Not sure if you caught this, but do you see how dang cute these 3 boys are?! The photos on the left are a year apart, same game!

Funny story here….the three women in the photo bottom left all met at our kiddos original school, Prince of Peace Christian School! And we all ended up at Lovejoy! Very sweet & kind ladies.

This is Lindsey’s last year of Junior Cotillion. I think she enjoyed it. Well, I know she enjoyed it much more than Luke, lol! They were asked to write an essay for Best Mannered Teacher and Lindsey’s essay was chosen as the winner. So Mr. Rohlmeier was told of the news and surprised her at the Spring Ball…it was really cool. Very proud of this sweet, sweet girl.

 

Lainey literally asks for a baby bunny and to get her ears pierced every single day! So on this glorious double digit birthday, we checked off both. On the night of the Daddy/Daughter Dance, we had the bunny cage set up in her room as a surprise when she got home. As you can see, she was very surprised and so very excited!!! The next day, we headed to Quiet Creek Farm in Leonard, Texas for her to pick out her sweet little bunny. She had several names picked out and ended up going with the very first one, GINGER! This bunny is the sweetest thing ever, love her!!

One SMART COOKIE & one Scary Scarecrow this year! That sweet little scarecrow did all of her own face make-up :)~

Well, I missed Luke’s best game of the season this Halloween night, but I had so much FUN with my sweet Lainey Kate!! It was just her & I trick-or-treating around the neighborhood. I think she got more candy than ever that night!!! I added some videos from Luke’s 7th grade season as A-team Running Back, D-line & Special Teams….look out for #7 & #44.

To you, these pictures probably look like 3 normal kids on their first day of school. To me, these pictures in particular are so very special…those 3 are my heart & soul walking around in this world. Those 3 are some of the strongest you will ever know with big, big hearts & personalities second to none. I am so proud of those 3 kiddos walking into those schools with everything new going on all around them. They did not miss a beat, they did not flinch, they were strong and kind and everything beautiful to me.

Just sayin’ this was a request from my hubby….who received apple pie bacon in his Bacon of the Month Club provided by his lovely family for Father’s Day. If I could attach a pig emoji, I totally would, LOL!!! Not sure if you can see it; however, that is bacon in there and they were absolutely DELICIOUS!

I once read that it is customary for Italian folks to eat zeppoles on St. Joseph’s Day. St. Joseph’s Day is a Roman Catholic feast day commemorating the life of St. Joseph. People with very strong religious association, often those of southern Italian descent, typically celebrate St. Joseph’s Day. March 19th is said to be St. Joseph’s birthday.
A little history here…..During a famine in Sicily, when food was scarce and many people were starving, the poor people had only their faith to rely on. St. Joseph was known as the protector of the Holy Family and Italians had strong family relationships, so they prayed for St. Joseph to intercede for them so they could have successful crops. Their prayers were answered, and the famine came to an end.

Soooo, when I read this, I plugged it into my calendar and we have been carrying it through! The zeppoles were delicious (and very rich!) and we had a fabulous time as we continue this Hardwick tradition.

Apparently, the 12th traditional wedding anniversary gift is silk. My sweet husband brought me home a beautiful dress by a lovely designer and I absolutely LOVE the dress. However, I really needed/wanted a handbag so at least I get to look back on it in pictures! Thank you Brian. You never cease to amaze me with your thoughtfulness and very generous heart. We took a quick trip up to Fredericksburg over our anniversary weekend as well. LOVE it there too:)

I once read in a Goodfella’s pizza menu that it is customary for Italian folks to eat zeppoles on St. Joseph’s Day. St. Joseph’s Day is a Roman Catholic feast day commemorating the life of St. Joseph. People with very strong religious association, often those of southern Italian descent, typically celebrate St. Joseph’s Day. March 19th is said to be St. Joseph’s birthday.
A little history here…..During a famine in Sicily, when food was scarce and many people were starving, the poor people had only their faith to rely on. St. Joseph was known as the protector of the Holy Family and Italians had strong family relationships, so they prayed for St. Joseph to intercede for them so they could have successful crops. Their prayers were answered, and the famine came to an end.

Soooo, when I read this in the menu, I plugged it into my calendar and we have been carrying it through! The zeppoles were delicious (and very rich!) and we had a fabulous time as we continue this Hardwick tradition.DSC_6718

There we were sitting at church on Christmas Eve when a Fox 4 News reporter approached me and asked if they could put a mic on one of our children as they sang the Christmas songs. I was really surprised, but did not mind and suggested they put it closest to Lindsey. They asked Lindsey to move down and she sang away! Then afterwards they asked if they could ask me a few questions and I diverted to Brian as I was not feeling well. Brian did great and they asked Lindsey a few questions as well. That night we watched ourselves on the news:) It was really neat. It was funny bc I saw the guy out of the corner of my eye high up on the second level looking out onto the crowd. Then a few minutes later there he was asking me if he could mic our kiddos!

Check out the link below to see sweet Lindsey singing her little heart out!

Christmas Eve services – Dallas News | myFOXdfw.com.

For our children’s school auction, we host a Gingerbread House decorating party that parents buy spots to for their children to attend. I always have the best time preparing for this party! It was a lot of fun and 14 very sweet children were sent away full of SUGAR!!!

I know the song is a little much, but that is what this grown up 8 year old wanted for her birthday video this year!!!

Well, what can I say…..there were several different emotions all rolled into one and that emotion in a word is FABULOUS!!! It all started with a wonderful luncheon and spa trip with my awesome and amazing friends. After lunch and a hot stone massage, I met my family and parents for a lovely dinner. I think we were at the restaurant for 2.5 – 3 hours. Following that beautiful day, I took Luke to camp and after dropping him off headed to Lake Austin Spa for 5 days. Now, let me just tell you about this place….it is the perfect getaway for rest and relaxation while maintaining your health, well being and 40 year old goals!!! The food is all organic, cooked fresh and the portions are perfect. You leave the dining room feeling exactly as we should, not bloated, not full, just right. The food is also absolutely delicious. They have activities throughout the day that you may or may not sign up for. I did a hike one day that was so refreshing with the gorgeous Austin hill country as the backdrop. I did a few yoga classes, some cardio, a spin class and swimming in the pool barn. And to top it off, I reached my 40 year old goals! However, most of my time was spent at the spa. The spa is every girls dream. I want to live in the Blue Room. The night I arrived, I had a treatment called a Texas Starry Night, which was P for PERFECT. Every treatment you have there is perfect, it’s like they know what you need!!! Anyway, body treatments, massages and a facial at the end, I was in pure bliss. My room was so sweet with a pretty little porch where I read about a two foot stack of books. I have not read that much since my kids were born. No, I am serious, it was a lot of reading, just what I wanted and needed. I added a few pictures below and you will probably see a lot of cardinals in them, they were everywhere! Nature was everywhere!! I saw about ten deer, a frog that just about jumped on my head as he was escaping a snake I saw slithering away from him, lizards everywhere, baby turtles being born, ducks, cats that live there at the resort, and did I mention cardinals? Tons of them, so pretty:) You will also see my hammock, oh how I loved that hammock…..can you tell I needed a break?! It was WON-DER-FUL. Thank you Brian, Mom, Dad and my three little angels for letting me go.

Luke has taken a real liking to baseball. So much so, that we think he has finally “picked” this sport over others! Not that he won’t play the others anymore, but baseball truly is his passion. Particularly in the role as catcher as you can see, just like his Grandpa!

