We're in Lubbock!

We're here for the week... a week of "vacation." The boys rode home with my parents on Monday, and Carter and I followed on Tuesday after doing a TON of work around the house. It is amazing how much you can get done without twins... I had forgotten. :)

We enjoyed watching Katie Couric's last day on the Today Show this morning... she has been a "friend" to us for a long time... especially during the time I was a stay at home mom. Today is our first official day of summer with all four of us together. We are so excited at all that lies ahead for us in the next few weeks and months as we start our new lives in Seagraves!

Hope to see many of you on this trip...

My last post at Kempner High School...

And so, another school year comes to a close. All my grades are exported, my classroom is packed up, my teacher "mode" is about to shut down. :) It has been one crazy semester, and I'm looking forward to the summer with my BOYS! Here are a few pictures from this past week or so.

Here we are in our stroller waiting for Daddy's band concert to start... you can't tell how cute we are dressed, but trust us... WE ARE!










Harrison












Daddy conducting at his last East Bernard band concert... No one but Gran will appreciate that I caught the words "East Bernard" on the gym wall behind him. :)









I had to post these pictures to show Palmer's newest trick... standing up on his own! He is so big... one day we walked in to his nursery and he was STANDING up in his crib... now that is all he wants to do. Harrison just stood up this past week for the first time, too. Palmer has just figured out how to do it in the pack n play.













I can't believe he is standing up already! Where did my tiny 4 pound baby go?











Peeking over the side of his pack n play...


















Look at this giggly boy! He is such a ham when I pull out the camera...

This is in their new booster seats which we are using instead of their high chairs. They look like such big boys!

Thanks, Gran, for these super cute summer outfits!




Harrison with his juice... have I mentioned how much we LOVE that they can hold thier own bottles now? It helps me out SO much!
















Daddy took this picture of us on the porch swing while he was cooking steaks on the gril for all the band seniors... we will miss this porch SOOOO much!

















Harrison in the bath tub last night... the ducks are his favorite thing in the world.











When I was washing his hair, this piece stuck up in the back... I laughed and started calling him "Alfalfa" and he just laughed and laughed with me... this will be a picture to share with all his girlfriends some day!








A side view of Alfalfa :) Look how long his hair is!












Palmer in the tub... SPLASHing!

No pictures... just an update!

Well, Folks... it is official. Carter has accepted a FABULOUS job in Seagraves! We will all be Eagles, soon. We spent last Thursday and Friday there visiting the school and were SO impressed. Carter is beyond excited! He is in the process of hiring his first assistant ever, which is cool but overwhelming at the same time. I'm not sure I want to drive 120 miles round trip each day, so we're working on some options for my job. Please keep us in your prayers as we try to sell our house and purchase a new one in Seagraves (we've already found it... TOO CUTE!)

More later...

Mother's Day and the Houston Art Car Parade

Happy Mother's Day to ME! What cutie pie angels I have! These little Sailor outfits just barely fit them... but they looked adorable.











Me and my boys on Mother's Day (which is also their 9 month old birthday! We had a great day together. Thanks to my sweet husband for making it a special day for all of us!

















The beautiful Houston skyline... this was on our walk from parking our car to Allen Parkway to watch the Houston Art Car Parade! Aunt Pat has always been a fan of this crazy parade... it makes Houstonians rival Austin for WEIRDNESS... :) But we had SOOOOO much fun seeing all the cars. I can't imagine how much time and effort goes into some of these... here are a few pics for you to marvel over...





Isn't this one funny? Who has the time to do these things?


















Yeah Ronald McDonald house! What a cute car this was...











And finally, Kinky for governor had his own car in the parade... does this surprise anyone? The crowd around us went wild when they saw him... there he is in black behind the car.

For my Mom...

This morning on my way to school I had my iPod hooked up through the stereo and had it on the "shuffle" feature. This means I was listening to the most random collection of music ever put together. For example, "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" was followed by "Jingle Bells" by Natalie Cole which was followed by "Take Me out to a Dancehall" by Pat Green.

