Snowy Hallows

Madison decided to grow some fangs for Halloween, so we decided to dress her up as a vampire fairy. Jacob and Matthew were Stars Wars clone troopers.




This year for Halloween we decided to do something different. We went to a Fall Festival at Matthew's school. They had pony rides, an inflatable obstacle course, an inflatable bouncer, a hay ride, snow cones, cotton candy, and chili dogs. The kids had a great time. Gabby and I enjoyed ourselves too. As long as Matthew go to this school, we may continue going to the Fall Festival for Halloween.





At the beginning of December, we got snow. As a result, the boys got a Snow Day. Jacob built a snowman. It had pepperonies for eyes and a piece of asparugus for a nose.





Matthew and Madison also enjoyed the snow.

Summer Comes To An End

Sorry for our very long break at blogging. The summer was very busy and exhausting. We celebrated Madisons first Birthday in July. We had her party on the Fourth of July. We even had a pinata, which was a lot of fun for the boys.

She started walking in August, and has just cut her first tooth. Her poor little mouth has been swollen for about nine months. The funny thing is that the first teeth she cut are her fangs, so she will be a vampire fairy for Halloween.



Jacob stayed busy this summer by going swimming , catching frogs that all were named Jake, and playing/fighting with Matthew.



I was very excited for school to start again. Jacob started the first grade in August. He is doing really well in school and we are always amazed by him. He is a very good boy but on occasions he gets into a little trouble. The other day when he came home from school I asked how he did at school and he was very honest and said he got into trouble, so I wanted to know what for and he said he was making farting noises. I laughed alot!



Matthew started WEE school in August . Matthew goes twice a week for five hours. He eats lunch at school and is a very good boy. His teacher told me he is a very good listener. Madison and I have a few hours to play together and when she naps I am all alone.

Spring Time

Madison is all over the place and loves to play with her big brothers toys. She has learned to open cabinets and this morning she was in the bathroom cabinet eating toilet paper. We noticed something very unique about her tonight, she can twist her tongue all the way around. One of the most exciting discoveries last month was that the back of her hair is curley and I am hoping the rest of her hair will turn into curls here soon. Madison is now 10 months old and I wish the time would slow down .

Matthew is so much fun and so difficult for us at times. This last week I was on the porch and he wandered onto the side of the house and started watering the grass, I told him it was time to come in the house he said no and a fight began we ended in the house with him trying to run out the front door I locked the door and he grabbed my big behind and bit me and he has very sharp teeth, so he got spanked twice and locked in his room. That same day we went to Lowes as we were in the car ready to leave he said he did not want to go home he wanted to go to Walmart and get a toy so the worlds biggest fit began, and he yelled the whole way home. Matthew does not know any cuss words so he used the meanest words he knows. I heard SHUT UP, and the funniest thing is he yelled NO, I SAID NO. I could not help myself and I burst into laughter by the time we got to our neighborhood. He really is a sweet boy and at church is more well behaved than Jacob.

Jacob lost his third tooth, the tooth fairy has been very busy. Jacob is turning six on Saturday and is very excited for his party. Kindergarten is almost done and it has been a wonderful school year, except for all the sicknesses he picked up. He is a very good reader. I am so amazed at how smart the kids are now; they are already learning to tell time and he can count money. A few weeks ago Jacob had strep throat and missed almost a full week of school. On every Friday, they have a spelling test; so he went back to school on friday and took the test. He told me he did good on his test but I was very surprised when he brought it home. He got 100% and the kid had never even studied. I was a very proud mama and more than anything I am grateful that our 3lb 8oz little baby is so healthy and he is smart like his Daddy.

Bryan and I celebrated our eighth anniversary on the 28th of April . Bryan was in Dallas that week for work so my sweet little boys and girl took me to a nice lunch. We are very blessed to have a happy marriage and three beautiful children. If I could I would marry him again, he is a wonderful husband. I got a new calling about a month ago. I am Sunday School teacher for the 16/17 year old class. I was scared to death for this calling but it is not that bad. I have discovered that teenagers are little kids with big bodies. If you give them candy and show them movies then they will be good most of the time.

Another Crazy Couple Months

February started with Matthew starting to potty train. Here is a picture of him taking a ride on the potty train (Toot, Toot). I guess being on the potty makes one want a good smelling candle. :)

On the 17th was Matthew's birthday. We had Grandma Smith, Grandpa Smith, Hillary, Dan, Ashliegh, and Lilly over for a party. Matthew choose the menu: hot dogs and chocolate cake with Mickey Mouse.

During this time, we had a RSV outbreak. It began with Jacob the week before Matthew's birthday. Then, Matthew got it for his birthday. Finally, Madison got it a few days after Matthew. All in all, we went to the emergency room three times and the doctor's office numerous times. All in all it looks like this year is beginning like the last year ended with us spending way too much time with doctors. Currently, they are all doing better. At the end of February, Jacob lost another tooth. He went to school with all his teeth and came home with one around his neck. No, he did not get in a fight. He pulled his loose tooth out during PE. I guess PE is really exciting. :)


Just as we finished santizing our house, we welcomed Grandma Planck, Denielle, and Ryan. We had lots of fun with them. Ryan became like another brother for Matthew, Jacob, and Madison. Throughout the whole visit, he called Madison the "Pretty Baby".


After our visitors left, Madison decided it was time to crawl. I guess seeing all the boys running around for the past week was motivation.

2008 In Review

The year began with me receiving a full-time position with Schlumberger, an oil field services company based in Houston. Then in May, I graduated from Rice with a Masters in Electrical Engineering. I began Rice with the intentions of getting a PhD, but raising a family and working towards a PhD proved to be too much for me. On July 8th, we welcomed Madison Joy into our family. She has been a bundle of joy ever since.

In August, Jacob began kindergarten. It was a little bit of an adjustment for him at first, but he has gotten into the swing of it and has learned a whole lot. September brought Hurricane Ike which was quite an experience. We didn't realize how hard it is to live without electricity.

During this time, Gabby was in and out of the hospital. She had five surgeries in five month: Madison's birth by C-section, laparoscopic cholecystectomy, two ERCPs, and exploratory surgery to fix a bile leak. Once Gabby finally came home for good, it was the holiday season. For us, Santa and the Tooth Fairy came on two consecutive nights because Jacob lost his first tooth on Christmas Day.

Finally, let's not forget Matthew. He has grown a lot in the past year both physically and verbally. He is no longer a baby. We believe his vocabulary has grown so much because he copies what everyone says. Also, he loves Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.