Those Dandy Dillards

January with the Dillards

2012-01-22T14:59:00.003-06:00

Here is my big boy. He is "almost in first grade" to hear him tell it. He is also counting down to the 100th day of school and is very excited for that to come on the 30th! He loves all things Batman and frequently asks his daddy to play "Lego Batman Wii" - which means they act it out in real life... each of them being assigned to be one of the characters. Sometimes even the girls get assigned characters... catwoman, poison ivy... but always the "bad guys." Lately he refuses to wear long sleeved shirts even on the coldest of days and loves to wear "awesome clothes" - which means any athletic pants or shirts. He's still playing basketball, but prefers to watch everyone else interact on the court and usually just hangs out by the half-court line happily hopping around flicking his ears, and watching the rest of the team play :)

Gabby is still the ultimate girly-girl. She loves to paint fingernails, wear dresses and shop for clothes! She is looking forward to a Daddy/Daughter Dance coming up in a few weeks and is excited to get to wear her flower girl dress again! She is reading like crazy and we are so proud of her. She actually enjoys it and can often be found reading through our set of Bob Books or a Dick and Jane book. She loves to do crafts and decorate paper, books, doors, anything with stickers. She still loves school and told me the other day, "Mom, did you know the sun is the closest star to the earth." Love it!

Melia continues to exert herself as the big girl she knows she is. She likes to "walk, walk" everywhere and does not like me to carry her. She climbs on any chair, couch, kids table, dinner table, or bunk bed ladder that she can find! She loves her brother and sister and often asks for them when they are at school... "Bubba? Sissa?" She is a growing girl and wakes up each morning demanding her "Bite, bite!" She still loves playing outside and does not let the winter weather stop her (although today it is an unseasonably 75 degrees, thankfully!) She loves her "Ba ba" (paci) and Ellie (elephant blanket) and Barney and Elmo and has the cutest big-belly ever!

Matt and I are looking forward to celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary this year and are taking a study-trip to Israel with our church... just the two of us! It will be quite an adventure for us and for our awesome family members who are stepping in to take care of our kiddos. We are so thankful for everything God has blessed us with these past 10 years!

Merry Christmas

2011-12-31T17:56:00.009-06:00

This Christmas season was a busy one but one that brought so much joy. We endeavored to focus on our Savior's birth as the reason for the season through an awesome e-book called Truth in the Tinsel (thanks DeeDee). We played lots of Christmas music and the kids became more familiar with Christmas songs they didn't know. Oliver's favorite is "Do You Hear What I Hear" and he would play it on repeat very loudly in the afternoons! We saw an awesome Christmas lights display in Frisco. We wrote letters to, and made cookies for Santa. We loved finding the hiding elf each morning. And we got to have SO much time with our family and especially enjoyed seeing the Schroeders and Dan and Stephanie who all came in town over the holidays.

We got a live Christmas tree which made our house smell like a house at Christmastime should. The kids loved going and picking it out and were so excited to decorate it! Melia enjoyed taking the ornaments on and off the tree so we put ones that were kid-friendly down low so she could enjoy the tree to her hearts content.

Christmas Eve

We had a great day at home on Christmas Eve... baking cookies, playing games, and repeating many times "1 more day until Christmas!" The kids had counted down the days with an advent calendar and were so excited that the day we had been waiting for was almost here! We got to spend some fun time with Uncle Dan and Aunt Stephanie playing tackle basketball in Oliver's room (yes, basketball), taking a walk in the crisp air to a sandwich shop for lunch, and introducing Dan and Steph to a new game (Matt's idea of heaven).

That evening, we headed over to Matt's aunt & uncle's house for our traditional BBQ dinner! The kids were excited that they got to open one present. It was a great time and really made it feel like Christmas was upon us!

Silly kids...

Papa trying to convince Melia that he was stealing her "baba" (pacifier)

Melia showing us her "button" - which she will also push for you since it is an out-y!

I gave the kids the option of all sleeping in the same room that night like I used to do with my sisters on Christmas Eve. They were very excited about it and woke up bright and early at 5:30am and (I'm told) sat together on the end of the bed and waited for the allowed 6 o'clock wake-up-mom-and-dad deadline.

Christmas Morning

Christmas with children is just magical. We were so happy to be able to celebrate with just our immediate family at home this year. It was such a special time and a great bonding experience full of many happy memories. The kids were so excited and sweet all morning and it was such a joy to be around them and focus on just our family.

Gabriella and Melia got a new kitchen!

Gabby in her new Jesse shirt

Oliver got a fun batman cave, the game Mouse Trap which he loves assembling and Lego Harry Potter for the Wii!

Melia got a barking/walking little Dachshund puppy, and a talking/moving baby doll. Two of her favorite things - dogs and babies. She loved them!

Later in the morning we headed to Granna and Papa's house for more presents and a delicious Christmas lunch. We got to spend great time with Randy and Amy and Grandmama as well. We enjoyed Matt's new Telestrations game, watched movies and had some yummy Toll house Pie!

Matt's sister and her family got in town from Colorado on Christmas night and we enjoyed many days of fun with our COUSINS! The kids adore Olivia, Calvin and Atticus and had a blast every day they were here. We are so thankful for our wonderful family!

Gabby and Olivia

End of Year Wrap-Up

2011-12-30T20:10:00.008-06:00

We've had a very busy last month in our house... hence the lack of blogging. So I am going to try and make up for it here!

For Thanksgiving this year, we headed down to Fulshear, TX to celebrate with the whole Beck clan. It was a great weekend full of Turkey Trotting, midnight Black Friday shopping ("Back of the line! Back of the line!"), outdoor movies in the hot tub, lots of games, and plenty of laughter.

Meme and Gabriella enjoyed the "art cart" together and created many Thanksgiving masterpieces much to Gabby's delight. Thanks Meme for being such a good grandmother for this creative girl!

Oliver cuddled right up to his sweet cousin McKinley - he loves babies. And she definitely loved him back!

We ran a Turkey Trot through my parent's neighborhood on Thanksgiving morning to burn a few calories before the afternoon feast. The kids joined in on the new power wheel that lives at the grandparent's house!

My sisters worked to have shirts made up that said Beck Family Turkey Trot 2011 and were very cute!

Even the non-participants got a shirt :)

My mom set a beautiful table and we all worked together to prepare a delicious feast!

The babies had to endure many photo shoots that weekend - of course including a bathtime shoot!

At the beginning of December, we got to celebrate a big birthday for Oliver - 6 years old! We definitely have a big boy on our hands and it is so fun to get to live life alongside of him watching him discover the world and helping him to understand more and more every day. We are so proud of who he is and see him growing and maturing everyday. What a joy it is to parent him!

I got to bring cupcakes up to Mrs. Robershaw's Kindergarten class on his actual birthday and we all enjoyed celebrating him there. He loves having us in the classroom and we love being there as much as we can. We are very thankful to have a school that is so welcoming to family visiting and appreciates parent involvement!

Oliver with Mrs. Robershaw... happily posing for pictures as usual :)

We hosted a wild and crazy Batman-themed party at our house to celebrate his birthday. We had many friends and family there and had a great extravaganza!

Oliver with both of his grandfathers.

All of the kids got to dress up as superheroes complete with capes and masks. We played games to ward off the "bad guys" (aka the daddies) with silly string and enjoyed ice cream sundaes - the birthday boy's favorite dessert.

Even the girls got dressed up. Little sisters love to follow in their big brother's footsteps.

Oliver also started his first ever sports team and had his first game the day after his birthday. He is on the Knicks basketball team and enjoys running around with other Kindergarten-aged boys trying to learn the rules to the game but mostly just enjoying the mass chaos that is sports with young kids. It is darling to watch and has been a great experience so far for our family.

Gabriella FINALLY got to perform in her first-ever Preschool Christmas Program. She has been waiting on this for two years and has dutifully acted out her big brother's program every year in anticipation of the day when she too would get to be up on the big stage. She performed every song and the actions required and made a darling addition to the Graham Cracker Express Christmas Program! She is so proud to be in the Oreos class and get to go to Spanish class, Library and do center time!

She loves playing with her friend Alyssa at school. Here is our little Christmas Tree and her friend Alyssa performing!

And I must mention our now eighteen month-old darling Melia (aka Scoot Row, Rosie, Mels Bells, Leet Squeet, or Squeeters). She is saying more and more words every day and even putting two words together into sentences of late. She is fiercely independent, enjoys emptying dresser drawers and begs for "bite, bites" all day long. We love her spunkyness and she is an adored member of our family. Here she is a bloomer hat and an underwear necklace!

Family Photo Shoot

2011-11-29T21:12:00.003-06:00

My awesome friend Ann Marie was gracious enough to shoot some family pictures for us a few weeks ago. I'm thrilled with how they turned out! Thanks Ann Marie!

I love fall and the fall colors in the background make me happy. And the wonderful faces of my family make me even happier!

Matt's Trip to Colombia

2011-11-14T13:17:00.007-06:00

Earlier this Fall, Matt was asked to join a team from our church traveling to South America to help share the gospel of Christ and be a part of a team that will be working to build church-based coalitions to work on social, economic and spiritual issues in the city of Barranquilla, Colombia. We are so proud of our husband/father for his willingness to go and serve (and I was so thankful to have the help of my mom who stayed with us the week he was away)!

Here is a copy of the letter he sent out initially explaining his trip:

September 3, 2011

Dear friends and family,

Colombia, South America. What images does this country bring to your mind? Drugs, guns and politics? Soccer, salsa and Shakira? How about forty-five million people loved by God, many of whom have yet to learn of that love?

My pastor has invited me and one other person to participate in a strategic mission trip next month. We’ll be in the city of Barranquilla, Colombia, sharing the Gospel and exploring the possibility of planting a church there. The two of us are serving as scouts, not unlike Joshua and Caleb who were sent to bring back a report on the Promised Land!

This promises to be a very exciting opportunity to trust God. Our church is looking to become a church-planting church, and this is a way for me to play an important role during this transition. The trip is eight days long; we’ll leave Saturday, October 29, and return Saturday, November 5.

Having never been to South America, I’m excited to travel there. This may even justify that Spanish 101 class I took so many years ago (although I rather doubt it)! More than that, I’m thrilled for the opportunity to watch God at work. I am absolutely certain that if anything good is going to happen while I’m there, it’s because the Lord will accomplish it.

I know I will come away from this trip humbled by God’s power and love, as I see Him take my meager and imperfect efforts and turn them into glorious results. Lord willing, my experience in Colombia will encourage others in our church to engage in our future ministry in Barranquilla, as well.

