12 months

How about that Super Bowl game? Actually, I could really care less. Last year's Super Bowl Sunday is by far my most favorite, memorable Super Bowl ever. And will probably forever be. No, not because I'm a Packers fan, but because that's the day our sweet Everlee was born.



"Our" plans for that day were to go to church, spend the afternoon finishing up last minute to-do's before baby's arrival, then have a small Super Bowl get together with my parents and my brother's family.



However, He is the one who has all the plans.....



We never made it home from church that morning. I was in so much pain, we were instructed to get to the hospital ASAP because the doctor thought my uterus was rupturing. I begged Chet to take me home - I needed to shower, finish packing my back, grab hair bows in case it was a girl, and number one, get my camera.



There was no convincing him....to the hospital we went!



They started running tests immediately.....



So many people say, "Oh, she was ready to come out!"



No, it wasn't her; she was perfectly content! It was her mommy and her mommy's health issues - my Crohns was flared up.



Out she came! The doctors knew Reese really wanted a sister, so when they pulled her out, they didn't even say, "It's a girl!" They said, "It's a sister!"



7 pounds 14 ounces.....our smallest baby!



Everything happened so fast, and I'm so thankful all my doctors were able to be there on such short notice, including my Crohns surgeon, which it's no secret that he holds a very special place in mine and Chet's hearts.



My health has given more fits since Everlee's birth than it has in the past 10 years, but she's worth it!



Her smile, her giggle, her cuddling, her love for her brother and sister, her joy that overwhelms her when her Daddy walks through the door.....she is so much more than I could have ever asked for!



To add to her already adorable-ness (not sure if that's a word, but I like it!), she now has an "uh-oh" face....



She even says "uh-oh" when she drops things.....the dropping something then waiting for someone to pick it up so she can drop it again is a favorite game of hers :)

She still sits with her feet crossed. All the time!



Love it!

And she's totally into blowing raspberries!



I think she's starting to give up bottles/formula all on her own, which I'm totally fine with!



I'm sure I could go on and on about all the things she's doing, but I think you all get the point....we pretty much think she's the best baby!



And her stats, well, I'll be sure to report those as soon as I make her one year appointment.....note to self - make Everlee's one year appointment :)



Happy 12 months Everlee Brooke! Your first year has been filled with so much love and laughs and great memories that we will all treasure FOREVER! Thanks for being the best third child we could ask for! We love you more than you will ever know! And we can't wait to see what's in store for you!

Party pics coming next!!!

Happy Birthday, Sam!

Monday was our good buddy, Sam's (aka Chimney), birthday!



I got a text that morning from my dad making sure we were still coming out to his store after we pick Reese up from school because Sam had already been out there twice asking where we were at and when we were coming!

My dad had a bunch of goodies for him that he couldn't wait to open - hand sanitizer, chapstick, flash light, beads....



We've given him so many beads, and he wears every single one of them! What can I say, Sam loves him some bling just like everyone else!



My dad also gave him a couple old Dirt Cheap polos! He thought he'd hit the jack pot!



And then, he said a quick thank you and before we could even say your welcome, he was out of there.....back to his "school" to show off all his presents!

Happy Birthday, Sam!!!

Hard to believe

Hard to believe that this little sweet pea turns 1 a week from today!!!!



I think we should celebrate all week!

Hard to believe my other sweet pea still hasn't been diagnosed with anything and unfortunately, is still having issues.



What we do know is there is no blood in her urine, no sugar in her urine, no infection, and kidneys are functioning properly, which is all good to hear. What's not good is that this has totally disrupted her daily life....things she used to be excited about doing, she hesitates now worried she'll have to go potty. We're working through it though, as best we can.

Hard to believe this little guy started having his own "plumbing" issues.



My friend said it best when she said that I'm in urinating hell!

He, however, had a lot of pain, blood in his urine, and an infection, so antibiotics were prescribed and appear to be helping! What a relief!

And you know what else is hard to believe about our little man? That he could do something ornery.



