It's snowing???!

Now I know all my Dallas buddies are used to snow...but it never snows down here! Imagine my surprise when I looked out my classroom window and saw huge snowflakes coming down! And it was sticking! So crazy. But cool! Danny went home to take little buddy out and play. :)

We were supposed to get out of school early (technically, we had early release), but I didn't get to leave until normal release time. Boo! But luckily for me, it started snowing again once I got home, so I got pictures too!

A lot of the snow has melted, but a few minutes ago it looked like it was thinking about starting up again. We've got our PJ's on and the fire started...the only thing that could make this better would be a late start for school tomorrow....fingers crossed!!

5 Months!

So, I should have posted this on Wednesday, but better late than never, right?! Big Boy turned 5 months old on the 17th! It's hard to believe that time is going so quickly. Ruston is changing every day! Wednesday was a long day for him, so he wasn't really into his photo shoot...didn't do too much smiling. But he's still super cute. :)

Ken came over on Valentine's day and took his 5 month pictures. He was full of smiles that day! He looks like a little man!

He doesn't go to the Dr. this month, so I'm not positive how much he weighs, but my arms tell me he is gaining! haha. Let's see...the new things for this month are.... Ruston is getting so much more aware of things around him. He can locate sounds and find them quickly. He is full of smiles and some of the giggles are turning into all out belly laughs. He especially likes it when his dad pretends to eat his belly. :) He's becoming a champ at eating with a spoon! He likes peaches, applesauce, and pears, but Sweet Potatoes are by far the favorite. The bananas were a definite no go. Next up is squash! He is interested in whatever you have in your hands. He believes that whatever it is should be in HIS hands and a lot of times, his mouth. :) He likes to "drink" from the cups that Danny and I are using...he just sucks on the rim. :) He's also starting to like Diesel. When Diesel walks up close to him, he'll smile really big, and he watches him constantly. I think he's probably trying to figure out what in the world he is and why he looks so strange! His new sweet little gesture is reaching out and touching your face when you talk to him...melts my heart!

Surprisingly, no teeth yet! He chews on everything and slobbers what seems like at least 4 gallons a day...haha. But nothing yet! He puts that drool to good use too...he has become a professional spit bubble blower. He can catch your face from about 2 feet away. I have to tell you, I don't mind the spit nearly as much as when he does it with his baby food. Yuck! :) No rolling over or sitting up on his own yet either, but it's coming soon! When you set him down, he uses his little tummy muscles and pulls himself up, but he normally just keeps going forward. Hasn't gotten that balance thing down yet. :) Can't wait to see what he learns next!

Happy Valentine's Day!!

We had a great, lazy Valentine's Day! We just hung out at the house all day.

Pooper had a great time playing with his balloons from Gigi!

We made some heart cookies and cheesecake cupcakes. Ruston was in charge of the decorating.

He did a really good job with the sprinkles.....there were only a handful that made their way to the floor. :)

He was so excited....couldn't wait to eat a cupcake!! haha

He wasn't really sure what to do with it at first.

So he just smeared it all over the place...

...and then sucked the edges of the highchair clean. :)

Week in Review..

We've had a pretty eventful week! (For us, at least!) Ruston and I went with the Crim's to church on Sunday. We've been wanting to go for a while, and something always comes up. Unfortunately, Danny had to work, so he didn't get to go with us, but hopefully he will this weekend. Ruston got all dressed up in his little sweater....he did really well for about the first 30 minutes, and then he'd had enough! There weren't really any in between whines or cries..it went from happy, content baby, to scream at the top of his lungs baby. haha. He went back to the nursery with Aaron's sister and had fun playing with Lego's. :)

Later that day, we went over to Justin's to watch the Superbowl. We stayed for a couple hours and then headed home to watch the end with Danny.

Monday was the 100th Day of School! I can not believe it's already this far into the year! Having 2 full months off really makes the time fly... Tyler, my cousin's son (so my 2nd cousin??), is in 1st grade at Blake Manor this year, so we took our 100 Day picture together. :) His shirt is googly eyes!!

I turned 27 on Wednesday! Man, I feel old. haha. Danny surprised me and brought me these beautiful flowers and some breakfast tacos to school. Yuuuuuummmy! :) The kids got out early because we had parent conferences all day, so he got to stay and hang out for a while. Made my day. :)

When I got home, Kathie met me at the door with Ruston and Diesel to say Happy Birthday!! They made me this yummy cake...and pooper helped with the sprinkles. :)

My card from pooper. :)

We've had a great Valentine's Day today, too. Pictures, tomorrow!!

Thoughts for Thursday...

I've always really enjoyed inspirational and uplifting emails. I've had this one from Meghan saved in my inbox since 2003! Good words to remember....to all of you reading this - I wish you enough. :)

Recently I overheard a mother and daughter in their last moments together at the airport. They had announced the departure. Standing near the security gate, they hugged and the mother said, "I love you and I wish you enough".

The daughter replied, "Mom, our life together has been more than enough. Your love is all I ever needed. I wish you enough, too, Mom".

They kissed and the daughter left. The mother walked over to the window where I was seated. Standing there I could see she wanted and needed to cry. I tried not to intrude on her privacy but she welcomed me in by asking, "Did you ever say good-bye to someone knowing it would be forever?".

"Yes, I have," I replied. "Forgive me for asking, but why is this a forever good-bye?".

"I am old and she lives so far away. I have challenges ahead and the reality is - the next trip back will be for my funeral," she said.

"When you were saying good-bye, I heard you say, 'I wish you enough'. May I ask what that means?".

She began to smile. "That's a wish that has been handed down from other generations. My parents used to say it to everyone". She paused a moment and looked up as if trying to remember it in detail and she smiled even more. "When we said , 'I wish you enough', we were wanting the other person to have a life filled with just enough good things to sustain them". Then turning toward me, she shared the following as if she were reciting it from memory.

I wish you enough sun to keep your attitude bright no matter how gray the day may appear.

I wish you enough rain to appreciate the sun even more.

I wish you enough happiness to keep your spirit alive and everlasting.

I wish you enough pain so that even the smallest of joys in life may appear bigger.

I wish you enough gain to satisfy your wanting.

I wish you enough loss to appreciate all that you possess.

I wish you enough hellos to get you through the final good-bye.

She then began to cry and walked away.

They say it takes a minute to find a special person, an hour to appreciate them, a day to love them but then an entire life to forget them.

TAKE TIME TO LIVE.....

To all my friends and loved ones,

I WISH YOU ENOUGH

Wordless Wednesday - Part 2!