I’m going to need your help in a couple of ways. First, will you begin praying for me right now? The Lord has a plan for this trip; I want to know and participate in His plan. Please also pray for my family while I’m away those eight days.

Second, I’ve been asked to raise my financial support for this trip. The total cost is $2,600. Would you consider joining my team? Make your tax-deductible checks out to “Trinity Bible Church” and mail them to me.

Thank you for your support, financial and otherwise, and I look forward to sharing what God has done when I return.

Thank you,

Matt Dillard

And here is a summary letter he wrote after retuning from his trip:

God is faithful. If my time in Colombia taught me nothing else, it taught me that God is faithful.

God is faithful. When I was first approached with the possibility of going on the trip, one of my first concerns was having enough vacation time. You see, Amanda and I have plans to visit Israel for two weeks in the spring, and we'd also hoped to spend one week together next summer on a vacation. When we worked the numbers, we discovered that I could go on this trip, and still have one day to spare.

God is faithful. A second concern about the trip was the extra strain on Amanda with me not around to help with our three young kids. Amanda's mother was able to stay for the week, and Amanda's sister Natalie, who just moved to Dallas, was a big help, too.

God is faithful. One of my chief concerns was raising $2700 of support for the trip. Oh, me of little faith. By the time I left, God had raised up for me $4040! This extra blessing spilled over to help cover the cost of another team member on the trip.

God is faithful. Yes, he is faithful to me. But he is also faithful to His people all over the world. In a dirt poor barrio called Mesolandia - where raw sewage runs through the streets and little children run barefoot through that sewage - there is a small coalition of four pastors who have joined together to tackle their neighborhood's ills. They are gaining confidence in their abilities to make a positive difference around them, particularly in the areas of health and security. I am excited to see how God works through them in the coming months and years.

God is faithful. In another barrio across the city, another group of pastors has come together to solve their neighborhood's economic poverty. They are starting a business to turn their trash into recyclable materials that can be sold for a profit. Lord willing, this will create up to 100 jobs in a community where unemployment rates approach 50%.

God is faithful. He took a nervous white American and used him as the foot in the door for sharing the good news about Jesus Christ with 40 people, most of whom prayed to accept God's gift of salvation through faith in His son. I was blessed with the opportunity to share the gospel myself, and then eventually to turn that part over to a member of the local church, so that she could be confident in doing it on her own after I left.

God is faithful. Despite all that God was doing around me, I woke up Thursday morning ready to come home. I missed my wife, I missed my kids, and I didn't feel like I had the energy to keep going. Before I knew it, it was 4:00 pm, and I realized that I was nearing the end of an incredibly rewarding day. Without me even noticing, the Lord had lifted my spirits and given me energy through the Holy Spirit. I am convinced that His power got me through that day, and I now look back on His faithfulness there as being one of the defining moments of the trip for me.

God is faithful. I came to see Colombia, to think about how my church might be involved there in the future. I came away with a much larger definition of church. It remains to be seen exactly what role Trinity Bible Church will play in Barranquilla, but it is clear that The Church there is growing.

I want to thank all of you for your support, whether through prayer or money. One fellow traveler told the members of a local church that whenever they see one American in Colombia, there are fifty more Americans back home praying for them. It was a great feeling to know that I had such support behind me.

My pastor is fond of saying that God never uses a tool without changing it in the process.

In this, too, God was faithful.

Matt meeting with some of the local pastors. Sitting next to him in the blue shirt is his translator David. The other man in the hat (and the American Eagle shirt) is another translator named Hansel who Matt really hit it off with!

This is the view from the third floor of the hotel that he stayed at while on the trip. It was also one of the only quiet places to get internet access. So I talked to him every evening while he sat here by the pool :)

Halloween 2011

2011-11-14T13:13:00.002-06:00

Our Daddy was in Colombia over Halloween this year - but we were thankful to have our Meme in town to help us trick-or-treat. We also had Gabby's friend Georgia join us too! The kids were really into it this year and basically ran from door to door (and sneaking a few treats in between houses). Melia was the only one of my babies that actually enjoyed dressing up. She LOVED her ladybug costume and was happy to join the big kids at the doors. It was a wild night as always, but we had a lot of fun too!

A fairy, batgirl, ladybug, and super hero

With Meme

Happy Fall!

2011-10-30T20:28:00.006-05:00

My (now Dallasite) sister Natalie and I took the kids to the Dallas Arboretum this weekend on our annual fall-trek to this beautiful garden! I LOVE the Arboretum and am usually the last one of my party to get tired of being there - I would stay there all day if I could!

Enjoy our fall pictures!

PUMPKINS!

My big baby!

Visiting the awesome fairy-tale princess houses

Ready for home... Oliver behind the camera

Happy Birthday 4 year-old!!

2011-10-18T19:19:00.010-05:00

Gabriella turned 4 years old on Saturday! What a big girl she is turning in to. She can buckle and unbuckle herself in her car seat, color like an adult, and can even read simple books. We are so proud of her! She still loves to go to school, do arts & crafts, and be a helper with Melia.

For her birthday party, she wanted to have a "pretty party" with princess decorations. She specifically requested that all the girls dress pretty and all of the boys dress handsome. To complete her "pretty" look, she wanted to wear her dress from when she was a flower girl in my sister's wedding and REALLY wanted to wear real makeup. When I announced to her that is was time to put on her makeup, she ran screaming into my room "I'm so EXCITED!"

Getting her makeup done by mom

We decorated princess hats at the party and had a princess cake

We even had a special guest appearance from Rapunzel herself!

Rapunzel told her story to all of the kids and then posed for pictures with most of the guests

One of the most handsome guests was her friend John from preschool!

My boy being silly with streamers (and refusing all handsome-ness)!

"Happy Birthday to you"

We love you Gabriella! You are a joy to us and we thank God that he blessed us with you as an exuberant, creative, beautiful, compassionate and loving member of our family!

Fun Times...

2011-10-18T19:07:00.002-05:00

Favorite Game to play with Oliver right now: "Check you for tickle spots." The way this is played is we both lay on my bed and then I tell him that I need to check him for tickle spots. So I proceed to tickle his nose, forehead, and elbows - all duds. After that I THEN check his neck, side, and stomach and really get him giggling! He often asks me to play this with him and I happily oblige. It is such a sweet time with my boy.

Gabby loves to make faces for the camera right now. Here's one for an example. Some other recent favorite quotes of hers:

(almost daily) "Mom, all your clothes are beautiful."

"Mom let's color forever. No I mean for real. When we get tired we'll just rest on our chairs and then wake up and color!"

This costume from our toy box was a perfect find for Melia because she is really in to dogs right now! She loves to bark and gets very excited when she sees one. Some of her other words are:

Muh Muh - Mom
DaDa
Ell Ella Ella - Gabriella
ah va (or buh buh) - Oliver
ball
muh - more
up
out
buh buh - bubbles
bite
nana - banana
cah cah - cracker
baba - paci
babbit - rabbit (which we often see in our backyard in the evening. She LOVES that!)

First Day of Preschool

2011-09-15T10:30:00.001-05:00

Gabriella started preschool last week and this school-loving girl was SO ready! We love our preschool and are so excited to be up there again every week. She was excited to make new friends and see some friends from last year. And in true friendly-Gabby fashion, she already wants to invite her teacher to her birthday party :)

This year, she gets to do the "big kid" things that her brother used to do - go to the library, go to Spanish class, and have jobs in the classroom. She proudly told me about her first visit to the library and told anyone who would listen, "I got a book about a Dinosaur who goes to the doctor!"

Gabby picked out her own clothes the night before and asked for a "braid ponytail" - so we dressed her up and snapped some cute pictures on our way out the door.

Ready to be in the Oreos Class!

With Gabriella, we always need to have SOME silly pictures...

She cracks herself up

Little walking sister dressed to match

My girls

Walking in to school

Gabriella and one of her teachers

We got her a school t-shirt and she proudly wore it the 2nd day of school. And once again braids were requested!

We love you so much big girl! Thanks for bringing so many smiles and giggles in to our lives!

My Girly-Girl!

2011-08-31T12:48:00.004-05:00

I already knew this about her. Gabriella loves pretty. Pretty clothes, pretty hair, pretty coloring pages, and pretty parties. What I got to witness today was a glimpse into the depth of her love for all things pretty.

As we were leaving a play date at the mall today, we passed by the store Claire's. As we ventured inside to take a peek at a cute Hello Kitty purse I saw in there (thinking possible birthday gift idea), Gabriella was transformed. She had never been in this store before. Another first for my girl - her first venture into accessory shopping. And I believe we are in trouble.

She became a wide-eyed, mesmerized, robotic version of her little cute self. It was if she was propelled by some external force from display to display, hands in front of her, just absorbing all of the "prettiness" oozing out of that store. I truly think she was in her own personal heaven. She didn't even have time to beg for one thing too much because she was always drawn away to something equally as pretty. Lip gloss, nail polish, headbands, tiaras, necklaces, princess wands, feather boas, purses, notepads, hair clips = PRETTY!

She showed great self-control by not ripping everything off of the shelf and by putting things back when I asked her to. The sales lady only too happily offered her a little basket to carry around which she gladly accepted. I wasn't planning on making a purchase and could see that this was getting to be a less realistic goal by the second. I decided it was time to cut and run and told Gabriella as I pushed the stroller out of the store to return the basket to the sales lady and come with me to the car we were headed home for sister's nap time.

She was obediently handing the basket to the sales lady as I looked back over my shoulder on my way out of the store, and when she turned around from putting the basket on the counter, my heart just broke.

Toward me walked my completely broken-hearted girl. Golf ball sized tears dropped from her eyes, her lips turned down and her mouth open as she emitted her heart-wrenching sobs. Now I have witnessed many a meltdown by this dramatic girl. But this one was different. This was not an I-did-not-get-my-way sadness, or an I'm-so-tired-I-feel-like-whining-about-everything bawling, and not even an I'm-three-and-will-be-defiant cry. This was true, from the depth of her being sadness. Existing in a place that was the outward example of her inner-prettiness was no more. She was given a small taste of heaven and couldn't believe that it was over - and that she didn't get to take a piece of it with her.

So a purchase was made. But to try and redeem some small shred of good parenting skills, I did make her stop crying and explain her feelings with real words. Small shred. I was still in charge here, right? :)

Here are the words I got: "But I want to get something fun. Something new to take home!" I thought this was a pretty good representation of the inner-shopper that lives in most of us.

Then the search for the right purchase (that was mommy approved after looking at the price tags) ensued. And what we walked away with was nothing I suggested at all, but fit the price tag requirement so I just said yes. Funny girl. See the picture below for the item in the store that satisfied her inner-pretty.

Don't you know that every girl needs some clip-on rainbow colored hair!?!?