No, not him!!!

He had just bathed, and I told him to go get in bed, and I'd be there in a minute. Boy, was I surprised when I walked in his room and found him covered in Reese's make-up!



Hard to believe I couldn't keep a straight face.

Dirty Dishes

In my previous post, I mentioned that our family is a big time Scotty McCreery fan! Whenever a movie isn't playing on the dvd player in the van, it's a good bet, his cd is blasting. And my absolute favorite song is called Dirty Dishes.

Mama hollers "Supper time,
And don't make me tell you twice
Wash your hands and wipe your face.
The table's no place for your toys,
And try to use your inside voice,
Don't dig in til we say Grace."
So we put down our forks and bowed our heads
And then she prayed the strangest prayer ever said:



"I wanna thank you Lord,
For noisy children and slammin doors,
And clothes scattered all over the floor,
My husband workin' all the time,
Draggin' in dead tired at night,
My never ending messy kitchen
And dirty dishes."



We all got real still and quiet,
And daddy asked, "Hon, are you alright?"
She said, "Dear, ain't nothing wrong,
Noisy kids are happy kids,
And slamming doors just mean we live
In a warm and loving home.
Your long hours and those dishes in the sink,
Means a job and enough to eat.



So I'm going to thank you Lord,
For noisy kids and slamming doors,
And clothes scattered all over the floor,
A husband workin' all the time,
Draggin' in dog tired at night,
A never ending messy kitchen......



For my little busy bees
Beggin' mama, mama can we please?
Always wantin' me to call their name
Loads of laundry pilin' up
Crayons crushed into the rug
And those little sticky kisses



And dirty dishes.....



Dirty dishes



Amen, Scotty! Amen!



It just has this subtle way of reminding me to count my blessings.

Great friends + Abuelos + Scotty McCreery + The Band Perry + Brad Paisley = One Amazing Night!

My big Christmas present to Chet this year was tickets to the Brad Paisley concert! Yay!!!! Merry Christmas to me too!!!! I wanted to get him tickets last year when he was here, but I bailed on dropping that much money. (Chet has always said that if I want him to go to a country concert, it has to be someone big and we have to have good seats.) However, this year, when I found out last year's American Idol winner, who just so happens to be our family favorite, Scotty McCreery, was going to be there, I did not hesitate what so ever dropping a pretty penny on some tickets.

Our friends, Chris and Mindy, had tickets as well, so we decided to make a whole evening out of it and enjoy some yummy dinner before the concert.

First up, Scotty!



Our family seriously LOVES him, so we thoroughly enjoyed listening to him! And for being a 17 year old high schooler who just won American Idol, we thought he did an awesome job of performing and working the crowd.


I think he sees me....haha!

Next up was The Band Perry. They were so good as well. I really didn't know very many of their songs, but I definitely sang along to If I Die Young....love that one!



And finally, Mr. Brad Paisley!



My love for him was rekindled after that night! His show was beyond great! He was such an awesome performer, and the way he played his guitars.....aaaaa-mazing!!!!







At one point, Scotty sang with him.....



The lead singer for The Band Perry also sang with him, as well as Carrie Underwood.....kinda. Their duet Remind Me started, and everyone cheered so extremely loud when they heard her voice and when the thought they saw her.....when the song was over, it was just her on a screen. Still so amazing!

I think I've said amazing a lot in this post....haha!

While singing and playing his guitar, Brad made his way around the whole arena. He stopped in the center to play some songs.



He was coming down our side as he made his way back to the stage, so I decided to b-line it to the front row! Here he comes!



Ahhh, look how close!!!



I'm right down here for pete's sake!!!!



There were only three people separating us!



Next concert, I will pay for front row seats!



All three performers totally blew me out of the water! So happy we were able to go and so thankful to my parents for watching the kids and handling Reese while she was still dealing with her issues.

And so thankful to share the evening with some great friends!!!



The only un-amazing thing about the night was taking pictures with my point-and-shoot....sorry for the terrible quality.