The Williamson's World

Chatty Catherine

2012-01-25T10:30:00.000-06:00

I always want to remember what the girls' voices sound like when they are little. I decided it was time for another edition of "Chatting with Catherine". Enjoy!

(Notice she calls her ABC's, "ABCD's!)

Birthdays and Beads

2012-01-23T11:20:00.000-06:00

This weekend was one of those relaxing fun weekends for us. Friday night, we did nothing...I am talking NOTHING!

Saturday morning, Emma had dance camp at Har-Ber. She is performing with the Silver Stars on Friday! I cannot wait!

After that, the girls and I met Kim, Tara, Rachel and her girls for lunch at the Market Place. It's always fun when we get to do lunch/dinner with those girls.

Saturday night, Travis and I had Mandy's birthday party at Crabbys to attend. So, Lisa came and kept the girls.

Before dinner, we went to the Herman's to hang out and, of course, take pictures!

Dinner was a blast and I am not sure I have laughed so hard in long time. I just love our group of friends and how much fun we have together.

Sunday, we went to church and came home for naps. Travis and Emma went to the batting cages. So, I decided the little girls and I would make some bead bracelets. It was a test of my patience, but I think they turned out pretty good! :)

Happy Monday!

Self Motivated

2012-01-20T07:43:00.000-06:00

I have ALWAYS worked in an office. Since Hannah was born, I have had the perk to work at home if I've needed to, i.e. when the kids are sick, when I'm sick, when the weather is bad, etc. It's a very nice perk.

Despite that, I've always been envious of the mom's that get to work from home. I've thought, "Man! I would LOVE to be able to sit in my living room and work. It would be so nice not to have to get up and drive to the office every morning. I could pick the girls up early. Gosh, I want a job like that."

Since I got back from my two weeks off for the holidays, I have been working from home. Our company is having us move offices and things haven't been ready yet. When I first heard that I was going to be working from home, I was ecstatic!

Week 1: I was super productive. I got tons of work done AND had all my household chores done before the weekend came. It was wonderful. I mean...the Friday of Week 1, I kind of slacked off. But, nothing I didn't do occasionally in the office.

Week 2: I was much less productive at work. I did what HAD to be done and let some of my proactive stuff fall by the wayside. I still had the house all clean and a wonderful dinner on the table by 5pm every night. Good stuff, people. But, I was glad to go out of town for the weekend. I was getting slight cabin fever from being home so much.

Week 3: It's been a disaster. I've gotten all my weekly MUST do's done at work. The house is a wreck. I am so tired of being here, the last thing I want to do is clean up. And dinner...HA! We've eaten out almost every night this week.

Needless to say, this working from home is not for me. When Travis gets home, I follow him around like a lost puppy just chatting his ear off because I am DESPERATE for some adult interaction. I feel like I am out of my routine and let's face it...I'm a routine kinda girl. I just struggle to get motivated to get stuff done. I am praying we get back in an office soon so I can get our family back into our routine. I'm just a better wife and mommy when I go to the office every day. (Don't judge!)

Guess I better take that "self starter" claim off my resume! Happy Friday!

Weekend in DeQueen

2012-01-18T09:28:00.001-06:00

This weekend, we packed up and headed to DeQueen to visit with Travis's Mimi and do some things around her farm. (Sorry for the lack of pics. I barely got my camera out this weekend.)

When we got there Friday night, Travis and Eric were planning on cutting a huge dead tree down on Saturday with the help on Uncle Troy. Come to find out, they had failed to mention their plan to Troy and he was going to be out of town. After a little discussion, they decided that before he left town, they should cut down the tree. So, at 9pm Friday night, with chain saws reeving, the girls, Kamryn (Eric's girlfriend who we absolutely LOVE!) and I sat in a warm car and watch the debacle go down. Eric with a flash light clipped on his hat. Travis running a chain saw. Troy trying to yell over the saw to tell them what to do next. It was all hilarious.

The funniest part of it all was they had been telling us how dead the tree was and it could fall at any moment. I expected the tree to fall just a couple of minutes after they started cutting. Ten minutes passed. Fifteen. Nothing. Finally about 25-30 minutes into this, the tree came crashing down. We cheered and the boys were so proud. (Why is it that boys enjoy destruction so much!?)

