Spring is here...hopefully!

Lindsey was SO proud to finally have flowers! Ryan decided to clean out the flower beds. We debated about pulling out the other bushes last year, but didn't. So he decided he was going to do that yesterday. After that and Lindsey asking a million times....they headed out to get flowers. I didn't get a before and after, but it turned out nice. Courtney was just hanging out and drinking Lindsey's Sonic "strawberry sprite" aka strawberry limeaid. I'll add a picture of the end product soon!

Precious Moments

I know I've had this song on here before but it was TOO fitting not to have it on here again. Today one time I came in the living room and Lindsey had her arms out in front of her and was "dancing like Cinderella." So she then wanted her princess dress on, I put on classical music and she danced. We met Ryan for dinner and came home. Lindsey wanted to dance with Daddy, so that is what we did. It was so sweet!

How big is Lindsey?! Her hair is getting so long and when her hair is up in pig tails it looks really long. She is such a poser these days! I couldn't ask for a more beautiful smile! Thank you, Lindsey!









Tonight Courtney was very intensly playing with Ryan's phone. She LOVES it and holds it up to her ear and says "Hello" just like she knows what to do. I guess Ryan has trained her well!

Happy Easter

How cute is this?! My girls were such good sports this morning with me wanting to take so many pictures. They did great.










I really like this family picture. I'm please with it. Obviously I wish that Courtney wouldn't have raised her hand, but oh well.











These are new Easter baskets that mom got for the girls. They are so cute. I love them! The girls had a great time carrying them around looking for eggs!








They each found a good amount of eggs! It was so fun watching them get excited about it all. Lindsey took off running to find eggs. Uncle Taylor and Amber helped Courtney with the first few, but then she got the hang of it. However, Courtney wouldn't get too close to the bushes, we had to pull some out to the middle of the grass for her to get them!

Surprise Party

Last night I pulled off a surprise party for Ryan! I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to do it, but I did! It was fun and we had a good time. My friend Erin was very gracious and let me have it at her house. She made this cake and put 30 candles on it for Ryan to blow out! It was fun. Thank you to all of our friends that came.

Texas

This is Lindsey holding her new cousin, Anna Louise. My mom's sister, Aunt Jerry lives in Little Elm, TX. We met my cousin, Wendi from Houston there. My other cousin Ashley lives near there so we got to meet her new baby, Anna. She is tiny!
This is Brooks, my cousin Wendi's little boy. He is 2, so he and Lindsey had fun playing. They played well together a lot until my "prissy" girl couldn't handle the "rough and tough" boy! Nothing was wrong, but Lindsey just isn't a rough and tough kind of girl.
Here are some generations. My mom and her sister are standing on the ends, and their Aunt Rosie is in the middle. Then all the kids (0-4) are lined up on the couch. Literally this year Barrett will be one, Courtney will be two, Brooks will be three, Lindsey will be four and Anna was just born! Fun cousin time for sure in the future! Sweet kisses for Anna.
I took Anna some bows and a bow holder. So I had to have a picture made with Anna and her new bow head. Ashely was excited to have some bows. It is something she will use for sure! Being the girly mom I thought that would be something that she would need!

We had a great time in TX. It made me realize how much we miss seeing our extended family. I hate that we live so far from each other. We have to make it more often for sure!

Wedding

Here we are at the rehearsal dinner. Miah and Kyle were sweet to ask Lindsey and I was so glad. Lindsey did great at practice and perfect at the wedding. She walked down like a pro and sat on the step just like she was suppsed to. It was a great time! I can't wait to see all of the photographer's pictures. You can see a few at www.dodsonstudio.com and then click on their blog. There is a SUPER cute one of Courtney looking up at Miah before she walked down! Precious!

Mowing Fun!

Helping Daddy mow! Lindsey thought it was great! It only took Ryan 10 min. to mow the back yard! Fun!