DSC_0885-002

The Purple Princesses and the Sugar Plums performed their long awaited dances on May 10th at the Eismann. It truly was the best Mother’s Day present a Mom could ask for. These girls work so hard all year long for this day! Lainey was so excited to be on the big stage. Lindsey was too, maybe even a little more since a year ago her dance ended a little rough:( Their teacher whom they were watching got confused and messed up the dance for the girls. Well, most of them laughed it off, but not my Lindsey…..it was hard on her and she left the stage almost in tears. This year, however was a different story. She knew that dance like the back of her hand. She had it down so much so that at one point, she was yawning on her side chasse!!! Classic Lindsey move;) The girls were absolutely beautiful and I loved every second of watching them perform that night!

https://www.jibjab.com/view/make/everybunny_dance_now_2/dOwTE8K7RrSlvHyENrYCGQ

When asked where our children want to go for Spring Break……without hesitation and in tandem, they all say (or scream) ROUGH CREEK!!!! This is what I saw this year:)

For our children’s school auction last year we hosted a Gingerbread House decorating party that parents bought spots to for their children to attend. It was a week ago and I had the best time preparing for this party! It was scheduled for the 7th, but the sheet of ice that passed through the city pushed us back a week. It was a lot of fun and 15 very sweet children were sent away full of SUGAR!!! I look forward to the next one:)!!!

I know the song is a little much, but when asked which song Luke wanted for his birthday video, he chose this.
He LOVES this song!!!

So my sweet Lindsey & I are leaving volleyball practice and I am playing with her hair as I usually do. I say, “Gosh Lindsey, we need to get your haircut”. She says, “Oh, Mommy we can go right now to the Pink Out game and they will cut it right there!” I say, “whoa whoa whoa, do you know what all that entails?”. She says, “Yes, I want to do it”. With lot’s of conversation back and forth on our way there, we get to the game, there happens to be a stylist right there, she takes Lindsey back and puts pony tails in her hair and before we both know it, 10+ sweet long~haired little girls are in a line to head to the gym! I had no idea, but they cut the girls hair at halftime on the gym floor in front of everyone!!! Lindsey was so brave and awesome. She amazes me most every day.

We said a prayer that night that someone in need from Locks of Love gets to make a wig from this sweet girls hair:)

DSC_6084

One thing I want to add onto this fun Halloween post is that we ate “walking tacos” that night! See pic below….the kids loved this and it may have to be a Halloween tradition. So fun and EASY!!!

Walking-Taco

So, the other day Luke went in and put on his Daddy’s boots.  It brought me back to fun times with him at home and reminded me of a picture I took of our little boy in Daddy’s boots. My, how time flies! Not such a little boy anymore, cry, cry sob:(

DSC_0118

DSC_5980

We went on one last Summer fling to San Antonio during the week before school started. I had to add some pics and write about it bc it was a really nice time for us. It was my last chance to really take them in and cherish our time together. I am so glad we made this trip and as you can see, we had a wonderful time. We also went to Austin on our way home to visit my brother Mark who just bought a new house there. Lovely home Mark:)
My parents also came up to visit us in SA one day, as they were also visiting Mark
and staying with him in his new house. Fun times:)

Lindsey Pep Squad!

 

Luke Green Belt!

Lainey End of year Performance!

Luke Biography Parade!

Lainey & Lindsey Ballet Recitals!

Finally added a Mother’s Day pic. We all had a wonderful time and I was spoiled by my husband and children as always. The thing I look forward to the most on Mother’s Day are the sweet things that the kids make in class. I cry every time, so sweet.

I finally added an Easter video and am slowly but surely catching up with the end of the year festivities. The only thing I did not get was pics of Luke’s chess awards, but he did get 1st place in his division and we are so very proud of him. When he first started playing three years ago, I really believe he went for the snacks, but now he really enjoys it and it keeps his mind sharp (need that to clear out the video game brain congestion)! I need to learn so I can play with him….he tries to teach me when him and Brian play, but it’s over my head!

We try to have Movie Night every Friday, but sometimes it just does not happen. Well, it did tonight and it was so much FUN! Highly recommend Racing Stripes. I believe it is an older movie, but very sweet and great for all ages:)

I’m not sure if anyone can appreciate this video as much as me! The times Lindsey and I (and now Lainey ~ you have to be 4) have had here in this awesome city have been memories that I treasure deep in my heart and are so very precious to me. The video does not do the trips justice. There are conversations that I learn from and lessons that they learn from. Just like life and at home, but just a little bit sweeter and a little bit deeper;) One other thing that we do that I never get pictures of is our trip to Leddy’s. Leddy’s is a cowgirl/cowboy shop right down from our hotel. We go in, pick out about 20 dresses and each try them ALL on!!! It’s so fun….Lindsey procedes to try hers on and then go show the entire store while dancing to the music on their radio! Sometimes, we leave with a bag, but most of the time, it’s just girly time trying on clothes:)
The shows have been unbelievable! You can’t take pictures, so that is why there are ZERO of them:( Texas Ballet Theater puts on the best ballet performances I have ever seen. My favorite (if I had to pick) was Mary Poppins (Performing Arts Fort Worth)….Lindsey and I had a lot of fun with that one. We went the whole weekend speaking in our English accents preparing for the play!!! Lindsey even wanted to be Mary Poppins for Halloween that year & was! It was practically perfect in every way ~ as is all of our sweet Fort Wort weekends away!

I once read that it is customary for Italian folks to eat zeppoles on St. Josheph’s Day. St. Joseph’s Day is a Roman Catholic feast day commemorating the life of St. Joseph, the step-father of Jesus and husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary. People with very strong religious association, often those of southern Italian descent, typically celebrate St. Joseph’s Day. March 19th is said to be St. Joseph’s birthday.
A little history here…..During a famine in Sicily, when food was scarce and many people were starving, the poor people had only their faith to rely on. St. Joseph was known as the protector of the Holy Family and Italians had strong family relationships, so they prayed for St. Joseph to intercede for them so they could have successful crops. Their prayers were answered, and the famine came to an end.

Soooo, when I read this, I plugged it into my calendar and we carried it through! The zeppoles were delicious (and very rich!) and we had a fabulous time with this new Hardwick tradition 2 years in a row.

A friend of mine talked me into participating in a consignment sale that was held in February at the Frisco Discovery Center. I thought, sure, why not….I normally just give all of our stuff away to the church or friends & family. Easy enough, right?  Here are some pics of this experience. Brian would come in as I was labeling all of the items and we would have fun reminiscing about when our little angels wore these sweet clothes.

I say experience because it was a lot of work! First, you have to make sure everything is presentable (no stains, wrinkles, etc.). Then you pin a tag on each item and enter it into their computer system, ugh! Then, once you take all of your stuff to the sale and after they go through it all, you have to place all of your items in the correct location, double ugh!! You are free to leave after that. Now, here is the cool part, you see your sales on a daily basis and can log in anytime to see what has sold or not. That part was pretty neat. Would I do it again? Not sure. Did it go to a good cause? YES! Did I make some money? YES!!!

