Welcome to the world 

Brennan Ezekiel!!!

We love you and can't wait to meet you!!

Love, Aunt Mary, Uncle Matt, Chloe, & Hannah

Weekend Picture

A picture Amy took during our 4th of July weekend with Grammie ("MiMi"), Pops ("Bops"), and Amy (Amy is actually "Amy")... 

Chloe and Bambi

(Such a great picture, Amy! Thank you for getting it!)

Some Anniversary Fun, Father's Day, and a Few Videos

Matt and I had our first weekend away last weekend and stayed downtown over night. Saturday morning, Gramma, Matt's mom, came over to stay with Chloe and we went to lunch, then headed downtown to find our hotel and spa. We had a couples' massage Saturday afternoon. They offer a couples shower or sauna before the massage, which I explained to Matt beforehand. His response to this was, "But I already took a shower today." So romantic.... Anyway, the spa place wouldn't let me do either anyway since I'm pregnant. This was Matt's first massage and thankfully, his went well. I think my girl was afraid of me (being pregnant); she bruised me on my neck and shoulders and barely touched my legs and feet, so I didn't enjoy mine too much and wouldn't recommend the place to anyone. Matt did enjoy his and says he would go back. It took me 8 years to convince him he'd like it and now he's talking about what kind of massage he'd like to get next time. :) If only our husband's would listen to our advice the first time! 

After the massage we saw a movie and then checked into our hotel; it was just too stinkin' hot to be outside and enjoy the Riverwalk. We headed to Ruth's Chris steakhouse for dinner reservations; they seated us downstairs in a secluded area and called us by name and everything! It was so nice! They give you a complimentary cheesecake for dessert with "Happy Anniversary" written in chocolate on the plate. Everything was so delicious and we were stuffed by the end of it! Those are the only pictures we got of our weekend unfortunately as seen above in the slide show. We tried walking down the Riverwalk afterwards but we were so hot and it was sooooooooo crowded that we could not even walk next to each other or talk. We finally went up to the street to avoid the bigger crowds. Just like an old married couple, we retired to our room by 10:00! 

Sunday, we woke up late enough to make it to Pappasito's just before the crowd came so we could get Matt his Happy Father's day mug. Even though we were without Chloe, we still decided to go. We then saw another movie and headed home afterwards to spend sometime with our daughter before the day was over. All in all, it was a great weekend and nice to be away for a night. I had to literally keep myself from thinking about Chloe, or I'd start missing her so much. 

Thanks, honey, for the lovely weekend. I enjoyed just being with you no matter what we did!

When we got home, Chloe was taking a nap so I was chomping at the bit for her to wake up so I could hug her! Matt and I went in to her room to surprise her and the first person she asked for was Gramma!!! Though I wish she had missed me more ;), I am so thankful she is attached to Gramma and loves to be with her. It does make leaving her so much easier. When Gramma went home, Chloe cried her eyes out! 

Chloe and Matt shared some time together after she gave him her gift and card. Chloe loves to sit and stand on Matt while he is lying down. Whether he is on the floor or on the couch, she treats him as her own personal jungle gym. She plopped herself on his stomach on Sunday and wanted to read books with him. 

Then they enjoyed a lovely picnic together at the coffee table. Chloe rarely ever wants to be away from her daddy's side when he is home. She follows him from room to room. She also calls him on her cell phone when he is gone. Chloe LOOOOOOOVVVVVVES her daddy!!

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Sally asked me recently to post videos of Chloe so here they are....

This video is of Chloe and Daddy playing together.

Chloe loves to go get Daddy's socks for him and this time wanted to put them on since Daddy had just put his on. 

Still going strong...

Matt and I have been married for SEVEN years now! I can hardly believe it! I look at my husband and I am more in love with him than I ever was before. What a blessing that is! Thank you, Lord, for your faithfulness to our marriage! He knows we've been in drought at times in the past, but He has led us to years of plenty. We have both only become more full and rich side by side than ever we could alone. I am so thankful for this man who knows me so well; even in my darkest of nights and even in my brightest of days... he knows me well. He leads us and guides us, and I would go to the earth's very end to follow him. He covers me, protects me, loves and cares for me; he is safety and comfort and tenderness, yet a rock to me. His touch gives me rest and peace. He has shown me how to love; how God intended love to be between a man and woman, a husband and wife. He has been a picture of Christ to me. 

Matt, you are my mate for life. I love you.

Our new addition

We have finally decided on a name for our new addition to the family. Her name is now...

