Hanging with the Teague's

Pneumonia

2011-01-22T14:56:00.001-08:00

What a rough week. We found out on Monday Tyler had Pneumonia. Of course the extreme worrier that I am it freaked me out! We went to the emergency room on Tuesday night because his breathing was a little scary. They observed him for a bit and then sent us right home. The next day Aaron had to go out of town and Tyler woke up 10 times worse. I was devastated. I couldn't understand how he could be sick for 5 days and not seem to be getting better. By 4pm that afternoon he finally starting acting like he was feeling better. A good friend of mine came over to help me (Leslie is an angel) and by the time she got there he was running around the house bouncing off walls. I am sure she thought I was a drama queen. I have heard that kids always make there parents look like liars ;)

So for future reference if your kid has pneumonia most doctors won't tell you to or not to take them to the hospital. We were told if he was very lethargic take him. (He slept all day one of the days). We were also told if we saw his rib cage take him in. Of course I saw his rib cage he was rapidly breathing. Now that I have gone through it I know now that sleeping all day and rapid breathing isn't as serious as I thought but boy it was scary.

Bad news is I have been told that once you get pneumonia you will always be susceptible to it. Not looking forward to going through that again.

Tyler is much better now. We are in Canada for the weekend. I will say I am a little scared of him relapsing but trying not to let my worrying problem ruin everyones fun.

The holidays

2011-01-19T18:43:00.000-08:00

We had such a busy 3 months. We were in Texas most of it. My best friend got married and I got my first girls weekend since Tyler was born. It was a blast catching up with old friends. Then we had a surprise birthday party for my mom in November for her 60th b-day! It was a blast and she had no clue. Tyler stayed in Texas for over a month. He had no clue how long he was gone. He loved everyday of it. His Nana and Papa would take him on nature walks. His Aunts took him to the zoo and PalPal and PaPa took him fishing. If you are wondering he does know the difference between both grandparents. He gets mad if you call the other the one the wrong name. He played with cousins and opened many many presents over the holidays. We did Santa at my parents house. It was such a blast. He wanted a ball, gun, white cake, brown cake, and a spaceship with a man in it. Santa brought him all that and much more. Nana Santa ate the cake and banana Tyler left for him and even left some boot prints.

To sum it up we are so glad to be back in Washington we were a little home sick. We have made some great friends here and are just so in love with the beauty. 2011 brings great things! I can't wait to share more of lives little blessings.

Here are some pictures from the last view months

Santa left some great toys

Tyler's very own spaceship

Santa's footprints

Tyler got white cake and a brown cake

Mrs. Clause ate the cake and banana

We took Tyler to College Station to see Texas A&M he goes around telling everyone he is an Aggie!

He is obsessed with guns! All because Nathan played them with him at Nanner and PalPal's. He got some really cool ones for Christmas. Mom is not very happy about this new stage.

Staying Busy

2010-09-28T07:13:00.000-07:00

I was looking forward to moving because I thought it would slow our life down but moving made me realize that we are not slow down type of people.

We have jumped right into Young Life
I joined a MOPS group on Tuesdays
Tyler has gymnastics every Monday

Our down time usually looks like this......

Tyler loves to find thing in his drawers before he goes to sleep

Crud War

Tyley on his puter" Daddy on his computer

He is the happiest when he is eating sugar

And the quietest when he is watching cartoons

August

2010-09-16T15:05:00.000-07:00

A lot great things happening here. This is a quick update but more to come. We have settled in and are still loving it. We absolutely love our church. It is so perfect for both of us which is something we have both been needing really bad. We have met so many great people. Here are some pictures and quick updates.

This is our new really good friends Keith, Jenny, and Nolan. They are in charge of Young Life in our area and are a huge reason we are now taking over the Stanwood YL. Tyler loves Nolan but for some reason wants to rename him and call him Noah.

I joined a local MOPS group here. Which is awesome btw. It is the highlight of my week. They have a glass that teaches Tyler. I told him he was going to school and he got so excited. He was in the class for over two hours and he got great reviews from the teachers. He also told me that he didn't cry and was so proud of himself. He is such a good boy.

Football season has started and it is a little weird not being in Texas. Washington has many football lovers too. Aaron is apart of two very competitive fantasy football leagues

(Lord help me)

We have decided to start liking the Seahawks. We will see how this goes. We are also keeping an eye on the University of Washington.

Tyler is growing so fast and he is so sweet. He has his manners down so well. He says please and thank you to everything. He is so compassionate he loves to help. This is him sweeping and then he just got tired and decided to lay down. He talks great and loves to tell you that he loves you. He melts my heart daily.

Bad Family picture but I will say that we have a lot more family time here. Loving life!

Stephanie

2010-08-11T08:35:00.001-07:00

So one of my Young Life girls that just graduated made a trip up here to see us. Over the years she has become one of my best friends. This girls love of God, life, people, and adventure is inspiring. I always have so much fun with her. We stayed busy the whole week.