The Power of PLAY! I always find it interesting when people say, “Oh, I remember leaving my house in the morning and not coming home until the sun was about to go down”. Really? You stayed out all day and played and did not come home until dinner?! Well, I had four older Brothers, so they got to do that, but I don’t remember doing it and always wondered how you could “play” for that long, until over this particular Christmas Break! I have never played for so long in one sitting at a time as I did over this break. I am not sure if it’s the age of my kids or possibly a particular electronic device that Santa may have bestowed upon us, but man did I play. And now I get it…..I would look up and the day would be over, did we even eat lunch? I played so many darn video games with Luke that my eyes were crossed and hurting as I turned out the lights to go to sleep. I would get ready for bed and find stickers in my hair or beaded jewelry placed on my neck by sweet little angels, perhaps in my “video game head” stuper. I found an American Girl doll curler in one of my pockets one day, LOL! We had a LOT of family fun. It was a fast and furious FABULOUS time full of truly fun memories with actual traditions now…..before, we would implement them and keep them going, knowing the kids did not have a clue, but now they do and it’s so much FUN! I asked a friend of mine before break if she was going 100 miles an hour, stressed and going crazy and she said, “Yes, but I love this time of year so much that I don’t care”! I love that and she is so right ~ it’s crazy, but gosh, so much fun and so worth all of the hustle and bustle. AND, it snowed on Christmas Day! What a huge blessing.
Thank you God!!! LIFE IS GOOD:)

Two little turkeys!!!

One Happy Family!!

 

One big happy family!!! So THANKFUL:)

Sorry honey, but you do it to yourself! I had a painted pottery party the other day at our house. The day before the party, Dr. Delphinium shows up with this gorgeous arrangement from my sweet, sweet hubby:

The card read, Honey, I hope you have a good party!

Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird

I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns. ~ George Eliot

So, it’s August, which means double over time for me at my kids school. I love to volunteer at the school, it’s helpful to PTF, Admin. and the Teachers. A huge perk for me is being able to see and visit with my kiddos while I am up there. During this time, it’s slightly more work for my husband! Does he complain? No. Does he gripe? No. The man sends me flowers and tells me how much he appreciates me!!! Huh, appreciate me? I so appreciate him:) Gorgeous honey, I love you so much!!!

It was everything that we hoped it would be and then some! The only negative factor about the cruise was that it was not long enough!! We needed a few extra days on that boat to cover it all. My favorite memory from the cruise was leaving land for the first time sitting with my family on our deck. It was such a peaceful and special time for us. Some other highlights of the trip for me were playing bingo (the announcer was hilarious and made each game very entertaining), the shows (especially Believe), fireworks off of the ship on Pirate night, my seaweed spa treatment, the comedy show with Brian one evening, swimming with the dolphins and Castaway Cay, just to name a few:) Our room was wonderful. Brian enjoyed a complimentary Romeo & Julieta in the hot tub on our deck every night amongst the sea and stars, so cool.  Oh and seeing the kids eyes light up when they were one on one with some of their favorite characters is definitely  a “crowning moment”! Speaking of which, I am working on a Disney video to include the last three years we have been. For some reason, I have never made a video with our Disney pics? You will have to sit down and get comfy for that one as there are a LOT of pictures. One thing that I still have not forgot from this last trip before we embarked the ship was when we were in Disney World at Cinderella’s Royal Table…..there we are, the girls all dolled up from the Bibbity Bobbity Boutique and all of the princess’s come by to say hi. Well, Belle came over and she was talking with the girls (Luke was hiding in my lap under the table, LOL!), Lainey asked Belle if she would give her a kiss. Belle said, “sure, I’ll give you a kiss on your forehead”. Lainey said, “but I won’t be able to see it on my forehead”. Belle looked like she had tears in her eyes and said to me that was the sweetest thing a little girl has ever said to her!!! So she gave her a kiss on her arm. Lainey was so proud and HAPPY!!!

Ok, don’t hold your breath, that Disney World video is coming right up, HA:)!

We had the funnest time picking blueberries this year! There is just something about picking and eating fruit from a bush and that is exactly what you do in Edom, Texas ~ Pick em’ and Eat em”!!! They are DELICIOUS:)

So after the privilege of being in Red River, New Mexico, we headed to Estes Park, Colorado for the 9th Peddecord Family Reunion!!! My parents and Brother, Terry met us in Red River and we drove in their RV to Estes. It was a really fun drive…my Dad drove us the whole way in:) I feel like we became one with nature with these two mountainous states. The reunion was a blast and it is always a good time talking with fellow family members and cousins. Your face starts to hurt because of all the smiling and laughing. The highlight of both trips was definitely the wildlife for me. One time, on a hike/walk in Red River, I saw a slew of very large deer running together in the mountains. In Estes, we saw Elk, long-horned sheep and a BEAR. That was absolutely amazing. A not-so-smart person threw their trash out behind the fence at the pool. So there we are eating and talking and behind us is a bear. It came so close to us, it was crazy!!! Luke insists that there were two bears, but I think I only saw the one. Perhaps his brother or mother were not too far away, YIKES!!!

I just have to write about nothing!!! No, I am serious…..I have nothing to worry about or do for approximately a week. It is such a fabulous feeling that I just have to write about it. Since Tuesday, which was Lindsey’s last day, our schedule has started to slightly taper off to now, with Luke’s last day today, absolutely NOTHING!!! It’s so wonderful. The kids and I were all geared up today to clean the back patio. They specifically wanted to hose down the swing set and picnic table. So, we started to do just that. However, the hose we have is not long enough to reach the swing set. Tonight, I went up to the store and bought a longer hose. That’s it, just the hose…..not snack or waters or wipes, just a water hose. I took my time and did not have to worry about tomorrow/Friday and all of it’s responsibilities. What will Lindsey and Lainey wear, is it pizza pass day, did Luke have homework, does he know his spelling words?!?! Nope, did not have to worry about any of those things, just a simple water hose, LOVE it, LOVE Summer!!!  Thank you Summer:)  Thank you Lindsey for making a rose in your pudding cup!!! Love this pudding cup, LOVE THIS LIFE!!!!

Here are a few end of year pictures…..Lindsey’s Super Hero performance, Pep Squad performance, Gymnastics performance and Luke’s Chess & Karate awards!

Luke had his second piano recital this evening and he did fabulous. I guess kids at that age don’t get nervous?! He was the first one scheduled to play again and he was so calm and cool about it. I was just asking some parents last week if they thought their kids got nervous when performing and they all said they did not think so. I wonder at what age we all become so aware and nervous. They say that public speaking is the number one fear reported by people in the U.S.  I wish I could pinpoint at what time from being a young, innocent child to an anxious mess on stage happens!!! Regardless, our Luke man nailed it once again, so proud of him:

Last time we went to Las Vegas, I took one picture. This time, I took two!!! I guess my camera is the last thing on my mind when we visit here. Which actually makes a lot of sense, it’s like a huge adult playground!!! Every time we go, it is so much FUN. Awesome fight, wonderful food and SHOPPING!!! Here are my two pics:)

 

This is Lindsey talking to a fence!!! HaHaHa, I could not resist…..I really think sometimes our kids talk so much that they really would talk to a fence!

No, this is Lindsey talking through the fence to her friend, Karl. He lives right behind us and is in Lindsey’s class!!!! They pass each other small candy through one of the holes in the wood, so cute!

And here are two sweet, sweet little girls!

I once read in a Goodfella’s pizza menu that it is customary for Italian folks to eat zeppoles on St. Josheph’s Day. St. Joseph’s Day is a Roman Catholic feast day commemorating the life of St. Joseph, the step-father of Jesus and husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary. People with very strong religious association, often those of southern Italian descent, typically celebrate St. Joseph’s Day. March 19th is said to be St. Joseph’s birthday.
A little history here…..During a famine in Sicily, when food was scarce and many people were starving, the poor people had only their faith to rely on. St. Joseph was known as the protector of the Holy Family and Italians had strong family relationships, so they prayed for St. Joseph to intercede for them so they could have successful crops. Their prayers were answered, and the famine came to an end.

