Old Stuff

Here are a few, I guess from my mom's camera, that visiting again, I found, and just wanted to post! Take this here pic below. It is titled, "Obviously Has Big Sister."

And I like this one of my brother, his wife and their son, at his baptism.

And of the cousins, cracking up following such a "Shh!," "Be still!" occasion!

Sonshine Christmas Program and Party!!!

Wow, today was an exciting day for our family! It was Wendy's school program in honor of Jesus! James came and met us, taking a nice break from work, and Lincoln was rested and eager to see Sister do her thang! All of the children were A----dorable! I mean, really, really cute up there with hats on and all, and these songs were not the usual, familiar ones. Wendy, single-handedly, made the entire audience break out into "aaaws" and laughter as she spotted me and Daddy on the front row and waved and yelled out, "I LOVE YOU!"

And, filled with pride and joy, she leaped off the stage, following her classmates!

Following the concert was a dandy little party in the room! Each child got treat bags, a coloring book, and there was a book exchange!

James ran into a guy from work, whose son attends the school, and I ran into a young mother who was in our new members class at West Minster Church! So fun!

The Class~~

And just when we thought it was over...who should walk through the door?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

Ho Ho Ho!!! MERRY Christmas!!!

And his posse!

A TALL Santa! Wendy asked out, "Is he the REAL Santa?" to which I replied, "I'll tell you in the car," simply cuz I didn't know what other moms or dads might be saying....

Finally, Wendy had been waiting patiently to give Miss Kristi her gift. It was a cute sight to see, her opening the gift for Wendy's good pleasure...

We are really laughing often these days, and that's mostly because Wendy says the funniest things! Not long ago, we were in Houston, and my mom was in the passenger's seat, and I was lost, and flustered, and Wendy sighed and said, "Mom, you just can't handle it." I said, "Wendy, why did you say that?" "No reason," she said. A teenager. Oh my word. Then later, when her DVD player was plugged in instead of my navigation system, she asked me, "How are you going to keep from getting lost, Mom?" And I don't change the words of her sentences, she really talks exactly like that. I just wondered silently (What is she going to be like 10 years from now? Oh my gosh.) At Mimi's house, she told her, "I like your Christmas tree, and that's what I said earlier." Funny, funny girl. And Linc's been pretty stinkin' cute lately, too! At a Mexican restaurant, my father summoned the mariachi to come to our table and perform for us. My dad is big on tipping them because he just loves their ballads! Anyway, I turned Linc's highchair to face them, and they serenaded him, and he sat there with his mouth agape and his partially nibbled Saltines, one in each hand, fixed, frozen in time, as he stared and absorbed this wonder! The surrounding tables all watched Linc and LAUGHED! It was too cute! Lincoln is quite different from Sister. He is musically inclined, I do believe. He has rhythm! He head-bangs in Buffalo Wild Wings, to rock! He tries to sing! He's not as verbal as Wendy was already at his age, but he is better with his hands. He studies things and tries to manipulate small objects. He's just so different, our boy. It will be so fascinating to see what they gravitate towards as older children, and as adults!

Lauren turns five!

Wendy's friend from school had her party Friday, celebrating five years! She's a doll. Wendy really loves her. The decorations were so foo-foo and fun.

At first, Wendy played mostly with Linc, oddly enough! They had a blast exploring the tunnel, bounce houses, and parachutes.

There were, oh, between 15 and 20 kids, jumping up and down all over the gym! I'm sure the moms of younger kids were thankful when those babes took their afternoon naps without a fuss!

They pulled party hats out of a giant bin, and grabbed favors off the table and made a big ole party noise-athon!

Sharing the balloons...

Lil' Linc. His party's around the corner! Getting excited about doing up a boy theme this year!

A Little Catching Up

Above~~Baby Ga Ga, as my mom named this get-up! Ha!