Oliver's First Day of Kindergarten

2011-08-23T08:17:00.005-05:00

Thanks to everyone who said prayers for Oliver and was thinking of us on his first day of Kindergarten! It went well as far as I could tell. We were all able to take him in the morning and it was a fine transition for all of us. I did my crying on Sunday so by Monday I was just excited. It took a couple of hours to draw anything out of him once he got home (which I knew it would) so we just had to be patient.

Some things we were able to get out of him:

It was a long day for him: "I was there in the morning AND the afternoon. It was a long time!"
He doesn't know anyone's name yet.
He had a fun day.
He saw a neighbor in the cafeteria at lunch but had to sit with his class which he was fine with.
He sat next to a boy and a girl at lunch.
He went to music and P.E. and played an instrument in Music which we couldn't quite understand but he was adamant that it had something to do with a Hamster wheel?
He did not go outside for recess but had recess inside in another classroom (we think this had to do with the construction - the school is being renovated).
He was HUNGRY after school. They do get a snack in the morning, have lunch around 12:30, and I brought him a little bagel and some nuts when I picked him up at 2:30. But that was not enough. He wanted FOOD! He eventually ate through that snack, some yogurt, a pudding cup and a piece of pizza before he was finally satiated.
He did not cry or miss Mommy :)
He played at the "McDonald's" center during center time (there really is such a thing).
He apparently really liked the rest time in the afternoon as that is one of the things he talked about the most. I think he was pretty tired at that point and probably really needed it! The teachers asked each kid to bring a towel to lay on for 15 minutes in the afternoon for the first few months of school while the kids get adjusted to the long days.
A lot of kids did not have a towel, but he did.
He came home without his lunchbox. I asked where it was and he confidently told me it was at school. I asked why he didn't bring it home and he told me that his teacher had told him it needed to stay in his locker... probably meaning during the day and not when it was time to go home :) My little rule follower.

I thought about him all day long and the girls and I were very excited to see him come pick-up time. We are excited for this year - I think it is going to be a good one!

Visit to the Northwest!

2011-08-15T11:31:00.008-05:00

We had an awesome trip to the Northwest to see our friends Dewy and Jenni Webb who live just outside of Seattle. The weather was awesome, the kids had a blast playing with their kids, and we loved spending time with our awesome friends. We first met them when we both lived in Phoenix before we even had kids. Now we have three kids and they are about to have their fourth! Even though we haven't lived in the same city since our first babies were born, we've remained friends. Don't you love relationships like that!

Traveling to visit a family that knows how to do life with little kids was such a blessing. They borrowed car seats from friends, picked us up at the airport, had beds/cribs all set up for us, snacks galore, and of course the most important things - built-in playmates for our kids!! It was such a fun and relaxing trip! They have a five year old, three year old and one year old just like us!

They also had great ideas of fun things to do in the area with kids in tow. The first day we were there we went to a harbor area to watch fish swim up a fish ladder and see boats go through a lock to get to a lower water area where the sea water met the fresh water of a lake. Fun to see! There was a nice grassy area with hills to roll down and was perfect for the picnic lunch that Jenni packed for us. We got to see trains, birds, and splash in the muddy bank near the water. A great morning!

Rolling down the hill

Me and my three year old!

Best buddies Oliver and Jackson watching the boats go through the lock

The Webbs live on a great cul-de-sac with lots of fun neighbors to play with. We spent every afternoon riding bikes, playing kick ball, and playing "ninjas" - a game the boys made up. The weather was perfect and they had a great time just being kids!! We were happy just to have a time with nothing else we needed to do except play with our kiddos!

Oliver's first game of kick ball!

Gabriella even got in on the action

Cutest spectator ever.

Our little walker!

Sidewalk chalk with a one-year old... usually ends up in their mouth!

We were able to join them for their weekly family movie night which the kids loved. We do a family movie night at our house too so the kids knew just what to expect!

Jammies + popcorn (and a few M&Ms thrown in) + friends + movie = FUN!

The next day we headed to a rocky beach with a great playground for some cold water wading and playtime! Once again great weather, beautiful scenery and great company!

COLD!

The Mamas and the Papas

Dewy and his little girl Shelby

We got to visit their church, introduce them to one of our favorite TV shows Psych, play lots of Settlers of Catan, and just talk and catch up! I also got to help Jenni get ready for her new baby by doing a little organizing (my favorite), going shopping for some baby items and making a few freezer meals that they could enjoy once the baby is here.

The big boys really hit it off and Jackson is convinced that Oliver is his cousin. They were both sad to leave each other and Oliver convinced Jackson to ask if he could come to our house on "Thursday"! Precious.

We love you guys and hope to see you again soon! Thanks for being such great hosts and friends!

Click here to see more pictures from our trip!

Cruise 2011

2011-07-22T19:29:00.010-05:00

We were blessed to get to go on a week-long cruise with my family in June. It was a full week and we made lots of fun memories. The best part, of course, was getting so much quality time with my family.

Our cruise left from Galveston on Melia's 1st birthday... which is quite handy because the cruise port is only about an hour and a half from my parent's house. So we all trekked down there in 3 cars (there were 9 adults and 4 kids in our party) and boarded the Carnival Conquest bound for the Bahamas and Key West.

We settled all 5 of us into our room which had two bunk beds, a double bed and a pack and play. We were packed in :) Lots of family togetherness! The kids loved sleeping on the bunks and Oliver (in true Oliver fashion) quickly learned the layout of the boat and was our elevator button pusher and navigator the rest of the trip. Wonder where he gets that from? Oh, right. The lady who didn't feel like she was truly settled until she got her hands on a boat map and studied it for 5 minutes. That lady.

On the glass elevator

Our room

We enjoyed lots of yummy dinners which lasted about 2 hours each time. My kids got pretty used to sitting that long but there were a lot of ups and downs from the table. We had so many in our party that we had two tables and we rotated who sat where. Oliver enjoyed sitting at the opposite table from us as much as he could. While I could start freaking out that he's already embarrassed to be seen with his parents, I truly attribute it to loving his family and wanting to spend as much time with them as possible (especially you Bossy!)

Natty + Gabby = Best Friends

You can see Melia's little Bahama braid if you look closely

The Hulse Family on one of the two "dress up" nights

The Steve & Carol Beck Family!

On Board

We enjoyed attending shows, playing games, ping pong, mini-golf, movies, exploring, game shows, trivia shows, and much more during our time on board. We were even able to put the kids to bed at night and use baby monitors to monitor them from my sister's room next door. We took turns "monitoring" while the rest of us explored the boat, attended shows etc. It was nice to have them sleeping and get some time to do things without kids.

Sisters

The service you receive on board is not matched anywhere else I have ever been. Free room service, a room steward who cleans your room and makes your beds every day, not to mention NEVER having to cook. It was truly a vacation in that sense!

Oliver with one of the towel animals the room steward would leave for us each night.

At the Beach

We had a beach day at both of our Bahamas stops. We were also able to do a lot of shopping which made all of the women happy. Getting off of the boat was fun and eye-opening, but also exhausting. All of the girls (including Melia) got their hair braided on the beach in Nassau. We also rode jet skis that day and some of our group road a banana boat the next day.

Bossy made these girls into mermaids! Gabby was in heaven!

Bossy and Emily and our boat

Melia and Daddy checking out the view of Key West

Camp Carnival

One of the highlights of the week for our kids was Camp Carnival. It was a kids club filled with toys, songs, crafts, games, music, etc. They LOVED it there and enjoyed the few hours they got to spend their each day. Mommy and Daddy took that opportunity to rest with Melia which was so nice. The got to have their faces painted multiple times and participate in a talent show on our last day on the boat!

There were many opportunities for professional photographs while we were on board and we definitely took advantage. We got some great family pictures!

Old-timey Sistahs!

We were happy to be home when all was said and done, but enjoyed the time we were able to dedicate to connecting with our whole family that week. Thank you Mom & Dad for your generosity and for your dedication to our family! We love you all!

Happy Birthday Melia!

2011-07-10T20:30:00.010-05:00

Well folks we have a one-year old! While it is hard to believe my little girl is already one, it is getting harder every day to remember life before this sweet, smiley girl. This lucky girl got to have two birthday parties leading up to the big day and set sail for a week-long cruise on her actual birthday!

We are so thankful for her content nature. She is adored by her older siblings (although they are slowly forgetting how to be gentle with her). She likes to eat early in the morning (around 5am) and then goes back to sleep until around 8:30. I am asked many mornings a week by her doting siblings, "Mom, when is Melia going to wake up? Can we go in and get her?"

She is also quite the climber. She loves climbing up in her sisters pink arm chair. We've also found her in various places like the top of the kids picnic table, the shelves of book cases, and the most recent stuck on the bottom rung of the kids bunk bed not able to go up or down! Thankfully she has learned quickly the phrase "go backward" and can usually get herself down safely off of stairs or any thing she has made into a stair case to satisfy her climbing nature. Neither of the other two were really climbers, but I fully expect to keep finding her in other random, high, scary places as she gets older!

We were thrilled to get to see her take her first steps yesterday! Such a precious moment that we got to share together as a family. And in true Oliver fashion, he has continued to announce so proudly each time he has seen her take a step since. Kind of like he used to announce, "Melia's awake!" when she was an infant, and "she rolled over" when she learned to roll, and "she crawled" when she was learning to crawl. He is one proud brother.

Here is our big one year old!

Below are some pictures of the other kids at one year. I love comparing pictures and seeing the family resemblance.

Oliver

Gabriella

Amanda

Matt

Her first celebration was with Matt's parents, or Granna and Papa as they are better known around our house!

We got her a water table to play in outside which she loves. Her siblings are always eager to help her use it!

It was also Father's Day, so we attempted a picture with the kids and their daddy in their "I heart Dad" shirts.

The climber in action

Papa and Daddy entertained Melia with some baseball while Granna got to hold the birthday girl

We were so thrilled to be able to celebrate Melia again with my entire family! We had a swimming party at my parent's house and loved every minute!

Melia and her cousin McKinley

Pepe and McKinley

Aunt Emmy and Uncle Bossy

Aunt Beg Beg, cousin McKinley, and Uncle Travis

Aunt Natty

And of course there are no pictures of me or my mom during this party... since we were running around making it all happen. But we were there too :) Isn't that how it always is with moms... love you Mom!

Happy Birthday to our sweet baby girl. Your smile and happy nature light up our lives. We are so thankful for the blessing of you and can't wait to watch you grow up. We love you!

My Crazy House

2011-06-14T12:34:00.002-05:00

Living most of my days alongside three preschoolers always makes for an interesting, exhausting, and fun day. You never know what you will see!

