For those of you that haven't heard, Clay, Courtney and I are expecting a baby brother or sister in April. We are so excited with the news! It's been difficult waiting the first few weeks and keeping it a secret between me, Clay and the doctors office. We feel truly blessed that it happened so quickly and that I haven't had any sickness or medical issues. Everything looks good and the last 3 visits with the doctor I've been able to see the little bean on the monitor.
I have noticed that with this pregnancy I am more tired than with Courtney. I'm thinking it's just due to work and chasing a 2 1/2 year old around the house! By Friday night I am down for the count and become a hermit inside the house and take cat naps through out the day. I'm hoping in the next few weeks when I'm in my 2nd trimester my energy comes back. Exhaustion through the holidays will not be fun!
Courtney is kind of excited about the baby. At first she didn't really want to acknowledge it. I don't think it was out of spite. I just don't think she understands what is going on with her mommy. This past week when we asked what we should name the baby she proudly responded with Dora. Just this morning she patted my tummy and gave it a kiss. I suppose she's slowly coming around!
We'll find out in a few weeks if it's a boy or girl. Clay is convinced that it's a girl due to the Lubbock water curse. All of his college buddies have girls. However, deep down he's hoping that it's a boy to debunk the curse!
That's all we have here. I have some energy and should probably get some school work done before exhaustion sets in. Again.
Til next time....
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Happy Summer!
Really? Two months since my last blog? I know it gets old hearing it, but we've been busy. I know. Lame. Honestly, we're having so much fun, I haven't had time to sit down and post anything. I'll quit making excuses and get you caught up.
1. We started summer later than usual due to making up snow days from school. But once that pesky school contract was fulfilled, we started summer! The good news is that I still have a job for next year and I'm still teaching 3rd. I also get to keep my awesome room!
2. I took some girl time with 3 of my sorority sisters and we headed to Dallas for an overnight trip. We had so much fun talking the entire way (no radio for us) and shopping. The perfect way to relax and enjoy the blessings of friendship!
3. We have started potty training! I feel like we have a new puppy in the house. We are ALWAYS in the bathroom! I've never spent so much time in there. It's like our new family room. Let's just say we've been reading a lot of Fancy Nancy books and looking at maps (she loves them!)
4. We took a 10 day trip down to Texas to see Clay's family. We had so much fun spending time with them. We even lucked out with the weather not being miserably hot. WOO HOO! Coming back to reality, though, was tough. I enjoyed 10 day of no grocery shopping, cooking, laundry, cleaning, etc.. A girl could get used to that really fast!
5. We've discovered the terrible two's. Not my favorite part of being a parent. I suppose it's a rite of passage, right? RIGHT?!
6. We've also discovered the world of dress-up. We stayed overnight with Clay's best friend and his family during our trek down to Austin. Their little girl, Abby, loves dressed up like the Disney princesses. Courtney was in awe of the "older" girl in the house and wanted to do everything she was doing. She loved dressed up. Like a sucker, we made a stop at an Austin Target and bought Courtney a Cinderella dress. She loves it! And with doing so well at potty training, we bought her a Snow White one too. Clay's co-worker so me buying it and the next day brought Clay a Minnie Mouse dress that is too small for her daughter. We're consumed with dress up. We wear them. All of them. Everyday. All. Day.
7. We bought a family pass to the OKC Zoo this year. We've been a couple of times this summer. Courtney loves looking at the animals and talking to them like they're listening. Gee, I don't know where she gets her gift to gab from!
I'd love to write that we're jetting off to some foreign country next, but we're not. We're staying home and enjoying the lazy days (are they really lazy?) of summer. I'm sure we'll squeeze in a few play dates, lunch dates, zoo days, etc. before we both go back to school!
Hope everyone is staying cool!
1. We started summer later than usual due to making up snow days from school. But once that pesky school contract was fulfilled, we started summer! The good news is that I still have a job for next year and I'm still teaching 3rd. I also get to keep my awesome room!
2. I took some girl time with 3 of my sorority sisters and we headed to Dallas for an overnight trip. We had so much fun talking the entire way (no radio for us) and shopping. The perfect way to relax and enjoy the blessings of friendship!
