Thanksgiving 2011

 Thanksgiving this year was a fabulous holiday.  It was a bit more difficult traveling with two children now, but nonetheless, we made it to San Angelo.  Every year the Poe family gathers in west Texas for Thanksgiving dinner.  We used to eat at Charlsie’s house but now we meet at Mimi’s.  Our family is continually expanding, to include our new babies, Buddy’s family the Halls, the Broyles, my sweet Bitt Bitt’s parents and even Aunt Karen’s parents.  Because of our ever expanding crew, we had to rent out a place to host our dinner.  It was beautiful and right on the water.  Mimi bought a fabulous bouncy house for the kids and let me tell you it was the hit of the day. Michael, Quinn, Nash, Brenna, Madison and Presley had such a good time! Mimi’s decorations were beautiful and the food was of course amazing.  I was so busy visiting and playing with the kids, I didn’t even get a piece of pie! But as long as Michael got one of Aunt Glenda’s turkey cookies, everything was okay!   Soon, it was time to head back to Mimi’s and get ready for bed.  By the time Glenda finished cleaning the kitchen, everyone wanted round two of dinner.  Seems about right though doesn’t it?  We settled in to watch the University of Texas beat Texas A&M in their last game…at least for a while anyway. Friday, we headed home with two very sleepy babies.  Michael fell asleep in the car and Derin put him in his bed around 6pm.  Michael slept in the same position until 8:15 Saturday morning.  Playing with his cousins was definitely exhausting, but well worth it.  I truly enjoyed seeing my family and feel that our visit was just too short.  Being around everyone made me realize just how much I miss them and also how thankful I am to have them in my life.

Happy Halloween

Well, Halloween 2011 was quite the event.  We usually go to our church Fall Festival but we didn’t have one this year so it was Michael’s first time to officially trick-or-treat.  Michael was so cute as a little fireman and Ava was beautiful as Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz.  I think Michael’s favorite part of the day was pulling in our driveway and then having Derin open the door.  Michael screamed “Daddy!!”  He was so happy and we were so glad he was home. We headed to eat with our friends and Michael got to play with his friends Laylin and Linlee (Michael keeps saying how pretty they are:).  After dinner, it was time to hit the streets and go for candy!  Ava was escorted in style in her stroller and Michael wanted to walk in his boots.  I originally thought the fireman outfit was just cute and then I realized how safe it was because it had all the reflective gear on it!

Michael wasn’t sure what he was supposed to do, he just kept going up to people and saying “please” and holding out his hands for candy.  He then thought that he was supposed to eat the candy at every door.  I was very pleased that he kept saying “thank you” and “you’re welcome” when people gave him his treats.  How did I get so lucky?Lulu and Uncle Craig were sweet enough to walk around with us, we wouldn’t have had nearly as much fun without them.  Lulu looked beautiful in her orange (my favorite color) sweater and hat!  Ava just watched everyone and would have slept but I think that all the costumes and lights were fascinating.

We headed home, where Ava truly showed her exhaustion, but after baths and bedtime stories we all collapsed and fell fast asleep.  A great Halloween and a fun night that I will never forget.

 

Pumpkins

  Every year at Uncle Sam’s and Aunt Karen’s we carve pumpkins.  I have to say that I have been spoiled living so close to them.  We have loved our Wednesday night dinners and it is something I will surely miss when we move in January. Anyway, it was fun and the weather was beautiful…thank you October!  I picked up a Lightning McQueen pumpkin kit from Target (of course) for Michael to use on his pumpkin.  We cut holes in it and then pushed the face and lightning bolt in.  We also had a small pumpkin for Ava that Michael painted and Ava put her hand print on. It was so cute because this time last year, Lynn and I were pregnant and this time we had our sweet Ava and Cole to help us with our pumpkins. 

At Missy’s house on Friday, Michael got to make another pumpkin with his buddies.  Missy bought sweet little pumpkins and felt stickers for the kids to decorate their pumpkins with.  They are very precious and look cute in our kitchen.  Just another reason why I love the Fall!  I can’t wait for Halloween so we can go trick-or-treating with our two little treats!  Just wait until you see their costumes!

Six Months Old

Happy half birthday my littlest love!  My goodness how you have grown, it just amazes me!  You now eat all of your fruits and vegetables.  You even love carrots, which Michael hated until recently.  You now weigh 18 lbs and are 27.6 inches long.  You gained three pounds and grew almost three inches in three months.  I cannot believe you have tripled your birth weight already.  Doctors expect that by the first year!  Now I have to buy a new carseat in the next couple of months silly girl! You still roll everywhere and try to sit up by yourself.  You can do it for a few seconds but then you look at me or Michael and lose your focus.   So cute.  Your favorite thing to do is to stick your hands out in front of you as far as you can and star at them.  Almost as if you are inspecting your manicure.  It is hilarious that you can amuse yourself for a good ten minutes doing that. You love to blow raspberries with your mouth especially while you are eating because then the food goes everywhere!  You are a messy eater unlike your brother because you stick your fingers in your mouth and then spread stuff all over your beautiful head of hair. 

You coo constantly and have found your high voice.  For a while there you only hit low notes but not anymore!  Just like your brother, the louder you get, the higher you get!

Finally my love, I am beginning to see myself in you.  I can see me in your smile and it just melts my heart.  You have the best parts of me my love.  There is just something special about having a daughter, something unexpected but so sweet.

Baby Dedication

“I prayed for this child, and God gave me what I asked for. And now I have dedicated him to God. He’s dedicated to God for life.” 1 Samuel 1:27-28

On October 23rd, Ava Elisabeth had her baby dedication at our church Community Bible Church, New Braunfels.  I could not wait for the weekend to arrive when the entire family including Gigi and Mimi would arrive to celebrate our commitment to raise Ava with Christ as the center of our home.  Uncle Craig played the drums and I sang in the service.  It was so sweet, especially when I finished singing and the prayer had begun, and I heard “Mommy!” from across the sanctuary because Michael didn’t want to go to the nursery.  Oh well, my sweet little one, I love to hear you say my name just like Christ loves to hear us say His name.

It was a fun weekend and I am so blessed to have such a loving family that supports our sweet children.  We also celebrated Craig’s birthday, Ava’s sixth month birthday and PawPaw’s birthday.  A great weekend all around!

Five Months Old

Yes, of course this is long over due as you are now sixth months old little one.  But, with your Daddy living in our new house and us back here, things are a bit hectic and when I do find time to sit down, it is usually to sleep.Well precious Ava, you are quite the little doll.  Your hair is so amazing that it is the first thing people comment on.  Needless to say, your hair accessories now take up an entire wall in your room.  You have begun to actually eat your cereal, we have come a long way in a month on that one.  Now you eat some fruits and veggies but you make silly faces all throughout dinner.  You still eat it so I’m not sure what you are thinking. You roll everywhere.  You have outgrown your play gym because you kept getting  caught in the sides when you would try to roll around.  So, now we have a floor full of blankets for you to roll around in circles.

You amaze me with how much you know your brother.  He makes you laugh like no one else.  There is such a sweet connection there that makes me fall in love with you both all over again. You love for me to sing, doesn’t matter what the words are, you just love the melody. So if you are fussy, I just sing about something and all is well.  You are such a great little sleeper, thank you so much for blessing me with sleep.  Not much phases you, you are a very relaxed little girl.  Not like your mommy. :)Well my little darling Ava, you are growing up before my very eyes and I can’t believe it is happening.  So stop it. Just stay this size forever my love.