Hannah Elizabeth

Hannah means GRACE and Elizabeth means GOD'S PROMISE. We are confidant that the Lord has great plans for her and pray that she experiences His grace early on and relies on His promises to lead her throughout her life. 

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Yesterday, I asked Chloe if she could say Hannah. She thought I said banana and let me know she wanted some to eat by pointing at the bananas and signing food. We are working with her on that. At least tonight, when we asked if she loved Hannah, she said, "Yeah." But then again, she also loves bananas. :)

Our week with the Birdsells

Kaye and Mary

At the end of April, Chloe and I visited my sister, Kaye, her husband, Scott, and their two daughters, Grace and Gloria. It was our first time to meet Gloria, who shares Chloe's birthday, only a year younger. Chloe LOVED her immediately. She quickly learned her named and called her "Laa-La" the whole time we were there. Two weeks later and she still asks for "Laa-La" just about everyday. She would give Laala kisses without provocation and she would try to feed her a bottle and give her a paci. She would bring Laala a blanket and just be so sweet and gentle with her. I caught this picture of one her sweet kisses for Laala:

Gloria is so sweet; she has a very sweet disposition and is very laid back. She really only cries when she's hungry or has gas. She loves all the activity that goes on around her, and she loves attention and cuddles! She looks so much like her daddy! I wonder how different these two girls will be because Grace is a little daredevil, very adventuresome. If she can't reach it, she finds a way to reach it. And she'll test every limit; she's very independent. But Miss Gloria seems like she is just the opposite so far!

We tried to play outside a lot to allow Grace, or "Dace", and Chloe to run off some energy. They would switch between playing in the toy jeep and sliding down the slide. 

Grace & Chloe

Me & Gloria

Grace is only two months older than Chloe so we considered trying to have them sleep together since they both sleep in "Big Girl" beds, which is actually a twin mattress on the floor. We tried several times, and each time the girls would go back and forth between playing together, destroying the room, and fussing. Eventually, they both fell asleep right behind the door and we had to wake them up to be able to put Gloria in her crib. Then, of course, they wouldn't go back to sleep. We decided after several tries that we'd all get better sleep if they were separated. To make a long story short, Chloe ended up taking the queen size bed that I was to sleep on and I had to move to the couch. She evidently likes her space when she sleeps. 

Grace & Chloe chilling out on the bed

I have to explain this next picture. If you look closely, Grace has her foot up behind Chloe and is looking right at Chloe. She is planning something... The next moment, Chloe is face down on the floor after Grace has kicked her off the chair. You think they are so innocent... until you meet Miss Grace. ;)  

If you watch closely, Chloe gets her payback...

Unfortunately, I left my camera at home, so I don't have any more pictures of our week yet. We really enjoyed being with the Birdsells. I enjoyed the few times that Kaye and I weren't too tired to have a nice deep conversation also. I hope we can see you guys again sooner than later!! We love you, Birdies!!

Happy Mother's Day!!!

Happy Mother's Day to YOU, Mom!!

Happy Mother's Day to each one in this picture as we've all been "mom" to each of the children!

(I know... this picture is WAY pre-pregnancies, but we all look good! :)

My Biggest Loser

I am writing this blog because I have to share how INCREDIBLY proud I am of my wonderful husband and the journey he has taken since last June to make himself healthy. 

When we dated, Matt was slim and trim. He still had his football-playing figure. He even played college football for a season at ETBU while we dated long distance. Below is a picture of us heading to our first date at the Underwood's wedding in July 2000. 

Once we got married and he went from being a waiter at Chili's, on his feet most hours of the day, to an 8-5 office job, naturally he began to gain a few pounds. By December 2003, he hit his max, we believe at over 300 pounds. Here is a picture of us at Christmas that year. 

Soon after that Christmas, he began Tae Kwon Do and lost a significant amount of weight, bringing him down to the mid-200's. But for some reason, we did not continue to attend that school and the interest was lost. The pounds again piled on. Matt's two favorite staples were and always will be pizza and ice cream - not good "dieting" foods. He was also very focused on his career and single-minded in pursuing success in it, so health was not his priority. Matt also hated any form of exercise that did not include some type of sport; he absolutely hated to run.