Saturday morning, we got up ate an amazing home cooked breakfast with Mimi and went to work. Travis and Eric cut the tree up and moved it out of the pasture. The rest of us raked leaves and picked up sticks. By lunch, we were done.

The rest of the afternoon, we napped, rode horses, worked on Eric and Travis's dog pens (DON'T ASK!) and visited with family.

Sunday morning, we got up and went to Travis's lease to get the rest of his gear out of the woods. The girls and I enjoyed the little trip. I agree with what Rachel said this week. As wives, we have to remember that our husbands have hobbies too and we need to participate when they invite us.

In all actuality, Travis's deer lease is a beautiful place. The scenery is breath taking. Not to mention we saw 21 deer as we were riding around up there. (The girls kept count.) It was a great ending to fun weekend.

It's just like riding a bike

2012-01-11T13:21:00.002-06:00

We love to play outside. How fortunate we have been to be able to play outside well into January this year! The girls FAVORITE thing is riding their bikes and going for a walk around our neighborhood.

All this time we have been doing that, Emma has continued to ride a bike with training wheels (GASP!). The girl had ZERO desire to ride a "big" bike and it was one battle that Travis and I were just not going to fight with her.

For Christmas, Honey and Daddy Brooks got all of the girls new bikes. They went out on a limb and got Emma one with no training wheels. She was so excited about it and actually WILLING to learn to ride.

(Funny story: My dad got Emma and Hannah helmets for their bikes. Mom told him Catherine was going to be mad when she saw she didn't have one. When the girls got their bikes, the first thing Catherine said: "UH!? Where my hat??")

One evening, when we got home from work, the girls were DYING to go for a walk and ride their bikes. So, Travis and Emma set out on a mission to teach Ems to ride without training wheels. At first, it was a little rocky. (Emma has her mother's athletic ability and clumsiness) But, on about the 10th try, Emma got it. She found her balance and took off!

(Sorry for the picture quality. I had my camera on a crazy setting and didn't realize until it was too late)

While they were doing that, Hannah and Catherine were just riding around in the road cheering Emma on. We were all so proud of her and she was OVER THE MOON!

Next task, get Catherine to use her pedals...she just pushes herself with her feet (which makes for a LONG SLOW walk around the neighborhood)

Ringing in 2012

2012-01-02T20:09:00.000-06:00

Every year before NYE, I go back and forth on trying to find a sitter, so Travis and I can go out without the girl, just staying home or going out WITH the kids.

Having a best friend that has three kids and a big fun family always makes that decision easier for us. :)

Just like last year, we rang in the new year as a family of five with some of our favorites: The Brown's, The Gibson's and The Herman's.

We did it up "Tara style" this year. She got two rooms at the Embassy. One for the adults and one for the kids. We got all dressed up and headed there before dinner for appetizers and pictures.

We headed to a late dinner at Copeland's. Owen was so exhausted by the time we got there that he needed a little power nap. After about 20 minutes, he was up and ready to go again!

After dinner, we went back to the hotel and got into our comfy PJs to ring in the new year.

We had a GREAT start to 2012 and cannot wait to see what is in store for our family this year! HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Merry Christmas 2011

2011-12-27T13:33:00.000-06:00

We had an absolutely WONDERFUL Christmas this year. We started the festivities off on Christmas Eve. Travis's mom came over midday. We made yummies, cookies and chocolate covered pretzels. While the girls took a nap, Travis and I ran an errand to pick up a VERY special Christmas present for the girls. :)

After we got home, we all got ready for church. I just LOVE church on Christmas. The carols in candle light...ahh! LOVE THEM!

After church, we ate brisket, baked potatoes and corn on the cob. Finally, it was time to open some goodies that Grammy brought us and give her her gifts.

After Grammy left, the girls got on their PJs, put out cookies for Santa and we put them in bed. Santa put the gifts out and Travis and I exchanged gifts. Can I just say, the boy did good this year!? He got me a Judith March dress and this GORGEOUS Michael Kors watch. I was shocked...and over the moon...and so undeserving. I love our little tradition of exchanging after the girls were in bed. It's so fun!

Christmas morning, we had to set an alarm to beat the girls to the living room. So, we got up at 5:30 am. Travis woke the girls up and brought them out to the living room.

