Winter Basketball

Shaye decided to try basketball this season. Her team is the Mustangs and her coaches are two friends of ours from church. She has learned a lot and done a great job. She has a really nice shot, and does well at their man to man defense. Basketball is much easier on the parents than some of the other sports. It's nice to park right in the parking lot, walk in to the gym, and have a seat. We have enjoyed watching her and can't wait to see how see does as she learns more!

Big Birthday Boy!

Our only boy turned 6 on February 3rd. He was so excited he couldn't fall asleep Wednesday night. For his special day he requested macaroni with hot dogs. Dinner of Champions!

But everybody loves a dinner the kids choose...

Then we opened a few presents, had cake and ice cream, and played with the new toys.

Friday evening we had his party. He had chosen a bowling party this year! It was a success! We were able to invite 10 kids, and they all came. So including mine, we had 13 playing. We invited all the boys in his primary class and some kids on our street. They seemed to all have a great time.

We spent a majority of the time bowling...

But we also had pizza and cake.

No, you're not experiencing deja vu! That is the same cake he had last year. He asked for the football cake again, and we were happy to oblige.

Each boy got an arcade card and there was time to play at the end. I was so glad everything went well. We appreciate all the friends who came. Jaxson is finally starting to feel more at home here in Houston and was a great host. He thanked the boys for coming and past out the goodie bags. Happy Birthday to our Big 6 year old!!

My Sweet Baby at 9 Months

On January 9th, Paige was 9 months old. It makes me sad that she is about to be a year old. No more infants. We love this sweet baby! She is center of attention at our house. Everybody wants to have her. The older kids want to take care of her, and Sydnee wants to play with her. She has been busy growing and learning. Her 9 month stats:

Height: 28.75 inches (90%) Weight: 21 lbs. 7.5 oz. (90%) Head - 17.72 inches (70%)

She's our chunky love-bug, but I wouldn't expect anything less, all of our kids have had these same numbers. She's into all sorts of stuff these days. My cupboard doors are always open and most stuff can be found pushed out on the floor no matter how many times I pick it up. Here are some things she's been doing lately.

Mastering the skill of the bottle...

Clapping, waving bye-bye, and doing the sign for momma...

She pulls herself up on everything, so it won't be long until I have to barricade the stairs and worry about her getting through...

This is where she spends a lot of time. Pulling out the spoons that I wash and put in. She is always right by me to help in the kitchen...

Being able to get up has provided new toys to play with, and more to see...

She is always standing up waiting for me in the morning. She even waves hi when I walk in...

While the big kids are at school, Sydnee is in charge! They roll around on the trampoline, play with the baby toys, dolls, and anything else Sydnee sees fit to share. They are on their way to being best of friends...

She spends a large part of her day chasing me around the house saying "momma, momma." Sometimes I feel so bad to walk past her after all the hard work she did to catch up. She is on the move, right behind me...

One thing is for sure, she is a happy baby! We love her so much! She makes the rest of us more happy too!

Other Dallas Fun

On Friday night we all went to dinner together at the Olive Garden. Pasta, of course. Yum!

After the race on Saturday, everybody went out to do a few activities. Since there are only a couple of American Girl stores in the nation, and one happens to be in Dallas, we took Shaye and her friend Lauren to check it out. It was huge, and exciting, but Shaye was a little disappointed because she didn't get to take her doll to the salon or bistro - the wait was almost 2 hours for both of them. Her pain was eased a little when she got a new dog, outfit, and earrings for her doll!

We also went by the Temple that afternoon. It was nice to walk around it and show the kids one they haven't seen.

Of course there was lots of hotel swimming. The kids went swimming any chance they got. It was fun to be there as a group. They had lots of people to play with.

Since Jaxson's birthday is on Thursday, Colie brought his present to celebrate with him. She got him a new set of scriptures with his name engraved on it, along with a football scripture bag. He had asked for new scriptures and was excited to get them. We bought him scripture marking pencils at the bookstore, and he was proud to take his new set to church on Sunday. Colie had marked a few of her favorite verses, and shared them with Jaxson.

The Texas Half Marathon

We did it! The half was this weekend and everyone completed and reached their goals! It was a gorgeous day, and the race was in a beautiful area. It went around a lake in Dallas with amazing views. There were more hills than I expected, but not too bad.

Before the race. From top left: Brooke Brooks, Melissa Craner, Michelle Stansel, Me, Sam, Nicole, and her friend Shelley.

I know, nice run by shot! When we got to the race, I tried to start up my garmin and it wouldn't start. I had charged the battery at the hotel the night before, but apparently that outlet didn't work. I was so upset. What if I didn't make my time? Now I wouldn't know what pace I was on. So that was a challenge. But during the race there were people that I would be by for several miles, so I would ask them what pace we were holding. It was always under my goal, so I knew I was doing okay. When I would get tired, I would just remember how disappointed I would be if I didn't make it under 2 hours just by a minute or two, and since I didn't know... and I had to keep pushing.

Sam, Nicole, and my running partner Melissa all finished together at the end. The kids came out and ran the last few yards with them. To add insult to injury, it was straight up hill to the finish line!

Done! My time was 1:56:24. I had made my goal, and had a few minutes to spare. I felt pretty good about that. It was tough though. The race started to feel long about mile 9. By mile 11 I was sure I couldn't go anymore. It was all mental from there... I just kept telling myself "you are not walking with only 2 miles left!" I was watching for that mile 12 sign that never seemed to come.

All the runners! Me, Sam, my running partners, Nicole, her friend Shelly, and Shelly's friend.

Mom and dad came to cheer us on and to be with the kids. We were thankful they did. Its always nice to have somebody to watch for along the trail, and to be there when you finish.