In my mind, having a health degree, I struggled with his lack of concern. It hurt my feelings in a way because I felt like it was his responsibility to do what he could to make sure he was around longer than the age of 40. He is also at risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease because both run in his family. At the age of 26, he already had high cholesterol. I saw it as selfish and uncaring to not make his health a priority. Most people who are overweight don't think of it as being selfish; they don't see how it can affect the lives of the ones they love. Losing Matt early scared me and I prayed for many years that he would desire to be healthy again. 

Once Chloe came along it became even more of a heart breaker for me to see him not care so much about his health because now he was responsible for her life as well. Here is a picture a few days after Chloe was born in December 2006... 

Matt had always talked about how much he enjoyed Tae Kwon Do and how he'd like to do it again someday. When we moved here in February 2007, we happened to move just down the street literally from the same Tae Kwon Do school that my brother-in-law, Jon, went to growing up. 

In June 2007, Matt received several hurtful comments from co-workers about his weight. They were saying these things in jest, but he internalizes words just like many people do, so he took them to heart. He realized his need to change so he signed up for TKD classes, three times a week for one hour each. He quickly realized that he was not conditioned to fight; he was slow and uncoordinated. He knew that in order to be up to par with the rest of the adult class, he had to do some homework. He slowly took up running on the treadmill; as much as he hated running, he knew it could get him results faster. Plus, he could do it at home. At that time I was still trying to lose my baby weight, the last lingering 10 pounds that would not go away. My friend, Rachel, asked if I'd like to do a half-marathon in November, so in July, I began to run again on my treadmill. I could barely go 10 minutes, but I began to see results right away. Matt and I kept each other accountable and I was always encouraged to see him run. When I didn't feel like doing it, I'd see him running and it'd spur me on to continue to get to my goal. 

Matt also watched more closely what types of food he ate and how much. He ate many of the same foods as always but cut back his portion sizes significantly. He also would opt for a healthy snack rather than running out for ice cream or candy. Don't get me wrong, we still have pizza and ice cream at least once a week, but instead of devouring a whole large pizza himself, we split a medium. He still eats his fries too, just half of them. And he has tried to cut down on eating out, so I try to have healthy meals for him at home as often as possible. He is also drinking a lot more water. And he has educated himself on knowing when and what to eat and also how to anticipate hunger so that he can plan to have a healthy snack ready. 

Matt began to have to cinch up his size 46 pants with his belt and his 3XL shirts were hanging off of him. He got comments at work a lot, but he was determined not to buy new clothes until he reached a certain point. Finally, I just bought him some cheap pants so that at least once or twice a week, he would not look so silly trying to keep his pants on. :) He wouldn't let me buy much though. He just kept shrinking and shrinking. 

In March, Matt proudly hit his goal and has lost 90 pounds since June! He has not ceased to have people come up to him to congratulate him and let him know how good he looks. People that he worked with years ago, see him now and rave about him. It has evidently gotten around the Wachovia campus here, which employes several hundred people! Our friends and family are so proud too. I knew people were noticing when my girlfriends started making comments about how good my husband looked! ;)

I have seen a HUGE change in Matt as well. His confidence has increased; his energy level is so much better. He has become an all around better father and husband since he now has it in him to love on Chloe and me when he gets home from a long day at work. He seems more balanced, if that makes sense, more calm and less stressed about issues with work or home. Our marriage has never been better either. I look forward to so many more years with him and praise the Lord for his transformation. I look forward to being active with him and finding hobbies that we both enjoy. I look forward to being good, healthy role models for our girls (yes, we are having another little girl in September!). The Lord has blessed me so much through this man He gave to me to love, honor, cherish, and respect. 

Here are a few pictures of the "after" Matt from our recent trip to the zoo:

Matt will be competing in the National Tae Kwon Do Championships in July, if a nagging injury doesn't keep him from it. And he continues to run a few times a week, going faster and farther. He also swims every once in a while and will probably do so more this summer with the pool opening. I still haven't convinced him to run a half-marathon with me (I was never able to run the one my friend invited me to). His thinking is, "Why the heck would I run 13.1 miles for no reason?" Evidently, he doesn't LOOOOOVE running yet. ;) But I am thankful he does it. 

I hope Matt's story encourages someone. He has definitely inspired me and continues to inspire me. He even holds me accountable to what I eat and how much I exercise. :) I never thought that would ever happen, but God is good and He is far more than capable of changing us. 

My Sweet Love

Happy Birthday 

to my very best friend in the whole world!!! 

I love you.

I'm so lonely I could Cry......