After the excitement set in (which I obviously didn't capture on video) the girls opened the rest of their gifts from Santa and decided on a name for that little guy: Gus. :)

We ate breakfast, ~~put together~~ played with toys, watched a movie and packed for Honey's. Catherine won the prize for the first Christmas meltdown of 2011. She won: A NAP!

About noon, we headed to Hot Springs. We were spoiled again down there and had a yummy dinner of steaks. My mom always gets poppers for everyone to open after dinner. Everyone gets a trinket, some jokes and a crown. :) Nice family pic!

We had such a wonderful Christmas and are so blessed to get to spend so much time with our family. Hope you all had a very Merry Christmas!

MERRY CHRISTMAS

2011-12-25T09:21:00.000-06:00

Wishing you all

A very Merry Christmas!

Hoping everyone remembers

the true Reason for the season

and enjoys every moment

with your family and friends.

Love,

The Williamsons

Giving

2011-12-23T21:40:00.000-06:00

My kids are beyond spoiled. I'll be the first one to admit that. They couldn't even think of anything (other than a puppy) to ask Santa to bring for Christmas.

(This is not a news flash to anyone who has been reading this blog for very long at all)

Travis and I are OK with our kids being a little spoiled. They are only kids once and most of the time, they are very well behaved. (I said MOST of the time!)

But, one of our biggest fears is they will feel entitled and expect things and vacations without an ounce of appreciation. It is SO hard to figure out how to ensure they do not grow up in this world of instant gratification expecting THINGS to make them happy.

We are diligent about picking an angel off the angel tree each year. We explain to them that there are kids who will not receive a thing for Christmas. (Which is often hard to tip-toe around the "Why doesn't Santa bring them anything?" questions. Because, yes, our kids believe in Santa and the magic of Christmas.)

But, it's not only this time of year that we ~~beat this into their heads~~ talk about this. When they don't want to eat, we try to explain to them that there are kids that do not get to eat dinner because their parents cannot afford it. When they are complaining over what clothes they are wearing, we tell them that there are kids who have one shirt, one pair of jeans and one pair of shoes that they wear every day.

We explain to them that Travis and I work hard every day to provide our family with the stuff we have. And, more than that, we explain to them that it's not about the STUFF. Life is more than STUFF.

Still Travis and I live with the fear that we will have three unappreciative, self-entitled girls on our hands. I am sure this comes with parenting, but we question "Are we doing this right? Should we do something differently?"
Then, something happens to make us realize we ARE getting it right. All the talks about how fortunate we are finally sink in. It's little things that makes me realize they aren't going to concede to this self-serving world we live in.

Like, when I took Hannah to buy a book for Catherine and Emma for Christmas and she was so excited to pick them out that she didn't even ask for a single book for herself. Or, when Emma is so excited to give Travis his gift that she asks him every night if he wants just ONE early present. Or, when Catherine shares. (Hey...she's two...that's huge!)

These small victories might seem like nothing to you. But, to us, they are confirmation that we are doing something right. When Travis and I talk about these things, we realize that we are raising three happy, healthy, giving and faithful little girls. And that is the best gift we can give them.

Christmas Parties Galore

2011-12-22T14:09:00.001-06:00

This week has been a week full of Christmas parties!

Monday, Emma had her Christmas party at school. I went to help and enjoy the fun with Emma and her friends. They ate pizza, decorated cookies and made two scarves. One scarf was for them and the other was for the school to deliver to the homeless shelter. (I loved this idea! Travis and I are trying constantly to help our kids understand how fortunate they are and instill the excitement of giving in their sweet little hearts.)

Tuesday, Hannah had her Christmas party. I, again, went to help and listen to all the funny things that a classroom full of 4 year olds has to say. They ate a bunch of goodies and did an ornament exchange.

Wednesday, we met our friends for lunch and did a little gift exchange with them. The girls had so much fun giving the Brown kids their presents and getting the CUTEST water bottle from their friends. I got a fabulous new clutch from Tara, a gorgeous scarf from Kim and the most amazing vintage best friends necklace from Rachel.

Catherine's party was today, but I am off work and kept the girls home with me. I asked her if she was sad to miss her party at school. She, of course, would much rather be home with Mommy. :)

To say we are enjoying every second of the Christmas season would be an understatement. We are having so much fun and relishing every moment with the girls.