I always seem to relive my past when she is around by giving her advise and sharing good and bad stories. I forget to an 18 year old it can look pretty crazy at times ;)

We started off the week with a beach outing and bike ride. Then we did some crazy stuff like visit a kangaroo farm. She was with us when we bought the boat so of course we had to take it out. Stephanie and I took off one day and drove up Mt. Baker. We had a blast. We explored and found some random roads to climb. We almost hiked but I wimped out. I was to scared of the cougars and bears. (It wasn't a real hiking trail)

My time with her is always life changing. She challenges me in everyway but gives me such happiness and joy being apart of her life.

Thank you Steph for such an awesome week.

This is a cute barn that is down the road from my house. Steph loved it. She was amazed there was nothing bad written on it.

Tyler would do everything Stephanie did. She also goes barefoot everywhere. This is our exploring islands day.

This is the waterfall at Mt. Baker. We tried to hike it but I got scared. I used to be way more adventures.

This is the valley we found after driving up the mountain. It was so fun and just breath taking.

This girl is such a big part of my life. I love you so much Stephanie.

The Boat

2010-08-04T08:17:00.000-07:00

Both Aaron and I have wanted a boat since we were teenagers. When we got married we went boat shopping all the time. We never purchased one because it just wasn't good timing. So of course we get here and there is water all around us. Every weekend we kept thinking there is so much more to discover if we only had a boat. Sooooooo we did it. We made our first toy purchase. We went with a boat that had a cabin in it so Tyler can nap and he thinks it is his cave. So far we have not regretted the purchase at all. The first day we took it out and Aaron got it stuck in the mud so he had to push us out. Pretty funny. The next day we did a sunset cruise and saw little seals playing. It was worth waiting for! I am so excited to go camping next weekend and explore more islands here in Washington. I think this boat is going to give us some awesome family adventures.

Deception Pass from the boat

The Boat

Tyler's Cave

Tyler loves to drive

Exploring an island

Tyler

2010-07-25T22:34:00.000-07:00

For those of you missing Tyler here are a few cute updates.

He talks so much now. He repeats everything you say.

(Close eyes, go sleep)

(All better)

(I lub u)

(bye bye thank you)

He told me the other day his ear itched?? It amazes me how much he knows.

He even tells us exactly what he wants. Usually it is change the channel or roll down the window, turn the air off, put him down, don't hold his hand... He is Mr. Independent. He is still very picky but is venturing out and trying things. He loves to hide. Sometimes I find him in a closet or under a blanket. We play the "I am coming to get you game often" That usually motivates him to get in the bath tub or jump in his bed.

He is getting better about going to sleep at night. He calls it "Sleepy Time" so cute!! He says his prayers and tries just about every tactic he can think of to get us to stay in his room.

He is the master of the dogs. He is usually telling them they are bad or yelling at them (Ha I think he is actually imitating me :%)

He still loves to hug and kiss. He can work my iphone better than I can which has caused me to spend too much money on apps. He is for the most part a really good boy. He minds most of the time. My biggest battle with him is making him sit down or climbing on the dogs.

He loves to play outside. We are running around or going to the park every chance we get. He talks about Texas a lot. He knows he is going on a plane in a few months to see his family.

He can count to 10 and sing twinkle twinkle little star. (Melts my heart) He loves TV which I try to limit as much as possible.

I adore this little boy. He is so much fun!

New helmet... he won't take it off. It is for the big bike so don't think we are that over protective and I promise we don't make him wear it in the car.

He loves to show us his food

Random Fun

2010-07-25T22:02:00.000-07:00

Each weekend we have gone a an adventure. The only bad thing is that neither Aaron or myself are planners so we usually end up driving in the car for hours. We have found some pretty cool stuff. About an hour north of us is a town called Bellingham. It has some of the most amazing rolling his and a very pretty mountain called Mount Baker. This is where we will go skiing in the winter. We have found amazing lakes, waterfalls, whale watching, and some great biking. (We jazzed our bikes up a bit so we feel like locals now. Aaron found out his bike was made for 9 to 14 year olds HA HA LOL. He now has a complex about it) I will take pics this week.

MT. Baker

Then we realized that just 15 minutes from our house is an even more amazing place called Camano Island. (So we finally stopped spending hours in the car) We tried to camp there this weekend but it was full. It is right on the Sound (Washington's Bay) and has this peace about it that draws you in. Tyler is now a little fisherman and we are dying to buy a boat.