Here's Melia finding a way to occupy her time. She is such a content little girl. My bigger kids have easily learned the definition of content because we use it all of the time to describe this happy-doing-whatever-we-are-doing girl we have been blessed with.

Melia is now 11 months old and quickly approaching the one year mark! What a big girl. She has definitely mastered the art of crawling, recently got her 3rd tooth, and eats big girl food like a champ. She's also starting to stand on her own and is always quick to give a scrunched-face smile!

Her biggest fans are still her big brother and big sister. They listen intently to the baby monitor all morning until they finally hear the sounds of her stirring in her crib. Then it is a mad dash to get in there and say hello to her. It was all too quiet the other morning... and then I walked in to find this! Those big climbers. But they were all very sweet and happy!

Oliver likes things in order. He spends a lot of his play time grouping things and put them in their place. So the other day when he called me in, I wasn't shocked to see this... but it did bring a smile to my face to see his personality on display.

"Look mom, four Buzzes"

And of course little sister didn't want to be left out

We've been spending a lot of time in the water since summer has turned on the heat full blast here in Texas. Here are my two matching "bathing beauties." The bigger two have been taking swimming lessons since January and have really gotten it down. Oliver can swim on his own and is rapidly learning how to come up and take a breath. So very soon, there won't be a pool length too far for that little man. He has finally overcome his fear of the water and we are so proud of and amazed at his progress. Gabriella has no fear of the water which works to her advantage. She can also swim on her own for a few feet and as she gets older will start being able to do more as her gross motor skills develop. But she is well on her way!

We've had lots of fun play dates with our friends since our normal activities have wrapped up for the summer. Here are the kids with our some of our best friends who thankfully happen to also be our neighbors. We love our friends!

We're continuing swim lessons through the summer, doing a few weeks of preschool summer camp, looking forward to an awesome VBS at our church and I am planning a weekly Preschool Playdate with some friends at our house... where we can learn and have fun! We're looking forward to these and many more adventures this summer... namely taking a cruise with our family and an airplane trip to Seattle to visit friends! Yay for summer!

Preschool Graduation

2011-06-06T21:28:00.005-05:00

A few weeks ago, we celebrated Oliver's preschool graduation. We were so thankful to have so many family members in attendance... we filled up two whole pews. It was such a blessing to be supported in that way! I knew the day would be bittersweet and it was just what I expected. So proud of my cute big boy, yet so touching reflecting on his life to this point. We are so thankful for our awesome preschool Graham Cracker Express. It is truly a blessing in our lives and does so much to build up our kids and teach them about so many things - most importantly our God! I am so glad we will still be able to be involved in this great preschool for many years to come.

He did so well performing all of the song actions - precious!

The graduate

One of his biggest fans!

His girls

My favorite moment (and the moment that started me crying), was seeing the picture we took together at the Mother's Day Tea coupled with the picture he drew about what he wanted to be when he grew up.

His picture is of a "computer worker" - just like his Daddy. So. So. Sweet.

My sister Megan and I had a great time snapping pictures of our two babies! We love all of these babies. Enjoy the display below :)

Happy Spring from the Beck Family Grandkids!

Mother's Day

2011-05-25T14:45:00.004-05:00

For Mother's Day, our family took a little trip out to a ranch near Glen Rose, TX wanting a relaxing time connecting as a family. And thankfully, we got just that. The kids were excited to see the horses as we pulled up to the ranch and were even more excited to see the cabin we rented. The thing they were most excited about was the loft portion of the cabin which was at the top of a ship's ladder. The big kids got to sleep up there which they thought was quite awesome! They spent a lot of time climbing up and down that ladder which gave them tons of joy and mommy mini-heart attacks pretty much every time. But I am happy to report they are good climbers and there were no ladder accidents. It was a warm weekend so we had fun taking a hike using our map, exploring the backyard area of our cabin, and having family movie night at the cabin. It was the perfect size for our family and was decorated in a Texas theme which was very cute and fun!

The bird feeder on the front porch

Gabriella trying out the porch swing

Melia found the bathroom for us!

Going exploring!

Oliver at the top of the ladder!

Mother's Day!!

The next morning, we did a "Who Done It" scavenger hunt around the ranch searching for clues as to who robbed the bank in the little western town near the ranch office. After following the map and gathering all of the clues, it was determined that the two ranch pigs did it - Butch and Sundance! We made sure to visit them in their pen on the way out and feed them our leftover food.

On our way home we drove into downtown Glen Rose and ate lunch at a yummy restaurant there called the Green Pickle. We played at their awesome outside garden for a bit before heading to Big Rocks City Park. Our neighbor Brit recommended this place and it was truly cool. The whole family enjoyed exploring and playing in the cool river on a hot day. And thankfully, the water was slow moving and mostly shallow so the kids could play without too much worry!

It was a great weekend and such a blessing to spend time enjoying conversation, laughs, and making memories with the people we love most!

He is Risen!

2011-05-05T15:45:00.007-05:00

Happy Easter everyone!

We had a nice long Easter celebration that started off with the kids' Easter parties at preschool. Melia and I were able to attend both of them. We LOVE our preschool Graham Cracker Express and are so thankful for our awesome teachers and friends.

Gabriella with her Easter cross craft

Hunting eggs inside - it was a rainy party day!

Nothing better than listening to the Easter story in Ms. Cheryl's lap! We love Ms. Cheryl!

With her best buddy Olivia

Oliver making his Easter craft

Showing it to his friends

With some of his best buddies after the egg hunt!

We celebrated our Easter weekend with most of my family which was such a treat. The kids love having everyone around and I think the feeling is mutual. We are so blessed to have such a close-knit family. A blessing that I count very often.

We started off the festivities with a "Beck Family Bunny Run 5k." The sisters even made matching shirts:

Aunt Natty took the cake by running the whole way:

Matt and Bossy rode bikes with the kids... and Oliver rode all by himself for the first loop (1.6 miles!)

And Dad walked the whole 5k!

While Meme and my grandmother Nana held the baby!

Next was an Easter Egg hunt in our backyard:

We ended the weekend by celebrating our Risen Lord at our church with my family that was still in town. Here we are all ready to go:

Happy Easter!

Self-Reflection

2011-04-18T23:01:00.003-05:00

For the majority of my day, I deal solely with little people. These little people are super cute and have super personalities. These personalities can sometimes lead to precious, take-a-picture-in-my-mind moments that I want to bottle up for ever. Take for example, this picture:

Love her.

I'm also faced with equally important moments that try my patience and bring me to my knees when deciding how I should respond to mold these little characters into people who reflect the qualities of our God. Take for example, this picture:

Love her too.

But life is good here in the Dillard home. Where we have smiles like this to sustain us through the tougher days:

This little baby is trying her hardest to be a big girl. Eating real food, pulling up, even standing on her own for a few seconds. Even though I've experienced these milestones two times before with my other kids, it is still amazing to watch and fills our hearts with joy at watching this sweet little thing blossom into a little girl. Life is good.

It warms my heart (and sends me running for my camera) to stumble upon my kids doing things that showcase their growing personalities, increasing independence and blossoming imagination.

Here is Gabriella reading after nap time in our newly remodeled window seat.

Melia is in her element outside. I can't wait to see where her love for nature is going to take this one.

Below is Oliver exhibiting his "boy-ness" - trying to throw his friend Benjamin Bear as high as he can in the air. "Did you see that mom," is a phrase I hear often and I always try to stop what I'm doing and take notice.

Life is also changing in the Dillard home. Slowly but surely, these kids keep getting older. While I do not feel like the time has just FLOWN by in such a way that I feel like I have missed watching them grow, it is sobering to begin to experience the fact that as a mom, my goal is to slowly work myself out of a job. Yes, Oliver will be going to Kindergarten this fall and we registered him at Weatherford Elementary a week ago. Daddy got to come too and we enjoyed meeting some of the faculty and staff there as well as getting a tour of the school. Oliver told me, "Mom, I'm not excited about this" as we were preparing him for registration a few days before. I asked him why and he said, "Because I like my [pre] school now!" As hard as it was to experience this sadness and loss with him, it was one of those opportunities to help mold his little characters into one that reflects the qualities of our God. I acknowledged his sadness and had the opportunity to teach him how to deal with change. Priceless moment.

Thankfully, we all (mom especially) feel much more comfortable and excited about Kindergarten after this visit!

Oliver, Dad, and Benjamin Bear (his visiting friend from his preschool class) at Weatherford Elementary.

I do feel sadness at the time I will miss with Oliver starting this fall, but also look forward to getting to spend everyday with these two cuties:

I love you three so much and gladly accept the responsibility of being your Mommy. Through this good and bad, hum-drum and ever changing life, I will always be on my knees seeking wisdom from our God on how I should mold your little characters into people who reflect and glorify Him, our awesome Creator.

A camping we will go

2011-03-24T12:29:00.009-05:00

We were able to take our family camping a few weeks ago with some families from our church. They have an awesome place that they go to often which had a huge open area for tents, camp fires and playing. PLUS there was a river that was super slow moving and very shallow - perfect for little kids!

Our kids were in heaven sleeping in tents, being outside, and playing with their friends all day! Melia especially loves being outside so she was in a great mood the whole weekend! Some of the families had older kids who were super sweet and played with our kids. Oliver loves being around older kids so he spent a lot of time following them around! He also loved chasing and keeping tracks of the dogs that were there. Gabriella was thrilled to have one of her best friends, Olivia, on the trip with her and they enjoyed playing babies and pushing each other around in Melia's stroller!

We had fun...

...chasing kites

...eating smores (Oliver declared this to be his favorite part of camping and I don't blame him!)

...watching for "pirates" on the water

...throwing rocks

...going exploring, while singing of course!

...climbing trees

...riding bikes

...SWIMMING!

...eating, eating and more eating

...and spending quality time bonding with mom and dad!

Thanks to our friends for making our weekend so special!

Growing up, it happens every day

2011-03-07T21:22:00.004-06:00

Our littlest, Melia, is growing up. Every day. Now while that doesn't come as a surprise to us, it is quite shocking to see the rapid development she has been exhibiting of late. But more than the shock of the quickness of it, we have truly been delighted by the cuteness of it.

Some recent developments:

Crawling - that gets better and better every day. The big kids are so impressed with her. Oliver makes sure to point it out to me every time he sees her going and informs our guests of her skills as well.
Growing hair - this girl is quite adept in this area. Bald men all over the country could take pointers from her. But alas, it was growing into too much of a mullet for this mommy. So we tamed her wild mane with her first real haircut last week. The first day took some getting used to, but we adore her new do!

Here are some before an after shots of Melia's mane...

Before

And after...

