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Monday, December 26, 2011
Finn's 4th Birthday-2011
Finn turned 4 years old today. He tells people that his birthday is the day AFTER God's birthday....how cute. We have had a really fun day and are all tuckered out. I think there will be naps for everyone today. This house is full of toys!!! And lots of smiling children's faces as well. Finn had a Cars themed birthday with cupcakes, and ice cream for later. He wanted to have a birthday with just the family, "just us", he said. So we have been playing with him with his new birthday and Christmas toys and we took a trip to Chuck E Cheese as well. I cannot believe it has been four years since he was born. He continues to amaze me with the way he adjusts to things and his great attitude towards life and what it throws at him. He brings such joy! Thank you God for an amazing little boy!
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Fun Fall Kid Stuff!
So...just to catch you up: Finn participated in a 6-week "Little Kickers" Soccer Camp at the YMCA. He had so much fun!! But imagine: 30 kids and 2 coaches!! Yikes! We really thought he learned a lot during this "fundamentals" class.... until the last class. Coaches vs. kids scrimmage, Finn's first scrimmage. He scored two goal...yes, count 'em, 2!!! Oh, using his hands. OOPS, guess we might want to re-take the fundamentals class!! ha ha
Ains lost her first tooth in mid-October. This will tell you how laid back she is,,,she didn't even check her pillow the next morning. I had to REMIND her to see if the tooth fairy had come. Two weeks later, she lost her second tooth,,,,it really just fell out!! Included in the picture slideshow are some pictures of her artwork, her "Star Student" status at school and some monster truck fun with her brother. She loves being the bib sis to Finny and she takes such good care of him. Ains is LOVING Kindergarten. She is now reading books completely by herself and she is soaking up the new vocabulary words. It's really fun to sit with her and let her go wild, reading whatever she can find. In other Ainslie news, she broke her foot two weeks ago. She was just happy it happened after Field Day at school. She was running down the driveway and turned her ankle on the curb. Within minutes her ankle had swollen up huge and it looked like a golf ball was inside. She got her cast 4 days later (hot pink of course). It happened the weekend of Halloween and it didn't hold her back (see previous Trunk or Treat post). We strollered (is that a verb?) her around for the Trunk or Treat, she used crutches for a day or so, and then she got her cast. Daddy even carried her around the neighborhood for our Trick or Treat. She has not complained AT ALL. She is a real sport!!!!! We sent Sharpie markers to school and her friends signed her cast. Ains loves animals (wants to be a vet), art, gymnastics, Ranch dressing and chicken nuggets, playing dollhouse, reading, and she is our night owl!! She would also stay on our swingset til the cows came home if I let her. Her hair has grown super long and she wants to chop it off. Of course I will let her, but I just love braiding it and love those curls. She loves to play with my hair, and I let her...just to be polite, of course :) Ok, that's a lie, I love it and she knows it!! She (and her sister) won't go to bed without me singing their "Special Song."
Mais: She completed a week long Bat Project for 2nd grade. Her bat was the Yellow Winged bat and she did a Powerpoint presentation (yes, Powerpoint in 2nd grade).....and she scored 100%. She really did a great amount of research on her bat and she (according to her teacher) used inflection while giving her presentation and Daddy even taught her some fun phrases using hand motions and that really helped her through. (Ask her about it next time you talk to her). We ALL learned more than we ever wanted to know about bats. She has also been studying Moon Phases, Our World (Continents, Oceans, Countries, etc), she is reading tons of chapter books, loves research (did NOT get that from me), LOVES math and science (again,not me), the love of reading (that's me), she has over 50 A.R. points already (for those of you who know what that is, it's really good), she loves art (she aspires to be an artist!). Her vocab at times blows me away. Don't make her any promise you don't intend to keep, she has a memory like I've never seen (again, not me, or Craig for that matter!!) ha ha.....She is learning to play chess and hopes to join the chess team next year!