Soooo, when I read this in the menu, I plugged it into my calendar and we carried it through! The zeppoles were delicious (and very rich!) and we had a fabulous time as we established this new Hardwick tradition.

 

Sweet Lucky! He is sure a joy to be around. When the breeder first told us about the temperament of a Sheepadoodle dog, I thought well of course she is going to say all of these things. However, she was not lying….the dog is so cool and pretty darn laid back for his age. He is 100% hypoallergenic and sheds virtually nothing (unless I am brushing him!). The kids love him, I think Lainey the most;) He needs more attention from me, but I give that to our two-legged angels first! I think next year, when all three kiddos are in school full time, I will be able to be a better Dog Mom. Almost a year ago, when we picked him up, it literally felt like we brought a newborn home and I was so not wanting to go there:( Anyway, he is a special little guy and we sure do love our furry friend.

Happy Birthday Lucky Dog!!!

I feel like a wedding just ended!!! Lindsey and her Daddy have been planning for this Snowflake Ball for over a year now, seriously! The two of them had a fabulous time and Lindsey’s last words before falling fast asleep tonight were, “I’m so tired, I had so much fun”! As if to say, Mommy I feel like I need to stay up because I had so much fun!!! So sweet, enjoy snaps of this sweet girl and her Daddy at their first dance!

________________________________♥AFTER♥________________________________

Can you say PROUD? Can you say BRAG? No music, first piano recital, first one called up on stage….NAILED it!!!!

 

 

Ok, I know this is a very peculiar picture to post and really only my Mom and Dad will “get it”!!! I basically don’t like the heater. I don’t like the feel of hot air blowing on me (or at me, ha!). It seems like every year, right after we turn the heat on in the house we all get sick:(  So, I wait until we are freezing little Eskimos and Brian says enough is enough!!!  Well, today I was home sick and kept thinking, “man it is cold in this house”. Well, I took a trip to the thermostat and there you have it! Upstairs said 61, aren’t I mean?!  Anyway, I changed the filters and turned the darn heat on in the house ~ not without airing it all out with doors and windows entirely open though! I was alone, so there were no complaints about that. In fact, I think Lucky was looking at me like, “oh woof you very much, I am so hot with all of my handsome fur”!  So, though peculiar, there is the story behind the thermostat pic….M&D, I bit the bullet, but I had you guys beat by a MILE!!!

This may be the most beautiful photo I have ever seen!

Ok, so school started and I am just now coming up for air, ugh! This is a good ugh however!!  We have been busy little bees, but happy, buzzing ~ full of honey ~ little bees!

I will start with Luke above……he just finished up with soccer. He was on the Cyclones team and it was a great season! As most people know I am slightly competitive and to see Luke finally out there on the field going after the ball with enthusiasm, desire and power, well it is most exhilarating to say the least. Since he was three, we have been wanting to see the determination in him and it happened…..more importantly, Luke liked it and wanted to WIN, he wanted to score, he had passion for the game!!! He “got it” and we loved every second of it!!!

He is in 1st grade and doing awesome! We love his teacher and I know without a doubt she is the perfect fit for him. His strengths thus far seem to be reading, writing, science/geography & math (numbers-minded like his Dad). He will pick up a book and just start reading it to himself, which is music to my ears;)  Before, he would read it out loud (which was also music to my ears!) or ask me to read it with him, so to be doing this on his own is awe~inspiring!

He is still building legos like crazy, attempting to check-mate his friends, playing the piano and karate chopping everything in site. He has his first piano recital next week, so we are really looking forward to that. Alright, that’s Luke for now, he is one wonderful, amazing, delightful and charming young man;)

See Lindsey’s current bio below under her 5th birthday party video!

Oh, sweet Lindsey….she is still her normal charming, delightful and sassy self! She is in PreK4 and loving it. She has two of the most wonderful teachers ever and is soaking it all in. She just got through with her first soccer season. She did well, not sure if she keeps going to play or for the social aspect of it:) Lindsey is still doing gymnastics and loving it. We had to miss her meet this last Saturday b/c she had strep:(  Very sad, but she took it well, really did not have a choice…the poor girl was so sick that instead of amoxicillin they gave her the bicillin shot bc she was vomiting so badly! She was really, really sick. However, that evening and the next morning you would have never known it from her very adrenalized self!!! She is also doing pep squad this year and seems to really enjoy it. So besides barbies, polly pockets and ag dolls, she is just cruising right along and such a JOY to be around. See the video above of Lindsey turning 5 going on 15!!!

Well, it is one large bed for one very small little girl, LOL!!! As you can see, she is loving her new room. The first thing out of her mouth when anyone comes over is, “wanna see my new room”?!  Believe it or not, there is a trundle bed underneath so the darn thing can sleep up to  4 people very comfortably! Slumber parties here we come!!!  Lindsey is begging to have a sleep over with her Sister in her new room. We keep telling her we will do it over the weekend and then we all forget : (  I am thinking if we start that now, it may not end, EVER…..and that makes me one happy Mommy ; )~

Alright, this is a very exciting time in the history of the Hardwick family! Very exciting and extremely difficult : (  Lainey is moving into a big girl room upstairs. Luke moved over and Lainey is going into his old room. The once nursery room is becoming a true craft room (that is the exciting part!). Painters are coming on Monday to paint this nursery room that all three of our children have come home to after birth, all three had so many of their “firsts” in, boohoo : ( The mural and nursery rhyme on the walls will be no more, cry cry cry : (  As we were moving her room out, I took a picture of Duck and Bear sitting there looking so sad, my thoughts exactly!!!

undefined

Luke played on the Giants team this year. Best coach we have ever had by far. I am so hoping he starts a Fall soccer team as well, fingers crossed!!! Luke is quite a character out on the field. His attention span was so much better than last year, but that is not to say that you don’t still catch him digging in the dirt. LOL!!!

I am not really sure what is going on with me lately, but I have been cleaning out closets, organizing like crazy and getting all crafty! BOWS, there is no easy way to store them and they are scattered all over my house, ugh. I have had it with never knowing what bow is where and then leaving the house only to discover we either forgot the bow entirely or the perfect one just came to mind miles down the road. So, I made my own hair bow holder : ) It is hanging and it is wonderful, but now I have discovered that we need an extra holder with school bows only on it, double ugh!!