We have our second visitor coming this week!!! YAYYYYYYYYY So who is next? A quick flight and we can show you paradise :)

It has been a long time

2010-07-18T20:14:00.000-07:00

I have not updated this in awhile. We have been in the middle of a move to Washington. I have to say I went into this move with no expectations. I was leaving all my Young Life crew which has been my life the last four years. We are also close with our families and leaving them is soooo hard. Another scary thing was leaving my house. I felt like I was walking away from everything,

but....... after being here a month I can say we left a lot but God has great things in store for us here. We got here and I saw all the furniture crammed in the house and started balling. I was so overwhelmed. Thank God my parents were here to help. My dad is such a fix it guy and was here to make a 20 year old house feel new. My mom spent days helping clean and organize. I can say we had this place practically put together in 2 weeks. Which was awesome because we got to be tourist every weekend. We have been to so many amazing State Parks, The Islands, The Mountains, and Lakes. It has been so surreal. Everyone told us the weather was horrible but I have to say the weather is amazing even when it is raining. There is just so much beauty in the green grass and trees. I love looking at the clouds uncover the snow capped mountains. We are 20 minuted from the beach, 45 minuted from skiing, and I would have to say minutes away from some of the best camping in the world. We also live in an older home but the view makes the home feel humble and homey.

We have already found a church that fits us perfectly. We are looking forward to getting involved and developing lasting friendships. We also reached out to the local Young Life chapter, that is a whole different post, but I am so curious to see what God has in store for us there.

Tyler loves it!! He is such a little outdoors boy. He loves fishing, the water, and digging in the dirt. We are living outside these days trying to soak up all the sun we can before the rainy season. We are going camping next weekend and I just know he is going to have the time of his life.

Even though we are having a great time we miss all our friends and family so much. We will be back in Texas in November and look forward to seeing each and everyone of you.

Tyler's truck it is just like daddy's

Papa and Tyler looking at all the wild animals that we could see 2 feet away. Amazing!!!

Tyler helping fix the house. So cute. He is such a helper these days.

One of the many beauties here. We have so much more exploring to do and more family time to do it. We are surely loving life!

It is all coming to an end

2010-04-20T07:12:00.000-07:00

These days have been really sad for me lately. The last few weeks have made me think of so many different and great memories. As all of you know we have been involved in an amazing ministry called Young Life for the last four years. Our kids graduate on June 4th. We had the last Young Life club this week and I got to see 30 kids stand up and talk about what the Lord has done in there lives. So amazing. I have been crying for days. When we first volunteered to do Young Life I remember thinking I don't have the time or anything to offer these kids. At the time I didn't realize that God had his plan and we were just a small part of a bigger picture. These kids just wanted to be loved on and they absolutely loved feeling like a kid in a world that makes our teenagers grow up to fast. God allowed us to plant seeds in these kids that will forever change their lives. With all this being said the weirdest thing is I got more out of this ministry and serving than I ever gave. God changed my heart forever! He blessed me with the most amazing friends and YL family I could imagine. He revealed more to me through their eyes than I had ever seen before. He taught me that serving is all about giving up control and putting yourself out there. I am changed forever because of this ministry and am so humbled and blessed that I have had the best 4 years of my life.

Yes we are moving to Seattle but guess what.... they have Young Life there too!! So I look forward to the new chapter of ministry work that will be put in front of us.

Leaving their mark on our house

Dressing up for dodgeball

Most of the crew

The Move to Seattle

2010-03-24T11:53:00.000-07:00

Here is an update on our move to Seattle. It looks like we should be up there by June. We have not had any luck on selling the house. (only one person has looked at it) So we are deciding to lease it. The house is going up for lease today. We are competing with a property on our street that is unusually low and has been siting there for awhile. Please pray for us. The traveling is really getting to Aaron. Being up in Seattle will take a huge load off of him. I am really excited and ready to get this thing rolling. I search for houses daily in Seattle! I am ready for our new adventure in life!

San Fran and Lake Tahoe

2010-03-21T13:16:00.000-07:00

We planned a family trip on Aaron's points and flyer miles. We were gone for 10 days. Tyler was great on the flights. The flight there was 6 hours!! He did good but it was exhausting keeping him entertained. I had a direct flight on the way back in first class and it was awesome. Tyler was an angel. I could not believe it. I flew back alone with him.

We went to San Francisco first and I lovvvved it. Next time I will not take Tyler and do a romantic weekend with Aaron but I made the best of the trip with him. We stayed in an amazing hotel downtown. Aaron worked during the day and I found a few things to entertain him. We walked down to the Warf everyday. We went to the aquarium and fed the birds. We also saw the sea lions sun bathing. Tons of fun. That weekend we met up with my sister and her family and drove to Tahoe. Wow can I say amazing. We skied and played at the lake. We even went bowling one day. We had a blast!! Thanks Stephanie and Gary for letting us crash your vacation. Love you guys.

Bowling! Tyler looooooooooved it.

These ducks were the prettiest ducks I have ever seen!

My wonderful sister and her family!

He is going to be my little snow boarder someday

Lake Tahoe is 100 time better than Colorado!!

Aaron fixed his hair that day!

My dad thinks he is an Indian Cheif

My brother-in-law! Tyler loves him.

Tyler is so cool in his shades

He loved the aquarium

Snow Snow And More Snow

2010-03-21T13:00:00.000-07:00

It has snowed here a lot this year and Tyler loves it. We have a dog door and I could not keep him from going outside all day. He would even put on his own shoes before he crawled out. Check out the pictures below from the snow day we had weeks ago.