Her bangs are not really that uneven... I promise. They just dried funny. And there's also her huge cowlick to take in.

LOVE her!

Here are a couple videos of our little girl in action. First we have some long haired, early crawling:

And now some short haired, crawling a few days later:

Lots of love!

2011-02-20T22:21:00.003-06:00

Our kids love holidays... the decorating, the themes, and doing something out of the ordinary! I like Valentine's Day because it's pretty low-key, yet we get to focus on how much we love each other. Matt and I wrote letters to each of the kids and put them in cute tin mailboxes for them to open in the morning. I made some Valentine's cupcakes that we shared with our friends that afternoon, and then for dinner it was heart-shaped pizzas! I love my family!

Thanks for the cute outfits Meme!

Oliver's shirt says I ♥ Daddy!

Decorating our pizzas

And here is our little model posing for the camera! She's going to need her second hair cut soon!

Ice and Snow

2011-02-10T22:18:00.000-06:00

We've had a lot of ice and snow lately. A lot for Dallas anyway. Enough to close down the city for 4 days straight. One snow day is fun... but 4 will really get to you. However, through it all, I feel like we made some great memories. Watching Swiss Family Robinson for Family Movie Night, bundling up to play in the snow, having a fire going in the fireplace, drinking lots of hot tea and hot chocolate, wearing our pajamas for days at a time, making an obstacle course, turning the playroom into a grocery store... good memories. Here are some pictures of the ones I love most and the source of these good memories.

My three babies!

This girl LOVES clothes, dressing up in cute outfits, and shopping. Good girl Gabby! Mommy is so proud!

This girl is all smiles 95% of the day! Love her!

We've added a little ponytail to Melia's daily look. And she'll probably need her bangs cut again soon.

Oliver being Oliver

Over 6 inches of snow to play in!

Food coloring and water make for a pretty mini snowman!

Snowman courtesy of Uncle Bossy (although the banana mouth was Oliver's idea)

I read about an activity that I thought our animal-loving boy would enjoy, and happily, I was right. I took 24 of his small plastic animals and put them into 2 ice cube trays, filled them with water, and let them sit in the freezer for a few hours. Then I told him that a bad guy (his favorite thing to play) had taken his animals and frozen them all and we had to save them. I let him think on his own about how he might free them. We ended up using a meat tenderizer to bust these buddies from their icy prisons.

An icy animal in distress

Their hard working hero...

Some things we've been up to lately...

2011-01-18T20:36:00.005-06:00

Bedroom switching
We've been ready for a while now to move Melia out of our room and have been experimenting with how to sleep 3 kids in two bedrooms. Some challenges... a "light sleeper" three year old who loves to talk and a baby who still wakes up once in the early morning to eat. So putting the two girls together has not worked out. Our most recent experiment is working so far. Gabriella and Oliver are sharing his bunk beds - and they are both fine with Gabby sleeping up top - much to her delight! To curb the incessant talking, we set a timer for 5 minutes after we tuck them in and they (aka... Gabby) can talk to each other until the timer goes off. If there is talking afterward, then Gabby has to sleep back in her room and Melia will go back to ours. That promise is enough motivation for her that we have had two successful nights with the big kids sleeping in the same room... although we did find Gabriella whispering to Oliver well after he was asleep last night :) So this is the plan for now. We'll see how things progress...

Playing a before bed game of Pretty Pretty Princess with his sister

Passport photos
We are preparing to go on a cruise with my family later this year so in preparation, I have been getting everything in order to get us all passports. Matt and I both have one, but of course they are both expired so we are in need of passports for the entire family. Since we are cruising to Key West and the Bahamas, we have been able to take advantage of the Passport card for the kids, saving us a bundle of money since we don't see ourselves needing the full international passport for all 3 kids anytime soon. In another effort to save a few dollars, I read many tutorials and decided that I would take our passport photos myself... saving us $10 apiece. I'm very happy with the results and just ordered the $0.09 pictures today. Mucho money saved. Yay.
Baby food!
Melia is growing up quickly as babies are known to do. She is rolling all over the floor - I have to put up pillow barricades to keep her away from walls and out of the corner. She eats pureed vegetables and fruits like a pro! She can drink water from a sippy cup - something my other kids couldn't master until closer to a year. And she still smiles for us all of the time. What a lovable little girl she is. We are so blessed to have her as our baby doll!

Last weekend we had some family pictures made and got a bunch of Melia at 6 months! Here's a sneak peek!

Gabriella in the NEWS!

2011-01-13T20:09:00.000-06:00

And she's so cute in PRINT! That's right, print! A few days ago I emailed a picture of Gabriella to my friend Ann Marie who works for the Dallas Morning News because she needed some pictures of last weekend's snow to run in the paper. Well, she made the cut and is in the Friday, January 14th edition of the Dallas Morning News in the Neighbors Go section in the West Plano, Plano and Frisco papers.

Look at the cover page and page 7 of the West Plano section here.

Look at the cover page and page 12 of the Plano section here.

Look at page 8 of the Frisco section here.

SNOW!

2011-01-13T20:02:00.002-06:00

We celebrated our first snow day of the season on Sunday! Oliver enjoyed it for a few minutes. But due to the fact that he refused to wear a coat, his interest waned more quickly than Gabriella's (I wonder why...) ?

Here are some shots of our snow day!

Oliver in his non-winter attire :)

Eating snow

For more images, check out my photo album here!

Loving this life...

2011-01-04T22:56:00.003-06:00

Record first haircut... 6 months old! But the girl can now see life without hair in front of her eyes.

Creating with brother and daddy

Jumping for the camera

In mid air!

An eventful Christmas season

2011-01-02T13:14:00.007-06:00

We were very blessed this Christmas season to get to spend 10 days with my side of the family! We started off the celebrations at my youngest sister Emily's wedding to Basilio Rocha. We already love "Bossy" and are so happy to have him as an official part of our family. It was a beautiful ceremony, very touching, and made for a very happy, happy day! The kids performed their duties in the ceremony well for the most part... although Gabriella did have to supply a little drama by banging her legs into the stage while throwing her rose petals off of it. She had to leave for a bit but was able to join us again later :)

We got to spend some fun times with all of our extended family that was in Texas for the wedding. Many wild and crazy times were had which will not be surprising to you if you know my extended family. There were microwave fires to be put out, embarrassing games, and an uncle thrown into the frigid swimming pool!

After the wedding festivities died down we relaxed for a few days and then my parents, Megan and her family and our family drove down to Galveston to spend a few days at Moody Gardens exploring the museums, theaters, and activities there. We had a great time and the kids were so thrilled to get to stay in a hotel... one of their favorite things to do and something Oliver has been asking about since our hotel stay last year.

Megan and her family

Gabriella dancing with a gopher

Having fun!

At the aquarium

After Galveston, we went back to my parent's house to spend the rest of the Christmas holiday. We went to the Houston Galleria, the Rainforest Cafe (a special treat my parents always like to do for the kids), spent a lot of time jumping on their trampoline, relaxing in the hot tub, and playing games. We were so grateful to have so much quality time with our family that we love so much!

Pepe reading "Llama llama holiday drama!"

Christmas Eve we had fun playing some games, acting out the Christmas story, and having our traditional finger food dinner. The kids were very excited for Santa to come and to open their gifts on Christmas morning. It really is a magical time to spend with a child.

Mary, Baby Jesus, Joseph and the shepherds

Cousins in their matching Christmas jammies

Setting out cookies for Santa

Sisters in our matching Christmas jammies (Emily was on her way home from Jamaica)

Baby's first Christmas... holding her new teething giraffe. And just in time too - she's currently working on cutting her first tooth!

Wearing our matching Bucees Christmas T-shirts (Melia was napping)

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from the Dillards

2010-12-11T21:31:00.004-06:00

We have been enjoying our Christmas season so far... Christmas with little kids is fun. They are learning so much about what Christmas means, and we are enjoying teaching them about Christ coming into the world. They are learning about traditions, and for kids who love routine, advent calendars and finding the "hiding elf" every morning are awesome! They are enjoying listening to and learning the words to some Christmas Carols. The other day Oliver told me, "Mom, I LOVE that baby Jesus song!" (aka, Away in a Manger).

Oliver is old enough now to remember past Christmases... he remembers the plate we used to set out Santa's cookies last year, was excited to see all the stockings, and play with his beloved Christmas toys and movies. He loves turning on the Christmas Tree lights and reading the name tags on the presents and telling us who each one is for.

Gabriella is still our little performer and will gladly recite Luke 2:11 for anyone who will listen. She is showing great self-restraint in leaving the wrapped presents untouched under the tree and can't WAIT until she can finally open them. She LOVES books and she daily piles up the Christmas books we got out of the attic and asks us to read them all to her.

Melia is still our smiley baby and her favorite thing is just to sit and watch her siblings. They bring a smile to her face faster than anyone else and are always up for playing with her. We look forward to celebrating her first Christmas this year! We got her a stocking to match the other kids' stockings and feel blessed to have the number of stockings on our mantel grow.

Matt and I love days we get to spend with our family. Today was just such a day. Leisurely morning at home, an outing to play miniature golf, lots of reading time, and watching Charlie Brown's Christmas as a family with popcorn and hot chocolate before bed. We are so thankful for our family and God's blessing and provision in our lives.

Here are some pictures of our fun day together:

Lazy morning...

Sweet kiddos

Pancakes for breakfast - this girls can eat her WEIGHT in pancakes! Maybe that's why she didn't eat any lunch...

Sweet thing hanging out by the Christmas tree. Excuse the runny nose. 'Tis the season...

Posing on the bench at the mini-golf place!

"I got really close, Mom"

Staying warm with Daddy

Our little boy

We are looking forward to celebrating Christmas with our extended family and remembering and being thankful for our Savior coming to earth.

Happy Birthday Big Boy

2010-12-10T15:15:00.004-06:00

We hit a big milestone this month... our boy turned 5 years old. I feel like 5 is WAY older than 4. I wanted to take a minute and reflect on the little man I see him becoming.

He is opening up and being more social of late which is just darling to witness. He loves recreational companionship (5 Love Languages anyone?) and is a whiz with electronics. He is a fan of order and completeness (wonder where he gets that) and is constantly sorting and lining up his toys. I love to come into a room and see the line of toys that just says to me "Oliver was here." He loves structure and days go much better for him when he has a schedule to adhere to. He can do so many things by himself which is a great help to this busy momma. We love him to pieces and appreciate his unique personality so much. He brings a smile to our faces everyday. We love you SO much Oliver and are so thankful to God for the wonderful gift that God gave us 5 years ago. You have changed our lives forever and we are so blessed to get to go through life with you as a precious accent to our days.

