HAPPY 7th BIRTHDAY KING RICHIE!!

Richie, you are "THE KING!"

Sometimes life is hard and you cannot see what is ahead.

But you always keep trying.

You are number one!

Take a bow. We love you.

Richie, you always make us laugh. You keep us wondering--we never know what you will do next. We are so grateful that you are part of our family.

Pictures from Emily

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Family Pictures October 2009

Whitni Parker came out a couple of weeks ago and took these pictures for us. I just love the black and white close-ups of the kids. They are my favorite ones. We had the pictures taken in front of our house at the fishing pier. It was very cold and very early in the morning. But, the kids did really well---for most of it. :-)

PS--As soon as I can get the pictures off of my camera and into the computer I will post more. So, look for more to come very soon.

Fun Fiddling

Lydia had a final lesson with her Coppell violin teacher--Ms. Younghans--this week. She has been a wonderful teacher for Lydia and we will miss her dearly. Luckily Lydia will still get to see her at orchestra. Lydia will start lessons with her new teacher this Saturday.

I have some fun news. Lydia met with the band director last week and he is going to have her play her violin with the 7/8 grade band. At first we were thinking that it would be a little weird--OK--A LOT weird. However, the more we thought about a fun and easy class, we decided that it would be a good idea. The band director will have Lydia play the flute parts on her violin with the band whenever they play inside--at pep rallies, concerts, etc. She will get to play the mallet instruments (bells/xylophone/marimba) whenever they play outside at the football games. So, the other night Lydia started practicing the school song to play at the high school dedication this weekend. Rich heard Lydia and the two of them had a great time going through the silly songs that bands sometimes play. I am not sure who had more fun--Rich remembering his many years in band or Lydia thinking about the crazy times that she will have this year. This afternoon was her first practice and it went really well.

So, our new theme for Lydia this year will be, "If you're gonna play in Texas, you gotta have a fiddle in the band!"

Big Bekah?

Well...Bigger Bekah. Rebekah has gained three pounds in the last three weeks. She has gone from 9 to 12 pounds!! In fact, she is now 12 lbs. 11 ounces. We are all so pround of her and grateful that she is doing so well now. As you can see, she has also made lots of progess. She can now sit in the Bumbo seat. Before she would slump over in it after just a few minutes. She can also hold her own bottle--for a minute or so. Her legs are so much bigger and she actually has a tummy. She can sit on her own for just a few seconds. She is definitely more active and we couldn't be happier!

Happy Birthday Lydia!!

Yesterday was Lydia's 11th birthday! I can hardly believe that I have an 11 year old. Lydia is getting so grown up and is such a good girl. We truly do love her and are so grateful that she is part of our family.



We registered Lydia for school last week. It was so fun to drive by the school and see Lydia's name on the school sign! We also got a letter in the mail inviting our family to a dinner at the middle school for all of the new families to meet all of the staff and to take a tour of the school.
Lydia and her new friend, Chloe, made angel food cake for the dessert.
Lydia invited some friends to go swimming, have lunch, eat cupcakes, and get their nails done for her party. Lydia had a great time. They all wore matching sun glasses and flip flops.

Itty Bitty Bekah

...won't be bitty for long.
Rebekah has always been little. However, lately she has been too little. She only gained 3 ounces from 4-6 1/2 months. So, the pediatrician had us give her some formula. She gained 23 ounces this week! She has gone from 9 to almost 11 pounds!! It took a few days to get her to take the formula. However, now she is a champ and loves the bottle.

Way to go Rebekah!!