Colin's First Birthday Party

We celebrated Colin's 1st birthday with a jungle themed party at my mom's house this afternoon. Colin had a great time visiting with family & friends.
We had a beautiful jungle cake made for everyone to eat, but Colin got to dig into his very own special little cake. I was actually surprised that he really wasn't that interested in the cake. He ate a little of the frosting, but that was it!

We had a great time, and we thank everyone who shared in the special occasion!

Farewell Brunch

All of the brothers & sisters went to have brunch at The Original Pancake House to say farewell to Megan. Meg is off to college at Texas Tech. We'll miss you Meggy!

Christian's Baby Dedication

Christian was dedicated to the Lord today at Mosaic Christian Fellowship. After the dedication we had a celebratory lunch at Joel & Valerie's house.

Playdate

We went to play with the Kolb girls today. Colin met a few new friends, and had fun crawling all over the place!

Beep...Beep...Beep

Why is it that the fire alarm batteries always die in the middle of the night? About 2 weeks ago Miguel and I woke up to BEEP...BEEP....BEEP and we figured out that it was in his office. So we got up, and took the battery out. I bought a bunch of batteries b/c Miguel figured that the when the house was built, all of the alarms got the batteries around the same time, so they will probably die around the same time. We never changed out the rest of the batteries.

Last night at 3:00, Miguel woke me up saying the he heard a BEEP. I didn't hear it and after a few minutes of listening, I told him to go back to sleep. So as I was drifting off to sleep again, I heard BEEP! Frustrated, Miguel sat up and said "did you hear it this time?" This time I got up and went searching the house for the stupid alarm that was half dead. After waiting in the living room for about 5 minutes, I finally went back into the bedroom to go back to sleep. It never made another BEEP the rest of the night! How frustrating!

Splash Pad at Finch Park

Whitney invited Colin & I to go to the park with her today. They had a pretty neat splash pad. I lotioned Colin up and set him in the water, and he had a great time!

Playdate

Colin & I met up with some girls from my meetup group at Starbuck's this morning. We had a great time drinking coffee (the mom...not the kids), and letting the kids play on the floor. I just love the cheerio stuck to Colin's chin!

Cousins Swimming

Colin and Christian had a blast in the pool yesterday! It was Christian's first time and he really like it. Colin just wanted to splash him!

Playdate

We had a playdate at our house yesterday. The Clark's, Rodenburgh's, and the Pacheco's joined us. As always, the kids had a blast!

Colin's First Boo-Boo

If you look closely at Colin's forehead, you will notice a small bruise above his right eyebrow. How did he get it, you ask? I haven't got a clue. He woke up with it this morning :(

Colin's first boo-boo. I'm more upset about it than Colin is.

Playdate

Colin and I joined the Kolb girls at the Tovson house today for a playdate. The kids had tons of fun and the moms took some fun pictures!

Sad That It's Over...

So I finished reading the last Harry Potter book this morning. I'm NOT going to ruin it for anybody else...so you can keep reading ;)

I'm sad that it's over. I'm sad that there won't be a next book coming out in a few years. I'm also sad that I was so rushed to read it so quickly. I wanted to take my time and enjoy the book, since it is the last one...but I was too afraid that somebody would ruin it for me.

In fact, yesterday at work 2 people tried to ruin it for me. It wasn't until I told them that I would have to bust their kneecaps (and was dead serious about it) that they actually stopped talking about the book.

So, it's over now, and I won't say anything again until everyone that I know who was interested in reading the book has read it.

Playdate

Today Colin & I went to Casey's house to play with the girls. Emily, Caroline & Katie met us there. The kids had a blast playing. Colin was the pimp of the day as he was the only boy!

11 Months Old

My precious little boy is 11 months old today. Whew, the time is flying! We are starting to plan his birthday party. I can't believe it.

I love him more and more every day. It's amazing. He does or says something new every day and it just blows my mind!

6 Wonderful Years

I have spent the 6 most wonderful years of my life with Miguel. In fact, I've spent 9 1/2...but 6 of them married to him. Miguel, thank you so much for who you are and what you stand for. You are an amazing father and a great husband. I love you. Happy Anniversary.

