Passing the Buck

We spent Thanksgiving with Wheezer and Poppers this year. Brenna absolutely loves to feed their dog, Payne. It got to the point where poor Payne was going to get sick she was feeding her so much! Every single time she fed the dog she would say, "Here you go." (here a dough) I finally had enough. I looked at Brenna and said, "Brenna, if you feed that dog one more time I am going to give you a spanking." Brenna turned, looked Payne straight in the face, and said in a very stern voice, "Stop it tuppy!" like it was the dog's fault!

Happy Halloween

Here's some pictures of our Halloween. We had a lot of fun!

Pretty Princess:


An unhappy pumpkin:


Ahhhh, now I'm good. Mommy is here!


Ella with our neighbor Bailey:


Ella's grossest piece of candy. A gummy EYEBALL!?!?!?


And here's an adorable video of Brenna saying Trick or Treat:

Tee-tee on the Potty

Last night before her bath, Brenna started grabbing her diaper and said, "I need potty. I need potty." I undressed her and put her on the potty; she immediately went tee-tee on the potty. I can't believe we are already here. Interestingly, Ella also went on the potty for the first time at 19 months. I'm not sure I'm ready to potty train just yet, so for now I'll let Brenna lead the way. I'd say we can start anytime I feel up to the challenge though.

The Blue Angels

What a walk we had today! I took the girls for a walk on the walking path through our neighborhood to a little park. As we were walking along the Blue Angel fighter jets suddenly let out a smoke trail as they were doing loops in the sky! The entire time we were out walking we watched them practice for the air show this weekend. They flew directly overhead several times. At one point they did a tight 360 with the wings perpendicular to the ground around the playground. Then they flew off and came back around and buzzed the playground. They were so low to the ground we could easily read the words U.S. Navy on the wings and see that there was a person in the cockpit. It was so exciting. We were already planning to go to the air show, but after seeing them practice Ella is really excited now.

Our Last Day at Church

Today was such a hard day for me. It was the last Sunday we attended our church here in Knoxville. We pulled into the parking lot, and I started to cry. The people of Fellowship Bible Church are what made Knoxville our home. The scenery in this part of the country is gorgeous. The people of Knoxville in general are very friendly. But, it was the community of people at Fellowship Bible Church who made our lives here so wonderful.

Almost all of Ella's friends are from our church. These are the people that we shared our lives with on a weekly and sometimes daily basis. Knoxville would not mean to me what it does without having been a member of such an awesome church group.

The women that I became friends with were from all different age groups. From college girls to grandmothers, my life was touched so deeply by these relationships. I met women in this church that I strive to be like as I grow. My faith in God has been tested more and has grown more in the past three years than in any other period of my life. I am so thankful for the life we have led here. My prayer now as we move forward is that we will find another church home that affects us as deeply as this church has done.

Tonight, several of the families from our church attended a going away party for us. I am so touched by the number of people in this photo, and even more touched to know that there were other families that had conflicts but would have been there otherwise. We have been richly blessed. Thank you to each and every person who has touched our lives here. There are far too many to mention by name, but we love you all!

Brenna Loves School

Her first day was on Tuesday. She didn't cry at all. She had a blast. She didn't even come running for me when I came to get her that afternoon. I honestly thought it might have been a fluke since the only time she's really been away from me has been at church or with someone we knew well watching her.

This morning I said, "Brenna, are you ready to go to school again today?" She smiled really big and said, "school!" It was a few minutes before they needed to leave, so I turned on the tv for Ella and sat down. Brenna looked at me, frowned, ran as fast as her little legs could carry her to the garage door, and proceeded to try to get it open herself. She can't even reach the knob, so she turns around and gives me a dirty look and starts yelling at me. Scott said she said, "school" over and over again in the car, and when he dropped her off, she ran into her classroom and didn't even look back.

Our New Home

At this point it's as official as it's going to get until we actually close. We are moving to Haslet, TX, a small town 15 miles north of downtown Ft. Worth. We close on our home in Knoxville on September 14th and leave for Haslet that day. We close on our new home on September 17th or 18th. Here is the floor plan and pictures of the actual house.



The house:



As you walk in the front door you enter the rotunda. How posh! LOL The formal living room is straight ahead and looks out onto the covered back porch. The dining room is to the left, and the study and the hallway to the three front bedrooms is to the right.


The dining room is HUGE. We will probably put a table in the rotunda and move the chandelier from the dining room into the rotunda. The dining room will actually be our piano room.


The kitchen and family room are at the back of the house.
This is a view of the bar from the family room:

The kitchen looking into the dining room:

From the breakfast nook into the kitchen:

From the dining room into the kitchen:

The family room fire place:

There is a second fire place that looks just like this one in the formal living room. Have you ever heard of anything so silly in Ft. Worth, Texas as TWO fireplaces???
The window of the family room:


The master bedroom is also at the back of the house. It is off the formal living room. This is the wall our bed will go on:

The bay window out to the backyard:

And the bathroom:



At the front of the house, is a full guest bath:

A jack and jill bath from the hallway and the playroom:

And the girls room, which also has a bay window:

Ella's Four Year Pictures

Brenna's 15 month Checkup

Brenna is growing up so fast! Ella's babyhood went by fast, but Brenna's seems to be going by a warp speed. I can't believe she's already 15 months old. She is 30 1/2 inches tall, which is around the 60th percentile. She weighs 19 lbs 15.5 ounces. The nurse joked that she's as close to 20 pounds as you can possibly be and still be missing the mark. The good news is that she has finally gained the appropriate amount of weight between appointments. She had been dropping in percentiles every time we went for a check up, but this time she actually increased her growth curve up to the 5th percentile. She's very tall and skinny.

Her verbal skills are increasing almost every day. She will readily sign both milk and more, but she isn't all that interested in learning more signs. She is trying her hand at new words on an almost daily basis. She says, "Hi, Dada, Ella, tat (cat), no-no, nigh-nigh (night-night)." Every single animal that she sees is a tat. She can mimic the proper sounds for dog, duck and fish, but she insists on calling them tat when she sees them. Today she added diedah (diaper) to her vocabulary. She also talks very emphatically and with great facial expression in a language we have dubbed "Brennese." She obviously has something very important to say, unfortunately no one but Brenna understands her language.

She readily gives hugs and kisses complete with a mmm-wah and oooooo sound! She loves to dance and gives her shoulders a shimmy shake on command. Ella loves to egg her on which I'm sure helps Brenna learn her new tricks. We are all really enjoying the development of her personality.

Brenna Walking

Brenna is a Toddler!

We have officially entered toddlerhood and all the trouble that comes with it!





Plus, she can do some big girl things now too.

Bathtime Fun

We got some bath crayons as a gift from Wheezer. The girls have had a great time plaing with them...and so has Mommy!

Ella's Prayer

Last night we were up in the play room and out of the blue Ella told me that she needed to say a prayer. She walked over to our couch and knelt down in front of it, clasped her hands, closed her eyes, and prayed.

Dear Lord,
I know that Jesus is King. I want Him to live in my heart. I want to obey and be a good little girl. Please bless my mommy, daddy and my sister. Amen. Oh and Dear Lord, I love you so much Jesus. Amen.

I had tears streaming down my face at her heartfelt sincerity. As Jesus said, "Let the little children come unto me."