Christmas Day!

Christmas day was spent with family and lots of food and laughter!

Taegan and her cousins Grady and Grant


Sara, Tyler and Jacob


My mom and dad with all of their grand kids and great grand kids!


Tae and her cousins with her Great Grandpa!


Tae with her mommy, mom(her grandma), and her great grandma!

Christmas Eve

We enjoyed a nice quiet Christmas Eve day at my parents getting things ready for that night. That evening we met my sister and her family at church and enjoyed a beautiful candle light service together celebrating the birth of our Savior. When it was over we headed back to my parents to enjoy some yummy food and exchange gifts. I LOVE being with all of them and enjoy every minute I have with them!

Taegan was so excited about opening presents!


My sweet niece Sara and her precious Ayden!


Sweet Stacie and her new bundle Levi!


Tae loves her Aunt Ann!


Tyler took Tae out in the rain to spread food for Santa's reindeer!

Christmas at Uncle Chris's...

This year we had Christmas with Chad's family at his brother's house. We stopped at his house and spent the day on our way to my parents. We were the last ones to arrive and it wasn't fast enough for Tae. She has so much fun playing with her cousin Emma! She started asking if we were there yet about 30 minutes into a 4 hour trip! Thank goodness for DVD players in the car!

Tae and Emma with their new dolls. Thank you Nonna!!


Tae, Emma and Uncle Chris!

Kindergarten Christmas Party!

Well I can't believe it but Taegan has completed the first semester of
Kindergarten. I can't believe how fast it has gone by. The semester ended with a Christmas party full of fun! I am the room mom in Taegan's class and I had so much planning the party! I went to school with Tae that morning and before her class went to PE/Music we made gingerbread houses. I can't believe I didn't get one picture while they were making them. They had so much fun and all of the houses turned out really cute! I forgot what it like to be in the classroom on party day...so much excitement in the room when the day starts! After they returned from PE/Music the festivities began! I had so many great parents help me with all of the food and the kids had more than enough to eat. It was so fun watching the kids play and visit together during the party. After they ate they had a puzzle exchange and the kids enjoyed opening their present that one of their friends had gotten them. It was a great party and fun was had by all!

All of the kids after loading up on sugar!


Taegan's puzzle from her sweet friend Allison!


Tae and her precious teacher Mrs. Winkler!

Taegan's Gingerbread House

Early in December we were home one Saturday and Tae decorated a gingerbread house. I love Saturdays but I really love Saturdays in December. There is always so much going on and so many fun things to do! Tae had so much fun decorating her house. We constructed it together and then after it was set she went to decorating! I think she did a great job and it was a great addition to our Christmas decorations!

Tae's lost her first tooth!!

About 3 weeks ago Taegan came out of school so excited that she finally had a loose tooth. For weeks now we have been wiggling it and watching the new tooth come in...yes there is already a new tooth coming in! Tae has been ready for the tooth fairy but not quite ready to pull the tooth out. So finally on Sunday she decided she was ready...her daddy tried to pull it then Tae gave it a try and then I had my turn but we all failed in our attempts! To be honest I probably didn't try to hard I just couldn't bring myself to do it! So today after I picked her up we went back to my school as we always do and Mrs. Leann pulled it for her! Tae was such a trooper she told Mrs. Leann she was ready and when it came out she ran down the hall to show everybody! She was so excited! So now we just have to wait for the tooth fairy to come tonight!

You can kind of see the blank spot on bottom, but you can see the new one coming in too!

Veterans Day

Today at Tae's school they had a program to honor the veterans. The kids sang a few songs for them and then passed out some things that they had made for them. It was fun to see and hear the kids as they sang. Tae has been so excited about today and talking about the veterans.

A Turkey in Disguise?!?

Last week Tae brought home a "Family Project". We had to disguise a turkey so Tae and I began to talk about how we would disguise her turkey. I came up with quite a few ideas which were all shot down by her, but only because she had one thing on her mind....her turkey was going to be disguised as a queen! So...we pulled out lots of stuff and got to work! I think it turned out pretty cute and Tae LOVED it!

Taegan's Pumpkin

This year Taegan chose Dewdrop for her pumpkin!

Book Character Dress-Up Day!

For Halloween Taegan's school had "Book Character" Day. The kids were suppose to choose a book and dress-up like one of its characters. Well who do you think our little sassy girl chose to be...I bet you can guess...Fancy Nancy! Fancy Nancy is the perfect character for her because she is always putting necklaces, bracelets and rings on in the mornings before school. So we went through her dress-up box and pulled out all kinds of fancy things for her to wear. We had so much fun that morning while she was getting dressed! I think she looked precious....although she is my sweet girl!