Birthday, Baking and Santa

2011-12-20T12:46:00.000-06:00

This weekend was a blast! Friday night, my parents were up here and wanted to do dinner. But, it was Nicole's birthday dinner, so mom and I went to celebrate with her. We left the girls with Daddy Brooks. They had a blast playing Uno! and watching movies.

Mom and I had so much fun with all my friends celebrating the fabulous Nicole Caire!

Saturday, Travis was hunting. So, the girls and I decided to do a little early Christmas baking (we typically do this on Christmas Eve). We made the usual goodies.

While we were busy in the kitchen, Travis got home. He was proud to show us the deer he killed and had European mounted. Hannah, Catherine and I avoided it like the plague. Emma, well...yeah...

Sunday, after church, we took the girls to visit Santa. I was pleasantly surprised with how well it went this year. The line was a little long, but no one cried or spouted off an unexpected request this year. And, that made me happy!

We had a great weekend and are busy this week with Christmas parties galore! FIVE MORE DAYS!

Wearing Me Out

2011-12-16T11:21:00.000-06:00

There is a certain two-year old in our house that is completely wearing me out these days. She is at that stage where she is pushing things to the limit JUST to see how far she can get.

But, in the midst of all this, she is HILARIOUS! It's hard to discipline her because she is so darn funny. Here are a few examples:

Her favorite food is still a "dog dog" (hot dog). She asks for one EVERY night for dinner. When I say no, she says "Aww Man! I neber neber NEBER get dog dog for dinner!".

Hannah got sick the other night and threw up on a stuffed dog. Catherine walked by before I had cleaned it up. She looked at the dog, looked at Hannah and said "Hannah Book! That not nice!"

She still sucks her thumb. I try to tell her not to and that's what babies do. She looks at me and says "I not a baby! I big gurl! I pee-pee in the potty!"

One day at school, she had an accident and pooped a little in her pants. Her teacher was telling me about it when I picked her up. Catherine interrupted her teacher and said "No I not poop in my pants!" I said, "Why are you panties dirty then?" Her response, "Um...Um...Um...EMMA POOP IN MY PANTS!"

Oh Catherine Grace, I love you!

Christmas Decorations

2011-12-14T12:14:00.000-06:00

Welcome to our home freshly decorated for Christmas!

When you walk in the door, my favorite thing of all our decorations is sitting in the entry way. I LOVE this Nativity Scene. Also, on this table, is our Christmas card holder.

In the dining room, we have our big window decorated so you can see our Christmas spirit as you drive by.

The living room is SO cozy with our Christmas decorations up and a warm fire in the fireplace.

The girls have their Christmas trees up in their room.

As you can see, we are MORE than ready for Christmas!

Redneck Vegas

2011-12-13T09:10:00.000-06:00

This past weekend lots of our friends jetted off to fabulous locations. Rachel and her crew went to Philly. Tara was glaming it up in Vegas. So...we decided we needed to take a little trip out of town. We headed to where else, BRANSON!

Saturday morning, we loaded up and drove to Branson. Our first stop was Bass Pro Shop. I am not sure why we decided to go there (maybe because I needed to sneak away and purchase a few things for the hunter in our lives), but the place was SWAMPED! I have seen in busy, but never like this. It was nuts. We had fun looking around and forcing Catherine to put dead animals on her head. :)

We had lunch at Landry's. It was good, but the girls were SO restless for our next stop...SILVER DOLLAR CITY, BABY! They have a huge lights display, parade and Christmas train ride. It was worth enduring the cold weather. We had a blast!

Whoops...It's gonna be random!

2011-12-09T10:52:00.001-06:00

How is it possible that it's the 9th day of December and I haven't blogged yet this month!? Oopsie! :)

So, to celebrate my first December post, let's do it up, Random Boni Style, shall we?

A few days ago, we had our first snow of the year. It caught me COMPLETELY off guard and I realized I was NOT prepared for this yet. The girls were excited until we told them they had to go to school. (A pic from my office window)

Catherine is doing GREAT on her potty training. She wears panties all day every day and rarely has an accident. She's still sleeping in a pull up. I think it's because I am lazy and don't want to get up a deal with it if she pees in her bed.

I am finishing up all my Christmas shopping for the year. I did TONS online and that made it SO much easier.

