Cole's BIG Elmo Party!

"Wow, this is all for me?!" Cole and his bud, Alex, shooting some hoops! Cole trying his hardest to get up in the moonwalk himself, his new favorite line..."I do it, I do it!"

YEA for the cool "Hokey Pokey Elmo"!!

Whew! May has been crazy! We've literally had something filling the calendar every weekend, all fun, but BUSY! Cole had his big Elmo party and had so much fun; the Elmo moonwalk was the hit of the party, Oh and the "Hokey Pokey Elmo" that Uncle Chris and Aunt Kelly bought him!! Cole's favorite line from the Elmo doll is when he falls over and says "Elmo's pooped!" Cole gets a real kick out of that only because he takes it literally and then has to check Elmo's bottom to make sure he hasn't actually pooped! It's been so fun and entertaining to watch the major growth spurts Cole's hitting now, especially verbally! He's trying to imitate all the words big sister is using and we are very proud that he attempts to say his name now; what used to be "UHH" is now "OLE"...we're getting closer and further away from caveman talk! One thing's for sure, the boy can throw and I mean far; Chad and I have never seen a 2 year old with an arm like that. The day of the party he shot the basketball in the basket from about 3 feet away and made it about 9 out of 10 times! Chad's already looking for a contract he can sign, ha,ha!! Abbey, Cole, and I are now finding different things to fill up our summer days that have already begun until everyone's swim lessons, tumbling, and gymnastics start up next week. We've had fun getting creative with Play-Doh, markers and drawing, nature walks, and building forts in the game room. I think keeping them busy is the only way I'm going to stay sane all summer long!! Chad's staying pretty busy at work and we enjoyed having the extra time with him this last Holiday weekend and can't wait for our Destin vacation coming up...YIPEE! I have joked with him that he'll have to loose the Blackberry over our trip or it's going to go skipping into the beautiful gulf waters (I'm so mean)!! Well, more updates to come soon; we've got Abbey's dance recital AND David's high school graduation both this upcoming Saturday. What's your estimate as to how long Cole will last through a 2 hour recital and a 2 hour graduation??!!

Cole Turns 2!!!

We celebrated tonight with dinner and a cake made by Mommy & Abbey;

Happy 2nd Birthday, Cole!!!

My baby was officially 2 this morning at 7:48am; so hard to believe he's now a full blown toddler!! I remember everything about the day he was born just like it was yesterday. I suppose two years ago at this time Chad and I were doing some "awe-gazing" and also wondering how that 10lb, 4oz. baby fit inside my body! How blessed we are Cole by your joyful laughter and adorable smile, your sweet affections and that you love to be cuddled, your very ACTIVE spirit, your enthrallment with your sister, your love for singing Bible songs, and for all the moments we get to experience the differences in having a boy (picking your nose, running around in circles till your all sweaty, loving bugs, dogs, and pretty much all animals, and already stopping all that you're doing to watch basketball on ESPN)!!! I can still remember vividly the night I literally cried out to God that He might be gracious to us and bless us with another baby after the heartache we experienced a year earlier. I walked away that night with such a peace; a peace that whether He blessed us with another baby or not, it had nothing to do with how much he loved both me and Chad. My heart continually rejoices that His perfect plan came in the form that it did and that He taught me so much in the "waiting" for Cole. I love you baby boy!

April & May Tidbits!

Abbey & Cole displaying thier creative hats!

O.K., I'm posting this pic to give my girlfriends kudos...after asking, this was their take on "Texas Chic" attire and I have to say they were right on; Chad thanks you to0, ha,ha!!

Fly'in in style aboard the private jet!

Here we are at Becker Vineyards with one of our FAVORITE chefs, Tom Perini!

WAY TO GO Aunt Courtney!!! ACU Graduation 2008

It was so fun running into my sweet friend Tracey & her family graduation weekend! OOPS! I guess I skipped right over April! Bad, bad blogger I am!! I guess we've been a little busy; I'll tell you, Spring is proving to be just as hectic as the holidays are...hmmm, or could it be our season in life! Well here goes a few quick updates and then I'll let the pictures do the talking! In betweeen Abbey and I both getting strep again and Cole having some strange fever virus (which might have been hand-mouth disease, yah, don't even ask), we have had some FUN trips and events scattered through April and May. One of the events in the pictures was a corporate client event we were invited to that was just crazy fun: in a nut shell, we boarded a private jet, flew to Fredricksburg, tasted wine and toured Becker vineyards, were hosted my Dr. Becker and his wife, ate a 5 course meal prepared by the legendary chef Tom Perini (some of you Abilene folks may recognize the Perini), listened to Tom share stories about cooking for President George W. Bush and Putin, watched the sun set over lavendar fields, and then flew home on the jet and were back by midnight! Yes, did I mention this was insane!! I felt just a little bit out of my element as other women dripping in diamonds shared stories about thier own private ranches and VINEYARDS (craziness) BUT it was an adventure and a fabulous date night with my sweetie!! You will also see pics of my sister-in-law Courtney who just graduated with her Masters this last weekend at ACU; WAY TO GO Aunt C!!! After graduation we drove to Ft. Worth to spend time with Chad's precious grandparents and other family and then had a great Mother's Day lunch on Sunday at Uncle Carl & Aunt Bev's house. One of the highlights of the weekend for both Chad and I was worshipping at Richland Hills Church of Christ on Sunday morning; what an awesome, God-filled and growing church. I don't know if it was the singing, the preaching, or just being Mother's Day but I had to grab the kleenex about 3 times (and NO I'm NOT pregnant)!! It was one of those days where I just walked away feeling so, so graced and reminded that God choses ME and He pursues ME all the time even in my imperfectness; what GOOD news!! O.K. so I tried to be brief...how am I doing?!! I'll close with a quote that I heard this Sunday by preacher Rick Atchley, "Don't pursue happiness; happiness is the gift that follows you when you pursue God." How true!!