What is wrong with this picture?

Let me preface this post by saying that this night could have produced tragic events (i.e. my baby face down in the tub). HOWEVER that did not happen and so I take the opportunity to laugh. Mike was cleaning the kitchen...I'd gotten the bath ready for Kendall and SHUT THE DOOR because Avery is just tall enough to fall face first into the tub. I've been waiting for this to happen so we keep her out of the bathroom when Kendall is in there.

So last night there was this Carrie Underwood special that was so cheesy - she is NOT a comedian as much as she tries to be (eg. CMA awards, and now this variety show...who writes this stuff?) I'd gotten Kendall's bath ready (after giving Avery hers) but while the water was running asked her to quickly clean up her room. I walked back into the kitchen to do something after quickly opening the bathroom door to put something away - BIG MISTAKE. "Crawls faster than lightning" Avery sneaks into the bathroom - unbeknowst to me. I'm dazed watching the stupid Carrie Variety Show and I hear splashing. As I began to go into the hallway to the bathroom I see Kendall...in her room. So that means AVERY IS IN THE TUB!!! How she ended up bottom down, face up is beyond me. She is a climber, that is for sure. Her face wasn't even wet. That sneaky little girl. And she was so happy to be playing with her sister's toys.

Again, an 11 month old getting into a bathtub that is 1/3 full of water by herself is NOT SAFE and I feel really stupid thinking that she could have almost drowned. But the kid is smart...Needless to say the door WILL STAY CLOSED from now on. Geez louise.

Best pic EVER

Avery loves to turn the water in our master bath tub on and off. She's a water waster!!!! But it makes her happy and I only let her do it for a few mintues. Somebody teach this kid to be green. And this look is ALL daddy.

22nd Century Christmas Card

The latest and greatest way to send a Christmas card! I DID send some via old school mail. Here is the letter to go with it in case you are a curious visitor from FaceBook:

Somehow, I’m actually making time to write a Christmas letter! We went to Nebraska for Thanksgiving and I have been running-no sprinting-ever since we got back!!!!

Kendall turned 4 on December 13th . Actually, I can handle her being 4 but thinking ahead to next year – oh my stomach turns! But I am so happy that she is a healthy active fun and bright girl. She definitely keeps us on our toes. She is in “school” 3 days a week at our church’s preschool and loves but unfortunately we are hearing less and less of what she has learned from her teachers and more and more of what things she has heard from her friends. The latest? Vampires. From 3 year olds!!!! I’m looking into homeschooling. That’s a joke.

So other than picking up random bits of useless information from her friends, Kendall loves to smother her sister, help me around the house, play games on my computer, play with her friends, color and read. Daddy takes time every night to put her to bed and they read together. I’m sure she’ll be reading early – all THAT credit goes to Daddy for sure.

Avery is going to turn 1 on January 5th (hopefully you’ll get this letter before then). As cliché as it sounds, “I don’t know where the year has gone.” My baby is going to be ONE. She has been THE best baby. I mean, Kendall was good but this kid is awesome. She sleeps through the night and is just really happy. She took her first steps when we were in Nebraska at the Omaha Children’s museum. It must have been all of the excitement and trying to keep up with the big kids. Tonight daddy came home and got on the floor with her and she was walking short distances to him, back to the table, over to the basket…She’ll be confident on her own in no time. She loves to babble, scream, has a determined “march-like” crawl, and adores anything and everything that her sister does. Most recently she points at things and says “DA!” She’s pretty much a genius and the only baby that has ever accomplished these incredibly challenging things.

Mike is staying busy with his homebuilding business. Things have slowed but they are still building and have some great and promising prospects for next year. We are praying that God continues to bless us as He so diligently has in the past year. We are truly grateful.

Last but not least, I am still running around like a decapitated chicken most days. I love to go to the gym but it hasn’t been happening lately. I’m still working for my dad part time – well, I like to call it part-part time because I rarely get a moments peace around here to get work done uninterrupted. That’s why I’m usually up late most nights! My days are filled with cleaning, changing, shopping trips, working, playdates, cleaning, cooking, driving and occasionally I get to sleep and shower. I guess this sounds like I’m complaining but I really do love my life. The few minutes that I have to myself I certainly treasure and I know that all too soon I’ll be crying as they leave for college. BUT for now I cling to my babies and this little life we have. I hope you feel only love and peace and happiness this Christmas season.

My love to whoever reads this!

Thanksgiving Day

The Haynes side of the family (my mom's side).
Top Row - Aunt Trish (mom's sister), and her hubby Uncle Tim, Grandma Lenore, Uncle Mike (mom's brother) and his wife Aunt Jane.
Bottom Row - Greg's girlfriend, my cousin Greg, and then us! Avery was sleeping and after a week of fitful sleeping I wasn't ABOUT to wake her up!