We had family pictures last weekend. IT.WAS.FREEZING! The girls hung in there and Faith Ames is just amazing. Here is a sneak peek!

Have you ever noticed how when wet Cheerios dry, they are like concrete? I am considering marketing these as a high powered Spackle.

I was kind of "Grinching" the past week or so as Christmas gets closer. I'm not sure what my deal was, but I was just dreading doing all of the Christmas things we usually do leading up to Christmas. But, I toughened up and got the Christmas trees up and decorated. Here is a picture of the living room tree (before the mantel and other decor was done). I am totally out of my funk...I mean, how can THIS not snap you back? (More pics to come of all the gorgeous decor!)

We have lots of fun things coming up over the next few weeks. This weekend, we are going to Branson to see the lights and visit Santa. (I'll be a better blogger too!)

HAPPY FRIDAY!

Thanksmas 2011

2011-11-30T13:37:00.001-06:00

What a wonderful, family-filled Thanksgiving we had this year!?

Wednesday, the girls and I headed to Hot Springs to visit my parents. Travis was already down south deer hunting and we were meeting him later the week.

The girls (and my parents) favorite place to eat is KJs. They go there AT LEAST once a week. So, of course, we ate there Wednesday night. Catherine helped set up tables and even got to go into the kitchen to check things out.

Thursday morning, we got up and headed to DeQueen to have Thanksgiving lunch with Travis's Mimi. It's always so fun to go visit, fill our tummies and visit all the animals on the farm. Catherine was especially in love with Eric (Travis's cousin). Emma wanted to ride the horse home and Hannah wanted no part in being inside the pasture gates.

Thursday night, we went back to Hot Springs for Thanksgiving dinner with my parents. It was so good! We also celebrated my mom's birthday. We tried to surprise her, but I am not sure we succeeded. We also played a super fun dice game called "Left Right Center". Hannah was the big winner!

Friday, we went out to Mt. Harbor for Burton Family Thanksmas (Thanksgiving/Christmas). We watched the hogs game, ate and played LRC. Saturday was much of this same, but we threw in dirty Santa. As usual, it was a good time with everyone!

Sunday, we headed home. But, not before we picked up Jack from T's mom's. We are dog sitting him for a few days. Three little girls were SO glad to see him! :)

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving!

Random Thoughts

2011-11-18T17:28:00.000-06:00

So, I wish I could say I have been so busy and have TONS of awesome pictures to blog this week (and last week). However, the first part is true...we have been crazy busy. The second part...not so much. So, you are going to get a random post of my random thoughts with a few pics here and there. :)

A couple of weekends ago, Travis and I went on a date. A real, live date without kids. It was amazing! We went to dinner and considered a movie. But, opted for a stroll around the promenade and home early.

I am so tired of deer season. I mean REALLY sick of it. I miss my husband being home. I miss camo-free laundry.

Every morning, Catherine wakes up and her hair looks like this. I have NO idea what happens, but it's ridiculous!

Speaking of Catherine, she is FINALLY in panties (except for nap and bedtime). It's been a rough process, but I think she is over the hump. So....good-bye diapers, hello public restrooms.

I bought these super cute new shoes a RiffRaff a long time ago. My mom picked them up for me since getting to Fayetteville seems to be impossible these days.

Emma is a wonderful speller, but math...not her thing. I can't understand that.

There is a cut-thru road on the way to my parents called "Sunshine". Hannah always calls it "Completely Sunny".

My laundry is out of control...

The more and more that I hear about the Penn State scandal, the more disgusted I get with the entire situation, from lack of action to support of a coach that turned a blind eye. It's all just sickening.

I cannot wait until Thanksgiving! It's the kick off of family time with all the ones I love so much! Pair that with tons of yummy food....I.CAN.NOT.WAIT!

Our house is still for sale...STILL. I try not to get discouraged. I thought that it would happen and we would move around Christmas (just to complicate things). It's not looking promising.

I'll leave you with a picture of my sweet girls...

Happy Friday!

Baby Mozart

2011-11-03T10:35:00.001-05:00

This weekend, Catherine was playing in the dining room. I could hear her banging on the piano and this is what I caught in action....