Our Fancy Nancy!


Daddy and his "Fancy Taegan"! Daddy surprised her that day for lunch...she loved it!


Just being silly!

Can we say Sassy?!?

Taegan's First Field Trip

Taegan went on her first school field trip, and I got to go with her! We went to the zoo and had so much fun! The weather was perfect with a little coolness in the air. I think Tae's favorite part was riding the bus! She is always telling me I need to let her be a bus rider and my answer is always "No, but you can ride the bus when you go on a field trip" and that day finally came!! Yay for field trips!! I have to say it is a lot more fun going as a mommy instead of being the teacher...I really don't miss those days at all!! Mrs. Winkler, Tae's teacher, is just precious and so wonderful with the kids. Her husband met us at the zoo and he was wonderful with kids as well!

What happened to September???

Ok...I know it has been way too long since I have blogged, but I do have a good excuse. My computer was in the shop the whole month of September...yes I know there are only a few days left in October and I have no excuse for not blogging during the month of October! I guess because I missed so much I have been feeling a bit overwhelmed so I just haven't blogged about anything...very bad I know! So much has gone on during the past two months and I am going to do my best to get caught up...eventually...I have to get my pictures off of my camera first!

I will start by saying that Taegan LOVES school!! She looks forward to going everyday and can't wait to get there in the mornings! It is so fun to see her learning new things and being so excited about it! She read a book to us today while doing her homework and we were so proud of her!

Here are some things that have happened during the last few months that I hope to expand on later.....

*Taegan got to bring Max the "Good Behavior" Bear home!

*Taegan started Awanas at church and is LOVING it!

*Taegan went on her first field trip which means she got to ride the bus!!

*Taegan has her first loose tooth!

So many fun things have happened! Time is just flying by....I can't believe it is just a few days from November...I can't wait to see what fun things November has in store!

It was a BIG day!

Monday was a big day that I have been prepping myself for for quite a while! It was Taegan's first day of Kindergarten! Back in the Spring when I looked at the school calendar I couldn't believe what I saw....I was going to have to take Taegan to her first day of Kindergarten on my birthday! I couldn't believe it...I just kept thinking that is the worst birthday present ever! Well...it was something I couldn't change and it did happen! Even though I had to take my baby to school I had a GREAT day! After taking her to school my sweet friend Leslie came by and got me. We went to her house for a quick stop and then we headed to breakfast at Cracker Barrel where we met another friend and enjoyed a yummy breakfast. After breakfast we both needed a few things at Wal-Mart so we made a quick stop there. Leslie has a precious baby girl Nellie Grace and a precious little boy Grayson who were with us so we were not left alone and childless! I just LOVE Grayson he makes me laugh and we had a great time that morning! We got to pick our sweet babies up early so after Wal-Mart it was very close to dismissal time. Chad and I met at home and then we headed to pick up our sweet girl! After picking her up Chad told me he had made me a pedicure appointment at the spa in town and that he and Taegan were going to bake me a cake while I was gone. So...I headed off and they got to baking! I think they had a great time spending the afternoon together without mommy and I have to say I enjoyed myself while I was gone too! When I got home Taegan couldn't wait to show me the cake they had made....



I was so proud of them! They did a great job and it was decorated with princess sprinkles and safari candles! It tasted really yummy too! Overall it turned out to be a great birthday even if I did have to start out by taking my baby to school!

Taegan's first boat ride!

Some sweet friends of ours have a lakehouse not to far from us so we have been playing with them this summer. On Sunday they were so sweet to do an early birthday dinner for me. Before dinner we went out in the boat for a bit. I wasn't sure how Tae would like it because she is a pretty cautious little thing, but on the other hand she loves a little adventure! She LOVED it! She really liked watching her daddy wake board and then much to my surprise she went out in the water with him. This is BIG for her! We were so proud of her just kicking and swimming out in that water. When we got back to their house she got in the pool for a while but then wanted to get back in the lake! Thank you Mrs. Cathey and Mr. Joe for a fun night!

Taegan LOVES Mrs. Cathey!


She is pretty fond of her Daddy too!


Playing in the lake and loving it!

First Day of Kindergarten!

Taegan had a great day! She loves her teacher, and I think they are a perfect match!

We are on our way...


we are almost there...


we made it! Taegan and her teacher, Mrs. Winkler!


