Big Snow

Our first big snow and it started the day after Christmas. I was dreaming of a white Christmas, not day after Christmas. JK. This was Cayson' first time to actually get out into the snow. I tried to get him out last month but he would not have anything to do with it. We got over a foot of snow. When Casyon first put his snow suit on he looked like Randy from A Christmas Story. He couldn't put his arms down, he couldn't get up when he fell, and he couldn't walk in his snow shoes. He will get use to it. Caelyn of course couldn't get enough of it.

Polar Bear

At Wesley and Jana's apartment, Wesley had a polar bear. Cayson was not sure at first, but they quickly became friends. Cayson likes throwing balls to the dogs and he even tried to play with the cat.

Ways to get to Texas

We are desperately trying to find ways to get back to Texas. Is it against the law to check your kids? JK

Baby Alive

One day I asked Caelyn what she wanted for Christmas. She told me she wanted a little sister. Not happening. I explained to her that she could not have a sister right now and she told me she was going to ask Daddy and she was going to tell Santa that I am mean. So we got her the next best thing. Her own baby that eats, poops, and pees. She loves it.

Puppies

We were fortunate enough to be able to spend part of Christmas Day with Wesley and Jana. Caelyn loved playing with the puppies. She really misses Sonny and wants him to come home. She keeps asking us if we can have one of the puppies.

Christmas Morning

Well this was our first Christmas away from home. Although we were really sad not to be in Texas, we were grateful of our time together. I think everyone enjoyed their gifts. This was Caelyn's first time to pick out gifts for us. She picked them out at school. She got Casyon and stuff penguin, Mommy a napkin holder and a grocery store list tablet, and Daddy a cell phone case and an ice scrapper with a mitten. They were awesome. Cayson opened a few gifts on his own, but soon wanted to do his own thing. We had a good time.

Cookies and Milk

Oh course we had to leave cookies and milk for Santa. Caelyn even wanted to leave him some candy.

Reindeer Food

At school Caelyn made reindeer food for Santa's reindeer to snack on while he is at our house delivering gifts.

Caelyn's Christmas Concert

Caelyn had her first school Christmas Concert. It was hilarious. I think some of the kids were doing their own thing. Chad was able to shoot video on his phone, the video camera, and watch Cayson all at the same time. I was in the front taking pictures.

Toy Story on Ice

Caelyn and I went to see Toy Story on Ice with the PTO. We had a really good time. I have actually never seen anything like that before. So I was really excited to see something like this for the first time with Caelyn.

Decorating fun

Caelyn and Luchia had fun decorating gingerbread houses and gingerbread people. I think they had more fun eating the sweets than actually decorating.

Holiday Fun

We have been to various holiday events where, Caelyn and Cayson got make gingerbread cookies and the meet Mrs. Claus, Frosty, The Gingerbread Man, and of course Santa.

Barbie Show

Mommy, Caelyn and Granny Carlie got a chance to go see the Barbie Show. There were over 300 beautiful and rare Barbies. We also got to learn some history about the Barbie.

Advent Wreath

Caelyn and I made Advent Wreaths at church. It was a lot of fun.

Capitol Holiday Lights

We miss the Trail of Lights in Austin, but this is the closest thing they have here to the that. They usually only let you drive through it because of snow and ice, but opening day they will let you walk through.

Ice Skating

We took Caelyn lice skating for the first time. She had been asking and really wanted to give it a try. I think she initially thought it was going to be easy, but it was a fun challenge. she did really good and seemed to have a lot of fun.

Fall fun

There have been a TON of leaves. Caelyn and Cayson like playing in them. It was hard to get a picture of Cayson because he just wanted to roll around in the leaves.

Caelyn's 4th birthday.

Caelyn had an awesome birthday. She had a pizza party at school with her friends. The first snow of the season was actually on Caelyn's birthday. We even went to Toys R Us for Geoffrey to wish Caelyn a happy birthday.

The Tea Party

We asked Caelyn what she wanted to do for her birthday. She said she wanted to have a tea party with her cousin Luchia and dress up like princesses and have cupcakes and soup. We actually had pizza instead of soup, but she had a really good time at her tea party.

