Am I In Texas...or Kansas?!

Hey there!

As you all know, I grew up in Kansas...and was "used to" the daily tornado watches and warnings during the spring and summer. As a kid I would pack up all of my favorite toys and prized possessions with each watch/warning just to make sure they would be safe and sound and not be destroyed by each potential tornado. Yes - this did become exhausting over time...not only for me, but for my Mom and Dad as well.

The reason I bring this up is because in the past week - we have had 2 major tornado scares down here. I immediately flashed back to my childhood experiences with the same fear I felt back then.

The first one was a Monday afternoon...Cory was at work and I was home alone with Andrew, Landon, & Diva. This was my first reality check at being terrified at the possibility of losing my kids...I gathered everyone up and packed us into our closet. When the power went out I was texting Cory for updates and it was nice to know he was "there" with me. The sirens went off constantly for about 10-15 minutes and it was a surreal and terrifying feeling for me. The one aspect that helped me to remain calm was that both Andrew & Landon were asleep through the whole thing...and Diva just laid down beside me trying to comfort me the best way she could. The storm finally blew over and we were unharmed (thank goodness)...

Fast forward to Thursday night...I was up at 3 a.m. feeding Landon...and I am thankful I was watching TV as there was a squall line coming right for the DFW area. I watched it for about 15 minutes before making the call to wake Cory up and head back to the closet with the kiddos. Again throwing in the pillows, blankets, radio, etc... As soon as we made it to the closet, the sirens went off again. This time everyone was awake for the whole experience. We read many books to Andrew - most of them by flashlight...and tried to keep his attention diverted in any way we could. We remained in the closet for about 45 minutes...and lost power around 4 a.m. and didn't get it back until 10 a.m. He still thinks it's the coolest thing ever, and asks me daily if he can sleep in the closet again...gotta love that kid to death!

Needless to say - I have already had my fill of severe weather and the threats of tornadoes and it is only mid-April. My closing thought is this...how I wish I could have my basement back in times like these...because I just don't feel that safe in my closet/bathroom!

I hope you and your families are safe and sound too...and remember to cherish each and every second you have with them!

Landon

While Cory & Andrew were out running errands I decided to have a mini photo shoot with Landon. Here are a few of the pictures...

From 3 to 4 (& Diva of course!)

A Kiss from Big Brother

Our Family of Four!

Andrew - Playing Outside

Landon's First Bath


Okay - so as most of you know Landon was born on the 12th...and life hasn't been the same since. I mean that in the best of ways though...Landon has settled into our family perfectly! He is the missing piece that we have been waiting for.

I wanted to post a few additional pictures here as I am working to catch up on Flickr and I post those pictures by date. I don't anticipate that it will take me long to catch up so keep checking back...I will also be sending out an e-mail update once everything is caught up and our gazillion pictures of the boys are ready for viewing.

SNOW DAY!!!

Yes - it snowed last night in Texas! We don't get to see it very often so we were all VERY excited...especially Andrew! It started snowing late last night, and the promise of going out first thing in the morning to play made everything okay. As you can see Andrew had a great time in his "first snow" (at least the first one we were able to document before it melted - Ha!). He didn't want to walk in the snow at first, but once Mommy did it then he jumped in and ran around like a wild man! We are now getting ready to eat some cinnamon rolls to warm up our tummies!

Milestone

Andrew hit a major milestone yesterday...he slept in his new big boy bed for his nap AND through the night. Don't think it hasn't come with any challenges, however they have been quite minor and he is doing great.

I found myself with tears in my eyes as I was falling (trying to fall) asleep last night as I realized Andrew was no longer in the room next door. The security of knowing he was just in the next room was gone and I have to realize that he is growing up...way too fast I might add!

I have also started taking down some items in the "old" nursery to prepare for our new little guy. I am hoping to start painting on Sunday...but we'll see if that's a little too aggressive of a timeframe. I'll keep you all posted.

Until next time...enjoy the "official documentation" of his first time sleeping in his new bed.

A Few Holiday Pics...

Catch Up Time...

Okay - so I can't believe the last time I posted was on Halloween! All I can say is since then, we have had 3 birthdays, Thanksgiving, Christmas here, Christmas on the road...and getting everything ready for Andrew & the Baby.

Where to begin - All of the holidays were fantastic. Some were celebrated by the 3 of us...and others in the company of our family. It was quite a wonderful time! I will post pictures...

We are now getting Andrew's Big Boy Room ready to go. I bought the bed rail today and am hoping to start naps there tomorrow. Andrew is quite the charmer and comedian these days. He is a tremendous joy to be around, and we continue to keep each other on our toes.

My pregnancy is going well. I am going to be 31 weeks on Friday and it seems like the time is starting to fly by with all of the projects I have planned for myself in preparation for the new kiddo. I will admit that I am ready to meet him and can't wait to hold the little guy in my arms.

Well - that's a very brief summary of what's been going on...but I will do better in the new year. I am also working to get all of our pictures caught up on Flickr and I'm now starting our December pictures...if you like what you see here and want more than log-on to flickr....