gipsons on the rocks

Tucker is trying to sit

2012-01-28T09:08:00.001-06:00

We have been "c" sitting all morning. I can sit for about a min and then I fall to my belly

Presley writes

2012-01-28T09:02:00.001-06:00

Presley an I were playing school today and we got her to write her name. I can't get over this stage of her life. She is learning so much so fast!!

Tucker at 2 months

2011-11-05T22:26:00.001-05:00

Tucker had his 2 month check up today. I was sure he would be close to 10 lbs but nope. Not this peanut. His stats at 2 months:
8lbs 13oz 8%
22.75in 95%

I am not sure how accurate that height is because of how they measured.
Tucker is such a sweet little man. He had such an exciting start to his life but you would never know it. He sleeps a lot but when he is awake he hardly makes a sound. He is as alert as hia big sister was as a baby. He is already standing with assistance for a lengthy period of time. The doctor said " he may be a peanut but he is a sturdy peanut."
I am so proud of how well he is doing. So is his sister. She is constantly saying "this is Tucker. He is mine." we are a blessed family!!

Halloween 2011

2011-11-03T11:34:00.001-05:00

This Halloween was super fun! I have lots of pictures I want to upload to this post but getting the post written first is the priority!!
We all went as pirates. Presley originally wanted to go as a princess's but when she walked in to the store and saw a sword she changed her mind to be a pirate. Dallas then went online and found us pirate costumes and Tucker and parrot! He was such a great parrot!
We had some neighborhood friends come over before we headed to trick or treat for some taco soup. The kids played until dark and then we gathered them up with their buckets and headed out for some candy. They kids had a wild time. As for Tucker...well his first Halloween was snuggled in to mommy in his snugly and he was happy as a parrot!!hahahaha

October in Mt Vernon!

2011-10-30T11:14:00.003-05:00

This year has been one busy fall season! Living in Mt.Vernon, VA has been such a blessing during the holidays. Our little community of Stratford landing is so small and close that it really doesn't feel like we are living so close to DC.
This week leading up to Halloween the kids have had so much to do. Presley got to dress up for a Fall Festival at her school and I got to go to her little class party and see all the little costumes! We also went with Mia to her school's Fall Festival and had another opportunity to dress up. At Mia's fall festival Presley had her face painted like a butterfly. I have to tell ya it was so beautiful and the lady did it so quickly.
This past weekend we had a birthday party, a hail and fair well, and a pumpkin carving contest all in the same day. Then on Sunday we had church and the neighborhood Halloween parade! Since we had so many opportunities for dressing up I thought I would add some pictures!!
Enjoy them an we will post more of our actual Halloween night later!!
Happy Halloween Eve!!

Cupcakes with Class

2011-04-26T15:25:00.005-05:00

We celebrated Presley's birthday today with her Preschool class. She was so cute when I showed up. I totally expected her to get all excited and jump up and down like she normally does when I show up to pick her up. NOPE! Instead all the other kids got excited and Presley saw me and just said "Hey Mom. You got my cupcakes?" She cracks me up.
I was so grateful that it was a beautiful day because we were able to do the cupcakes outside at the playground on some picnic tables! They all loved it and most importantly Presley loved it!

Cupcakes at MVPreschool-April 2010

Big weekend!

2011-04-24T20:17:00.003-05:00

Presley's 3rd Birthday and Easter!!

We had a great weekend. First, Saturday was Presley's 3rd birthday and we got to celebrate as a family. We woke birthday candle up and did our pancake breakfast with a her first birthday candle. She loved hearing her daddy and I sing happy birthday to her.
We then opened some gifts and then got ready to head to the movies. We went and saw Rio. What a cute movie. Presley danced every time a song came on. She can do a great Samba! =) After the movie we took her to Chuck E. Cheese for lunch. She ran around like a crazy person and barely ate a thing!
When we got home we decided to dye some easter eggs. We didn't have a lot of chance before that and wanted her to get to do it with both of us. It is really hard to dye eggs with a wiggly, spastic three year old! She was more interested in splashing in the dye than actually taking the time to wait on the eggs to get done!

Then we woke up this morning and she found her Easter basket next to her seat at the table. She did her normal GASP, followed by "Is this for me?!" While we ate we read the Easter story so that we could get all of us on the right mind set for the day. It was a sweet and beautiful moment sharing the Easter story with Presley at an age she is really starting to understand.

When we got home from church and lunch we did a make shift egg hunt in our back yard. I felt bad that Presley had not done an egg hunt yet due to bad weather in the area. We had so much fun. We hid eggs for her and she even hid eggs for us. Which meant dumping all the eggs in two piles and then shouting in her loudest voice (which is loud) exactly where the eggs were! It was a blast. We played with the bubble gun we got her for Easter and then came in and put together the 2 puzzles we gave her for her birthday.
I also decided to get a picture of the new little Gipson. My belly has really grown this week. It is a full on bump! Plus the little one is kick, kick, kicking ALL the time. I even felt little bit on the outside a few times last night. Unfortunately Dallas missed it because he was up working.

It was a great weekend!!!

Presley's 3rd Birthday Party in Mt. Vernon, Virginia

2011-04-16T21:22:00.003-05:00

Wanted to share some pictures of our great day! WE celebrated Presley's birthday today because some of her great friends were in town. We started the day by taking Presley and her 2 friends Bella and Ainsley to get manicures and pedicures. The ladies at the salon couldn't get enough of our three beautiful girls! The girls did so good. They all sat still and were so sweet to the ladies doing their nails. They all picked bright pink for their nails and blue/purple for their toes. It was a perfect start to a great day.
We came home after doing their nails and got ready for the party. We only invited a few kids from the neighborhood. Dallas made some KILLER hamburgers. Everyone went on and on about how amazing they were. And, they were! The kids loved their hotdog dinners and play time together! We ended the night with cake, a happy birthday song and opening presents. Presley got some gardening tools, a mermaid water toy and a barbie guitar. She was in heaven.
At the end of the night when we were getting her ready for bed she looked at Dallas and said "Dad, I am so sad that my birthday is over. =(" She couldn't be more excited when she found out that her actual birthday was next Saturday and that the Tuesday after that she would get to have a cupcake party with her class!! I think she is a fan of the birthday.!!!!!
Here are some pictures of the day! Hope you enjoy them!
Love you all and wish more than anything that you could all have been here to celebrate out special, one of a kind Presley!!
Click here to see some pictures of the party!

Presley's First Day of School

2011-04-07T13:49:00.001-05:00

Presley had her first day of preschool today! She looked like such a big girl with her little bag they gave her to carry to and from school with all her work from the day. She is going to Mount Vernon Presbyterian Preschool just a few minutes from our house. The teachers and curriculum are more than I could hope for. She will only be going 2 days a week til the middle of June and then in September she will go 3 days a week. The teachers couldn't believe how well Presley did considering it was her first day ever going to preschool. I explained she has done CDC drop off before but they were still impressed with a new situation and a new group of people that she adapted so well. I was proud. Of course, I am aware that my sweet girl isn't perfect, but adaptable is something she has been from birth!! I couldn't be more excited for this new milestone in Presley's life. I am so looking forward to the plays, field days, and even little homework assignments that will come with this era of her life!!

What has happened Cindy?

2010-08-05T08:35:00.002-05:00

So, I was reminded last night by a dear friend that I have not written on my blog in a while! I am so sorry. I got facebook and OPPS only have time for one! I am really liking having facebook but am really wonderin how great it is for me! Something I am still praying over. Anyways, I am hoping to do better with this blog!

Presley and I are currently in Panama City Beach, Fl visiting Dallas. He is doin really good in his class. We are both really proud of him. The days here for us have been hot, hot, hot!! We have done a lot of beach, pool,beach,pool repeat!

We did find a really cool jumpy castle place yesterday. The place is full of nothing but jumpy castles and is only for children 12 and under. They even have a specific toddler zone. I LOVED it! We will probably go back this afternoon. I really think that having somewhere to go inside is important when it is so hot outside!

Well, I need pictures, I realize but have to get my iPhone cord to put some on this post. I will have to do a whole post of my new iPhone 4! Not sure how I lived without a smart phone for so long. Of course, much like the facebook, I have to watch the time i give my phone. It can get in the way of living if you don't watch out!! =)

Check in again soon!!

Lanolium...what?

2010-05-19T18:00:00.004-05:00

Apparently my nephew Jonathan doesn't like the feeling of lanolium! Mom and Dad were in Decatur to go to Jonathan's baptism and she got this on video. It is also a great video of Brent,Crystal and Dylan. Although you can't you see any of them you can imagine what their nights at home must be like!! =)

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Embeded Mirena IUD

2010-05-11T20:19:00.005-05:00

I have some not so good news and good news. I went to see a doctor here in DC for the ever increasing pelvic pain that has nagged me for a year and a half. I decided to go to a doctor here because on top of my pelvic pain, we were having a hard time conceiving and I was having rectal pain that was getting more and more intense. When I got to the Dr I explained my whole last year with these issues. When she heard me mention that I had an IUD she asked where it was and I said the Dr did an ultrasound and said it "fell out" She, the Dr, then asked if he did an xray and I said, "No." but that I had asked for one. Her response was that you can't know for sure unless you do an X Ray. So, I did. Lo and behold. There is was. However, because of how it was laying they couldn't figure out exactly where it was but that it was just to the left of the mid line.

So, it was still near or in the uterine wall. After an all day search by gynecologist, sonographer and a Radiologist we finally found the exact location! It is embedded in the very outside wall of my uterus right up next to my rectum. It is so close to the outside it took them a while to figure out if it was outside the wall or still inside it. Apparently the cross part of the IUD is actually perforating the uterine wall and poking at my rectum. Yikes. They could see blood about the size of a quarter collecting in the "cul-de-sac" between my rectum and uterus. They are unsure of how much blood and adhesions are actually in there since it appears it was initially placed in my wall instead of my uterine cavity. It is crazy to think that all this time that is what has been wrong. But, because it has been in there almost 2 yrs they have no idea what to expect.

Since it is in the uterine wall they may have to cut me open instead of doing the surgey laparoscopically. My doctor is concerned that there will be lots of blood, adhesions and damage done to the uterus and my rectum. So,she asked the Gynecology Oncologist Surgeons to do the surgery because if there needs to be any rectal repair they will have license to do it all at once and will save me another surgery. The possibility of loosing the ability to have more children biologically with my body is very real. We are, of course, hoping for the absolute best outcome as we understand these scary things are what the doctors have to tell you to prepare you for the worse.

I guess the good part is I know now what is wrong and that I am not crazy. I have not been myself in 2 yrs. I have been tired, in pain, depressed, frustrated and I thought it was just me and that this was my new quality of life. But, apparently not only do I have the embedded IUD but I also have all the other negative side effects. Not to mention that for a year of this I had 2 contraceptives in me. My nuva-ring and the IUD. That is enough to make anyone crazy!! heehee. The doctor actually said to me, "How you are sitting in here pleasant and with a smile is beyond my comprehension. I know many other women who would be crawlin the wall by now!" That did make me feel good.

Thursday I go to meet with the surgeons. Hopefully we can get this surgery over and done with soon! Although we know this could be bad we are prepared for the worse and hoping for the best. I am just glad I serve the Comforter because He has already assured me that in the end it will all be OK!

Fun shots of Presley

2010-05-04T21:06:00.004-05:00

After Presley's first haircut last Saturday we had planned to go into DC and meet some friends who we knew from Italy! We spent some time at the Botanic Gardens which was beautiful. They have a great little Kid's Garden area that all 3 girls loved. The girls watered the flowers, played in a little house and were even able to make their own frangrant lotions! Super cute!

Dallas and I didn't get any pics of us with the family but we did get some of Presley! Her Daddy was taken back by how cute she looked after her haircut that he couldn't stop taking pics!!

botanic gardens

Natural History Museum

2010-05-04T20:15:00.005-05:00

We had such a great time at the Natural History Museum. This is actually a late post because we did this the Saturday after Presley's B-day but I wanted to go ahead and post it!

Dallas and I just wanted to a have a day that was all about her and us spending time together as a family! We were hoping to do the Zoo but it ended up raining all day! So,we opted for the museum.

Presley enjoyed the Ocean exhibit the most! We didn't do the butterfly exhibit because we used to do the butterfly exhibit in Gainesville all the time so we thought we would do something different. She also enjoyed the mammal area and the kid zone. She is really into magnifying glasses! She also enjoyed the African area with all the tribal songs...how I missed getting her doing tribal dances I have NO IDEA!!

national history museum

First Hair Cut

2010-05-02T22:29:00.005-05:00

We had a first hair cut this weekend!!
Presley did so good!
All we did was trim it up and give it shape but
I was so proud. She kept saying "I get a hair cut!"
She also kept asking to give her feet a bath....
the lady next to us was getting a spa pedicure!
Maybe my little tomboy will end up having a girlie edge
to her after all!!

Had to have the lollipop!

Thanks Daddy for keeping my attention forward!

Look at those curls!
Later that day in DC! She was showin'off the haircut!!

Presley turns 2!!!

2010-04-23T00:38:00.005-05:00

Happy Birthday to you!
Happy Birthday to you!
Happy Birthday to Presley
Happy Birthday to you!!!

Seriously? She is 2!!!!

When did that happen? I tell you this year has been one wild ride with more trips than I can count, more visitors to count and 2 moves. Presley has been a trooper through it all. I can't believe in a year how much she has grown and what a little lady she has become. I know that I am going to blink and somehow find myself at her high school graduation. Man! What a ride this parenting thing is!

Presley is now:

Singing full songs at the TOP of her lungs

Making up her own songs

Climbing Rock Walls

Talking up a storm

Mimicking EVERYONE

Dancing,Dancing,Dancing

Telling jokes...and she is FUNNY

She loves:

Her blanket (thanks Erin!)

Stickers

Balloons

Chocolate(help me)

Oranges

Bananas

Alvin and the Chipmunks

Dora(ok anything NickJR)

Waiting on her Daddy to come home at the end of the day(got to get this on video)

Putting Presley to bed tonight she looked up and and whispered in my ear "Mommy, I have Birthday cake?" and I answered, "Yes sweetie! Tomorrow on your birthday you will get to have birthday cake!" To which she replied, "Because I 2 morrow!" So proud of her upcoming event! This birthday is going to be so special. The fact that she knows what is happening and that a birthday means to celebrate her and her life is so amazing!!

I, in Cindy's truest form, have made a video highlighting her last year! She has changed tremendously and never stops....well...exactly...she never stops!! I just hope you can get a glimpse of her spirit from this video! What I wouldn't give for each of you to experience her and that spirit in person!

Happy Birthday my Presley! I love you more this birthday than I did the last!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Presley what do Gators say? "Chomp! Chomp!"

2010-01-14T22:28:00.003-06:00

The Saturday after we got home from the California/Spokane Dallas surprised Presley and I with tickets to the Florida/Flordia International game. Presley hadn’t been to a football game since the year before. I knew it would be a great game for her to go to because there wouldn’t be a huge crowd. It was so neat to realize that the year before Presley was breastfeeding at the game and this time she was able to walk into the stadium and even ask us for “Pwetzul and Dink?” Amazing what a year does. We ended up getting great seats! She had a BLAST! She totally enjoyed the band and all the attention she got with her pigtails and blue gator shirt on. It was wonderful surprise and a great thing for our family to do together as a way to reconnect after nearly a month apart from one another.

On the road again...to Spokane!

2010-01-14T22:16:00.002-06:00

I had been waiting 18 months for this trip. I able to go and spend some time with Kaci in an area of the country I hadn’t visited in 20 yrs. Kaci was hoping to move to DC around the October time frame. So, the plan was I would wait to make my trip out to Spokane when she made the move so I could save some money by not making two trips and I could help her with the move. Well, that didn’t happen, so we decided just to make the trip home with her and Katelynn after the Califonia trip.
Spokane was very nice! It was, however, very, very,very COLD!! It actually snowed on the Thursday we got there. The snow was beautiful! Presley didn’t know what to think. She had only seen snow once when she was about 8 months old, so to her it was all new. She kept saying, “Snow, Mommy, Snow!!” Like it was my first time seeing it too. Super sweet! So, we had to learn how to bundle up and brave the cold. Let’s just say that Presley was NOT a fan of that! It was really, really hard to get her in and out of a car seat bundled in a snow suit. Oh, yah. I hadn’t mentioned that. It is so cold in Spokane that you have to wear a snow suit. This is really cool when you are skiing. Not so cool when you have to wear it everywhere just to stay warm. To say the least, my Floridian baby didn’t really find comfort in that!
Kaci works at the Child Development Center at Fairchild AFB there in Spokane. I have kept Presley at home since she was born and thought it would be nice for Presley to go and play with other kids without me present. So, I left Presley in hourly care at Kaci’s CDC 2 days in a row to see how she would do in that type of an environment. She did great. She did cry for me but once she got to playing with the others she did just fine. The caregivers were so wonderful to take pictures of Presley playing! It was a great opportunity for both Presley and I. I was so grateful Kaci suggested it.
Katelynn and Presley had such a great time together. They played hard and even fought hard. Yes, they ended up fighting like sisters. Katelynn wanted to make sure that Presley knew that everything in her house was “HERS” and Presley wanted to make sure Katelynn knew she wasn’t afraid to take “her” things from her! So funny! One night Kaci and I built a fort for the girls to watch a movie and have a slumber party in. It was something I wanted to do with our girls since I had Presley. It reminded me of when Kaci and I were growing up!
Kaci and I even took an afternoon to get pedicures and facials. It was so relaxing. We both really needed it. Ok, her more than me but it was a nice treat. We had coffee and got to visit uninterrupted by little princesses. It was so wonderful to get to spend some quality time with Kaci. I have really missed her being close especially being a new mom. It was so nice to get to stay up after the girls had gone to bed and visit about anything and everything under the sun. It just wasn’t enough time. I miss her everyday and I wish everyday that we could be closer. But, for this season in our life we are not and there is a reason. I believe that with all my heart. I look forward to the day that I and my family do live closer to her and Katelynn!
Kaci and Katelynn-thank you so much for being such sweet hostesses. I love you both so much! I miss you and wanted to let you know how much fun both Presley and I had.
I had been waiting 18 months for this trip. I able to go and spend some time with Kaci in an area of the country I hadn’t visited in 20 yrs. Kaci was hoping to move to DC around the October time frame. So, the plan was I would wait to make my trip out to Spokane when she made the move so I could save some money by not making two trips and I could help her with the move. Well, that didn’t happen, so we decided just to make the trip home with her and Katelynn after the Califonia trip.
Spokane was very nice! It was, however, very, very,very COLD!! It actually snowed on the Thursday we got there. The snow was beautiful! Presley didn’t know what to think. She had only seen snow once when she was about 8 months old, so to her it was all new. She kept saying, “Snow, Mommy, Snow!!” Like it was my first time seeing it too. Super sweet! So, we had to learn how to bundle up and brave the cold. Let’s just say that Presley was NOT a fan of that! It was really, really hard to get her in and out of a car seat bundled in a snow suit. Oh, yah. I hadn’t mentioned that. It is so cold in Spokane that you have to wear a snow suit. This is really cool when you are skiing. Not so cool when you have to wear it everywhere just to stay warm. To say the least, my Floridian baby didn’t really find comfort in that!
Kaci works at the Child Development Center at Fairchild AFB there in Spokane. I have kept Presley at home since she was born and thought it would be nice for Presley to go and play with other kids without me present. So, I left Presley in hourly care at Kaci’s CDC 2 days in a row to see how she would do in that type of an environment. She did great. She did cry for me but once she got to playing with the others she did just fine. The caregivers were so wonderful to take pictures of Presley playing! It was a great opportunity for both Presley and I. I was so grateful Kaci suggested it.
Katelynn and Presley had such a great time together. They played hard and even fought hard. Yes, they ended up fighting like sisters. Katelynn wanted to make sure that Presley knew that everything in her house was “HERS” and Presley wanted to make sure Katelynn knew she wasn’t afraid to take “her” things from her! So funny! One night Kaci and I built a fort for the girls to watch a movie and have a slumber party in. It was something I wanted to do with our girls since I had Presley. It reminded me of when Kaci and I were growing up!
Kaci and I even took an afternoon to get pedicures and facials. It was so relaxing. We both really needed it. Ok, her more than me but it was a nice treat. We had coffee and got to visit uninterrupted by little princesses. It was so wonderful to get to spend some quality time with Kaci. I have really missed her being close especially being a new mom. It was so nice to get to stay up after the girls had gone to bed and visit about anything and everything under the sun. It just wasn’t enough time. I miss her everyday and I wish everyday that we could be closer. But, for this season in our life we are not and there is a reason. I believe that with all my heart. I look forward to the day that I and my family do live closer to her and Katelynn!
Kaci and Katelynn-thank you so much for being such sweet hostesses. I love you both so much! I miss you and wanted to let you know how much fun both Presley and I had.
I had been waiting 18 months for this trip. I able to go and spend some time with Kaci in an area of the country I hadn’t visited in 20 yrs. Kaci was hoping to move to DC around the October time frame. So, the plan was I would wait to make my trip out to Spokane when she made the move so I could save some money by not making two trips and I could help her with the move. Well, that didn’t happen, so we decided just to make the trip home with her and Katelynn after the Califonia trip.
Spokane was very nice! It was, however, very, very,very COLD!! It actually snowed on the Thursday we got there. The snow was beautiful! Presley didn’t know what to think. She had only seen snow once when she was about 8 months old, so to her it was all new. She kept saying, “Snow, Mommy, Snow!!” Like it was my first time seeing it too. Super sweet! So, we had to learn how to bundle up and brave the cold. Let’s just say that Presley was NOT a fan of that! It was really, really hard to get her in and out of a car seat bundled in a snow suit. Oh, yah. I hadn’t mentioned that. It is so cold in Spokane that you have to wear a snow suit. This is really cool when you are skiing. Not so cool when you have to wear it everywhere just to stay warm. To say the least, my Floridian baby didn’t really find comfort in that!
Kaci works at the Child Development Center at Fairchild AFB there in Spokane. I have kept Presley at home since she was born and thought it would be nice for Presley to go and play with other kids without me present. So, I left Presley in hourly care at Kaci’s CDC 2 days in a row to see how she would do in that type of an environment. She did great. She did cry for me but once she got to playing with the others she did just fine. The caregivers were so wonderful to take pictures of Presley playing! It was a great opportunity for both Presley and I. I was so grateful Kaci suggested it.
Katelynn and Presley had such a great time together. They played hard and even fought hard. Yes, they ended up fighting like sisters. Katelynn wanted to make sure that Presley knew that everything in her house was “HERS” and Presley wanted to make sure Katelynn knew she wasn’t afraid to take “her” things from her! So funny! One night Kaci and I built a fort for the girls to watch a movie and have a slumber party in. It was something I wanted to do with our girls since I had Presley. It reminded me of when Kaci and I were growing up!
Kaci and I even took an afternoon to get pedicures and facials. It was so relaxing. We both really needed it. Ok, her more than me but it was a nice treat. We had coffee and got to visit uninterrupted by little princesses. It was so wonderful to get to spend some quality time with Kaci. I have really missed her being close especially being a new mom. It was so nice to get to stay up after the girls had gone to bed and visit about anything and everything under the sun. It just wasn’t enough time. I miss her everyday and I wish everyday that we could be closer. But, for this season in our life we are not and there is a reason. I believe that with all my heart. I look forward to the day that I and my family do live closer to her and Katelynn!
Kaci and Katelynn-thank you so much for being such sweet hostesses. I love you both so much! I miss you and wanted to let you know how much fun both Presley and I had.