Easter Eggs

We gave Ryan his birthday present tonight. It is a grill for the boat! Yeah! It "hooks" on the side rail and we can grill right there! So cool!! He had mentioned wanting one so I had our boat guy order one for me to give him. He of course didn't react very much, but said that he liked it. There were only 2 to choose from so I couldn't mess up too much! That was his present from all of his girls! I did let Lindsey and Courtney pick out cards and stuff. Courtney didn't really, but just colored on the inside. So cute!


So we put the girls up on the counter to dye our Easter eggs. Lindsey was so excited, even though I don't think she knew exactly what was going to happen. We had talked about it at Wal-Mart this morning and then she saw me boiling the eggs. So, all afternoon she kept asking me when we were going to "color" the eggs. It worked out perfectly between supper and bath! Thankfully because do you see Courtney's hand? She had been sitting there for all of 10 seconds before that happened! Of course! Lindsey woulnd't do that, ever. So amazing how different they are!






So proud of her work! Courtney would NOT look at me for anything! She was too taken back with the egg I guess. Lindsey thought it was so cool. She asked if we were going to hide the eggs! That was the excitement of our egg dying. It lasted all of 5 min! Courtney was just in on the beginning and the end. She dropped a few of the eggs in the cups, but didn't get any of them out. If you look behind the girls you can see the newspaper covered in green....that was the 2nd Courtney accident of almost spilling the entire cup. Luckily it bumped into the other cup and didn't spill over. After that she was put down to play and didn't know the difference!

Happy 30th Birthday Ryan!

Happy Birthday RYAN! Today Ryan is 30! This is one of my favorite pictures of him from his mom that I have. It isn't so much a "Ryan face" but I just love his hair! He just looks so cute! I'm so thankful for the man he is today. Happy Birthday, Babe! I love you!

Also, Monday was our 7 year anniversary and I was out of town so I didn't get to post a picture! Happy 7th Anniversary too! I love you more today like I never thought I could. You are an amazing husband and I am so thankful God gave you to me! I love you!

Congratulations to my mom and dad on 32 years of marriage today as well! You are great parents and treasured grandparents! Thank you for loving eachother and showing me how to love one another! You are the best mom and dad! Congrats on 32 years!

BlogBackupOnline

I don't know if you all remember a few months ago when I thought I "lost" all of my blog? During that panic moment I called a friend that is computer savy and she didn't know what to do. BUT, another blogging friend (thank you Amiee!) told me about BlogBackupOnline. I signed up and they back up my blog everyday so if something happens and I screw it up it is backed up! You should check them out! Very easy and your blog is always saved!

Big Weekend!

This weekend Ryan's brother Kyle is getting married! He and Miah have been together for a while now (not sure how long, but she was at Lindsey's first birthday). She is a great girl! I'm so excited to have a sister in law and another girl to have around at family stuff! She has an identical twin--just a side note. :) Anyway, their wedding is on Sat. We are leaving tomorrow around lunch to go up to NWA and get Courtney to my mom and get ready for the rehearsal and dinner. Lindsey is so excited for the wedding. She talks about walking down the aisle and being the flower girl, but we'll see if she can "walk the walk like she talks the talk." Ryan says we are taking bets! Ha ha! At this point I can see it going either way.

I'll post pictures when we get home! Then the girls and I are off to TX to visit my mom's sister and my cousins there. It will be interesting now that there are kids and babies involved in the sleeping arrangements! Luckily Lindsey is big enough and flexible so it shouldn't be too bad.

Congrats Kyle and Miah! We love you!

First Voyage!

I have tried and tried to upload a couple more pictures. But really these two pictures sum up our day. Courtney was barefoot with her coat and hat while eating...something...anything. Lindsey wanted to drive the WHOLE TIME we were out on the boat! We stopped for a little while to just hang out and enjoy the beautiful weather. Pretty much the whole time we were stopped, Lindsey said, "I'm ready to go. I want to go." She wasn't ready to go to the car necissarily, but was ready to move and drive! She was good. Ryan would sit in front of her on the bench and then point his finger the direction she needed to turn it. Courtney drove some and when Ryan would put his hands on the wheel to turn it, she would push them off! It was a lot of fun. Courtney had no fear of walking around and climbing on everything! Sort of scary for us though.

