My 365 Journey

week 2/12

2012-01-24T17:36:00.001-08:00

The second week of the year really flew by before I realized what happened! There has been a lot going on.

I've been trying to keep up with Meli's book-it calendar. It was a little trying getting back into the groove after the holidays.

Found some fun little magnetic Valentine words + phrases at Target and thought the kids would get a kick out of playing with them. I thought they would be a cute little reading activity for Meli, but Riley has also found them fun.

Graham crackers with peanut butter, a staple snack around our home.

We received a letter from Meli's school telling us that she was named a Student-of-the-Month for December! So proud of her!

Came across some great deals at Target-- 70% off toys! Grabbed a cart-full for birthdays + Christmas for the coming year.

Over the weekend it was just me with both kiddos at the house. It reminded me of how it used to be before they headed off to school, when it was just the 3 of us each day. They ended up outside, which is the way it always seemed to be back then. But now Meli's imagination has grown.. she decided that she was on a safari watching lions and tigers. She "wrote observations" for me and "took a picture" of a lion in it's natural habitat.

At the end of the week Meli had a sleepover with her friend, Dylan. Lots of fun. Dress-up, running around, coloring, and baking cookies. Dylan and Riley even hung out quite a bit. It was a fun time and I'm sure that there will be more sleepovers in the future.

week 1/12

2012-01-14T07:57:00.000-08:00

This year I am going back to posting once per week. In the past I really liked this format for my posts. It made it so much quicker and made the posts more interesting when I scrolled back through.

Now to jump into 2012!

I didn't end up taking any pictures on the 1st. To be honest, it seemed like just any other day. Well, any other except that Kathy, Rick and Emma were visiting from N.C. and we went over to visit with them before they headed back. It was a good visit. Other than that it was life as usual.

This picture is random b/c out of nowhere I decided I wanted a picture of Meli's Book-It Award. I'm surprised that they still hand these out, but I guess good things last. I loved receiving these as a kid and now I get to see Meli enjoying them, too.

Sibling Love. Riley wants nothing to do with taking pictures with Meli. In fact, he's just not very into having his picture taken right now. Meli tried and tried to get him to hug her for a picture and in the end they ended up wrestling on the floor..

Riley's still into the one sock/shoe look. I see more and more similarities between him and Brad with things like this. For myself, this would bother the heck out of me.

Meli being sweet.

It's a smile, even if only a half one.

Lastly, a recent scrapbook page. I love how this one came out. I wish that it was made with current products so I could submit it for possible publication. I want to submit, but I am constantly reminded that they are looking for pages with current products, 2-pagers with multiple photos. That's not how I tend to scrap. I keep telling myself that I will submit someday, but that right now I have to work through some of my old stash before I can justify new stuff. Then I will submit. There is a little voice that tells me that in that case, the day I submit will never come...

365-2011

2012-01-13T21:04:00.000-08:00

Rang in the New Year with two of my favorite people, Brad and Meli... Riley was conked-out by 9:30.

364-2011

2012-01-13T20:57:00.000-08:00

Lest I forget, I need to document the milestone of Meli's first lost tooth! It actually (finally!) fell out on Christmas Eve night as we were climbing out of the car at Brad's parents house. Christmas Eve! It was exciting. But the evening was so full of Christmas excitement that the tooth fairy didn't make it that night...oops! ;) The tooth fairy came the next morning while Meli was busy opening presents and she left a little note stating that she didn't want to get in Santa's way so she waited a little longer. :)

363-2011

2012-01-13T20:54:00.000-08:00

Self-portrait. Wishing I had good pictures with Brad. Wishing we took more pictures as a family.

362-2011

2012-01-13T20:51:00.000-08:00

It's always a bit sad the way Christmas rushes upon us and is over in a snap. It seems I'm no sooner pulling out the decorations than tucking them away again...

361-2011

2012-01-13T20:48:00.000-08:00

Loving his new monster truck game!

360-2011

2012-01-13T20:39:00.000-08:00

Got some adorable pictures of some sweet girls. :)

359-2011

2012-01-13T20:37:00.001-08:00

Christmas morning.

358-2011

2012-01-13T20:34:00.000-08:00

A busy moment during our Christmas party at Brad's parents home.

357-2011

2012-01-13T20:24:00.000-08:00

We got to spend lots of time around family this holiday season since we live so much closer now. I am thankful for that.

356-2011

2012-01-13T20:12:00.000-08:00

It never ceases to amaze me how entranced Riley is by the "electro-kinetic" machines in museums. Goes back to our adage for him: "If it moves, he likes it..."

355-2011

2012-01-13T20:05:00.000-08:00

Both kids had their school Christmas parties on the same afternoon. It was a hectic afternoon, rushing from one to the other. I was late to both, but the important thing, I feel, is that I was there.