I asked my favorite bakery to design a cake for my Dad on his birthday. All I told them was that he was very much into sports and he loves mostly Houston teams. This is what they came up with!!! I was very pleased and thought it turned out really cute (tasted delicious of course since Duke is an all chocolate guy!). We enjoyed homemade lasagna and family fun fellowship on this special night celebrating my wonderful Dad’s Birthday : )

undefined

Brian’s ice cream birthday cake below, courtesy of Baskin Robbins!

undefined

undefinedundefinedundefinedundefined

It’s official, Lindsey is my little gymnast, not my little ballet dancer! She told me all last year that she wanted to go back to ballet and so I put her in a 4 week camp back at Chamberlains. Today, when we got in the car, she said she wanted to go back to gymnastics, that she likes it a lot better! I have to agree that she seems a lot more in her element at WOGA!!! Anyway, here is the little sweetie all cute in her dance gear while it lasts ; )

Did you catch that very large canine in the background?! Lucky is 16 weeks old and well over 20lb’s. He is still very puppy, but man are his looks deceiving…..we love him and he is loving our crazy family as well : )

Above are pictures from Lake Austin Spa with my dear friend Charlotte. We had a great time celebrating both of our birthdays there! The views and scenery were so relaxing as you can see! There are a few pictures of our cozy cottage and several taken from our cottage. I thought it was so neat to see the blue water from the pool and then just beyond that, the green water from the lake! The spa was absolutely wonderful. One night I had a service that was called Beautiful Balance from Head to Toe. The therapist had so much lavender and chamomile oil in my hair, it looked wet! The steam room was one of the best I have ever been in, as I could barely see to exit! They don’t miss much, especially at the spa. The cat that was in our room when my Mom and I stayed there over two years ago, was outside of our room when we arrived : ) On my way back from breakfast one morning, it was sleeping under my car. Sweet little kitty : ) One night, my Brother Mark came over and had dinner with us, so it was really nice to see him and so cool of him to come see us. I also had my RMR tested and an over the top fitness assessment done while I was there. Very interesting and enlightening! Ok, the truvia sweetener picture is mainly for you Brian! He knows I carry a loaded Ziploc of truvia in my handbag at all times. Well, they carried it as part of their sweeteners and I was so impressed by that. Pretty neat, huh honey?! Every single delicious, organic, wonderful meal we devoured was ate at the table pictured above (great conversations, great times Charlotte!). Will definitely go back to this destination spa anytime and plan to the next chance I get!!!

My wonderful, sweet loving husband had a 1 foot tall apple pie warming in the oven when I arrived back home to celebrate my 37th birthday!!!

Here is a picture from Lindsey’s first gymnastics meet. undefined

Where does the time go? I blink and it’s been months since my last post, but it feels like yesterday! Let’s see here…..well, since I ended on movies last post, I guess I will start with movies again. Brian and I saw a really great movie called Limitless a few weeks ago. It was rated PG-13, but it didn’t feel like it. It was entertaining and my goodness if the world really had access to NZT!!!! That is all I am going to say, you have to go see it. Before our viewing pleasure of Limitless, we tried to get a burger from Twisted Root. We have yet to get a burger from Twisted Root or the new establishment that just opened called In and Out Burger. You know, the one that has the 45 minute drive thru wait every time you drive by since they have been opened!!! CRAZINESS, I want to know if it’s the burger or the fries at these joints b/c how can a burger be that good?!?!

Mother’s Day flew by! We were traveling back from Las Vegas on that day. There was a big boxing match in Vegas that weekend that Brian really wanted to see (see pic above, the one and only picture we took the entire time we were there). So, one awesome fight, several massages,  meals that were out of this world, a new cream bag for “Mommy” and one long lovely weekend later, we were very well rested and relaxed : ) Now, I barely remember anything from Vegas b/c I was immediately entered into puppy world! Yes, you heard it right, we are now very proud owners of our new Sheepadoodle puppy, LUCKY. He was supposed to be in Dallas on Monday afternoon and we did not get him home until midnight. No sleep, felt like having a newborn, and why did we do this again??? Really, we do love sweet Lucky, but man is it a LOT of work!!! The kids went bananas when they woke up Tuesday morning to find him. He was a surprise and I have a funny Name story about that…..early on, we asked the children if we were to ever get a puppy, what would they want to name it? Lindsey said “Loser”, um yah Loser! Luke said Lucky and Lainey immediately followed with “Yucky”, so LUCKY it was. It is so darn cute to see and hear Lainey call out his name, YUCKY!!! They never thought we could have a dog b/c Luke has a pretty bad dog dander allergy, but little Lucky is virtually shedless and 100% hypoallergenic : ) See pictures above of our new furry family member!

I’ll post some more soon….I actually have a lot to say, LOL : )

We try really hard to have movie night every Friday night. We succeeded tonight with the feature film of Tangled. It was then that I remembered I never posted pictures from our very own Princess Rapunzel, Lindsey when she had Princess & Pirate day at school in February. By the way, I really think they should have named that movie, Rapunzel instead of getting all funky with “Tangled”. Our Disney guide told us they did that in order to bring in the male audience and I get that, but it just doesn’t go as well to me. The movie is absolutely ADORABLE and it just may be my favorite Disney movie of all time. Tonight was the third viewing (with Lainey on my lap like a little lapdog…so sweet, I cherished every second of it!) and so far each time I cried and am so touched by that sweet little Rapunzel. I know, a little much but they really did a great job with the movie. Brian and I get a kick out of Maximus, with his dog-like characteristics and funny horse mannerisms!!! And Pascal, the lizard is absolutely hilarious!!!
Ok ok, enough of the movie, Lindsey plans for Princess & Pirate day as soon as school starts, can you tell?!

My intentions were good, but it just did not happen : ( So there we are in San Antonio for spring break with the green shirts, fun headbands and annoying blinking clover pins packed in our suitcases. It was also the day we went to Sea World, so by the time we got back to the hotel, everyone was completely beat down and room service was in order! We were supposed to dine at a restaurant there in our hotel with our St. Patrick’s Day best on. Oh well, at least I got some pics from the kids before and after school! I don’t like this fun and special holiday to go unrecognized and/or not celebrated : )

WoW!!! What a strange occurrence of events!
Who would have thought that last week was going to end up like it did?! Bizarre!!!

We have had an absolutely lovely week and I am not complaining because how often does it happen?! However, I believe that Luke built every possible jigsaw puzzle in the house, Lainey pulled every single stuffed animal out of her room and has them scattered in all of the other rooms in our house and Lindsey managed to talk me into getting the Play-Doh Cake Makin Station out yet again!!! Like I said it was lovely, but we are all a little stir crazy at this point = )~ Brian bit the bullet and went to work ONE time and then never went out again after that!!!
I have yet to leave since Monday!

I was thrilled to see a text from our babysitter today confirming her prior commitment to come over and watch our children…..in two hours, I am “free to leave the building” (house)!!!
Brian and I are going to see True Grit and yes, eat some more :@)

After two large crock pots of chili and cornbread muffins, a few dozen sausage balls, blueberry muffins, homemade macaroni & cheese with chocolate chip muffins, chicken Parmesan, over-indulgent turkey sandwiches on Hawaiian sweet rolls, bacon omelets, pumpkin spice pancakes, numerous amounts of not-so-good for you snacks and valentines candy, we made it through the week all a little heavier I dread : (
Did I mention three different types of muffins? LOL!!!

Well, we are starting the holiday season up in full speed this year!
We started at ICE below and the next day decorated gingerbread houses followed by the Nutcracker!!
We are definitely feeling the spirit and loving every second of it. How can you not, what a blessed month to be in : )

Oh, and the kids Christmas lists are in the mailbox headed for the North Pole! I took a good look at them before they ran them out to the mailbox half naked and I have no idea what those words or drawings were, LOL!
Good luck with that Santa!!!

Ok I know I have been so bad with updating this blog : ( I know a lot of you view it and I am really sorry : (
Each time, I say I will do better and it comes back to haunt me! Speaking of haunting, did you see the
Halloween JibJab video below? I know, I know, it’s a little “batty”, but I could not resist.
Each and every time I see and hear Lainey on the video, I just crack up!!!