3. We have started potty training! I feel like we have a new puppy in the house. We are ALWAYS in the bathroom! I've never spent so much time in there. It's like our new family room. Let's just say we've been reading a lot of Fancy Nancy books and looking at maps (she loves them!)
4. We took a 10 day trip down to Texas to see Clay's family. We had so much fun spending time with them. We even lucked out with the weather not being miserably hot. WOO HOO! Coming back to reality, though, was tough. I enjoyed 10 day of no grocery shopping, cooking, laundry, cleaning, etc.. A girl could get used to that really fast!
5. We've discovered the terrible two's. Not my favorite part of being a parent. I suppose it's a rite of passage, right? RIGHT?!
6. We've also discovered the world of dress-up. We stayed overnight with Clay's best friend and his family during our trek down to Austin. Their little girl, Abby, loves dressed up like the Disney princesses. Courtney was in awe of the "older" girl in the house and wanted to do everything she was doing. She loved dressed up. Like a sucker, we made a stop at an Austin Target and bought Courtney a Cinderella dress. She loves it! And with doing so well at potty training, we bought her a Snow White one too. Clay's co-worker so me buying it and the next day brought Clay a Minnie Mouse dress that is too small for her daughter. We're consumed with dress up. We wear them. All of them. Everyday. All. Day.
7. We bought a family pass to the OKC Zoo this year. We've been a couple of times this summer. Courtney loves looking at the animals and talking to them like they're listening. Gee, I don't know where she gets her gift to gab from!
I'd love to write that we're jetting off to some foreign country next, but we're not. We're staying home and enjoying the lazy days (are they really lazy?) of summer. I'm sure we'll squeeze in a few play dates, lunch dates, zoo days, etc. before we both go back to school!
Hope everyone is staying cool!
Saturday, May 15, 2010
Birthday, Mother's Day and a Sleepover
We've been busy over here in Harstad territory. I'm in the final stretch of finishing up the school year and there's no rest for the weary. This time of year is full of tests, reports, more testing, and more reports. It never ends!
I did take a break one evening to celebrate my birthday. I had a wonderful day celebrating! My students (current and former) brought me cards they made, gifts and one girl even brought me a vase of roses from her mom's garden. They smelled heavenly!
Clay and I had a date night over sushi and martinis. After dinner we went to get my Nook from Barnes and Noble. For those of you that don't know what I'm talking about it's a device to read books electronically. I was introduced to it from a former student's mom that I've become friends with over the year. She kept showing all these cools things you can do on it and I was sold! I've read one book so far and am on my second one. I love it and can't wait to use it this summer during our travels.
The Sunday following my birthday, I celebrated Mother's Day. Clay and Courtney got me a really cute purse for the summer and we celebrated with a brunch over at my sister's house. Nothing like omelets and mimosa's and make the Mom's happy! The afternoon followed with a long nap and a steak dinner from our own grill. YUM!
Last night Courtney had her first sleepover with her cousin, Kelsi (or Kiki as we like to call her!). Our nephew, Brandon, was having his slumber party for his birthday and we thought she should stay with us so the boys can well...be boys. The girls had so much fun and love each other so much. It's adorable to hear them call each other Kiki and Tootie, play jokes on each other and genuinely care for one another. We're so blessed!
They played FOREVER on the slide last night!
Silly girls and their suckers!
So cute!
Hope everyone is enjoying the spring like weather!
I did take a break one evening to celebrate my birthday. I had a wonderful day celebrating! My students (current and former) brought me cards they made, gifts and one girl even brought me a vase of roses from her mom's garden. They smelled heavenly!
Clay and I had a date night over sushi and martinis. After dinner we went to get my Nook from Barnes and Noble. For those of you that don't know what I'm talking about it's a device to read books electronically. I was introduced to it from a former student's mom that I've become friends with over the year. She kept showing all these cools things you can do on it and I was sold! I've read one book so far and am on my second one. I love it and can't wait to use it this summer during our travels.