Finn: Loves Loves Loves all things CAR and TRAIN. That boy eats, sleeps and dreams CARS and TRAINS. He brought the Target Christmas Toy Book (advertisement) in to Preschool for Show and Tell last week...seriously! He already knows everything he wants for Christmas and his birthday. That, he gets from Daddy! Apparently Craig used to do the same thing with the Sears catalog each year. Finn is a JOY, and his smile lights up the room. But his temper,,,and that stubborn streak (from us both,,,:)) He broke his almost $300 pair of glasses (second set this year) because he got sent to his room as a punishment. Really Finn, is the punishment of getting sent to your room (chock full of toys, trains and cars) really so bad you have to mangle your glasses?? Finn's hair grows like a weed and his new phrase is "Do you want a piece of me?" as he air karate-chops...too funny. He still is mega attached to his blankie, which has to get washed multiple times per week. He hardly sits still for dinner, loves hot dogs "hot gogs" and his snacky "tacky." He loves to watch Thomas the Train, Chugginton, Auto B Good and Ratatouille, Cars and Toy Story. He also loves to ride his monster truck (he's a good driver, although a little too fast for my taste). He loves to run (what boy doesn't) and loves to swing (he graduated to a big boy swing). He asks every night if he can sleep in our bed (Mr. Softie can't say no to the boy!), and he asks every single day "Is it Saturday-our-favorite-day?" He infuriates me with his stubborn streak and his "Well...Mommmmmmmmmmmyyyyyyyyyyy, she did it first, or Well,,,,Mommmmmmmmmmmmmmmyyyyyyyyyyy or But Mommmmmmmmmyyyyyyy." And he captures my heart each night when he grabs my face with both hands to kiss me and tells me "Love you so much Mommy"
Well, there you have it. My heart...on paper (or rather blog).
~Deb
Signing off as Mommy (Best job in the world)
Ains lost her first tooth in mid-October. This will tell you how laid back she is,,,she didn't even check her pillow the next morning. I had to REMIND her to see if the tooth fairy had come. Two weeks later, she lost her second tooth,,,,it really just fell out!! Included in the picture slideshow are some pictures of her artwork, her "Star Student" status at school and some monster truck fun with her brother. She loves being the bib sis to Finny and she takes such good care of him. Ains is LOVING Kindergarten. She is now reading books completely by herself and she is soaking up the new vocabulary words. It's really fun to sit with her and let her go wild, reading whatever she can find. In other Ainslie news, she broke her foot two weeks ago. She was just happy it happened after Field Day at school. She was running down the driveway and turned her ankle on the curb. Within minutes her ankle had swollen up huge and it looked like a golf ball was inside. She got her cast 4 days later (hot pink of course). It happened the weekend of Halloween and it didn't hold her back (see previous Trunk or Treat post). We strollered (is that a verb?) her around for the Trunk or Treat, she used crutches for a day or so, and then she got her cast. Daddy even carried her around the neighborhood for our Trick or Treat. She has not complained AT ALL. She is a real sport!!!!! We sent Sharpie markers to school and her friends signed her cast. Ains loves animals (wants to be a vet), art, gymnastics, Ranch dressing and chicken nuggets, playing dollhouse, reading, and she is our night owl!! She would also stay on our swingset til the cows came home if I let her. Her hair has grown super long and she wants to chop it off. Of course I will let her, but I just love braiding it and love those curls. She loves to play with my hair, and I let her...just to be polite, of course :) Ok, that's a lie, I love it and she knows it!! She (and her sister) won't go to bed without me singing their "Special Song."
Mais: She completed a week long Bat Project for 2nd grade. Her bat was the Yellow Winged bat and she did a Powerpoint presentation (yes, Powerpoint in 2nd grade).....and she scored 100%. She really did a great amount of research on her bat and she (according to her teacher) used inflection while giving her presentation and Daddy even taught her some fun phrases using hand motions and that really helped her through. (Ask her about it next time you talk to her). We ALL learned more than we ever wanted to know about bats. She has also been studying Moon Phases, Our World (Continents, Oceans, Countries, etc), she is reading tons of chapter books, loves research (did NOT get that from me), LOVES math and science (again,not me), the love of reading (that's me), she has over 50 A.R. points already (for those of you who know what that is, it's really good), she loves art (she aspires to be an artist!). Her vocab at times blows me away. Don't make her any promise you don't intend to keep, she has a memory like I've never seen (again, not me, or Craig for that matter!!) ha ha.....She is learning to play chess and hopes to join the chess team next year!