These are some pictures from Gaylord Texan ICE. It was so much fun and really amazing!!!
check it out www.wefrozecharliebrown.com

I just have to say after posting the video of “Daddy with Daughters II” (I updated it), Brian is such an amazing Father. As I was going through and pulling the pictures to post, he was in soooo many of them. And that is how it is in their lives. He is always there for them and does so much with them on a consistent basis. Those kids are so lucky to have him and he would not like me saying this on our blog, but oh well honey…..I just have to give it up to you : ) It all goes back to the saying,

Any man can be a Father, but it takes someone special to be a Dad!!!
Also,as I was going through the pictures, I had a dryer flashback!!! Lindsey recently took a visit into our dryer, as did Luke years ago! Lindsey asked if I was going to dry her when she got in?!

I was able to remove the play doh out of the carpet!!! YAY : )
Still having a really fun Summer!!! Luke and Lindsey just finished VBS and next week they will attend a camp with Luke’s teacher from last year whom we LOVE! Lainey is growing and changing so fast as you can see below. I want either her or time to stop so that we can film her every second of every day as not to forget her jaw-dropping cuteness!
We bid on and won a “beauty event” by Christian Dior at the kids school auction. So for my birthday, I invited my very special friends to it and lunch/spa afterwards. We had a really great time and were actually able to have conversations with each other without little ones tugging on us or demanding our undivided attention! I added some pictures from that below as well.
And then of course my chip clip princess and Luke with his buddy Jake rocking out : )


Wow, what a whirlwind!!! I do not even know where to begin. Not really sure what happened in April or May, but I do know for certain it is Summer NOW and the kids and I are having a blast!!! I am cherishing this time we have together mostly here at home. We are not running from here to there all of the time anymore and I love it!!!
We did start the Summer off by picking up Luke and Lindsey in the RV on their last day of school which was really fun for them. We drove to Austin to see my cousin Mary and her baby, Santino and also to see Mark of course : ) My parents stayed in an RV park for the first time ever….really funny stories there by the way! The kids and I stayed at a resort not far away called Lost Pines. They had a number of pools, lazy river and a great water slide. I think Luke and Lindsey went down the slide no less than 50 times each!!! I have to admit it was pretty thrilling, I went down once : )~
Right before school ended, we went to Arkansas to celebrate my Father-in-law Judson’s 75th Birthday. It was very nice to see everyone there as always. Luke and Lindsey thought we were leaving them there b/c the last time they were at Nanny and Paw’s they stayed about a week over New Year’s Eve 2010.
Other than that, just trucking along. I have added a few pictures from the RV Austin trip for your viewing pleasure:) I am going to go now and try as I might to get play doh up from our carpet >:-(

Tim was an incredibly beautiful person inside and out. I am going to miss him so much, I cannott begin to put the vacuity that I have into words. I know so many people that knew him will miss him as well, including three young children who didn’t know this but had the very best Uncle a child could ever ask for. Luke will come out of nowhere and say the most hilarious thing that I am positive (not sure if he is or not) came from Tim. The most recent jest I have heard from Luke was “the chicken in the kitchen”!!! I think it was last Thanksgiving that Tim was saying and/or singing “is that a chicken in the kitchen” to Luke and it has stuck!!! Most things Tim said or joked about did “stick” b/c it was so genuinely funny. I have come across so many songs that he has wrote that are also so creative and loving and sometimes very amusing. As I was going through pictures, I was looking at the kids birthday parties and he is in a few as you can see. He is not in a great many of them b/c he was always so nice to offer to help take pictures or video. Also at Christmas it was always Tim and I who got all of the gifts organized and dispersed. It was Tim who was always there to help. He was such a light to see come through the doors. You just knew he was getting ready to say something funny to put a smile on your face. And he always did.

I don’t want to stop thinking about Tim and move on, I want to remember Tim and move on.
I hope that everyone who did know him will never forget him, but instead call to mind and reminisce about him and all he did in our lives.

Oh, I almost forgot. To those of you who are viewing the Ballerina video, you may notice Lindsey’s long, curly hair is gone!!! Our lovely son Luke decided one day to cut all of his Sister’s hair off. We had been to Disney earlier that year and Lindsey got made up to be a princess at the Bibbity Bobbity Boutique. They had her in the chair with her hair pulled back and in a bun like Cinderella of course : ) Well, Luke was watching them do this…..so one day a few weeks later they came downstairs and Lindsey had her Sleeping Beauty gown, slippers and tiara on. They both beamed with pride like they had just done this wonderful thing. I asked Luke how he got Lindsey’s hair in a pony tail and pulled back into the tiara and he said, “I cut it”. As I got closer, I said “no you didn’t Luke”, and then reached back to feel her hair which was NOT there : (( I just started crying, it was really bad; he cut it to her scalp on one side. Anyway, they saw how upset I was and Luke said, “no Mommy, we can just put it back on”!!! I know it will grow back, but it took a long time to get used to. Luckily, Lindsey could care less about it and remains her perfectly princess self as you can see!!!

At the time it happened, my hairdresser remained calm and cool. She had told me that they see that kind of thing all of the time, but it was not until the second visit with Lindsey when she revealed to me that it was the worst case she had ever seen!!!

Ok, no more broken promises : ( I thought I could handle posting every week, but I guess not. I will just post when I can : )
So, everyone has met Lainey Kate and above that video was her Baptism and Easter. Above that is all kinds of fun stuff that you have missed b/c I am so very behind.
First is a video from Summer Fun 2009! After that are some pics of Luke. He started playing soccer, in fact his first game was on Lainey’s Birthday so I missed it : ((( He did really well and one game I went to, he dribbled the ball all the way down into the gooooallll!!! It was really cool and we all went bananas cheering him on : ) After that, he played T-Ball which was a lot fun, but a little slow-paced for Luke. And last, but not least is Lindsey at her dance class. It’s a little long, but oh so worth it (btw, she is the youngest in the class)!!!

I really don’t like waiting so long to write on my blog and every time I look at the last update, I am amazed at how much time has passed : ( So, I have a lot to update and plan to write at least every week from now on. I will add a few videos and pictures to update our latest excitement….it seems there is never a dull moment these days!
Lainey is a complete angel, she brightens our hearts on a daily basis. I know she is the third child and does not have much of a choice, but she is really a great baby and has such an easy going nature about her. Unless she is hungry or tired, she just goes with the flow…she reminds me a lot of Luke : ) Lindsey, our little Princess holds up to that name! She is really something lately; playing dress up and dancing mostly. She does dance now and is busy at Little Gym or Gymboree when she is not in school. Luke is just growing like crazy! I find myself going to help him do something or correct something only to find he has already done it and usually in a better way than I would have. We just found out that his best buddy from school lives behind us and two doors down. This is wonderful news as I love the child and the Mom!!! The day we found out we lived so close, we took the boys behind the trail to each others houses….I think they are a tiny bit more excited than the Mom and I about the news, but not by much : ) Brian is wonderful as always! As I update with pictures and video, I will add news there too : )

I knew when I pulled up this site and saw 2008 as my last post, that it has been some time since I have been on here!!! I had no idea it was from October of 2008 though….very sad and so sorry to the people that actually look for updates on here : ( I promise to do better!
The biggest news that most everyone already knows about is sweet Lainey Kate! She was born on 2/12/09 and is now 3.5 months old already. She is sleeping through the night and that is part of the reason I can be on here again (I don’t have any excuses for Oct. thru Feb. though!!!). So, we have a third child and our family is happy and COMPLETE!!! Luke and Lindsey are doing wonderful, as is my wonderful husband Brian. I have updated pictures of us all in the video above : )
Highlights you will see in the video are:
Luke’s 4th Birthday!
Thanksgiving in Arkansas!
Luke’s Christmas Musical at MDO!
Polar Express Train & Christmas!