The Sunday following my birthday, I celebrated Mother's Day. Clay and Courtney got me a really cute purse for the summer and we celebrated with a brunch over at my sister's house. Nothing like omelets and mimosa's and make the Mom's happy! The afternoon followed with a long nap and a steak dinner from our own grill. YUM!
Last night Courtney had her first sleepover with her cousin, Kelsi (or Kiki as we like to call her!). Our nephew, Brandon, was having his slumber party for his birthday and we thought she should stay with us so the boys can well...be boys. The girls had so much fun and love each other so much. It's adorable to hear them call each other Kiki and Tootie, play jokes on each other and genuinely care for one another. We're so blessed!
They played FOREVER on the slide last night!
Silly girls and their suckers!
So cute!
Hope everyone is enjoying the spring like weather!
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Enjoying Life!
Whew! I didn't realize it had been so long since my last post. I thought I posted about our Easter weekend. Honest. Man, I'm losing it! Well, here's a recap of what we've been up these past few weeks.
Clay's parents came up from Georgetown to spend Easter weekend with us. We always enjoy our visits with them. We had our annual lunch out at Pop's off Rt. 66. That place is so much fun and Courtney loves it just as much as we do! That night we headed over my sister's house to dye Easter eggs. The kids really got into it and made a huge mess. Courtney loved, but didn't seem to get the concept of taking the egg out once it got color on it. Let's just say we had one REALLY yellow egg! Easter Sunday was spent at my other sister's, Tiffany, house. We had a huge crowd there to feast on ham and fried chicken. The kids enjoyed hunting for eggs in her huge backyard.
Last weekend we headed up to my old stomping grounds, Stillwater. We met up with my college roommate/sorority sister, Amber, and her family. She met her husband in college and I was there since day one to see all their milestones. They have the cutest little boy, Hayden, and are awaiting for little Hadleigh to come at the end of July. Hayden and Courtney had never met and it was so much fun watching to play with one another. So much fun that we're planing to take them both to their first OSU game this fall! We must be crazy!
That same weekend, Clay and I decided that we need to cut the cord on Courtney and her pacifier. She's really attached to it, but I think we were attached to it more! We did the cut it back the first night. She caught on really quick to our scheme. The next day she kept showing me that it was "broken." We decided that night we'd do the "Paci Fairy" story. This where we tell them that they're going to leave for the fairy so she can pass them onto the babies. In return, she leaves a baby for her since she's not a big girl and can be a mommy to a baby. We packed them up. She wailed. We put her to bed with the "broken" pacifier and hoped for the best. She did sleep all night. When she woke up she saw her baby and loved it. So much that we had to take it to Nana's house to show it off. So far, she's slept every nap and night without one. We've only had one rough night, but it wasn't too bad. You know what the nicest part is? Not having to track down the darn pacifier when it's time for bed!
Here are some recent pics:
Clay's parents came up from Georgetown to spend Easter weekend with us. We always enjoy our visits with them. We had our annual lunch out at Pop's off Rt. 66. That place is so much fun and Courtney loves it just as much as we do! That night we headed over my sister's house to dye Easter eggs. The kids really got into it and made a huge mess. Courtney loved, but didn't seem to get the concept of taking the egg out once it got color on it. Let's just say we had one REALLY yellow egg! Easter Sunday was spent at my other sister's, Tiffany, house. We had a huge crowd there to feast on ham and fried chicken. The kids enjoyed hunting for eggs in her huge backyard.
Last weekend we headed up to my old stomping grounds, Stillwater. We met up with my college roommate/sorority sister, Amber, and her family. She met her husband in college and I was there since day one to see all their milestones. They have the cutest little boy, Hayden, and are awaiting for little Hadleigh to come at the end of July. Hayden and Courtney had never met and it was so much fun watching to play with one another. So much fun that we're planing to take them both to their first OSU game this fall! We must be crazy!
