Maren's Blessing

We took these pics right before going into sacrament. Taylor's a bit sad about getting in the picture. She wants to go to church! That's my girl!
Spencer gave Maren a very beautiful blessing. He blessed her that she would be a PEACEMAKER. I like peacemakers. We'll keep her!

Where did he come from?

He climbs...

He is FEARLESS. He jumps off everything. We're lucky we've have not had stitches or broken bones yet. Just a few bloody noses.
He BITES! Watch out Taylor. He got her good on the back. Ouch!
He is stacking his watermelon! Then he knocks it down, of course!

Excuse the picture, but he loves to be naked!

I'm just trying to figure out where my son came from and why he is the way he is.

Is it because he is a boy?

Or is it because he is the second child?

I don't think I'll ever figure it out. But we sure do love him. He is so much fun.

2 Years Old!

McKay turned two this month. Happy Day! No more free air travel for him. Sad day. McKay woke up in a great mood.



We went down stairs and found presents waiting to be opened on the kitchen table. Do you like the left-over Christmas paper? McKay didn't have a problem with it. He's two!


Every few hours we would open a new present. I thought this was a good idea because he could enjoy each new surprise and his birthday could be an all day celebration! He wasn't interested in ripping paper. Opening the presents was not that exciting. Maybe he didn't realize that there was something inside the snowman paper.
If you look at Taylor in this picture, she is crying. She knew it wasn't HER special day. I knew she would have a hard time with McKay's special day because she's old enough to understand birthdays now and she wanted some attention, too.
So I wrapped a present for her and let her open it. It kept her happy and entertained for the rest of the day.











McKay really enjoyed his little cars and trains that he opened.

















But the real highlight of his birthday was this $2 garage sale find--the basketball hoop. Yes, McKay has mad basketball skills. He shot hoops all day long. When he would make a hoop, he'd yell, "did it!" and jump up and down. It was so cute. He played hoops for the next few days straight before he got tired of it.








This is, if you couldn't tell, McKay's cake. Don't laugh. For a person who isn't very crafty or creative, I think I did a good job. The frosting is grass--I even added coconut to the frosting to give it some texture. See the little flower sprinkles growing in the grass? And then there's the road which, I'll admit, is lacking a certain something. Maybe it needs a Sesame Street Sign or a bit of Oreo gravel. Oh well, we'll save that for next year.











Ally and Grandma B. came right in time for the birthday song. McKay was acting really shy when we sang "Happy Birthday" to him. He knew it was HIS song. We were all staring at him and he was looking away. He would sneak glimses of the cake every now and then.


Taylor was crying during all of this because she thought that it was McKay's birthday cake, which it was, and she thought she wouldn't get some. She soon stopped crying when she realized that everybody, even she, could have a piece...AFTER she finished crying.


We had lots of fun with Grandma B. and Ally. Ally, the kids, and I went swimming almost everyday. Grandma B. was such a great help with Maren. She held her every chance she could. It is so wonderful to have family visit.

Maren Look-Alikes

Here's a great picture of Maren with Grammy DeLane. Maren's about two weeks old.

This is Taylor at 3 months old (adjusted age) maybe.
This is McKay when he was a few weeks old. Look at all of that black hair!

McKay at about 6 weeks.

I think Maren looks like a good mix of both the children, but she has her own look, too. Who do you think she looks like? Let me know.

Happy 4th!

My birthday was so great. My visiting teacher brought me a bouquet of flowers ( I have the best visiting teachers possible, they have been so helpful during my pregnancy and baby adjusting). Then some of my Primary friends took me out to lunch for some Mexican Food. Yummy. It was a beautiful, perfect summer day outside: overcast, not too hot, and not too humid.
By the way, see those two little boys? I can never tell them apart. They look exactly the same except one twin, Brent, has a little dent in his ear. Thank you dent! It's the only way to distinguish him from his brother--"Brent the dent", as we say. Oh, and Cole has a mole...somewhere, so he's "Cole the mole".














When Spencer got home from work, I had my birthday all planned out, of course. But Spencer surprised me in the car with a little gift. He came up with it all by himself! It came in this little brown paper bag. I felt the bag with my fingers and my first thought was, "Spencer got me a toothbrush". I'm always using his toothbrush and he hates it. He thinks it is so disgusting and yet he will kiss me. I don't see much difference between the two. Anyway, I open it up and I read, "Pencil". I ask Spencer, "you got me a pencil?" I wasn't too impressed. And I wasn't too impressed with the price tag that came with it. But actually, it turns out to be a very special pencil for marking your scriptures that Spencer bought at the church bookstore. It has 8 different colors. This is the perfect gift! I was impressed with his thoughtfulness and creativeness. Good job, husband!


We arrive at our destination, The Cheesecake Factory, one of the best restaurants ever! McKay kept looking out the window at those horses. He and Taylor wanted to ride them. I ordered Thai Wraps in the Appetizer section of the menu. You have to try them some time. They are so fresh and delicious. After dinner we went to hear the Houston Symphony play America music at the Mitchell Pavillion in the Woodlands. It was so nice. The kids danced around and got all of their sillies out. Walking back to the car, Spencer found a frog on the side walk. Taylor loves frogs. So we catch it and let Taylor hold it for a while and be in frog-heaven. Then it is time to let the frog go back to the forest. Then the weeping and wailing comes. "But I love the frog. I want to keep him forever, " says Taylor. We explain that he can't come live in our backyard because we have two pet dogs that would eat him. Taylor comes up with a solution. "Tomorrow", she says, "when the dogs die, THEN we can get a frog". I thought it was funny that she thinks the dogs are going to die tomorrow. Well, I agreed upon the frog pet at the time. but I hope she doesn't hold me to it.

Maren says...

Look at me! I'm three and a half weeks old now and I'm learning how to hold my head up. I love "tummy-time" just as much as mom does.
I know my leg is getting quite chunky. Don't eat me. I thought you'd like to see my cute socks.

Dad, I didn't do it!

Galveston

It's funny how some of the joys in life that we are so fond of relate to our past. The beach, for example, is a place I hold dear to my heart. When I think of beach, I think of family, and happiness, and peace. A beach is so much more than just a beach. It doesn't matter how beautiful or how ugly, I think Sunset Beach in Central California will always be my favorite because it is linked with such great times. However, I love a beach so much, that I can really enjoy any beach, even Texas beaches! We heard so many negative comments about the beaches here, that we were leery to come. But the ocean is the ocean and I love it here, even with all of it's frailties. Welcome to the Gulf Coast! It's breezy out today and the water is wonderfully refreshing, not turn-your-lips-blue freezing--like I am used to!