Our baby girl is growing up way too fast. I can’t believe she is already two years old. They are definitely not babies for very long after the first one….sad, but true : ( We had a fun time and cupcakes on Lindsey’s Birthday day and her Daddy brought her home two roses. After those pictures, you will see some from her party that next weekend at Little Gym. She had a blast as you can see! Luke is doing well and is very jealous of all the attention (and presents) Lindsey has been getting. They are both sweet angels though and are both insisting on kissing my belly. They also pat it and talk to it! Lainey is growing too : )

Well, I went for a long time without writing AGAIN!
A lot has been going on in the Hardwick household these days, and I guess that is why I have not written in so long. I did manage to post most of our Summer activity pictures. We had a great, busy Summer and over that time, I became pregnant!!! I am currently 22 weeks, so just over 5 months and feeling great. The first trimester was really bad and nauseous and sleepy, but after that it has pretty much been smooth sailing. It is another girl and we are naming her Lainey Kate Hardwick. Brian is still in denial (in a funny way of course); he wanted another boy. I am thrilled with the news b/c I always wanted a Sister and so happy to give that to sweet Lindsey. Plus, we need more girls in this family!!!
That is probably the most exciting news lately. Luke and Lindsey started back at Stonebriar’s MDO program and are both very happy there. I am going to post a few pictures from “picture day” soon.
We also celebrated Tom and Kelli’s wedding/house warming party, which was a lot of fun. I added a video with some pictures from their wedding and the party. Finally, I have another Sister (in-law), but it still counts and I could not be happier. Kelli is a wonderful person and Tom now has a very beautiful family both inside and out. I am so happy for them both : )
Let’s see, what else….I am back in my bible study on Friday’s, which I love. It’s called Mom2Mom and they have guest speakers on some weeks and last week was this lady and I just knew I had met her before. I even told my friend next to me that I “knew her from somewhere”. Well, it ended up being Blair from The Facts of Life!! She does speaking engagements on Mom stuff and it was a really good message. She was a really neat lady. I bought one of her books that is supposed to be really good on child discipline, which I have yet to read : (
That is all I can think of right now, but I will come back on soon and write more….it’s late!
Oh, and I can’t wait to vote!!!

Well, I have not been doing a good job updating everyone via my blog…sorry to those of you who view it.
Let’s see, ok first of all my favorite furry friend in the world is now in pet Heaven. That is all I am going to say about sweet Griffin.
Luke, Lindsey and Brian are all doing fantastic! Luke has lost the puffy, round baby face and is growing up way too fast, as is Lindsey…..she still has the round face though! Eighteen months is by far my favorite age for children. Lindsey is so incredible. Brian hit it on the head the other day when he said, “it’s a good thing we did not have Lindsey first”. She would be one spoiled little girl, I mean she is anyway, but something about little girls just makes you give in quicker to their toddler nature . Luke was something else and still is, but Lindsey is just blowing us away!!!
I thought Summer would be a time to slow down, but it seems we have been busier. Luke is at Little Gym camps and Cooper swim camps. Lindsey and I still do Little Gym on Tuesdays. I took a last minute road trip with my sister-in-law, Kelli and the kids a few weeks ago to San Antonio for a few days and that was a lot of fun! Brian and I are going on a little weekend getaway before our big trip to Rosemary Beach over July 4th week. We just have a lot going on this summer, but I guess we have done it to ourselves…better to keep the kids busy though I guess!
Brian put together a really fun Birthday party for me today at the Rough Riders game. We were already going to the game, but he got a suite and I had most of my close friends and family there to celebrate. Thank you to all who came, I know it was a weird day and time! Oh, and I got an awesome camera that I have had my eye on for a long time, so I added some updated pictures of all I wrote! I received it early (big surprise to all who know Brian’s gift giving)!
I have almost left out the greatest news of all and that is…..drum roll please…..Tom and Kelli got married!!! I am going to put something special together, but at least you can see the happy couple’s picture here for now : )





Well, the fashion show was just the opposite of what I said in a post earlier…UNEVENTFUL!!! I hate to say never, but I don’t believe we will ever do something like that again. If you have ever seen the movie, Little Miss Sunshine, then you know what I am talking about. There were actually Moms in the show like the ones from the movie….I know, it’s very sad. To top it off, I don’t even have a gracious and glorious picture of Luke and Lindsey walking down the runway. It was packed and our pictures turned out blurry. I added a few we took before the show while we were waiting in a jam-packed, “stuffy”, hot room before they started the show. On the way down, Luke spotted Grandpa in the audience and yelled, “Mommy, there is Grandpa” really loud and everyone said “ahhhhh” and laughed.
On a happier note, we had a really fun ‘Snow Day’ last Friday! Brian stayed home from work and Luke did not go to school. It was a very low key, unplanned perfect day : )

For some reason, I have been taking a lot of pictures lately. I updated Lindsey’s I am Growing video and wanted to post Luke’s latest adventure! Luke sleeps on the top bunk now and will not have it any other way. I moved the ladder in the room to clean up the top bunk and look for missing items that have disappeared from his room (Manny the bear for one!). I finished and never took the ladder back out of the room…..the next thing I knew was that “Luke is sleeping in the top bunk tonight” from Brian. Oh no, I forgot to take the ladder back out of the room! With great help and guidance from Daddy, Luke safely climbs up and down the ladder and loves his new bed. If you ask him if he sleeps on the top bunk now, he says “no, I go up the ladder”!!!


Well, I was not comfortable making a movie of Luke on his scooter and leaving the little Princess out. So, I have added a video of Lindsey who is growing up way too fast. We have been enjoying our time at home relaxing and recuperating from all of the hustle and bustle from the holidays!
Brian and I enjoyed a weekend downtown to celebrate Valentine’s while my wonderful parents watched the children. Brian spoiled me to death as usual and I gambled with his gift and happily won…..I gave him a pen (I know, it sounds weird), but he loved it and I hope he is using all of the ink up by now since he left it in his car last I heard : ( He said he really liked it though!!!
Things are pretty calm here for now. We will be traveling to Arkansas to spend the weekend with Nanny & Paw for Easter, so that will be fun! I am still trying to figure out how I got myself into this, but Luke and Lindsey will be in a fashion show in March at Neiman Marcus. I bought Lindsey a dress there and the next thing I knew they were signing me up for the show and selling me a handsome little Lacoste button-down for Luke to wear in it as well! It should be very eventful : )

I still get a smile across my face every time I think about our Christmas trip to St. Thomas. We had a great time and made lots of fun filled memories! My favorite part of the trip was sailing on the Lady Lynsey with our family. It was Christmas day and there we were on a gorgeous day sailing on the most breathtaking water on a beautiful island : ) We started the day with the kids opening up their many presents that Mom and Dad went way overboard on (not again!). After that, was a mouth-watering, colossal size breakfast with pancakes and waffles on the balcony of our room via room service….it could have stopped there for me, but it just kept going! Like I said, the sail was amazing; Brian snorkeled and spotted Crush from Finding Nemo in the Sea along with a bunch of other amazing looking fish!!! As you can see from the pictures, I think Brian’s favorite time was hanging out with Luke at the bar picking out cigars….jk! Luke and Lindsey could have lived in the kiddie pool and were wrinkled little raisin babies every time we got them out (with bribery of course)! Frosty and one of Santa’s elves came to tuck Luke in the night before Christmas and Luke laughed almost the entire time they were there…..it was hysterical!!! Lindsey was fast asleep with visions of sugar plums. We found that Santa ate his cookies and drank all of his milk we left him when we arrived back home. Brian and I spoke that night of needing another vacation from the vacation!!!!