I've posted a picture for each year that we've been together that was taken on or around our anniversary...and a wedding picture. My oh my how we've changed!

Whoo-hoo...Got the New HP Book Today

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was released today. Miguel and I pre-ordered ours months ago on Amazon.com. We got an e-mail confirmation from them yesterday saying that they had just mailed it out. I was very upset b/c I didn't think we would get it today...but when I got to my mailbox, I saw a pretty brown book box from Amazon.com! I'm so excited and I can't wait to start reading it!

New Pictures

I've finally uploaded all of the pictures that I've taken in July so far. Check out smugmug if you are interested! There will be plenty more...Bianca's Sweet 16 Party, our Anniversary, and more random pictures soon!

Congratulations Baby Caroline

Colin and I were present at Caroline's Christening this morning. It was a beautiful service, and Caroline was great! She looked so pretty in her white dress!

Playdate

I had a playdate at our house today. Casey, Emma, Madison, & Kaetlyn Kolb, Lisa, Mary, William, & Robert Clark, Emily, Katie, & Caroline Tovson, Kelly & Joey Rodenburgh came over to play! We had 10 kids 3 & under playing. It was great to get all of the kids together and even better to have adult conversation during the day! I definitely want to do it again soon!

Happy Birthday Bianca!

Sweet Bianca turned 16 today! Bianca holds a special place in my heart b/c I met her when she was only 6 months old. I've watched her grow up and blossom into such a loving beautiful young lady. Happy birthday Binks, I love you!

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Yay! We saw HP 5 last night at midnight for the opening show. We had so much fun. Miguel and I left Colin with my mom to go. Whitney went to the theater at 6:00 to start waiting in line. There were already about 20 people ahead of her...but she definitely got us a great spot in line. We joined Whit around 8:00 and Jonny arrived soon after. The 4 hour wait began! We played a few different cards games...and included some people in line next to us, read, played on the laptop and talked to pass the time. They finally let us into the theater at about 10:00 where we endured 2 hours of people screaming. When the movie finally started at 12:01 am, we were definitely ready. We had our popcorn, soda and sour patch kids.

I know that people who are really into movies dress up, but I just couldn't ever see myself doing that. I saw quite a few Dementors, Winky the House Elf, a bunch of non-specific Gryffindor students and tons of people wearing HP shirts, buttons, hats, wands, brooms and cloaks. Quite scary!

Overall, the movie was really good, but I was left a little disappointed b/c I had just read the book, and I felt that they had left so much out of the movie that was in the book. Miguel and I would like to make a trip back to the theater to see a second time soon!

Pleasant Surprise

Nothing different about today...except the fact that I've been really really emotional. I've cried like 5 times...and at stupid things that I've seen on tv. I've been playing with Colin, cleaning up the house, checking e-mail, etc. Colin went down for a nap and Dali & I walked out to get the mail like any other day. I got the mail, walked back into the house and started flipping throught the junk, when I got a card from a friend, out of the blue. I tossed the rest to the side, opened it up, read it...and cried. It was just simple note with a very thoughtful message...but it made my day. What started out as a blah emotional day has ended up being a really nice emotional day. Thank you very much!

Now if I could only bring a smile across someone's face for no reason that would make my day even better. God has blessed me with such a great family, and great friends. Each and every person holds a special spot in my heart.

Happy 4th of July

I hope that everyone had a wonderful, fun & safe 4th! Colin had a great time. We celebrated with a barbeque at Frances' house. Then we left to go see the McKinney fireworks, but they were postponed due to inclement weather. Plano didn't cancel theirs, so we went there instead. We had a great time celebrating with all of the family.

10 Months Old

I almost let the day go by without my monthly post...Colin is 10 months old. He's starting to crawl, talking a ton, showing more emotions other than just crying. He's becoming a little person. My little person, Miguel's little person...our little person. A little person that won't be little for much longer. A little person that will be walking and talking soon, and, hopefully a little person that loves God above all else, but that's up to Miguel and I to teach him, so please pray for us.