Oliver as a newborn

1 year old

2 years old

3 years old

4 years old

Our big 5 year old!

Bible Verses... in their own words

2010-12-08T10:05:00.002-06:00

My children have some funny ways that they have changed up some Bible verses we have been memorizing... so I thought I would document their cuteness.

"I can do everything through Christ who gives me strength." -Philippians 4:13

Oliver: "I can do everything that I want to do."

Not quite buddy, but nice try!

"For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Saviour which is Christ the Lord." - Luke 2:11

Gabriella: "For unto you is born this day in the city of Goliath..."

David, Goliath... at least she was close :)

We are Thankful...

2010-12-07T14:46:00.006-06:00

Here are some pictures of what were most thankful for this Thanksgiving:

Our thanksgiving blessings (a little belated...)

We are thankful for... Family!! And health - we all ran a 2.4 mile "Dillard Family Turkey Trot" around the neighborhood that morning. It was definitely a brisk run!

We are thankful for... Gabriella!

...and for girls! Having little girls is so fun for a mommy who loves to dress them up!

We are thankful for... an awesome Thanksgiving cook and hostess - Matt's mom Annie!

We are thankful for... watching movies with our cousins, while holding a stick horse apparently.

We are thankful for... all of our Aunts and extended family!

We are thankful for... TURKEY!

We are thankful for... cooler weather!

We are thankful for... cousins who are great friends and fun to play with!

We are thankful for... healthy, growing babies - here Melia is tasting her first rice cereal!

We are thankful for... cousins who love on us!

The 5 stages of grief

2010-11-29T13:47:00.003-06:00

This morning I experienced something traumatic that sent me into the 5 stages of grief process that people go through when dealing with a loss. Don't worry - nothing serious has happened. This is a very minor thing in the grand scheme of things. I just want to laugh at myself because I am such a textbook case for this grief model. I could be their spokesperson. Don't judge me.

If you are not familiar with the Kübler-Ross model, here is a basic summary:

Denial – "This can't be happening, not to me."
Anger – "Why me? It's not fair!"; "How can this happen to me?"
Bargaining – "If only..."
Depression – "I'm so sad..."
Acceptance – "It's going to be okay."

So let me set up the scene. I was so happy to have a morning off with my kids after a very busy, but fun, Thanksgiving weekend. No where to be, not much to get done, just fun times. Since things were so open, I decided to take them with me to the local grocery store that has kid-sized shopping carts to do our grocery shopping. I didn't have a ton to get and they LOVE helping me because I make them each a pictorial grocery list and print it in color from my computer before we leave. Then they each get their cart and we make a nice, curvy, loud, ankle-bumping train as we make our way though the store. Fun times. I try to go when the store is not too crowded so as to inconvenience as few other shoppers as possible. But they really have a lot of fun, feel so proud for checking things off of their lists, and I get a chore done at the same time. Win, win!

This was my big shopping trip for the week; I made my list before I went containing everything our family would need until next Monday. Before I left I looked through my coupon file because this store has a lot of "free with $10 purchase" coupons that I get in the mail frequently. I only found one non-expired coupon which I was bummed about, but off we went. We made it through the store and back home in about an hour without any major meltdowns, no potty trips, and getting almost everything on my list. Success.

But then, tragedy strikes. After lunch, I finally take the time to go through the pile of mail on my desk that has been sitting there growing taller and taller through the holiday weekend when I was too busy visiting family to get it all sorted. And there I find them - 4 AWESOME coupons that I totally could have used today... for FREE items. Free Ice Cream (that I would have used for Oliver's birthday this weekend), free bananas (which I paid full price for this morning), free ground beef (which I would have used for this week's meals), and free orange juice (which I could have used for when my family is in town this weekend).

Now for most normal people, this would not seem like a tragedy. But for someone who loves to use coupons, prides themselves on being organized, can only make so many trips out of the house with 3 kids each week to sustain her sanity, and is her biggest critic... this is bad folks.

The dollar signs started flashing in my mind, as well as the missed opportunity cost of already being at the store and missing the chance to grab those items. I quickly spiraled into the 5 stages of grief:

Denial (NO! - which I did yell out loud prompting my daughter to ask in a concerned voice, "Why did you say that, mommy?")
Anger (Are you kidding me! I made such a great list and even made cute lists for the kids to use and I forgot those coupons! Perfect shopping trip ruined!)
Bargaining (Maybe I can take my receipt up there tonight without the kids after Matt gets home and get the money... even though the coupons say must be presented at time of purchase.)
Depression (Enough said. Although I think I went back to anger again at this point too for a few minutes.)
Acceptance... I think I'm just about there. And it only took about an hour.

The more you are attached to something, the longer each stage takes. One hour for coupons, much longer for people. But the stages are definitely the same. I went through the same thing when I broke a lamp a few years ago. Matt and I laughed because you could so clearly see each stage!! I guess I'm a textbook case.

Now, I could always go back and use them you might say. But most of these coupons are such that you can use one with each $10 purchased. So I would have to spend $30 more dollars to get these items for free. So not really worth an additional $30, but I did spend well over $30 on my original trip. Sad. Sad. I'm still tempted to do it though... just buying meat or some staple that I could freeze. But that would mean another trip to the store. We'll see which side of my brain wins that battle... the money saving side or the get-over-it-and-move-on side. Sigh.

Now this next part will not surprise you if you know me. This tragedy will not be in vain. In the wake of this disaster (and since sadly this is not the first time something like this has happened), I have instituted a NEW COUPON SYSTEM! I will now keep track of all the coupons I have in a list on my computer desktop so that I can just pull up the document and do a quick scan of what I have on hand before I head out to the store. I plan to quickly type them into this document as soon as I get them so that no matter where they physically land, I know they exist and can remember to hunt them down before I start shopping. You see, I had looked at these coupons the day they came in the mail, but promptly forgot about them when they went in to the aforementioned "pile." I am convinced that with each child you have, a portion of your memory goes away. Now I wouldn't trade any of my kids to have those portions of my memory back, so I am just going to have to find a way to work around it.

And that is a little peek into my brain... crazy as it is.

A fun morning at home with my kids

2010-11-19T13:25:00.003-06:00

Most mornings these days we have somewhere to be. I'm not complaining - all of the activities we are involved in my kids love and are beneficial to us all. However, it does take quite a bit of effort by Matt and I to get us all ready to go in the mornings. So on days that we don't have anywhere we need to be, I enjoy just staying home with my kids and following their lead as to what they would like to do. No rushing to get dressed and ready for the day... just living life at a slower, easier pace. I know it won't be too long until we will have school every day for Oliver and soon after that for the other kids as well. So I am soaking up these sweet mornings with just me and my kids while I can. Here are our very arduous tasks for the morning:

Playing ballerina with Gabby

Smiling a lot at baby girl... her hair has started laying down from it's usual mow-hawk state the last few days. I think I'm kind of sad about that, but it is still cute!

And making silly faces with boy!

I even let Oliver get behind the camera!

We read books, finger painted, had lunch at home, and listened to Pandora on the TiVo (Oliver's new favorite past time)

Fun times with some sweet kiddos! I am blessed.

It was finally time...

2010-11-09T16:51:00.003-06:00

It was finally time to do something with "All that hair!"

Melia Rose

2010-11-07T21:20:00.004-06:00

I wanted to post an update on our newest bundle of joy, because that is just what she brings to our family. Joy. She is such a content, easy little girl and truly brings so much happiness into my life daily. I miss her when I think about our life before she was here, because I can't imagine now living life without her and the smiles, cuddles, and cooing she gives me every day that just makes this momma's heart so full.

She laughs, she rolls, she's discovered her hands, she loves bath time, and she reaches for toys. She's growing - she's at about 14.5 pounds right now. Soon now she will be eating baby cereal - she's showing an interest in what we are eating. She can sit up well when somewhat supported and LOVES to watch her brother and sister. They make her laugh more than we adults ever could.

The big kids making Melia laugh

Melia also got to go on her first camping trip last weekend. We took all the kids and joined some folks from our Sunday School class for an overnight, tent camping trip. The kids had a blast and really did well considering it was a little bit cold and they were sleeping somewhere new. We saw quite a bit of wildlife too: a deer, a tarantula, a daddy long legs, and some vultures or some sort of birds of prey. They got to have s'mores... but didn't like the messy chocolate all over their hands. We'll have to fix that. We plan to take them again sometime in the spring after learning just a few things that would make camping with 3 even better. Here are some pictures from our trip.

Happy Fall!

2010-11-01T14:06:00.007-05:00

We have been doing some of our traditional fall outings here lately, and loving it! What a wonderful respite from the hot summer the cooler temperatures have been. It's so nice not to sweat just getting the kids in and out of the car. It's the little things...

We made our semi-annual trip to the Dallas Arboretum and it was perfect weather for us! It is fun to compare this year's picture to years past here... and here! We got to go with some good friends - making the day even more fun!

This pretty 3 year-old got to go to see the pumpkins on her 3rd birthday!

Melia's first trip to the Arboretum... happy in the stroller

Sweet 4 year old!

Fun with the Zutavern boys

We also hosted our 3rd Annual Halloween Party at our house last night. We had a bunch of cute dressed up kids and their parents as usual. Here are some fun pictures from our night:

The gang

Peter Pan, Snow White and Tinkerbell

This is the only way to go trick-or-treating!

After going up to the first door, she came back to me saying (excitedly): "Mom, CANDY!"

Oliver was keeping close track of his candy. Here he is counting his 4 pieces :)

Trick-or-treating is always more fun while holding hands with a sweet friend

Super cute Snow White on her first Halloween!

Lovin' these cuties!

Happy Fall Y'all!

Growing Gabby

2010-10-29T14:40:00.001-05:00

Just born

1st birthday

2nd birthday

3rd birthday... my big girl!

Happy Birthday sweet girl

2010-10-20T22:53:00.005-05:00

Our darling Gabriella turned three years old last week and we sure have enjoyed celebrating her! We had a special day with just our family on her actual birthday... Matt, Oliver and I walked into her room at 6:30 in the morning all wearing funny hats and singing "Happy Birthday" to her. We also made a trip to get some Sprinkles cupcakes with Granna... always a big hit! She was o-so-excited about getting presents this year. She's at the age where she knows what goes down when it's your birthday! She was also very excited for her "Arts & Crafts" birthday party that we had on Saturday. Fun times!

We were privileged to have some of my family from out of town come up and stay with us for the weekend too! So that made our celebration even more special.

Our big three-year-old!

Matching girls!

Awesome cake made by my friend Ashley

Making our shaving cream craft

Happy Birthday to you!

Birthday princess and her cake

She wanted to open her gifts while sitting on the table like her friend Georgia got to at her birthday party... :)

Getting pretty with one of her new gifts!