Ginger and Jack are best friends these days. They play all day long together. She is still a pain. But kinda cute ;)

Tyler and Dada's snowman. We never put the eyes and mouth on it.

He kept eating the snow.

The crew playing it was a perfect day.

I found him outside in his diaper. He didn't even care.

Weekdays

2010-01-29T19:05:00.000-08:00

Tyler is so much fun these days. He is really trying to talk. He calls Dora the Explorer "backpack" and he lovesssss the show. He calls balloons "baza baza". He also begs at the freezer for "wafs" which are waffles. (He will eat 4 in one sitting. They don't even have to have syrup on them. He loves hem so much.)

I just don't want to forget these moments like when he stands on his stool to brush his teeth and the way he dances and jams to songs he likes. I don't video enough and know I am going to regret it later. Tonight I watched him pull down all his books and pretend like he was reading them. He even kissed them good night (we do that every night.)

It is really hard being a stay at home mom (alone all week) but I am so blessed to have such an amazing son. I cherish all the moments I spend with the little guy and as hard as the weeks get I always look forward to hanging out with him again the next day...

Thank you Tyler for making my long week go by so fast.

Ideas for SAHM's in Mckinney

2010-01-25T10:48:00.000-08:00

I am listing some of the fun things I have found around the area to do with Tyler during the day.

It gets lonely and boring sometimes being a Stay at Home Mom and I haven't found a specific site that gives you ideas. These things are to remind me of what I can do during the week. I also hope it helps others come up with some ideas to play with your little one.

Mckinney Public Library has weekly/daily songs and story time
Towne Lake Park to feed the ducks
Aviation Park to watch the planes take off and play on the splash pad
Stonebridge park for the toddler slides
Adriatica lake for a stroll it also leads to the toddler park
The Zone for the bounce house
Stonebriar and Willowbend Mall for the toddler play area (Willowbend is play area is bigger)
Chick-fil-a for free ice cream when you trade in the kids meal toy
Mckinney Meetup for playgroups
Churches for Mother's Day Out, Connections, and M.O.P.'s groups
Kid to Kid to find cheap toys, books, and clothes
Lewisville Lake (Hidden Cove) great place for bike rides, picnics and doggy play
The Village in Allen for frozen yogurt,shopping,food and playtime in the Texas maze and little town
Watter's Creek for shopping, food, and great sculptures for kids to play on.
Mommy and Me Gymnastics (We go to Texas Star on 380)
Firetown in Frisco at the Frisco fire department.

Back on Track

2010-01-17T13:25:00.000-08:00

Wow sorry it has been awhile. The holidays always take over my life every year. We have had a blast lately though. Christmas was so much fun. We hosted both families on different weekends and enjoyed every minute of it. We also had the best YL Christmas party yet. This year we discovered Deerfield which is an amazing subdivision in Plano that has one of the best light displays that I have seen. We spent New Years with some old friends and had a great time. Tyler loves being around lots of people. He has become a character these day.

The last few months have brought some great snow days. I am not sure if Aaron or Tyler had more fun in them. I woke up one morning to a small snowman on my doorstep. Aaron still denies he built it with a little chuckle under his breath.

Tyler is growing up so fast too! He has his own opinions about what he likes and it blows my mind. He picks his books to read, night night songs, and even where my hands are placed when I hold him in the rocking chair. He is very picky about his food too. He also has learned the word no and says it all the time. He is such a joy though and so much fun. He loves to dance and laugh. He is also a little show off.

Here are a few pictures of the last few months.

Young Life Christmas Party

Aaron Playing in the Snow

Snow on Christmas

Christmas Morning

2009-11-14T19:23:00.000-08:00

Aaron won us a trip to New York through his company. It was a blast. But, we were so ready to come home. Aaron got way to confident about walking across streets and almost got hit by a car a few different times. I loved Central Park. We ate in Little Italy,had a spa day, and spent a lot of time on Time Square. What a fun place to visit. The only bad thing is I had to go without Tyler for 4 days. I cried when I left him with my sister-in-law. He did great though. He loved being with his cousins.

Fall Fun

2009-11-02T10:26:00.001-08:00

We signed Tyler up for gymnastics. It is the highlight of my week. He loves it and it is great exercise for me. He already knows how to hang form the bars, walk on the balance beam, and do a forward roll.

Our new little girl. We adopted a small golden mix that was about to be put down. She is fitting right in.

Boo at the zoo was a blast. Tyler loves animals and public places we had a blast.

I thought this was the cutest picture. It was an old carriage. That they had setup for pictures.

