Pretty in Pigtails

People are always commenting on my daughter's hair. Sometimes not in a good way, but still always commenting. Lots of times I get suggestions on what I should be doing with it. A couple of weeks ago, some girls from my MTM group suggested pigtails. It never occurred to me that she really had enough hair for them but turns out she does!! It is a little hard to see them in the picture because they are small, and I think they will look better once I invest in some of those tiny ponytail holders, but for tonight, these clips did the trick. Pretty cute huh?

Yesterday I had a little Christmas party for the kids complete with a visit from Santa! My mom used to do the same thing for my brother and me when we were little so I have been so excited for my kids to be old enough to enjoy it and begin the little tradition myself. Christopher is at the perfect age right now and I know Lucy will grow into it in a couple of years. He had an absolute ball and I loved every minute of it. We had a few crafts for the kids, lunch, and of course the chance to sit on Santa's lap and get a picture. There were just enough kids here to effectively call it "organized chaos" but I think everyone had a good time.

Merry Christmas to Us!

This year Cory and I decided to give each other a new camera for Christmas.  We went on and ordered it around Thanksgiving so that we could use it for Christmas pictures this year and not feel completely clueless as to how to operate it.  So we've had it for about a week now and we love it!!  Of course, we are still learning how to use it but so far we think it takes great pics!  Please notice the "blurred background" in these pictures.  I've been trying to achieve that look with my point and shoot for over a year!

Accentuate the Positive

Many of you know that my sweet little "Granny" passed away on Wednesday.  Shortly after she celebrated her 90th birthday in October of 2007, a large tumor was discovered in her stomach.  Last Thanksgiving, my dad cancelled his trip to come see us in London, because no one thought she was going to make it much longer.  The Lord blessed her with another full year of life and she died peacefully in her home surrounded by all of her children.  I can't think of a better way to go Home, myself.  

She was a remarkable lady who could always "accentuate the positive."  When I spoke with her on the phone last Sunday, you would have never even known she was sick.  She answered the phone singing and sounded as strong as ever.  She never met a stranger, loved and welcomed people from all walks of life into her family, stayed busy and active in her community, and relied on the Lord above all things.  

These past few days were very special to me not only because I was able to celebrate the life of Granny, but also because I was able to see my dad with all of his siblings in a way I just haven't ever really seen.  The reasons for that are far too complex to even begin to blog about but that is just the way it is.  However, I'm so thankful for what I witnessed these past few days and I really hope that maybe it won't have to be the last time I see it for the next 10 years.  That we'll be able to gather again, under different circumstances.  I know that Granny would love that.  

Her funeral was so different from any other I have ever been too.  All of her children spoke about her with a great sense of pride and gratitude for her.  My grandfather, who passed away in 1984, had an incredible singing voice.  Thanks to some modern technology one of his records was recorded onto a CD that was played at the service.  Who could ask for anything more complete than that at their funeral.  I know Granny was smiling alot today.

While these last few days were such a celebration of her life, I know that hard and sad times will follow in the days to come as Granny will be missed by so many.  Please keep my dad, his siblings, and the rest of the family in your prayers.  My cousin uploaded this video of Granny singing, one of her favorite things to do.  Isn't she precious?   

One of a Kind

My aunt knitted Lucy this hat to have this winter and I'm pretty sure it is the cutest item of clothing that she owns!!  For you knitters out there, each red stripe is a different type of stitch.  She wore it today for the first time and I was stopped everywhere I went by people commenting on the hat.  Pretty cute huh?  Thanks again Pattie!!  I LOVE it!!  

8 Months and MOBILE!

Baby Lucy is 8 months old today!  To say time is going by fast would be an understatement!  Her personality is shining through more and more everyday.  I have discovered over the last couple of weeks that Miss Lucy LOVES a schedule.  The days that I have been able to give her a good morning and afternoon nap, she is such a delight.  Unfortunately for her (and me), providing that schedule in the day to day routine with all of Christopher's activities can be difficult.  Poor second baby!  I'm doing my best and so is she, yesterday she took about an hour nap in the car while I killed some time before picking Christopher up and then got another hour of sleep in the Ergo carrier while Christopher played at the park.  Not as good as the crib, but it worked.