Then, a song by Mark David Manders came on called "Halloween Costumes and Leftover Pizza." I must admit, my crazy little brother got me hooked on Texas Country music and loaded a bunch of songs on my iPod that I haven't listened to yet. This is one of those songs. I have to be in the mood for Texas country music, and something about this song made me not skip it this morning. I'm so glad I listened...

The song is about childhood memories... and that got me thinking about some of mine. I guess it has taken me all this time so far to explain my train of thought... I'm such a rambler.

SO HERE GOES... a list of childhood (and beyond) memories for my mom... Happy Mother's Day!

• Jay thinking he was Davy Crockett incarnate... and Mom having his picture made in the Davy Crockett suit (and stinky coon-skin cap) with Old Betsy :)
• hanging out at Camp Blue Haven while Mom and Dad were teachers... this was before I was old enough to be a camper
• driving to California to go to Disney Land in our brand new mini-van with a cooler between the seats
• summers back and forth with my cousin, Julie
• Mom came up with all these crafts for us to do... one year we made dolls
• raising rabbits
• getting T.P. and Fannie for our birthdays in 1991 at Sweet Linda's house
• my "Jewelry Party" birthday party
• another birthday in high school that was one of those "Host your own Mystery" parties
• Mom, Dad, and Linda dressed up as nerdy teachers
• decorating the house for Christmas each year
• especially the year Jay and I decided to do it ourselves
• the anniversary dinner Jay and I made for Mom and Dad... Jay drew a goofy mustache on himself to be the "waiter"
• the summer that Mom and Linda spent all those weeks in Dallas getting their Realtor licenses
• Dad and I alternated cooking nights... he made spaghetti, I made macaroni and cheese
• family get-togethers with all my aunts, uncles, and cousins
• home perms... these became known as "boys night out"
• Mom and Gui Via dressing up as Raggedy Ann and Andy
• the rainbow painted on my wall in my bedroom in Abernathy
• eating popsicles after having my tonsils taken out
• Disney World vacation my 11th grade year (we got to miss a week of school!)
• waking up every Sunday morning to BLARING music... different almost every week (Acappella, gospel, Kids Praise... it was always whatever Mom was in the mood for!)
• Miss 67th Street pageants...
  
• taking pictures out in Daddy J's flower beds
• Christmases at the Potts' house
• The cousins re-enactment of the Nativity! :) (we even got away with a baby GIRL for baby Jesus!)

I could list these on and on... but I do have a job to do! I love you Mom... My appreciation for all you did for me has a whole new meaning this year. You truly are the greatest! Happy Mother's Day.

So it is now official!

We're moving back to Lubbock!

Carter turned in his letter of resignation yesterday. The scary thing is... he doesn't have a job yet! I'll be working at Texas Tech with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute... my dream job! Just keep praying for us for now so my sweet Husband can find a job he loves.

I've also been volunteered to plan our 10 year high school reunion! What fun, what fun...

New pictures... Marathon post

Here are a BUNCH of new pictures! Sorry for the length...


I know this is a random picture to post, but this is a common sight around our house now... Harrison or Palmer crawling off into mischief. This one involves Harrison crawling toward his closet. All the clothes on the floor in the basket and sack are clothes they have outgrown that I'm packing away for our next set of boy/boy twins. Ha Ha Ha!












Here we are playing with a new toy... they have fun making the beads move and they make NOISE!










Palmer crawling around in his nursery. He's trying to pull up on a swing. Adorable smile. :)











I put Harrison in his crib to take a nap on Saturday. He very quickly pulled up to the rails... so Gran had to help me lower the mattresses in their cribs so we wouldn't have a sweet baby boy tumble out of his crib on to the hard floor! I thought this was SOOO cute... he was just peering out of the bars and laughing. Carter and I couldn't quit laughing out loud.