Grandma 'Nore on the phone with my mom.Kendall enjoyed taking pictures of everyone with my iPhone but it mostly ended up being blurred pictures of shoes, knees, carpet... And then asking everyone "Do YOU have an iPhone?!" the child just doesn't get it...I embarrasingly tried to stop her from asking EVERYONE that!

Me, Kendall and Grandma 'Nore

More pictures from our Nebraska trip...

Kendall and Avery snuggling in Papa Vernon's chair. He is SORELY missed.

Avery tried and tried and tried to climb into Grandma 'Nore's rocking chair. However on this particular night her pj's were a little too tight so she couldn't quite hike up her leg...

Children of the Corn!!!! (at Omaha's Children's Museum) Avery, Daddy and Kendall at the Children's Museum. A perfect outing in the cold Nebraska drizzle. Avery took her first steps while she was there!!! 3 whole steps all by herself! She finally made it! Then kept being told to sit down. Agh...she's our climber. We are in trouble with this kiddo! She's not scared of anything so far!

Thanksgiving trip to Nebraska

Over Thanksgiving we took the looooong trek to Nebraska. It was about 16 hours and we did it in two days. I have to say that I was amazed at how well the girls did! To a certain extent I was dreading how the drive would go, but I think that the girls entertained each other well. But of course there is the modern day miracle known as DVD players that are shutting the mouths of bored whiny children everywhere. HALLELUJAH! My dad says that it isn't fair because he used to have to listen to us bicker, argue and whine the whole way.
So we got to Lincoln Saturday night at stayed at my Aunt Janet and Uncle John's house. Grandma Anderson came over, as well as my Cousin Julie, then on Sunday my cousin Jeff and his wife Vicki came over.

Sunday night we went to Aunt Chris and Uncle Ron's house (they've got 2 boys Danny and Jake - well 3 but Riley lives in Omaha).

Aunt Chris and Avery

Avery and Kendall with Grandma Anderson

More pictures to follow!

SNOW!!!!!!!!!!!

An unbelievable thing happened in Houston last Friday...it snowed!!!! Kendall was running a fever of 102 but really, it was her first time to ever see snow so of course we bundled up and headed out!!! Just for a little bit.

Avery was not happy that she was left inside.

But she finally got to go out for just a couple of minutes.And Ty loved the snow too but he HATES me pointing a camera at him.

Halloween

Ahh...the token Halloween pictures. Kendall was Batgirl. I have no idea where the desire for this costume came but I liked it. She was Snow White last year and loves to be a princess but I do love that she can hang with the boys and be a rough tough bat girl here and there. It was a homemade costume - we found the mask at Target for a dollar. I was originally going to wear it but she wanted it instead. My neighbor took pictures at our neighborly get-together so I'll post those pictures another day when I get them. I didn't manage to get a picture of Avery because I had to wake her up from her nap, shove her into her costume, rush down to the end of the street party, mingle and then she pee'd all over it. All I can figure out is that the tights must have been too tight. I'll shove her back in it tomorrow and snap a few pictures while Kendall is at school. Thanks to our friend Ashley who let Avery borrow the costume! It was a perfect outfit! Meanwhile...here is our Batgirl.

Behold...Behold...Kendall singing

For once Kendall actually remembered a song that she was learning at school...well, the first 2 words anyway. But thanks to the modern miracle of the internet we were able to find it on YouTube and she sang it. Then she sang it again...and again...and then I sang it...and upon the 17th time of hearing it I decided to record it. Well on the 2nd and 3rd camera takes Kendall turned into a diva and ordered me to the other side of the room so she could perform. WHATEV! (Grandma, that's the cool way of dismissing someone and saying "Whatever" wait, you are email-savvy so you probably alreay know that.)

On the move!

Avery has been crawling since 6 months and is ready to walk! She doesn't trust herself yet but she CAN stand on her on. She usually just slower lowers herself to the floor if she figures out we aren't holding onto her anymore. This is Kendall's old push along toy. The video is a little dark because the lighting in our living room is so crappy but you get the gist!

Oops, well, here is an extra. I uploaded this one first, but it's the wrong one.

Kendall's Picture Day

Kendall dressing herself for picture day.

Mommy dressing Kendall for Picture Day
Funny girl

9 months - Official photo shoot

Recent Avery developments:

• Learned to drink from a straw (at G & G Brewer's house last weekend)
• Stood for 1 1/2 seconds all by herself last night
• Has started really babbling and added Yah yah yah da da da. It's so cute when she's mad and she starts yell/crying it.

273.931649 days

9 months - Avery's age. She loves (in no certain order)...