I backed the trailer down to the boat with Ryan's help. I was so nervous because I'm not used to backing things and having to turn the car, watch the trailer, all of that. But, it was fine. Ryan was great at helping of course! Then the fun started when we got back to the storage place to park the boat. We pulled up and someone had returned a Uhaul BIG truck while we were out. So, it looked like we might be able to barely fit through. Ryan tried and tried, but couldn't get it to fit. So, the only option was to get it off of the suburban and pull the boat and trailer by hand through the gate where he could fit through! I was a little nervous to say the least, but my big, buff, strong husband pulled that thing through! It was frustrating at first, but he handled it well. You know Ryan. He just said, "I could have done without that on this Sunday afternoon" and never mentioned it again! What a good hubby he is! So we got the boat parked and covered. Lindsey had fallen asleep and Courtney was watching a DVD in the car. They were great! I'm so thankful for the fun times I know we are going to have this summer on the boat!

You know how people "name" their boat? Well, the other day Ryan out of the blue (we had NOT talked about this and I of course had not even thought about it!) said, "I think we should name it "The Leeann." What a great idea! I thought it was so sweet that he thought about it and that he named it after our girls! How cute is that?! He said he was going to get the sticker or whatever it is that you do made and put it on the back. So we can soon refer to the boat as "The Leeann." I sort of think it would be cool to spell it "LeeAnn" with the "A" big. For those of you who don't know Lee is Lindsey's middle name and Ann is Courtney's. That is why it is so fitting!

Let it snow, let it snow, let it STOP!

Courtney woke up from her FOUR HOUR nap today to a lot of snow! It was very different outside from when she laid down right after lunch! She wasn't sure what all of that was! So cute!







Ok, so I hadn't bought any of those super cute rain boots. The other 2 snows we've had Lindsey bless her heart has had freezing cold feet. She just doesn't have any good options for shoes. I asked Ryan to stop and get something, anything that would be good for the girls to wear out in the snow. These black boots are what he came home with! ;) PERFECT, just not cute! They look like fireman boots to me. Lindsey LOVED them! I didn't get a good picture of her in them, but you can see Courtney's. Lindsey later had them on "to keep her feet warm" (that is the reason I gave her for waiting to go out until Daddy got home with boots so her feet would be warm) with her pjs on tonight. Like they were house shoes. No socks, just pjs and boots! So funny! Courtney wasn't as sure about them. She couldn't walk too well in them. She looked like a bow legged cowboy walking in them! Pretty cute!

Courtney won't leave anything on her hands--or her feet for that matter. Luckily she did leave her boots on outside. She takes her shoes and socks off anytime we are in the car. Usually before we are off of our street and our street isn't very long. Anyway, Ryan helped Lindsey build a snowman, two of them actually, when he got home. I don't know why it is so dark, but if you look close I wanted you to see how BIG the snowball was that they rolled! HUGE! The snowman didn't end up as big as I thought that it would, but that first snowball was very large. Courtney and I were already inside by the time the Mr. and Mrs. Frosty were done. So I don't have a pic....

Ready for Summer

The sun was bright, can you tell? This is our new ride!! We are so excited to have it and for summer to get here so we can head to the lake!


Ryan checking out the "system" it has! There are speakers all over the boat so that is fun!
This is a "pop up" area that you can change in. Pretty cool. It folds down into that area that is in the next picture where it is propped open.

Friends!

Friday night a group of girls had a night out. It was a lot of fun. It was a new group of friends for me and I'm so thankful to be meeting more and more people here. It seems like it has taken longer for me to feel attached.

This is Erin and Shaina. I have really gotten to know both of them through our MOPS group at church and now both of them have moved their membership to our church, so I'm excited about that!