Lucy at 8 months:

• Is mobile!  She makes her way all over the place by army crawling.  Cory and I give the little girl a huge E for effort.  There is not one part of her tiny body that is not making the attempt to move.
• Has 2 teeth!!  Yep, those bottom two teeth finally popped through!  This could also be a part of her change in spirit.  Her sweet little smile is so adorable with those tiny teeth.
• Eats three meals of baby food each day, and usually nurses three or four times a day.  
• Goes to bed at 7pm and wakes up at 6am.  
• Still absolutely adores her brother.  Her eyes follow him all over the place, and no one can get her to laugh like he can!
• Loves playing with her toys.
• Babbles "ma, ma, ma", "da, da, da", and "ba, ba, ba."
• Doesn't care to be read to because all she wants is to chew the book.
• Occasionally drinks water from a sippy cup.
• Is beginning to warm up to people other than Mommy and Daddy (it has been a few weeks since I have been paged by the nursery at church)!

Just for fun here is a picture of Christopher around 8 months followed by another one of Lucy.  

Cookie Exchange

My mom's group had a cookie exchange today.  This was my first time to actually participate in one of these because quite frankly, they have never really interested me.  Too much baking involved and then you never really know what you are going to come home with.  To my surprise I really enjoyed it!   Not to mention that all my mommy friends are fabulous in the kitchen, so far I haven't tasted anything that I didn't like!!

I decided to take Thumbprint cookies, mostly because I knew the recipe made lots of cookies (I was required to take 6 dozen to the exchange) and my aunt makes these every year at Christmas so they really bring the season for me.  We were supposed to be creative with the"presentation" of our cookie so I packaged mine in little bags that were decorated with the thumbprints of my sweet children.  Christopher had fun one afternoon stamping his thumb all over bags for me in the shape of Christmas trees, wreaths, and some holly berries.  They did turn out pretty cute and I actually won a prize for "Neatest Presentation"!  

The other winners were Penny's Buttercream Cookies made by Kori Ledbetter, for Best Lookin' Cookie...

and Snowballs (so yummy), made by Jessica Starr for Most Unique Cookie.

Making My List

The Christmas season is officially here now and it is past time to start on the shopping!!  The grandparents have been asking for ideas for the kids and then my friend Meredith suggested we post our good finds on our blogs to share with one another, so I am attempting to kill two birds with one stone, so to speak.  

Ideas for Christopher:

Shop at Learning Express.  They have a great selection of good educational toys and very few electrical things so that is always a plus (I'm not a huge fan of electronic toys).  A few specific suggestions from here are: I Spy Preschool Game, Dinosaur Stamp Set by Melissa and Doug, and See and Spell Game.

Other great places to shop for him are Back to Basics Toys  and Land of Nod.  Also, check Meredith's blog and read about the Black and Decker tool toys for kids.  I think those are super cute too!  Christopher has really enjoyed the music class we have taken this fall so any type of music related item you find would be a hit also (Except please no drum set!  I can promise you that it would be returned! LOL!).  There are some cute music toys in the above mentioned Back to Basics as well as Pottery Barn Kids.

For Lucy:

This one is tough.  Poor second baby, doesn't get anything new for herself because we already have every toy known to man!  I know it won't always be this way because by next year we will be able to get her girlie things like dolls and kitchens and stuff but this year, honestly the girl should get clothes.  Let's face it, I have already mentioned to Cory several times that I am going to have to get a second job in order to outfit this little girl.  Let's face it, the girl clothes are WAY cute and a little on the pricey side at times.  I know that is boring but seriously it is what she needs.  Unlike the toy closet, I can't exactly go pull out Christopher's adorable dump truck sweater from '05 for her this winter.  Here are some suggested shopping places:

Baby Gap

Gymboree

Janie and Jack

Pottery Barn Kids

Best Dressed Child (internet only)

So there you go.  Since we have three sets of grandparents buying for these kiddos, if you (the grandparent) would like to "claim" one of these suggestions, just post a comment.  I think everyone has learned how to do that by now!  Happy shopping!

Oh no, here we go...!

Lucy is crawling.  Well it is a combination of army crawling, inch-worming, and rolling but the bottom line is she gets where she wants to go.  