Maybe she's a modern-day Mozart

The Story of MY 3 Little Pigs

2011-11-01T10:57:00.000-05:00

Once upon a time, there were three little pigs, Catherine, Hannah and Emma.

Each pig set out to build a ~~house~~ princess castle. The first little pig, Catherine was the youngest of the three. She decided to build her castle out of straw wrapped in beautiful pink ribbon.

The second little pig, Hannah, was a little ~~wiser~~ better at color-coordination than her younger sister. She decided to build her castle out of sticks wrapped in pink ribbon. (Everyone knows you can't go wrong with brown and pink!)

Emma, the third and oldest little pig, just laughed at her silly sisters.

Everyone knows all the BEST princess castles were built of bricks and accented with hot pink ~~ribbon~~ silk.

The three pigs were standing around ~~arguing~~ making plans for castle warming parties, when a big, bad wolf snuck up and hid behind the tree.

OH MY! When they saw the wolf, they were frightened!

Not to worry, the wolf was merely their Daddy in disguise. He came to scoop them up and bribe them with lots of candy to live in his castle forever. (Or until they turn 18, go to college and get a J-O-B). They agreed and everyone lived happily ever after.

The End!

Our Weekend, A Rant and Cuteness

2011-10-31T13:23:00.001-05:00

This weekend was by far the most low key weekend we have had in a LONG time. Travis was hunting (shocker!) and the girls and I had no plans.

Friday night, I cooked dinner and we watched the last game of the World Series on TV. I thought I was undecided since I like both the Rangers and the Cardinals, but I found myself cheering for the Rangers when Travis and I were watching the other games.

As the game was about to start, we were talking about who we were cheering for. Hannah said "What do the Rangers outfits look like?" I told her they had on blue hats. She saw them and said "OOOO! Pretty! I choose them to win". (This was a proud moment for me. Not because she chose the Rangers, but because she chose based on "outfit". That's how I pick my bets at the horse races.)

Saturday, Emma had a girls day birthday party to go to. She left about 10 that morning. When she left, Catherine starting crying, "My Emma. Myyyyyyy Emma!". Hannah watched them drive away, looked at me with sad eyes and said "I just really miss Emma already." It is SO sweet how despite the fighting, they love each other SO much! (But, I am not sure Emma was missing these two at her pedicure appointment.)

Hannah, Catherine and I spent the day playing Barbies and Littlest Pet Shop. At one point, I was laying...lying (whatever the correct verb is) on the floor playing with Hannah. Catherine climbed on my back, put her arms around my neck and said "I wub ooo!" MELT.MY.HEART.

We also watched the Razorback game. WARNING: Here is my rant:

I was EXTREMELY disappointed in the behavior of Wade. I understand that it's possible intensity caused him to hit the Vandy player and draw the penalty. I have no doubt things like that are going to happen. I had the biggest issue with his actions AFTER the hit while the Vandy player was still laying on the ground not moving. He chest pounding and cheering was extremely inappropriate. While he is still young (a true freshmen), he represents the U of A and the state of Arkansas. There must come a point where integrity is more important than intensity. I was VERY embarrassed of my team and hate that of all the great plays in the game Saturday, the one that has been on the forefront of the highlights is that hit. I hope that he is suspended from a game or two. But, mostly, I hope he learns his lesson and represents us the way he should in the coming years. Rant over.

(Bet you thought I was going to go off about our poor defense or our slow start. Not today...that goes without saying.)

Emma got back and her friend, Kerinan, Kerinan's mom and little brother hung out and played for a little while. After they left, we had an impromptu dance party in the kitchen. I taught the girls The Sprinkler and The Butterfly. (Unfortunately, this is my blog and there are NO pics of that.)

Sunday morning, we went to church and lunch with the Browns.

Travis got home just as the girls were waking up from a nap. We played outside for a while until Catherine melted into a pile of tears and snot over a basketball. I thought we better take that inside as not to alarm the neighbors.

Travis and the girls carved their pumpkin. Also, "Aunt" Sue gave the girls these SUPER cute (and easy) faces you just poke in the pumpkin. So, while Travis was cutting the jack-o-lantern, the girls created those.

Happy Halloween!

Fall Weekend Perfection and Beyond

2011-10-25T14:34:00.002-05:00

We had a great weekend. The weather was gorgeous and we took advantage of Travis staying home instead of hunting.

