A wonderful Christmas!

This year we had an absolutely amazing Christmas! We always have a fabulous Christmas but this year seemed to be extra magical....for many reasons. Seeing Christmas through the eyes of your children is like nothing else and with this being Karsyn's 1st Christmas it made it extra special. She loved looking at her toys and she esspecially loved ripping up the tiny pieces of paper!

Christmas morning we woke up at our house with just Jeromy, Kara, Karsyn and I. Santa had left lots of presents for the kids and they were extremely happy with what they were given! Karsyn recieved a Crawl and Cruise Musical Jungle and some some small toys in her stocking and Kara and Karlee recieved shirt decorators.

After we had drank some coffee and got dressed we headed over to my Mom and Dad's house to open presents with the rest of the family. We loaded up all of our presents....yes....all of them! We normally have them over to spend the night on Christmas Eve but with the snow we had we decided to just wait until the morning and go there instead.

We had a great time with the family and Holly and John loved helping Karsyn open her presents. I think it is safe to say that Karsyn now has more toys that Toys R Us. :)

After we opened gifts with my family we enjoyed a wonderful breakfast and rushed home to meet Karlee. She spent the morning with her mom this year and came over around 2. Kara had been dying for her to get there all day so that they could finally open their big box. Karlee opened all of her gifts first and then it was time.........

The kids were so excited opening the box! They could hardly contain themselves......

After opening they were shocked to find a tiny box inside.....but still excited to find out their surprise!

They were showing us that the small box wanted to be opened.......the anticipation was growing and they then found a DVD to be played. Which drove them even crazier.......so.....after days of excitment and an afternoon of anticipation the DVD was played.......

It was in that last 15 seconds of the DVD that we finally announced that for Christmas we would be taking a family trip to DISNEY WORLD!!!! This picture shows the exact second the words came out of my mouth.

What this photo doesn't show is that immeadiately after Kara screamed so loud she could have shattered glass....and Karlee cried because she was so very happy. For months we have been planning this vacation. I spent countless hours reading planning books.....deciding and ordering outfits.....making dining reservations......searching for the cheapest airfare and dreaming about the moment that we would finally be able to share the surprise with the girls and I have to say that their reactions made it all worth wild. This would be their first visit to Disney World as well as Jeromy's 1st visit. We were looking forward to leaving!! Now....it was off to pack our bags to leave for the airport just 3 short hours later. :)

As you see......our Christmas was magical for many reasons.

It's a bird...it's a plane...

No....wait....it's the greatest Christmas present 2 little girls could ask for!

Can you imagine having to stare at this box as a little kid? I would have gone crazy! We actually just finally wrapped it and set it out last night so it has only been tantalizing them since then. They are going to LOVE this gift! I couldn't think of a more amazing present then this. Truth be told...I think I may be more excited then they are. :) They haven't opened it yet obviously but when they do they are going to freak out!!! I can't share the secret yet though because Kara and Karlee both read this blog on occasion and I don't want the surprise ruined. But...tomorrow after they open it I will share with all and hopefully have some pictures of their reactions!

I hope you all have a Merry Christmas! I know this year we have so much to be thankful for. I feel so blessed and lucky this year. I am looking forward to seeing how Miss Karsyn acts tomorrow. She is obsessed already with rolling and scooting over to the tree and chewing on the presents. One last picture before I go.....

Doesn't that just look perfect?!? I am so happy with my family and Thank the good Lord for everything that I have. Again, Merry Christmas....enjoy your blessings. :)

6 years ago today...my life changed

Yes...6 years ago today I went on a date with the most handsome man I had ever met....little did I know that one day he would be the man I was married to. We met a few days before Christmas at the mall. I had taken a part time seasonal job at The Children's Place and he was one of those last minute shoppers. I helped him while he was shopping and he asked me out while I was ringing him up. :) I remember when he walked in I was smitten and blushed. I guess you could call it love at first sight.

We went to TGI Friday's for dinner....while not the most romantic choice it was very casual and we had an opportunity to talk and get to know each other. Afterwards we went back to his apartment and watched a movie. I remember being nervous the whole time but I remember how shy he was at first too. He actually asked me if it was okay to sit next to me during the movie....such a gentlemen. :) Now....the first kiss is a major deal when you start dating someone....seriously....you think about it....you make sure you are chewing gum for the freshest breath and then you wonder when it is going to happen. Well....I can actually say that our first kiss was magical! He was...and still is...a great kisser. :) Anyway.....that's the beginning of our story and I can't believe that that was 6 years ago! 6 years ago today....my life changed....and definitely for the better! I love you Jeromy! :)

Here are some pictures from our dating years. Note....I was a lot younger and skinnier then....I hate the old me. :)

This picture is actually only 2 weeks after our first date. I was 18 and Jeromy was 24.

This is at one of the 7 concerts that we went to while we were dating....at The Green Day concert.

This was taken at the State Capitol in Austin.

This was on our way to Sherlocks for St. Patty's Day in 2005.

