A Place of Yes

I absolutely love book stores.  I love the smell of the paper mixed with the hint of fresh brewing coffee from the adjoining cafe.  I love the rows upon rows of every kind of book you could ever imagine.  I love the bonus section that carries all the calendars and planners and journals.  I always want to buy at least two or three different ones although I know I'll never use them as frequently as I used to.  Growing up I always had a journal that I would write in every night.  It's been really interesting reading them as an adult.  It definitely helps me remember my childhood! 

Anyhoo, I took Millie on a small journey through the bookstore today trying to find my next reading adventure and then I saw it.  Bethenny Frankel's A Place of Yes.  I absolutely love Bethenny.  I watch her show religiously and think she is the funniest woman on the planet.  She has a very strong entreprenurial drive which is so fresh to witness on TV.  Plus she has a beautiful family which she puts first, and that's a number one in my book as well.  So, when I saw this book on display in the inspirational section, I knew I had to have it.  Along with two other books that looked like fun. I can't wait to see what Bethenny will inspire me to do. 

I can't wait until Millie is a little older and can start appreciating books.  I'll take her to the bookstore and we will sit in the children's section and I'll let her pick out all kinds of stories for us to read together.  It's going to be so fun!!

Budgeting

Budgets.  Totally necessary but not very fun for two people who aren't used to having budgets.  BUT we are turning over a new leaf and I have taken up the task of planning a monthly family budget.  However, I have no idea where to start!  So, blog readers, how do you and your family budget?  Are there any cool Internet tools that help make it easy?  How do you begin to organize your spending?  As you can see, I need help.  Any advice is appreciated!  And yes, I have heard of Dave Ramsey, but I do not have the time (nor the patience) to read a boring book about financial responsibility.  We are responsible.  We just need an organized layout of our spending.
Thanks.

Rockport/Trevor's Birthday

This past Friday, May 20, was Trevor's 34th birthday and for the perfect gift, we decided we needed to get away.  So, early Friday morning we packed up the Tahoe for a two day weekend vacation to Rockport.  If you saw our car you would have thought we were packing for a month's getaway!  Babies really do need a lot of junk!

We started Trevor's birthday with pancakes in bed.  Millie  and I really put a lot of love into them.  Then Millie got Trevor the sweetest card and I gave him some new swim trunks and a Reef t-shirt to rock down at the coast. 

We arrived at The Little Bay Club which is located right on the bay and is private little cottages with one really cool pool.  We checked in and relaxed for a bit and then went and ate at Moondog's on the water which was really nice.  After Millie's bath we decided to go walk down the pier and watch the sun set.



Notice the huge mansion in the background?  That's George Strait's house!

Saturday we went over to the beach and got to introduce Millie to the ocean for the first time!

I love this shot.  She was checking out the water but wasn't quite sure what it was.

My absolute favorite picture ever.  Melt my heart one thousand times!

Flying over the ocean

We then took Millie back to the cottage to take a nap and then we headed to the pool.  She loved swimming in the pool!

She wasn't crazy about the float because mommy and daddy weren't holding her but she was brave!

Time out for a little lunch!

Millie absolutely loves the water!  She would kick her legs so fast and splash water into her face and then laugh.  It was so precious to watch.   We had the greatest time watching her laugh and just have so much fun being with her mommy and daddy for three whole days uninterrupted.  I'm not sure if this was a birthday gift for Trevor or for me!  This family time was so special and so memorable that I think we may make this an annual trip for Trevor's birthday.  What a great memory!

Little Moments

At Kelsey's Texas State graduation lunch

I had the most beautiful moment with Millie on Saturday.  We had been to my cousin's graduation lunch at Adobe Verde in Gruene and had a great time and Millie was on her best behavior and being so sweet.  But in my mind I knew she was exhausted since the lunch took place during her naptime.  When we left the lunch (two hours after Millie should have gone down) and went home to take a nap, I fixed a bottle (I'm no longer nursing...different story for a different post) and we sat in her glider in the dark and had our wind-down time.  After her bottle she so sweetly put her head on my shoulder and was so still (this barely ever happens anymore) and I just held her for the longest time.  It was pure bliss and I started tearing up and I thanked God for that special moment; for this most amazing gift of having a daughter.  I wanted time to stand still.  I made sure that I took that moment and stored it in my memory.