Spokane

Visiting the CaliCooks

2010-01-14T22:01:00.003-06:00

After visiting with my parents in DC for a week Presley and I headed back to Gainesville to get ready for our next 2 trips. We were home for 3 days before we headed to California to meet the newest member of the Cook family and to visit Dylan, Brent and Crystal. Jonathan had been born 6 weeks earlier and we were anxious to get to see him.
It was so wonderful to get to see Dylan, Crystal and Brent again. It was also super wonderful to get to meet little Jonathan. He was so tiny and Dylan had gotten so big. Dylan is almost as tall as I am and he is only 8yrs old. He is either really tall or I am really short. I guess it could be both!! Brent and Crystal looked really great too. Crystal looked amazing. She had just had a baby 6 weeks prior to our visit and surgery 3 days before we came. At the beginning of her pregnancy with Jonathan her doctors found a tumor on her kidneys. They wanted to wait until Jonathan was born before they removed it. Once they removed the tumor they found out that it was definitely cancerous. As you can imagine it was very heartbreaking for the family. However, PRAISE GOD, they got it all in the surgery! I just couldn’t get over how calm and relaxed Brent was, how sweet Jonathan was, how helpful Dylan was and how great Crystal looked with all they had gone through in the last month and a half!
Presley had an absolute blast with her cousin Dylan. Every morning she would wake up saying “Dilden(Dylan) where awre eww(where are you)?” She loves him. Dylan played catch with her outside, taught her how to drum and play rock band, let her play with his wedgits and played chase with her around the house. He is the only super hero she knows! After we came home she would walk around calling for Dylan thinking he would miraculously appear.
We got to watch one of Dylan’s games while out visiting them. He is a fantastic football player! That game Dylan scored let her play with his wedgits and played chase with her around the house. He is the only super hero she knows! After we came home she would walk around calling for Dylan thinking he would miraculously appear.
We got to watch one of Dylan’s games while out visiting them. He is a fantastic football player! That game Dylan scored 3 touchdowns and made 4 tackles one of which was the winning play of the game. I couldn’t believe how easy it all seemed to come to him. He is a natural athlete. He also does pretty good at track! We were at a park that had a mile and a quarter track around it that he ran in 12 mins. CRAZY!! I can’t wait to see him excel in every sport he participates in.
Kaci and Katelynn drove down a couple days after we got to California so that all the Cook grandkids could all spend some time together. It had been 18 months since we had all been together. S o, eventhough Kaci had to drive 12hrs one way so we could all be together I would venture to say that she would say it was worth it. All 4 of the kids are the same age difference of the 4 Cook Kids. My mom took a picture of Brent, Kaci, Dusty and I at the exact same age that all 4 of the grandbabies were when we got together. We tried to reinact that picture by stair staking the kids. We haven’t been able to find the original picture my mom took but the one we were able to get came out GREAT!
Crystal and Brent took us to a few California wineries. It was so nice. The one we went to in Napa was awesome. I think it was called Vi Sattui. The buildings on the winery property were beautiful. All I could think about was weddings the whole time we were there! =) We got lunch from the deli and ate our lunch on the picnic tables on the lawn. Dylan couldn’t join us because he was in school but Katelynn and Presley really enjoyed running around and chasing all the birds on the lawn. Brent, Kaci and I did some wine tasting while Crystal, the girls and Jonathan enjoyed playing outside. The wine was really good. I enjoyed the company of the guys working the tasting bar. They were very nice! The whole trip was great.
One night Crystal had a great idea to take the kids to Build a Bear. What a great idea! Presley had never done the Build a Bear and had a great time. Of course the noise the stuffer machine made did freak her out a bit but the whole part of picking out the bear and all the clothes and accessories really thrilled her. I am sure it all was very expensive but Presley now clings to her Scout bear like it is her lifeline! That is going to be a memory and a security for her for a long time! Thanks Crystal for the idea!
It was so wonderful getting to see all of them. It really only made me home sick for family. Wishing we could be closer so that we and our kids could see eachother more. I know that I had a wonderful time and Presley did too. But, it was time for us to move on to the second part of this trip. We had decided that since Kaci was going to already be in California that I would drive back up to Spokane with her so we could see where her and Katelynn had been living for the past year and a half. So after a very short 5 days at Brents we headed to Kaci’s.
Brent and Crystal-thank you for letting us come and hang out. I know that it was a lot after all your company and after Crystal’s surgery and know that it was a sacrifice to have all of us in your space. I just wanted you to know that I loved all of my time there and that your niece Presley loves you both very much.

Cali Trip

DC Trip

2010-01-06T18:14:00.003-06:00

After Dallas’ marathon Presley and I stayed behind to spend some extra time with my mom and dad in DC. We are due to move to DC in July and I wanted to get the opportunity to look around the area and look at some homes before the move. Dallas, however, had to be back in Gainesville for school, so I did most of the looking myself. I was happy with most of the homes we found. We still are trying to make the decision on whether or not we will buy or rent. It is a tough decision but I am confident we will make the right one!
It was wonderful to be in DC during the fall season. Wow!! The colors of the trees in the North East are immaculate!! The trees literally glow orange, yellow and red! The air was actually a crisp fall feel. Every town we went to were preparing for their annual fall festivals! It was wonderful. It was a definite welcomed break from the 90 degree weather in Florida.

My mom and dad really enjoyed having Presley for the week. It was wonderful to watch Presley with them. She loves her Mae and Popa! It is so wonderful that she trusts them instantly even though she only sees them a few times a year. She enjoyed crawling all over Popa like a jungle gym! She enjoyed jumping in raked up leaves with Mae and learning to climb trees! Mae also introduced her to caterpillars. There were so many fuzzy caterpillars in their driveway and Presley thought they all belonged to her. She would stand over them and talk to them like they had come over for tea. However, if you tried to get her to actually hold one she would flip out! The video of that is actually pretty funny!!

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One night we went over to my mom’s good friend’s house for dinner. Jeff and Susie have been friends of the family since I was in the 7th grade. She pretty much watched me grow up. So, it was such a treat for me to get to take Presley to their house and let them spend some time with my daughter. We had a wonderful time. Presley became very good friends with their dog Scarlet. Scarlet is one of the prettiest dogs I have seen. She had a gorgeous reddish, auburn coat and a gorgeous face!! Presley kept going up to the Scarlet and kissing her on her nose. Scarlet was so wonderful with Presley too.
Presley and I were in DC over Halloween. I was a little sad that Dallas was going to miss getting to participate in Halloween with Presley, but it was fun for my mom and dad. Presley went as a little bee. She was adorable! She walked around that night going, “Buzz, Buzz, Buzz!” Such a cutie. We went over to my mom’s good friend, Pat’s house. Pat made hot dogs and appetizers for Presley and two other little kids before they went trick or treating. We did the trick or treating in Pat’s neighborhood. Presley only lasted about 45 min trick or treating. Once we were done we went back and let Presley eat her first piece of chocolate! She is definitely a woman! She loves the chocolate. It was a wonderful Halloween!
The trip was so fun! Presley had so much fun with Mae and Popa and all the fun fall activities we got to do while in DC. I wish that we could have stayed longer but we had to get home to prepare for our next 2 trips!

DCTrip

He DID IT!!! 26.2 MILES!!!

2009-12-09T10:16:00.009-06:00

On Oct. 25th, 2009 Dallas accomplished something many people only dream about! He finished his first marathon! That's right-he RAN 26.2 miles!

About 6 months prior Dallas and the 3 guys who will go through dive school with him all signed up for the Marine Corp Marathon. Dallas, not being a runner, was nervous from the beginning but knew with the help of the other guys that this may be his chance of fulfilling the dream of finishing a marathon.

The day of the marathon I was so nervous for him. I just couldn't imagine running for that long. His original goal was to finish in under 5 hrs. That changed about 2 months before the race to under 4hrs 30 min. Then, when we arrived at registration he decided he would sign up for the 4:15 pace group and see how it would go.

That morning mom, dad, Presley and I were running late. I just knew we would miss the beginning of the race. There were soooo many people there watching at the start line. Some how we just made it in time. However, being 5 ft nothing I couldn't see anything for the crowd. Some how my mom found a hole in the crowd and was able to get up on a hill with a perfectly clean shot of the start line. I knew we probably wouldn't see Dallas but at least we would get footage of the beginning of the race.

The announcer began his 2 minute speech before the race. He mentioned many places around the United States where people had come from. He reminded all the racers of how hard they had worked to get to this place. He reminded them of what a special race the Marine Corp was. He reminded them that the day would forever be special and that they were there to stay healthy and complete the race-Start to Finish! The canons fired and I couldn't stop screaming...and crying. I realized at that moment even if he didn't get the time he wanted that Dallas would forever be able to share this experience with his children and their children. I was beyond proud. Then, I looked down....and there was DALLAS!! I couldn't believe it! Out of 20,000+ people we were on the right side where he running. We caught him right as he was setting his watch and before he began running. He gave us one of his "Dallas slanted smiles" that said so much! It said, 'Man, I am so glad I saw you guys!', 'Well, here goes nothing', 'What was I thinking?', 'Isn't this cool?', 'Wow, I can't believe I am here!', 'See ya'll at the finish line!" He was ready to go.

We decided to try and see him at mile 10, 16,20 and the finish. We had thought about only doing 3 stops but I realized that I wanted to see him as much as possible. So, with my Dad's knowledge of DC we were able to pretty easily follow Dallas. On our way to see him at mile 10 we passed the Seabee Memorial. All these times I had been to DC and didn't even know there was one. It made me smile and helped me to see that the Marine Corp Marathon really is in a different league than other races. Its not just about the running. It is about people remembering those fallen, missing and still fighting for our freedom.

We got to mile 10 and there were tons of people. We had not told Dallas that we would try and see him there so we were sure he wouldn't see us. We weren't even sure we would see him. We did get to see 2 of the other guys there. It was really cool to get to see them and they both looked like they were just going for a stroll. So funny! Right after seeing them there was a big running pace group that came around the corner. I didn't think Dallas would be with them because it seemed to be the 4hr 10min pace group. All of a sudden my dad said, "there he is!" So we all started yelling like our lives depended on us. But, he didn't hear us. We were too far away! I did, however, get teary eyed because I realized he was beating the time he set for himself.

After mile 1o we walked across to mile 16. Wow, this area was hard to get a spot to see him at. It seemed like that was where everyone wanted to meet for food and energy gels. I almost didn't get to see him because I was trying to get my mom's attention and then all of a sudden I got grabbed by the arm. I turned and it was him! He stopped just long enough to say hi and kiss Presley. He looked so good. NOT like he had run 16 miles! Dad looked down at his watch and said, "Cindy-do you realize he is running a 4hr 8 min pace?" I couldn't believe it and I could. Wow!

So, we thought we would hustle to mile 20. This is where it gets interesting for us. We were suppose to go straight on a path to mile 20-instead we turned left. Once we realized we had made a wrong turn we were halfway to our destination and with Dallas running and us walking, pushing a stroller we were not sure we would catch him. So, we started running. We looked soooo funny! We got to mile 20 just a minute before Dallas came running by. I was standing up on a side rail so that he would be able to spot the WOOOO PIG SOOOIE sign I was carrying. We hollered for him and he ran over to us smiling and waving. Mom had Presley down on the street level and ran her next to her daddy for a few feet. I wish I had video of that because it was so precious.

We realized then that he was still running a 4hr 9min pace and that if we didn't book it he would be a the finish line before we could get there. So, we started running again. It was really tough to get the stroller up and over a lot of the areas we needed to go through to get to the finish line fast. So, dad told me to run ahead. I ran as fast as I could. By the time I got to the finish line I was barely breathing. It was like straight up a hill. Needless to say, I felt for poor Dallas! My mom and dad made it in time and we stood at the finish waiting for Dallas to cross. The 4hr 10 min mark came and went. We knew that Dallas had slowed down. All of a sudden we saw him! Here he came around the corner for the last stretch of his run. We looked at the clock and he was getting ready to beat his 4hr 30 min goal! He crossed the finish line at 4:17:29 with a 9:49 pace. He said that at mile 24 he hit a wall and it was everything he had to finish!

But, HE DID IT! He finished and in a very respectable time for a first marathoner. I don't think he can say he isn't a runner now! I guess that is relative when one of the guys that went is a running junkie! He runs a marathon a month. His time was like 2hrs 52 mins. He finished like 88 out of 20,000! Yah, I know-super crazy. One of the other guys, Mark, finished in like 3hrs 8mins(I think) and was running a 103 fever that day and had been sick with the flu the week before! Really? These guys are like robots! Ben, the other guy I saw at the 10 mile marker finished somewhere around the 3hr 45min mark. So, needless to say-they all smoked it.

I was so proud on that day! I was proud of our friends and I was beyond proud of Dallas! I was also inspired. There were so many people running for family/friends who were in Iraq or Afghanistan fighting the war and many who were running in memory of someone they lost. Dallas ran behind a lady who had a t-shirt with a Sgt's name on it, his birthday and day that he passed. The shirt said "Sgt XXX. KIA. Today I run for my son!" What an inspiration. Then you had the guys who were amputees that did the whole race on the bikes that you peddle with you arms. Dallas said that they got a 10 min start and he only passed like 2 of them. Simply remarkable.

It was, in conclusion, one of the coolest things to witness and be a part of. It is so hard to have a dream and to commit to that dream and make it happen. So many people leave their dreams in the dream phase. On that day over 20, 000 people made their dream a reality. And, let me tell you. The energy that you feel in an environment with that many people fulfilling a hard earned dream is something everyone should experience. It is electrifying!

I uploaded all the pictures from the expo on Saturday night and all the pictures from the race. Click here to see them. But, you know that I HAD to do a slide show. I finally sat down last night a decided it was time to make it since we are coming up on 2 months since the race.

Dallas-I love you....and I am proud of you! You did it babe!!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Mumsie and Grandad Visit

2009-11-30T14:50:00.000-06:00

Mumsie and Grandad came to town!!!!

We were so super blessed to get to have a wonderful visit with Dallas' mom and dad. We met them Friday, the 9th of November, in Panama City. They were already driving down and we needed to look at some houses for our stay there during Dallas' dive training. So, they were very helpful as far as Presley was concerned as we looked at a few places. We ended up finding a great place right on the water-the lagoon, not the beach. Hopefully I can get some pictures to upload to the blog.

Mumsie and Grandad always come bearing gifts. So the first day we were back in Gainesville we got to see all the goodies they had for Presley. Mary is the champion shopper. God bless her because I don't know how she does it. Anyways, after going through 7 bags of clothes, one bag of shoes and a bag of books and toys she brought in a little bike for Presley. It is a little tricycle. Presley fell in love with it immediately. After driving it all over our house we decided we needed to take her to the park and let her ride around there. The only problem was her feet were a bit too short. Not a problem now. A month ago she couldn't really steer the bike with her feet now she can with no problems!! Anyways, so we took her to the park and let her ride her bike. It was such a beautiful day we decided to stay and play on the playground equipment. They got to see first hand the monkey that is Presley!

We did our usual walk around Lake Alice that we do with all of our friends and family who visit. It is such a signature of this town that I try not to pass it up. It was such a pretty day the day we went. Yes, it was hot,but it is always hot here. It was October and look at what my daughter is in. Heck, we went swimming while they were here. Anyways, we had a such a great time looking at all the plants, birds and squirrels. I told them it was possible to see gators in the lake but that we don't always see them. WEll, it was their lucky day. We had one swim right up to us. Presley is big time into kissing everything and went running toward the water going "MMMMMMWAH!" It was hard to explain to a little girl who sees no evil in this world that the alligator could hurt her. She didn't understand. She just wanted to kiss him!! Heehee!! I guess that is the brainwashing she is getting living in a town that adores and worships Gators!!! Hahaa!

After our walk around Lake Alice, I decided to take them to the butterfly museum. I had been wanting to take my mom, since she obsessed with butterflies, but never had the chance while she was here. So, I thought I would take Mary and Gary instead. It was something I wanted to do anyways and thought they would enjoy watching Presley chase butterflies. It was such a beautiful place. It is a little rainforest right here in Gainesville. I didn't expect as many butterflies as there were. The rainforest itself is not very big at all, but all I kept thinking was what a magical world it must have felt like to Presley. I know when I was little I sure thought places were bigger than they ended up being as an adult! Anyways, all the butterflies were beautiful and it was something I will always remember about Gainesville.

On Friday we took Mumsie and Grandad to our usual Friday play place. It is a gym that allows little ones to age 4 or 5 to come and play on the gym equipment, trampolines and foam pits for a few hours in the morning. Presley really enjoys herself at this place. I think it is a wonderful place for gross motor development. I think Gary and Mary really enjoyed watching her run around, jump around, dance around and swing around!