We finished off the weekend with our 3rd annual Gabriella's-birthday-weekend-visit-to-the-State-Fair-with-my-family. And here's Big Tex to prove it...

Sisters sporting our "Trust for the Dust" bracelets to remember our cousin Dustin who is still in the hospital recovering from a serious car accident

Also supporting the Cowboys... to no avail

A tired birthday girl

Gabriella - we love you, your adorable personality, your fun-loving nature, and your caring spirit. We are so blessed to have you in our family and can't wait to watch you grow and become the woman God created you to be.

The rest of the story

2010-10-17T14:50:00.004-05:00

Here is more on our Midwest trip...

After many "are we there yet" chants from the back seat (and one emergency potty stop), we finally made it to Indianapolis and to Dan and Stephanie's beautiful home. The last 30 minutes of the trip always seems to be the hardest! They had made us a wonderful dinner and it was so nice just to be able to relax at their home and go to bed early that night. The next morning we headed out to the Indianapolis Children's Museum which is one of the best museums I've ever been to. Here are some pictures of the kids playing!

Oliver assisting the balls to climb up the ball machine. He stayed here a while and really enjoyed watching this even after the rest of us had moved on.

Gabriella driving a tractor! It really moved just by turning the hand crank. Some pretty amazing physics going on there to allow a 2 year old to make that thing roll!

Digging for dinosaur bones

Exploring the dinosaur habitat

Dress up time!

Hanging out with Uncle Dan in one of the wonders of the world - the Colosseum

Who's ready for Halloween?

On Saturday, we drove to downtown Indianapolis to see Buddy the dog compete in the Wiener Dog Races at a German Festival. His owners were a bit nervous... and Buddy did eventually make it CLOSE to the finish line where unfortunately he became too distracted by the many treats laid out there. It was fun to watch!

The competitor

We got to spend some time playing games (they are big fans of Ticket to Ride), watching the Texas Rangers, and seeing what their lives are like in Indy. We loved playing at Uncle Dan and Aunt Stephanie's house and hope to get back up there again soon!

Brothers ready to cheer the Texas Rangers on to a playoff victory

We had to drive back to St. Louis to catch the train again. While there, we had the privileged of meeting up with my sister Megan and her family for dinner before we caught the train as they were in town visiting her in-laws. We got to see so many people on our trip and are so blessed to have such a loving family!

No planes, just trains and automobiles...

2010-10-14T20:39:00.002-05:00

Earlier this week, we returned from our big train/road trip across the Midwest to visit Matt's brother Dan and sister-in-law Stephanie in Indianapolis. A few months ago, I looked into the possibility of taking the Amtrak train to visit them. I scoured their website, had many long phone conversations with their customer service people, and picked the brain of some friends who had made the same trip, all trying to determine if this was something that would work for our family of five. We decided to go for it and booked our round-trip tickets from Dallas to St. Louis! That's as close to Indianapolis as we could get by train because of where the rails run, so from there we rented a van to drive the rest of the way to Indy.

We left mid-week after much anticipation! We packed our suitcases, some backpacks full of new toys to entertain the kids on the train, and hoped for the best. The train left from Union Station in downtown Dallas so we headed down there after lunch. The kids were very obedient and excited and we didn't have to wait in the station long before the announcement was made to head out to the tracks to meet the train!

Waiting for the train

Leaving Dallas

We boarded the train around 3:45pm and were off! We had reserved the Family Bedroom and the kids were excited that they would get to sleep in bunk beds (which did have a strap that connected from the side of the bed to the ceiling so no one would fall off - which made mommy happy). The seats converted into beds and Oliver and Matt slept on the top bunks, and Gabriella and I slept on the bottom bunks (Melia got to share a bed with me).

Heading out of town... while Matt listens to the end of the Rangers playoff game!

The train had a dining car and lounge car both of which we visited many times. We had dinner on the train which was a neat experience... watching the landscape pass by as we ate. They had booths like a regular restaurant and the meals were included in the price of our ticket. The food not very good though :( But everything was a new experience which, fortunately, my kids love! They were happy to eat their chicken nuggets and spaghetti and meatballs and have their chocolate ice cream for dessert.

Bedtime was easier for some than others. Let's just suffice it to say that our darling middle child is too social for her own good. But after a few hours of fighting it, she too drifted off to sleep. Melia slept like an angel all swaddled up. We were all up bright and early at 4am though as the excitement of the ride woke them early. I didn't sleep very well either (stops and starts of the train, 3:30am potty trips with our newly potty trained daughter), so I was more than happy to stop trying to sleep and get up with the kids. We had some sweet moments all cuddled in my bed talking about silly things... like who do you know that snores and "Mom, do animals sleep?" A very sweet moment.

We arrived in St. Louis around 7:30am, and were so happy to get to visit with our friends the Szymanski's who had recently moved there from Dallas. Eric was kind enough to pick us up from the train station and take us to get our rental car. Then we got to spend a few hours at their house!! The kids loved playing with their toys and their friends Jeremiah and Kaylie, and getting to stretch out and run after being in the train all night. Matt and I enjoyed getting to shower and clean up a bit after wearing the same clothes for close to 24 hours.

Our silly kids posing for a picture

We were so happy to get to reconnect with them, introduce them to Melia, and see their new home! They kindly fed us lunch and sent us on our way. Next stop Indianapolis. Stay tuned for more from our trip...

"Look at all that hair"

2010-10-14T15:24:00.003-05:00

"Look at all that hair" is the comment I've definitely heard the most when people see Melia. From day 1 this has been her number #1 feature. Everywhere I go people stop me to exclaim this statement to me. And for good reason. And so, today I say to YOU: "Look at all that hair!"

Change can be a good thing

2010-10-06T11:40:00.003-05:00

Working toward something and accomplishing it is a rewarding process. To watch your child finally achieve something that they (and you) have been working hard toward for a long time is an ever MORE amazing feeling.

Today (and for the past 5 days) our darling daughter Gabriella has been potty trained!!! She decided on her own to do it - which in my opinion is really the only way to do it. Other methods we tried with Oliver left us all stressed and disappointed. So after having achieved success with Oliver this way, we employed the same method with Gabby. Oliver was 3 1/2 (a little later than average for boys) and Gabby is not quite 3 (a little sooner than average for girls). Basically, we asked her when we noticed she was going or needed to go if she would like to go on the potty. She would routinely said no. We've been doing this for months with no stress. If she said no, we said we'd try again later. So we just instructed on how the process was to happen when she was ready without ever forcing her to go. She had never even gone ONCE before Saturday when she announced she was ready to go potty. We took her then, and about every 30 minutes that day and she had all successes. She was FINALLY ready. There have been maybe 2 accidents total in the last 5 days and she announces to us (and her teachers at school) when she needs to go.

We have given her a lot of praise (and some candy rewards) and she thrives on both. She got to have her Meme and Pepe here visiting that weekend to tell them and got to call her other grandparents to tell them too. Exciting times!

We still use "bye-bye" and "night-night" underwear (Pull ups) for now, but I don't see us having to do that for long because she is staying dry. Way to go little/big girl. What an accomplishment.

Life in Pictures

2010-09-23T20:01:00.005-05:00

Here is an update on our life recently - and thankfully, with my awesome camera, there are always pictures!

We got to take a trip out to Longview, TX to visit Matt's grandmother. The kids had a great time at Grandmama's house and she enjoyed getting to meet Melia Rose for the first time. Grandmama's name is Virginia Rose Burt and was the inspiration for Melia's middle name! We got to go out to lunch to celebrate Matt's birthday, show Grandmama some pictures of some places from her past using Google Earth, and she even used an iPad for the first time to read some of this blog! What a happenin' 91 year old!

Checking out that new baby!

Exercising with Granna!

Virginia Rose and Melia Rose

Papa and his grand-daughters

The girls

The boys

Melia continues to be COMPLETELY loved by her big brother and sister. Here she is feeling the love once again with the beloved puppy and bunny loaned to her by her siblings!

They also took some time to load her up with some toys to keep her entertained!

I have slowly been feeling the crafty vibe again. The approaching fall usually does that to me. I feel the need to make some pumpkin decor... but for now, here is my latest creation. The project was copied off a blog I read (of course), but still made me proud nonetheless. Below is an "apple for the teacher!" - gifts my kids took to their preschool teachers to start off the new year!

A fun heart ramekin filled with apple flavored jelly beans, a ribbon leaf and a sour straw stem!

And last but not least, our most recently family photo. And our only posed/studio picture with Melia in our midst. This is the picture that will be seen in our church's photo directory. So those of you at our church are getting a sneak peek at the Dillard Family's rendition of "church directory photo."

Fascinating

2010-09-18T13:40:00.006-05:00

I find genetics fascinating. The nature v. nurture discussion is always an interesting one to me. I think it's neat when siblings sound alike on the phone. It's cool to see children who have the same personalities as their parents. And I really love to see family resemblances! Here are some pictures of two of my babies that I think look a lot alike. Melia is in pink and Oliver is the baby I'm comparing her with! I see the resemblance a lot in the chins and eyes.

I can't wait to see what Melia is going to look like when she gets older.

Off to school

2010-09-18T09:24:00.006-05:00

Our preschool recently started up again and the kids were ready to go! Gabriella was VERY excited as this is her first year in preschool and she has been dying to start! She was especially excited that "Mommy would go bye-bye." She is a very independent little girl. She would cry and get mad when I would stay with her during the "Mommy and Me" classes we took this summer saying, "LEAVE!" I told her I would leave her when she started school this fall. It is so funny to me to have a child like this because when Oliver started school, he cried every time I dropped him off for a while!

Walking into school

Gabriella in her pink, sparkle shoes

Oliver is in the Cookie Monsters class this year which is the oldest class at the preschool. Yes, I know what that means. I know it means Kindergarten is the next step. I just choose not to think about that. His teachers are Ms. Harrison and Ms. Hegwood and I think he is going to learn a lot this year especially about getting ready for Kindergarten. He gets to stay for lunch this year which is new to him but yet another way I am trying to prepare him for Kindergarten next year. He wasn't too nervous, but did have his usual quietness when entering a new situation. But I was proud of him for marching right in. It doesn't hurt that he knows a number of the other kids in there already!

Putting his lunch in the lunch bin

Ms. Harrison and Ms. Hegwood

Gabriella is so proud to be in the Gingerbreads class. She was beaming when we got the call from her teacher inviting us to "Meet The Teacher" day before school started. Her teacher had left a message on the answering machine and we had to listen to it twice because she was so excited! She also gets to stay for lunch since picking the kids up at two different times so close together didn't make much sense.