That same weekend, Clay and I decided that we need to cut the cord on Courtney and her pacifier. She's really attached to it, but I think we were attached to it more! We did the cut it back the first night. She caught on really quick to our scheme. The next day she kept showing me that it was "broken." We decided that night we'd do the "Paci Fairy" story. This where we tell them that they're going to leave for the fairy so she can pass them onto the babies. In return, she leaves a baby for her since she's not a big girl and can be a mommy to a baby. We packed them up. She wailed. We put her to bed with the "broken" pacifier and hoped for the best. She did sleep all night. When she woke up she saw her baby and loved it. So much that we had to take it to Nana's house to show it off. So far, she's slept every nap and night without one. We've only had one rough night, but it wasn't too bad. You know what the nicest part is? Not having to track down the darn pacifier when it's time for bed!
Here are some recent pics:
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Easter and 2 Year Photos
Over Spring Break, I took Courtney to get her 2 year and Easter pictures at our trusty photographer, Creel. He takes such great pictures and truly has a talent for capturing the true personality of people. Courtney was no exception! We've been going to him since she was a newborn so it was old practice for me. However, this is the first year that she actually knew what was going on and was talking to Creel. He was amazed at how much she talks! Me...not so much since she talks my ear off!
Each year, the photographer has a live bunny and lamb to take pictures with the children. I had forgotten about this until a friend reminded me. I had spent so much time building up putting on a pretty "Fancy Nancy/Princess" dress that I had forgotten about the animals. Oh no! The morning of her pictures went like this:
Me: Courtney! Today is your picture day and you get to wear your Fancy Nancy dress!
C: Fancy Nancy Dress! Me so happy!
Me: Yes! Are you going to smile?
C: Okay
Me: There are going to be animals there. A bunny and a lamb.
C: Bunny! Lamb!
Me: But don't be scared. They're no bigger than Holly. And you love hugging and playing with Holly, don't you?
C: Not scared.
Whew! Crisis averted! I think. I hope. I texted everyone for prayers. I waited.
We got to the studio where I was on pins and needles. She loved her dress and kept reminding me how pretty and happy she was wearing it. Until I took her sweater off (it was chilly that day). She had a typical tantrum and I caved in and let her wear the darn thing. Then came the animals....
I held my breath and stood back to watch a bomb go off. Nothing. What? No crying? No screaming? No piercing shrill of a child being tortured? Success! She loved both animals. She even demanded that the bunny be brought back in so it could have a picture with her and the lamb. She's like Dr. Doolittle. Well, not really, but she loved the lamb and talked about it the rest of the day. Here are some samples of her studio session.
A special shout-out to Courtney's nana and mimi for the cute dresses!
Hope everyone enjoyed your Spring Break! Ours ended with snow!
Each year, the photographer has a live bunny and lamb to take pictures with the children. I had forgotten about this until a friend reminded me. I had spent so much time building up putting on a pretty "Fancy Nancy/Princess" dress that I had forgotten about the animals. Oh no! The morning of her pictures went like this:
Me: Courtney! Today is your picture day and you get to wear your Fancy Nancy dress!
C: Fancy Nancy Dress! Me so happy!
Me: Yes! Are you going to smile?
C: Okay
Me: There are going to be animals there. A bunny and a lamb.
C: Bunny! Lamb!
Me: But don't be scared. They're no bigger than Holly. And you love hugging and playing with Holly, don't you?
C: Not scared.
Whew! Crisis averted! I think. I hope. I texted everyone for prayers. I waited.
We got to the studio where I was on pins and needles. She loved her dress and kept reminding me how pretty and happy she was wearing it. Until I took her sweater off (it was chilly that day). She had a typical tantrum and I caved in and let her wear the darn thing. Then came the animals....
I held my breath and stood back to watch a bomb go off. Nothing. What? No crying? No screaming? No piercing shrill of a child being tortured? Success! She loved both animals. She even demanded that the bunny be brought back in so it could have a picture with her and the lamb. She's like Dr. Doolittle. Well, not really, but she loved the lamb and talked about it the rest of the day. Here are some samples of her studio session.
A special shout-out to Courtney's nana and mimi for the cute dresses!
Hope everyone enjoyed your Spring Break! Ours ended with snow!
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Update
I realized that it's been awhile since I last posted. We've been so busy that I haven't had time to sit down and post anything. However, I'm officially on Spring Break so now I have some time.