That weekend was the Akansas vs Florida game. We were so greatful that they stayed to Sunday so that we could go to game without Presley. We have wonderful friends here in town who would keep her, but I felt bad about leaving her for 5 hours with someone. Plus they knew her routine for bedtime which is a big deal for me to keep. Dusty, my baby brother, came down to go with Dallas and I to the game. We could only get tickets in the student section (long story). So, we sat the whole game...which until the last 9 minutes of we were WINNING!! Let's just say the Gators fans around us were not happy we were there! We ended up loosing by only 3! It was such a great game to be at and I was so excited to get to see the Razorbacks in person! I haven't seen an Arkansas football game in 4 years. So, thank you Mary and Gary for allowing us to go and not have to worry about Presley!

It was a wonderful week and made us wish we could be closer. However, I do think that the times we do spend together,although few, are very special. Presley loves her Mumsie and Grandad so much. She asked about them for days after they left. I know she is going to have so much fun when we are there at Christmas. God has definitly blessed me with wonderful in-laws and blessed Presley with incredible grandparents....they are a blessing to Dallas as well!! heehee Mary and Gary-I hope you enjoyed your trip and will remember your time with Presley fondly!

18 months old

2009-11-29T14:25:00.008-06:00

Presley turned 18 months old on the 23rd of October. We were in DC at the time, then Presley and I left to go to California and Washington. To say the least I haven't really had the time to blog. I did, however want to go ahead and do this blog before I got to the others.

We had Presley's 18 month check up earlier in October.
She is 20lbs 12 oz
and 31in long

She is already half my height AND only gained 12oz in 6 months. So, I have determined that all the food she stuffs in her mouth is helping her grow vertically ONLY! If this continues it would be beneficial to her as an adult woman!! =) Right, ladies?

Presley is an absolute joy at this age. She is talking, talking, talking. She is now talking in sentences. Her favorite is "I want my milk!" With all the demand of a general! She runs everywhere. Climbs on everything. Hides under and behind most things. Screams "PARK!" anytime she sees one. Likes to yell "MOMMY, MOMMY, MOMMY!" at the top of her lungs (even if she is standing right next to me) until I look down and say "Yes, Presley!" To which, she grins ear to ear, shakes her head "YES" and then runs off as if all is right in her world. She has an undeniable passion for life and her people in it.

Presley is also very much into toddlerhood. She knows how to kick and whine when she doesn't want to be moved or when we don't understand what she wants or exactly how she wants it. This is something we cringe at and love. Most of these tend to be from her inability to communicate verbally. So once she is done with her meltdown-which she "must" do-we give her the words for the situation to which she repeats them with glee. Then, she almost always replays the last scene except this time she uses her new words. She is such a big girl!

Her hair is getting so long and curly. Her eyes still glow an icey blue. She has all but 4 of her baby teeth and is growing some longer legs. She loves to read, color, ride bikes, play outside, JUMP, swing, cook, blow bubbles, sing(she does Ee, Ei, Ee,Ei,OO over and over) and she loves watching Baby RAzorbacks!!

Presley is so far from the little baby I held in my arms April 23, 2008 and yet when I look at her I go right back to that first day. In the words of my best friend Missy, "What did we ever do before we had children?" They really are a joy!

10yr High School Reunion

2009-11-03T12:14:00.003-06:00

The first weekend of October was my 10 yr high school reunion for the class of 1999! Dallas,Presley and I traveled to Sumter Friday night and stayed with my best friend, Sarah and her family. I do have to say it was a little surreal. I felt like it was old times again. Except this time I was accompanied by my husband and daughter...not a boyfriend and a cheer practice bag. Man, how 10 years have flown by!

Friday night I went to the game and visited with a lot of my old classmates. I couldn't believe how many of them were there! It was so wonderful to be in that stadium and hearing the familiar sounds of the SHS marching band. However, I do have to say the view from the stands is a whole lot different than the sidelines!! After the game we met up with some more people at a bar called Legacies there in town. It was so wonderful to have that extra time to catch up but it was so difficult to hear over the loud live band!

Saturday was a wildly busy day. Sarah and I got up Saturday morning and headed to the country club to set up the tables and such for the "Gala" that evening. Then we headed back to the house to collect babies and husbands and headed to Swan Lake for the family picnic. I was most glad to do the picnic. We were able to meet all the babies and children and were able to visit without much noise and interruption. Plus, we did it where people could pick up lunch and bring it with them so if people couldn't afford the "Gala" they could STILL come and visit and catch up with old classmates.

We were at the park until 2pm that day. Presley and Banks were well past their nap times! We layed the kids down and were able to visit with just the 4 of us. That evening the grandparents-Mae and Popa and YaYa and Papa-took Banks and Presley to the fair! It was so wonderful that they did that so we could get ready without little ones trying to crawl up our legs!!

We headed to the country club where we visited and danced the night away. I think I talked a lot more than I danced, but I felt like I had a lot to catch up on seeing as it had been 10 years. I can't tell you how proud I am of all of my classmates. We had stay-at-home moms, managers, military, doctors, lawyers, zoologists and even a coutry music artist in our class. We all turned out so well. Well, I guess of the ones who showed. Seeing as we graduated over 600 in our class-I am sure making a general comment like that about 100 of us is maybe not fair! Anyways, it was an incredible visit and I am super glad I was able to be so involved.

Sunday we met up with Dusty and his buddy, Tripper. We have known Tripper 10 years. He is pretty much family. Actually, he calls my mom and dad...umm...mom and dad!! We had brunch with him and his new wife, Lauren. She was so precious! I was so happy to meet her. Presley loved them both! After that we headed back home to get ready for our visit with Mumsie and Grandad. It was such a wonderful weekend!

Playing with Presley

2009-11-03T12:10:00.002-06:00

This summer Presley has really grown up! Just 9 months ago she went from crawling and babbling to running, jumping, climbing, talking, singing, dressing up, eating on her own, swimming...you name she is doing it or trying it! It is so incredible. I can't believe what a big girl she is becoming. Here are some fun pictures of us playing over the last few months.

We made homemade playdo one day! Good thing Dad came home to show her all the cool things she could make with it! They are such engineers...both of them!! Didn't get pictures of all their creations. =(

I have taken a lot of video over the last few months, but this one captures most of our evenings. Once Daddy comes home for the evening we spend most of it running and playing. This one is Dallas and Presley's favorite thing to do...besides pull-ups!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

This is a video of Presley playing with Ben and Abby. I am soooo glad we have dogs. Yes, they are hard. Yes, they make it difficult when we travel or go out of town. Yes, they are extra money. Yes, it is not always fun letting them outside or walking them at night. BUT, MAN, it is so much fun to watch Presley with them. If nothing else I am sooo glad we got them so that she could have them to play with!! She is hillarious with them and they are so good with her!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Summer Review

2009-11-03T12:00:00.002-06:00

We had a wonderful summer! It was such a blessing to have our community pool next door. Presley became such a water baby! She was jumping into the pool before she was a year old and going under and holding her breath for a significant amount of time. She can "swim" under water to someone (not very far-maybe an arms distance away) but we still have a hard time getting her to kick above the water! Anyways, she had a wonderful time! Here are some fun pics of her in the water!

Silver Springs

2009-11-03T11:30:00.005-06:00

We went to an amusement park here called Silver Springs this summer and I have neglected to blog about it. This was a trip with just the 3 of us. We are starting to realize that we do far too little immediate family trips and doing this one made us realize how important that is!

Silver Springs is a mini-zoo...well that is what I like to call it. Its main attraction, however, is the spring. While we were there we were able to see all kinds of animals and even ride in a glass bottom boat! Presley really liked the boat and all the birds!!
While we were there it down poured! Dallas and I have a knack for planning big things when it rains. Right, Lisa and Brandi? When both of them came to visit this summer we picked the nastiest days to do our big fun activity! You would think we would learn to check the weather channel!! OH NO! NOt us! Planning is for the birds! Anyways, enjoy the pics! We sure had a great time

Go Hogs Go....

2009-09-23T13:39:00.007-05:00

Last Saturday we were very excited to finally get to the Arkansas Razorbacks play ball on ESPN! I was even more excited because Presley has been taking to Calling The Hogs ALLLLL the time! So, I was excited to get to actually show her what that is all about.

I was so excited to finally get her to do this on camera in a cheerleading uniform. I totally thought I wasn't going to be that parent that pushed things on her children but from the looks of it we are really pushing this cheerleading thing! Anyways, I followed that poor child around alllll day trying to get her calling the hogs on video. She was not happy with that camera in her face

Poor thing! Would you be happy if someone followed you around like this.....

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So I had to take a break and let her play. I finally got some of her atleast smiling but WHY when she is playing with the Gators?!! Mommy is doing EVERYTHING to make sure her precious little razorback is not brainwashed by this silly town!

BUT....WAIT....we FINALLY got something. The Hog Call normally is said: Woooo Pig Sooie, Woooo Pig Sooie, Wooooo Pig Sooie, Razorbacks!! She normally will atleast to all 3 times without the Sooie, but this is the best we could do after chasing her around all day with a camera!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

updates and 5k

2009-09-13T12:04:00.004-05:00

I just wanted to prepare you all for my blogathon! We have had soooo much fun this summer that by the time Presley is asleep, and I have time to blog, I just sit on the couch like a vegetable. Yes, I admit it! I am not the mom that goes from 7-10:30pm. I sometimes do, but also allow myself veg time! Don't be disappointed. If you were wanting super mom I can point you in the direction of my mom, my mom-in-law, my grandma, aunts, sister, sister-in-law, cousins, friends...these women do still exist. I digress. So, that said, tonight is the night that I have planned to catch you up on all things summer. Well, at least the last month or so. So, you may want to stretch, warm up, eat the right foods, and make sure you are hydrated for the next time you check out the blog!

Until then I wanted to tell you all about our fun Sat we had this weekend. Background: on Monday of last week I was doing a little 1 1/2 run and was feeling phenomenal. I had a thought of, "Ya know, if I feel this good on a 1 1/2 I should just run a 5k" I haven't run a 5k since Presley was born. I honestly didn't think these trunks of mine would hold up to running, but I wanted to do this. I just wanted to do it. Getting out there is the first hurdle, right? Anyways, I went online and found a charity run supporting Lou Gehrig's Disease that was donation based and it was 5 days away. I thought, "Perfect!" Usually it costs at least $25 to run most events, so finding one that I could donate what I wanted was great! We started the race and I felt great! For about a mile I was running an 8:15 pace. Dallas looked at me at one point and said, "Can you keep this pace?" I didn't think we were going that fast until we got to the halfway point and realized I had half the race to go...and my pace slowed significantly...like to a 10:15 or even slower...hahahaha!!! Anyways, we finished the race in 35 min. Not too bad for not training at all!! 3 miles for some people is no big deal...it is for me! Plus, we did it as a family! I have to tell you that Presley looked so comfortable in her stroller. It seemed like that 5k didn't phase her a bit!! Heehee. It was fun and we got to support a great cause! There is absolutely NO WAY, and I am sure of it, that I could have done that had I not been doing my Beachbody programs. Right now we are doing ChaLEAN Extreme again and the conditioning of that program is incredible. I was also able to borrow her positive comments like, "This ain't no big thing!" and "I can do this! I am strong" instead of letting my mind tell me I couldn't! It was fun and I can't wait for our next one.

Yard work

2009-09-03T21:56:00.004-05:00

Today I decided I would take Presley out and do some yard work. It was a crazy afternoon. Before we started on the yard I wanted to sweep out the garage. I needed to move my car out of the garage before I could do that. I got in the driver seat and proceeded to try and turn on the car and realized I didn't have the key(our car can start with just the key present. It doesn't have to be in the ignition) and needed to get it out of Presley's diaper bag. So, I got out of the car(leaving the door open) and see my neighbor walking her dog so we stopped to talk to her. While I was visiting with her I realized I didn't know where Presley was. I asked my neighbor if she had seen where Presley went and she said, "Yes, she is in your car." WHAT? We have an SUV. I couldn't believe she had crawled in the car....wait....yes I can. Anyways, by the time I had realized she was in there she had found an ink pin and had written all over my leather seats! AUGHHHHHHHH! I just knew Dallas was going to kill me! I couldn't think what would get that out of the seats. Finally I thought of it....no that won't work...it is going to leave residue...well it is better than not trying at all. That was my thought process. So, I go inside and get the Magic Eraser and think "Surely this will work-It's magic for goodness sakes!" IT DID!! IT WORKED! JUST LIKE MAGIC!! And,No RESIDUE! Just took it right off!!! Then I treated the seat with leather treatment! I couldn't believe it! So cool!

Anyways, so now back to our yard work. By this time, with the Florida humidity, Presley and I were already sweating to death but I was determined to get those silly weeds pulled. I gave Presley a shovel and a small bag and we went to work. The one thing I wanted to do was replant our "Christmas tree" weed in the brush out back. Let me explain. Near our sidewalk into the house was growing what looked like a tiny table size Christmas tree. I was just going to pull it out and throw it away but when my mom was here visiting she convinced me that I needed to replant it in case some family in the future wanted to use it as their Christmas tree. I thought that was so funny, so that is exactly what we did. I tried to get Presley to carry the tree around back but she was having major issues with the roots coming out the bottom!! She cracks me up! So, I had to get pictures!

she kept putting the roots down and shaking it! She wanted them off!

Look at that face!

She did love that glove! See the "tree"!

Tah Dah!!! Some fortunate family's future christmas tree. Mae, you happy?

By this point we were miserably hot. So, we pulled just the weeds in the front of the house promising that tomorrow we would get the rest. Who wants to bet we actually do that...oh man...I am going to have to. Now I have a child who has to learn when you make a promise you keep it....especially the ones you make to yourself. Sooooo hard teaching your own children lessons you have yet to learn!

Carlee Nicole and Olivia Kate...

2009-09-03T11:58:00.002-05:00

This was one heck of a week for our family! Between mine and Dallas' families we have welcomed 3 new babies into the world!

Chelsea and Carless Osbourn welcomed Carlee Nicole last night at 10:20pm. She is so beautiful! Carlee weighed 7lbs 11oz and was 20in long. I got a text from Chelsea and she is doing wonderful. I can't wait to see more of her pictures and hear more from the family. Congratulations you two! You are an example of never giving up hope on your dreams. Carlee will always be that reminder that GOD can do ANYTHING!

I am super embarassed that I didn't blog earlier about little Olivia Kate. Crystal and James Welborn welcomed Olivia into the world Aug. 31st and she weighed 6lbs 11oz and was 19in long. I have been so bad about blogging that I haven't had the chance to congratulate them on the blog! According to Dallas' Mom all are well and Olivia is beautiful! We can't wait to see them in December! Congrats Crystal and James!
We love you! Give Ella Claire and Olivia a kiss for us!

What a week....God is showing off and I LOVE IT!

Jonathan Brent Cook

2009-09-01T13:59:00.003-05:00

Welcome to the world Jonathan Brent Cook!
The newest Cook family member was born this morning at 12:30am PST. After much concern about his well being he was born with no complications and is doing just fine! He is 5lbs 13oz and 18in long. He has a beautiful round head and is said to be "perfect" (proud dad quote)! Crystal is doing wonderful and I am sure will update with more details once she is home and rested. I will put up pictures as soon as I have them.
Congrats Brent, Crystal and Dylan!

In other news I have been totally slacking on this blog. I promise I have lots to blog about so stay tuned............

Old Friends Visit...

2009-08-13T20:30:00.004-05:00

I lived in the Azores, 9 little islands off the coast of Portugal, for 4 years of my childhood. During that time I had a best friend named, Brandi. We met at 9years old in Mr. Isham's 3/4th grade split class. She asked me if I wanted to play at recess and the rest is history. We have kept up over the years and she has become one of the few people I call/text/email when I am needing advice, a shoulder to lean on, someone to lift my spirits, someone to tell my silly stories to, and most importantly someone to share my spiritual journeys with. She is more than a best friend..she is family.

She and her family came to Gainesville last week to spend a few days in the heat of Florida before they all go back to school. We had such a wonderful time. Presley was instantly in love with little Riley(6), Ryann(5) and Trevor(4). If we would have done nothing but play in our house all day it would have suited Presley just fine. She was just glad to have big kids to play with her and her toys!

I didn't think just hanging out at the house would be 'cool' with the older kids. So we went to the Florida Natural History Museum, to the Swamp-Florida's Football stadium (Presley 'Called the Hogs' while there!!), and to the Ichetucknee Springs. The Ichetucknee was so fun. When we got up that morning it was a nice Florida day. Which, in the summer usually turns in to a nice, rainy Florida afternoon! so, I was hoping we would make it down the river in time before the rain came. NOPE. As soon as the boys dropped Brandi and I with the kids at the head of the river it down poored. We were freezing! I still can't believe we went ahead and put the kids in the water, but we did. Presley wasn't sure about it at first but as soon as I started showing her all the birds and the wildlife she was happy. I just wish I would have had my camera because Shep ended up with 4 tubes tied to him and Dallas pulled Brandi, Presley, Ryann and I in one big tube while Riley and Trevor hung on to our tube while staying in their small tubes! Gosh, I wish I had a picture. Oh well!! What else did we do? Oh, we also spent a lot of time at home and just hanging out at the pool.

It was such a comfortable weekend. We didn't even go out to eat once. We just spent the whole time talking and watching the kids play. Once my friend Missy asked me, "What did we do for entertainment before we had kids?" I honestly don't know! It was so wonderful to just hang out and listen to their laughter and even their bickering. I loved it!!

We want them to come back!
here are some pictures of their trip. I am still upset that I forgot our camera at the ichetucknee. I have some after the tubing trip. heehee.

hanging out with the Shepherds at the house

Florida Natural History museum

florida swamp with shepherds

after ichetucknee with shepherds

15 months old...

2009-08-04T22:47:00.004-05:00

I am so slow to posting. Sorry. We have had lots of visitors and so happy for it! I just am not good about blogging when we have company. Anyways, so I am now blogging about Presley turning 15 months old.

A few days ago we ran into the nurse that took care of me and Presley the night and day after she was born. When she saw me I asked if she remembered us and she said, "Ya know, I remembered your eyes but you look a lot different!!" I guess that is how crazy I was looking! Anyways, I told her how old Presley was and she said, "Has it really been that long?" I looked over at Presley with her long golden locks and bright blue eyes as she is waving a very enthusiastic "HI" to this lady she has no memory of meeting and thought sadly to myself....yes, it has been that long.

My little girl is growing so fast. Sometimes I want it to speed up, but most of the time I just want time to stand still.

Here is what Presley is doing now:
Talking, talking, talking, talking
words she says:
Hi Hello
Bye Bye Mommy
Dada Mama
Ben Abby
Stop Sit(which sometimes sounds like a 4 letter word)
eat drink
up more(which she says 10Xs in a row like a seagull)
cheese go
uh-oh NO
All Done here
Papa Mae
eye nose(just sounds like a long drawn out,naisly, NO)
baby uh huh(if anything sounds like a question this is her answer)
dog moo
woof shoes
Some days our words are clearer than others and she says them more often, but there is NO doubt our little lady is babbling something important ALL day

Follows direction fairly well
climbing on EVERYTHING
reading books(ok babbling at pictures...endulge me)
learning to jump
squeals with excitment
dances and worksout with mommy
goes on runs with daddy(in stroller) and pitches a fit if he forgets her
tries to put on her own clothes
loves to ride her jumpy zebra (thanks Missy)
swims everyday and LOVES it-especially when daddy throws her and does tricks with her
helps feed the dogs
uses her utensils when she eats
runs everywhere!!

One thing is for sure she is all play all the time. Our little lady has two gears-asleep or full speed ahead! The other day I picked her up and she laid her head on my shoulder and you would have thought we needed to call an ambulance. We had no clue if she was ok or not! She was just lovin on me! Wow!