Friday night, I went to Rachel's for the Favorite Things Party. She found the idea on pinterest. Each person picked out their "favorite" thing ($6 or under) and brought 5 of them. We did a gift exchange and each person walked away with 5 gifts. It was so fun!

Saturday, the day was beautiful. We managed through the Razorback game without having a heart attack. So, we took the girls to the Pumpkin Patch.

First stop was the corn maze.We let the girls choose the what direction we went at each turn. It was crazy how many times we walked in a circle. Travis and I were cracking up. After about an hour, we thought they FINALLY found the exit, only to realize we were back at the entrance. We called it quits after that.

(Hannah kept asking what happened if we never got out. Travis just told her, "It's a good thing we have all this corn to eat!")

Next we went to the petting zoo to see the goats and sheep. The girls had a ball feeding them. The animals LOVED Catherine. We couldn't figure out why they were all sticking so close to her. Then, I heard, "MOMMY! NO DOAT! OFF MY SHIRT!". A goat was eating the "hay" off of her scarecrow on her shirt. Everyone around us was cracking up.

Once Catherine's scarecrow finished with her hair cut, we got in line for the cow train. While we were waiting, I attempted a couple of pictures of Travis with the girls. This is what I got...

Finally, it was the girls turn. They were SO excited that they got the bouncy carts. After buckling them in, we watched them drive away around the corner. When they came back, they were all smiles!

We tried to walk down to the pumpkin patch, but it was starting to sprinkle, so we hustled back to the car and headed to dinner. We met Travis's mom and Aunt Linda for dinner. It was so good and we enjoyed visiting with them.

Then, we were running some errands and Catherine saw some boots like Emma and Hannah's. She HAD to have them. She wore them home and even kept them on with her PJs. It was hilarious. (And...she has worn them every day since!)

Sunday was a pretty lazy day. We skipped church, (shame on us!), and just spent time at home. The girls and I let Travis have his birthday presents early and enjoyed just playing outside and being lazy!

Monday, I picked Emma up early and we went to the eye doc to pick up her glasses. She was so anxious and was really dreading having to wear glasses. But, she looks ADORABLE! (Now...cross your fingers that she doesn't lose or break them.)

Today is Travis's birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY, TRAVIS!

I love you so much. You are the love of my life and my best friend. I cannot imagine life without you. You have my heart, just like you have since we were in high school. I hope you have a wonderful day! You deserve it.

Last weekend

2011-10-21T13:43:00.001-05:00

So, before this weekend starts, I think it would be a good idea to update everyone on what we did last weekend.

Travis went hunting last weekend (AGAIN), so it was just the girls and I. Friday night, we cooked Fettucini Alfredo and watched "Princess and the Frog". We didn't stay up too late because the girls and I were both worn out from the week before.

Saturday, we got up and cleaned house (I did...the girls watched cartoons). Around lunch time, we went to the park to play and enjoy the nice weather. The girls had a ball. Catherine especially loved swinging.

After playing for a few hours, we headed home to answer the call of our rumbling tummies. :)

Saturday night, the girls stayed with Miss Ashley and played, while I went to Miss Kim's birthday party. Tara decorated and it was GORGEOUS! Such a fun night to celebrate a friend's birthday.

I was kind of a party pooper and headed home before 10pm. The girls were still up, so we cuddled and vegged out to another movie ("Gnomeo and Juliet"). It was a fun night.

Sunday was a pretty typical day. Playing. Napping. Getting ready for the week.

Happy Friday!

Our Random Life

2011-10-14T10:12:00.001-05:00

I have been such a bad blogger this week! We've been SO busy that I can't tell if I'm coming or going. But, there have been lots of blog worthy thoughts floating around in my head...so I thought I would just get them out here.

I was working out of town last week. Travis was in charge of checking Emma's folder for school work, notes, etc. He forgot to turn in her permission slip to be included in the tea party at the Fayetteville Town center. I turned it in a day late only to receive a call from her teacher letting me know that it was too late. I cried. Emma didn't even care. (Only two girls from her class managed to get their slip in on time...just sayin')

Emma has PE every Wednesday and Friday. On the way to school today, she told me that they had to do the "Pacer Challenge" today (i.e. run as many laps as they can, do as many push-ups and sit ups as they can in a certain amount of time). She said today their goal was to beat their score from Wednesday. She did two push ups in two minutes Wednesday. Then she grinned and said "I'm sure I'll beat that score". I am now wondering if she planned to do terrible so she could easily improve today.