354-2011

2012-01-13T20:02:00.000-08:00

The wonder of the holidays.

353-2011

2012-01-13T19:51:00.000-08:00

We pulled out the gingerbread dough and made gingerbread houses and cookies. The pieces to the houses were made hodge-podge which didn't work out so well. Meli's house was too big and "off" and wouldn't stop toppling but Riley's was small which worked very well. Riley had more fun decorating gingerbread men... Brad claimed "That's why his house is staying up so well..he made bodyguards to protect it!" :D

I learned a lot from Meli's toppling house... You have to make your walls/roof exact and gingerbread+Nerds taste REALLY good together!

352-2011

2012-01-13T19:15:00.000-08:00

This year I pulled out the cookie magazine that I just had to have last year and I put it to good use.. I went crazy making batches of cookie dough. The list included sugar cookies, classic peanut butter, gingerbread, honey-butter, and candy-cane thumbprints.

351-2011

2012-01-13T19:11:00.000-08:00

I sewed matching pants for Brad and Riley this year. Brad keeps telling me these are now his favorites. :)

350-2011

2012-01-13T19:05:00.000-08:00

Last year I found some holiday Play-Doh sets on sale after the holidays and got a couple for the kids. It was a nice surprise for me to come across them when I was going through our holiday decorations and goodies this year. I had completely forgotten about them!

349-2011

2012-01-13T19:03:00.000-08:00

The first present under our tree this year was a gift from Meli to Brad and me. <3

348-2011

2012-01-13T18:57:00.001-08:00

Each year I love seeing more and more of the kids' ornaments taking over the tree.

347-2011

2012-01-13T18:50:00.000-08:00

Not entertained by the camera in front of her face.

346-2011

2012-01-13T18:45:00.000-08:00

A message from Meli.

345-2011

2012-01-13T18:43:00.000-08:00

Lane and Heidi looking more and more alike.

344-2011

2012-01-13T18:41:00.000-08:00

Drove Meli, Riley and Morgan through the Garden of Lights.

343-2011

2012-01-13T18:35:00.001-08:00

Finished a scrapbook page that I love.. Felt great to create a page about a sweet memory that I never want to forget that has meaningful journaling.

342-2011

2012-01-13T18:32:00.000-08:00

For Christmas I sewed lots of pants and a bunting for baby Anthony.

341-2011

2012-01-13T18:28:00.000-08:00

"Fairy-Godmother Meli", dressed in half the attire from her dress-up drawer.

340-2011

2012-01-13T18:22:00.000-08:00

The kids built foam "gingerbread" houses. I'm very impressed with their craftsmanship and how little they needed my help. :)

339-2011

2012-01-13T18:19:00.000-08:00

Very much addicted to "D*mn You Auto Correct" and texting.

338-2011

2012-01-13T18:11:00.000-08:00

A new little toy for Brad. He's not happy unless he's fiddling with a car or house..

337-2011

2012-01-13T18:07:00.000-08:00

Hot chocolate and candy canes, yum!

336-2011

2012-01-13T18:04:00.000-08:00

Still smiley and loves stealing my scarf.

335-2011

2012-01-13T17:59:00.000-08:00

Enjoying the light of the tree and the twinkle of decorations.

334-2011

2012-01-13T17:54:00.001-08:00

Lots of fun drawings by Meli.

333-2011

2012-01-13T17:47:00.000-08:00

Having SO MUCH FUN with my SMASHbook!!

332-2011

2012-01-13T16:55:00.000-08:00

Christmas lists for Santa. We took them with us to visit Santa at Bass Pro Shop.

331-2011

2011-12-06T18:12:00.000-08:00

These little cuties constantly amaze me with their love and support for each other.

330-2011

2011-12-06T18:03:00.001-08:00

Spent a lot of time with my cute little nephew, Baby A.J.

329-2011

2011-12-06T17:58:00.000-08:00

On our trek to Mamaw's house. I can't help thinking that someday I'm going to look at this picture and think, "Wow, gas used to be $3 a gallon?!"

328-2011

2011-12-06T17:49:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

We had a double Thanksgiving with Brad's family. For lunch we ate at the nursing home with Memaw, Brad's grandmother, and his parents/Kiera/"J".

Later we went to his parents for a second feast before we were to leave the kids overnight and head out for our Black Friday excursion. :)

327-2011

2011-12-06T17:43:00.000-08:00

Nene and the kids squeezed together at Pizza Hut. Remember Book-It awards? They still exist! We were there to redeem Meli's and Kiera's.

326-2011

2011-12-06T17:37:00.001-08:00

For the most part my style can be considered dull and... "whatever". But, every once in while I have a little fun, dress up and snap some pictures. I'm kinda liking the red lipstick even though it's definitely not "me"!