Presley-
You are 15mo old now and I am already seeing that my greatest joy in life is going to be watching you live yours. You bring so much happiness to the world around you. You are funny, compassionate and bright. You don't mind getting dirty and love a little mystery. A challenge to you is no more than that. You are a dare devil and love trying new things. I love that you are crazy independent, but still depend on us in a pinch. You always know where base is and check in when needed. My days are full of your extatic squeals, loveable laughs, fake cries, babbles and yells for Ben and Abby and I can't close my eyes at night without one last visit to your bedside. I never knew what I was missing before you came into my life. Now I don't know how I will ever let you grow up. Your Mae told me a quote today and I get teary eyed just thinking of you when I hear it, "when they are little they dance on your toes, when they are older they dance on your heart!"
I promise you will dance on my heart often!
I love you my sweet baby girl!
-Mama

Our week with the Westbrooks

2009-07-26T19:11:00.006-05:00

Last week we had some wonderful visitors come stay with us for about 10 days. Lisa and Keith brought Layla to hang out with us here in Florida. I have to say it was a wonderful treat. Sometimes the kids just need time to hang out! We did so many wonderful things. I think, however, my favorite thing of the week was how we would do dinner, put the girls to sleep then either play games or watch a movie. We laughed and laughed and laughed. It was a great time!

Layla is such a doll. I am so blessed to have gotten to share such quality time with her. It is not something we get to do often. For those of you out there who get to see your extended family often count it as a blessing. I know that when extended family is around it isn't always pleasant....but it is family. We are blessed with wonderful and loving extended families, so we often feel sad when they leave. Anyways, we couldn't get over how beautiful little Layla is. She reminds me of Snow White-Dark hair, BIG Beautiful Dark Eyes and ruby red lips! Just gourgeous. I think I said that at least a hundred times a day!

We hung around the house a lot and swam at the pool next to our house most days. However, we did visit the Jacksonville Zoo, went on two trail walks and hit the beach-literally we were only there long enough to hit it with our things! heehee

Presley so enjoyed showing Layla all of her toys and I think was trying to show her how to run, climb and YES jump. She is trying to jump and it is FUNNY!!! Presley also tried to show Layla that she has eyes by poking them and saying "Eyzz, Eyzz!" Presley is learning how to say her face parts. She can say nose, eyes and mouth, but particularly likes to SHOW eyes. Just watching the two of them interact was priceless. Presley just adored Layla. I think she said Layla's name "YeahYah" a couple of times but mainly referred to her as "baby"! The morning after they left Presley walked around the house saying "Baby! Baby!" She missed her Layla!
Here are some pics of us hanging out around the house. AGAIN-there are LOTS and LOTS of pictures. I put them all on here because Mary/Mumsie and Gary/Grandad couldn't be here and I want them to see all the pics!

hanging at the house K&Ls

Most days we spent time in the pool next to our house. Layla and Presley loved spending time in the water. We got a little video of Layla going under the water. That face is super cute! Presley shared some of her tricks with Layla and Layla picked them up with ease...well some of them. She isn't quite flipping yet?! *Quick note: watch in the video of Presley flipping how she holds her hands up over her head when we says, "READY?" so cute!

at the pool with K&Ls

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As we do with everyone who comes to visit we took them to Lake Alice on the UF campus. It is a cute little trail and a good way to show people the campus. We took lots of pictures of Keith, Lisa and Layla and some of Dallas, Presley and I along the trail! We also walked the Gainesville-Hawthorne trail. This has become one of mine and Dallas' favorite trails!! We were all pretty much trying to keep up with Presley!! She ran most of the time we were there! We stopped at one of the crossings to watch a Florida Storm roll in! Sometimes they are really pretty!

walking the trails with K&Ls

One day we went to the Jacksonville Zoo. It was VERY, VERY HOT! We had a great time despite the heat. I was actually really surprised at how many unique animals there were at this zoo. It wasn't a very big zoo, but had lots to offer. Presley LOVED the big fish and the birds.
PaPa- we took lots of pictures with her and the fish just for you!!!
Presley and Layla rode the big carousel they had at the Zoo. Layla really enjoyed it. You should have seen how cute she was going up and down so tiny on her little animal!! Presley, however, was a different story. She was sooooo hot and tired from running around the zoo for 4+ hrs that she couldn't even enjoy it. She kept clutching to Dallas and I. This video shows how tired she was. Notice how, in and effort to get her to enjoy her self, her daddy moved her all around the carousel until they finally ended up in the seat!!!

at the zoo

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The only thing Lisa and Keith wanted to do while they were in Florida was go to the beach. There really aren't any close beaches to us in Gainesville. Most of the good ones are atleast 2 hrs away. So, we packed up all our beach gear, food and drinks for the day, all the stuff for the girls, the girls and headed to Crescent Beach near St. Augustine. We were all excited about the day in the sun. We got there and set up our gear. As soon as we did Keith, Lisa and Layla headed to the water to dip little Layla in the ocean for the very first time!! I followed to get pictures and video. As soon as I did I turned around to tell Dallas and Pres to come on and when I turned I saw that the skies were black. Literally BLACK!! We had only been there 10 mins. Dallas let Presley run to the ocean but she didn't even reach it before the lifeguards started blowing their wistles for us to leave the beach. We just barely got all our stuff packed up before the heavens opened up! We decided to head to St. Augustine for the rest of the day. Atleast this gave them something new to experience since they didn't get the chance to do the beach!
*Keith and Lisa-I am still so sorry!!

at the beach with K&Ls

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Over all it was a visit I will remember forever. It was so nice to have quality time with them. Usually when we see them it is for such a short period of time and crammed with lots to do and lots of people to see. Not to mention that they have their lives-work, church, friends, etc. that still goes on when we come to town. So, this was nice. I really did hate to see them go. Until next time Keith, Lisa and Layla.....LOVE YOU!

Three funny Presley stories....

2009-07-22T10:26:00.003-05:00

Story 1:
First, a question:why do we encourage talking and communicating?
So, you know you have a HUGE zit on your forehead when you are rocking your one year old to sleep and she so gently looks up at you, points her finger right at your zit and says, "WaaaaaOW!!!" "Ya, Presley, mommy knows!" is all I could say back!! AUgh!

Story 2:
I was webcaming with my sister a few days ago and trying to coral Presley so Dallas could finish grilling our supper. He would be going in and out of the back and didn't want to trip on Presley. I was doing my best to coral Presley, but my best is only a tease for Presley. She was using the blockade I had up as an obstacle course. Each time she attempted to breach the blockade it was almost as if she was timing herself to see if she could do it quicker each time. Well, during my conversation with Kaci I saw Presley go up and over the blockade and thought to myself, "I gotta go get her. I am sure she is already outside!" NO sooner did I think that and here comes Dallas with Presley! Dallas says, "Go ahead Presley and tell Mommy where you were." I thought, "OH NO! She got in his way!" Dallas said, "Mommy I just found Presley standing on top of the table reaching for the chandelier!" WHAT!!!! I haven't even ever seen her attempt to climb on the chairs let alone figure out how to get up on the table in less than 2 minutes! Monkey, Monkey, Monkey! Kaci suggests we put bells on her shoes so we always know where she is!hahahahaha!

Story 3:
When I have to take a shower in the middle of the day Presley is in the bathroom with me and I have to put a gate over the shower entrance. Our showers are walk in showers, so she does just that-she walks right in fully clothed. So, if we don't do the gate we will have to either give her lots of showers during the day or change lots of clothes. This morning I did the normal routine of putting the gate up and showering. I thought it odd that I couldn't hear her. When I opened the curtain I realized my child must have grown a few inches because the drawer that used to be too tall for her and therefore not child proofed was now wide open. This draw is my makeup drawer. Sitting below it is my child and bathroom floor covered in mascara!!! By the way, I used to think that being a stay at home mom would lend me plenty of time to keep house!HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHA!! Not when you are there all day with a toddler!

Here are some pictures of the mess. I am still working on my blog of the last 10 days. We had Lisa, Keith and Layla visit us for more than a week and had a BLAST! I have lots of video and lots of pictures! Maybe we will go for the second longest blog ever!

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Layla and Presley having a ball

2009-07-15T20:07:00.004-05:00

Lisa and Keith came to Gainesville this week so that Layla could come and visit Presley! I have some great videos to show you. I will post more pictures when i have more time...probably after they head home. Anyways, we are having so much fun that I wanted to share!

This one is Dallas throwing Presley in her float(I am not sure she enjoys this) and Keith and Layla swimming together!

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We took a couple of walks this week. I just wanted to show what Presley's idea of a "walk" is...

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This one is Presley trying to "help" Layla play in her bouncer! Layla is such a champ!

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I will post ALL the pics and more about the trip later!

Proud as a peacock

2009-07-09T22:53:00.002-05:00

I can't get over how quickly Presley picks things up these days. It really is the neatest thing to watch your baby learn about their world. That brings me to my "Greatest Moments With Presley Stories" part...well...however many I have told:

Today I was changing Presley's diaper and handed her a wipe like I always do. Usually Presley just wipes her arms or her belly with it while I finish the dirty duty. She enjoys doing this and it keeps her occupied while Mommy cleans her diaper. I looked up at Presley when I was done cleaning her, before I put on the new diaper, and asked, "Presley, can YOU wipe your bottom now?" Thinking to myself that this will come in handy when potty training starts down the road. To my amazment she wiped her bottom. I didn't even have to point or explain. I sat there proud as a peacock that my 14 month old is following direction so well and thinking this potty training thing will be a breeze whenever we cross that road. I finish putting on the diaper and look up at my wonderful, dear, sweet, precious, baby girl as she is wiping her face with the same wipe she just wiped her bottom with and looked as proud as a peacock doing it!!!

I love being a mom!

Great 4th of July

2009-07-05T20:55:00.005-05:00

Hey everyone! We had a wonderful 4th of July and hope you all did too.

We invited all of our friends how are also dive families here in Gainesville to our house for a cookout! It was a wonderful day of visiting and catching up. Between the 4 families we have 6 children. One of the families just has their 2nd daughter about 2 weeks ago. She is so precious! All the kids enjoyed playing with all of Presley's toys and running around the house! It felt like family!

Here is a video of Presley and her friend Mary dancing to Rock a bye Baby songs. These are popular artist's whose songs were done like baby's lullabys. Presley LOVES these cds. The girls had been playing in the back room and had put Presley's tutus on. So, we thought it fitting to turn the music on and let them dance! I thought it funny that Presley had the big tutu on and gave Mary the little one! This is a long video but we enjoyed it. Again, excuse my laughing so loudly into the camera. I think my baby is hillarious!

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HAPPY 4TH of JULY

2009-07-03T21:03:00.003-05:00

I hope everyone who reads my blog has a great 4th of July weekend. dallas and I are entertaining our military friends here in Gainesville this weekend. Gainesville is not having a fireworks show due to budget cuts. I just can't believe we won't be seeing fireworks this year. Maybe someone will bring some to the house when they come.

I want to take this special opportunity to thank my husband and my brother for their service in our military. I know this is said a lot, but we really have no full understanding of what these guys give up on a daily basis to be active duty military. I appreciate you both for giving up civilian comforts inorder to make civilians comfortable! I appreicate you for standing for freedom and giving us the ability to celebrate our own freedoms daily.

Please take today, especially, to thank those in your life who are currently serving in the armed forces. Remember today, also, those who have lost their lives-civilian and military-in the fight for our freedom. Today is a celebration of all that we are as Americans. Enjoy your celebrations whatever they may be because this country and what it stands for is worth celebrating!!

THANK YOU!!!

Random pics

2009-06-29T20:21:00.009-05:00

I have a lot of pictures over the last month that I have been wanting blog, but never found the time. Here are some of them:

Presley and her playgroup girls playing in the sprinklers at our house and my friend Amy's house:

(yes, she is drinking the water)

Tutu day:(she played in this tutu all day!)

Presley at music class:

(dancing!!)

Here are some dresses that I just adore P in:

(looks like an Anne of Green Gables dress!)

Reading with a little friend:

Presley's new swim suit for th 4th of July from Mumsie:

This is what happens when you leave a 1yr old alone for a few minutes to put away clothes...or maybe when you leave Presley alone

(crawling out after getting caught)

This is Presley putting on make up. That is a nalgene bottle lid and a popsicle stick. These were videos taken all day. Yes, she put make up on ALL day! She is going to hate hearing how that will affect her acne later in life. Oh, and Daddy dressed her this day. I do have to say she even makes athletic wear cute!

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The Bandage is off.....

2009-06-25T21:07:00.002-05:00

We took Presley's bandage off tonight. Not fun! I was nervous because I was afraid I would pull open the incision. That tape is really secure stuff! My mom said it best, "It is amazing that something so small would be responsible for all this worry and concern!" It was crazy but it is all over now and Presley handled it like a total PRO!!
Just wanted to show you some more pics we got of her this week with the bandage and the pics of her incision without the bandage. Just click on the picture to see all the pics. For those of you who think this is gross please forgive me for posting it. It is really for my family who aren't here to see her. It helps them to feel connected to this! Thanks!

The bandage is off

I also have a video of her this evening at dinner. I was having a little conversation with her tonight about taking off the bandage and it was so funny. However, when I went to video it all she could think of was her drink. She loves crystal light. We give it to her so rarely that she really loves it when she gets it! So, she couldn't pay attention to me! It's cute, anyways!

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The Surgery

2009-06-22T10:22:00.007-05:00

Well, we are home from surgery. What a crazy day. We got up this morning around 5:45 because we had to leave our house at 6:30am to make it to the hospital by 7. When we arrived we had to do a lot of paperwork and get her all signed in for surgery. Then they called us back into pre-op where we met every doctor and nurse who would be present during Presley's surgery. While they checked her vitals and got her all ready for surgery they put on a Baby Einstein video for her. It was so wonderful. All she wanted was to talk to the birds, monkies, and tigers on the screen. When it was time for her to be taken back into surgery the Dr came to pick her up and I was worried that she wouldn't go, but no! She almost jumped in his arms. I will have to say that watching them walk through the door with her and see her disappear behind the glass was a horrible feeling. The 45 min wait til they called us was the longest 45 minutes. I just kept wondering how scared she must be. However, Dallas kept reminding me she was ok! Sure enough she was. at 9:15 we got called back to recovery. She was on her little hospital bed crying with disorientation. They let Dallas pick her up and help carry her to me. I held her in the recliner for an hour as they monitored her. She was pretty cranky when we put her in the car and when we got her home. She would try and walk and then just fall to the ground. So, I picked her up to keep her from falling and hurting herself and man she did NOT like that. She threw a fit unlike one I have ever seen. I know it was the medicine and being in pain. Poor baby. I finally got her to calm down when Ben(our doggie) came by and sat down next to her so she could pet him. He proceeded to lay there and lick her face to which she sighed with huge sighs of relief! It was the sweetest thing! I finally got her to sleep and resting for a little while!!
Thanks so much for all of your prayers and concerns for us over the last few days. It went well and now we just have to watch her recovery!! We got some pictures of her in her gown, some pics of the spot after Dr. Chen marked it and some of us in recovery.

Presley's Branchial Cleft Fistual

Myrtle Beach trip

2009-06-22T10:21:00.002-05:00

We met my mom and dad in Myrtle Beach last weekend.
When we arrived Friday afternoon the Razorbacks were playing LSU in Baseball so we met up at a sports bar to have some drinks and watch the game. It was so funny because we all showed up in all our Razorback apparel and the game was in rain delay. So we sate there for over 2 hrs waiting on the game. Eventually, as all babies do, Presley grew tired of waiting and sitting. She needed to run, run, run. We packed up our stuff and decided to go on to the hotel and watch the game. Well, the Hogs lost. Boo hiss! It was a sad game. Not only was I disappointed we lost, but it took up the rest of our evening. By time it was over Presley was ready for bed. I got her all dressed in her PJs then heard Dusty say “So when are we going to eat?!” HAHAHA! My life has so changed. Gone are the days when you could go out to eat at 7:30/8pm. Actually, my mom chimed in and offered to stay with Presley so we could go out with Dad and Dusty. I was so glad she did. Although, I was sad her and P weren’t there. So, Dad, Dusty, Dallas(wow that is a lot of Ds) and I loaded up to `go to dinner. We went to a great restaurant on the beach. We stood out on the lawn of the restaurant which overlooked the dunes and the ocean while we waited to be called in. The four of us laughed and had a great visit. Dallas and I had wayyyyyy to much to eat so we decided to walk back to the hotel.
Our hotel was wonderful. It was the Best Western Carolinian Resort on Ocean Blvd. WE had a two bedroom condo with 2 full beds in each room, 2 bathrooms, full kitchen, washer dryer and a pullout sofa. The only thing we didn’t have was a DVD player. Dallas and I had to get creative to do our workouts. The balconies, however were incredible. There was one out the living room area that was really big and another that wrapped around both bedrooms. I wanted to stay much longer than we were able to.
Saturday morning Dusty and Dallas got us really early to have a game of golf. Mom and Dad had to go and look at condos(the price to pay for getting such a deal on the room for the weekend) and Presley and I went to the pools. Presley is getting so comfortable in the water. I took her to the little 1 ft baby pool so she could have more control of her feet while she swam. Well, first thing she did was try to float. This, of course, landed her face first in the water. I calmly picked her up expecting her to be gasping for air instead all I got was a squeal of excitement. The rest of the time we were in the pool all she wanted to do was go under! Such a dare devil. After her and I hung out at the pool we went back to the room to do lunch and her nap. Mommy took a nap too! I was tired! When we woke up we had a snack. While we were eating everyone came back from their mornings out. So, we got our suits on again and headed for the beach. At first it was just Mae, Presley and I but then Dallas joined us. We had a great time.
That evening we went to Bass Pro Shop with Popa so he could pick out some lures for Father’s day. Presley loved the fish tank and made lots of friends throughout the store. One guy even picked out a cute orange hat for her to wear. It said “My First Fishing Hat!” Popa was tickled. After the Pro Shop we went and had Japanese. It was Presley’s first time at a Japanese Steak House. It was sooooo funny to watch her. She didn’t really like the fire.
Sunday was an easy morning. WE all got up and had breakfast and coffee as we sat around and visited some more! I just can’t say how blessed I am that my family are my best friends. I loved the whole weekend. It was way too short but well worth it to see everyone. I miss my mom and dad already. I would say I missed Dusty but I get to see him regularly. I make sure of it!

Myrtle Beach 2009

Weekend at the beacheS

2009-06-17T20:59:00.005-05:00

Two weekends ago we had a busy time jumping from beach to beach.
That sounds crazy, I know! It was crazy!
On Thrusday Dallas, Presley and I went to Clearwater Beach, Fl to meet my Beachbody coach and business partner, Melissa Hudgens and her family. It was great to finally put a face with a name. Her husband, Robert,is a crazy P90Xer and was able to give Dallas and I LOTS of tips and encouragement before we started our P90X program. Her little boys were so sweet. Her little boy, Ty, took to Presley right off the bat.

Then, on Friday we loaded up with Dusty and headed to Destin to hang with some of my family. One of my mom's sisters, Brenda, was celebrating her 40th wedding anniversary to her husband, Jack, by having all of her children and their kids vacation in Destin for a week. She invited us to come along since they would be so close. She knew it would give us an opportunity to hang out with family we seldom see. We also got to finally meet my coucin Joyce's new husband, Perry, and his three children Jessica, Cole and Drew. I have to say I am attached already. They are so sweet! Presley really took to Perry! One of the greatest things for me of the weekend was getting to see the older 4 grandkids all grown up. Taylor and Megan were in our wedding and to see them as 13 year olds is incredible. I, of course, will always see them as 7 year olds!! However, they are growing into such gourgeous young ladies and with insanely cool personalities! Dalton and Jordan have grown so tall. They are both taller than me-I know that doesn't take a lot- and are way cooler than I ever was at 15/16!

We had such a relaxing weekend and I didn't want it to end. Oh well! Sunday came and we were back on the road home! It would only be for 2 weeks, though! We are headed to Myrtle Beach, SC this weekend to see my mom and dad! Stay tuned for pics. It might take a while, however, because Presley has her surgery Monday. Enjoy the pictures and I will be blogging again soon!

Destin trip with Sprinkles Clan

Cool Video...

2009-06-11T22:12:00.002-05:00

Being a mom to a little girl many worries cross your mind. One major one is if I will raise her to be a confident and know exactly where her beauty comes from. I want Presley to know that who she is as a person and her virtues and integrity are what make her beautiful. I worry often that with all the pressures out there to be "perfect" that Presley will fall into thinking that is where she finds her worth. I know that in our eyes and, more importantly, in Christ's eyes that Presley is the most beautiful young lady! I guess I will have to follow my mom's advice and just pray with all you have, as often as you can and know that God is the one in control!