We are entering a scary point in life. One where our actions not only affect us, but the lives of our children...but for now, Colin. His mind is so impressionable now. He's soaking it all in...everything that he sees and hears. I have been making an effort to make changes in my life that will positively affect him, and help him to learn the good things. Please pray for Miguel and I that we can not only show God to Colin, but put Him at the center of our household; to base everything that we do for His honor and His glory. Pray that our home is always filled with the Holy Spirit, and a home that is inviting to others.

Colin's Crawling

So Colin is definitely crawling. It's not very productive yet, but after much work, he ends up where he wants to be. It's actually kind of cute watching him shimmy his way around. Yay for Colin!

Colin's 9 Month Portraits & Cousins Portraits

I picked up Colin's 9 month portraits & also the cousin pictures that we had taken while Courtney & Rachael were in town. Both sets turned out absolutely adorable! The rest are posted on my smugmug.

Crawling?

Colin MAY actually crawl. For the longest time, I thought that was going to skip crawling altogether and just start walking...but last night he was on the floor rolling around, when all of a sudden he started pulling his knees up and moved forward about a 1/2 inch. We'll try again today!

New Pictures

I have been uploading our vacation pictures like crazy! I've got all but the last day up now.

I love this picture of the beach. The water was so clear, and sand was fine, and the sun was shining!

After swimming in the ocean, Colin's hair dried with the salt in it, and I was able to make his hair stand straight up! I just love this picture of him!

Happy Father's Day

I want to wish all of the fathers out there a very happy, and blessed Father's Day!

I especially want to thank Miguel for being such a spectacular father. Sweetie, since we've had Colin, I have seen you love this little person like you've never loved anyone before. It's beautiful to watch you interact with Colin. Thank you for being such a great father and a wonderful husband. I love you!

Back From Mexico

We are back from our trip to Mexico! We got in on Wednesday night. We had a wonderful vacation and we were sad to leave. Next time we plan on staying longer. The resort was amazing, and the beach was absolutely beautiful! We snorkled, swam in the ocean & pool, had yummy food and good drinks!

We took tons of pictures, and it's going to take me a while to get them all uploaded, but I've got the first two days up so far.

Here's a photo of a palm tree in the resort. The rest are on my smugmug!

Vacation to Mexico

Whoo-hoo...MEXICO

9 Month Appointment

Colin had his 9 month appointment today. What a big boy! He now weighs 20 lbs. 7 oz. (50%). and is 29 inches long (75%)! What a big boy! He got 2 shots and did great with them.

I took him for his 9 month portraits, and they turned out great! I can't wait to get them back to post them!

*The photo here is not one of his new portraits

The Trip Is On!

Yay! The trip is on! We received Colin's passport in the mail today! I was getting so nervous that we weren't going to receive it in time. Bonnie is right. The new passports are very nice...and colorful! Miguel's and mine are the old ones (even though I only got mine renewed last year). They must have just started doing the new ones!

Anyway...we'll be off to Mexico in exactly 1 week! Infact, at this time next week, we will already be sitting on the beach! I'm so excited!

Now, for the packing...

Things That Are Good In My Life

As Miguel and I were driving to church this morning, I was not in a good mood. Actually, I was in a pretty foul mood. Miguel suggested saying things that are good in our lives. We took turns, and it helped to put me in a better mood. Here are a few of the things listed (and not in any particular order...just the way that I remembered them):

1. Colin
2. Each other
3. Good health
4. Jobs
5. Cars
6. Great large family
7. Good friends
8. Shelter
9. Food
10. Clothing
11. Miguel has Fridays off
12. Vacation to Mexico coming up
13. My sister visiting
14. My neices & nephew
15. Our church, and the freedom to worship
16. Living in America
17. The ability for me to stay home with Colin
18. Dalí

All things to be grateful for. Praise God for his goodness! I'll just have to check back at this post to help me remember all of the good things in my life when I am feeling down.

Happy Anniversary Chris & Casey!

Have a wonderful anniversary! May God continue to bless your marriage!

Another Cousin Post

I thought this one was just adorable! I had to post it! I can't believe that Court's visit is almost over :(

Colin and Rachael are starting to get along so well! Rachael is a little territorial, but Colin is so laid back that he doesn't really care! Rach grabs the toys out of Colin's hands, and he just looks at her.

