Saturday, February 28, 2009

Happy Birthday Yaya


EE & Luke with his "cheeeeese smile"


Happy Birthday Yaya!




Brady & Uncle Nonah



The whole Allen Family

Tonight was Yaya's 50th surprise party at our house. I think she was surprised... More importantly, I know everyone had lots of fun. EE & Nonah are staying at our house all weekend, so Luke is truly in Heaven!

Friday, February 27, 2009

Home Spirit Day


Yesterday was School Spirit Day at Luke's school. They all wore their school shirt and got to eat Chickfila for lunch. When we got in the car I asked "Luke, how was school spirit day?" Luke replied, "It was so good!" "How was home spirit day?" I couldnt help but laugh.

Maybe I need to have home spirit day! That may liven things up around here!

Happy Birthday Uncle Sam!


Uncle Sam, Luke, & Steph

Tuesday night we went over to The Allen's house for Samuel's birthday dinner. It was lots of fun and Luke had a blast sitting at the teenager table with Sam & his friends. At one point Luke came to the adult table and asked "Who's your daddy?" I guess the teens put him up to it, but it was pretty funny.


Luke loves his Uncle "Saw"! Last week Saw took Luke to play golf and Chickfila. I know Luke will miss him like crazy when he leaves to go to school. We aren't sure where he will be going next year, but Luke mentioned he would like him to play for the Baylor Bears...

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Photos By Christina Shippey



























Photos courtesy of the extremely talented Christina Shippey.

Yummy, Yummy, Yummy!

Last night we gave Brady his first baby food...CARROTS! Here's his little play-by-play reaction.

Before the food- all smiles!

After the first bite- What the heck is that???

After he got used to the taste- Yum, that was good, another bite please!




Saturday, February 21, 2009

Don't Blink...6 Months Goes Faster Than You Think.

Look At Me! I Am Six Months Old & I Can Sit All By Myself!


Where Does Time Go??? This Is My Little Baby Not That Long Ago...

Yep- He is an all grown up six month old now! I can't believe how fast that went. It seems like only yesterday when he was born. Dont get me wrong, I know he is still little, but he is growing so fast. I have to constantly remind myself to cherish every moment because it won't last forever.
As you can see in the pictures, he can sit up all alone now. If he is really concentrating, he can sit for a long time. Otherwise, it's only a few minutes.
Happy 6 Month Birthday Brady!

Friday, February 20, 2009

Happy Birthday Uncle Caleb!

Funny Faces!

Trying some sushi (Luke's is just rice)

Uncle Caleb & Aunt Lindsey

Today is my brother's 18th birthday. To celebrate we went, per his request, to eat sushi. I did not try the sushi, but the other food they had was good.

Luke had fun eating a little off of everyone's plate with the exception of the sushi on Uncle Caleb's plate. Although he would have tried it if we would have let him. I just am not sure how safe sushi is for such a little boy.

Luke and Brady are so blessed to have such a sweet, cool, fun, playful, awesome, wonderful, musical, adventurous UNCLE CALEB! To top it all off...he's also a rock star (or so Luke thinks)!
Not only are our boys blessed with a cool Uncle Caleb, they also have an Uncle Nonah (Noah), Uncle Saw (Sam), Aunt KayKay (Kaitlen), Aunt Lindsey & Aunt EE (Erin) who they absolutely love. Each one of these aunts & uncles have their own special bond with Luke. Such sweet relationships!
I am so thankful they have such precious aunts & uncles. Next up is Uncle Saw's birthday!



Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Fun Time With Our Family




Tonight we had dessert at Aunt Theresa & Uncle Mike's house since my grandparents were in town. My cousin Courtney and her two kiddos were there too! So, the kids got to play and catch up since we haven't seen them in a while. We had lots of fun and yummy dessert!
Luke is dressed up as a doctor in the first picture in case you were trying to figure that out...


Tuesday, February 17, 2009

So Confused!

I think Luke is starting to pick up on different time frames. We try to explain things like tomorrow, next week, last night, next year, etc. He tries to understand, but I don't think he is quite there yet.
For example...

Today after school (2:00pm)
Luke: "Mommy! Daddy is going to be home from work in two weeks!!!"
He was very excited that daddy would be home soon, but he didn't know that two weeks is a long time...

Most days after school, Luke's teacher will give him some candy for having a good day. Well, our rule is that you can't eat it until we get home and sit at the table. So, today he was sitting at the table finishing his candy and he ran in to the living room and said...
"Mommy! I am going to get more candy next year when I go to school! :)"

So funny- I can't help but laugh. It is so hard to explain though!

Monday, February 16, 2009

Ms. Reese!


I had to add this picture to my blog...


I told you in my last post that we went to see our friends while in Waco this weekend. They just had a precious baby girl, Reese Elaine! So, I held her pretty much the whole time I was at their house. She is all dressed up like a cowgirl because she had spent the day at her big brother Tristan's 2nd cowboy birthday party!

Sunday, February 15, 2009

Sic 'Em Bears!