Halloween

Various Halloween pictures from the carnival at the church to the parade to trick-or-treating and pumpkin carving.

Overalls

Cayson looks so cute in his overalls...Cayson says this is tribute to his Uncle Don...the only Knight in Grandpa's Kingdom :)

Apple Picking

Of course we had fun apple picking this year.

Cayson is a typical boy. He climbs everything and he likes to bang everything. Daddy, Caelyn, and Cayson were playing with musical instruments and of course Cayson beat his Daddy over the head with one of the instruments. Caelyn rushed to the rescue and played doctor to patch Daddy back up.

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Caelyn's First Day of Pre K

Caelyn is such a big girl. She started Pre-K last week at Sacred Heart School. It is very different from her last school, but Caelyn was very excited about learning and making new friends. She has to wear a uniform which has been the biggest adjustment because Caelyn loves wearing dresses because we know she would wear a dress everyday if she could, but we are trying to get her into hair accessories and jewelry. She got a little sad when it was time for Mommy and Daddy to leave, but she soon forgot about us when she got to the classroom and saw all the cool stuff to do and started playing with her new friends.

Farm Fest 2010

We had a good time at Farm Fest this year. Caelyn and Cayson got to see many different animals. Both Caelyn and Cayson fed the goats and cows. There was apple picking, pumpkin decorating, a hay maze, a balloon man, and even Little Bo Peep. Caelyn helped her find her sheep. At the Honey House we got to taste different kinds of honey and see how honey is made. There was even a chance to play and swing on the tire horses.

Saratoga Springs Family Fun Fest

We have never been to Saratoga Springs during racing season. There was a lot of people! It was quite interesting. People bring their blankets, chairs and picnic baskets and hang out on the lawn. From here, they watch the horse races on the big TVs, or venture out the track to watch. This weekend was Family Fun Weekend so there was a lot of stuff for Caelyn and Cayson to do. We didn't actually see a race, but we had fun walking around and doing the kid activities. Caelyn and Cayson rode ponies and got their faces painted. Caelyn made an art project and got a tattoo. Of course Cayson had to sample his tattoo which gave himself a little mustache! LOL! Good thing the paint is nontoxic.

Cayson's First Hair Cut

We finally got Cayson his first hair cut. He cried most of the time. I was really sad to see the curls go, but he looks like such a big boy now. Caelyn had a very special job of collecting Cayson's hair. Had to find something to keep her busy.

Berry picking and feeding the cows

Berry picking is pretty big up here right now. We had a chance to pick blackberries, raspberries, and some apples. Caelyn liked feeding the cows and goats most of all. She was not scared and stuck her hand right out there to let the cows eat the grass. She laughed and said their tongues were scratchy.

Valley Cats Baseball game

Chad was able to get tickets to one of the Valley Cats baseball games. It was Cayson's first semiprofessional sporting event. We had a good time. Caelyn was happy to take a picture with her friend South Paw.

New York, New York

Here are a few random pictures since we have been back. We are training Cayson to get ready for UT baseball, some time in the inflatable pool, playing outside and with Luchia, Cayson's new lunch box, and going to the park (of course Cayson wanted to eat rocks).

More Austin Pictures

Westlake Beach

Canyon Lake

Making cupcakes with Granny Dee

Caelyn and Granny Dee make mermaid cupcakes. Caelyn had a really good time. I think she ate more icing that was on the cupcakes.

Riding the John Deer Tractor

Caelyn and Cayson eat took a turn riding the tractor with Grandpa. And yes Caelyn is wearing a dress. She had to be prissy and ride the tractor. Where does that come from wink :) wink:)

More pictures hanging out in Georgetown

Caelyn's cooking class

While in Austin, Caelyn got to take a cooking class at Batter Up Kids. It was the coolest little place. Caelyn made candy covered dragonflies (pretzels)and ladybugs (strawberries, grapes, and chocolate chips). She even got to take a picture with the owner, Barbara, who wrote the kids cookbook we bought. She had a blast and I think every time we go back to Texas we will take a class there. I would highly recommend it for anyone who lives in Austin.