I am addicted to two things: reading and pintrest. I spend so much time perusing pinterst at night, it's ridiculous. But, I have SO many ideas for fun wreaths, holiday decor and meals. I read every night before I go to bed. Travis basically has to turn the light off to get me to stop. At each chapter end, I tell myself "one more chapter". It's insane!

Our bank account got hacked this week. It has been a mess and the bank we are currently using has been less than helpful. So, since we are having to close our current accounts (ALL OF THEM SINCE THEY ARE ALL LINKED), we are changing banks. Does anyone know what a pain this is? I have almost every one of our bills set as direct draft PLUS my check is direct deposit. So, getting that straightened out is ridiculous.

Travis is out of town hunting. I know he has fun and I try to be supportive. But, it's tough with him gone. Plus, I kinda miss the guy.

Catherine has really been a toot lately. She doesn't throw that many fits anymore. She just ignores us. I am not talking deliberately disobeys. I mean, she just completely and totally ignores us, i.e. refuses to answer a question and just stares like I am speaking another language. Good times.

I often think about how busy our weeks are around here. Full of work, school and fun. I am going to TRY starting on Sunday to blog daily about what we did for the day. I think it will be interesting (to me) to look back on the daily things that we had going on.

Hannah's school called me last week telling me she was "doubled over in pain because her stomach hurt so bad". I immediately left work to pick her up. I walked in and was greeted by a dimply grinning Hannah. When I got her in the car, she asked me if we were going home because all that was really wrong was "I need to poop and don't like to do it at school". AHH! She came to work with me for the rest of the day and I informed her school that unless she is throwing up and/or running a fever, she's faking.

I love this quote. It's too funny. I have friends to really make me feel this way....and it reminds me I need a house cleaner. BADLY!

Finally, I adore this picture of my sweet ballerina! (More to come on dance next week!)

Happy Friday!

Weekend Recap

2011-10-10T15:18:00.001-05:00

These weekends are starting to all look the same on the blog. But, what can I say...WE LOVE OUR HOGS!

This weekend, Travis and I went to the game with our friends. I thought the girls might be sad that we were leaving them with a baby sitter for the second time in about a month. But, they basically shoved us out of the door when Miss Sabrina got there!

We had such a fun day tailgating and cheering on our Hogs. It was even sweeter when the game ended and we had put the smack down on Auburn!

While Travis and I were cheering the Razorbacks to victory, the girls were having fun playing with Miss Sabrina...and picking up this bad habit:

Cowboys? Really? YUCK!

Sunday, we had plans for church and the pumpkin patch. That all came to a screeching halt when Catherine woke up with a low grade fever and more snot than a used nasal aspirator. We stayed home and cuddled with the sickie.

She's feeling lots better today and we are all ready for our busy week ahead! Happy Monday!

Horse, Marshmellows and Pumpkins...

2011-10-04T10:25:00.000-05:00

AND A BIG RAZORBACK WIN! :)

Saturday while Travis was hunting, the girls and I went to Nicole and Aaron's for some football and lots of fall fun!

Nicole's house looks SO cute and she had the back porch all set up for fall. She had plenty of activities for the kids to do and lots of yummy food for everyone.

After recovering from the anxiety of the Hogs win over A&M, we sat out back and watched the kids play and ride horses. It was SO fun. The kids had a blast and wore the horses out! (Thanks, Aaron, for being so patient with them!)

Later, we decided it would be fun to paint pumpkins with the kids. It was fun...and slightly stressful (remember: I just came out of the closet about my Type A personality). The kids loved it and all of the pumpkins were just AMAZING! (wink! wink!)

After dark, we roasted marshmallows and watched the kids play. It got kind of chilly, so we bundled up in blankets and stayed out on the porch talking, singing and laughing the night away. The kids were playing hide-n-seek all over the yard. It was such a fun day/night!

(We made it home and to bed by 9pm...everyone in my family was worn out from so much fun!)

And...here is my favorite pic of the weekend. Part sugar-high and part loving her mommy equals:

How can you not love Catherine's "CHEESE" face!?