• her sister - no one can make her change from crying to laughing in a nanosecond like Kendall.
• the cat - she almost breaks her neck trying to whip around to see him. The love is NOT reciprocated.
• chewing on shoes.
• chewing on the bathtub handles.
• chewing on stray pieces of carpet.
• dog food (well, TRYING to eat it, she's gotten it in her mouth, but not swallowed. Maybe I should let her eat it and she'll realize it's not so great.)
• the dog bowls. What is so great about these bowls? I've got no clue. Oh except that one is filled with fun cool water that is oh so much fun to splash all over the floor creating a serious hazard to all who dare pass.
• Cheerios. She's trying to convince us that's all the nutrition she needs. Perhaps she has forgotten that she is the 2nd child and that crap don't play in the Hurlbut household.

She is pulling up on everything and I'm sure will be walking soon. She started walking while holding onto things last week. She's got 6 teeth, 4 on top and 2 on bottom and they are sharp. Now she does this cute little scrunchy face smile when she's tickled with herself. It's a Kate-trait. Both girls have my ticks.

She's had a stuffy nose for almost 2 weeks now and it's really getting old. This kid is strong. Trying to wipe the nose of a baby you have in a bodylock is no fun. She turns into some sort of one piece muscle that is impossible to grasp. I usually end up having visual proof of the wrath of Avery...snot all over my shirt.

She is so much fun and time is passing all too quickly. I think that for Halloween she'll be an Octopus. I found a cute costume in the Family Circle magazine. More pictures to follow!

Avery's room

Here is the tree that I painted in Avery's room - copied from Pottery Barn of course. I don't have an original bone in my body but I can copy anything!!!! I painted it while I was still pregnant but I'm just now posting pictures. I LOVE my purple squirrel and my owl. Doing this was SO MUCH FUN! Who doesn't like painting on walls!!!

Visit at the 'rents

Had a great visit at my parent's this weekend. Ahhh...I miss the cold rainy 60 degree weather of Dallas - am I crazy? Now it's back to H-town - 80 degrees 100% humidity.

My parents and the girls

Cute picture of mom...Avery, not so much.

Grandma Tori and the girls

Grandpa Jim and his girls

Kendall clinging to the tree, trying to act brave.

Yucky, Stucky, Cal-a-ma-jucky

That's how I describe this past month. I've dreaded this time. I've dreaded it with all of my heart and I've hidden down here in Houston for as long as I can, hoping to stop time. I got the call on September 15th that my grandpa had passed away. This is my real dad's dad. I say "real" dad, because I feel like "biological" father leads people to believe that I have a dad still out there somewhere who has nothing to do with me. Long story short, my read dad passed away before I was born. My mother married Jim, my "current" real dad who has been there since I was a year old and is a wonderful father to me and now an even greater grandfather to my kids. He's been there my whole life and a dad doesn't get any more "real" than him.

But my original father's dad, Grandpa Anderson, has always held a special place in my heart. All of my grandparents have and I don't mean to belittle any of the relationships that I had with any of them. I was blessed to have 4 sets of grandparents. My dad and mom's and Jim's parents and his first wife's parents. Make sense!? We were a "brady bunch" sort of family - totally meshed together and were blessed enough to be welcome and accepted as "one of our own". Ohhhh....I am so rambling. I just want any and all that read this to realize how lucky and special I feel to have been blessed with such a HUGE family.

So 2 weeks ago I got the call about my Grandpa Anderson. He was 93, a farmer and what an honorable, incredible man. If I started to even try to describe him - well, I'm afraid that this entry would turn into a small novel. He was a farmer, an honest man, a simple but incredibly loving man. He'd drive us around the farm in his old blue truck. He lived in town with my Grandma but often went out to the farm off our FM409 - is that right?

The time that I have had with my grandparents (all of my extended family) is such a treasured time. Do they even know how much I love them? How much each and every moment I had with them meant to me? My heart aches for those days when we were all young. to have those days back. I want things to stay the same - for them to be here forever.

This weekend we went to my parent's house. We were supposed to go up to Nebraska but my Grandpa (my mom's dad) fell and broke his hip last week and had a replacement surgery. We were planning to visit this week - to make the looooooooong drive up to Nebraska but after much ado - decided it was best to wait on our trip. Adding 2 young children to an already stressful situation can only make things worse. Ah - there is so much I want to say. I need to make a separate entry about each trip.

So now, a mere 2 weeks later, my other Grandpa is nearing death. I hate this. I HATE this. He is old, 89 years and so very weak. He needs to go but my selfish being wants to cling to him. To hold him and never let go. I guess I'm afraid that all of the memories will go with him. I've known this day will come but my heart is still breaking. I'm falling apart...I'm barely breathing... so goes the song by Lifehouse that makes me fall apart every time I hear it. I am praying praying praying for my Grandpa as he nears death. Oh God, please be with him, take away his pain. I want to see him in Heaven. I pray vehemently that his heart's faith is in Jesus. I want to see him again.

