A Weekend Gone

We have been so busy. On Friday, Hayden and I went on adventure to the mall. We had a lot of returns to take care of. We had a good time. Hayden was an okay shopper. He was really happy when he was eating. He got crabby because he wanted out of the stroller. He usually will sit and have a bag full of snacks. Yesterday, Hayden and I went to the grocery store. Hayden woke up at 5 and I figured we would be back in time to put him down for morning nap. Well we took forever shopping. He was sitting in the cart eating a snack. When I put something in the buggy and started to push him, this is what I found.


We were planning to take Hayden to the Children Museum. He feel asleep at 1:30. I figured that he would sleep and hour or two. He slept until 4:45. The museum closed at 5. So we didn't make it. I have cleaned out the pantry and fridge and got rid of all the "bad" food. Eating healthy is a lifestyle change. It is really easy if you have nutritious food on hand. I haven been using my Gorge Foreman grill a lot. Today, I made grilled mozzarella cheese sandwiches, with no butter. Hayden and I went to church this morning. David didn't feel good. He even took a nap which he never does. Hayden went to sleep at 5:30. He woke up late this morning and only took a hour nap. It is back to work for the both of us. We have enjoyed having Dad home with us this weekend. It has been a lot of playing for the boys. Hayden loves for David to chase him around the house. Here are a few pictures from this week. Enjoy

Laughs and Stir-Fry

This week flew by fast. I usually try to post every two days. I can't believe it is Friday already. We have been so busy. I am not sure where the time went. Hayden has been doing hilarious stuff. He has been imitating David. When David plays his Xbox, Hayden wants to play too. Hayden likes to sit on the couch and hold the control. I have a picture of him playing. He has also been cracking up laughing at himself. He he will do something and then laugh at himself. I need to get it on video. We will laugh and then he will laugh even harder. We have been eating a lot healthier this week. I have been making things with chicken and measuring the servings. Last night we had Stir-Fry, with veggies, shrimp, and brown rice. That is one of Hayden favorite meals. He will eat any veggies. He had 4 servings last night. His favorite are the shrimp. David has been supportive of our 400 or less calorie dinners. Although I tell David how many caleries things are and he says, "tasted like it". It is an adjustment sometimes not easy. David is going to an eye doctor today. His eyes have been bothering. We are thinking about taking Hayden to the Children's Museum here. It has been so rainy and yucky all week. We haven't been outside much. I am also trying to find some indoor things to do since it is cold.

Water Baby

Hayden is a water baby. He loves anything to do with water. When he sees Holly's water bowl, he loves to stick his hands in and splash water everywhere. He loves to play in the kitchen sink when I am in there. His favorite thing to do in there is making the water spray everywhere. Tonight in the bath tub he blew bubbles. I can't believe that! If you know anything about kids swimming, blowing bubbles in the water is a hard task to accomplish. Many times they will get scared or suck the water in. I am so proud of him. He was doing it over and over again. He would blow bubbles then crack up laughing. He hates getting out. Many times he will stay in the tub until the water drains and then attempt to climb out. David is usually the bath giver so I miss a lot of these moments. I am going to try to sign Hayden up for swimming lessons. I am hoping that we can get custom ear plugs made for him. He has a really good pair but they aren't made to go swimming in. Only for quick shower and baths. Another cute moment happened with him today. He was climbing on a toy, when he got to the top he said, "WOW". After that he climb down and was talking to me like crazy. I am not sure what he said but he kept pointing to the toy. I figured he was trying to tell me he climb to the top.

Face Lift

I have been so busy with work. I have decided that my students need to be more independent. I have been creating new plans. I am so excited to start fresh in the morning. I have a feeling that my students will be shocked and a little confused. We will be doing a lot more writing and reading this semester. Hayden did so well at church today. There were 4 nursery workers in his room, 3 women and 1 men. He went straight for the guy. Hayden was with him the entire time. When we picked him up the guy was carrying Hayden around. I am was delighted that we didn't receive a page. I asked David a few times, "is the pager was working". I just knew we were going to have to calm Hayden down. We had a restful Sunday. Hayden and I took a three hour nap. I have looked at some of the pictures of Christmas break. This is my dad (Dale) and Hayden. He was so fascinated with his Pa, that's what he called him.
This is Hayden at Grandma Gilbert's house playing with one of his presents.

Here he is playing with a monster truck that Gigi and Papa got him. He loves to push it along the carpet and make sounds.

The last one is Hayden opening presents at my mom's house.