It's those little moments that I am so thankful for.  I'm thankful for her big grin that perfectly shows off her two little bottom teeth, the way she babbles to herself in her crib like she's having a conversation with God, I'm even thankful for her poop face (I know, but it's so cute!).  Being a mother brings so many new feelings and emotions that I never had before.  It's amazing how much love you can have for something so small.  I thank God everyday for my precious gift and for the ability to be here for her every smile, cry, laugh and all the little moments.  Here's to all of life's "little moments."

My first Mother's Day

Motherhood.  What a strong word.  I never in my life could have predicted what it would be like to be a mother until I actually became one.  While it is definitely the hardest job in the world, it's also the most rewarding.  The smiles I get from my precious daughter on a daily basis makes my heart leap for joy and can bring me to tears (in a happy way of course) all at the same time. 

On top of being the hardest job, motherhood is also the scariest.  I mean, mothers (along with fathers) are entirely responsible for making sure our children are being brought up in the best possible ways to ensure their physical, emotional, and spiritual growth that will shape them into the people God meant them to be.  And of course we all want our children to grow up and be successful whether you define success as a monetary/career thing or an internal happiness thing.  Or both.  Their lives are being molded by our every word, move, action and non-action.  That's a scary thing!  How could God trust me enough to raise such a precious gift?  I am not worthy of such things.  I am not, nor do I claim to be, the perfect Christian.  But I do, however, know that I want to raise my children in Christ's love and also by example.  Even though this is a tough, scary job, I am going to do my absolute best to give my daughter the best life possible. 

Enough about the hard, scary part of motherhood.  Most importantly motherhood is SUCH a blessing!  God loves me and trusts me enough to put a human life in my hands to take care of, love and guide through her life.  WOW!  How awesome is that?  After eight months of being a mom, I  can say whole-heartidly that I have never been happier, more full of joy, and more thankful for my many blessings than I am now.  Millie is a pure reflection of my love for my husband and my Lord. 

That being said, I got to share in a GREAT day yesterday with my two favorite people; I got to spend my first Mother's day with my daughter and my husband.  And it was a perfect day!

We went to Landa Park (on the hottest day of the year thus far) and we braved the paddle boat...

We went out on the river for all of five minutes and then Millie decided she had ENOUGH!  But it was a great five minutes.  After the paddle boat we walked over to the other side of the river and fed the ducks.  Millie loves the ducks. 

Trevor and Millie relaxing by the river watching the ducks.

I got a card from Millie, one from Trevor, and one from Ellie and Max.  The dogs were so sweet to get me a card! I also got some beautiful pink roses and a brand new chopping knife that I needed BADLY!  Cooking without a sharp knife makes it very difficult!  And to my surprise, Trevor also got me a pink sapphire necklace (sapphire is Millie's birthstone).  I was very surprised and very touched. 

The rest of the day was very low key.  We just stayed at home and enjoyed each other.  I love any time that all three of us can spend together.  Even if we are doing nothing at home.

I had the greatest first Mother's Day and I am so happy.  Now we have to shift our focus to...

FATHER'S DAY! 

Get ready Trevor, Millie's got an exciting day planned...

8 Months Old!

At eight months old, Millie:

• is starting to say her consonants (babababa)  and we are working on Mama!
• is rolling all over the place but still shows no interest in crawling.
• loves Peek a Boo.
• is FINALLY sleeping through the night!
• Has extreme seperation anxiety.  She will not let me put her down without screaming.  The is a new thing.  It's been happening for about a week and I'm ready for this stage to be over.  However, I realize that there will come a day when I wish she would want to be with me all the time so I am trying to see the light at the end of the tunnel...
• likes toys that she can open and close (instead of hitting the buttons on her Learning Laptop, she likes to open and close the screen.  Love it.)
• sometimes will wave at people.  She's slowly starting to get it.
• still has only two teeth.
• puts everything in her mouth.

