Daddy's Favorite Game

Rylie loves playing with her blankies and Toby quickly volunteered to play with her when he saw how this game worked... 

but maybe he took it a little too seriously??  

HAPPY EASTER

The Easter surprises await the little chicks

After telling Rylie that the Easter bunny was going to leave a surprise for her, she got a bit worried and asked "is the bunny gonna get me?"  I think things turned out ok for her... 

Reagan (who really isn't always in the carseat) hanging at the Cheesecake Factory where we enjoyed an Easter brunch and anniversary celebration.  Since I failed to get a picture of the two girls together (totally lame, I know) you will have to use this to see their coordinating outfits. 

Rylie mysteriously disappeared after she was finished hunting... come to find out she was busting into what had to be her 4th juice box and investigating the treasures that lay waiting inside the eggs.  

The Dessertesses!

Kellie, Sabrina and Heidi

Happy Birthday Stacy!

The MDO Egg Hunt!

Rylie and Miss Cathy (as in "Miss Cathy's school)

Rylie with her carpool buddies, Rayna and Luke LaMar

Our Trip to Sweden

The ladies at IKEA of Round Rock, Texas 

Poteet or Bust!

How could we turn down an invitation to hit up the annual Poteet Strawberry Festival with some of our favorite people?  Toby, Reagan, Rylie and I joined Evan and Jess Jones with their super cute kiddos Rhett and Iris for an evening of fun.  Check out Rylie and Iris as they endure the July-like weather and not surprisingly manage to have a great time together.  

Iris and Rylie rode the carousel all by themselves!  It was fun to see them try to find us as they went around each time and giggled all of the way.

Cheese!

there is always time to take a break for a little snack!

Jammin' with Shamu

We started the season off with a visit to Sea World on Christian family day.  It was powerful to see the Shamu show choreographed to music that worships the great creator.  Pretty inspiring to see Shamu rise straight up out of the water lift the trainer who's arms were raised to God as the music played "and I know that my Redeemer lives".  Here are a few pictures from the evening.  

not quite the double-mint twin but double the cute for sure! :)

This was quite a moment... Rylie actually stood next to Shamu and didn't chicken out just before we could get a picture (as has happened many times before!).  She wasn't as confident when the Easter bunny showed up at school but we'll take what we can get!

...for the where's waldo fans out there, does anyone see Reagan in this shot? 

Hey Nascar fans... Jordan, Preston, Krissy, Brian, Shannon, Holly and Grandpa Shields- this one's for you! 

...anyone else willing to admit they like Nascar (the anti-sport according to Dr. Lees... Dr. T. Lees that is!)

  

The Newest Texan

Today my friends Maggie, Kellie, Karen and I all went to visit our good friend Lauren who welcomed her first baby, Nathan Samuel "Sammy" Salinas, into this world on Sunday morning.  Lauren is such a beautiful person and was nothing short of her amazing self taking the most eventful birth and busy first days of motherhood in stride more gracefully that I could ever imagine.  She and her husband, Nate, are already such awesome parents.  It was such a blessing to get to meet the first of many baby Salinas'! :) God is so good!  Welcome baby Sammy!  

ps. I love that Sammy is the only boy in a recent run of little ladies here in San Antonio!  Reagan, Hannah, Tessa, Lillianna, Norah and Blake will all have to compete for his attention on play dates!!  

Dream Feeders Unite!

So with so many of my friends and family (hi Krissy!) with infants in tow, one of my favorite people, the baby whisperer, is often a subject of conversation.  Typically around the subject of getting our precious little ones to sleep.  One of the key concepts Tracy (yes, I do talk about her as if I really know her- it make me feel better about being totally hooked on her philosophies!) promotes is the dream feed... basically feeding the baby just before you go to bed so he or she will (fingers crossed) sleep longer during your sleeping hours.  

All of that to say, I just had the sweetest dream feed with Reagan.  I often go up to her room around 11pm tired and wishing I could just be heading to bed and come out feeling totally grounded in what is truly most important in life.  Tonight after finishing her bottle, she just snuggled her little head into me and had the sweetest smile on her face.  Her little eyes bounced open a few times and then slowly shut as her smile twitched while she drifted off into dreamland.  

Just wanted to share a moment that represents the sweetness in life amidst all of the craziness.   

Aging Gracefully?

Thanks to the annual AI episode where singers choose a song from their birth year, I am feeling really old!  The oldest - yes, oldest- contestant (and one of my favs) sang an oldie from 1980 and the youngest idoless had to reach all of the way into the archives of 1992!  Seriously?  Am I really that old?  I guess so according to the gang at the Kodak theatre...   

Is a Shellfish Really Selfish?

After a lovely lunch at the Alamo Cafe, Rylie was eager to head out so she started to push me out of the booth (hard to believe, I know).  So in an attempt to build on some character teaching I have been working on with her, I gently and constructively pointed out that she was being "rude and selfish".  

Rylie took immediate offense, folded her arms tightly across her chest and tucked her head into her chest. With intense conviction she said, "I am not a shellfish, I am not. (pause) I do not live in the ocean."  

Toby and I just looked at each other and laughed.  Oh, these are the moments when hanging with a three-year-old is really fun!  I figure we may need to lay off some of the more complex character traits.  Either that or I need to work on my pronunciation.  

...Stacy, can you help a girl out?  

Welcome Spring!

So here are some action shots for you but unfortunately they are in reverse order. Can any of my blogging ladies help me out and let me know how to move the order of the pictures once you have uploaded them??  They don't seem to slide around or cut and paste like I think they should!!