Yesterday Caleb & I went to Waco for the Baylor/A&M game. Baylor "whooped" the Aggies!!!

It was a great game and we had terrific seats (three rows behind the bench). The best part of the whole trip was that we got to spend some time with our sweet sweet friends Nicki & Brent. Loads of fun & a very Happy Valentines Day!



Friday, February 13, 2009

Back Yard Camp Out!





Tonight Caleb & Luke had a back yard camp out! They started off about 5:30 putting their tent up. Then headed to Walmart to get some camping supplies. After returning home, we made sausage on the fire pit then s'mores! YUM YUM! It was then time for mom & Brady to come in and leave the "big boys" alone...

Well, they were out there for about an hour when Luke came back in and said he wanted to sleep in his own bed. Oh well, they had fun anyway!



Thursday, February 12, 2009

Quick Pics


I just realized it had been a while since I took any pics of the boys... Here are a couple I took tonight. Things have been SO crazy around here, but I will take more pics soon.

Sunday, February 8, 2009

Another cute conversation...

Luke: "Mommy, what do you want to be when you grow up?"
Mommy: "I am grown up and I am a mommy!"
Mommy: "What do you want to be when you grow up Luke?"
Luke: "Santa Clause"
Mommy: "Wow Luke are you sure you want to be Santa? He has a hard job."
Luke: "Yes, mommy, I want to be him."

I guess we have a lot of work to do. Maybe we need to read more books about firemen, policemen, doctors, etc...

Ford's Baby Dedication




Tonight we went to my very dear friend Amy's child's baby dedication. It was a very special event at her church. Ford's little fan club sat and watched as he was dedicated. He was the cutest baby there!


Hi, I'm Brady!


Yesterday as I was getting ready for my day, Brady was sitting in the bathroom with me in front of the mirror. I could not help but get a picture of him so facinated by himself. It looked like he was introducing himself...to himself.

Funny!

Saturday, February 7, 2009

Cribs- Allen Edition




Before Brady was born as we were planning his nursery some good friends of ours offered to let us borrow their really nice nursery furniture because they were not using it and wouldnt need it again. So, we took them up on the offer because we knew they were through having children and we have always loved their furniture. Well, about a month after Brady was born they called us and told us they were pregnant. Surprise!


Needless to say, they needed their furniture back. It all worked out fine though. We went and got some new furniture for Brady and here is his new crib!

Friday, February 6, 2009

Conversation of the Day...

Ok, I am not going to do this every day, but today Luke asked a cute question...

Luke: "Is it sunny outside?"
Mommy: "Yes it is!"
Luke: "Why is the clouds covering the sunny up?"
Mommy: ... (how do I answer that in a way that a two year old can understand???)

Thursday, February 5, 2009

Conversation of the Day...

Luke: "Mommy, why am I picking my nose?"
Mommy: "That's a good question Luke."

Valentine Date Night



Last night we got to go out with our small group at church for our annual "Valentine's Date Night". We went to Pappasitos and it was SO yummy. There were 7 couples who went. It was so nice to get to visit with friends without the kids!!!

We are so blessed to have such a cool small group.

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

The Invisible Mother

What a sweet story this is...

It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I'm thinking, 'Can't you see I'm on the phone?' Obviously not; no one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all. I'm invisible. The invisible Mom. Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more: Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this? Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, 'What time is it?' I'm a satellite guide to answer, 'What number is the Disney Channel?' I'm a car to order, 'Right around 5:30, please.'

I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude - but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again. She's going, she's going, she's gone! One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England .. Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, 'I brought you this.' It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe . I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read her inscription: 'To Charlotte , with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees.' In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern m work: No one can say who built the great cathedrals we have no record of their names. These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished. They made great sacrifices and expected no credit. The passion of their building was fuelled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything. A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, 'Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof? No one will ever see it.' And the workman replied, 'Because God sees.' I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, 'I see you, Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does. No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become.' At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride. I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder. As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on. The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to sacrifice to that degree. When I really think about it, I don't want my child to tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, 'My Mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table.' That would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his friend, to add, 'You're gonna love it there.' As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

On A Sad Note

A few days ago I wrote about a firetruck that had come on our street to help our elderly neighbor who had fallen. Well, Sunday he passed away :(
He was 92 years old and could not recover from the surgery that he had to have to heal his broken hip. Please keep his sweet wife of 62 years in your prayers. This is a very hard time for her as you can imagine.

Park Treasure...








After school today, I took Luke to the park. He was having a great time playing in the rocks when he came across a little Batman that someone had left behind. In case you don't know- Batman is his "thing" right now. It was really cool- I was even super excited! How often does that happen???

Quick Photo Shoot...




Today while Luke was in school I decided to try some new things I learned from a photography class I took a few weeks ago. Last year for my birthday I got a really cool camera, but I have gone a full year without knowing how to use it to it's fullest potential. So, now I am going to start practicing with it. I can always get cute pics of my kids separate, but no so much luck with them together...