Cayson's Birthday

A little get together for Cayson's birthday. Thanks you to everyone for coming to celebrate Cayson's birthday.

Hanging in Austin

Caelyn's Commercial

Caelyn attends Soccer Tots at Afrim Sports. She has been in Soccer Tots all of last year and is really learning the skills to play soccer. They filmed a commercial that was aired during the World Cup games earlier in the summer. You can see her twice but you have to be looking for her. She is shown very briefly both times. She is wearing a purple shirt with a long sleeved white shirt underneath. You may have to watch it a couple of times to see her. The first time she is next in line to kick the ball in the goal (about 8 secs) and the second time she is on the left hand side of the screen running (about 12 secs).

In the pool

We went swimming in the pool with Granny Dee. Caelyn had a lot of fun and of course didn't want to leave. She wore her goggles the whole time. They were crooked and fogged up the entire time, but she didn't care. Cayson chilled the whole time and just floated around. The water was not too deep so he could walk around and when he got tired he just kicked back and floated around.

Sprinkler time

Hanging in Georgetown

Surgery for Handy Randy

Caelyn has Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls, but Raggedy Andy, as she calls him, Handy Randy, is her favorite. She likes him so much both of his arms have fallen off. He had to have emergency surgery while in Georgetown to fix his broken arm. Caelyn was devastated, by the ordeal, but was happy again once Handy Randy was better again.

Summer Dance Recital

Aunt Rosie signed Caelyn up for a dance camp where she learned a tap and a ballet dance. Caelyn did a really good job her first time dancing without her favorite dance partner, Daddy.

Fourth of July Parade

Caelyn and Cayson participated in the 4th of July parade in Georgetown. Caelyn was fascinated by her new friend McKayla's truck and she rode it in with her. McKayla even let Caelyn drive the truck to the start of the parade. Boy, are Daddy and I in for it in 12 years!! She had a good time, except for getting some sunscreen in her eye. She waved to the crowd and blew kisses. Cayson just sat in the wagon and watched everyone around him.

Fourth of July!!!

We spent the Fourth of July with Granny Carlie and Grandpa. Caelyn helped raise the flag. We all decorated the wagon to participate in the parade and did poppers and sparklers.

Zoo in Tyler

We got to take the kids to the zoo while visiting in Tyler. We went with Grandpa, Carla and Demetria. We were not able to take many picture because it started to rain. Caelyn did like seeing Bevo. Only in Texas will you find a longhorn at the zoo. Caelyn could identify most of the animals and even knew what alot of them eat.

Father Daughter Hike for Father's Day

Father's Day was special for Daddy and Caelyn. They went on a father-daughter hike together. They had a lot of fun. Caelyn had fun looking at plants and insects under the magnifying glass. Caelyn even drew a picture of her and Daddy in the dirt!!

Newspaper article

Father's Day Gift

Mommy took Caelyn to Michael's to make Daddy a Father's Day present, a duct tape wallet for all of his "big monies".

Happy Birthday Cayson!!!

Cayson has celebrated his first birthday!!! We are so excited!! This year has gone by so fast and he has gotten so big. He went to the doctor and he is 18.7 pounds and is 29.5 inches long. He has four teeth and two more coming in. He is so close to walking. He can take a few steps on his own. We think we will be walking before the end of the month. His eyes are still blue-green. He is a good eater and sleeper. His sister loves him to pieces. He is talking up a storm. He is just such a special little boy!!! He had a good time at his mini party, just us. He tried to cram the entire cupcake in his mouth. Mom had to scoop some out, but he loved it!!

What's wrong with this picture?

Not the sun's reflection!! Caelyn put her nighttime pull-up on over her underwear. Luckily she was dry. I guess she thought she needed double protection.

Open House at Scared Heart School

Caelyn will be starting Sacred Heart School in the fall. Daddy took her to open house to check out her new school. She had a really good time and has not stopped talking about her new school since. She got to sit in a fire truck, ride on a city bus, ride a pony, go in the bouncy house, make a tool box, explore her new classroom, and of course, get her face painted. I think she will go to school everyday if she gets to eat cotton candy!! She even saw one of her friends from dance class who will also be starting in the fall.