Clay has been super busy at work with designing new bank sites. He also took his first test towards his architecture license. It was an exciting day around here when he took it! We should find out in a few weeks if he passed it. He's a good test taker so I'm sure he did.
I've been busy with school from attending musicals, parent-teacher conferences, and preparing for our upcoming district testing before our state test. On top of that, I've taken on tutoring a former student of mine 2 nights a week. I'll be honest, he was one of my favorites last year and he's in my sister's 5th grade class this year. His mom called to see if I could help him out with Math and Reading. I adore his family and loved that I was able to help him! I'm anxious for the end of April and all this testing to be done so I can breathe a little bit!
Courtney is growing everyday. We went to her 2 year check up and she was 27 pounds and 34 1/2 inches. She's still in 18th month clothing which is nice since it's a bit chilly outside. By summer she'll be in 24 months and thanks to her friends and family, she's outfitted for the summer! She's talking up a storm and learning all sorts of things at school. The other day she started singing "Ol' McDonald" Neither one of us had taught her that, but we found out her teachers did. And boy is she Miss Independent! She doesn't want help with ANYTHING! Her favorite saying is, "No! I do it!" So we stand back and watch. Sometimes she's successful and other times....well...not so much.
I'd post some pictures, but it's giving me fits. Oh well....maybe next time!
Clay has been super busy at work with designing new bank sites. He also took his first test towards his architecture license. It was an exciting day around here when he took it! We should find out in a few weeks if he passed it. He's a good test taker so I'm sure he did.
I've been busy with school from attending musicals, parent-teacher conferences, and preparing for our upcoming district testing before our state test. On top of that, I've taken on tutoring a former student of mine 2 nights a week. I'll be honest, he was one of my favorites last year and he's in my sister's 5th grade class this year. His mom called to see if I could help him out with Math and Reading. I adore his family and loved that I was able to help him! I'm anxious for the end of April and all this testing to be done so I can breathe a little bit!
Courtney is growing everyday. We went to her 2 year check up and she was 27 pounds and 34 1/2 inches. She's still in 18th month clothing which is nice since it's a bit chilly outside. By summer she'll be in 24 months and thanks to her friends and family, she's outfitted for the summer! She's talking up a storm and learning all sorts of things at school. The other day she started singing "Ol' McDonald" Neither one of us had taught her that, but we found out her teachers did. And boy is she Miss Independent! She doesn't want help with ANYTHING! Her favorite saying is, "No! I do it!" So we stand back and watch. Sometimes she's successful and other times....well...not so much.
I'd post some pictures, but it's giving me fits. Oh well....maybe next time!
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Party Time!
Here are some highlights from Saturday.
Courtney enjoyed spending time with her Mimi and Papa Terry. A special thank you to Mimi for supplying the pretty in pink birthday dress.
She also enjoyed playing with her Aunt Kuka!
We got Courtney a 50's diner for her birthday. She (and her friends) loved pretending to cook and dine! Here is a snapshot of Ladybug and her friends, Jamie (in pink) and Jacey (in brown) Cobb.
Courtney LOVED her cake. She loves her sweets! Good thing she's a brushes her teeth regularly.
Our family picture for her birthday. Believe it or not, but I got the idea from watching the Gene Simmons' Family Jewels. The took a family pic for every birthday had them framed in their living room. I thought that was such a great idea!
Courtney got so many lovely things for gifts. We're still trying to find a place for everything! We can't help but feel blessed to have such wonderful family and friends to help us celebrate!
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
I Heart My Polar Bear Hat
You know how kids get attached to things? Whether it's a blanket, a stuffed animal, or a shirt, it's a rite of passage of every kid to have an attachment to something. It's pretty obvious that Courtney is attached to her pacifier (or as she calls it "duppie"). She's also attached to her blankie too. I dread the day we leave that somewhere!
Lately with all the winter weather we've been having she's gotten attached to her polar bear hat. It's a hand-me down from her cousin, Kelsi. We didn't expect her to get so attached to it. We only put it on her because it covers her ears.