An update on Courtney and the potty....she hasn't done it much, if at all, since I posted that on here! :( Lindsey was so easy and was literally potty trained in one day! So, even if Courtney is ready I don't think I'm ready for the long haul!! We'll just keep playing with it and see where it goes. Thanks for all the advice!

Can it be?

To some this topic might not be "blog worthy," but to a mom of a toddler it is! Courtney went to the potty last night before her bath! Then this morning she wasn't soaked in her diaper so I asked her if she wanted to go in the potty. She said yes AND WENT! What?! Lindsey was basically 3 (a month before her 3rd birthday) before she was trained. AND she couldn't have cared less until that "moment" of going, literally! It was very easy, so part of me doesn't want to "push" Courtney because when Lindsey was ready she was ready. Only 2 accidents EVER and that was the first week and we were at VBS at church. She's only wet the bed once and that was because I forgot (it was a crazy late night at my mom's) to have her go before bed. So, all of those details to say how easy she was.

I'm not sure then how to take Courtney's interest. Do I push her? Do I just let her "play" with it and take her to the potty as I can? I could tell lately that she was very interested in it, but just wanted it to be her idea. Apparently it is, but becuase she's so much younger I'm worried about the communication of it. She can say all the right words, but will she tell me? Advice is greatly appreciated here!

Here's hoping to me being finished with buying diapers!

Seriously?!

Last night as we went to bed were were told that we might be getting 2-4 inches of snow. I did not want that, even though it would be fun. I had a couple of things that I needed to get done today and the girls needed to go to MDO to get those things done. But, NO....Greenwood closed school even though we only had an inch (MAYBE!) of snow and the road are TOTALLY clear! Not sure why we don't have school today. Lindsey was naked to her panties before I could even give her breakfast telling me she was going to play in the snow. She bundled up and went out , but I think she got bored. I didn't bundle up Courtney becuase it just isn't worth it. Lindsey was eating the snow off of her gloves and loving it! So cute!








This is Courtney...classic Courtney! Sunday after church we were all just hanging out after lunch on the deck and playing in the yard. Courtney looked so cute and she wanted to sit in the chair. So, I put her up there, got the camera and she started "slumping" down laughing. As to say "just try and take my picture!" So, I tried and this is what I got as she was laughing! Better than if I could have posed her I think! I LOVE it!

So, SERIOUSLY!?! Why is that we are stuck at home without anything on the roads? I guess we aren't stuck per say, but my plans are for sure altered. We'll see what we can find to do...Happy Snow Day, I guess!

Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood!

Today was a beautiful day outside! It made me more ready for spring than I even realized that I was. It was fun to be outside in the sunshine and hanging out as a family. I went to get the camera because Lindsey and her friend Paige were helping Ryan gather the clippings from the bushes he cut this morning. When Courtney saw the camera, this is what she did. It was so funny!







I don't know if you can see them, but Lindsey has braids in her hair! I did that the other day and she loved it. I have to put her hair in pigtails and then braid the tails becuase it is so thin and fine! But, she thinks she is big stuff! So cute. I invited Paige to come over because Lindsey was in big time play mode and I just wanted to be outside and enjoy the beautiful weather. Paige came over to play and eat lunch. Lindsey had a couple of big melt downs while Paige was here, but they really played great together. Lindsey has now been asleep for about 2 hours, so that explains a lot. I knew she was tired, but not this tired. We will hopefully have a fun night watching Ryan coach and hanging out at home together.

Just for the sake of blogging...I took Lindsey to the dentist this week for her first time. She had been talking it up and was so excited to go. We had looked at a college friends' blog about her daugther going (thanks Tara!) and Lindsey was so excited. Needless to say, she would have NOTHING to do with the dentist chair so she didn't get her teeth cleaned. They reassured me this was very normal. The dentist did look at her teeth and said they looked fine, nothing big to worry about at all. She got her treat bag and told Ryan how good she was at the dentist. Which isn't real far from the truth, but she did cry and put her fingers in her mouth while I was trying to convince her to sit in that big chair. After we gave up she was fine. We'll try again in 6 months and see what happens!