This week Mary and Chloe are visiting Mary's sister Kaye in Florida. While this leaves me free to pursue whatever Manly pursuits I wish, (eating snacks, rearranging the furniture for maximum game playing, watching the NFL draft for 4 hours straight) it also really sucks. So I made a list of the top ten things I miss about Mary and Chloe when they leave me. 

Top Ten Things I miss when Mary Leaves

10) Her Cooking

9) The smell of her hair after she washes it

8) Making her laugh, and getting to listen to it

7) Her pregnancy moments (recent developments)

6) Her "Mary" moments (permanent development)

5) Pre-Sleep Discussions

4) Her Touch

3) Looking into her eyes

2) Coming home kisses

1) Sharing days with my very best friend

Top Ten Things I miss when Chloe Leaves

10) Tickling her, and hearing her laugh like crazy

9) Reading books with her

8) Driving up to the house and seeing her recognize my truck

7) "DADDY!!!!"

6) Going home for lunch and sharing lunch with her

5) When we're on the floor and she runs up to give me a hug

4) Helping her find her pacifier during the night

3) Watching her explore news things and experiences

2) Teaching her new words, and working on her puzzles 

1) Her sloppy kisses!

Come home quickly my girls!

Matt

Time Flies

I'm sorry it's been so long since I last blogged. We've been fairly busy with birthday parties, doctor's appointments for all three (actually 4) of us, out of town trips, out of town guests, and so on. 

In early March, we went to Pump It Up for Chloe's friend Naomi's 2nd birthday. Daddy got to take her on all the bouncy stuff. Since I was only 14 weeks or so pregnant, I chose to sit it out and just take pictures. If you know Chloe, it's very difficult to get any picture of her looking at the camera so we didn't have very many good shots of the party. By the way, isn't my husband studly? I must say he looks so hot, but I'll blog more on that later. :)

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Chloe never lost her baby hair as some babies do so it has just kept growing and growing and growing. First, we did hair clips with bows. Then, we did one pony tail to the side. Now, we are at two pig tails. She is very good at letting me do them because she HATES having her hair in her eyes. It is long enough to go almost to the end of her nose. She looks like she is one of The Beatles when her hair is down.

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In March, we had our friends Brad and Lauren visit us a few days before Easter, and we were able to go stuff ourselves silly while watching the Aggies play and win their first game in the tournament. For Easter weekend, we visited my parents and sister, Amy, and had a nice time with them. Matt and my dad played golf, admitting that since by the end of hole 9 they had hit the ball enough times to equal an 18 hole game, it was probably time to stop. They figured they played twice the game for half the money. :) 

Me and my sista

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Chloe's and my most recent trip took us to visit our friends, the Greenes. Shanna, Michael and Jonathan hosted us for 3 days a few weekends ago. Unfortunately, Chloe's and Jonathan's napping schedules were quite opposite, but I think we made it work pretty well. Jonathan is a very flexible little man. We made a trip to the mall for some lunch on Friday and played at the indoor playground. Friday night, Shanna and I splurged and ordered 3 pieces of cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory, drove 30 minutes to go get it while dragging our little ones with us, then drove 30 minutes back home to put the kids to bed and enjoy our treat! It was delicious and so fun!

Sunday afternoon, we went to the duck pond and park. Jonathan loved watching the ducks and chasing the birds. It was like he knew what to do when he got there...

This is what Chloe did almost the entire time at the duck pond...

Don't worry, it's just ice water, but I hardly have one picture of her without this big Sonic cup in it!! Once she was done drinking, she rummaged through my purse looking for food. SO I have a ton of picturesque pictures of Jonathan by the water, looking at the ducks, etc... While all I have of Chloe involves her drinking and eating. :) It was a hot day though, I have to admit.

We finally walked over to the park where they had a separate toddler sized play area. If you need to get a picture of Chloe smiling, just put her on a slide because that's the only place you'll get one. All she wanted to do was go down the slide over and over and over...

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This is what we do in the mean time when we don't have much going on... We play outside and get good and dirty. Chloe is the best at getting messy but it's funny because she doesn't like it when her hands are dirty!

Bob and Barfing

I have a couple of cute stories about Chloe that I just had to share. Story One...