I messed up my charger again! David is ordering me a new one. Once I get it in I will update Picasa with November, December, and January pictures. I know I am so behind, that is so rare.

School Time

We have been so busy. Yesterday, we went to my classroom. I rearranged the furniture and David worked on the computers. We went to run so errands together. We had some returns to take care of. My return pile is dwindling down. I am hoping that after church, I can hit the mall and Old Navy. Today we went to Olive Garden for lunch. It was so yummy! Hayden was so cute. He wanted to eat whatever David ate. We try really hard to not let Hayden become a picky eater. We always make him eat whatever food is served. If he doesn't like it too bad. Hayden always tries different food. Today he ate a salad and drink peach tea, along with a plate full of pasta and two bread sticks. After that we went back to my classroom. I had to take stuff down off the walls and hang new stuff up. David even helped. It is so funny to watch David get into teaching stuff. I could spend hours in my class. I love to create different kinds of lesson plans and try new activities. David is the opposite, he wants to get in and out. Hayden slept in his crib last night. It was the first time in 2 1/2 weeks, from being sick and vacation it was a struggle. Thursday night was awfully, we tried and tried to get him to sleep in there. We must have moved him 3 or 4 times to his crib. We tried patting and ignoring him but he just cried. We eventually gave up. Here a few pictures of Hayden...enjoy!

Starting Over

A new year is here. Many people make resolutions and try to fulfill them throughout the year. I have made several over the years and haven't kept any. I started to think how can I keep them this year? I decided that if they were doable then it would be easier. I am hoping that I can stay on track.

1. Eat healthier- This is so hard for me. I figured it is okay to have a cookie but not five. I am learning that moderation is the key. I am going to count calories again. I really liked that it was easy.

2. Exercise daily- I love to workout. The hardest part is finding time every day. I am going to start with 30 minutes every day.

3. Read my bible- I did this every morning in high school. I would set my alarm; read and pray. I haven't really devoured the Word like I used to. I am going to try and set a time every morning to do this.

4. Stay on budget- I have gotten so lazy. I used to clip coupons and shop the ads for groceries. I still am a sale shopper, for clothes, shoes..... I am not with food. Every week I do my grocery shopping I can easily spending 250 a week. I am not sure what I buy or why. I just use my debit card and go on. I can’t believe how I can waste money. I am always buying something for Hayden toys, books, and clothes. Since David works offshore I have paid a few bills. I never paid the bills or even logged into the checking account before. I didn't even know how much money David makes. I was clueless. David and I have been talking about keeping track of our spending. We decided to use mint.com. This website lets you keep track and label all of your spending, so you know where it goes. We are trying to save more money. There is no reason why we needed to blow it on useless stuff. I am hoping that in the next 6 months we can reach our goal.

5. GRE and Graduate College- They wait is finally over. I am tired of saying I need to or want to.... I am planning on studying and taking the GRE. I will also narrow my choices of Grad School. I am excited about this. I am going to take my time and enjoy every class. I don't feel any pressure. I have no reason to rush to graduate.

So there are my top five. I have a few small ones left but it doesn't really matter. Anyways, David and I packed up all the Christmas stuff. We are going to try to organize Hayden's room next. We did this before his birthday. He got a lot of stuff for Christmas. I am going to save some and rotate books and toys. I am planning to go work in my room in the morning.

Christmas Again

As many of you know that we sponsor Leah. I can look at her little face and it is such a blessing. I feel that warm tingle feeling. I finally feel like I am making a difference, even if it is one child at a time. I have to admit that sponsoring a child makes me want to adopt one. David and I aren't sure what God's plans are for us yet. We are waiting. We are hoping to sponsor another child, maybe a boy. Since I have been on a vacation in Houston I haven't been checking my email. David called my Friday when he got into town. He said we got an e-mail from the foster home. I said okay, I figured it was our monthly update letter. I asked how is she doing? He said she got the package and there are pictures. We were so excited that she got the package on Christmas eve. It was so wonderful to hear that it made it in time. David was so happy that she loved what he picked out for her. He told me in every picture she is smiling. Here are a few pictures that were sent to us. I hope these brighten your New Year's Day.

This is my favorite. I love how she posed for it! Precious









We made it hope fine. Hayden was a fabulous car rider today. He got a bit fussy about 10 miles outside of town. I only stopped to get gas. I guess he was tired from the travel and missed his bed. He took a nap at 3:45 woke up at 8. He stayed up with us until 10:45 and went back to sleep. I hope his schedule doesn't get to crazy. I can't sleep because I napped with him.