Putting her stuff down under the red "Gabriella" star!

Giving her friend Olivia a hug hello.

With Ms. Marlene

...and Ms. Cheryl

They are just going one day a week to preschool with other activities throughout the week as well. So we are busy and working on transitioning into our new fall schedule. Getting all 3 kids and myself ready and out the door on time is definitely a challenge. But with Daddy's help, we think we've stumbled upon a procedure that will work. We are looking forward to our fall activities and I am happy to have some time during the week while they are playing at school to get somethings done and get some one-on-one time with my sweet baby (pictured below just because she is cute).

I love my family!

2010-09-08T14:39:00.011-05:00

Over Labor Day weekend we got to visit my family in Utah. We flew up there with all 3 kids - woo hoo! Actually, they all did really well traveling. They are at good ages for that. The big kids were excited to go on an airplane and see their family. Excitement helps their behavior! And the promise of Toy Story 3 fruit snacks on the airplane didn't hurt either! And Melia just slept the whole time. Score.

We were so thankful for the help both of our parents provided - both in dropping us off at the airport in Dallas and picking us up at the airport in Salt Lake. Priceless! The hardest part is getting from the car to check-in with all 3 kids and all the luggage - and 3 car seats! So the curbside service was a lifesaver! I was able to cram the clothes for all 5 of us into one suitcase and save $50 in luggage fees since we didn't have to check two suitcases. It was a heavy suitcase - but came in at 2 pounds below the 50 pound limit! I love saving money!

The thing I was most excited about this trip was getting the see my sister Megan's new baby McKinley! I was dying to see her and was so glad to get to see her when she was only 1 week and 3 days old (yes, I was counting down the days)! She was so adorable, looks just like her Daddy Travis, and was awake and alert a lot of the time which was so fun to see!

McKinley and Megan

Us with our new babies

The big kids were excited to meet her as well - especially since they now have a lot of experience with babies since sister Melia came along.

Oliver and Gabriella holding their newest cousin! Their first cousin on my side of the family.

We got to spend some time at my Aunt Darla and Uncle Mark's home while we were there. The kids enjoyed playing with some of my cousins kids. Oliver found a room full of bigger boy toys and he told Matt: "Hey Dad, look at all of this awesome!!!" Funny what kids say. Daddy and Uncle Travis also thought the nerf guns he found were a whole lot of awesome! Gabriella got to spend some time harvesting some vegetables from their garden. She picked some green beans off the vine and some grapes! She enjoyed her time as a "farmer" as she called it.

Gabby with her basket full of her harvest!

My parents rented a big house at the mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon for us all to stay in for the weekend. With 5 bedrooms, a pool table, air hockey table and an indoor half court basketball gym, there was plenty to keep everyone entertained. It was really relaxing to let the kids roam the house on their own being entertained by everything in the house as well as by all of the family staying there.

The view from the back porch of the house

We spent time celebrating Megan's 25th birthday with lunch, shopping and pedicures (one of my favorite combinations). Gabriella got to join in on the fun and had her first pedicure!

Sitting with Aunt Natty getting her pedicure!

I attempted a mini photo shoot with the two new babies wearing the matching shirts I bought them. They obliged for a little while...

But they didn't hold out for too long...

The pacifiers made it better... and they even matched too!

While we were there, we got a chance to go up to the University of Utah Medical Center to visit my cousin Dustin's family who has been up there by his bedside since Dustin was in a car accident on August 26th. Here is a link to his Caring Bridge site. He sustained severe spinal cord damage and is currently paralyzed from the chest down. Please pray for healing for his spinal cord (which thankfully was not severed, just badly damaged) - and that he will be able to walk again.

Another highlight of the trip was getting to see a lot of my Dad's side of the family who live in the area. And when I say a lot, I mean a lot! We had around 60 people over on Sunday for a family reunion. It was great to get to reconnect with a lot of family members I hadn't seen in a while and get to show off my cute kids.

My Dad's cousin is a Chiropractor and was giving free adjustments. The kids watched as Daddy got worked on.

I looked over a few minutes later and noticed that Gabriella was giving Adalie an adjustment as well. They even used Kleenex that they found to make a sanitary work surface :)

It was great to spend time with all of my family, but especially with my sisters. Love y'all!

Two month old sweetness

2010-08-29T21:11:00.002-05:00

My sweet baby Melia turned two months old this week. What a wonderful little girl she is! She is a great eater, sleeper and smiler. What more could you ask for in a baby. The big kids adore her. Her parents are enamored by her. We are truly blessed.

Here is my baby when she was one day old - she's changed so much already!

It's Magic!

2010-08-25T13:52:00.002-05:00

Matt and I took our Dads out for dinner to The Magic Time Machine here in Dallas to celebrate Father's Day. I never got around to posting these pictures (considering I had a baby 3 days later!) - but they must be shared.

Here we are having a "magical" time. These pictures were both handed to us by the talented and creative staff at Magic Time Machine and are kind of like the games you find in Highlights magazine. Circle the 8 things that are different about these two pictures. Enjoy!

What a great weekend

2010-08-22T21:13:00.003-05:00

This weekend we were happy to have my family in town to celebrate Melia's dedication at church. We were so blessed to have so many family and friends join us at church and at her reception at our home afterward! What a special day!

Our dedication prayer for Melia

Dear God,
Thank you so much for blessing us with our
precious daughter Melia. It has taken no time
for her to win the hearts of everyone in our family.
She brings so much joy and delight to our lives,
and we pray that she will delight in you all of her days.

Gabby made sure to show everyone watching how much she loved her sister

And Oliver occupied himself by playing with some baby toes

My mom and sister helped me make some rainbow cupcakes that I've been wanting to try for a while...

They turned out so vivid!

Loving that Grandpa!

2010-08-20T15:47:00.005-05:00

Melia was smiling up a storm this afternoon and I finally caught her cute smiles on camera...

And the reason for all of that smiling... Grandpa Pepe is here!

I want to remember these little faces

2010-08-16T15:22:00.003-05:00

On the way to the circus!

An amazing quilt made by a friend!

Look at that cute "bed head" little boy!

Back to reality

2010-08-15T22:32:00.004-05:00

One of the most amazing blessings we had after welcoming Melia into our family was having meals provided to us by our friends and family. I didn't have to cook for a month!!! And that my friends is a HUGE deal. Thank you again for everyone who graciously blessed us with their time and their yummy food.

But all good things must come to an end, and now I am once again in charge of providing my family with dinner every evening. But I have a friend, whom I have never met, helping me to keep things interesting. Ree Drummond (aka the Pioneer Woman) and her cookbook The Pioneer Woman Cooks have inspired me. After browsing through the book one time I knew I wanted to own it. As soon as I got my hands on my copy I sat down and read it cover to cover. A cookbook. But Ree's voice is so entertaining and her recipes so enticing (not to mention the step-by-step pictures!) that it was truly an enjoyable read. All of the recipes looked amazing. Most of them sounded like they would TASTE amazing. And the ones that I have made did not disappoint. And I give all of the credit to the Pioneer Woman's well-documented genius.

I'm toying with the idea of doing a Julie and Julia version of her cookbook... one by one making all of the recipes in her cookbook. I've already learned some new things about cooking after making only four of her recipes... namely how to make gravy from scratch. This is a task that has always daunted me and that I've failed at in the past. But as Ree says "Please, my friends, do not be afraid of the gravy."

I've documented the four recipes I've tried with pictures which I will share below. I've only made them once each with the exception of the Chicken-Fried Steak and Creamy Mashed Potatoes. I made that again for the second time tonight to share with our friends. I'm happy to say the second time was much faster and even a little bit tastier than the first time!

Obviously, this is a cookbook I would highly recommend. And those that I've shared my culinary endeavors with all agree on one thing - yummmmmmmm!

Basic Breakfast Potatoes brought to our "Breakfast for Dinner" Neighbor Dinner a few weeks ago

Yes my friends, that is bacon, yes BACON wrapped around a meatloaf. Wow.

And the finished product with yummy glaze on top. I almost forgot to get the picture and as you can see there wasn't much left over after our Small Group folks got a hold of it!

And Chicken-Fried Steak and Creamy Mashed Potatoes. One of my most favorite meals ever.

These mashed potatoes were super creamy because of the first lesson I learned... don't "eyeball" to get you to half of the 5 pound bag of potatoes... actually use a scale and measure until you get the required 2.5 pounds. Otherwise you are left with a super creamy dish of potatoes. The word "runny" could also be substituted for "creamy" in this case due to the addition of butter, half and half, and oh yes cream cheese! Don't worry - the taste was EXCELLENT. Just a little bit too rich. You can even see the butter in the picture! Sinful. Fortunately, the second time around the consistency was much better thanks to my oft-used kitchen scale.

So those are the recipes I've made up until today. I am constantly planning my next social event. I've already sent two dinner invitations and am just waiting on date confirmations so I think I will go to bed now with my cookbook in hand and start plotting my next calorific meal. I really do love having people in my home. And cooking for them - especially when I'm almost guaranteed a home run of a meal thanks to my friend Ree.

I love my kids

2010-08-01T13:48:00.004-05:00

We are adjusting well to life as a family of five! The big kids still love their baby sister. Gabriella wants to hold her and kiss her all the time... and poor Melia gets a face full of Gabby's curly hair every time! She's often overheard saying, "I love you baby, I always love you."

Oliver is in love with this little baby. He always wants to know where she is in the house, reports to us whenever her eyes are open, and loves to smell her head after her bath. "She smells so good mom!"

I am really loving having two little girls!

Being silly

One month old princess

Starting to fill out those cheeks!

Melia is now over 10 pounds and is still a really good baby. She sleeps well at night. Most nights I'm only up once around 3:30am to feed her... and then she goes right back to sleep! She's starting to have longer awake periods during the day and loves to stare at ceiling fans and people's faces. She's given us a few quick smiles and we're working on getting her to do that more often. She loves to cuddle (and we love cuddling her) and to lay on the floor and look around. Her abundance of hair is getting even longer and the little curl in the middle of her forehead is starting to really flip up away from her head giving her a super cute little hairstyle!

I have had two successful weeks on my own with the kids. We went to a movie just the four of us and survived :) Life is not slowing down at all and we have plans to take a road trip to Austin in a few weeks, a plane trip to Utah in September to see my sister Megan and her new baby, a train trip to Indiana in October, and a camping trip to wrap up the fall. Fun times ahead!

Family Resemblance

2010-07-11T14:55:00.008-05:00

We've been trying to figure out who Melia looks like and we'd love your input. Check out the pictures below and leave a comment with your vote!

Melia:

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Gabriella:

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Oliver:

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Amanda:

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Matt: