The Gibson Family

Butterfly in training

2011-03-12T16:14:00.000-06:00

Maggie is teaching Chloe how to fly.

Like father, like daughter

2011-03-12T16:13:00.000-06:00

Yep. Here's the father of my children.
Maggie sure loves him to pieces.

Potty train

2011-02-09T13:43:00.000-06:00

This is a photo of Maggie starting potty training... at 2 years old.

She is now 3 and completely potty trained.

It only took a year, right?
In her defense, she wanted to try it at 2, but then got scared, and we picked it back up a few months ago. LOVE that she is fully trained, and hasn't had an accident in weeks. Or little girl is growing up!

Like Mother, Like daughter

2011-02-09T13:39:00.000-06:00

I've got to get Chloe wearing sunglasses like Maggie does. Training starts early!

This is Maggie with the same glasses :)

Arrrgh!

2011-02-09T13:35:00.000-06:00

*Another from the phone archives*
Pirate Day at the Library!

Good Form

2011-02-09T13:33:00.000-06:00

*Another from the phone archives*
She's got her game going. I like her moves...

Super Fast

2011-02-09T13:13:00.000-06:00

I'm clearing out my phone pictures and just remember when Maggie first started riding bikes she thought leaning forward made her go faster. It was so cute :)

Skills

2011-01-27T12:39:00.000-06:00

Yep, I have em. Skills.
I was just looking through some pictures and am still surprised at how I made this cake :)

Our munchie

2011-01-27T12:35:00.000-06:00

Silver Mist artwork

2011-01-19T13:33:00.000-06:00

I'm 3

2011-01-19T13:29:00.000-06:00

Hello

2011-01-19T13:27:00.000-06:00

Maybe we'll get this blog rolling again.... but it will most likely be just pictures. Enjoy :)

Oh my goodness

2010-07-05T11:02:00.000-05:00

Doesn't this look DE-LISH?!?
MMmmmmm. Makes me want to make this tonight!!

A new beginning

2010-07-01T09:39:00.002-05:00

Congratulations to Dave! He is now the Director of Sales at the Holiday Inn South Loop. He is so excited and so are we! They will love having a hard working, motivated, and fun man on their team. We love you!!

Shishies?

2010-06-29T21:04:00.001-05:00

If there's one thing to know about Maggie, it's that she loves Fish. All kinds, she doesn't discriminate. So when we told her we were talking a family trip to see some fishies, she was VERY excited. The Aquarium Downtown is a really cool place to go and lots of fun.

I can't start a photo story without Maggie in sunglasses. She is just so cute in them.

Lots of fish tanks with lots of fish. Very cool. We went through twice. Yep.

Dave decided to go underwater in a diving suit. I think he's confused. PS Dave, Maggie doesn't even need a suit. She's wondering what the heck you are wearing.

White tiger exhibit cool. White tiger picture monument not cool. Looking back, I can really see why. It looks like we were his lunch. Good thing we hadn't eaten yet.

Onto lunchtime... Pretty good food. Again just like Rainforest Cafe, overwhelming. (And on a side note: not allergy friendly. Not many things to choose from. Plus we were "that" family).

Now we hit the outside carnival area. Lots of games, a splash pad, rides. It was really fun. Maggie rode a dolphin, I rode an alligator. Daddy rode a chair (those are Maggie's words, not mine!) He's so old.

The ferris wheel was so cool! She loved it so much on the way home she was crying and saying "Ferris Wheeeeeeeellllll!!!"

And there was a shark tour on a train. She was tired, can you tell?

Needles to say, it was a great day. Fun fun times.

Dancing lessons

2010-06-29T20:52:00.000-05:00

Incase you need another reason to love this little girl. She loves to dance with people. You don't have to have skills (i.e. Dave...) so just bust a move!

ps. Doesn't her hair look long?? :)

GREAT idea!

2010-06-29T20:43:00.002-05:00

And cute!

These are genius ideas I wish I was smart enough to sell.

milestonemonths.com

Onesies that say how old they are.

Perfect.

I'll be trying to recreate these for sure.

Welcome to the Jungle

2010-06-29T20:38:00.000-05:00

We took a much needed vacation to the Amazon Forest... Ha! I wish! Instead, we visited Rainforest Cafe. Jungle experience minus bugs, humidity, and who knows what else out there that can eat you or sting you to death.

Let's just say, Maggie was a little bit scared. In her defense, it WAS overwhelming. The first thing you see is a huge talking tree. Not exactly something she's seen before. After having a hostess who could find the farthest route from the tree, we made it to our table. We could see tigers, elephants, monkeys, birds... you name it, it was there. No, they were not real. Everything was fake and on some sort of mechanical schedule. Things would randomly start moving and making sounds. It was pretty cool once you kinda get a grip of what is happening around you.

Dinner was great. At least mine and Dave's were. Maggie barely ate anything. My suggestion... feed your kids before you go. She was completely in awe and thought food was not cool. Oh and on a side note for any allergy parents. This is a GREAT restaurant for allergy diners. They were soo accomodating, they even started a new oil bin just to fry Maggie some french fries. Way cool. Never had that suggested to us before.

Balloon man came around. We supported his cause: Christian rocker from Canada traveling from church to church doing gigs while being balloon man at RC on off days. Interesting. We got a turtle bracelet. Maggie loved, scratch that, LOVES it.

Weeeeee!

2010-06-23T22:39:00.001-05:00

Busy day leads to tired momma. So here's a fun shot of Maggie. She got a great slide from her friend Michael who just moved, and Maggie loves it. Hands up, and ready to go.

Trusting...

2010-06-22T12:08:00.002-05:00

Since we live so incredibly close to the library (across the street) we try and make it to all their story times and play groups. And in the summer time, the activities get even more busy.

Today, was the petting zoo. Last year we went and Maggie didn't want anything to do with touching the animals. This year, we've made progress.

She talked to the animals and would tell them they are "Sooo Cute!" (those are her own words) but was very cautious of them. She did get close to the goats and the rabbits... Not so much the turtle. Now, she LOVES turtles, but for some reason she didn't want to take her eyes off of him. Hence the funny shot of her in front of the turtle.

After getting our turn in the petting zoo, they had freeze pops for the kiddos. Isn't that great? It was only a million degrees outside, so I'm sure the kids loved it.

Well, one day of new blogging! I'm off to a running start!

Comeback

2010-06-21T19:58:00.001-05:00

Well it's official. I've gotten way too much slack from those who follow this blog. Not sure why (nothing too exciting in our lives!) but either way... I'm trying to update and really do this again.

I'm feeling like myself again after being in the first trimester pregnancy funk, so if you follow this thing, make me feel loved and say something every once in awhile!

Loves-
Serena

ps- pictures to come tomorrow

Rodeo Houston 2010

2010-03-09T15:48:00.000-06:00

Here they are! My little cowgirl and my main squeeze. Love them to bits and pieces!!

The find

2009-12-10T21:43:00.003-06:00

One of Maggie's new 'tricks' is opening doors. It's kind of nice when she wants to get her broom from the broom closet, or if I need her to put something in the trash can. But today this new trick has come to a new level. She found one of her gifts. Yep. I got her a tricycle and it was in the extra bedroom closet. Not at eye level, but on top of a bunch of luggage and in a corner. I heard her saying "help? help?" and then whining for something. I turn around and I see the closet door open and immediately I think, there's no way she can see it. But as I get closer, she's pointing towards it and saying "bike?"!! GREAT. Just great. So I immediately close the door thinking if I can divert her attention, maybe she will forget about it. Nope. So we pulled it out, and she got to ride it around. Before she sat on it, she was saying things like "wow" and "ahhh" and "cool".... It really was cute.

So, we hid it again, and we'll see if maybe she won't remember til Christmas what she found. But I have a feeling she will remember. She's a smart little boogar.

Here's a picture of her funny little shenanigans...

Holiday shopping!

2009-12-02T20:31:00.000-06:00

It's super fun, right?

Who knew?

2009-12-02T20:29:00.000-06:00

That Christmas tree boxes came with little Maggies?

My husband

2009-11-16T13:14:00.002-06:00

is a closet vampire.
Yep, I recently found out he owns the New Moon soundtrack. Pretty soon I'll find him curled up with the books.

This is a pony tail

2009-11-14T19:42:00.000-06:00

See?

This is the first pony tail she has ever let me put in her hair. We have record of it.

what to make,

2009-11-10T16:24:00.002-06:00

what to make, what to make...

That's how I feel right now about dinner. Some days I'm really pumped to make dinner, and some, well, not so pumped. Plus grocery shopping is in my horizon tonight. YAY!

Needing inspiration.....

Thankful

2009-11-09T12:11:00.002-06:00

Since Halloween is over and the holiday season has moved on to one of my favorites... Thanksgiving... it has gotten me thinking about things I'm thankful for. Today I am thankful for health, strength and families. Seeing all the families who were affected in the Fort Hood tragedy makes me realize so many things don't matter. Just who we are and who we love.

Triplet Boys!

2009-11-06T14:36:00.001-06:00

My dear friend Bonnie had triplet boys on Labor Day, and recently had some photos taken of them. I just had to share them. You'll have to go to this site to check them out. As of today, I believe that 2 will be able to come home tonight! Yay!!! I'm just so excited for her and the boys!!

Well, it's done

2009-11-06T14:22:00.002-06:00

I did it! I actually had my eyes lasered!

Well I guess it's lasik, but same way. I opted for a addition to the surgery... I now have xray vision. And can see thru walls. Now Maggie has no chance to get away with anything.

Recovery is good. The nap after the surgery was great. It's a weird feeling to open you eyes and actually see something. And yes, things are still a bit blurry, but the doctor says it will get better every day.

So to celebrate, I've started a list of things I am excited to do without glasses:
- taking a shower and actually seeing the bottles
- reading a book while laying down
- riding roller coasters and not worrying if they will fly off
- going swimming, or to any sort of water park
- putting on makeup without getting super close to the mirror
- washing my glasses EVERY DAY
- super glueing my glasses when the frame breaks
- getting a haircut and actually SEEing what they are doing while it's getting done.

There are many more reasons... but I am just super excited to be without them! I'll post a picture in a week or so. There are some broken blood vessels in my eyes that make me look a little possessed, and I need to work on my tan around my eyes. And I can wear eye makeup in 5 days.... So... keep posted!

Nerves??

2009-11-03T08:15:00.002-06:00

Yep, my nerves are a little on end. WHY? Maybe because in two days I'll be lasered in my eyeballs!! I'm soo excited, but am a roller coaster with nerves. Some days I'm super freaked, and some days I try to stay calm and remind myself millions of people have done this procedure so I have no need to worry.

So, unless I see you before Thursday, you will never see me in glasses again. Unless it's sunglasses! I've never had sunglasses before (prescription ones are SO expensive) so I might go crazy with them. Anyone got some good suggestions on places to get sunglasses or a certain style I should get? I'm open!

More fun times

2009-11-02T15:05:00.000-06:00

Trick or treat!

2009-11-02T15:03:00.001-06:00

Halloween was a blast this year! Considering last year we had closed on our house and were packing and moving... So this was super fun to be out with Maggie. She was Nemo and had the outfit to go with it.

That morning I had found a pair of pumpkin pj's and knew Maggie would die if she didn't have them. I'm hoping her pumpkin obsession will turn into something else... if not, how will I explain where all the pumpkins went in another month or so! These are the pumpkins she toted around the house all... day... long...

We had a couple friends come over with their kiddos to hit up the neighborhood. We had Nemo, a piggy, a plane and a football player. Picture to come later. I kinda had the idea that Maggie would only last for like 5 houses or something, but NOPE, she kept going and going. She LOVED knocking on the doors and getting free candy! One festive house had a Mickey Mouse outside their house. She couldn't believe that Mickey lived in the same neighborhood as her.

Here's one for the books! We were actually all looking at the camera. That's a first!

And here's the loot to prove we actually went. See the big pile? Yep, that's me and Dave's. See the small itty bitty pile with raisins and a pencil? That's Maggies. Poor thing. That's the kind of treats you get when you're allergic to milk. BOOO!!!

Now off to the next holiday- THANKSGIVING!! Weeeeeeeeeeee!!!

Butternut & Acorn Squash soup

2009-10-30T14:11:00.002-05:00

So today I decided to be a little chef in the kitchen. I merged two recipes to create one yummy concoction. The Southern Living August magazine had a pumpkin acorn squash soup recipe and I found a Martha Stewart Pumpkin Apple with Wild Rice soup recipe... that's where it started.

The SL recipe is basically the one I did, but added a couple twists. It can be found here. The recipe calls for pumpkins, but I had a butternut squash I've been wanting to use so I switched the pumpkin for the butternut squash. From that point the recipe is followed just like it says, but then I top it with a scoop of wild rice pilaf. That was the inspiration from the Martha Stewart recipe.

Wish I would have take a picture when I ate it for lunch- sorry! But trust me, it's delish!!

Punkins

2009-10-29T13:30:00.001-05:00

In our quest to find crafty fun things to do, Maggie and I made Pumpkins this week. I drew the circles, and she colored and put faces on them. Then we taped them to the wall... that was the most popular part of this craft. Taping something to the wall.

And in her words "Puh Puh!" (pumpkin!)

Halloween Teaser

2009-10-28T19:26:00.000-05:00

Nemo wanted to say "HI" to all those other fishies out there.

Look for some trick or treating pictures in the near future!

Seriously?

2009-10-28T19:23:00.000-05:00

Who wouldn't love this little girl?!

A journey into the world of Art

2009-08-13T12:36:00.001-05:00

As much as I love to be artistic and creative, I'm hoping to inspire Maggie to do the same.

Step 1: Buy washable watercolors, set up paper outside, show her how to paint

Step 2: Continue painting on paper

Step 3: Discover your nails need a touch up

Step 4: Feet also need touch up

Step 5: Get washed off, forgot about painting, resume with painting on paper

Step 6: Who cares about painting on paper, when you can paint on yourself!!!

Hopefully she won't come home when she's 18 with full body tatoos....

Poor scoobies

2009-08-13T12:29:00.000-05:00

On monday Maggie had her 18 month check up (yep, she's 19 months tomorrow...) but that's neither here nor there. She's a rock star on all her stats- especially height! We're so proud of her for growing so much! After getting 2 shots (boo!!!) we came home and took a nap. Afterwards she picked out this outfit to put on. Yep. A onesie that is too small (but had Minnie Mouse on it!), her swimming shorts, and her new black patent leather mary janes. As a side note, she always wants to take pictures with the camera, so all my photos lately are of her reaching to the camera.

This is one fashion diva... Watch out Vogue!

Today is a good day

2009-08-13T12:22:00.000-05:00

Today I was reminded of why I love being a momma.

Maggie did all this by herself (except for the pearl necklace turned bracelet).

I love it!!!

Yeah Yeah, I know...

2009-06-23T13:28:00.010-05:00

It's been soooo long since I've posted anything. I've heard enough of the whining, ahem, Dave...

So, let's bring everyone up to speed. It has been hot hot hot (!!!) so we've been trying to stay cool cool cool. Cue the pool shots:

Thank goodness Maggie loves playing in the water. It's pretty amazing how she can play and run around so much and then jump into that freezing cold water! Needless to say, it's been lots and lots of sunscreen. (also, RIP the cutest sunglasses ever... They broke and were not fixable. But hooray for new ones!)

With things being warmer, our kitties sleep ALL day long and then get so frisky at the end of the day. Cue frisky kitty shots:

When you hear a THUD THUD THUD landing, that would be Dude jumping onto the Fridge, then the counter, then the floor. Also, our kitchen is now green, but es no bueno. Thinking yellow is more of our color in this house.

This past week, the library had a petting zoo come with lots of animals for the kids to see. If I recall, at the Rodeo Maggie was not the most excited about petting animals that were her size (unless they are cats or dogs). So we knew going into the cage was a no go. Here's a shot of Maggie with the Turtle. Love the look; "Mommy, is that boy going to get his hand eaten off?" Cue the petting zoo photo:

Many times I plug in my camera and find goodies like this:

Makes me smile! And on a side note, we painted our toenails today (sorry no picture yet).

Father's Day was so much fun. It's always fun to have a reason to celebrate the one you love the most. This is to the man who I think is caring, loving, honest, hardworking, hilarious, smelly, handsome, and many more fun things. Dave got to pick dinner and Collinas and Ruggles Bakery were calling our names. Thank goodness Dave has good taste in food :) And it was safe for Maggie too (well, not the bakery, but the pastas!!) Here are the two goobers I love the most!

And of course, there is always time to spend with your boyfriend, Max. Maggie has truly come to be SO excited to see him. Lately when she gets SO excited, she dances really fast with her feet in one spot. The phrase "she's a maniac, maa-ni-ac" pops into my head when she does that.

I really like this last shot. Maggie's really picked up how to throw gang signs in the last week or so. Holla!

Enjoy our little update!

Driving already??

2009-06-11T12:31:00.000-05:00

This week we went to the Children's Museum with a play group. Kaylene and I went with Max and Maggie. They are best friends for ever!! I got some super cute shots with them playing in the cars together.

"Hi!"

"AHHH! No Seatbelts!!"

"Seriously, Max, this music is AWFUL!"

SMILE

2009-06-02T16:16:00.000-05:00

Here's at least one family shot!

New place I want to retire

2009-06-02T16:06:00.002-05:00

We went on a vacation to Duck, North Carolina with my family, and it was one of the best vacations ever! So many fun memories of the beach house, pools, beaches, family, and food.

I'm trying to put a video or at least a collage together of all the fun times...

Just chillin at the casa

2009-04-29T11:57:00.003-05:00

Hi 'Daddy'!!

Been getting a lot of this lately...

2009-04-16T08:34:00.001-05:00

Pookie is now into showing her belly button... to everyone and every thing. It's the funniest thing ever! And everything is a 'dooooooo' sound, hence the lips.

We get to go to the doctor today for her 15 month check up. Yay. Can you feel the excitement?

Happy Easter!

2009-04-12T22:52:00.001-05:00

We had a great Easter with the family! Maggie wore her new Easter dress and hat. I love it!! She did good in the easter egg hunt and had fun with 10 other cousins. Enjoy the pictures!

Seriously, again?

2009-04-10T22:41:00.002-05:00

I think Maggie has Fifth's Disease, AGAIN. Ugh. This completely describes her low grade fever for a couple days, her runny nose, and now the mysterious rash that appeared this afternoon. We already did this, why again?! This whole time we thought it was the teeth bothering her and giving her the fever... (She does have like 3 or 4 coming in!) Hopefully the spots don't get worse over night. We want spot free pictures for Easter!

I want this

2009-04-07T19:12:00.002-05:00

Looks pretty sweet to me!

The fight is on!

2009-04-07T18:45:00.001-05:00

Come and fight me and Dave!

http://sizzle-serena.mybrute.com

http://doondarin.mybrute.com

Fun times

2009-03-26T20:40:00.000-05:00

Untitled from Serena Gibson on Vimeo.

Me lucky Charms

2009-03-18T11:50:00.000-05:00

Happy St Patty's day! We were sportin the green today (I was not about to be pinched!). Next year, I'm going to plan a traditional Irish dinner... will need to find some good recipes. But for dinner it was a quickie at Costco. Who can pass up hot dogs?! Anyways, to all you Irish peep, or if you're not Irish like me, have a good one!

Playing catch up

2009-03-17T11:22:00.001-05:00

Just some fun pictures of Maggie in the past week or so...

This is Maggie's new thing... sticking her tongue out. All. the. time. I think her teeth really hurt, as you can see all the slobber on her dress. On a side note, I do have to mention Cinco's GINORMOUS tv with the Aggies on. Dave's not at all jealous.

Uncle Joe is awesome! This dress is from him, along with the shoes! It is a cutie!!!

Our play group went to the firestation last week. Most of the kids had no idea what was going on, most of the time Maggie was more interested in a chain link fence or the drain grate in their driveway. BUT she had fun with the kids and see the big red truck!

You read for me?

2009-03-11T22:44:00.000-05:00

Nana?

2009-03-02T09:57:00.000-06:00

On Sunday we got to visit Dave's parents. Maggie had a great time playing with Nana. They called a few people and they read some books... pretty much anything you could dream of they did! Maggie found the 'baby's' bottle and would not take it out of her mouth. You'll notice it in the 2nd photo. And that is her favorite book that Nana is reading, "The Grandma Book". She seriously carries it around the house holding it out for me or Dave, or even sometimes Dude, to read. Thanks for letting us come up! We had a great time and so did Maggie!! On the ride home she was saying "Nana? Nana?".

Fashion Diva

2009-03-02T09:50:00.000-06:00

This is what Maggie insisted on wearing to go get the mail. Honestly. She brought me the skirt and picked up her hat and purse.

Dave's Rodeo Run

2009-03-02T09:46:00.000-06:00

Saturday marked the 'first' day of the Houston Rodeo 2009. They make a huge deal out of it in downtown with a parade and a 5K/10K race. We were all going to 'compete' in it, but found out that strollers were not allowed. Julia and I were bummed. So Dave and Mike competed and did great!! Dave did the 10K and did really well. Maggie and I were so proud!!!

Kate and Maggie were cheering on their daddies in the race. Dave's gonna love that I got a shot of some 'Texas' running shorts in the background. He was counting them while he ran, I think he got up to 29 of those shorts. I'm sure there were more as this race had 10,000 participants!

There's Dave! He's waving!!

Right after we took this shot, Dave's knees crumbled and had to ride in Maggie's stroller to the car.

Lunch date

2009-03-02T09:40:00.000-06:00

On friday Maggie and I had lunch with some of our favorite girls! We went to Julia and Kate's house to meet Ashley and Ava. We miss Ashley and Ava soo much, so it was nice to see them and catch up. AND we made some yummy panini's. For all those out there who love me, I really want a panini maker, possibly for my birthday. :)

For once in her lifetime (yeah, all 13 months) Maggie is the oldest in a play group. The floor mat that Kate played with was the coolest thing Maggie had ever seen. She was crawling all over it and trying to play with Kate. Very cute.

Little Miss Ava was a sleepy head for most of the time she was there. But do you blame her? I'd love to sleep ALL day long too! She's a cutie pie with her reddish blonde hair. I like her 'thinker' pose in this picture.

Later that night, we met up with Julia and Mike again to celebrate Julia's 25th Birthday! What a blast!!

Fun eating pictures

2009-02-26T13:22:00.000-06:00

Somehow over night, she figured she liked raisins.

Those valentine's cookies were so yummy. I couldn't pass this picture up...

Yeah, that's a corndog. She ate it all.

Fine, here's some new pictures...

2009-02-26T13:01:00.000-06:00

Maggie LOVES to help out in the bathroom. Dave's getting ready for church and Maggie is supervising.

Right now, Maggie wants to carry everything. ANYTHING with handles will pretty much be her best toy for the day. Hence the shopping bag with her toys in it.

This is Maggie 'loving' Dude. She goes up to him, grabs his back, and buries her face in his back. This method has backlashed now... Dude karate kicked her in the face yesterday and now she has a little scratch on her face. Does that stop Maggie? No.

Here's a good shot of two things she loves. Her new shoes (yay for valentine's gifts!!) and bubbles.

Happy Valentine's Day.. part 2

2009-02-18T15:06:00.002-06:00

To Daddy: We loved our flowers! They are beautiful!

Love, Momma and Maggie

Random LOVE list

2009-02-14T12:19:00.002-06:00

Julie posted a top ten Random Love List, and tagged anyone who wanted to join in. This should be fun. And as she said, I love Dave, Maggie and the kitties most of all!! Happy Valentine's Day!

1. I love clean feet. Maybe this is more OCD, but if I don't a shower at night, I'll wash my feet. I LOVE having clean feet in bed.

2. Being tan is an all time love of mine. I don't want to expose my skin to harmful rays every day, so I use the best sunless tanner ever. Jean found it on QVC and there is no comparison. It's a gel that easily rubs in, has barely ANY smell, and you don't have a 'brown' shower later that night. (It's called Toni Bratton Sunless Gel for all you lovers).

3. I love watching Maggie read. Reading in her crib, reading in the car, reading in her room, reading the mail, reading the trash mail, just reading in general. It's fun to watch her move her eyes and look at both sides of the book like mommy!

4. I love Cinnamon Chex cereal right now. I for one am not the biggest cereal eater, but this stuff is awesome! It's kinda like Cinnamon Toast Crunch but not on sugar overload. Maybe this whole box of cereal was eaten by me?

5. I love to make handouts. Weird I know, but when I was younger (like in Young Women or in School) we would get handouts from the lesson or whatever. I loved them! I'd put them on my mirror or in my scriptures. I'm pretty sure I could find them all if I looked really hard. So I want to make sure my girls in church have fun things to take home too! Or at least some candy!

6. I love free samples. Like at Costco, or Krogers, or in the mail. It's like a mini gift or tasty treat without even asking for it!

7. I secretly love E! News. I don't catch it everyday, but when I remember it's on I'll flip the tv over to that channel and soak in all the celebrity happenings. I would much rather say I like this 'show' than saying I'm addicted to The Bachelor!! (I just don't get those girls- they are so rediculous!) Oh and while on the topic of tv... I love Bravo. I get sucked into all their reality shows, no matter how rediculous (Housewives of Atlanta or Millionare Matchmaker) but my faves are Project Runway and Top Chef for sure.

8. I love stationary. There is something about crisp clean papers and envelopes that are cutie patootie or chic. For awhile there I was writing letters to friends, but obviously email is much more easier. Maybe I'll pick up that fun hobby again. I know I love to recieve letters!!

9. I love a fresh manicure. These don't happen anymore, but just having your nails trimmed, your cuticles cleaned and nails buffed by someone else is divine.

10. I love working with flowers, especially flower arranging. I wish I had endless money to just make bouquets for friends. Maybe that's what I love more, giving people gifts? Either way. I love both giving and flowers!

I tag anyone who would like to celebrate Valentine's day with a Random Love List. Can't wait to hop to your blog to see what you love!

Mmm cookies....

2009-02-13T19:10:00.000-06:00

Today we decided to make sugar cookies for our friends. I LOVE sugar cookies, with frosting, and with sprinkles! There is something about them being so yummy and cute. Love it!

Here's some shots of us 'making' the cookies.

Maggie 'cutting' the hearts out...

Maggie 'dusting' flour onto the counter...

Momma 'posing' with her creations...

Maggie 'enjoying' the products!

I've been getting pretty crafty with my non-milk techniques. These sugar cookies and frosting were completely milk-free. And DE-LISH too!

Happy Valentine's Day to all you lovers out there!! Mwah!

Free Valentine's cards

2009-01-30T11:21:00.001-06:00

I saw this on Stephanie's blog- and it works! You can get 6 free cards, plus free shipping if you want some just for fun. You go to ScrapbooksEtc.com/valentine. Then use 'valentine' at checkout to get them free. I just ordered some and they are super cute! Good find, Steph!

Duuuuuuuuuuude

2009-01-28T10:08:00.003-06:00

Maggie can now say three words: Mama, Dada, and Dude.

Nana is the bestest

2009-01-28T09:26:00.002-06:00

I DUBS THIS STROLLER NANA!!!!!

lather rinse repeat...

2009-01-28T09:25:00.000-06:00

This is the story of my day.

Pull the basket of bibs and towels out of cupboard.

Scatter around kitchen.

Momma picks up mess.

Repeat.

Outside Fun

2009-01-28T09:22:00.000-06:00

With our weather being so up and down lately, we'll find ourselves a great day to go outside and play. Maggie wanted to pick one of the pansies (what a girl!) and wear it in her ear. She's so precious.

Our inauguration day

2009-01-28T09:19:00.000-06:00

After turning 1 years old, Maggie's pediatrician said it's time to test Maggie officially on her milk allergy. Warning: sad pictures coming up...

The whole experience was awful but here are a couple especially sad ones.

They did the tests on her back, and they basically prick the skin with the allergens. After they do the pricks, you can't touch the back for 15 minutes (you don't want to smear the pricks). Poor Maggie just wanted to be cuddled and loved. I did my best! The picture above was after they did the pricks. It was such a sad story.

This is what her back looked like about half way through. The top red spot was the ''control' spot, all the other pricks were the allergens, and you can notice the big ol red one- that is her milk. It actually got about twice as big as that, thus proving her allergy to milk. Thankfully she is not allergic to anything else like wheat, corn, nuts, soy.... But we got an epipen and are locked and loaded for any milk incidents.

We've been on the quest for recipes that are milk free and if anyone has some great ones, let me know!!! We'll keep you posted on any new allergies, the doctor said to go back in one year for more pricks to see if possibly it will go away. Let's cross our fingers that it will!!

Maggie's 1st Birthday

2009-01-19T21:56:00.005-06:00

Happy Birthday our dearest Maggie Grace! How unbelievable that a whole year has passed that you have been in our little family.

The day you were born so many people were excited to see you! You came and did not disappoint. So peaceful, calm, precious and adorable. You loved being held and we loved snuggling you all day long.

Thankfully, you caught onto a schedule quickly and was sleeping and eating like a champ. You were turning into a big girl right before our eyes. Rolling over was no big deal (even if you only like rolling over to the left!!) and sitting up was so cute.

Now you love to crawl all over the house. Walking isn't far off. And talking is non-stop. I can't stand how cute you are when you are reading yourself to sleep in your crib or singing/talking to yourself in the mornings.

You are so beautiful and as Daddy would say "You're 1 years old, but you don't look a day past 10 months!" Keep up that beauty regiment!! We hope you had a fun birthday with all your family and friends who love you so much. To our Princess, We Love You!!!

Maggie got 3 tutu outfits for her birthday and will be coordinating her tutu to her shoes now. Wonderful!

Making a big cake is so overrated... or at least for this year. It was the year of the cupcakes, and boy I made a ton. We practiced for 3 straight days blowing candles, singing Happy Birthday, and eating cake. With all the practice, there were no tears when we sang to her! Yay!

She's wishing for another awesome year! And we couldn't be blessed with such great friends who love our baby girl almost as much as we love her!

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-25T12:46:00.000-06:00

To all of our friends and family, we wish you all a Merry Christmas today. As we have reflected on our wonderful year, we've been constantly reminded of our wonderful blessings from the Lord. He is our Saviour and older Brother who gave his life for us and we are most grateful to celebrate his birth at this time of year. Having Maggie in our family has made this year the most memorable for us and we pray each of you and your families has a joyous and relaxing Christmas.

ps: more Christmas pictures to come!

This is how I feel today...

2008-12-24T12:46:00.000-06:00

http://www.americangreetings.com/ecards/view.pd?i=479861051&m=4628&rr=y&source=ag999

ps... I'm still waiting for a picture of Julie as a 'rapper'...

Happy 11 months!

2008-12-15T10:30:00.000-06:00

Santa is coming to town!

2008-12-12T08:40:00.003-06:00

With the "snowstorm" that hit Houston a couple says ago, it has really been feeling like Christmas! Today it's back into the 60's but seeing snow in Texas is so exciting! Here's some cute clips of Maggie lately. You're all going to love how she 'kisses'!!

Some days you get everything...

2008-12-10T14:14:00.001-06:00

Like today! With the weather turning all dreary and freezing out, we knew we'd be trying to stay indoors today. So with that decision, Maggie and I play together and just hang out (you know, doing our normal routine). Then it's time for her to do a dirty diaper (yes, we usually know when she's going to do that) and put her in her crib to read books and play while she does it. Next thing I know, she's fallen asleep! With a dirty diaper!! Gross!!! Since she had just barely fallen asleep, I decided to risk it and slowly change her diaper trying not to jostle her around too much. Needless to say, pants were changed and the sleepy mood aparently passed. Naptime came and went without a blink so on to lunchtime!

Lunch went well- nothing too great except for the HUGE mess Maggie made with the squash and brocolli. My decision? To play with her for awhile, and then put her down for a nap. We're playing and today she did it! She put blocks back into the bucket!!!! Such small victories but huge steps! Not every block makes it back into the bucket, but it's an effort.

Then, she start saying "MaMaMa"!!! I was so proud to hear that! She's been saying Dadada since like 7 months, so to hear her say Mama was so exciting! I just love that little munchin!

And to top off such fun, at naptime I put her in her crib and she lays her head down and falls right asleep. I'm definitely recording this in writing because that never happens! She was out in less than 3 minutes.

So I'll leave you all with some cute pictures I took. This is Dude being mad at Momma for putting a lame Santa hat on his head.

This is Daddy Daughter time after work!

Proof

2008-12-09T14:54:00.001-06:00

Maggie's not the only one who's scared of Santa...

http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/chi-scared-santa-sm-081202-pg,0,52957.photogallery

Is it so bad that I laugh at these things??

Maggie's first Santa visit

2008-12-09T09:26:00.000-06:00

This picture about says it all. We had our church Christmas party last weekend and Santa made a visit. I really wanted to make sure we got a picture of her meeting Santa, but I knew it was going to be tricky. I knew big red rhings scared her. Every time we go to Wal-Mart or Costco and go through the toy section, they have the Live Elmo's on display. So we stop and have a fun time making him talk. Ok fun isn't exactly the word. Maggie usually just looks at Elmo like "Uh, Mom.. this thing is WEIRD!" So, I be you can imagine when we slowly start walking up towards Santa and she sees a big red thing talking to her. I've never seen her melt down so fast in my life! The waterworks were pouring before we knew it. So... Here is Maggie's first Santa visit. Poor thing!

Dance Dance

2008-12-04T19:18:00.001-06:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Wanna play?

2008-12-04T09:44:00.000-06:00

This is one of the cutest things ever. I love watching her play on her knees!! Look at the little footsies!

So many new things are going on with Maggie. She loves to crawl really fast, she pushes one of our dining room chairs around the kitchen (um, I think we know what to get her for Christmas now!), she loves to read, eating chicken and green beans is her new favorite foods, helping mommy put clothes back into the dryer once we've pulled them out, gnawing on her crib (and not to mention leaving teeth marks!), and 'loving' the kitties. She is almost 11 months- wow!! Looks like her first birthday is right around the corner!!!

Finally!

2008-11-19T11:09:00.003-06:00

There is a bread without milk in it!! We had some left over bollilo's from this weekend when the family came over, and I noticed there was no milk in the ingredients. After testing it on her skin, Maggie went to town with it! I'll be getting more of that bread next time I'm at Krogers!

The funnest part of Daddy's day!

2008-11-19T11:08:00.001-06:00

When Dave comes home to a little baby girl who hugs his legs, it sure makes everything worth it! We made huge progress today... Maggie did NOT wake up at 5:30am! She slept til 7:15. I had no idea what to do with myself. Honestly. We've started her on some formula that is hypoallergenic (and she is actually drinking it - not spitting it out). Maybe it held her over this morning! Yay!!

So like I said, the best part of the day is watching Dave and Maggie do their bedtime routine. She loves the bathtub (especially since it's got a non slip bottom... yeah we've never had that before). Her favorite is to knock all the letters and numbers off the sides of the bathtub. Or dumping water out of cups. So maybe it's a tie- she loves doing both of those things. Taking vitamins- not so much.

This is me trying to be stealth and get a shot of them reading. I was in the hallway crouching around a corner. What you don't see, is right after I took this picture, Pookie crawled so fast she was in my face like in 2 seconds!

Fun Times

2008-11-18T10:21:00.000-06:00

I was looking through some pictures from the last couple weeks, and found some cuties. This is Dude being nosy while we were unpacking. He loves this new house. Have we mentioned that?

Pookie and Daddy. She's showing you her cute bracelet!

Too much fun...

2008-11-15T10:25:00.004-06:00

This is the story of Maggie's life! We noticed just the other day her pj's had a tiny hole in them. Then later that morning, it turned into this.

She is a crawling maniac! The sign she is coming into a room is the really loud breathing and panting she creates. It's so funny! Or the sound of keys being dragged on the floor. Those keys are her FAVORITE things to play with, and once she gets them, she is not letting go.

Meow

2008-10-30T10:33:00.000-05:00

After much thought of what Maggie should be for Halloween, we found a perfect kitty costume. How appropriate, right?
She is too cute in it! But it sure was warm! So, of course it came off after about 30 minutes. We'll definitely be wearing it again on Friday.

Meow!

Just in case...

2008-10-23T23:01:00.000-05:00

... you forgot how cute this little girl is, here's a picture.

Finally she's getting to wear a warm footy pj! The weather has been so nice since this cold front came through. Plus, Maggie is even more snuggly in this outfit. We love her!

Catch up

2008-10-23T22:46:00.000-05:00

So many things have happened, and my blogging has slacked.

Last Saturday, Ginny and I threw a shower for Claire. Her baby boy is due in December and this will be the last time we see her in awhile. We're so glad she is healthy and happy! Our shower was too cute. We did a mexican food theme with taquitos, tostados, chips and salsa, fruit, chocolate chip cake, and limeade. MMM! She got some great stuff too! I'll keep everyone updated when she had her baby.

Then that night, Dave and I got a sitter and hit the town. Ok not really, but we went to the House of Blues. It's brand new and they were having their opening night party. Since Dave is a member of the Foundation Club, we got VIP access and got to hang out in the lounge and feel 'important'. Ok not really, but it was fun to be there. Great decorations and paintings and music and food and just everything! We had a blast. Then to top it all off, The Blues Brothers performed and we were literally 10 feet away! Jim Belushi even walked right past us! I didn't bring my camera, but some friends took pictures. Hopefully I'll get some and post them. So if ever you want to go, let us know!!

Tiny Dancer

2008-10-23T22:38:00.002-05:00

Oh Pookie, she is into crawling these days. And she has gotten good! Enjoy!!

Hooray for fun blog stuff!

2008-10-17T09:38:00.001-05:00

I've been leery to use this new website to get backgrounds, because a loong time ago I tried Pyzam and all my sidebar stuff disappeared! But this is great! Plus it's soooo easy to do! No messing with html codes at all! I definitely suggest this blog website!

9 month check up

2008-10-16T13:47:00.002-05:00

Yesterday was Maggie's 9 month birthday. Our visit to the doctor was successful. Her stats are 29" height (90%), 19 lbs 10 oz (60%), and 44 cm head (50%). So she's a really long girl with normal weight! Yay! We also got a prescription for an epipen. Long story short, Maggie almost went into analfilactic shock on Tuesday after drinking some formula. She broke out in hives, was wheezing, and nauseous. After giving her benidryl and she threw up everything, she felt better and took a nap. So, now the doctors are pretty sure (duh) that's she's got a milk allergy and not a sensitivity. I'll be making an appointment with an Allergist very soon. Until then... we get to cuddle and have fun with this cutie pie!

So now I'm on the hunt for recipes/things Maggie can eat that do not have milk in it. It's quite a difficult feat, especially since I am not quite sure if it's whey or casien or both that she is allergic to. We'll find out soon enough.

New secretary position filled...

2008-10-09T12:03:00.003-05:00

... by Maggie! She can now sort thru mail, schedule my appointments, and screen my phone calls. Thanks goodness!

Besides having a wonderful assistant... she is an awesome daughter! We went on a client consultation yesterday and first of all traveled for a couple hours, then the consult was a few hours, then drove home. She did WONDERFUL!! I had strapped her into the Baby Bjorn (lifesaver) and we were walking around doing our thing. It was great to see some old clients/friends again. Thanks Maggie for being a doll!

Dinner for Mom

2008-10-06T11:19:00.002-05:00

On October 4th, we honored our Mom by having a scrumptous Korean dinner together and brothers and sister. (Anthony not present in body but in spirit! We missed you!) James and Joseph made the trip up to Palestine to visit the gravesite with some new flowers and a mini pumpkin. That was awesome for them to do that. I got dinner together and we had deliciousness together. Bulgogi, Sticky rice, pot stickers, veggies, kimchee (Dave and Shelby's favorite!!), and good company.

We all miss Mom terribly and wish she were still here. The love she had for us was so strong. The things she taught us were more than we'll ever know. I have vowed to live every day to honor her! Anthony, Joseph and James- I love ya'll!!

ps: Anthony was present on ichat. I don't have photoshop or I would have photoshopped you into the picture. :)

Dancing Pookie

2008-10-06T10:47:00.003-05:00

It's taken a little while to get back onto the computer to blog, but here's a cute little video of Maggie dancing. While in North Carolina, Maggie fell in love with this Leaf Frog table. So when we got back to Texas I went out and got one for her and she can spend hours playing with it! She knows how to do all the little tricks and just loves to show you what she can do.

ps: Maggie doesn't kick it in the diaper all day long, she was about to get a bath!

Julia's Baby Shower

2008-09-29T15:22:00.000-05:00

Last Saturday me, Ashley and Lisa threw Julia a baby shower. It was great fun! I love planning these things with all the cute invitations, yummy food, cute presents, and fun people... and this one was no exception. Just a couple shots at the spread and the cute momma to be!

Jane, Julia and Olga

Love you Julia! Can't wait to meet baby girl!!

North Carolina (part I)

2008-09-26T09:14:00.009-05:00

This was a much needed vacation. Me and Maggie headed up to North Carolina to visit my brother, Anthony, and his family. Ike just hit Houston, we recieved power the day before we left and chaos was still everywhere in Houston. Thank goodness we planned this trip before Ike hit.

This was Maggie's first trip on an airplane. And she did wonderfully! She slept on each flight getting to Charlotte and Julie and the kids picked us up. The drive wasn't bad and it was a great time to eat lunch and see the kids. We made it to Winston-Salem and I tried to put Maggie to sleep. But she just wasn't sleeping in the pack n play. So... she slept in her carseat. And it was that way the whole trip. Her teeth were bothering her and she had a hard time with any sort of sleeping, but the carseat helped her stay still and able to breath through her stuffy nose.

The next day, we packed up the car (an accomplishment in and of itself) and was out the door to Blowing Rock, NC. Anthony got a cabin right next to the slopes (no it wasn't snowing) but it was a perfect location! The cabin was great- we all got our own rooms and everything was so cozy. A cold front had pushed through and it was quite cool when we arrived. It was tough to control the temperature in a 3 story cabin. Either one story was hot or cold, but we managed. Buy fireplaces were started! Plus, nothing beats a cool morning on the porch with hot cocoa. MMMM.

We visited the downtown main street in Blowing Rock, and it is so cute! Imagine upscale Old Town Spring. And the memorial park was right in the middle of it all. Their swing set was a great way to change things up for the kids. With the weather being cool, Maggie's hands were chilly and nose runny. Better than having sweaty hands and feet like in Houston!

Anthony and I, with Addie and Maggie, decided to head out to Linville Falls. What a beautiful place! Either we were crazy, or something was in the water, because we decided to take a hike to see the falls. A 'moderate' one. NOT the easy one... 2 and a half hours later we are back in the car dying of thirst, sore and realizing the kids are starving. Thank goodness for animal crackers! Despite our lack of physical fitness, the trek was well worth it. Amazing to see the waterfall carved through the mountain. And the forests were full of beautiful trees, old fallen trees, mushrooms, moss, ferns... very inspiring to see such pretty nature.

Movies were watched, smores were eaten and a fun time had in Blowing Rock, until we went to THE Blowing Rock. (just kidding) Dave kept saying the rock was cool so we went. First of all, it's just a rock, and second, it wasn't blowing on top of it. It was a nice view into the valleys and of the really nice houses on the hill sides, but the rock was just a trip. Scroll for pictures.

Some of my favorite things of the cabin trip was hearing Addie say "We did it!!" and "Silly Maggie" or "Ohhhh Maggie". Her vocabulary and speaking ability is awesome! It might take a minute to figure out what she is saying sometimes, but you can really tell she is trying hard.

Back in Winston-Salem, we caught up on laundry and errands. It was nice to sit and chill and visit with Julie. I wish they lived closer, or we lived closer. One day....

And to top off this great visit, on my last night, we ate Bojangles! A southern treat of chicken and biscuits. Much pushing and pulling had to be done to get Julie to eat a bite, but we all tried it and felt awful afterwards. It's it great? But seriously, how could you live in the South and not try Bojangles? My favorite part? Getting Addie to say 'Bojangles' and 'Chicken and biscuits' all the time. She got pretty good!

What a trip. A great trip! I can't wait to go back to NC again! Thanks for having us!! Now back in Houston and having a love/hate relationship. Love being back with Dave, our home, our kitties, my car... hate doing 4 way stops at all the lights, grocery stores still not carrying everything (they have lots, don't think I'm not eating), hearing of friends with no power, the warmer weather... But these are the reasons you go back to visit!

Waiting at Hobby Airport.

Addie saying "HI!" from her room upstairs in the cabin.

Jack just being Jack. Soo cute.

Momma and Maggie doing breakfast/lunch/dinner. They're all the same.

Addie swinging so high! We found an awesome park in Blowing Rock with great swings and clean play stuff.

Maggie loved swinging. It was a little cool, but refreshing.

On our way to Linville Falls via The Blueridge Parkway. I kept hearing we missed the fall foliage by just a few weeks. I couldn't imagine it could be prettier than it was.

This was the beginning of our 'moderate' hike to see the falls.

Neat tree roots, huh?

Here we are at the second view point.

(second view point again) You can see the painter who was doing a 'study' of the light on the rocks and waterfalls.

North Carolina (part II)

2008-09-26T08:38:00.003-05:00

What a beautiful view! Rolling streams, river rocks, trees of every color! Definitely worth the trek!

Linville Falls! This was the 'Erwin's View'. From this point you could see the painter still. He was on another bluff still painting.

'Say CHEESE!'

Maggie wanted to show off her new kitty cat purse.

Yes folks, this is the actual "Blowing Rock".

Another Blowing Rock picture. Maggie will cherish this photo one day, right?

What a cute family! I love Jack's curly mohawk!

Addie and Aunt Serena in the car. We had so much fun together!!

Julie got a new bedspread and bolster. It really made the room look perfect! I think the girls loved it too much.

And then one second later, Maggie is at the end of the bed. You really have to watch her now!

And finally here is Maggie on her way home. We barely caught our connecting flight in Atlanta. They had changed our gate number to a completely different terminal. I didn't realize that until about 20 minutes til the plane was to take off. Needless to say, I ran as fast as one can with a baby strapped to their front, a diaper bag and a carry on. I'm sure I looked rediculous, but we made it to our gate with my name being paged to board the plane. Whew.

What a fun trip! We loved being with Anthony, Julie, Addie and Jack. At moments, like dinner time, you could barely breathe from being so busy, but it was great to be with family. I can't wait to see them all again!

Ike update

2008-09-15T17:31:00.002-05:00

Ahhh, we made it. What a last few days.

First of all, the night Ike came through was awful . Lots of wind, trees swaying, carports making noises, lightning, you name it you heard it... then the rain started and didn't stop. Maggie had a rough night. Everything was just too loud, and the power went out at about 1:30 am. Which made the house warm (especially since we couldn't exactly open the windows at that moment). But we survived, and later Sunday we accessed the situation and decided to go to College Station to stay the night with Jonny and Rhi. Thank you thank you thank you!

Dave got word his office has power ( unbelievable!!) so we decided to come back. Last night was not bad at all. Weather works in awesome ways... somehow we got a cold front after the hurricane. It was a cool 60-something last night with a great breeze. Not bad! And to make it better, our water is back. So all in all, not to bad. We're just praying power will resume soon.

I'll try to keep updates coming, but kinda limited on the computer time.

Love ya!!!

And we've got dishes too...

2008-09-11T08:33:00.002-05:00

During Ike, we'll just eat off of Maggie's new kitchen set. She LOVES it. We had to get a set after she had so much fun with Nana's on Sunday.

Hurrican Ike

2008-09-11T08:29:00.002-05:00

Well yet again, another hurricane is headed our way. And this one seems to be headed straight to Houston and up through east Texas. As of right now, Dave and I have decided to stay here in Houston and 'hunker' down through the storm. I'm stocked on food and water so we should be ok. Hopefully if the power goes out, it will resume shortly after. Prayers are being said for friends and family in the line of Ike, but we'll keep you updated! We love ya'll!!

Downward facing dog pose

2008-09-05T09:45:00.000-05:00

Next thing you know, she'll be shopping at Whole Foods, wearing hemp shoes and will be joining PETA.

Just kidding! After I do a yoga session everyone likes to play on the mat. Dude, Buddy, Maggie, Dave (ok just kidding on Dave) but there is something about that sticky surface. Next time I turn around, she'll be doing a balancing pose on one hand!