325-2011

2011-12-06T17:34:00.001-08:00

Brad, sword-fighting with Meli. I'm not sure he'll ever grow up.. :)

324-2011

2011-12-06T17:31:00.001-08:00

Fun family photo-shoot. Makes me smile.. :)

323-2011

2011-12-06T17:23:00.001-08:00

Technically, this was a picture from Meli's actual birthday but I wanted to give it a separate day. Meli's school carnival was the same day as her b-day so we had to pack a lot of excitement into one evening. After school we threw a little family party at home before we took off to the school. The kids had a blast, especially Meli, getting "tattoos", face-painting and sword/butterfly balloons!

322-2011

2011-12-06T17:16:00.000-08:00

The fancy birthday girl! Happy 6th Birthday, sweet Meli! Love you. You are growing into such a beautiful, confident little person and I know that this year is going to be fantastic for you!

321-2011

2011-12-06T17:15:00.001-08:00

Love my job! ;)

320-2011

2011-12-06T17:11:00.000-08:00

Proud of my team this football season and showing my pride. Way to go Cowboys!

319-2011

2011-12-06T17:06:00.000-08:00

After gymnastics and looking the part. I love watching the practices and what those little bodies are pushed to do. I especially love watching Meli's bridges... so graceful! And her handstands keep getting better and better!

318-2011

2011-12-06T17:03:00.000-08:00

Gave Meli a haircut. Thankfully it came out cute. :)

317-2011

2011-12-06T16:56:00.001-08:00

Reality of my life. It's not perfect but I love it.

316-2011

2011-12-06T16:51:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday Party to Meli! I sent invites to all of the kids in her class and expected to have more attend, but there were plenty of kids having plenty of fun!

315-2011

2011-12-06T16:47:00.000-08:00

Spent lots of time getting the backyard ready for Meli's PARTY! Thankfully lovely weather was in the forecast!

314-2011

2011-12-06T16:46:00.000-08:00

Beautiful November day.

313-2011

2011-12-06T16:43:00.000-08:00

Feeble attempts at exercise. I'm getting my mojo back but it's taking lots of time & effort.

312-2011

2011-12-06T16:40:00.000-08:00

Not just chapped lips, chapped skin as well. :(

311-2011

2011-12-06T16:36:00.001-08:00

Meli and Riley invited some friends to watch a movie with us... :)

310-2011

2011-12-06T16:33:00.000-08:00

Every once in a while we try out a foot-pic and it comes out this way everytime... 3 sets of feet well arranged and one little guy rebelling.

309-2011

2011-12-06T16:27:00.000-08:00

Thankful for ChapStick, even if Meli doesn't use it enough. This season we have already been driven crazy by Meli's chapped lips...and face. :( She has such a long tongue that the poor thing not only over-licks her lips but the skin around her lips as well.

308-2011

2011-12-06T16:24:00.000-08:00

Sweet, sweet Meli.

307-2011

2011-12-06T16:21:00.000-08:00

Brad says that Meli is "Daddy's Girl" but Meli has something different to say about that. In what I guess is an effort to make everyone happy she states that she loves us both the same and she's both of our girl.

306-2011

2011-12-06T16:17:00.001-08:00

Little guy not looking so little anymore... Where does the time go?!

305-2011

2011-12-06T16:14:00.001-08:00

Meli's become quite the "writin' fool" lately. So proud of my little learning sponge!

304-2011

2011-12-06T16:10:00.001-08:00

What a haul!

Note: Pic uploaded 12-6 and we still have a load!

Day 303

2011-10-30T16:28:00.000-07:00

Feeling sicker than I've felt in years this is certainly a day for pajama pants and lazing around the house.

Day 302

2011-10-30T16:26:00.001-07:00

Had a frightfully fun day with the kids making breadstick bones, vampire bites, mummy pups, and green goblin goo. We snacked on our treats as we watched the Scooby-Doo movie. Then we carved pumpkins and watched a Winnie-the-Pooh Halloween movie.

Good, good day.

Day 301

2011-10-30T16:23:00.000-07:00

Part of Spirit Week at Meli's school..

Mon--Wear peace signs.
Tues--Wear animal print.
Wed--Wear pajamas.
Thurs--Wear boots.
Fri--Wear a hat.

Day 300

2011-10-30T16:20:00.000-07:00

Edited pictures trying to find a cute one for Meli's birthday invitations.

Day 299

2011-10-30T16:19:00.001-07:00

A collage of our Fall.

Day 298

2011-10-30T16:17:00.001-07:00

My cupcake and cheeseburger. I have finally admitted to myself that store-bought is the way for us to go.

Day 297

2011-10-30T16:14:00.000-07:00

Tried out a pumpkin pasta dish. A little too sweet for my taste..

Day 296

2011-10-30T16:13:00.001-07:00

My ghostly pic of Meli.