Chloe likes to watch Veggie Tales. It is on T.V. on Saturday mornings so I DVR the shows, and we watch them while she drinks her milk throughout the week. They are the same exact shows you pay $10-15 for at a book store but with commercials. Her favorite part is the beginning when Bob the tomato welcomes everyone to his house and they all sing a song together. She gets a big smile on her face and says "Boba, Boba." Well, yesterday, we were in the kitchen, and I pulled out a bright red tomato to put in our salad. Chloe points to my hand and says "Boba, Boba." I showed her a tomato again tonight just to make sure I was hearing her right and sure enough, she says "Boba, Boba." She is so darn smart!!! How she put the two together, who knows, but I am so proud of her! It's a good thing she doesn't realize yet what "Boba's" are for. :)

Next story...(This story is kind of gross so if you have a sensitive stomach you may not want to go on. Don't say I didn't warn you!)

As many of you know, I am pregnant, and I'm just now starting my second trimester.  I've had nausea and vomiting throughout the first trimester, but finally got anti-nausea meds at 12 weeks. I'm at 14 weeks now and thought I was in the clear. I was quite surprised when right after breakfast this morning, I had to run to the bathroom. Chloe is also avidly walking now so she follows me wherever I go. So we are in my bathroom and I'm standing there pucking my breakfast out and Chloe's standing behind me going, "Ha ha ha ha ha!"  I'm trying to block her with my body from getting into the potty area or getting splattered with vomit and at the same time trying to aim correctly. I'm sure it was a funny sight... minus the puck of course. I'm sorry if you don't feel the same way. I'm sure it's one of those things that, if you have kids, you at one point wondered what you would do if you were in the same situation. :)

(I'll spare you a picture here of some vomit. :)

Chloe Update

About a month or so ago, Chloe decided she was ready for something new. After Matt got home from work one evening, he sat a few feet away from her, held out his arms to her and she just stood up and took about 5 or 6 steps towards him! I happened to have just turned my head to watch her reaction to seeing Daddy, so I was so glad I didn't miss that special moment. And I am  sooooo glad her first steps were to her daddy. That is special because I have been able to see so much more since I stay home with her. We caught her second try on camera...

It took her a while to get comfortable so after that first day, she didn't seem interested in doing it much more. But last week she decided she'd had enough and started to walk EVERY WHERE! She especially loves to be outside. She pushes her baby up and down the side walk. The other children on our street are finally beginning to take notice of her now since she is walking. One little boy who is about 2 brought her some strawberries to eat the other day! It was so cute! She, of course, could have cared less about him but wanted to eat all of his food! He, on the other hand, was so shy and googly-eyed. :) Aw... maybe he has his first crush! 

Chloe loves to push her stroller around and find things around the house to put in it. After a grocery trip recently, she helped me unload the groceries....

Helping Mommy unload the Ziploc bags

Chloe has taken to playing in boxes lately. For some reason, she likes to play in them. We had a play group at our house the other day, and I thought it'd be fun to leave her boxes out so the other kids could enjoy them as well. Not one child even glanced at the boxes. They seemed to be more in the way than anything. I guess I should be thankful that my child is entertained so easily... and cheaply!

Chloe feeding Baby in the box

Chloe with her milk, her Elzie, and her pillow, ready for her pretend nap

My parents came recently (Matt and my dad added topsoil and new sod to our entire front yard in one weekend!) and bought Chloe a picnic table set. She has enjoyed eating her snacks and drinking her milk while lounging in the chairs. She does get quite frustrated though when she can't get her bottom aimed right so she ends up on the floor rather than in the chair. We are having to teach her that it's ok to fail/fall sometimes. :) 

Chloe also tries to mimic what we say. Sometimes it sounds similar, but mostly not. She did try to say strawberry the other day for my mom, and it wasn't half bad, just funny enough to make you laugh though. We are definitely at the point where patience with communication is key. It's so hard to know what she means most of the time!! 

We are enjoying this stage of her life so much, but it's hard not to wonder about the future and how she and her new brother or sister will interact. I can hardly wait for that day!!! Oh, and by the way, I am pretty sure we are NOT going to find out the sex of the baby, so it'll be an IT to us until September!

Favorite Blue Jeans

I've been able to wear my favorite (pre-pregnancy :) blue jeans again for about 7 months now which I have thoroughly enjoyed after gaining 40 pounds during my pregnancy with Chloe. I have two pair, both from American Eagle, which I LOVE to wear. They have held up amazingly well... clothes seem to do that when you take a year off to wear maternity clothes. I don't buy jeans very often because it is just so hard to find the "perfect" fit. My jeans are always there when I want to dress up or dress down; I have a favorite pair for each of those occasions. But, to me, both still go best with a t-shirt and flip-flops. :)

All this to say, my jeans are going on another hiatus and will hang quietly in the back of my closet. Not because the weather is already getting warm (we've hit the 80's on some days), but because around September 9th, we'll be welcoming Baby Trombo #2!!! We are just about at the end of the first trimester and we've been able to hear the heart beat twice and also see him/her on ultrasound. We praise the Lord for allowing this little one to make it since, as many of you know, I have a history of miscarriages and we knew there could be a risk of it happening again. I prayed for several months before I had peace about trying again without first tackling the issue that could be causing the miscarriages. 