All that rambling to say that I found this video on Tangle which is the Christian version of Youtube. It is the message I want to make sure Presley hears daily! I hope if you know little girls or women in your life that you are daily putting major daily deposits into their "spirit" accounts. Make sure that their integrity and values are noticed more than just their looks if they are 1 years old or 55 years old!
If you are of the female gender and are reading this please know that there will never be a more beautiful you!!!

Surgery update and Power Outage

2009-06-08T11:39:00.005-05:00

Hi all!
Two things I want to let you know.
For those of you who are Beachbody Fanantics please note that the Team Beachbody webiste, http://www.teambeachbody.com/, will be down for transformation until the 10th. It has only been down 1/2 a day and I already miss it. I want to encourage those of you who are not Beachbody Fanatics to go to my website and join the craze! It is totally free to join the site. You don't have to even buy a product. Who doesn't need encouragement and motivation to live a healthier, fuller life? If your life is perfectly balanced and you couldn't use any more tips on having a more balanced life then by all means don't join the site!! hee hee!!

Quick update. Presley's surgery has been scheduled for the 22nd of June. Is mommy nervous? Yes! Will mommy most likely cry on the day of when they take Presley back to the OR? Yes! Does mommy know this is the best thing for Presley and trust the doctors? Yes! Does she trust God more? Absolutely. That is why I know this will all be ok! Just wanted to let you all know when the surgery was scheduled for!

Here are three pictures I got of her cyst. They are very blurry. Sorry. I will get a better on. It is the tiny hole abover her collar bone just about my index finger. Looks like someone took a ballpoint pin and stuck her!

We just got home from two trips. I can't find my camera battery charger so I can't upload the pics. As soon as I do I will post about them!

Also, I am going to be starting a fitness blog. More details to follow!

Branchial Cleft Fistula/Cyst

2009-06-03T11:09:00.002-05:00

When Presley was born her pediatrician told us that after doing her initial check of Presley she found a dimple like structure on her neck just above her collar bone. She called it a cyst and said that it rarely becomes a problem but that we should watch it and keep it clean to avoid infection. She also said that at some point she would have to get it removed but that if we can make it til she is 1yrs old then it would be best for anesthesia purposes.

During the 4 months that Presley had chronic ear infections we noticed a lot of puss like white stuff that would ooze out of her little hole. Normally it is just clear or a tiny piece of white stuff, but when she had the ear infections it was considerably more. So, Dr.Worthington said, "At her one year birthday she has to go in."

So, off we went yesterday to the Pediatric Surgeon and had him look at her. He took one look at her neck and said "Yep! It is a Branchial Cleft Fistula and it has to come out! We will need to schedule it this month or next month."

What is a branchial cleft fistula? branchial cleft abnormality is a congenital (present from birth) defect that occurs during early embryonic development when the structures and tissues that form the neck and throat do not properly grow together. The tissues form pockets and pathways that contain cells from other parts of the neck and throat. Branchial cleft cysts are lined with skin and lymph cells and contain fluid that is secreted by these cells. Branchial cleft fistulas also contain skin cells but drain mucus and fluids from other internal areas of the neck and throat.
These aren't typically a big deal. What can be a big deal is that since there is essentially a hole to the outside world the internal structure can potentially get badly infected. Presley's fistula seems to be the more common of the tracks that leads to the back of the throat. Which explains why when she has had upper respiratory infections there is more secreted out. It is basically her drainage! Ok, yuck. I realize that is nasty.

Now I am trying to find out if we can get a scan or dye test to make sure the track goes where the doctor expects it to go. Once we have that done they hope to have her in to surgery around the 26th of this month. I know that it isn't a big deal and in the grand scheme of things it could be worse, but I can't help but be nervous. I just think the anesthesia could be scary. Augh! Please keep us and the doctors in your prayers!

If you want to learn more about Branchial Cleft Fistulas/Cyst click here

Olivia Rose Smith

2009-06-02T14:53:00.002-05:00

Missy and Bailey welcomed Olivia Rose Smith into the world this morning at 2:36am. She was 6lbs 7oz and 20in long. Olivia was born a little early so she is experiencing some breathing problems, but is being monitored very closely. Missy is doing well and I imagine happy to have Olivia and not be pregnant anymore! I have a picture of her on my phone. I will try to post it tonight.

Congrats Bailey, Missy and Bella. I love you!

Recent photos...

2009-05-29T19:50:00.004-05:00

When we arrived home from Arkansas we got to enjoy 2 weeks straight of hard rain. So, we decided one day that we would go ahead and play in the rain. By the time I got my camera Presley was done getting all wet! However, she sat there playing on the porch and watching the rain!

Just had to get a snap shot of my little lady on her 13th month birthday! Isn't she pretty!!

She is super sweet...isn't she?

Dallas and I had turned on the Animal Planet and were watching the show that follows Elephants and other animals through their life. Both of us left the room for some reason and when we came back we found Presley laying in front of the TV watching it. We usually have on the TV but don't put Presley in front of it. Guess she loves her animals!!

Just another pretty picture of my toddler...ahhhh!

This is the little horse that my mom and dad got Presley for her birthday. She loves it!

Seriously, my Presley is SUPER cute in pigtails!!! This is her favorite chair!

So, she has crawled on our dishwasher many times before but I never had the camera near by to get a picture before I reminded her she isn't allowed to sit on the dishwasher. this time I got the picture. Yes it kept me from disciplining her right away but every Mom has to have this picture! Altough, most mom's picture doesn't include overly excited child doing a stabbing motion!

Arkansas Trip...Record for the LONGEST BLOG EVER!

2009-05-28T08:53:00.004-05:00

Wow, what a whirlwind we had in Arkansas. We went to see Layla Scout who was born March 7. In addition to seeing her we had Presley's dedication, a birthday party for her, a week in Jonesboro, a visit with friends and a visit in Decatur with my side of the family. Crazy! I wouldn't have traded it for the world. Before I start this blog I want to apologize for its length and for the amount of pictures I have uploaded. There are so many, but I didn't want to take the time to take out all the doubles, triples or however many we took to get the "right" shot. I wanted to post them all for my mom's sake! =)

When we arrived in Little Rock Lisa, Keith and Layla picked us up. Layla was dressed in a beautiful pink dress to meet us. Presley loved meeting her Layla for the first time. Layla is absoulutely breath taking. She has milky white skin, with dark hair and dark eyes. She is such a sweet baby. Her mom and dad are so wonderful with her. She has a little bit of gas problems,so sometimes cries pretty hard. This, however, doesn't phase her mom and dad. Nope, they are look like seasoned pros. It doesn't even seem to bother them. They just love on her til it passes! It was so wonderful to get to see them in action.

The Sunday night that we got to Jonesboro was crazy packed. First, after seeing Mumsie and Grandad we all got ready and headed to their church. We had Presley dedicated. It was such a wonderful ceremony. We were there surrounded by family and friends. This is a very important tradition for both Dallas and I. It was very important for Dallas and I to stand in front of our friends and family and promise to raise Presley in a Christian home and to have others keep us accountable to that. It was really a beautiful thing. Dallas' dad did the dedication. What made it even more special was that he had never done another dedication. Presley was his first! Such a sweet night!

Presley's Dedication

After the dedication we all headed back to Mumsie and Grandads to celebrate Presley's first birthday. When we bought the tickets to go to Jonesboro and realized it was a week after Presley's 1st Birthday I was fairly certain she would be having two birthday parties. So, I wasn't shocked when it was mentioned to me a few days before we left. It was such a sweet party. All of Dallas' family was there with their little ones. You would think that Presley would be lost in the crowd....NOPE...not my social butterfly. She hung with them like she had been every weekend since she was born. It was trully special. Mumsie(Mary) had such cute decorations and went all out. Some of Dallas' past was even brought into the party-the candle on the cake was Dallas' first birthday candle and the cake was actually decorated by a young lady that Dallas escorted to her prom!! It was neat!
The rest of the week we just spent hanging out with eachother and trying to squeeze as many memories as we could into 7 days. We got to spend some time with Uncle James(Mary's uncle) who is really more like a grandpa to Dallas than an uncle. We visited with him at his house and even went to a good ole' county fried fish place with him. We spent an afternoon at Aunt Betty's with Amanda and her three kids Madison, Jaxon and Reed. Those three had so much fun putting Presley in all the wagons and pulling her around. She didn't mind much. Actually at one point they pulled out a big wagon outside and were pulling her and the two others at the same time. I went up to her at one point and she had a TON of chocolate on her face. Ya, they were feeding her hershey's kisses...LOVE IT!!
One day we met Crystal(who is expecting another baby girl-Olivia Kate- in Sept) and Ella Claire at the mall to play in the playground there. We don't normally do those, but it was pretty empty most of the time and a fairly big one. It didn't matter the condition or the size, Presley and Ella had a great time. I don't have any pictures of that day. I am not sure why. I know I was shopping for most of it, but I thought I left my camera and even thought I took some. Oh well, I don't have them on the camera now. Presley was also able to go to Kindermusic with Layla. It was so nice of Donna to let us come. Presley has a music class she goes to once a week too. So, it was nice to see how others are ran. Presley really enjoyed herself. We had fun playing with the scarfs, shakers, instruments, etc.

Visit at Mumsie and Grandad's May 2009

On Tuesday night of that week we went to Hoaxie to watch Keith's Chior Concert. He is the Middle School and High School Chior Director at Hoaxie. It was such a great concert. I was so proud of him. Not only did they have great harmonies, but you could actual understand what they were singing. A lot of times at concerts you can't even understand wheat they are trying to say. Presley loved it. Well, the part she was awake for. She sat in my lap for the last song and was mimicking her Uncle Keith and his conducting!! On Saturday the 9th we had to leave at 3am to drive Dallas to Little Rock so he could fly home. I decided that I would stay an extra week and drive to NW Arkansas and see my side of the family. My extended family hasn't seen Presley since she was 8 weeks old.

Keith's Concert 05/09

On the way there I wanted to stop in Cabot to see some dear friends that I have acquired through Kaci. While Kaci was living in Cabot she attended Mt. Tabor United Methodist church where she met Jo and Vicky. When I lived with Kaci for a month, waiting for Dallas to come home from Italy, I got to know them pretty well. I absolutely love them. They immediately took me in and have loved my daughter boundlessly. They are a treasure to us. So, we stopped and spent the morning with them. They made me my first ever fried pies! They were wonderful! Presley tourtured their dogs Baily and Poncho and I helped them with their webcam. It was wonderful to see them and I hated leaving. Oh, by the way, I am positive I got pictures of Vickie with Presley while I was there but they are no where to be found. Guess I have to stop letting Presley play with the camera!

Visit with Jo and Vickie may 09

I arrived in Decatur that night. It was a good drive until the last 45 minutes and let me tell you that my little girl has BIG lungs. When we arrived at my Grandma's I thought she felt kinda warm and was being pretty fussy. So, we checked her temp and she had 103.5. AUGH! She was up all night. The next morning she still had a slight fever but seeing as it was Mother's Day I got her dressed and we headed to church. she was NOT a happy camper. She fussed the whole service. We finally realized that it was her teeth. She was pretty unhappy for the rest of the day but came around on Monday. Needless to say with all of that going on I didn't get a picture of us on actual Mother's Day. However, I took a bunch of pictures of her in her dress out in front of my Grandma's house. Also, the flower my mom and dad sent me was good till the next week so I got a picture of us the next Sunday. Oh and these pictures are proof of how HARD it is to get a picture of Presley facing forward-forget trying to get her to smile!! However, these pictures remind me of WHY I love being MOM!

Mother's Day 2009

Presley came around Monday afternoon, so Grandma and I decided we would go shopping. We loaded Presley up and head to the mall in Fayetteville and shopped till....well Presley dropped!! Presley was so much fun that day. I had such a great time chasing her around and inside and out of the clothing racks!! Presley pushed her stroller all over the store. I realized I was having too much fun with all of it when she rammed a manequin for the 3rd time!! It was so much fun! The three of us shopped it up all day!

Visit with grandma betty

On Wed. Presley and I headed to the University of Arkansas. At the University of Arkansas when a student graduates their name is etched into the sidewalks at the University. It is a very special tradition and one I wanted to share with Presley. So, I took her to the University and got some pictures of her running on the sidewalks. She looked totally at home there! Ok, I know! Don't force the school on her! After we went to the school we went to Sam's house. Sam is a very good friend of mine from college! We played with her at her house for a few hours. It was so wonderful to catch up with her and her roomate Alicia. When I got home I was telling my Grandma about our trip to the University and realized that my Grandma had NEVER been to see the sidewalks. I couldn't believe it. She had never seen her son's name in the University of Arkansas sidewalks. My dad has his name at the University twice. So, on Thursday we went back to the school and walked around to show her all of the family names that are in the sidewalks.

Presley's trip to UofA May 2009

On Friday I got together with the Knox side(my mom's side) of my family. We all met up for lunch. It was so much fun to just sit around and visit. My uncles took turns holding Presley and gloating that they were holding Donnie's(my dad) grandaughter. So, naturally they all had to get around her and get a picture.

Visiting the Knox Side May 2009

We did the flight on the way home all by ourselves. I was a little nervous. She is 1 now. I just knew she would NOT sit still. On the first flight she was a bit wiggly but fell asleep right as we were landing. Of course! So, when I got up and headed to get the stroller she woke up. I thought, what do I do with a 1 year old at 9:45pm(1 hr and 45 minutes past bed time) in an airport. She was pingy!! So I took a bunch of the chairs and pulled them together and made a HUGE play pin. This video is cute. Ok, for you germ phobe moms, excuse the fact that she is rolling around on an airport floor. I washed her hand with sanitizer about every 15 minutes. It was so funny!!

All in all it was a wonderful trip. We had so much fun and it was a blessing to get to spend so much time with all of them. It is sad to know that those kinds of trips are getting ready to be few and far between. Once Presley hits 2 we won't travel as much. It just isn't as cheap when you have to buy three tickets!! Plus at some point we will have to spend our resources on our nuclear family. However, for now, it is so wonderful to get to share Presley with all the people I love so much and who love her so dearly!!

Thanks for reading and looking at allllllllll of this post. CRAZY!!!

Happy Memorial DAy!!

2009-05-25T23:10:00.002-05:00

Happy Memorial Day! I want to thank my husband for serving our country. I appreciate him and others who put their needs aside and sacrifice much so that we can have the freedoms we experience everyday. Try not to take them for granted. Here are a few-freedom of education, freedom of speech and freedom of religion. Please take time today to pray or have a moment of silence for the people who have given the ultimate sacrifice so we may do silly things like blog our thoughts and opinions!!!

I hope you all had a relaxing long weekend and enjoyed your day off...if you had one!!heehee!

I'm Back...

2009-05-21T20:07:00.002-05:00

Well after a 2 week hiatis I am back home in Gainesville. There is a lot to catch you up on. For starters I had a GREAT time! When I arrived home I brought the rain and thunder back with me. It has rained everday since I have been home. I think the combo of that and being tired from the trip have made one L-A-Z-Y Cindy. Man, I had absolutely NO energy until today! So, I haven't uploaded all my pictures from the trip. Once I do that I will be blogging about all the adventures I had and all the people I saw. Til then....

Happy Mommy's Day!

2009-05-08T15:01:00.002-05:00

I just wanted to send a Happy Mother's Day wish to all of you mom's out there. I am in Arkansas and will be away from the computer on Sunday but wanted to go ahead and send out the well wish. To all of you mom's out there who encourage me and inspire me daily...I love you!!!

To Dallas-thank you for your daily support and love for me as I discover who I am as a mom. God could not have given me a better husband as a support system. I love you!

To My mom and sister-there are no words for the kind of pressure I feel when I look at the kind of examples you are as moms. Then I realize how lucky I am to have your example! Thank you for always be extraordinary!!

To My Precious Presley-Thank you for making me a mom and for allowing me to LOVE it! You are a joy I could never truly express! I live for your laughs, crys, new words, dances, and faces. You are my new world. I love you little one!

For everyone else- thanks for checking the blog and watching the adventures of a new mommy!! Enjoy this poem that was passed on to me through email!!
Love you all! Happy Mother's Day!

Before I was a Mom,
I never tripped over toys
or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not
my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never been puked on.
Pooped on.
Chewed on.
Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind
and my thoughts.
I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held down a screaming child
so doctors could do tests.
Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night
watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held a sleeping baby just because
I didn't want to put her down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces
when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small
could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom,
I didn't know the feeling of
having my heart outside my body..
I didn't know how special it could feel
to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond
between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small
could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night
every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth,
the joy,
the love,
the heartache,
the wonderment
or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much,
before I was a Mom ...

Send this to someone who you think is an awesome Mom.

May you always be overwhelmed by the Grace of God rather than by the cares of life

Presley at 1!!

2009-04-27T19:55:00.009-05:00

My baby is 1. Wow, this is the third blog, but I really just don't think I can let go of this milestone. She is a little girl now! What happened to my baby? She is now running, talking, coloring, loving to swim, tries to sing, loves to play chase, play with big kids, play with her doggies, play with her shapes buckets, play outside...ok, can't get enough of outside, loves the park, sliding, swinging, and chasing water down drains...it can be a long story!! =) She is nothing shy of a miracle and the greatest joy I have ever known. I absolutely love the stage she is in! Here are some memories of the last year...

This weekend my parents came into town. Let me tell you, Presley LOVES her Mae and Popa! She played chase with Mae everyday all day! She sat on Popa's lap and wore about every ball cap he brought. They made it here Thursday night just in time for her birthday dinner and cake! We gave her strawberry short since we knew she would have really sugary cake at the birthday party on Saturday.

The next morning we went to a state park here in Gainesville called Devils Millhopper. We walked around and took the 163 steps to the water fall-down and back up! Other than all the buggies out there it was such a wonderful day. I absolutely LOVE that my family has always been active and has kept it up. Even with all the babies!!!

DevilsMilhopper

On Saturday we had Presley's 1st birthday party at the pool next to our house! We invited her friends from playgroup, from bible study and the dive/navy families we know in town. Our good friend Sandra made her ladybug cake for the party. It was insane. Everyone loved it! I did ladybug cupcakes. Mom and I were actually finishing them 1/2 hr before the party. It was so fun! Presley enjoyed the party so much. I will have to say that she didn't really "smoosh" her smoosh cake. She kinda took one handful and just smeared it around!! It was so fun to celebrate her in that special way! She got so many incredible gifts from everyone! She is truly a loved little girl!

Presley's 1st Birthday Party

Sunday we went to the Gator baseball game against South Carolina. I have to say I felt a little like a Clemson fan cheering in Orange against Carolina. It was weird!! We ended up leaving after the 6th inning because it really wasn't a game until that inning (Gators 9-SC 5)and it was super hot. Too hot for my little one to stay. So, we headed home. When we got home Dusty fixed us all broiled Tilapia, rice and salad. It was so, so, so, good!! He is such a good cook! Then we gave him his birthday cheesecake. His actual birthday is Tuesday. He is going to be 26!! I feel old. My baby brother is 26 and I have a one year old daughter! Crazy!!

Sunday with Mae and Popa

Overall it was a wonderful weekend. My little one was so lost this morning after her Mae and Popa left. It is amazing the affect they have on all three of their grandbabies! I love watching them interact! Hopefully we will get to see them again soon.

Presley, hun, mom and dad love you and can't wait to see what wonderful fun things we have in store with you. This weekend was so wonderful and I can't wait to tell you about all the people who came to celebrate the blessing that you are. We will promise to always pray for you and to love you unconditionally! Happy 1st Birthday honey!!

Presley's Day

2009-04-23T21:20:00.008-05:00

Today has been a WONDERFUL day. My baby is 1!! We started the day out with pancakes and a candle in it for Presley. I had decorated the table and her little chair. It was kinda silly and a little redneckish, but it was fun for me! I had a crown for her to wear and a bib with 1st birthday on it. I also taped a little '1st birthday' balloon on the back of her chair! She enjoyed it! I sat her there at breakfast with the pancakes(which she loved), at lunch and for dinner!