Happy Anniversary

2009-10-24T08:03:00.000-07:00

Wow it has been 4 years! Last weekend Aaron and I went to Lake Ray Hubbard. We stayed at the Hilton there and ate at a fabulous place name Blue Caynon. We had a blast. It was very beautiful and romantic. I feel so blessed to have the most amazing husband. He is so thoughtful and caring. Aaron is such a hard worker and great father. He makes me a better person. I look forward to the next 50 years. The best part of the weekend is we found out we won a trip to New York in November. So it looks like the anniversary isn't over yet.

17 Months

2009-10-10T08:37:00.000-07:00

Tyler is growing so fast. We have had fun with him lately. He talks a lot but sticks to his favorite words and sayings. He thinks everything is a ball. If it is round it is a ball. If it is an animal it is a dog and if he wants something, he points and says "more, more" repeatedly! It is cute but I promise sometimes I want to scream nooooo that bird is not a dog and that pumpkin is not a ball and nooooo you can not have more m&m's. Ha Ha

I know it is preparing me for the "what is that and why stage"

I am always looking for fun things to do with Tyler and here are a few pics from the last few events.

We went to a pumpkin patch. He was so excited because he thought it was a field of balls. He kept bringing me pumpkins.

(For all of you that live in the Mckinney area one of our YL kids owns the pumpkin patch on Preston in Frisco. "not the one at the church" Go support him! ;) He is a good kid.)

My dad loves to come hang out with his boy. We took him up to Stonebriar Mall and he loved the merry-go-round but my dad had just as much fun as he did.

I posted this picture because he is smiling in his highchair which is not normal since this kid hates to eat. He does not like anything unless it is sugar filled. He also has figured out how to get unbuckled and stand on top of his tray. I walked away for a few secs and almost had a heart attack when I saw him balancing on top of the high chair.

Young Life

2009-09-28T20:26:00.001-07:00

My girls I have had since freshman year. This is only half of the amazing crew we have today.

Cara and Colby the Young Life "presidents"

I am going to have empty nest syndrome when these girls graduate!

Wow we are going on the 4th year of serving in Young Life. I can not tell you and stress how amazing the last 4 years has been. To see these kids grow and mature spiritually is so unreal. I have truly seen them fall so in love with the Lord. This year has been particularly amazing because God has used my past and some of my crazy life lessons/stories to touch and reach these kids. Who would of thought? I have a girls bible study every Wednesday night and I am not kidding you, I have fallen on my knees and praised God after everyone. We have had so much brokenness and so many girls that have come who are lost and even mad at God. I have seen walls breaking and hearts changing. Also my girls are serving this year. They are leading Monday night club, reaching the freshman, and volunteering in the Young Life special needs ministry. It is so cool to see them in a different role and how God is using him to do his work. Thank you Lord for putting this ministry in our lives.

Pictures from this summer

2009-09-28T19:53:00.000-07:00

Here are a few picks from this summer. It was so crazy and fun at times. The fall just started and for us that is Young Life time. Our kids our seniors this year!

Tyler loves to watch the DVD player. I thought I would love having one but I get so sick of Elmo and I hate having him watch this much TV but he yells for it until we turn it on. It has become such a battle.

Tyler wore a suit for Grandaddy's funeral. What a sad day and a sad loss. I am so sad Tyler won't remember this amazing man.

We went to Sea World with my best friend Lindsey and her cute family. Aven (Lindsey's son) and Tyler are best friends. They looooooved watching Shamu. I was crying because it was so cool to see Tyler's excitement.

I can never get him to smile for the camera but he has become a big mama's boy these days.

He only lasted 2 hrs at Sea World. I have never seen this kid just pass out. Thank goodness we had free tickets :)

The good, the bad, and the sorrow

2009-08-24T06:35:00.000-07:00

I can not believe I have not written since June. Life has been so busy and crazy lately. At the beginning of July I went to Young Life camp and had a cabin full of senior and just graduated girls. I left Tyler with Aaron for 8 days. It was hard but camp was sooooo amazing it was worth it. My whole cabin either met the Lord or reconnected with him. Young Life is such an amazing ministry. I had girls that had been sexually abused, had parents that were addicts, girls that were indulging in drugs, alcohol, and sex. I have had such a great opportunity to show and tell these girls how much God loves them. Aaron took Tyler to his parents and spent some great quality time. He only came back with one scrape. It could have been worse ;)

When we got back from camp my 19 year old nephew lived with us for 3 weeks. We had our ups and downs. He is a very hard kid with a lot of emotional problems. He has been on the streets for the past 2 years. He is addicted to drugs and steeling. When he lived here he got to here about the Lords love every night because we had camp follow up over here for two weeks straight. He was participating and sharing a lot. I miss the late night talks over ice cream we had. He is such a sweet kid but still has a lot of maturing to do. I could really see God working on his heart. It all came to ahead when he decided there were to many rules and his friends were to far away. He choose to go back to the streets. Please pray for him. This was a very sad and stressful month for me and my family.

We also found out in July that Aaron's territory changed and that we needed to move to Seattle if he wanted to be promoted. We are excited about the move and love Seattle but don't have any details yet. I am sure it is going to be very hard selling our house. I will update everyone as soon as I know more.