Time to baby proof again.  Are Hot Wheels considered a choking hazard because we seem to have collected quite a few of those over the last 3.5 years....Seriously, it is going to be so much harder to keep things out of her reach with all of Christopher's toys around here!

(Wow, three posts in one day!  Can you tell Cory took the day off today and I've had a little more time to myself?)

Precious Pictures

My SIL, Jennifer took some pictures of the kids the other day and I think they turned out SO cute!!  She is really creative and always has good ideas.  The best part was that my kids really cooperated and she was able to snap some sweet moments.  Here are a few of my favs...

Moving on and Giving Thanks

I'm a little bit embarrassed to admit how much I have still thought about that stupid football game, I mean I really can't figure out why I care so much. Have you ever seen the movie Fever Pitch? Well there is a scene from that movie where Jimmy Fallon and some of his friends are out mourning the loss of their Red Socks and they see a few members from the team at the restaurant, enjoying their meal, laughing and having a good time. Suddenly Fallon and his friends are like, "What is wrong with this picture?' "Why are we still hung up on that game and clearly they aren't?" So do you think if I was still in school at Tech, and ran into Graham Harrell, would he be as depressed as I've been these last few days? Maybe, maybe not.

The point is, I'm thankful for the season Tech has had this year. It has been more fun than any in decades. We are currently tied for first place in the Big 12 South and that is a great accomplishment. My guns are back up and ready to take on the Bears this weekend. Of course, we'll be watching a certain game taking place in Stillwater.  You never know what might happen. I'm convinced after Saturday night, that home field advantage can be as HUGE as your team wants it to be...

And really, why must my thoughts be so consumed with sports when what I am most thankful for is a wonderful family, a loving husband, and this...

Sick

We are all sick.  

Christopher has bronchitis.

Lucy has croup.

Cory and I are sick that Tech didn't bother to show up in Norman last night.  

The Locke household has not been a fun place today.

Walk it Out!

Many of you know that last year, several of my family members and I walked in the Breast Cancer 3-Day.  I can honestly say that next to giving birth to my two precious children, walking in that event was one of the most incredible experiences of my life.  I would have done it again this year, had I not been nursing Lucy.  I just could never figure out a way to do both.  

Well this weekend instead of walking, I spent my time cheering on the 4,800 walkers that devoted their time to the cause.  We appreciated the cheering so much last year we wanted to help out others this year.  Our whole team, minus one cousin who lives in California, came in town for the event and we all went out to cheer.  Even as a cheerleader, one can become so inspired by the thousands of people out there walking because in one way or another, their lives have been impacted by breast cancer.  I had Lucy out there with me on Friday and Saturday the entire time.  I can't tell you how many people stopped to smile and coo at her and when they did, they would say, "We're walking for you sweetheart."  Every time, it brought tears to my eyes.

Thousands of women are diagnosed with this awful disease every day.  Last year my aunt, and today, Cory's aunt became one of those women at the young age of 43.  The battle is far from over and yet we have to continue to fight it.  If you are reading this and are a female, I would like to encourage you to join the Army of Women.    Visit the site, and check out the video from ABC.  You will be inspired.  

My team, Pattie's Pink Princesses, will be walking in the Dallas/Fort Worth 2009 3-Day.  We would love for our team to grow beyond family and if you are interested in joining us, the more the merrier!   Click here, choose a video to watch, and you'll want to register today, because "what kind of world do you want?"

Peter Pan and Tinkerbell

Better late than never...

Yes, I actually made the costumes this year.  Nothing fancy really, mostly just adding some finishing touches to regular clothing.  Christopher LOVED wearing his costume and had an absolute ball on Halloween this year.  He really got into the whole trick-or-treat thing practically sprinting to every door.  He even had his first television debut and made the Abilene news on Halloween night.  It was pretty cute.

7 Months Old!

Where is this time going? I can't believe my little Lucy is already 7 months old.  She continues to be such a bright spot in our lives.  She already has both of the boys in the house wrapped around her little finger and her personality is coming out more and more each day, proving to be a genuine little girl, full of drama!