My parents came into town today also. It is so great to see them. Presley took right too them! She just couldn't get enough of my mom! Her and Mae were like two peas in a pod. Mae wasn't here an hour before Presley was snuggling her and grabbing Mae's finger and showing her around. Popa carried her around the block as we walked the dog. She just kept looking into his eyes and grinning and playing shy faces with him. She loves them so much

After dinner we gave Presley her "birthday cake"! We gave her strawberry shortcake. I didn't want to give her actual cake since she would be having that on Saturday. I don't want to overload her perfect little body with sweets! She sure tore into that cake! She even shared it with the dogs! This has been the best day EVER! Ok, well, maybe the day God actually made me aware of her existence was the best day! Wow, I love her! I love her, I love her!! Tomorrow I promise to do my 1 year post soon!

Presley's 1st Birthdat

Happy 1st Birthday Presley!!!

2009-04-23T12:25:00.008-05:00

Today our little girl turns ONE!!
Can you believe it?
We can not!
We just keep looking at her and thinking,
"Really? We still feel like you are a dream!"
We will post more pics tonight.

Happy 1st Birthday Presley Rebecca!!

We love you!!

Chetelat's Visit

2009-04-21T21:47:00.005-05:00

We have had one crazy week! Our dear friends, Aaron, Sandra, Mia and Alexa Chetelat were in Florida to baptize Alexa and to visit friends and family. We met them down in Orlando last weekend. We were only there for a day, but had so much fun. They had reservations at an incredible hotel, The Gaylord Palms. Ya, I know. The name is funny, but the hotel was exquisite. If the hotel itself wasn't phenomenal enough there was a cheer competition going on at the convention center of the hotel. It was so fun. Mia and Presley got to play in the hotel pool. Let me tell you. My little Presley is one little fish!! While they played I got to spend some time with little Alexa who was just shy of 3 months old. Alexa is the best baby ever. She literally doesn't cry unless she is hungry or is having a little gas issue. I actually forgot we even had her in tow a few times!! Anyways, after a long day at the pool we had dinner at a sushi restaurant in the hotel. You will NEVER believe what I did to my own daughter. Well, she was eyeing the wasahbi, so I dipped my finger in it and gave it to her. When you see the picture that looks like she is screaming at the top of her lungs and her face it red...ya...that was taken right after I gave it to her. You could barely even see the wasahbi on my finger, but she didn't like it one bit. Aaron and Sandra probably would have called family services on me if they didn't know how much I love her!! The next day we headed back to Gainesville to await their arrival the next day!

Orlando with Chetelat's

While in Gainesville we had the baptism ceremony for Alexa. Dallas was asked to be her Godfather and accepted with honor. They asked their long time friend, Sandra, to be the Godmother. It was such a beautiful ceremony. Sandra and Aaron were able to get the priest they had in college to do the baptism for them. It was very intimate. There were only a hand full of friends, 3 of who did special music for the mass, and lots of kiddos. I think we figured out there were more kids than adults. The priest was so wonderful. He let all the kids get up on the stage when it was time to anoint Alexa with the oil and baptise her in the water so they could get a front row seat! After the baptism we had a dinner celebrating Alexa! It was wonderful. I feel so blessed and honored to have the opportunity to watch both Alexa and Mia grow from infancy into young ladies!

Alexa' Baptism

Tuesday we headed down to Miami to visit with Sandra's family. I have heard NOTHING but awesome things about her family and just had to meet them. Plus, who wouldn't want to go to Miami?! Anyways, we stayed with Becky and Mike(Sandra's sister and brother-in-law) and their 5 kiddos, Cassandra, Nico, Jr, Lucy and Ceci. They were such wonderful hosts! I have to say that Becky is my new hero. She didn't even bat an eye that there was now 8 kidds and 3 more adults in her house. She just rolled with the flow! Tuesday evening we got to meet some of Sandra's mom's side of the family. They were so much fun! I was able to meet her cousins Vivienne and Christina too. Christina hung around for about another day and then had to head back to PA. She had a little guy named Jack who Presley adored! They were fast friends. Mainly because he was super patient with Presley!
On Wed. Presley had her first visit to the beach. She LOVED it. Let me say it again...she LOVED the beach. The beach we went to on Key Biscane was so shallow I had to go way out just to get up to my knees in water. It is the perfect beach for little ones, because even when the tide was in the water wasn't higher than Presley's chest-sitting. She loved the sand. She didn't even eat it! The kids were
so gracious to Presley. They were all cautious of her and realized it was her first time at the beach. They would play with her in the water, bring her toys to play with and even made her a Presley size swimming pool. You will understand when you see the pictures!

Miami-Beach

Thursday we just layed low at the house. Becky, however, put out a water table, sprinklers and a water ball for the kids to run around in outside. It was insane! The kids played out there for hours. Presley absolutely LOVED the water table. She kept turning around and checking us out just to make sure we hadn't gone inside. When she realized we were still there she would go right back to the table-dumping and pouring!! They also played fairies right before dinner. Presley had her cute little pink wings on! How adorable. I wish I had more pictures of this, but my camera had run out of film! We also went out to eat at a local Cuban restaurant. It was awesome. As far as the ambiance goes I felt like I was back in Italy. It was such a family friendly place. Oh, and Presley LOVED the black beans!!!

Miami-backyard

On Friday we went to a park called Pinecrest Gardens. It is a botanical garden with a small petting zoo, cute little park AND a water park. This water park was awesome. I wish I had some pictures of it, but my camera ran out of film before I could get any. Don't worry-Sandra took some. So, when I get those i will blog them. Anyways, if you thought that Presley would have been waterlogged after the past three days in water, think again. She was easily half the size of all the kids there and ran with the best of them. My favorite thing, however, would have to be that in the middle of all the water fun she found a big blue monster truck and stopped for a good 30 minutes to drive it through all the puddles. That girl loves herself some cars and trucks!! We were also able to see iguanas, swans, ducks, turtles, pigs, goats, fish and even a peacock. The peacock opened his feathers for us. They were beautiful!

Miami-Pinecrest Gardens

I left to come home Sunday morning at 5am. The drive went really good. However, when we got back Presley started to run a fever. She ran about 102.8-103.5 for about a day and then broke it yesterday afternoon. About the time she broke her fever I got a migraine. Let me tell you...I thought I had had a migraine before...but NOPE! There is no thinking to it. When you have one-YOU KNOW! I was literally non-functioning. I had to call D to see how long he would be because I needed help. I NEVER call him home from school. NEVER. It was bad. Anyways, this morning we woke up and all is better. We are on the mend and gearing up for another fun filled weekend. My mom and dad will be here Thursday! Presley will be turning 1 this Thursday. I just can't believe it! We are going to have a great time celebrating this past year! Until that blog-hope you enjoyed all the pictures from our visit with our friends-well our family-Aaron, Sandra and the girls!

Happy Easter!

2009-04-13T21:54:00.002-05:00

Presley LOVED her 1st Easter! I had a blast explaining to her the REAL reason we celebrate Easter while she looked over her Easter basket. Well, in the slide show below I think her facial expression tell you that she really wasn't understanding mommy!! We had church early in the morning and right afterward we had an easter egg hunt. Presley finally got the giest of the hunt when the older childer were released and after that there were little eggs to be had. Presley was not concerned, however because she had her eye on one shiny egg. Once she got that it was all over! Everyone thought Presley looked amazing in her pink tuttu easter dress and that she was the Belle of the Ball. Dallas and I really do have a special girl.
We have had an awesome opportunity to spend the last few days with our good friends Sandra and Aaron Chetelat and their girls Mia and Alexa. This family has become...well so much like family to us! I will blog more about the week with them when we get back from Miami!

Westbrook Blog Update

2009-04-06T21:42:00.003-05:00

Finally, we have pictures of LAYLA SCOUT WESTBROOK!!! For those of you who have been asking me when there would be pictures of her on Lisa's blog, well the time is here. Please click on Westbrook Waltzes on the right of my blog to see all the GREAT pictures of Layla. If I do say so myself...she is gorgeous!! Of course, I am biased!

My husband...my rock

2009-03-30T11:52:00.008-05:00

Before I even start this I know this may embarrass my husband because he is super humble, but I just had to share. Besides, his dad told us a long time ago that edifying your spouse in public is a good thing!! Actually its the B.E.S.T thing. Right Gary?
So, without getting into a long, drawn out blog I will tell you that some old ghosts in my past have come up and brought up concers I have about some very important things in my life. These things seem to consum me all the time and when I am unsure of this area of my life it throws me off in a way that I can't explain. I was feeling silly about it all, but couldn't ignore the fact that it was bothering me.(its spiritual stuff. so noone goes running with what you think it could be) So, I thought, I will talk to Dallas about it. However, I was nervous because I didn't want him to brush it off like it wasn't a big deal because to me it was. Plus, it is totally my "thing" to talk about deep stuff and not really his. Well, I had to talk to someone so I sat him down and explained what I was worried about. I then apologized for it being such a big deal to me but that I needed his guidance, cover, support, understanding...whatever. All of a sudden he began to talk about what I should do and how he will cover me and our family in a way I have NEVER heard Dallas talk. I have to tell you I cried later that night over what a blessing I have in him. Dallas, as many of you know, is a very quiet, slow to excite kinda guy. My complete opposite in so many ways. Often times this is what frustrates me about him. Well, God taught me a lesson. Dallas isn't flighty for a reason. I NEED someone who is a rock. Who knows who he is, what he believes and WHY! He NEVER lets other people, what they think, how they believe or how they feel effect him or change him. I can't tell you as a wife how comforting these characters of his have been to me over the past week. I have to admit to you that I have often said to God in frustration during prayer, "Dallas is not a leader for me!" Man, did He blow that one up in my face. God showed me that He is EXACTLY that and that Dallas' specific leadership skills were developed JUST for me! God knew that I was like shifting sand and that I would need a rock in a husband to keep me grounded! Sound like another relationship we all should seek after? Yep, our relationship with Christ. WOW! What I have learned from this (or I should say from Dallas) is that we are Dallas and Cindy. We don't have to know everything, we don't have to believe and agree with everyone, we aren't always the pictures that movies paint of the perfect couple, we aren't the "it" couple on a magazine....but WE ARE Dallas and Cindy. Not one without the other. Love like this...well....can't EVER be reflected on screen. Mainly because it is much more that sexual passion, batted eyes over candle lit dinner, walks on the beach under the moon and stars....its respect, honor, admiration, trust, humility, patient, kind, appreciative...its unconditional.

Thanks for listening to my bragging on Dallas. After all this blog IS about my family and not just Presley. Although, she is pretty much all we talk about! HOwever, the way he has made me feel in the last week is worth sharing. He probably doesn't think so but I do. Plus, I think it fitting to share why I LOVE MY HUSBAND and CHOOSE to continue to love him everyday seeing as our 6th Anniversary is this Sunday. Now,lets just pray for Cindy to remember these feelings when I feel the need to get on to him for not picking up his dirty socks...oh how human we are!

Ok, I finished this blog and realized how busy we are this week and that I may not get to post on our actual anniversary, April 5th. So, I wanted to put a slideshow up, surprising, I know! Anyways, when you hear the song I chose you are going to think to yourself "Why did she choose this song?" Especially if you know the story behind it. Well, I chose it because I feel "Held" by God when I think of His provisions for my family, for my husband and myself. Dallas and I have survived 4 moves, 2 deployments-both to the desert (thank you God for bringing him home), loosing friends, financial upsets, being seperated from family and friends, church hopping(heehee), a sister's heartache, new neices and nephews, pets and our first year of parenting. Through all of it we have been reminded that God's promise to His children is NOT that we will be saved from the strife of life, but instead that He will carry us, comfort us and hold us as we struggle in and even celebrate in life. Enjoy the pictures I put together of our last 6 years. There are pictures of us from when we met, to our wedding, to our time on the Gulfcoast,to out time in California, to Italy and all our travels while we were ther, to now with our new baby Presley. I even threw some pictures of the flowers he has given me over the years.

11 months old

2009-03-24T22:11:00.006-05:00

Presley is now 11 months old. I know I say this every month, but where has the time gone? I really can't believe that a year ago we had just moved to Gainesville and were looking for a house to live and I was ready to POP! Wow! Presley has been the greatest joy for Dallas and I. She is super sweet. Always up for something new and seriously serious when she needs to be. This past month was a tough one while we battled ear infections, but ended well. Actually, we were one week free of ear infections and today she fell and hit her eye on our window seal giving her a small cut and a bruise to go with it. Poor Baby! I suppose she inherited her mommy's clumsy gene! Next month Presley will be 1 and has already given us a lifetime of memories. We have lots of things planned over the next month and a half, but I will try to keep up with the blog.

What Presley can do at 11 months
attempting running
climbs our playground next to our house
can say, momma, dadda, ball and hi
if asked to go and get something she will and bring it to you
will let you stack her cups but is DEATHLY afraid of knocking them down(seriously I will have to get it on video!)
Just cut her top two teeth
throws tantrums (augh)
likes ANYTHING that has to do with water...ANYTHING...even washing her hands
loves to put anything and everything in containers. Like balls in cups, blocks in tupperware and so on!
Loves pulling her little frog on a string
Does hand motions to twinkle, twinkle
Follows complex instructions.
Babbles along when I rock and sing her to sleep at night
Colored for the first time when we went to St. Augustine for Dallas' spring break

Shakeology!

2009-03-18T22:08:00.002-05:00

Beachbody just released its newest product. I am so excited! Shakeology is a shake with 70 healthy ingredients. Found in One Meal! Shakeology is an effective way to lose weight, increase your energy and be the healthiest you can possibly be. In an independent 90-day study,participants who replaced at least one meal per day experienced some amazing health benefits. I know we are all busy and all of us want to be healthier but struggle with the time and sometimes even the cost it takes to be healthier! That is where Shakeology comes in! Do me and you a favor and check out this video and the website! Contact me with any questions you may have!!

The Link

2009-03-18T22:07:00.001-05:00

Hey! Here is the link for the technique the chiropractor used on Presley! Some of you had asked me about it so I just thought I would post it here. The technique is called NAET-allergy elimination.

EWomen Conference

2009-03-16T10:29:00.002-05:00

This past weekend I went to the Ewomen Conference in Tampa, Fl with a good friend. I haven't been to a women's conference in 3 years. I absolutely forgot the power of God's presence in that place. It is overwhelming to look around at all the women from all different walks of life praising God, YOUR God! It is incredible. The testimonies of the speakers were so inspiring. We got to hear Amanda Thomas, Stormie Omartian, Chondra Pierce, Meagan Clinton, Julie Clinton and Candace Cameron-Bure. The singers were Natalie Grant and Kathy Tracolli. The worship was led by Michael Obrien, who used to be the lead singer for New Song.

The conference title was "Free to be REAL"!! I found that so encouraging. Especially as a new mom, so often you are hungry to hear someone else say, "Man this is hard and I mess up a lot! Oh, but God is gracious. Even in my mess ups he gives my little one such a sweet love for me!" Sometimes I feel in so many areas in life we are soooo embarrassed to show the world what we struggle with and yet in that weakness is where God's glory can shine. God's calm, rest and strenght in a storm is so alluring and addictive! I learned this weekend that this is what our world needs. So, I have asked that God help me to praise him in my simple and complex storms. I pray he will help me to be honest and REAL with the people in my life so that they can see the wonderful workings of Christ and his glory in my life when those storms are calmed and I have rest! I want others to see this imperfect person being perfected by a PERFCT God!!

I hope that if any of you women out there have an Extraordinary Women's Conference or a Women of Faith conference come near you that you will load up your girlfriends and go. It is really inspiring and gives your spiritual walk a little spark. I pray I will always be able to attend these or something like it. I just don't want to be a mediocre women of God. He calls us to be extraordinary!!

Here are a few pictures of the conference.

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Chiropractors are the way to go

2009-03-13T09:29:00.003-05:00

We took Presley for her last shot yesterday. Before we went, however, we stopped by the chiropractor to see if he could adjust her neck. Sure enough he found lots and lots of blockage in her lymphatic drainage system. He worked on her for a while. We went to her pediatrician's office about 2 hrs later and she was shocked. She said they looked almost as if they hadn't had an ear infection. She got our her little tool that measures air in the middle ear to document it. She said that Presley's ears were so bad before that she guesses she wouldn't have been able to measure any air for the last two months. She was just tickled. She said that the left ear had no change with the Rocephine and that it wouldn't have gone down that dramatically over night. NOw our next step is to figure out what the cause of all this is. So, needless to say our new best friend is the chiropractor. Dallas and I have always believed in chiropractic work and have even referred other friends with little ones to chiropractors. We just hadn't found the time to get Presley in yet. Not making that mistake again!

Anyone want an ear infection?

2009-03-11T20:28:00.002-05:00

We would gladly give away ear infections to any one wanting to try them out. Even if you aren't that brave and would like just one ear we have 2 to go around. Yep. That is right. When we went in for Presley's check up after her last 10 days on antibiotics her ears were still infected. Yuck! So, that means she has pretty much had an ear infection since December. Nice! The doctor decided, enough was enough. She was sick of Presley being sick. So, she hit us with the big guns until the discussion of tubes will be had. We are going in for the new shot series called Rocephin. We went in yesterday, today and will go in tomorrow for shots. The doctor said normally this shot series will take care of it. These shots are NASTY! They hurt soooo bad. She has big ole' knots on both legs. I sure hope they use her butt tomorrow and not her left leg again. Anyways, after the shots we will pray she won't get another one, but we still have to find the underlying problem for the chronic ear infections. She did have a cold the last time but it wasn't significant enought for the severness of the ear infection she had. So we are testing her tolerence to casein milk protein. No dairy for her or mommy....again!! That is ok. If the ear infections get better, well, bring on the Rice Milk and Veggie Cheese!! Well, just wanted to update you all. Crazy, crazy. I know. But, if you are wondering. My little girl is happier than every and learning to run....in the middle of 3 months of double ear infections. If this doesn't slow her down I don't know what will. God help us.

Recent photos of Presley

2009-03-10T11:35:00.003-05:00

Hey! So, I have taken a lot of pics of Presley recently and never have time to blog about them all. Here are some highlights of the last few weeks. I took some pictures of her in the dedication gown that was made for the Gipson grandkids. She was so beautiful in it. I also got pics
of' her with the head band her Mumsie(Dallas' mom) got her that she will wear as a head band now and as a garder when she gets married! Cool concept, huh? Then there are some pictures of her at the park with her playgroup. There are also pictures of us at Lake Alice. It is a lake on the campus of Florida. There are some beautiful azaleas in bloom there right now and we got some great pictures of Presley while we were there. I think there are some pictures of Presley in her first bubble bath....well shower. While she was taking a shower with Dallas the bubble bath creature busted and she was COVERED in bubbles! Too cute! I think the last pictures are of her in an adorable yellow outfit. This is a 3 month outfit that when I got it I thought-she won't wear this till she is a year old. I was close. I just couldn't take enough pictures of her in this outfit. She was so pretty in it! So, enjoy all the slideshow and we will post more later!!

Layla Scout Westbrook

2009-03-07T10:33:00.003-06:00

Welcome to the world Layla Scout Westbrook! Layla came into the world at 3:24am this morning, March 7th. She weighed 7lbs 9oz and was 19 1/2 inches long. Mom and baby are doing fine, now! The labor was not easy on Lisa. Her water broke at 4am Friday morning and after 23 hrs of labor, with 3 hrs of pushing, they ended up taking Layla via C-section. Due to Lisa's previous epidural the spinal for the c-section was placed higher than normal. She had difficulty breathing after they placed the spinal so they had to put Lisa under full anesthesia. Therefore, Keith was unable to be there during Layla's birth. However, they have seen her now and have had some time to get to know their new little girl!!! It was a wild 24 hrs for the family but everyone is doing fine! Now they are just exhausted and trying to get some rest while dealing with a newborn! All of you with babies remember that feeling!! There will be plenty of pictures to come!! You can also check out Lisa's blog by clicking on "Westbrook Walzes" on the right side of the page.

Congrats Lisa and Keith!! We can't wait to hold her and Presley can't wait to hold her Layla!! We love you all. Lisa you take care of yourself and Keith try to get some rest!