Finn: Loves Loves Loves all things CAR and TRAIN. That boy eats, sleeps and dreams CARS and TRAINS. He brought the Target Christmas Toy Book (advertisement) in to Preschool for Show and Tell last week...seriously! He already knows everything he wants for Christmas and his birthday. That, he gets from Daddy! Apparently Craig used to do the same thing with the Sears catalog each year. Finn is a JOY, and his smile lights up the room. But his temper,,,and that stubborn streak (from us both,,,:)) He broke his almost $300 pair of glasses (second set this year) because he got sent to his room as a punishment. Really Finn, is the punishment of getting sent to your room (chock full of toys, trains and cars) really so bad you have to mangle your glasses?? Finn's hair grows like a weed and his new phrase is "Do you want a piece of me?" as he air karate-chops...too funny. He still is mega attached to his blankie, which has to get washed multiple times per week. He hardly sits still for dinner, loves hot dogs "hot gogs" and his snacky "tacky." He loves to watch Thomas the Train, Chugginton, Auto B Good and Ratatouille, Cars and Toy Story. He also loves to ride his monster truck (he's a good driver, although a little too fast for my taste). He loves to run (what boy doesn't) and loves to swing (he graduated to a big boy swing). He asks every night if he can sleep in our bed (Mr. Softie can't say no to the boy!), and he asks every single day "Is it Saturday-our-favorite-day?" He infuriates me with his stubborn streak and his "Well...Mommmmmmmmmmmyyyyyyyyyyy, she did it first, or Well,,,,Mommmmmmmmmmmmmmmyyyyyyyyyyy or But Mommmmmmmmmyyyyyyy." And he captures my heart each night when he grabs my face with both hands to kiss me and tells me "Love you so much Mommy"
Well, there you have it. My heart...on paper (or rather blog).
~Deb
Signing off as Mommy (Best job in the world)
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Monday, November 14, 2011
Pumpkin Patch School Field Trips
One of my part-time jobs is at NWH Mother's Day Out Preschool, affectionately known as "the pumpkin patch church." Why do people call it that? Every Fall the front lawn of the school is overtaken with pumpkins (see previous post) and schools all over come for field trips. The girls' school is no exception....and the wonderful thing about their school is that it is within walking distance, so it is a walking field trip. Finn and I were able to meet Maisie at school and walk with her (Maisie and Finn held hands the whole way). I was able to attend Ainslie's field trip because it was a work day for me so I just stepped out the front door and was able to be with her :) Same goes with Finn's, I was able to take pics and video, help him pick out his pumpkin and share in the fun. What a blessing to be able to work and be present for my kids' events!!
Here's to my absolute FAVORITE time of the year.....
~Deb
Here's to my absolute FAVORITE time of the year.....
~Deb
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Trunk or Treat 2011
Time for our annual trip to Trunk or Treat. The kids really look forward to this event. There are hot rod's and firetrucks (Finn's faves), a potato gun that shoots candy every 10 minutes (everyone's fave), food, amazing-ly decorated car trunks, great costumes, face painting, donut eating contest, Christian music, oh......and did I mention....CANDY!!!!!!!
Check out Buzz Lightyear, Miss Ladybug (on crutches, no less!!) and Miss Bumblebee!! Enjoy, Love the Cahills
Check out Buzz Lightyear, Miss Ladybug (on crutches, no less!!) and Miss Bumblebee!! Enjoy, Love the Cahills
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Friday, September 30, 2011
Pumpkins and Rain
Two things our kids love.....the arrival of pumpkins in the patch and rain,,,,both of which we got yesterday!! We drove up to MDO to watch the workers unload 20,000 pounds of pumpkins...and it began to rain. Such a precious sight to see. We drove home and I let the kids play in the rain,,,and they tried out their new, never opened, umbrellas. It's the simple things in life that bring the most joy!! We had fun and I hope you have fun looking at the pics and videos. Finally I included a few pics from 9-11-11, our National Day of Service. Hope you and yours are happy and healthy!
Love Deb
Love Deb
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Monday, August 22, 2011
School Days 2011
The school year has officially started!! Craig, Maisie and Ainslie went off to school today (Craig actually started teacher in-service a week ago). Maisie began 2nd grade with Mrs. Smith and Ainslie began Kindergarten (sniff, sniff) with Miss Craven. Both girls are really excited and I am too!! The Smilebox creation shows pics of Meet The Teacher night as well as the First Day!! Finn and I are headed off to Mother's Day Out in just a few minutes where our school year begins today as well. We have, as teachers, two weeks of training and then school will begin officially after Labor Day. In the meantime, Finn will go with me each day and play with friends while Mommy works. Enjoy the pics!
Praying for God's best this year!
Love to all, Deb
Praying for God's best this year!