My little jailbird. :)





















The boys went to their first birthday party this past weekend. Our friend Ty turned 1. It was supposed to be a swim party with a baby pool, but it rained all morning and was too yucky to swim. We sure had fun at the party, though! Here we are in our swim suits.





Gran came to help with the boys this past weekend while Carter was out of town. (OK, Houston, but still not at home!) She and Palmer were having fun and this was a great picture. Look at all those teeth!








Amma came along for the visit... here she is feeding Harrison. He is looking at her glasses... they were both fascinated with those glasses all weekend long. :)
















Palmer trying a sippy cup... I love the faces he makes with all those teeth in his mouth! He looks like a fish sometimes.
















Harrison in his high chair... we're working on staring Sippy Cups. It usually just ends up all over him. :)

What a cute smile, though.












Each has his own book... but wants whichever book his brother has... they trade back and forth for a while... until...











Here we are NOT sharing a book... story of my life (look at Palmer's face!)














Harrison in his high chair... he loves these little fruit puffs... they are fun to pick up and throw on the floor! He doesn't like how they feel in his mouth, though. Too funny.

















Here is Palmer "reading" his favorite book. I think this is so cute because the book is upside down!









This is Harrison playing in his ExerSaucer. He loves it!









Here is Palmer chillin' while watching Baby Signing Time!

Before I was a mom...

I got this as an email and thought it spoke words I've felt for the past 9 months. :)

Happy Mother’s Day !!

Before I was a Mom I slept as late as I wanted

and never worried about how late I got into bed.

I brushed my hair and my teeth everyday.

Before I was a Mom
I cleaned my house each day.
I never tripped over toys or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom I had never been puked on.
Pooped on. Spit on.
Chewed on
Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind and my thoughts.
I slept all night..

Before I was a Mom

I never held down a screaming child so that

doctors could do tests or give shots.

I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom

I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put it down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small could affect my life so much.

I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom
I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body.
I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom

I had never gotten up in the middle of the night

every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth, the joy, the love, the heartache,

the wonderment or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much before I was a Mom.

Harrison has his first tooth!

YEAH!

Harrison finally has his first tooth!

Don't Quit... Keep Playing

This warmed my heart today... thanks Rachel for sending it.

The Concert

When the house lights dimmed and the concert was about to begin, the mother returned to her seat and discovered that the child was missing. Suddenly, the curtains parted and spotlights focused on the impressive Steinway on stage. In horror, the mother saw her little boy sitting at the keyboard, innocently picking out "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star." At that moment, the great piano master made his entrance, quickly moved to the piano, and whispered in the boy's ear, "Don't quit." "Keep playing." Then, leaning over, Paderewski reached down with his left hand and began filling

in a bass part. Soon his right arm reached around to the other side of the child, and he added a running obbligato.

Together, the old master and the young novice transformed what could have been a frightening situation into a wonderfully creative experience.

The audience was so mesmerized that they couldn't recall what else the great master played. Only the classic, " Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star."

Perhaps that's the way it is with God. What we can accomplish on our own is hardly noteworthy. We try our best, but the results aren't always graceful flowing music. However, with the hand of the Master, our life's work can truly be beautiful. The next time you set out to accomplish great feats,listen carefully. You may hear the voice of the Master, whispering in your ear, "Don't quit." "Keep playing." May you feel His arms around you and know that His hands are there, helping you turn your feeble attempts into true masterpieces. Remember, God doesn't seem to call the equipped, rather, He equips the 'called.' Life is more accurately measured by the lives you touch than by the things you acquire. So touch someone by passing this little message along. May God bless you and be with

you always! And remember,

"Don't quit." "Keep playing."

Whew...

This past weekend Carter was out of town from Thursday through Sunday. I was a single parent for the entire weekend! I am SOOOOO glad he is back home now. The boys both have colds, which made things even worse. It was so much fun to spend time with the boys... but I take for granted how much help Carter is to me on a daily basis! He will be out of town again the next two weekends, so we're calling in the infantry (aka GRANDPARENTS!) to come help me out.