I'm looking forward to moving on to finger foods in the next month or so.

Will is sitting by himself very well, and now knows how to catch himself when he starts to fall over. No real signs of crawling yet, which suits Mommy just fine!

He has four teeth - two middle ones on the bottom, and two on the top. No, not the two front teeth - the two on either side. We call them his "snake teeth." I'm trying to get a good picture of them before the front teeth come in, which looks like it will happen any day now.

Will still isn't my best sleeper, but with the exception of a few nights, we usually just get up once and then he will sleep until 7 or later. Teething hasn't helped, but his sleep always gets better once those teeth pop through.

We love our sweet Will!!!

Project Life: Week 23

June 6 - 12


Monday

There is a bunny that lives somewhere in either our or our neighbor's backyard, and we have been spotting him regularly. Tonight he got close enough to the house that I was able to get a photo through the window before he ran away. Claire doesn't like it when he takes off and really doesn't understand why Mommy or Daddy can't get him to come back. :)

Sunday

Mom and Dad came to San Antonio yesterday after our family reunion in Santa Anna. Mom took Will while Claire and I both got naps, and after I woke up, I caught the two of them snoozing in Will's room.

Fiesta Texas

Robert's company again had a family day at Fiesta Texas. Unlike last year, Claire was not excited about wearing a shirt that matched Daddy, Mommy and Will. She had to wear a blue shirt, or at least a shirt that had the color blue on it somewhere.

We rode a few rides - the teacups, the cars, and the carousel.

Not surprisingly, Claire was most excited about riding the train.

It was a fun day - and a good way to again make a visit to Fiesta Texas.

Beach Trip

Courtney's family has a beach house in Port Aransas, and we were able to join them and some other friends of theirs for a very quick trip to the beach. We left Wednesday afternoon and got there in time to feed the turtles that live in the pond behind the house.

We got Will ready for bed, and Pierce wanted to hold him before he went to sleep. See, I'm not kidding when I call Will "my giant baby"! :)

Claire was not as successful in holding him, but did give sweet Will one of her typically energetic hugs.

The next morning we got up and headed to the beach. Will spent most of the time snuggling with someone under the umbrellas and got in a good nap. Claire had an absolute blast! We weren't sure how she would do since she wasn't too interested in the sand or the water initially, but once she saw the other kids out there having fun, it didn't take her long to join in. She even tried the boogie board - we were so proud of her!

Lunch and naps followed, and too quickly it was time for us to load up and head back home. We had big days planned again for Friday and Saturday and wanted to make sure we all got a good night's sleep. Although short, it was a very fun (and successful!) trip, and we're looking forward to getting some more beach time in again before too long.

Project Life: Week 22

May 30 - June 5


Tuesday

Robert had to work late, so I took the kids out for dinner as a treat. Claire was super excited. As soon as we walked in the door, she ran to the counter and proclaimed "I want a HAMBURGER!" So unlike her, and the workers of course thought she was too cute.

Thursday

We tried out the mesh feeders for the first time with some watermelon, and Will wasn't too sure about this new method of food delivery. Back in the drawer for a try in a couple more weeks!

Friday

That night Grandmommy came in for a quick visit and let Claire share some of her yummy water.  

Saturday

Claire's buddy Pierce came to visit us for the weekend. So, so excited!

After watching him, Claire figured out that she can also climb the little rock wall.

Pierce comes back

Our good friends Courtney, Jared and Pierce spent the weekend with us on their way to a week at Port Aransas (where we joined them for a couple of days). Just like on their last visit, Claire and Pierce had a wonderful time together. They arrived on Saturday and we all just relaxed and let the kids play in the backyard. There was a lot of sliding...

and running...





and swinging...



and climbing...



and falling...



and giggling!



Will did lots of observing.

On Sunday, we all went to Sea World to see the animals and catch a show.

Their visit flew by, but it wasn't so difficult to say goodbye this time since we knew we'd see them again in a few days at the beach!

Finally - we have a playset!

We spent months looking for a playset for Claire. There are so many to choose from, and we eventually settled on one from Tree Frogs. It was delivered on Friday, and I took the kids to school so that Claire wouldn't lose her mind waiting for it to be installed. The workers only took a few hours to put it together (some of the best money we've spent rather than doing it ourselves!), and we were so anxious to see Claire's reaction.

We pulled the shades up from the windows so that she would have a good view, and it took a few minutes for her to notice it. A smile slowly spread over her face as she walked to the window, pointed, and said "My playset!" The long promised gift had finally arrived!

She thought it was pretty funny that Mommy could fit on the platform, too.





Peekaboo with Daddy



Grandmommy came in town for dinner and got a photo of 3 of the 4 of us...



...since Will managed to sleep through the excitement.

Claire LOVES her new playset, and I know she and Will will get so much enjoyment out of it in the years to come.