Uncle Dan

I don't really know how to properly begin this post so I guess I'll just write as things come.  I found out yesterday morning that my Great Uncle Dan passed away in the middle of the night.  He had esophageal cancer (among others) and after fighting for three years, lost his battle.  He was such a wonderful man who loved his family more than anything in the world.  Many of my childhood memories involve my Uncle Dan.  Especially Christmas time.  We are all going to miss him so much.  My sister, Millie and I are heading to Houston tomorrow for his funeral.  Thank you everyone for your prayers and kind words.  We are so blessed to have you all in our lives.

Ecclesiastes 3:1- 

For everything there is a season,
      a time for every activity under heaven.
 A time to be born and a time to die.
      A time to plant and a time to harvest.
 A time to kill and a time to heal.
      A time to tear down and a time to build up.
 A time to cry and a time to laugh.
      A time to grieve and a time to dance.
 A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones.
      A time to embrace and a time to turn away.
 A time to search and a time to quit searching.
      A time to keep and a time to throw away.
 A time to tear and a time to mend.
      A time to be quiet and a time to speak.
 A time to love and a time to hate.
      A time for war and a time for peace.

Daniel Layne Craig, After a wonderful life and a heroic three-year fight against esophageal and kidney cancer, Daniel Layne Craig, 65, passed away Monday, May 2, 2011 with his loving wife Barbara Craig at his side. Dan was born March 2, 1946 in the Panhandle Texas town of Lark to the late E.S. "Buddy" and Lona Craig. Survivors include his wife, Barbara Craig; big brother Bob Craig and wife, Carole; his daughter Cristl Craig Hogg and husband Chad; and his son, Jason Allen Craig and wife Berenice. He is also survived by his loving stepchildren, Shane Henry, Chris Colvert, and Merideth Geisselbrecht and husband Brandon. "Dano" will also be greatly missed by his numerous grandchildren including Michaela, Alex, Tucker, Walker, Jack, Kathryn, Emma and Chris.
After earning the nickname "The Golden God of Groom" through his many high school accolades and academic achievements including multiple letters in Varsity sports, achieving many show awards in livestock, being named his high school valedictorian, and achieving an uncannily high SAT score, Dan left the small farming community of Groom to attend Texas Tech University for one year followed shortly by The University of Texas at Austin where he graduated with the designation of summa cum laude. From there he took his big brothers advice and continued his education at the Harvard Business School where he earned his MBA.
As the small town boy was enjoying a new career in finance at Texas Commerce Bank in Houston, the mother of his children, Laura tragically fell victim to breast cancer. Although a struggle, Dan refused to quit. He remarried his wonderful present wife Barbara together with her loving children. The house was a full and fun one, a new family, six children living under one roof. Throughout the following years Dan continued to enjoy an exciting career working with such companies as McKinsey & Co. and A.T. Kearney, traveling the world as Director of Business Administration. Finally, Dan settled down to give back to the community by pursuing one of his passions as he taught mathematics to high school students in the Spring Branch School District.
Dan was also preceded in death by his sister Dede Rea and her husband Jim and stepdaughter Cheryl Henry. Dan will be dearly missed by his wife, children, brother, grandchildren and many other family and friends. A Memorial Service celebrating Dan's life will take place beginning with a welcoming at 5:30pm followed by service at 6:30pm on Thursday, May 5, 2011, at the Memorial Oaks Funeral Home Chapel, 13001 Katy Freeway, Houston, Texas 77079. Pastor Mikelson will officiate. In lieu of flowers, donations made to American Cancer Society for Esophageal or Kidney Cancer would be greatly appreciated.
 I love you Uncle Dan!