And check out these 2 cuties! Kara and Karlee were 2 and 3 when we started dating! So sweet!

Family Pictures

Today we had our Christmas pictures made. In the past years I have always thought about doing Christmas pictures but never actually did because I always got busy and side tracked. This year I had been talking about getting pictures done with our whole family since it is Karsyn's first Christmas and I also said I was going to send out Christmas cards. Well....as of last week it seemed as it that wasn't going to happen. I really wanted to do them so I made an appointment in the middle of the week during the day. I pulled Kara and Karlee out of school around noon and Jeromy took a long lunch. They turned out really well and I am happy to say that I will actually get around to sending out Christmas cards this year! WOHOO!! In fact.....as soon as I get done blogging I am going to address and stamp them.....NO EXCUSES! I'm hoping that this will be a trend we can keep up with every year. I always enjoy receiving Christmas cards so I am happy that I will actually get to send them out. :) Here are the 2 family poses that we chose. They are scanned so the quality is grainy but oh well.......

I love the kids in this one! Karsyn's big ole grin just melted my heart so this one was our first pick!
And I love how relaxed yet awesome this one is! I never would have guessed that I would have liked it so much but this one is my favorite of the whole family.

Aren't the girl's outfits ADORABLE?!?!?!? I just love them and we received SO MANY compliments on them. My friend April made them. She is so incredibly talented. It's nice to have friends in talented places. :)

I'm a winner and a loser.....

Seriously! This statement is so true! I will explain.......

I am extremely lucky to have been the winner of the $25 gift certificate from my friend Tina's blog giveaway that she was hosting. I am so excited....the gift certificate to Uniquely Monogrammed. She has some really amazing things but I am going to be good and save it to use on a custom outfit for Karsyn's 1st birthday in May. I seriously never win anything so I was suprised and excited when I found out that I had won. Tina will be hosting several giveaways in the next few months so make sure you check out her blog and watch for them!

And now for the loser part........My name is Lauren and I am a pacifier loser. Seriously.....before Karsyn was born I probably had about 30 pacifiers (no joke!) and today I gathered them all up...from under beds.....in the car.....out of the diaper bag......the nursery......you name.....I looked there. And all that I could find was 10.....yes.....you read that correctly.....10! I don't know how I could lose them so easily. I try to stay fairly organized with them. I always keep 1 in the crib.....1 in the car seat....and 1 in the diaper bag. I try to only use them in their places and if I take them out of their place I make sure they get put back. But somehow I have managed to lose 20 or possibly even more pacifiers in 7 months. I guess I better buy stock in Mam. :)

Well....there you have it.......today I have been both a winner and a loser. :)

Just some quick pics from the patch!

Okay.....so after I posted Halloween pictures I realized that I didn't share any pictures from the Pumpkin Patch. We have been to this pumpkin patch together every year since Jeromy and I started dating. It is in Flower Mound. We usually spend the entire day out there enjoying the hay ride, the bounce houses and other activities but it was so rainy and chilly that we were only there for about 30 minutes. Hopefully next year we can spend more time there!

Halloween in December

Okay......I realize that Halloween was a month and a half ago but I just realized that I didn't post the pictures or share any stories so I wanted to catch up. I'm trying to be a good blogger and stay as current as possible. (Although....with things happening daily I'm not sure I will be able to.) My goal is to take time out of each day to blog.....even if it is just about the little things.....cause after all......isn't it the little things that make life wonderful. :)

This year for Halloween we went to Robert and Tina's house. Every year they have their kids and grandkids over....and since they are my second family we went along this year. Robert and Tina are wonderful people and from the first time I met them when Ashley and I were in college they have always treated us like part of the family. And it is so nice that Kara, Karlee and Karsyn are able to grow up with Maddie, Maycee, Addison and Kennedi. :) And the guys like each other too. :)

So anyway......as I was saying....this year we went to Robert and Tina's. We took the kids trick or treating and then we all hung out, ate some delicious gumbo and had a great time!

Kara, Karsyn and I posin for the camera. :)

Look at this group of cuties....Maycee, Maddie, Kara and Addison

Ashley and I with the babies. :) Aren't they just the sweetest!

Mommy and Karsyn Trick or Treating

Daddy wants his picture taken too!

We had such a great time and next year Kennedi and Karsyn and going to want in on that candy action! It's great friends like this that make life fun!

Hurry....before it's too late!

My friend Tina is hosting a giveaway for a gift certificate to Uniquely Monogrammed. This lady has some amazing items! Today is the last day to enter so check out Tina's blog! Here is the link:
www.itmaybeacrazylifebutitisourlife.blogspot.com

Don't forget.....enter before it's too late!

Proud Mommy

I am always proud of my girls. But today I am extra extra proud of Kara......she was selected as Student of the Month at Lakeview Elementary! She was told today at the beginning of the day and had her picture taken for the newspaper. She kept it a secret all afternoon and finally spilled the beans at dinner. Thursday she will get to do the announcements and is very excited. I don't have any pictures yet to post but I just had to share how proud I am of my wonderful daughter!