Day 295

2011-10-30T16:11:00.001-07:00

Sweet Meli.

Day 294

2011-10-30T16:08:00.000-07:00

Playground at Leonardo's Children's Museum.

Day 293

2011-10-30T16:05:00.001-07:00

Meli said this was a mushroom, I think it looks more like E.T.... Brad's response? "Mushroom phone home." :D

Day 292

2011-10-19T19:42:00.000-07:00

Our first day of hot chocolate as the cool weather sets in. Anxiously awaiting all else that is in store for this fall and winter...Halloween with trick-or-treating, Meli's birthday, fall carnival, Thanksgiving, snow play, Christmas, New Years... so much to look forward to.

A break

2011-06-21T09:11:00.000-07:00

I will be taking a break from my 365 for a bit. My camera has not been working, I am behind and life has become busy lately. I will be posting on my other blog which is not as demanding, more of a document life as I feel when I feel. Feel free to peek in:

http://www.365journeyplussome.blogspot.com/

My plan is to take a break from the daily picture for about 6 months to refresh then return at the beginning of 2012.

141-2011

2011-05-22T00:59:00.000-07:00

Brad doesn't like to have his picture taken, but I think he's coming around. He's still giving me funny faces, but at least now he isn't trying to look "practically deformed".

140-2011

2011-05-22T00:43:00.000-07:00

Impromptu mini-cupcake decorating after dinner.

139-2011

2011-05-22T00:38:00.000-07:00

This is a part of who I am. My favorite shirts are button-down collared ones with the sleeves rolled 3/4 of the way up. I love for my clothes to be timeless classics--clothes that I can wear for years b/c they never go out of style.

138-2011

2011-05-22T00:34:00.000-07:00

Mama with all her girls.

137-2011

2011-05-22T00:29:00.000-07:00

I've never before caught this look on Meli's face.. I think she was just mimicking one of those silly faces that Dada tends to make when the camera is pointed at him.

136-2011

2011-05-22T00:26:00.001-07:00

Dealt with a pouty Meli throughout the day.

135-2011

2011-05-22T00:22:00.000-07:00

I taunted Lane throughout the day, trying to get pictures. I got a few, but no good ones...

134-2011

2011-05-22T00:18:00.000-07:00

I took a walk with Kate around Honor Heights and we snapped nature shots as we went. Note to self: need to do things like this more often.

133-2011

2011-05-22T00:15:00.000-07:00

My silly, smiley guy, Riley.

132-2011

2011-05-22T00:11:00.000-07:00

Joy, only moments after buying my new camera!

131-2011

2011-05-22T00:09:00.000-07:00

Sweet little Meli.

130-2011

2011-05-21T23:47:00.001-07:00

Sharing a milkshake.

129-2011

2011-05-21T23:27:00.000-07:00

On our last day of vacation we rented a buggy and cruised around Port Aransas. We stopped at the marina to watch dolphins swimming in front of the bow of a ship, zipped over to a line of giant rocks extending about a half mile into the water, then cruised the beach before going back out to the water for some boogie-boarding before we set out for home.

Glitch

2011-05-17T18:50:00.000-07:00

Last week I caught up with my blog...then to my surprise I've come back to find that some posts are missing. :( Though I don't like leaving days empty, I'm going to let these slide and continue on from where I am.

128-2011

2011-05-11T13:59:00.000-07:00

After the bad jellyfish experience at CC, we made our way to South Padre where there was finer sand, more sun and no jellyfish.

126-2011

2011-05-11T13:14:00.000-07:00

We headed out for Corpus Christi for a few days of fun in the sun. A few hours into the drive, while stopping for food, Brad managed to lock both sets of keys in the car. What a way to kick off our trip--sitting in a Burger King parking lot.

124-2011

2011-05-11T12:58:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite recent scrapbook pages. I was ecstatic that it only took about 15 minutes to throw together!

119-2011

2011-05-11T10:38:00.001-07:00

Riley finally got to wear the tie shirt that I made for him. The teacher said that they talked about it in class.

118-2011

2011-05-11T10:27:00.001-07:00

Another Thursday at El Chico with sweet Meli in Dada's hat.

117-2011

2011-05-11T10:19:00.000-07:00

Bearded Meli. :)

116-2011

2011-05-11T10:09:00.000-07:00

Everybody wearing flip-flops! Meli loves to point out the similarities in what we're wearing and when someone is "out". And Riley? He just loves to rebel.

115-2011

2011-05-11T09:54:00.000-07:00

Exploring the organic structure at the MNS pond.

114-2011

2011-05-11T09:48:00.001-07:00

We read a book recently called "Larry Gets Lost in Texas" and in the book it cited the Texas Star, the largest ferris wheel in the United States. The kids were excited to get to see it outside while visiting the MNS at Fair Park.