Here is is sporting it outdoors during our snowfall last Friday.
And here we are wearing while warming up by the fire. I mean don't you wear a winter hat by the fire?
At dress up with her friends, Zoe and Katie Beth.
Last but not least, during a snow day at home. She decided that pants were optional. I gave up the fight to keep them on. I title this one "Eat your heart out, Lady Gaga!"
So there you have it. Courtney's newest attachment. Let's hope it passes when Summer arrives! Hope everyone is staying warm!
Monday, January 18, 2010
That's Just Silly
It's begun. The silly face. It started off with just Clay doing it, but now that Courtney is copying everything we do, the silly face would soon come. And it did.
She's silly at Aunt Brookie and Uncle Jo Jo's house.
We're silly while doing laundry. (The Nick Nolte hair was in full effect that day!)
We're silly when Mommy is trying to snap a cute 23 month picture.
We're silly on Monday's!
She may be silly, but she's our sweet Ladybug!
Friday, January 8, 2010
Two for Tea
Yesterday Courtney and I were at home for the day. We had below freezing temps (low of 2 and a wind chill of -15) here in the area and school was called off. I know that sounds silly to some of you out there. Keep in mind, we don't normally have such cold temperatures so some kids don't have proper coats to keep them warm. All they wear is a sweatshirt. It also doesn't help when kids only have t-shirts and nothing warmer to wear. See where I'm going with this? It was better to keep them at home just to be safe.
Anyway, back to my story.....
Courtney and I had a great day at home. We watched too much Noggin (Dora, Franklin, Little Bill, etc). We went down the slide, read a lot of books, spent forever brushing our teeth and lunched over leftovers. We also had our very own tea party. Here are some pics of our high tea experience.
First we pass out the teacups.
Then she insisted on pouring the tea. Just look at that concentration.
CHEERS!
Take a sip. Yummy!
Don't forget the treats. What will it be? Cherry pie or cookies? (On a side note, I bought these at the arts and crafts show at church. Aren't they cute?)
Ahhh.....cookie. Good choice!
This was the kind of grin I had on my face. I love sharing in these moments!
Friday, January 1, 2010
New Year, New Recipe
I found this recipe online and decided to try it out. The best part is that it's in the crockpot! Clay and I both enjoyed it. It's a keeper!
Crock Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup
1 can black beans, drained
1 can corn, drained
1 can diced tomatoes (14.5 oz size - southwest style, if possible)
1 packet enchilada sauce mix (or if you can't find this, mild taco seasoning works well too)
1 1/2 C water
1 can (8 oz)tomato sauce
1 can ( 10 3/4 oz) cream of chicken soup
2 C milk
3-4 boneless chicken breasts (I only used 2 chicken breasts)
In crock pot, mix the enchilada packet together with the water and tomato sauce. Add cream of chicken soup and milk and whisk together until smooth. Add chicken. Pour drained black beans, drained corn and diced tomatoes on top of that.Cook on low 6-8 hours.Before serving, take out chicken and shred or dice, then put back and stir it all together. Serve with sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese, lime, avocado, or tortilla chips.
1 can black beans, drained
1 can corn, drained
1 can diced tomatoes (14.5 oz size - southwest style, if possible)
1 packet enchilada sauce mix (or if you can't find this, mild taco seasoning works well too)
1 1/2 C water
1 can (8 oz)tomato sauce
1 can ( 10 3/4 oz) cream of chicken soup
2 C milk
3-4 boneless chicken breasts (I only used 2 chicken breasts)
In crock pot, mix the enchilada packet together with the water and tomato sauce. Add cream of chicken soup and milk and whisk together until smooth. Add chicken. Pour drained black beans, drained corn and diced tomatoes on top of that.Cook on low 6-8 hours.Before serving, take out chicken and shred or dice, then put back and stir it all together. Serve with sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese, lime, avocado, or tortilla chips.
I used 4 chicken breasts and really I only needed two. Once I shredded it, we had a lot! I think it could use a little more heat to it so next time I'm going to add Rotel to it. But that's just me.
I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!
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