Praying for a spectacular year!

Taegan went fishing!

Casting...

waiting...

she got a bite...

the BIG catch!

She's a shopper!

Taegan has had her eye on a Barbie fishing pole for a few months now. I'm not sure that fishing was that exciting to her, but the thought of having a Barbie fishing pole was very exciting! Chad was working in Tyler the other day and Tae and I had an errand to run in Tyler so when we finished up we were going to meet up with him to go buy a Barbie fishing pole. We finished up before he was done working so we had some time to pass so of course we passed that time where else but at the mall. As we walked through Dillard's Tae was pointing out lots of cute things and telling me what I should try on. I told her I was just looking and didn't want to try anything on which she didn't quite understand. Our conversation went something like this:

Me: I don't want to try anything on.

Tae: but it's cute!

Me: You're not being a very good shopping partner today....I just want to look...I'm not buying anything. Sometimes I just like to look!

Tae: Well....I'm the buying kind of girl!

Really?!? Where does she get this stuff?? Chad soon called and we met him to buy the Barbie fishing pole which made her very happy!

Tae and her new Barbie fishing pole!

Dancing Queen

A few weeks ago we went to a reception honoring my niece and her new groom. They were married in Florida a few weeks before in a beautiful ceremony on the beach! We had a wonderful time at the reception enjoying good food, yummy cake and some dancing. Much to my surprise Taegan was one of the first ones on the dance floor and she never came off! It didn't matter what type of music was on she was dancing! At one point I looked at Chad and said this worries me a little to which he answered...as it should! At 11:15 that night I told Taegan that we needed to go and she was not happy because she informed me she wasn't finished dancing yet. I finally got her to agree to leave but only because we were taking her sweet baby cousin Ayden home with us to spend the night. A fun night was had by all!

Ready for the party!


Doing some dancing with her cousin Grady!

Wow...July already?!?

What happened to June? June was a crazy but great month for us! Taegan and I spent the first week spending time with my family and college roommate and her sweet girl...so much fun! We then headed home so Taegan could take swimming lessons the second week....she still doesn't like water in her face so we didn't get too far in the swimming process. It is very hard to swim if you won't get your face wet! The third week was a week we had been looking forward to for quite a while...a week in Florida with my family! Taegan and I flew out on Monday and Chad joined us on Thursday so he could be there for the reason we were all there...my sweet niece got married on the beach on Friday night! It was a beautiful wedding and Sara was the perfect bride...beautiful as always! After a wonderful week in the Florida sunshine we headed home for a fun filled week of Vacation Bible School! We love VBS every year, but man it is an exhausting week! On Sunday after VBS we headed to Lake Charles to visit my sweet friend Becca and her precious kids. We enjoyed a few days with them and headed home on Tuesday. We have spent the last few days just catching up on rest and trying to get the house back in order..it became a dumping ground during the month with all of the coming and going!

Taegan being silly with her cousins Grant and Grady!


Enjoying some pool time!


Having some playtime with her precious cousin Ayden!


Mr. and Mrs. Jacob Benavides....Beautiful!


Precious flower girl...she loved every minute of it!


Beautiful Bride....Love her!


Many fun memories were made during the month of June and as crazy as it was it makes me smile to think about everything that we did! Looking forward to many more days of memory making!

Taegan graduated....

from Pre-k that is! I can't believe time has gone by so fast and my sweet baby girl has graduated from Pre-k and will be going to Kindergarten next year. Before we know it she will be graduating from high school! Wow...I don't even want to think about that one...I can't even drive by the Kindergarten campus without getting a lump in my throat! The past five years have been such a blessing and I can't wait to see what her future holds!

The graduates entered the gym not sure of all of the mommys and daddys and grandparents watching them. We had been telling them all week that lots of people were going to come see them graduate and they were so excited, but once the night came they weren't so sure what to think!



They sang several songs that they had learned throughout the year. Here they are singing "I'm in the Lord's Army"...they did a great job!



Each graduate was given a character award that reflected them throughout the year. Taegan received the "Most Gentle Spirit" award. I thought this was very fitting for her sweet little personality.



Tae was so proud to go up and receive her diploma and devotional book from Mrs. Debi!



Taegan LOVED her teacher! Mrs. LeeAnn was so great with her and made everyday so much fun! Thank you Mrs. LeeAnn for loving my sweet girl!



Cullen and Taegan after graduation. They are excited that summer has officially arrived and are ready to take on the world!


Taegan is a proud graduate of First Kids Day School!