Got Twins?

Little Miss Rachael

Rachael is just too cute! She poses for the camera just like Colin does! It's crazy! She has so many of Colin's features!

Cousins

Isn't it just beautiful? Cousins playing with each other. Courtney, Richie & Rachael got in at 9:00 this morning. We got to my mom's house and surprised her at 10:00. When I first saw Rachael, I couldn't believe how much like Colin she looks...except smaller. She is so tiny compared to him. We set them up next to each other and let them play. They had a blast!

Happy Birthday Madison!

Happy 2nd birthday Maddy! I hope that you have a great day!

We celebrated Madison's birthday yesterday at the Stonebriar Mall. All the kids played at the playplace and then we went to the food court to eat yummy Chik-Fil-A! Lisa made rice crispy treats with butterflies (Maddy's favorite) on them.

9 Months Old

My little Colin isn't so little anymore. 3 more months, and he'll be turning 1 year old! Wow, 9 months old already! He's turning into this little being...with a personality. I have so much love for this baby...it's amazing to me to love someone (besides your spouse) as much as I do.

It still breaks my heart to hear Colin cry, but it's mended back together again when he puts his arms out for me to hold him or when he hugs me and snuggles into my neck.

God is amazing, and I am in tears!

A Little Disappointed...

I've worked 2 shifts at my new job, and I must say that I am a little disappointed. I don't want to go into details on my blog...but if you are really interested, you can ask me. Blah is all I have to say.

Happy Aniversary Sean & Emily

I hope that you guys have a wonderful anniversary! Enjoy each other today...and always! Congratulations!

I'm Getting Scared...

After reading Lisa's post, I am getting quite nervous that we aren't going to get Colin's passport in time. I applied for his passport in early February for our trip to Mexico in early June. We have yet to receive it and our trip is less than 3 weeks away. I don't want to have to fly to Houston to pick it up...that would be awful.

I can't wait!

I can't wait to see my sister and to meet my neice Rachael! I haven't seen Courtney in 2 years, which means that I haven't ever seen Rachael.

They are coming, and they are coming soon! How soon you ask? Well the date is not being disclosed at this point, but soon!

Happy Mother's Day

My first Mother's Day was absolutely wonderful! It is one that I will remember for the rest of my life.

Miguel woke me up this morning with breakfast in bed. Yes, Miguel cooked me breakfast! It was so good! Colin and Miguel gave me 2 dozen roses, and a new lens for my camera! I was so excited to use it.

Then we went to Frances' house where all the boys cooked the moms breakfast. I was so surprised at what a good job they did! We took family photos...I'm still working on getting them up at smugmug.

After that we went home where I took a nice nap, and then we had dinner with family at The Londoner in downtown McKinney.

I had such an awesome day, and I love my family so much! Happy Mother's Day to all of my mommy friends out there! I hope that your day was as special as mine!

My Weekend of Accidents

By the middle of the day today, I decided that I was not going to drive or do anything that could put me in danger because this weekend if anything could go wrong with me...it did!

It all started last night at Joel's birthday party. I slammed my head into a hanging light fixture. I was carrying Colin, and I got very dizzy and light-headed. Someone grabbed him from me (I have no idea who), and I was stumbling for a few minutes. I had a splitting headache for the rest of the night and a good portion of today. Then today, I was putting my camera onto my tripod. Miguel told me to be careful, and next thing I knew, it fell off of the tripod and slammed onto the tile floor. A piece of it did break, so I'll have to take it into get fixed, but I thank God that it isn't anything major. Last but not least, I was taking pictures of Colin outside, and I guess that I didn't realize, but I put my bare foot into a fire ant hill. My foot started burning, so I looked down, and my foot was covered in red ants. I ran inside, put my foot in the bathtub, and I now have about 50 bites all over my foot. Yikes! I need to just stay in the house and not move!

Hopefully, I'll have a better, uneventful week!

More Pages!

I am really getting hooked on digital scrapbooking!

Colin's Title Page

Here's the title page for Colin's album.

New Pages

More new pages!