So tonight, I take a break from life - to pray, to honor my sweet grandparents. Oh how I love them....down to my very bones...with all of my heart...all of my soul. I ache for them, but I am comforted in knowing that my heavenly Father is with them, now and I pray in the end.

I am not very "in your face" with my friends and family about my faith but I am not ashamed to say that I am a Christian. Recently I was tempted to say "Hey, everyone needs a little Jesus in their lives and when you are ready for Him - call me." I didn't say it, but well, maybe this is my opportunity. If you are my friend and you read my blog - I love you. You know my heart and if you need me, you'd better bet your butt I'm here for you.

Cali Trip

Palm Desert, California - September 1, 2009

On August 28th, we left our babies and ventured out for a trip to the great state of California. We used credit card points to get plane tickets and car rentals, then were able to trade in a timeshare week and so we went to Palm Desert (right next to Palm Springs). Well, it was certainly HOT. No humidity which was the only saving grace. No, forget that, that was no saving grace. The saving grace was the mister systems at the pool bar. Cooled it 20 degrees. NEXT HOUSE WE ARE INSTALLING ONE. Just to give you an idea - at 9 p.m. it was 105 degrees... I believe that it would be the first time I'd ever seen an egg fry outside - in the dark. Dangit, why didn't we try that while we were there?

Regardless of the temperatures it was still fun. Our friends Gene and Erica were our travel companions. The guys golfed and golfed and golfed some more. Our trip highlights included the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway, dinner at Peaks Restaurant (original name, eh?), Moorten Botanical Garden, Angels game, Trip to the Wineries in Temecula...and more food. I can't wait for the next trip! (somewhere cooler please!!!)

Palm Springs Aerial Tramway - top of Mt. San Jacinto

20 degrees cooler!!!! HAAAAAALLELUJAH!

Erica and I at Moorten Botanical Gardens

At the LA Angels of Anaheim Game vs Oakland

Erica, Gene and Mike

What's that smell? Oh, that's just my leg flesh burnt to the seat.

At Ponte Winery

Lisa Sliheet (now Larson) - Great friend from high school; lives in Cali

The last days of summer!

Here are a few pictures from our last days of summer. Kendall loves to paint and it was actually cool enough for her to go outside in the middle of the day. She's a little artist for sure!
A couple of weeks ago we had a wonderful visit by my good friends, The Lees. Pat was my 6th grade teacher and although she was tough on us and I didn't appreciate her nearly enough back then, I love her now! We had a wonderful evening. Pat and James are expecting their first grandbaby in December and had lots of fun playing with our girls. Kendall adored them of course. Who doesn't!?

And Little Miss Avery - she is chewing on EVERYTHING! She's got 5 teeth now. Three on top and two on the bottom. She has perfected crawling and pulling up. We are expecting that she'll be walking in the next couple of months. Today I'll be putting together a gate because she LOVES the stairs. Kendall could have cared less about them, but Avery is our little daredevil. Plus she has a big sister to keep up with!

Kendall painting. Isn't that such an artist's expression?

Pat Lee, Kendall and James Lee. Kendall is teaching them how to use an iPhone.

Avery gnawing...on everything.

Vintage Avery

Our sweet Avery was baptized today. In lou of my mom (and dad) not being able to come, I put Avery in my mom's dress. It's REALLY old (uh - 29 years old, right mom?!) and beautiful. Avery wore it well. It's definitely not an everyday dress. It meant a lot to have her in it. Kendall was too old to wear it when we baptized her, so it was a special "Avery only" moment. My mother-in-law took the good baptism pictures so I'll post those later, but here are the pictures I took this afternoon.

And she's off!

Well, Avery is REALLY crawling now. Daddy has been working hard coaching her. Kendall created a "toy trail" to encourage her (below the video). So my life will never be the same. Ty (the dog) is already annoyed as is the cat.

the toy trail

The Moss Visit

Last Friday Sarah (my college roommate - the blond one) came AAAAAALL the way down from North Houston with her 2 boys for the day. Her hubby was working out of town so we declared it party time. Well, as much crazy partying as you can do with 4 children under the age of 4. We all survived...we even went to the pool! Luckily we don't have kamikaze kids thats love to test their limits in the water. They were perfectly happy playing in the shallow 3 inch deep water. We survived and here are the pictures - taken with my new baby D40.

Avery wishing she could have hair like Kyle...she's on her way!

The old married couple...

Rocker Kyle...it's all that Metallica his daddy makes him listen to.