10 months old

2009-02-23T21:47:00.004-06:00

Presley turned 10 months old today! She is growing so fast. Everyday I see more and more glimpses of who she is going to be as a little girl, teenager(scary), young adult and even a mommy. Presley is always up for an adventure. She is always taking on new challenges. Everyday, with me, Dallas, her friends and even the dogs she shows her love for us with incredible passion! When Presley loves and cares for you she really loves and cares for you!! She is so fun to be around. When she is into things man is she into them! This is where "Destructo Baby" comes from!! She is our little explorer! Presley loves people. She has been social from day one. This has only grown as her emotional development has grown! Everyone who meets Presley loves her the first time they encounter her! Her mommy especially loves that trait!!! Ok, ok...enough bragging. We all know she is the love of my life next to her Daddy and that I am proud of her. Sorry for having to hear my bragging!!

Here is what she is doing at 10 months:

Walking

Trying to run

climbing

singing

dancing

saying mahmamama, dadddah, hi

responds to simple commands

when you say "let's eat" or "lets get a bath" she grins and walks to us

loves hugging her little friends

loves stacking her cups
putting her blocks in her buckets

playing ball

loves swings/slides

can stand up from a sitting postion

can sit down from a standing position

loves to read her books

loves to tear up magazines

loves to chew on dog bones and get in their water bowl

Oh and did I mention that for her 10 month "birthday" she got a double ear infection as a gift. Yes, this is her second one. This one didn't have the same symptoms as the other one or I just caught it before it got that bad. Poor baby.

I was planning to go and help my friend Missy this week but got a funny feeling when I got home that I should stay. Not an hour after that feeling Presley spiked a fever. We watched her all weekend and she had a fever but was able to keep it controlled with motrin. However, her little cough would not stop. So, I thought I should go and check the cough out. Well, the cough was the least of poor lil' P's problems. The doctor said her ears were "screaming" at her. Anyways, so we are on the mend. Please still be thinking of my friend Missy. She has another week 1/2 on bed rest!! Hope everyone is doing well!
I forgot to add this video.....I have been videoing the progression of Presley's walking and today I was able to catch her with her shaker. You know how most kids "lovies" are soft and cuddly? Not Presley!!! Her's is a hard, wooden, NOISEY shaker!! Now that she is walking I hear the shaking follow me everywhere I go!!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Update on Missy...

2009-02-20T20:17:00.002-06:00

Hey everyone! I just wanted to update you on Missy. She just went back to the doctor today to check and see how the week on bed rest did for her and her little angel. Well, while she was at the doctor she had another strong contraction while laying on the exam table. The doctor was concerned that the little activity from her house to the doctor's office made her start contraction and decided to put her on another 2 weeks of bed rest. I had it all planned to hop in the car in a few days and head up there to help her the first week, but then Presley decided to spike a fever tonight and I think she has another ear infection. I will have to wait and see. I am hoping to still get to go and help but I have a feeling that it may not be in the cards. That is fine because she is surrounded with amazing friends and an incredible church full of people who love her and the rest of the Smith family! Who wouldn't love her?!! Well, there you are. I will keep you all up to date on Missy and her little girl!

Prayer and Visiting with a friend

2009-02-18T20:45:00.003-06:00

Before I begin my next blog I wanted to pause and ask you all for prayer for my friend Missy Smith and her family. Missy is 24 weeks pregnant and went into labor last Saturday. They were able to stop it and she is on bed rest now. This isn't a great scenerio seeing as she has atleast 13 more weeks to full term. The chances this may happen again are likely. Please, please pray for her. With all of her obligations at the church and to Bailey and Bella this is tough. If you want more details you can go to her blog by click on MammaMissy on the right side of the page. We love you Missy! Hang in there!!!

On a side note-I went to Jacksonville today to visit an old high school friend-Shameeka Scott. I haven't seen her in nearly 10 years. She and I cheered together and were in Symphonic Band together for all four years of high school. I have to tell you she was a classy young lady in high school and very admirable. She is just as much so today if not more. She still has the same warm friendly smile and just spoke with you yesterday personality. She got to meet Presley and I got to meet her little girl Reese, who is 7 months old. Reese is so beautiful. She looks like she belongs in a magazine! NOt only that, but when we were taking pictures of the girls Reese flashed the biggest grin almost to say "I am ready for my close up!" Too cute! I am so glad I made the trip to see her! More importantly I am greatful to her sister, who had just had a baby 6 days ago(the reason Shameeka was in Jacksonville)for letting me come and visit with Shameeka at their house. Their family was so kind and welcoming. It was a wonderful afternoon!

Visit with an old friend

click to view the pictures!

Our Walker

2009-02-14T14:37:00.004-06:00

Some of you have asked that I blog Presley walking. So here is a quick clip. Ask my mom and dad or my sister and they will tell you she is a speed demon and walking EVERYWHERE!!! Oh man! If you are wondering they watch her on web cam! It is incredible once they take those first few steps how quickly they pick it up. I would say Friday Presley finally let loose and hasn't looked back! She still falls occasionally and crawls but not too often! Oh man, my world is changing!! Hope everyone had a great Valentine's Day! We love you all!!

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

9 months going on 18

2009-02-12T19:32:00.003-06:00

Presley had her 9 month check up yesterday. Yes, it is two weeks late. I had some appointments that needed to be taken care of and had to push her appt. back. Anyways, she did super good. Here are her stats:
weight: 17 lbs 1 oz (20th percentile)
height: 27 in (40th percentile)
I don't remember the size of her head but it was in the 40th percentile too!

When her doctor was going through all the nine month check list she was amazed at what Presley is doing. She asked "Can Presley do the pincher grip?" Just as she said it she did the motions to show the index finger touching the thumb. Before I even had the chance to say yes, Presley was mimicking back to her the pincher grip. The doctor then asked, "Is Presley working on crawling?" I said, "Umm....ya....she is trying to walk and is climbing!" As if on cue (I had Presley standing next to the bench) Presley pulled up on the bench and was trying to put her leg up on top of it!!! The doctor then looked at me and said, "ok, lets just move on the the 12 month check list. I don't know why Presley is in a hurry but she thinks she is 12 months old." She then went through most all of that check list. Leaving a few for Presley to learn!! Before we left she said, "if you consult a milestone checklist for ideas to encourage her development you need to look at the 18 month list. Not that you need to do much encouraging, but Presley is starting those things already!" I was proud and then thought....AHHHHHH!!!!

Her walking is getting lots better. Most of the day she takes 4-5 steps and then falls. Then at night or in the early morning she will just wobbly all over the living room. We try not to encourage it too much, but it is really fun to watch her figure this out. One thing is for sure-now that we are attempting to walk our "Booboo Bear" gets used A LOT!!

Out on the town

2009-02-08T08:35:00.003-06:00

My cousin Alicia was in Florida this weekend. She was in Jacksonville with a friend of her's from Maine who was here looking for a house when her and her husband move down in June. We only had the opportunity to see Alicia for dinner but it was perfect. We sat and got to catch up over a really great meal. It was so great to get to see her. I don't often get to see my extended family because my immediate family doesn't live near them. Anyways, so I was super pumped to see her!! She is looking fantastic and like such a classy lady these days!!

Shannon, Alicia's friend, is super sweet. She is 5 months pregnant with her first baby, so it was fun to talk to her about pregnancy stuff that seems like many moons ago for me!

Dusty came to dinner also. We spent the majority of the day with him since we were in his stomping grounds. Let me tell you, as soon as Presley saw Dusty she lit up. She knows who her Dusty is. Well, just wanted to give you a wrap up of the weekend!!

Presley shakes her thang!

2009-02-06T15:14:00.003-06:00

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!
Ok, so I totally just caught Presley's music time on video. Every day I think to get this on video and can't get the camera in time before she is done. I try to do some sort of music time everyday with Presley. I also try to get her to dance and get used to moving her body in ways that are fun and exciting. So that, when she is older she will enjoy being active. Well, I finally got her shaking her bum! What is even better is that she has horribly bad bowed legs (thanks Dusty and Shasta!) and looks like she is shakin her booty on top of a horse! Gosh, I love her!!!

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Welcome Alexa Aileen

2009-02-02T07:59:00.004-06:00

Welcome to the world Alexa Aileen Chetelat

Alexa was born December 29, 2008 weighing 8lbs 2oz and was 18.8in long.

I do need to apologize to those of you who have been waiting for pictures. Most of you who are mutual friends of Sandra and me already know of Alexa's arrival. However, the other day I was checking Sandra's childhood friend's blog and realized I still hadn't posted a picture. So, after trying with no success to use the pictures I had I finally got some from Sandra that would work.

I think most of you will appreciate this one with her and Mia. This is the most recent picture of the two of them. I have not had the chance to visit Alexa, but Sandra says they look so different. I personally think their profiles are identical, but have to agree that even their skin tone is very different. Mia seems to be such a good big sister already!! Can you believe Mia is three? I think it will be tough for me to quickly forget that dark headed, stubby legged baby chasing birds in the piazza!! I can't wait to make more memories with Mia and make some with Alexa as well.

Mom and Dad are doing wonderful. Except, I think they are ready for some quiet family time!! They have been overwhelmingly blessed with family and friends who came to visit and help take care of them and Mia during this transition. Sandra says she has really been loved!

Congrats!

2009-01-30T10:29:00.003-06:00

After 7 years of trying, taking tons of medicine, having surgery and finally giving up over a year ago, my big brother Brent, his wife Crystal, and my nephew Dylan have found out they are expecting a little baby! They had an ultrasound yesterday and saw the little heartbeat. I tell you what God has some funny timing! With all my heart, however, I believe it is always the BEST timing! Please pray for them as they go through the excitment, anxiety, fear and other medical concerns Crystal will deal with through the pregnancy. We are a family that believes in prayer and are strengthened by it when others pray!!

Congrats Brent, Crystal and Dylan!!!!!

Destructo Baby!!!

2009-01-30T10:07:00.004-06:00

The other night while I was folding laundry I realized Presley wasn't hanging on my leg or crying at feet for me to pick her up both of which are her favorite places and things to do. So, after I folded about my 6th shirt I walked around our island in the kitchen to find her surrounded in aluminum foil, ziploc bags, parchment paper, cling wrap and more. We have a pantry shelf because this house didn't have an actual pantry. Needless to say Presley has found her new favorite place to hang out. Now you can all see why we call her Destructo Baby!!! OH, and yes, I realize that she is starting to show walking signs and that this is just the beginning. Lord help me!!!

I also wanted to add this one picture of her new smile. NOw, when you say, "Hey Presley!" she turns and grins the goofiest grin! My child is such a ham!!!! Gosh, I love her!

Steps for Daddy's 31st Birthday!

2009-01-29T22:31:00.004-06:00

Happy Birthday Dallas! My husband turned 31 today. We had a low key day which was exactly what Dallas wanted. We did go and get his birthday present and have a small dinner out, but mostly we just hung out here! He doesn't go to school on Tuesday and Thursdays so he was able to be home for his birthday! And, Presley had the BEST present for his birthday....

She took her first steps!!!!!! Did you hear me? She took her first steps!!! Three to be exact!

We were all sitting in her room when she did it. I thought, "what a blessing for Dallas to be in grad school at this point in Presley's life so he can witness all of these 'firsts'!" What a big girl!

I absolutely love birthdays. I am horrible about gift giving but LOVE that we have a day to celebrate the first breath of the people we love most! Dallas is someone I hope I get to celebrate birthdays with long into our "gray years"!! I am overwhelmed by the friend I have in Dallas. I am overwhelmed by the husband he is to me and even more by the father he is to Presley. Even on the hard days he is the best part of my life. Happy Birthday babe! We love you!

9 months old

2009-01-24T09:13:00.004-06:00

Hi all!! Well, I am 9 months old now! Can you believe it? I can. My mommy can't believe it. She doesn't know where the time went and what happened to her little baby. She asks me all the time, "Are you really going to be a year old in 3 months?" I simply respond by giving her a reassuring smile that, YES, I will be 1 in 3 months. I'm pretty sure all the lack of sleep is getting to her head. I mean how can she forget all those diapers, the feedings, the many cries I have had and all the giggles I have giggled over the past 9 months. Yep, she's loosing it. So, out of respect of my mommy and her slipping mind, I thought I would do the blog this time.

I had a pretty crazy 8th month. I went on a 3 week trip to see my Mae and Popa in Washington DC, played with a 2yr old for 24hrs a day for three weeks (my cousin Katelyinn), got my first tooth, had my first cold and ear infection. Yikes. Opps...this isn't about my 8th month. Sorry. I am just learning. Ok, ok. Here is what I am up to now:
I can-
-crawl with the speed of light

-furniture surf (this is my favorite because it keeps mommy on her toes)

-take steps between the coffee table and chair

-have only one scraggly tooth on the bottom (this is silly looking)

-feed myself with my fingers

-give myself medicine(ok, so mommy puts it in the syringe and then I take it)

-stand up from a sitting position

-bend my legs, just like a squat, and slowly sit from standing

-stand for long periods of time without holding on to things, but then when I realize I am doing this I sit down quickly

-pull up on everything

-when playing peek-a-boo my mommy says, "Where's Presley?" I respond by going, "AHH!"

-swim in the tub (ok,I like to call it swimming but it really is sliding on my belly. Hey, I am trying to build my confidence for the summer. I am a Florida baby, ya know?!!)

-make sounds for my puppies names, Ben and Abby

-Oh, and apparently I can write. Don't know when that happened!

-However I would say that my BEST trick right now is running. Yep, you heard me. I can run. I can't walk but I can run. Well, actually, it feels more like flying. Check it out!

Thanks for checking in with me this month. I have to go. Mommy says its time for my nap. I have to do something to stay this cute!!

Go gators...literally

2009-01-21T10:16:00.002-06:00

I wanted to share this video of Presley playing this morning. My mom and dad got her this GREAT walker with alligators on it for Christmas. Theybought the one with alligators because we are living in Gator country. The little alligators mouths are suppose to make chomping sounds when you push it, but Presley never got going fast enough to allow the walker chomp. This morning I looked over and she had pushed it on to the hard floor. I just knew she was going to bite as soon as the walker got going. Nope, in pjs and all she had totally control and ran right along with it! She loves it! By time I got the camera she wasn't going so fast. By then she was trying to stir it. Just a short clip. Enjoy!!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Hello there...

2009-01-18T21:12:00.003-06:00

So, I haven't blogged in a few days. Do I have an excuse....ummm....no. Wasn't very busy. Although we have been having a rough time getting back to a routine after the holidays. I know what you are thinking, Cindy it has been two weeks. Well, I am, as my mom always says, "L-A_Z_Y!" This week will be better.

This past weekend we went to the Razorback vs Gators basketball game at UF here in Gainesville! The Hogs lost...boo hiss! We did, however, have a good time. Dusty came down and went with us to the game. Eventhough it wasn't Bud WAlton Arena it was a fun atmosphere to watch basketball in. They even had the Golden Dazzlers perform. Yes, a squad of 65+ aged women danced at half. It was AWESOME!!!

Dallas has Monday and Tuesday off! Wahoo!! What will we do tomorrow on Dallas' day off? I don't know. Maybe we will go and walk around the state park here in town. We have been wanting to do it and just haven't yet. Presley loves anything outside, so I think we will enjoy it. Tuesday we are looking forward to the Inaguration of the next President and all the festivities. Ok, maybe not we...just ME!! HEEHEE! Anyways. We have a good friend from La Madd who is in DC specifically to work on the Inagural Ball Committee. Awesome job, right? So, it will be nice to see what he has been up to for the past year. Well, hopefully it won't be another week before I blog, but who knows! Til then I hope all of you who check my blog are well and blessed!

Music is fun

2009-01-12T12:39:00.002-06:00

Presley started her Tonewood music classes today. I hear they are similar to Kindermusik if you are familiar with that music class. Anyways, she had such a great time. In the beginning she just sat there and stared at everyone trying to figure out what the heck was going on. By the end of it she was dancing, clapping, singing and shaking the shakers. I do have to say that I think she is definitely a visual and movement learner. The more she could see and the more she could feel the more interactive she was. I am so glad we found this class. It will be so good for her to hang out with children older than her and to be in a class setting where she can begin to build "respect" skills for those sort of environments. I felt like she was such a big girl!

Presley is standing alone these days. She will let go of the furniture, of her push toy, or her block and stand forever. I clocked 4 minutes straight the other day. She will even do squats. She squatted all the way to the floor and just before her tush hit the floor she stood back up. Crazy? I am afraid she will be walking very soon. I'm not going to encourage it more than she is trying it, though. I already see what a path of destruction she can have while crawling. I can only imagine what walking will be like.

Our weather here in Gainesville has been downright beautiful. On Sunday we went to the park and it was packed with people playing freezbie, football, cooking out, playing on the playgrounds and just laying out on the lawn. Ya, you heard me. Laying out! It was 80 degrees of HOT on Sunday. Today, however, is much cooler. It rained all night and brought the cold weather! I just couldn't believe that it was January and I, Cindy, was walking around in shorts!!!

What have I been up to? Well, I am still crunching away at learning my new business. Its really fun to hear people's desires and wishes to not just "loose weight" but to get active and have a better life! I enjoy it! Dallas is back to school and loving it. (note the sarcasm) He only has three classes this semester but I don't think it means it will be any easier. However, it is all relative when you are talking about Dallas. His last semester was "hard" but with ease he pulled a 3.73. He put most everything off to the last minute and stressed that he didn't have time to do it to its potential and knew he would get bad grades because of it....OH NO! He still pulled high Bs and As. Not fair, but I am super proud of him. I am so proud of all his accomplishments and he has had many in the short 5 years we've been married.

Just a short recap on what has been going on in Gipsonville.

New Years Resolution

2009-01-07T13:48:00.003-06:00

Well it is that time of year. Everyone is getting out their notebooks and jotting down their New Year's Resolutions. I would imagine that most of us put "get into shape" or some variation of this on that little list. Why do we keep putting it on our list every year? Is it because we don't stick with it? Is it because the program we choose isn't giving the results we want so we give up all together? Is it because we reach our goal and then go back to the same lifestyle we had before? If you have said yes to any or all of these I can help you.

Beachbody is a business that is committed to giving you programs that will give you results in ways that make working out fun and often times addicting. An added benefit is that Beachbody doesn't want you to do these programs just to reach a goal. They want you to reach that goal and then apply it to change your life! Therefore, keeping off the weight and keeping your energy and activity level well past next years resolution time!

I wanted to share some articles that were posted on Carl Daikeler's(CEO of Beachbody) blog. The first article is about Without a Trace actress Poppy Montgomery using P90X to shed her baby weight.
People Magazine
The next article is about NFL Cheerleaders using P90X to stay in shape as well. This isn't too surprising seeing as many NFL players do P90X also!
P90X Cheerleaders

P90X is only ONE of the programs available at Beachbody. They are also known for Turbo Jam, Hip Hop Abs,Slim in 6 and 10 minute trainer. Although, I have to say I am most excited about the new release of ChaLEAN Extreme!

This is a workout program that everyone can do, men, women, old, young, active or just starting a new workout for the first time in years. I have a few people in my family and some friends who are starting this program with me n the next week or two. WE are all going to do it together. It is always easier when you have a friend!

So, if you have put weight loss, getting in to shape, get stronger, become active or just find a way to have more energy please let me know! Beachbody has A LOT to offer. There is a product just as unique as you are!! Good luck with your Resolutions! Lets try to make this a year we keep them!

First Illness..

2009-01-05T21:22:00.003-06:00

Well, we made it home Saturday night from my parents'! It was so wonderful to see them and to spend that much time with my family. My favorite thing was simply hanging out at the house visiting and watching the girls play. I only wish we could all be closer.

The visit, however, did not end quietly. Presley was sick most of the time we were at my parents and cut two teeth. I know, superwoman. Ok, I do realize most children do that. When it is your own ordinary NEVER seems ordinary. Anyways, she progressivly got worse as we headed home. This morning I took her in to see her doctor and she has a double ear infection! YIKES!! Poor baby. However, as I blog she has been sleeping soundly for 3 hours. This is a miracle in itself seeing as she hasn't had a good night sleep in 5 days.