We took a few trips (Seattle and Cali) and we took Tyler to Sea World. It was a blast. I cried when I watched him clap for Shamu. He LOVED it. We got to hang out with our best friends Lindsey, Jared, and their little boy Aven. Aven and Tyler are best friends. They held hands, played hide and seek, and ate popsicles together. It was so adorable.

To end the summer Aaron's Grandfather passed away last night. He has been battling cancer for the past three years and now the pain and fight is over. We are so sad. Tyler is named Tyler Robert because of him. He was such an amazing man. Probably the Godliest man I know. He is going to be so missed. The funeral is this Saturday so we will be preparing and hosting all week.

We had an eventful summer but I have to admit I am so glad it is almost over. I am ready for some new chapters in my life. I am so thankful for our Lord's grace and mercy. I am so thankful for the family and friends he has blessed me with. I have lived by the quote "when times get tough, kneel."

In him

More updates and pictures to follow.

2009-06-17T19:05:00.000-07:00

We have been busy folks!! Tyler is into everything and loves to do everything I don't want him to do. We hung out with our good friends Lindsey and their son Aven. The boys had so much fun together. They even kissed each other. It was so cute. Also one of my Young Life girls painted a jungle mural in our playroom. It is amazing. She is so talented. Here are some cute pictures.

Here is a quick picture of the murals

They had to learn how to take turns

Tyler pushed Aven around! It was so cute.

Summer is here!

2009-05-31T07:40:00.000-07:00

What a crazy month. We have been so busy. We had a couple of birthday's for Tyler and they were so much fun! He still runs around the house saying birthday! We have had family in town a lot! We love them though so it is fun. We just had our last Young Life party of the year. It is funny our kids are growing up so fast. I think they finally have grown out of all these little parties we throw them. They are so sweet though. I truly think they come so they don't hurt our feelings. We are not pulling any new kids in so I think we are going to stop doing the parties for awhile. We are now gearing up for a busy June and getting ready to be camp counselors at a YL camp in Colorado the first week of July. I am leaving Tyler for 8 days. Thinking about it makes me sick. We have been working on our back yard some. Tyler loves to play out there so it has become my get away place during the day to calm him down. As it gets hotter more and more I wish we had a pool. Tyler is growing like a weed. He is really starting to talk and he has gotten the walking thing down! He is so much fun. It is getting harder for Aaron to leave on his weekly trips because he misses him so much.

I am on a diet! I have a hard time sticking to it but I think I am finally motivated!! Getting old stinks sometimes. I remember when I could lose 10 lbs in a week in high school. Here are some of the latest pics from the past few weeks.

Tyler at his ball themed birthday party!

The amazing cake my aunt made

My best friend michelle

Daddy loves to play and Tyler loves to be rough housed!

We dressed alike for memorial day. I am such a cheesy mom.

Happy Birthday Tyler

2009-05-13T13:58:00.000-07:00

It is Tyler's birthday today. Wow I can't believe a year has gone by. We had a little party for Tyler at my parents on Sunday. It was so much fun! He has more toys then we know what to do with. His main birthday party is this weekend. I can't wait!! Here are 12 things I love about Tyler.

1. I love the way he grabs my face to give me kisses

2. I love the high pitch of his voice when he says ball.

3. I loved that at 3 months old he loved standing (supported by us)

4. I love the hugs he gives when he is in a good mood.

5. I love that when you laugh he laughs because he thinks he is doing something funny.

6. I love the way he feeds the dogs the food he does not want to eat.

7. I love his almost curly hair.

8. I love how he sits in my lap with his legs crossed when he watches Elmo.

9. I love that he likes the car now!

10. I love that he is finally one and I don't have all these things I can's give him or do until he is one.

11. I love that the dogs finally love him (I think it is because he feeds then allllllll the time!!!)

12. I love that he is my son!

Leaving Tyler for the first time!

2009-05-04T08:51:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we went on a trip to San Diego. Aaron's wonderful company does quarterly incentive trips for the top producers of the company. Aaron won last quarter and it was amazing. We had such a relaxing and great time. The only thing is I had to leave Tyler. My parents stayed with Tyler at our house. I called at least 4 times a day. He was great for them. They did not want to leave this morning. He learned so much in 4 days. I came back and he is practically walking. He even stands up on his own now. He also says Na Na and Dog now. He is mimicking like crazy. I went to get him up this morning and he was so confused. Then he smiled like crazy for hours and kept giving us hugs!! I think I can leave him again and it will a lot easier. Here are some picks from our trip.

Me throwing Aaron's crackberry I mean blackberry overboard

Aaron's Co-workers

Food

2009-04-28T06:59:00.000-07:00

I need to know how I can get Tyler to like vegetables. I am so picky and I don't want him to turn out like me. He seems to only like sweet potatoes. He love mac and cheese, spaghetti,lunch meat.... But he won't even eat corn!! I try to mix it in but he is very smart!! Anyone have any suggestions?