Lucy at 7 months:

• LOVES her momma and her big brother.  Daddy is OK too, he just isn't always here.
• Enjoys sitting up all by herself and sometimes tries to get into a sitting position all on her own.
• Loves all kinds of yummy foods, banana and avocado are her favorite!
• Says "ma ma ma" and "da da da" accompanied with lots of smiles and babbles loaded with drool.
• Would rather play on the floor with her toys than be in anything that keeps her restrained.  No swings or bouncy seats for this little girl!
• Is working on pushing up into a crawling position but has no trouble rolling from point A to B to get what she needs.
• LOVES being sung to.
• Gives the biggest smiles to Christopher and laughs at almost anything he does.  I now have the pleasure of listening to my children laugh together almost anytime we are in the car, such a sweet sound, I hope it only continues this way, rather than turning to screams and arguments.  A mom can dream right?

Fight Raiders Fight!

So I know I still need to post Halloween pictures of my kids, but this had to come first.



Cory and I were there. Greatest sports moment in our lives. Hands down.

From a Tired Momma...

Dear Lucy,

Mommy's boobies are just that, Mommy's boobies.  I am more than happy to share them with you for the purpose of your nourishment.  However, they are not here to be your pacifier and your method of falling asleep at 1 a.m.  Please feel free to use your thumb for this purpose.  It is always right there and you can have unlimited access to it, especially at night.  Night time is when we like to sleep, especially Mommy and her boobies.  You seemed to grasp this concept at nine weeks of age, not sure why it is so difficult for you to understand now.

Night, night my precious baby girl.  

Love,

Mommy

Male Bonding at its BEST!

The men in my life headed out for their first overnight camping trip on Friday!  Three dads and three sons; Cory and Christopher, Jeff and Drew, and Derek and Veto.  Christopher is the only one of the kiddos who is already three so it was a young bunch.  Either we have some really brave dads or just some really anxious guys ready for some good guy bonding with their kids!  I had my doubts as to wether or not they would last the whole night, but they did and I think everyone involved had a ball.  

ROAR!

This was the word that was heard repeatedly around my house this afternoon.  After spending the morning at the Dallas Arboretum and ending the outing with getting his face painted like a tiger, Christopher was in full tiger mode "ROOOAAARRRRing" every chance he could get.

We met my brother and Jennifer there and all of us really had a great time.  If you are looking for a fun outing for a fall day, this one is perfect.  They have all sorts of pumpkins combined with beautiful flowers making great scenery and backgrounds for photo ops, plus a pumpkin house, hay maze, petting zoo, kiddie crafts, and of course the above mentioned face painting.  A good time was had by all!  

My little pumpkins

Uncle Jer and Aunt Jenn ROAR with the tiger!

Welcome to the World Kenslea Caroline

Our good friends the Braatens welcomed a beautiful baby girl into the world this morning at 10:55 a.m.!  Kenslea weighed a healthy nine pounds, eight and a half ounces and was brought into the world completely naturally just as her parents had planned.

Big brother Cade spent the day with us today while his mommy and daddy were having their little girl and he was an absolute sweetheart.  He got lots of practice for his new role as big brother by helping me out with Lucy all day.  He could not have been any sweeter.

I got to sneak a peek at precious baby Kenslea this evening when I took Cade home, she is just gorgeous and her momma says she looks like her big brother!  What a wonderful blessing for this neat family.  We are so thrilled for you guys and can't wait to get spend more time with little Kenslea!

P.S.  Wish I had a picture to post, but I don't.  Hopefully there will be one up soon!

Confessions of a Blogaholic

So I'm sure most of you have noticed by now that I can't seem to make up my mind about my blog background.  Those websites with the free backgrounds are going to drive me crazy.  Here I sit in the wee hours of the night looking at all these choices and never making a decision that I remain happy with.  

Part of my problem is that I seem to have similar taste as some of my blogging friends.  I will finally find a background that I like but then realize that someone else is already using it.  What makes this process even longer for me is that when I read my blogs (or your blogs, however you want to look at it) I read them through Google Reader.  My friend Deb introduced me to this concept a couple of months ago and it has made my blog-stalking so much easier!!  The down side of GR is that I don't see everyone's cute backgrounds when I read.  I just read your posts through Google so they simply look like an e-mail or something to that effect.