A quick Trip with 5 generations

After we checked out of the hotel on the 22nd from Kara's birthday party the girls and I headed home to pack the car. We had decided to make a quick 3 day trip to Houston to visit my family. My Aunt Dana, Uncle Bill and cousin Brayden live in Pearland and my Nanie and Nana were there visiting from Corpus Christi. It really isn't a bad drive....about 4 hours normally......so when Kara gets a holiday week I like to try to make a quick trip there to hang out and visit with them. This was only the 2nd time they met Karsyn....she was 6 weeks old our last trip in July....so they were so happy to see her and see how much she had grown.

The drive Sunday wasn't terrible but there was more traffic than normal and we also had to stop for 45 minutes at Buckee's (which is the GREATEST road stop ever off of 45!) to change Karsyn's diaper, use the restroom and grab a bite to eat.....they also make fresh fudge! It is delicious! So it ended up taking about 5 hours to get there but once we were there we were able to relax and visit with everyone. That evening Dana, Brayden, Nikki (Brayden's girlfriend), Kara, Karsyn and I went to see New Moon. It was a really great movie that we all enjoyed. Karsyn did really well in the movies. I nursed her and then she pretty much slept for the entire thing. Now I am anxiously awaiting for Eclipse in July.

Monday we did a little shopping for the girls at an outdoor town center and the weather was perfect. Sunny, in the 70's with a cool breeze.....perfect for walking around outside. I also found a perfect pair of skinny leg jeans at Ann Taylor Loft that I am really excited about.....I can finally wear all of those boots I bought! :) Monday evening I wasn't feeling very well and felt like I was coming down with a cold so I went to bed fairly early.

Tuesday Dana and I left the kids with Nanie and Nana and headed to an amazing Scrapbook store in Clearlake....By Design Scrapbook Boutique. I scored some awesome things for Karsyn's scrapbook. It is getting so hard in Dallas to find scrapbook supplies so it was nice to find things that I hadn't ever seen. When we got back it was time to load the car and head home. I was feeling terrible and was running a fever but I was afraid if I didn't leave then that I would be too sick the next day to drive. So we headed home for a LONG drive! It took us about 5 1/2-6 hours to get home and I got a ticket on the way back....BOO....for speeding.

One of the things that I find the neatest about my family is that we have 5 generations! My great grandmother is 88 years old! She says the funniest things and keeps everyone on their toes. It is really nice that my children can say that they have a great-great grandmother. Here is a picture of 5 generations. This picture includes: My Nana (1st generation), My Nanie (2nd generation), Aunt Dana (3rd generation), Me (4th generation) and Kara&Karsyn (5th generation). There are a lot of other family members not pictured but this is 5 generations all together.....pretty incredible!

Here is 15 year old cousin Brayden with Kara and Karsyn. Isn't he handsome?!? :)

We had a great time and I am looking forward to seeing them again....hopfully sooner than later!

A Pool Party!!!

This year for Kara's birthday party we decided to have a double birthday celebration with Kara's best friend, Maisie at The Embassy Suites in Frisco. They each invited several friends for swimming and then had 2 friends stay the night. Tara and I planned for weeks so that the party would be perfect. And it was despite a run in with the evening manager when we checked in. Long story short they ended up having to comp us a 2nd room because they were not going to allow us to have additional guests in the pool. Jeromy got everything straightened out and after that things were smooth sailing. The men even discovered that they have complimentary Happy Hour from 5-7 every night! Tara and I think we may have a joint birthday party for ourselves there. :)

The kids swam for 3+ hours and had a blast. They jumped, played Marco Polo, flipped and acted goofy as usual. After we finished swimming we headed up to our room for pizza and fun! My brothers girlfriend, Christa stayed the night and gave the girls pedicures and makeovers. They loved having her there.....and so did we! It was so nice to have a teenager that could keep them occupied. I recommend that for anyone having a slumber party!

In the morning we enjoyed a complimentary breakfast buffet and packed up our stuff. I think one of the greatest parts of not having it at our house was not having to clean up the mess the girls left behind!

Here are some pictures of the party:

BEWARE of being scammed!

Well.....we were scammed! Against my better judgement I purchased airline tickets from an independent airline broker and my instinct was correct. It was a scam! The company's name is Travel Smart Services and this is the link to their website http://www.travelsmartservices.webs.com .

We purchased our tickets over a week ago with promises of receiving flight confirmations with 24-48 hours. I waited patiently and e-mailed a few times for updates always receiving an auto reply response. Well......as of today I received an e-mail stating that my e-mail was undeliverable. LOVELY! I am just wanting to warn everyone else so this does not happen to anyone that I know.

So as of now we are back at square one for a vacation that begins in less than 25 days. Hopefully we will be able to find something fast within our budget. I guess that is what I get for not trusting my instincts!