Wednesday, September 30, 2015

ThrEE YeaRs oLD!!!


Happy Birthday Kaden and Katherine! We love you so very much and are so proud of the young man and young lady you are becoming.  Watching you grow and learn is more amazing than we ever thought possible.


Our sweet Kaden,
We are so proud of the little boy you are becoming.  You are so full of energy and life. Everything you say is with enthusiasm and excitement. You are also so incredibly kind-hearted.  Your tender heart is such a blessing to our family.  Your compliments are so heartfelt and you hand them out very generously.  Just the other day, you grabbed my cheeks, gave me a kiss, and said, "Mama you're so pretty." Melts.my.heart. If you have a nightmare and end up in bed with us, you want to kiss us all over and make sure we aren't scared and then pat our heads or our backs to help us fall asleep.   "You happy Mama?" is something you say with just the sweetest little voice. Your vocabulary has really expanded in the last six months.  Over the summer, you went from saying a few words at a time to talking in paragraphs.  You LOOOVE to ask why. And you LOVE to ask how things work.  You love counting to 20, although a few of the numbers at the end are a bit tricky. You are also very intrigued by letters and their sounds.  You've known most of them for a while and you get so excited when you see them in your environment. You can be a pretty serious little guy, wanting everybody to follow the rules and wanting to help clean up wherever you are. We pray that someday you use these gifts to serve others with your hard work and diligence. There is not a day that goes by that we don't thank God for the opportunity to raise you.  You are our favorite little boy in all the world.

Love,
Mama and Daddy


Sweet Katherine,
Your smile is contagious, and your eyes are truly the pathway to your soul. You LOVE life and want to experience every part of everything.  You are the perfect combination of fearless and intuitive. You are brave and strong, and always obedient. You definitely are becoming a little more independent in your friendship with your brother.  You have no problem setting him straight if you don't like what he's doing. For a while, if something or someone was in your way, you would very assertively say MOOP! We almost didn't want to ask you to politely say excuse me because you say it with so much enthusiasm that we can't help but giggle.  We giggle almost as much when you say heli-chocker (helicopter). It's the cutest thing ever.  You love people. You are so excited to meet new people and you will hand out hugs and kisses to anyone!  You are very sensitive and you care greatly how people are feeling. You are also very independent.  You enjoy picking out your outfits and do a very good job and you would probably cook dinner by yourself and run errands if we let you.:) You are very insightful. We can almost see your brain at work when you are concentrating on something.  You love to learn. Letters and Sounds are something that you love to work on.  It is so wonderful to see your mind make connections in your environment.  You are such a smart little girl!  Katherine, we feel like we are among the most blessed to be your parents and we pray that you grow daily in your love for your friends, family, and the Lord. We are so proud of you- you are beautiful on the inside and out.

Love,
Mama and Daddy





Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Wrapping up Summer

At the beginning of July, we decided to ditch the diapers and enter the big kid world.  And I have to say...other than our washing machine breaking on day TWO and being out of service for TEN days...it really went really well.  They were both ready and and did so great. To kick off our 4th of July weekend ( I wanted to do it when Daddy was going to be home for a few days:), we bought brand new undies.  Awesome, right?  Kaden was walking around Target and if anybody dared to get within ten feet of him, he would yell, "NO take my PANTIES!" This is serious business, ya'll.  
On the 4th, our sweet friends Sloane, Kinsley, and Hudson invited us to see the 4th Parade in McKinney Square. We didn't want to miss out on any of the 4th of July celebrations, so we brought our travel potties with us to the McKinney parade...
And the Frisco firework show that night...
It's just great to have a helpful sister...:)

As the month continued, we had lots of fun moments of snuggling with Daddy...
Chatting with sweet friends at a birthday party...
Snuggling with our sweet baby sitter Brooke one last time before she left for college...
And trying on our flower girl dress for Abby and Kyle's wedding...

Riding our tricycle from Gramps...
Snuggling with Aunt Kathe when she was in town for Abby and Kyle's shower...

And some super sweet kisses from Grandma Helen...


We were blessed with lots of Love from Kyle, Kally and Abby..
Trying on helmets for mama's triathlon...
Cartoon snuggling with mama all morning long...
Climbing ladders in the nude...:)
Playing with friends at My Gym Summer Camp...
And Mama and Daughter brunch at Mattito's...
Hosting baby showers for our sweet Hadley and Brittany...
Dressing up for a Date night with some sweet friends...
Late Night grocery shopping with Mama...
Summer was officially over when they started preschool.  Kaden and Katherine started a 2-day program at St. Philip's Episcopal school and love it so much!  Their teachers Ms. Carol Ann and Ms. Stacy are wonderful!



And then Papa and Grandma came to visit... and life got really good...


We enjoyed a fun birthday breakfast with Papa and Grandma at the Black Walnut Cafe.


And dinner at Pizzeria Testeria...

And more cake and singing at home for dessert...








On the day after their 3rd birthday, Mama decided to do her first triathlon.


I had the best cheerleaders ever!
So thankful for my tri-buddies Danielle and Ann Marie!













Before Papa and Grandma left, we had just one small project to finish...
I painted the table that we used growing up and my dad helped me recover the chairs. Such a fun memory and I love that our kids will eat at the same table that I did growing up.
Isn't this the cutest picture ever from Bible class? GOD made our listening ears...
And then more birthday...this time at school. Kaden and Katherine each were able to present a book to their school in honor of their birthday. 

And this picture just melts my heart..."Check out my LEGOs Ellie..."

And then they had their THREE YEAR OLD  check up. How in the world did that happen???


Katherine:
Weight: 30 lbs. 8 oz.  (60%) 
Height: 36.5 inches (41%)


Kaden:
Weight: 33 lbs.6 oz. (78% )
Height: 37.5 inches (52% ) 

We are so blessed by their progress and how well they are growing!!!

The next weekend, we had family pictures, and Katherine was our family photographer for the next several days. Minnie Mouse cameras are the best!

And then, at the last minute, Mama decided to do one more triathlon- an Olympic, this time. 


The water was disgusting, but it was fun to try something new!

We've spent lots of mornings outside as the weather has started getting cooler.  Dunkin' Donuts is a favorite...

And then we wrapped up September with a sweet moment in chapel at preschool.  Love these two and love how they love each other!