Love to all, Deb
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Thursday, July 14, 2011
Finn's date with Mama and Daddy
Last week Craig and I took Finn on a date to Morgan's Wonderland. The girls spent the day at a Summer Daycamp where they swam, did arts and crafts and played with friends. We took Finn to Morgan's, which according to their website, "was built in the true spirit of inclusion to provide a place where all ages and abilities can come together and play in a fun and safe environment. Morgan’s Wonderland, the world’s first ultra-accessible family fun park, encompasses 25 acres of rides, attractions and activities for everyone, and all are welcome!" Check out their website at http://www.morganswonderland.com/.
We had a fun filled day! Finn got to drive his own car, he fished with Daddy (they caught a humdinger of a fish,,,,you should have seen Finn's wide eyes!), rode on the carousel (a zebra, of course), played in the sandbox (he could have stayed there ALL day), played in Sensory Village (a-maz-ing!), rode the train (I lost count how many times), played in the water zone where he experimented with water, had a picnic in the shade, climbed and played on so many playscapes, teeter-tottered with Daddy, 'drove' a remote control Pirate ship in the huge lake, shot off a water blaster, and SO much more!! The place is incredible...so many things to see and touch and play with. We got there right when they opened and we were the first or second people to arrive and for the first two hours we felt like we were the only ones in the park. The operators kept letting us stay on rides and go around again. The park is staffed by volunteers and the customer service was out of this world. They made Finn, and us, feel so special.
The park is all inclusive, and there are rides and attractions for able bodied individuals and there are adaptations for all kinds of physical limitations. Most rides, if not all, are wheelchair accessible (including swings!!) It is a beautiful and fun place to play and we plan to return when the kid's Grandma and Great Grandma visit in August (the girls want to go this time as well!)
We had a wonderful day with our son! Thank you Lord for making Finn!
Enjoy the pictures below (click on each one to enlarge)
We had a fun filled day! Finn got to drive his own car, he fished with Daddy (they caught a humdinger of a fish,,,,you should have seen Finn's wide eyes!), rode on the carousel (a zebra, of course), played in the sandbox (he could have stayed there ALL day), played in Sensory Village (a-maz-ing!), rode the train (I lost count how many times), played in the water zone where he experimented with water, had a picnic in the shade, climbed and played on so many playscapes, teeter-tottered with Daddy, 'drove' a remote control Pirate ship in the huge lake, shot off a water blaster, and SO much more!! The place is incredible...so many things to see and touch and play with. We got there right when they opened and we were the first or second people to arrive and for the first two hours we felt like we were the only ones in the park. The operators kept letting us stay on rides and go around again. The park is staffed by volunteers and the customer service was out of this world. They made Finn, and us, feel so special.
The park is all inclusive, and there are rides and attractions for able bodied individuals and there are adaptations for all kinds of physical limitations. Most rides, if not all, are wheelchair accessible (including swings!!) It is a beautiful and fun place to play and we plan to return when the kid's Grandma and Great Grandma visit in August (the girls want to go this time as well!)
We had a wonderful day with our son! Thank you Lord for making Finn!
Enjoy the pictures below (click on each one to enlarge)
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Monday, June 20, 2011
Grandma Gurt's Visit Spring 2011
Hi. My mom, Marilyn, visited us this Spring. We had a wonderful time and we got to do so many fun things. I included a scrapbook with some pics. Her timing was perfect, she got to watch the End of the Year program at MDO where the kids (Ains and Finn) sang songs of praise to God and danced and had so much fun. Ainslie graduated from preschool also, so there are some pics of Grandma with us at that event. Grandma also got to watch as Maisie was baptized at our church. It was a truly tremendous day full of family, faith and the act of baptism. Mom also got to go with Finn and I to the Zoo Train and the Japanese Tea Gardens where we had a picnic lunch. We had a girls day out where Grandma, Maisie, Ainslie and I went downtown and took the Riverboat (Finn was with us for that, then he went to join Daddy at Daddy's school/work). We took Grandma walking along the Riverwalk, we enjoyed a delicious Tex Mex meal and then took in a play at the Magik Theatre, "Pinkalicious." You'll see one of the photos is of the girls' passed out in the van on the way home....we were all so tired after a wonderful day downtown. All in all, we enjoyed our busy visit and made many treasured memories. Oh, also, Mom baked about 12 dozen cookies with the girls one day while I was working. Those cookies were for Kairos Prison Ministry and we stretched them out to all sorts of other beloved friends because we had so many. Thanks for the memories Mom!! ~Deb
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Springtime 2011
Here are some photos from where Ainslie and Finn attended this year and where I work, Mother's Day Out Preschool. There is a Petting Zoo Day, Easter Egg Hunt and Fiesta Parade. There are also pics from our Easter at home and at our amazing church, Bandera Road City Church. Enjoy! Love Deb
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Backlog of photos, updates and news
Hello all. I cannot believe how long it has been since I posted any news or pics. I downloaded our camera today and there were over 600 photos dating back to March...hmmm, that's kinda sad!! Don't worry, I won't post all 600 but I will post several Smilebox's that you can browse at your leisure.