New Room

2009-04-18T13:17:00.000-07:00

We finally are making good use of our house. We decided since Tyler gets into to everything and he keeps busting on the floor down stairs, we would sell the pool table and make the upstairs gameroom into a giant play room. He loves it. We put a baby gate up so it is so much easier to watch him. It has also kept our down stairs so much cleaner. I love it!! Here are some cute pictures of our new rooms.

Yes Bluebonnets in Richardson

2009-04-13T18:29:00.000-07:00

One of the moms from my play group found this great place in Richardson that has the most amazing bluebonnets! Tyler loved them. It was such a beautiful day. I love Texas in the spring!!

Scarborough Fair

2009-04-13T17:44:00.000-07:00

We went to Scarborough Fair a few weekends ago. It was a lot of fun. I just to go when I was a kid and loved it. The first time I took Aaron he was freaked out by it. He couldn't believe that people actually came dressed up. This year he was very open minded and I think saw it through Tyler's eyes. I think Tyler will have a blast when he is about 4 or 5.

He just learned to clap

This lady was dressed up as mother earth

Tyler on a lama

He road with his feet up the whole time!

What's Been Going On

2009-04-01T17:01:00.001-07:00

Tylers classic look

Bree at playgroup handing out hugs!

My mom and Tyler. She plays with him for hours.

Wow I can't believe it has been almost a month since my last post. Tyler is almost 11 months old. He talks a lot. His favorite word is ball. He says mama and dada and we think papa and nana. He has the cutest chipmunk laugh and is such a sweet boy. He is a very picky eater but is doing well with solids. I am beginning to wean and can't wait until it is over. My parents have been such a huge help this year. They adore Tyler. It is so fun seeing them interact. Aaron and I are doing great. Luckily Aaron's job is going great. He is having a great year and is still loving the position. Stay at home motherhood is challenging but so much fun. Right now I am planning for Tyler's first birthday. It is going to be so much fun. We are having a ball theme. Can't wait to post pictures. Here are some of my favorite pics from the last few months.

New Pool

2009-03-05T17:36:00.000-08:00

He played in it for an hour!!(That is long for him!!)

So I went shopping today which I shouldn't of done when I saw that our house taxes are raising $5K next year. (There is no way!)

But this picture made it all ok. It doesn't even have the water in it.

Life as a Stay at Home Mom

2009-03-04T17:03:00.000-08:00

Wow before Tyler was born I thought being a stay at home mom was going to be the easiest most amazing thing. Not that it is not but it is a lot different than I thought. Thank God I have an amazing little boy that makes it all worth it. I thought I would wake up every morning and go workout, clean the house during the day, and cook dinner at night. My gosh so opposite!! I wake up and I am exhausted, on a good day I get a shower, and I cook maybe once every other week. Let's not talk about cleaning! My house is so gross I can't believe I let Tyler crawl around it everyday. I have been sick more in the last 3 months than I have been in the last 30 years. But before all of you start going "cry me a river" trust me I know how blessed I am to be able to stay home.

I would not give up for the world the naps I take with Tyler daily, the outings and playgroups we go to every week, the daily changes and milestones that happen right under my all watching eye. It is not easy but I would not trade it for the world.

Young Life

2009-03-02T17:51:00.000-08:00

Wow what a big part of our life Young Life is. Aaron and I are Young Life leaders in McKinney. We focus on the Junior Class at Boyd High School. We have been with these kids since they were Freshman. These kids are amazing. They are truly good kids. Sometimes I wonder why the Lord choose Aaron and I for this ministry. I am so not worthy!! I meet with my girls on Tuesday and Thursday mornings at Starbucks, Sunday night at Campaigners, and every other Monday night at club. My girls love to stop by and talk, hang out, pray etc... Aaron is great with his guys. He is such a great spiritual leader. He leads most of the bible studies on Sunday nights. He has such a great grip on his theology.

This summer I have 6 girls going to work at different Young Life camps all over. Praise God!! That is amazing. I pray on a regular basis I am leading these girls in the right direction. I pray I am having those tough conversations when needed. I pray I make this ministry about God and not about me. It is amazing how this ministry has changed my life. I finally am in a good place with my walk. I am more confident spiritually than I have ever been.

I do admit it has been hard at times. Especially with a new born this year. But these girls are so worth it. They threw me a baby shower when I was pregnant. They beg to babysit all the time, and they even come over just to help at night sometimes when Aaron is out of town. I have even built relationships with their parents. This ministry makes Mckinney such a small town. I can't wait to see the kids grow up into amazing parents and spiritual leaders in their communities.

Praise God for everything! Praise God for a the blessings he brings.