So in this process of selecting a background, GR has me at a disadvantage because I have to click through everyone's blog and wait for them to load, to see if someone else is already using the one that I have found to certainly be the "perfect" choice for my blog.  In most cases, I have duplicated one of my friends' choices and therefore must return to the searching process through above mentioned website.  Thus creating a terribly long process that just keeps me from going to bed like I should be.

But here I sit, at midnight, somewhat satisfied with my current choice.  I'd like to tell you that I won't change it but if you've been following me for any length of time we all know that just simply isn't the case.  When I was younger (like in high school), I was always making my mother late for work due to my wardrobe indecision.  It has really taken me until my thirties (or two kids and just being too tired) to finally get to a point where I really don't care all that much about my choice of clothing for the day anymore.  Maybe at some point, I'll reach that same place for my blog's attire.  Here's hopin'!

The Pumpkin Patch

Last Friday, the kids and I joined my moms group at the Big Orange Pumpkin Farm in Celina.  We had a great time!  We've taken Christopher to the pumpkin patch every year of his life but this was the first time that he really seemed to enjoy himself.  He was talking about it all day on Friday and is still bringing it to me randomly throughout the day.  

I tried to get some cute pictures of the kids but Christopher's excitement really limited that experience.  After sitting with Lucy for a few seconds and filling her hair with dirt, he announced to me that he was "done" (with the pictures).  So, most of my pictures are just of my precious baby girl, but I'm OK with that. :)

If you are looking for a great family outing, I highly recommend this place.  For seven dollars you get one pumpkin, food to feed the animals, and unlimited hayrides.  There are picnic tables and open grassy areas to enjoy a nice picnic.  A perfect outing for a fall day!

6 Months Old!

Tiny toes

Ribbon and bows

Bright sparkling eyes

And satin sash ties

Frills and finery fitted with finesse

Perfectly suited for our precious princess

-Connie Berry

Lucy Loves her Cereal...(sort of)

Well, we've been giving Lucy cereal and applesauce for about a week now.  Tonight, she LOVED it, finally.  It has been pretty hit and miss with her on the food front, where sometimes she seems to like it and other times she has acted like we are torturing her by giving her something to eat (other than momma's milk).  Here are a couple of pictures that we took the other day after one of her first meals.

Brother and sister after breakfast.

Happy baby girl and her lurker friend!

Grocery Shopping Glory

Many of you may know that one of my biggest hurdles has a parent has been grocery shopping.  By this I mean that I am extremely overwhelmed by trying to do my grocery shopping with my kids.  These feelings of grocery anxiety have come at different times in my parenting adventure.  After Christopher was born I think I only look him with me to the grocery store once in the first six months of his life.  The same has pretty much repeated itself with the arrival of Lucy.  Not to mention, with two kids it is that much more overwhelming to think about trying to handle both of them and concentrate on getting all of my groceries.  My friend Jonna has three kids and seems to have this task down, but for me it is one of those things that I just haven't gotten a handle on. 

Until now.

Thanks to our new grocery store, Market Street, I successfully went to the grocery store today and managed to shop for my week's worth of groceries with both of my kids.  I give Market street the credit because they have these adorable little shopping carts for the kids to push (I'm sure other stores have them too, I just haven't used them anywhere else).  Christopher was the best Little helper today, pushing his cart right alongside mine and putting his own groceries in it.  He was perfectly sweet then entire time and all three of us had the best time.  I wore Lucy in my Ergo pack and she did just great too.  

Here is a picture of my little man with his groceries.  He is blurry because we were dancing in the aisles to the fun music they had playing in Market Street, funny how your kids can get you to feel like you are the only people in the room.

Balloon Festival

We ventured out to the Plano Balloon Fest this past weekend.  We had a good time despite the traffic, crowds, and long lines.  A potty trained child sheds new light on these situations, ie. sitting in traffic having him kicking the back of my seat as he is trying to hold it with no where for us to go, was just an added thrill to our night!  We ran into our friends the Newmans while we were there and had a good time battling the long food lines with them and baby Nora, who is such a cutie pie! 

Here are some pictures: 

I love the look of pure wonder on my little boy's face in this next one.