Today is the first day of summer, June 20th. Hard to believe,,since we are in the 100's here,,,HOT HOT HOT and we are in Stage 3 water restrictions. For all the Northerners that means you can only water your lawn every other week!! Crazy dry here.
I hope you are all enjoying your start to summer. We certainly are. My oldest daughter Maisie turns 7 on Wednesday and her Daddy turns 40 on the same day. Ainslie is 5 and starting Kinder this Fall and Finn is 3 1/2 and growing so fast. More on them later...... I am done with Preschool until August. Staying busy teaching finance classes across our city,,loving every minute of it and of course you can find me on church campus all weekend working there!! Craig is officially off for the summer as of last Friday and he is working side jobs, hanging with us and the kids and working on the never ending "Honey Do" list!!! We are richly blessed! Love to you all, Deb
Today is the first day of summer, June 20th. Hard to believe,,since we are in the 100's here,,,HOT HOT HOT and we are in Stage 3 water restrictions. For all the Northerners that means you can only water your lawn every other week!! Crazy dry here.
I hope you are all enjoying your start to summer. We certainly are. My oldest daughter Maisie turns 7 on Wednesday and her Daddy turns 40 on the same day. Ainslie is 5 and starting Kinder this Fall and Finn is 3 1/2 and growing so fast. More on them later...... I am done with Preschool until August. Staying busy teaching finance classes across our city,,loving every minute of it and of course you can find me on church campus all weekend working there!! Craig is officially off for the summer as of last Friday and he is working side jobs, hanging with us and the kids and working on the never ending "Honey Do" list!!! We are richly blessed! Love to you all, Deb
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Arctic Blast graphic
Ok, I just had to go and add the graphics for Arctic Blast from our local news website!!
Snow Day 2011
Disclaimer: To all our Northern friends and family, feel free to laugh at us Southerners and our sensitivity to even the slightest mention of snow!
The title of this blog post should be "Arctic Blast" b/c that is what all of South Texas referred to this weather as. All of our newscasters broke in with information on "Arctic Blast" (with graphics, to boot!). Pretty funny. We got a whopping 1/8 inch of snow and ALL of our schools, highways and most businesses shut down on Friday, Feb. 5th.
We had a great time at home. We bundled up and headed outside and played in the snow. We even got out the monster truck and the kids rode that around. Leave it to Craig to decide we need to go sledding! (Did I mention 1/8" ?) He got out a lid to a plastic storage bin and the kids slid on that down the middle of our street, too funny!!
Enjoy some of our pics from ARCTIC BLAST 2011!! ~Deb
The title of this blog post should be "Arctic Blast" b/c that is what all of South Texas referred to this weather as. All of our newscasters broke in with information on "Arctic Blast" (with graphics, to boot!). Pretty funny. We got a whopping 1/8 inch of snow and ALL of our schools, highways and most businesses shut down on Friday, Feb. 5th.
We had a great time at home. We bundled up and headed outside and played in the snow. We even got out the monster truck and the kids rode that around. Leave it to Craig to decide we need to go sledding! (Did I mention 1/8" ?) He got out a lid to a plastic storage bin and the kids slid on that down the middle of our street, too funny!!
Enjoy some of our pics from ARCTIC BLAST 2011!! ~Deb
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Monday, February 7, 2011
Ainslie Alayne turns 5
January 13, 2011 our sweet Ainslie turned 5!! First thing she asked, "Can I go to Kindergarten now?" We might have a hard time convincing her she needs to wait until Fall. She had a wonderful birthday, first celebrating early in Michigan with Deb's family. Next, she celebrated at Mother's Day Out, and then at home with a house full of Princesses (in full Princess attire). Her party was, of course, Princess themed with a tiara pinata, pin-the-necklace on the Princess game and a "make your own sundae" ice cream bar. What a whirwind of a couple of days. We had a great time celebrating and cannot believe how fast these 5 years have gone. She is learning to read, writes very well and loves playing with her dollhouse!! She is a fun little sister and playmate for Maisie and an awesome big sister for Finn (who adores her!) Happy Birthday sweet girl!
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