I have to say I have been waiting on her to get sick. I am just glad it waited til she was 8 1/2 months old. Oh, and for those of you who I told she weighs just shy of 17lbs. Ha, try 15lbs 12oz. Ya, that's my porker! I guess she comes by the nickname "Little P" honestly! Well, I must go and get some sleep incase my tiny angel wakes me tonight.

What a year...

2009-01-01T22:45:00.004-06:00

Wow, where did 2008 go? It is 2009, really? As my mom put it earlier today, "I still remember when everyone thought the world was going to blow up in 2000 from YSK!" Good point mom. 2008 was a wonderful and hard year all at the same time. There were a lot of things, good and bad, that happened to me and my family. Here is a recap of 2008:
Dallas and I kicked off 2008 in La Maddalena Italy
Dallas turned 30
We moved back to the states (Gainesville, Fl)
BIGGEST CHANGE-Our Presley was born April 23,2008
We became parents
We learned to function on no sleep
We learned to change diapers, swaddle, give a newborn a bath, breastfeed/prepare bottles, to have a diaper bag packed and ready at all times, but most of all how to trust our instincts.
Presley had a year of firsts-poopy diaper, walk around the block, night in crib alone, bath,toth, crawling, solid food, smile, giggle and now cruising furniture!
Dusty(brother) found a great job in Jacksonville, Fl
HARDEST THING- Kaci(sis) moved to Spokane, WA with only Katelynn to keep her company. HOwever, has a GREAT job and is loved by all who works with her!
Brent(brother)- found out he was going to Afghanistan, went to 3 months of training just to find out he may not go.
Crystal and Dylan(sister-in-law and nephew) had to move into a new house without Brent's help.
Brent won the NCO of the Region for Air Force (awesome honor)
Lisa and Keith(D's sister and her husband) found out they are expecting a baby in March 2009.
Dallas' Mom and Dad became grandparents
My mom and Dad moved to Washington DC and have settled into a wonderful house!
Dallas started Grad School and finished his first semester
And I started my new Beachbody business just before the end of the year.

Wow, what a year! What will 2009 bring? Well, Presley still has lots of "firsts" to accomplish, so we have that to look forward to!! We have a new neice to welcome to the world. We will be waiting to see about Brent's order to the desert. We will wait and see if Kaci and my parents move to new locations or stay in the jobs they are in. Lots to look forward to as we begin this new year.

So, cheers to the memories of 2008 and to the new memories to be made in 2009!!

Happy Birthday Kaci!

2008-12-29T13:32:00.006-06:00

Kaci turned 30 on the 26th! Yes I am very behind on blogging it! It was such a blessing to get to be with her on her birthday. Especially such a big birthday. I only pray that this year will be a better year for her. She really is deserving of all the happiness in this world! We spent the morning showering her with gifts, made her angle food cake, and took her to Olive Garden. I am pretty sure it wasn't the party she was expecting but we all had a great time! The next night Dusty, Kaci, Dallas and I all went to Applebees for a Blondie and some drinks. We had such a great time visiting and spending some adult time together without the babies. However, we weren't gone very long and I was missing Presley by time we got back. Funny how we wish so often for time to ourselves and then when we get it we spend the time missing and talking about the kids. Sorry, random thought. So, Happy Birthday Kaci!! You are the best sister anyone could ever wish for and an even better friend! I know those who know you will agree and for those of you who don't, I only wish you had a Kaci in your lives. Kaci, Happy Birthday Sis, I LOVE YOU!!! (oh and don't worry and slide show is coming!)

Santa came to town...

2008-12-25T14:27:00.005-06:00

We had such a GREAT Christmas morning. Presley got lots and lots of great gifts. She woke up to a drum and a book from Santa (he didn't over due it due to her age!) and the cookies and milk she left gone. Katelynn got a kitchen and some clothes. The two of them played all morning with their new toys. Santa also left stockings for everyone. He always leaves oranges and apples. Presley tried to eat the orange whole after trying to eat the fruit roll up in her mommy's stocking!!

After we found Santa's gifts we all headed up stairs to let everyone else open gifts. We all ate breakfast and made our coffee and sat around the tree as we shared our gifts. I have to say there is no greater joy than seeing your child experience Christmas for the first time. We enjoyed teaching her about Jesus Christ and his birthday. We enjoyed teaching her about Santa. We also enjoyed teaching her about the giving of the season.

Presley got clothes, toys and books. However, she mostly enjoyed the wrapping paper, tape, boxes, bows, ribbons, ornaments and playing with Katelynn. Katelynn is Presley's world. She adores her. Presley cared little about much else, including momma and daddy, when Katelynn was around.

We have enjoyed spending time with my parents, Dusty, kaci and Katelynn. There is nothing like family. No family is ever perfect but I sure think ours is special. We have grown to be such great friends. I am truly blessed. If only Brent, Crystal and Dylan were here this would have been a near perfect Christmas.
To see ALL our Christmas fun please click here.
I hope the day was filled with Joy and Blessings for everyone!

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

We are 8 months

2008-12-24T07:49:00.003-06:00

Presley turned 8 months old yesterday. What a big little girl. It is hard to believe we have made it to this point. I remember planning our Christmas vacation and thinking, Presley will never be that old. She is so yummy right now. Here is what she is doing at 8 months
Standing up on everything
Will let go of things and stand for 30+ secs.
Trying to move between furniture
Plays peek-a-boo with whoever will indulge her
Will look for Ben and Abby when you ask where they are
Now stands on ONE LEG when her daddy holds her up
Still squeals loud enough to pierce your ears

Presley also has had her first full fledged cold. We really weren't too concerned until her cough moved down into her chest and settled there for 5 days. Wow, she sounded horrible. So, on her 8 month "birthday" she spent the morning in the ER just so they could listen to her little chest. All was clear! Good news. Oh, and those teeth I blogged about before, not in yet! We are a little stubborn in the teeth area!!! Go figure!

Presley is doing so well. She can't wait for Christmas to be here so she can experience all the food, family time and gifts! Dallas and I couldn't be more blessed and have never experienced a greater joy than being parents to Presley. It still seems so surreal that she is ours. We can't believe what a sweet baby she is and what a great personality she is developing. We love her so much. Thanks to each of you who check this blog. I know you have to put up with mostly blogs of Presley but it is our way of celebrating God's gift to us with each of you. Thank you!

Presley w/ Hog Head and Nativity

2008-12-19T23:10:00.005-06:00

Today we introduced Presley to The Razorback Hat! This is a tradition for Razorback Fans to wear this AWESOME hat at any and all sporting events. Ok, so not everyone wears them but if you are a die hard fan I will venture to say you or someone in your family has one. Presley LOVED the Razorback and if I am not mistaken I believe she said "WOOOOO PIG SOOOOIE!! Go Hogs!"

After dinner tonight we took Presley to see the live Nativity scene at my mom's church. We were literally there 5 minutes. It was way too cold and we had to get Presley a bath and into bed. Dallas did his famous "Presley stunt" and let Presley see the Angels a little closer. Yes, this scared everyone there! No worries. Much like we are all safely in the palm of God's hands, so was Presley in Dallas'!!! Hope the preps for Christmas are coming along! Love you all!

Heading to DC

2008-12-17T15:59:00.009-06:00

Dallas, Presley and I packed up early Monday morning and started our drive to DC. On the way we decided to take a small detour and stop at my friend Missy's house for a couple of days. This gave us the opportunity to let Presley have some time out of the car. It actually ended up working out perfectly.

We arrived early Monday morning and slept for a while since we, ok Dallas, had driven all night. Bella and Presley played until we left for Greer, SC to meet up with my oldest friend, Brandi and her family. Brandi is married to Shep

and has three little ones Riley (my goddaughter) Ryan, and Trevor. We had such a great time with them. We met them for dinner and it felt like we had just seen them the weekend before. I love friendships that are easy and not high manitenence. Being around her felt like spending all day in my good, old, comfy jeans. It was wonderful! OH, and Presley absolutely loved her kiddos.

Riley, Brandi and Presley
Side note-can I just say they are some of the best behaved children I have seen. Brandi, will you come over and keep my kids in line!! Anyways, it was fun! Check out the pics here.(coming soon)

We spent all day Tuesday at Missy's letting the girls play. Bella is so good with Presley and Presley just adores her some Bella.

They laughed and played so well together.

When they weren't playing together Presley spent most of her time at the fridge playing with Leap Frog magnets. Gotta get me some of those!! She loved them!!

One thing we did realize over the last few day, however, is that Bella is going to be such a big help when the new Smith arrives and an incredible big sis. The only thing Missy will have to struggle with is Bella's obession with holding the baby. I can't tell you how many times we heard her say "I hold her!" Presley didn't mind. I only hope they grow up to be as close as Missy and I are.

I think I like how Missy put it, "It is like taking a refreashing shower everytime I am with you!" I couldn't agree more.

The strangest thing over the past few days is the odd feeling of time. When I was with both girls I saw myself as 9-10 yrs old(when I met Brandi) and in middle school/high school (when I met Missy and developed a friendship) and yet here we were with babies of our own. Incredible! Click here to see more pictures of our time at Missy's.(coming soon)

We are now in DC! WAHOOO! We made it! Dallas drove from 10:30- 5:15am this morning. Ouch. Don't know how he did. Actually, he talked to his mom and dad for like 2 1/2-3hrs in the beginning. That was so much help. Thanks Mom and Dad. Anyways, now we are here and waiting on Kaci, Katelynn and Dusty to get here. We are going to have WAY too much fun laughing and joking around with eachother.

Here is a quick video of Presley and Bella! Bella could make Presley laugh at anything!! They are so cute

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Oh, update. I haven't blogged this yet because I didn't know all the details. However, Brent, my big brother who was to go to Afghanistan the end of December will be home a while longer. Some funding changed and they didn't have the funds to send him right now! So, he is home for Christmas and a couple of months hopefully. He isn't out of their radar. They still expect he will go later in the year. However, now, we are focusin on the fact that he is home!

Presley visits Santa

2008-12-13T12:14:00.004-06:00

This morning we went to see Santa! Presley was so beautiful in her little dress and LOVED seeing Santa. The only picture that came out, h owever, she had a such a silly look on her face. I didn't care because it was the perfect picture to capture her mood. We walked around the mall afterwards and we were stopped every few feet with people wanting to tell us how pretty she is and how cute she looked in her gourgeous Christmas dress. The dress and the great shoes were a gift from her Mumsie. Actually Mumsie gave the dress to Presley's cousin, Katelynn, and the shoes were a new gift. The dress and shoes were a bit big but I wanted her in them anyways!!! =) Check out the picture of her and her dad in line. She looks soooo much like him when her hair is down!!

Deck The Halls and Visitors!!

2008-12-07T19:16:00.006-06:00

(one of Presley's little Christmas dresses)
Well, after being away for Thanksgiving and knowing we would only be in Gainesville for 2 weeks before leaving to DC for Christmass I was not so sure I was going to decorate the house for the season. However, when I got home I realized that every year I had an excuse not to put up and tree and this year there wasn't going to be another one. My friend, Sarah, mentioned that she had always dreamed of putting up a christmas tree with her child and I too had the same dream growing up. Well, I have the child all that was missing was the tree. So, we got very simple decorations, a little tree and our family and decorated our house!

Presley's Mumsie (Dallas' Mom) gave her some super cute Christmas pjs while we were home visiting. She looks so cute in them! I just had to share some of the pictures. There is nothing more beautiful than a sleeping baby, especially mine!! heehee! I was so surprised the flash didn't wake her. I love the jammies in the second picture! They have "Baby's First Christmas" on the butt! Too cute! Oh and look where I found my mischevious "Little P" this morning!!!

Over the weekend we had some visitors come in from Gulfport, MS to meet Presley! The Stringham family are friends of ours we met in La Maddalena, Italy. Acutally they were our sponsors. For non-military, that is kinda your go to person for questions when moving and settling into your new base/area at your new duty station! They have three kids, Ethan, Jake and Bekah Jo. Man have they changed. Both boys are in elementary school and Bekah Jo is now 3, in ballet and bossing everyone around! Just what a little girl should do! We took them on a walk around Lake Alice to explore all the birds, squirrels, plant life and alligators. Although no alligators were spotted, it was still a good time! The kids seemed to enjoy it. It was so good to see them again! I love how the Military can be so much like a family!

EXTREME!!!

2008-12-02T08:22:00.004-06:00

Let's get EXTREME!!! ChaLEAN EXTREME is HERE!!!! I can't wait to get mine! For those of you who know about Turbo Jam, well, this is a followup to Chalene Johnson's crazy cardio workouts! Turbo Jam is one of my favorite workouts EVER!! This will push your workouts to the next level. Some of you men have done this workout with me but you wanted something from Chalene that is less dancey, well here it is!!
This will count as this weeks beachbody product I promised I would put on my blog! I challenge each of you to get into a workout routine that you love, that engages your spirit and your body and that makes you a well rounded person. If it makes you look better in your clothes too, well then, you get an added bonus! Beachbody has a lot of things to offer to help you in your journey to getting these results! These products will be a great Christmas gift to give that person in your life who needs a workout that they can squeeze into their day (10 minute Trainer), wants something fun and funky but gets results (Turbo Jam and Hip Hop Abs), needs an extreme workout for extreme results (P90X and ChaLENE Extreme) or has just been diagnosed with diabetes and doesn't know where to start or has had diabetes for some time and wants to control it better with exercise and diet (Kathy Smith's Project You:Type 2)!!! There is something for everyone! After watching the ChaLENE Extreme video check out my beachbody site!!! www.teambeachobdy.com/me4hogs

Thanksgiving weekend

2008-12-01T09:43:00.005-06:00

Well, I would first like to say to those of you that I did not get to talk to last Thursday, Happy Thanksgiving! I sure hope you had a great time with friends and family and that you are stuffed to the brim. Dallas, Presley and I headed to Jonesboro, Arkansas to spend a quick two days with his family. Dallas had only a few days off from school so we squeezed in a quick trip. We were so greatful his mom and dad bought us tickets or we would not have been able to spring the trip.

Presley had such a great time with everyone. First, on Thursday we went to the big Gipson Family Thanksgiving lunch. We got to catch up with Dallas' Dad's side of the family. It was great to see all of them. After lunch we went to Lisa and Keiths to watch the Dallas Cowboys (Keith's favorite team) play the Detroit Lions. Not much of a game. However, we all had fun visiting and watching Presley play. After the game we headed back to Mary and Gary's. That evening some of Dallas' cousins and their children came over to hangout. At first Presley wasn't really sure what to think of all the kids. Then she quickly warmed up!!
Jaxon and Presley are little buds! He is so sweet with her!
t was also fun to get to see Ella Claire with Presley since they are about a year apart!

Madison, Reed, Gabriel and Lacey were there too! Madison is growing like a weed. She looks so grown next to all the babies! She was just a baby when Dallas and I got married. How time flies! Reed, I think, helped the big guys play pool until he went to sleep. Gabriel played with the board games while Lacey sat on my lap and helped me play TriBond. Fun board game if you have never played!! We had such a great time visiting with all of them!

On Friday we went to Lisa and Keith's again to watch the Razorbacks BEAT LSU!!! WAHOOOO! What a game! I have to say as much as I gave Casey Dick(our QB) a hard time the last two years he sure pulled out an awesome pass at the end of that game. Afterwards we came back to Mary and Gary's again and had dinner then played dominoes until like midnight! It was soooo much fun! Dallas and I are sure hoping that his dive training won't start until January next year so we can spend a good week or more in Jonesboro next Christmas!!

Now, I have to get busy and get our house decorated for Christmas. Just to leave in two weeks for my mom and dad's! Crazy! After January we will be keeping put until March when Dallas' Sister's baby makes her debut!

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Oh and our little frequent flyer got her first real taste of turbulance on the flight coming home. It was bad!!! A couple times I wasn't sure if she hadn't been laughing so hard that I wouldn't have been scared. Yea, you read that right. Presley was cracking up. All the other kids were screaming and scared! Presley was screaming out of excitment. It lasted for a good 20 min, but I didn't think to grab the camera until the end. But you will get the idea!Oh and her bouncing up and down at the end was her jumping. I promise when it got bad she was restrained!!

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7 mos and a Football Game

2008-11-23T09:41:00.006-06:00

Presley turns 7 months old today! Gosh, really? Where does the time go? I looked back at some of our videos, like the one of her pulling her hair, of her first babbles, trying to roll over and think I remember thinking she was so big THEN! I can honestly say being a mom is hard but overwhelmingly rewarding! It is a relationship that for now is unconditional. I never had to win over my daughter, I never had to make her love me. Ok, well, being the only source of her food helps, but I try not to think of that!!!

Presley can...
Crawl!
Is getting her first tooth
Stands up on most everything
Eats puffs, cherrios, animal crackers and lots of veggies and fruit
Takes 2-3 naps a day
Sleeps 10-10 1/2 hrs at night
Loves blocks, ribbons, rattles, exersaucer,magazines,daddy's shoes,and...ummm...dog toys
LOVES her puppies and is so glad she has two friends all day to play with!
Has lots of little friends between her "New Mom's Playgroup", Navy Dive families (also here for grad school), Sandra and Lena(this little girl is Presley's world!! She is 3) and her Church and Bible Talk friends.
Can clap and wave bye, bye
Loves to bounce
Her best adult friend would have to be her Uncle Dusty. She lights up when he is here!

Dallas and I still look at her and think "This can't be. Is she really ours?" I love it! For as long as she is mine to care for I will cherish her and that time. When it comes time for her to leave my house and make her own way I will gladly move to the sidelines and see if those times I cherished her helped her to be the incredible person I already know she is!!

Yesterday we went to Presley's first college football game. It was also my first Gator football game. We had a great time!!! It was the Gators vs Citadel Bulldogs. So, Dusty came in from Jacksonville to go to the game. He scored us some AWESOME seats AND a great parking place for tailgating. Most of the people around us, AGAIN, hardly watched the game as much as they watched Presley. WEll, maybe that is because it wasn't much of a game!! Presley took a VERY long nap in the middle of the game and I fed her twice. I know, I am the master breastfeeder!!! HeeHee. Most of the people probably thought I was just keeping her warm with the Citadel sweatshirt. Click here if you want to see all the pictures!

Presley loves her puppies...

2008-11-21T18:32:00.005-06:00

Ben and Abby are our first babies. We got them a year after we got married. Dallas has always called them "Cindy's dogs" but now they have a new owner. "Presley's Dogs" are now the center of my little girls world. When she wakes up in the morning the first things she looks for is Ben and Abby. When she is crying, no one soothes her like Ben and Abby!! Now that she is full on crawling she chases Ben and Abby. This is a video of exactly why having small dogs in the house and a bouncing,giggling baby can be such a joy!!
(Excuse how dark it is. We don't have great lighting in the room)

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What is Beachbody?

2008-11-19T09:02:00.004-06:00

So, I have had some people ask me exactly what Beachbody is. I have decided to commit one post a week to beachbody topics to give a better understanding of what they offer. First, I want to let any of you know who are trying to get to a better place in your life that there is NO better time than NOW and I am proud of you!

Beachbody is a company that believes in the all over health and wellness of a person, families and this country. At Beachbody you can find workout programs that fit your lifestyle, supplements to support your workout program AND your health, community support for those moments your negetive energy tries to get you to give up on yourself and even a business opportunity to help with your financial wellness. Beachbody has something for everyone! Even the kids!! This is a business that is dedicated to revolutionizing this country and to get everyone MOVING to a better place!!! If you want to learn more go to www.teambeachbody.com/me4hogs

I did it!!!

2008-11-12T20:28:00.003-06:00

I did it! I fell in love with Turbo Jam workouts and now I am a rep for the Beachbody company that sells it!! If you are interested in loosing weight, getting stronger, or even fighting diabetes contact me and we can discuss the many programs and opportunities Beachbody can offer in your goals! This is an exciting move for me! I love to motivate and encourage people to find out what the best version of themself is! This job gives me that opportunity! Here is a video of all the things Beachbody offers. Many of these programs you may have seen on TV, like Hip Hop Abs, P90X, 10 minute trainer and Turbo Jam. If you are interested in trying one of these programs but need a little more information you can visit my website to contact me at
www.teambeachbody.com/me4hogs

This is your life! LIVE IT!!!!!