I have to admit that it is a bit difficult for me to announce this on our blog because I know several women right now who have not been able to get pregnant either the first time or after the first child, or who have had miscarriages or other situations that have kept them from getting pregnant; women who yearn so deeply to bear children. My heart hurts so much for them. It isn't fair, but to think that life would be fair is childish, I suppose. I just know we've not all been given the same purpose or the same path to fulfill our purpose. I am thankful that the Creator of the universe rarely lets me depend on my finite knowledge before reminding me how infinite His knowledge is. I am thankful that He knew what was coming in our lives, in our marriage, so that He made us have to wait almost 3 years before having our own baby girl. He also knew where we needed to grow before we could be her parents. He knew exactly the time and the place of when it would happen, all along He knew it. He knows exactly WHO the lives are that He creates, no mistakes, no mishaps. He knows exactly how and when He will use our children to bring glory to His name, just as He does with each of us. I am thankful that His ways are higher than my ways and His thoughts are higher than my thoughts. He is still good. 

Videos of Chloe

Chloe has been a busy little bee. We've had some yucky weather lately so we haven't been able to be outside much which she is sad about. She would spend the whole day outside if she could. She is working on getting two molars these past few weeks so she'll have 10 teeth. She is going to walk very soon, we think. But she is definitely like me in that she wants to do it in her own way and in her own time. She won't even let us help her. She has learned a few words & signs in the last week. She learned to say juice, lunch, and almost breakfast and is working on Jude and Ally. She can sign milk now. I have not worked with her a lot on the signs but she has still picked a few of them up. She can give kisses and hugs and she is a very speedy crawler. She has finally torn holes in one pair of her jeans. I still really enjoy being at home with her though it is hard to find things to do to challenge her sometimes, especially when we can't go outside. It's all a matter of thinking outside the box though. Most of her favorite things are not conventional baby toys, but things like empty boxes, keys, cell phones, and these metal hoops that we put on our ears and wrists and say, "so pretty!" You'd think it would not be hard to find simple things around the house that she'd love to learn about and play with. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the videos. 

Over due

I am sorry for not updating our blog sooner. I have just been procrastinating. 

For Christmas, Matt, Chloe and I drove to Houston early Christmas morning to surprise my parents after a few failed attempts to see them before Christmas. It was also my sister Amy's first Christmas home in a few years so it was really nice to spend the holiday with her, as well as with my grandmother and her friend, Patty. We had a fun day of eating, opening gifts, eating, playing games and eating. :) Then, we headed home around Chloe's bedtime that evening because Matt had to work the next day. Oh, I can't forget one of Matt's reason for wanting to go... he had to show off his new "toy" to my dad... his new truck. I am surprised he hasn't taken pictures of it yet now that I think about it; otherwise I'd post them here....

Here are a few other pictures from Christmas Eve with Matt's family and Christmas day...

Chloe & Grandpa

Chloe & her new Elmo from Grandpa

Chloe & her new baby from Grammie & Pop. She knew what to do with her baby right away. She held the bottle up to the baby's mouth and then put her in the stroller. She'll be an excellent big sister. 

Chloe with Amy & Grammie

We really enjoyed being with family over the holidays but we really missed the Estes' and the Birdsells. We can't wait for the day when we all get to be together again!

We were also able to be with friends during the holidays too. Our friends, Brad and Lauren, came to visit us for the weekend before New Years, and we had fun just hanging out and playing Settlers. 

"Hold me, Uncle Brad!"

Chloe was anxious to get back down into the dirt.

Chloe was dancing in this picture. She must have had a song in her head. :)

The holidays flew by for us which is always kind of sad. I am so thankful for friends and family who don't believe in just getting together for holidays. We are surrounded by loved ones whether physically or in "cyberspace" who love us all the time. 

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas, Estes'!!

We miss you sooooo much, 

but we hope you have a 

Merry Christmas 

and a

Happy New Year!

We love you more than you know!! We are giving you BIG hugs in our hearts!

Chloe is waiting for a kiss from you....