I really love this time of year; all the way from Halloween to the New Year! But, boy is it a busy time of year!
Thanksgiving was really nice. As most of you know by now, I was on my own this year with the cooking and it actually turned out ok. My biggest hang up was getting everything on the table hot and timing all of the dishes in and out of the oven! I learned a lot with the help of my Mom and have much more confidence for the coming years. Brian even ate my Sweet Potato Gratin Casserole, which he does not even like and went back for seconds of it…..that may of made the entire meal worth it for me : ) I added some pictures from Thanksgiving below.
Next, was Luke’s third Birthday party, which was a lot of fun! I added some pictures from his party below also. The funniest part of the party for me was when all of the kids were pulling Luke around on the parachute….he laid down, put his arms behind his neck and stretched out!!! It was so funny : )

Last weekend we celebrated Christmas with my family!!! It was a lot of fun, but kind of weird to celebrate Christmas so early. We are leaving for our trip next Saturday and are all very excited!!! Brian had me ship all of our luggage to the resort, so all we have on the plane is a diaper bag, travel stroller and camera bag!!!! YEAH!!! If you have ever travelled with Brian, you would know that shipping the packages was a must. LOL! I love you honey : )
We wish you all a safe and blessed Christmas and New Year!!!









Wow! It has been a very long time since I have wrote anything on my blog : ( I have a lot to say too!!!
First of all, Luke has done wonderful at school and he Loves it so much. He did get bit by a kid at school last Friday which was not very fun. They call you anytime something like that happens to inform you of the incident and the lady did not act concerned at all. In fact she said Luke did not even cry,which does not surprise me; he is pretty tough and does not like to let you know he “hurts”. Anyway, he is fine and as my Mom said, “this won’t be the last time incidents like that occur”.

Lindsey turned ONE and had a Princess Party! See video above : ) It was wonderful and she was a perfect Princess, especially with no nap the entire day. I know what some of you are thinking, but it just did not happen…maybe b/c of TWO Grandmother’s in the house : ) Ha Ha Ha!

There are also pictures from our Halloween Fun! Luke was a Firefighter and Lindsey was a Pink Flamingo. Luke’s best buddy from school, Braden came over to Trick or Treat with us and they had a BLAST as you can see below!

Brian and I celebrated our Anniversary away for the weekend while my parents watched the children. I say this in a very good, funny way but it took us a good two to three days until they were back to “normal” with all the fun time Grandparent’s have with their Grandchildren!!!

I think I already said that I am a room Mom at Luke’s school and volunteered for every possible event you can volunteer for! It is a lot of fun and a lot of work! So, I have been pretty busy with all of that. I will write more soon and not let it go for so long next time…

Luke started his first day of Preschool Pals at Stonebriar last week. He will attend two days a week. His first day was great! He met his teachers the Friday before he started school and on Wednesday walked right into that classroom (with backpack, lunch box and nap mat in hand), and said as clear as day, “Good Morning Ms. Kathy, Good Morning Ms. Jennifer”!!! It was so funny and Brian and I were so proud of him as one might imagine ; ) When I went to pick him up that day, he was asleep on his nap mat….there were kids all over talking and playing and there he was completely passed out! I could not believe it and I knew nobody else would believe me either, so Ms. Kathy took a picture of him and said she would email it to me….I will post it as soon as I get it : ) They give you a small report on your child each day and under Favorite Part of the day was Music & Singing! Needless to say, Luke loves his school so far and we are very happy for him! Lindsey is precious, doing very well and cutting her top two teeth!!!
Below are some pictures from Luke’s first day!

I promised myself I would write over the weekend and never did, so here I am now!
Ok, Lindsey started Little Gym last week and loved it. She is one girl out of two out-numbered by about seven boys and has already been kissed by one!!!! What is that?!?! Our time together is so special to me and I am so glad I finally committed to this semester.
Over the weekend, we went to Planet Pizza and Luke had a blast! He rode Big rides all by himself….it was hysterical (especially the rocket ship). I did not bring our camera : ( So far, over all of the pizza establishments (chuck e cheese, gatti town, etc.), we prefer Planet Pizza…unfortunately, it is the farthest, but for sure the most fun!
My Mom and I scrapbooked on Friday night and I made my first digital scrapbook page of Luke’s second year to add to the last page of the book. That is what this picture is! Although, digital is pretty darn neat, I don’t feel it is as sentimental as paper scrapbooking so I will only use digital on occasion.

Wow, it has been a long time since I have been on here!
The girl’s trip was really fun….we did a lot of talking, laughing, griping, and exercising…..I know, exercising??? Amy had us sweating to an hour long workout she made up and then we went and ran! I think I burned 900 calories that day, but it was much needed based on our eating choices that weekend! I picked up Lindsey from my parents on our way home and came home to my wonderful husband (with dinner prepared!) and a singing little boy! Brian and Luke made a song over the weekend and that is what is on this weeks video!!! I missed them all terribly and was so happy to be home. We were supposed to go to the lake this weekend, but saw rain and cancelled last minute. Lindsey and I start Little Gym next week and I believe that is it for now…

We had a great time in Arkansas! I am truly blessed with my husband’s family…I could not ask for a sweeter Mother and Father-in-law as I have in Carolyn and Judson. Luke had the time of his life playing with all of his cousins. Lindsey was also on cloud nine from all of the attention she received. Thank you to all of the cousins who helped us out so much with them…I felt like they wore us ALL out! We had a family portrait taken for Carolyn’s 70th Birthday and I think the pictures are going to turn out very nice. I know the one of the Grandkids, Nanny and Pa will be fabulous b/c I saw that one in action! Candid pictures from the trip are posted under Our Pictures.

I am getting ready this week for a girl’s trip to the lake this weekend. So, I will come back on after that…..I am sure there will be lot’s to say!!!

Yes, if you watched closely you saw a screwdriver in Lindsey’s video! I had just installed a safety plate on the one outlet in our entire house that was missing. Of course this is the same outlet that Lindsey gravitated to! So, she saw me with the screwdriver and was fascinated by it….it’s the only thing I could get her to crawl to : )
Luke told me today that Lindsey wants to go to Grandma and Grandpa’s house. This is his new thing….when he wants something, he tells me that Lindsey wants it!!!
I picked up a backpack and lunch box today for Luke when he starts his two day pre-pre-school in September and he loved it! He wanted to put the backpack on immediately and carry the lunch box. He was really ready to go to school : (
Some pictures really are worth a thousand words!!!

Well, as always we had a great time at the lake. The last time we were there was after all of the rain. Luke’s new thing is to jump in the lake with Daddy, but two days later he had swimmers ear : ( So, there was no lake swimming this time, but we had our trusty little pool that Lindsey would live in if she could! Speaking of the little princess, she started crawling today! We have live footage of it and it is an actual crawl; not the army crawl that Luke did up until he started walking! Up until today, I have been in Brian’s ear about a third baby in the near future, but since our life has changed effective today with Lindsey’s adorable crawling we will see about that later : ) (ask me in one month)! We are getting ready this week for a trip to Arkansas for Carolyn’s 70th Birthday. Happy Birthday Carolyn!!!
Let’s see what else…..I think there is a Thomas the train in one of our commodes!!! lolol!

We saw so many butterflies today when we got home…it was really neat. Luke calls them “butterflowers”!!! Here is a shot of one of them from my wonderful husband! Can you see it?!?!


Well, I am not sure what to say, but I will come back later and say something!