9 Months Old

2009-03-01T17:16:00.001-08:00

Tyler is 9 and 1/2 months old. He is so much fun. He is so close to walking. He walks all around the house on his walker. His has started grunting. It sounds like he is always pooping it is actually really funny. He is finally eating great. We give him many different types of table food. Probably things we should not be giving him! :( He still hasn't met a stranger. I guess he is social like his parents. He says BA BA BA and MA MA on occasion. He loves balls. He rolls them around the house and chases after them all day long. He can also climb the stairs. Which is so scary because he still has not learned the proper way of getting down. Tyler loves his PAPA. My dad comes by as much as he can and Tyler just lights up. My dad plays with him the whole time he is with him. My dad can't wait to take him fishing. Tyler wakes up at 5 every morning which is so rough. I am ready to ween him. Only 2 1/2 more months. I am counting down the days!! He loves going to play group and our church nursery. He has some really good friends he plays with every week. I cherish every minute with him. He is such a blessing and an amazing addition in our lives.

On The Road Again

2009-01-24T17:51:00.000-08:00

Tyler in Childress at the Park
My new SUV

A long day at the casinos!

One of the many cool hotels in Vegas

Aaron and I took vacation this past week. We could not decide what we wanted to do. Our child hates to sleep so we knew any real vacation was out of the question. Aaron's job just keeps getting better and better. Because he travels he has many free flights and hotel stays. So we wanted to a least get out of Dallas for a bit. So we went to the extreme. We bought a used Nissan Armada in Las Vegas and decided to drive it back and make a vacation out of it. We went back and forth trying to decide if we should go or not. Tyler hates the car and he was really sick the week before. We finally decided to make it happen. We stayed in Vegas the first night. It was really cool to see the buildings and the amazing hotels. We almosted got mugged though so we decided to take off to Flagstaff, Arizona. Aaron was so excited about going to Arizona and it ended up being really smelly and really boring. Don't try to take an 8 month old to the Grand Caynon. At that point we were focused on getting home. We had fun though. We enjoyed driving and playing stupid games like, "If you were going to be eaten by a shark, tiger, or bear, which one would it be?" You can learn a lot about someone with these types of random questions. We played games with Tyler, had picnics, and laughed a lot. So all and all our long road trip was a good vacation. But I have to say there is no place like home.

I love my health!

2009-01-18T19:51:00.000-08:00

Wow it has been a rough week. Tyler is sick again. He has been sick almost every other week since Thanksgiving. I thought breastfed babies didn't get sick!! We have been through RSV, Colds, Stomach Viruses, Ear infections, and Teething. I think I am going to go to school to be a pediatric nurse! (LOL) I should be an expert by now. The hardest thing that comes with dealing with a sick baby is the worrying. I worry about everything. I think I have aged 10 years in the past week. I made my first visit to the emergency room this week with Tyler. I think the doctor thought I was a little crazy but I just needed some assurance to know Tyler was o.k.. (I know it is going to cost me crazy money for that little bit of reassurance!) My sister tells me you never stop worrying that it is just motherhood. I have learned to appreciate the good and healthy moments. I wish there was a crazy overreactive mom hotline I could call sometimes. Luckily I have some close friends and family that help me get through the hard times. Everyone tells me I won't be as bad with the second one.

The Fun Times

2009-01-12T19:00:00.000-08:00

(He was so mad at me!)

Being a mother has been challenging but so wonderful. Aaron travel's so it gets tough sometimes but he is such a huge help the days he is in town. Parenthood requires a lot of team work. We finally feel like we are getting it down. Tyler is a little toot. He now screams when you take things away from him. He will pull your hand away if you are blocking him from grabbing something. He is so fun though. He loves the dogs and they are so put out by him. He loves his baths and he loves to chase mom and dad around the house. His little laugh just makes us melt. He is 8 months today and I cant believe we have made it this far. Life without a child seems so boring. This week we are taking a 20hr road trip and Tyler hates the car!! Wish us luck.

Don't Rob Us!

2009-01-10T17:26:00.000-08:00

Today was something new and crazy for me. As city as my husband looks he really is quite the country boy. Aaron is a closet gun collector and he got the itch for an AR 15. Because of the recent election people are going crazy trying to get guns. So Aaron has been looking for weeks and has had no luck finding the gun he wants. We have driven all over Ft. Worth and Dallas trying to find it. So randomly Aaron found a gun show today in Mesquite. OMG what a crazy thing!! I have been to bridal shows, baby shows, and now I can say I have been to a GUN SHOW! If you have not been to one you are not missing much. I have never seen so many Red Necks and Gansters in one place. I must have been a really awesome wife because the gun dealer kept saying, "so your wife is cool with this!" He even had a wife o.k. check box on his form. So Aaron has scratched his itch and has one more toy for his collection.

Crawling Everywhere

2009-01-09T08:58:00.001-08:00

Tyler is getting into everything these days. Even though he doesn't do a normal crawl his little army crawl gets him around nicely.

Family Christmas

2008-12-15T16:31:00.000-08:00

This weekend was crazy. We had a blast. 22 people stayed with us for the Lee family Christmas. Tyler loved all his cousins, aunts, and uncles.