Biggest news of late is that we went to Houston last weekend for my nephew, Ben's, baptism! He did so well! He was one of three infants up there, and he was the only one who did not cry! Bless his sweet heart! He's so handsome, and I adore this little future-buddy for Linc! Sean looked like a proud papa, and Stephanie and her girls looked absolutely lovely. I'm thankful we were able to make this special event. Glad we're back in Texas, especially when things like this take place! At the party at their house, I changed into my comfy clothes, and Walker and I disco-posed! He is my goofy brother with whom I can behave like a total nut.

My mom took this pic of our family in front of my folks' tree, and it's a moment in time I love---all of us together at my folks' house, with Wendy a proud and hearty 4 years old, and Linc, nearly one. It's a precious time we're really enjoying. Wendy is fond of Linc now! She plays with him, laughs with him and thinks he's so much fun now! He is! They are GREAT together! Praise the Lord!

A really funny shot! The cover of a horror book?

Her fort under the table. DVD player--check! Snacks and refreshments--check! Pooh Bear and Company--check!

Oh, and of course, a cute set-up of Wendy's that I simply HAD to capture. So cute!

Dora Bingo with Pops.

In other news, we were hit with the nasty stomache bug recently. Linc first. Then me. Woah Buddy, I had it BAD! I suffered mightily that first night! Ugh! Then, James' dad (they'd been visiting) caught it, fainted and hit his head on the tub of their bathroom (but was okay, thank the Lord!), then James got it, then my mom, then my dad. I prayed and prayed that nobody else would get it, and thankfully, Wendy was spared!

Let's see...what else. Umm....not too much to report over here. Wendy has a birthday party to go to tomorrow morning, and she's super excited, I've completed my Christmas shopping, uh, that's it! Ta ta for now!

Portrait of a Baby

This afternoon, by the window, my Lincoln...

Recent Stuff

He's a mighty boy. Mighty BIG. It's just so funny to me, how he looks like the baby he is, with characteristic chubby cheeks, a fuzzy head, etc, but it's like he's half again the SIZE of the average baby his age! His head is so large. His hands. His feet. His BOD! He's HUGE! He's only 10 months old! Good grief!
In order to get the most genuinely happy smiles out of Linc, get Wendy to simply smile at him. He loves her tremendously! These were taken the other day. Wendy just looked at him, you know, gave him some of her attention.

Finally, she appreciates that he loves her. She knows it. My mom helped her to realize that to him, she is the world!

And, I crack up now, when I bathe them together. His head is about as big as hers, and his body is quickly catching up. From this point of view, I was reminded of ducklings in the water, with their little wet heads bobbing to and fro.

Linc can pull himself up over the edge of the tub and he can crawl around in the shallow water while holding his head high up, and I don't remember Wendy being as in control of her body in the tub. This shot is dear to me because you can see from Wendy's expression that she's enjoying him more now. Praise the Lord.

Independently playing...

Wendy thinks it's delightful to open the fridge door for Linc, who, like Wendy as a baby, loves to rummage around in there!

Some guilty little rascals...

"Now Wendy, you know you're too old to get into this sort of mischief!"

Of course, getting the two of them to cooperate, at the same time, for Christmas card photos was, well, impossible. We tried on two separate occasions, and we got nothing. I made silly noises, I jumped up and down, I begged, I scolded, I bribed, and I got nothing. This year's card will be a collage of what we did get. Here are some, a good sampling of the sort of shots we got. Oh well. Below, not exactly a smile out of Wendy, and none of Linc's face shows...

"Lincoln! Lincoln! Lincoln!" Nope, he's really interested in the leaves.

"Lincoln! Come back, Sweetie! Wendy, look UP! Look into my CAMERA! Smile, Wendy! Come on! Wendy!"

I desperately wanted for Wendy to look up at this moment, because the golden sun made her eyes sparkle brilliantly blue, but if she did, it was for a split-second, and the shots I got were of her head falling back down again.

So, don't laugh when you get our Christmas card. Hopefully next year's will be better!