Dance recital

Caelyn had her first dance recital. It was really nice. She did a really good job and so did Daddy. Wesley and Jana got to come see Caelyn and Chad perform. It was a packed house and there were many performances. Video and professional pictures will follow when we get them in the mail.

Arts Festival and Operation Safe Child

We took Caelyn and Cayson to the Schenectady Arts Festival where they got fingerprinted for Operation Safe Child. They had a bit of a hard time getting a print from Cayson with his small fingers. Caelyn enjoyed the art projects and getting to meet Zimmer the crime fighting dog.

Caelyn's gymnastics meet

Caelyn has been in gymnastics all year and was looking forward to the gymnastics meeting and becoming the next Dominique Dawes:). She did pretty good. It is really funny to watch her because she is so distracted by everything and everyone around her and she wants to do everything so fast. Cayson likes watching his sister compete. Coach Anne helped Caelyn on the floor and Coach Mom help Caelyn stay focused.

Hanging out

Mother's Day

A wonderful day with my wonderful children.

Cuddle Bug Father/Daughter Dance

Caelyn and Daddy did a really good job on the "Parent & Me" dance. It turned out that Caelyn and Chad were the only performers in Caelyn's age group to participate during that time slot. This was a voluntary performance to practice for the big show in June. I was a little worried Caelyn would get really nervous and not want to do the dance. She was shy a couple of times, but kept watching Ms. Shannon for guidance. Of course, Daddy had to bribe her with something - Pringle's potato chips if she completed her dance! LOL!

To keep movie file size reasonable, we had to decrease quality, sorry...

Waterford Canal Fest 2010

Stuck between the couches

Cayson plays pretty hard, and he is always trying to grab things. He was after something between the couches...he was originally standing up to get his big head between the couches...then dropped down to get what he was after...and ultimately could not pull that big noggin back out from between the couches. Poor guy!! - (but mean Daddy left him there long enough to get a few quick shots).

Mother's Day Brunch

I got to have breakfast with Caelyn at her school. She was so happy I could go since I don't get to drop her off at school in the morning. It was good mother-daughter time.

The carnival

We took Caelyn and Cayson to the local carnival. We were a little worried Caelyn would not be tall enough to ride any of the rides, but she was able to ride a few and wasn't scared at all. She played some of the games and won prizes. She liked eating the french fries and was sad to leave, of course. I think Cayson wanted to ride the merry go round.

First trip to the dentist

Caelyn had her first visit to the dentist. She was a little nervous at first because the dentist office is in the same office as her regular doctor. She was afraid she was going to get a shot. Caelyn did a really good job. She was not scared at all. She did a good job demonstrating to the dentist with the stuffed animal how she brushes her teeth. She was very excited about her new Dora toothbrush and toothpaste.

Wagon ride together

Caelyn and Cayson's first wagon ride together. Caelyn was very protective of Cayson and wanted to make sure he knew the safety rules when riding in the wagon.

Mardi Gras

We had the opportunity to go the the Mardi Gras Festival in Saratoga. It was fun. The food was great. Caelyn and Cayson enjoyed the parade, face painting, the bead necklaces and art projects.

First draft pick

Move over Sam Bradford.....
Cayson and Daddy watched the draft together.

Random Pictures

Caelyn's new BFF

Easter 2010

Easter was a really good this year. We were sad to not be in Texas, but we had a good day. The egg hunt went well, even Cayson crawled through the grass to get to a couple of eggs, although he did not like the feel of the grass. Caelyn was also generous to share her eggs with her little brother. All of the "Easter Bunnies" mailed great gifts of Caelyn and Cayson. The Hornsby's came by for a visit Saturday and Wesley came over for dinner Sunday.

Dying the eggs

Caelyn was excited about dying the eggs so that she could give them to the Easter Bunny. Caelyn made each of us our own special egg. Of course there was one casualty, but we can still eat it. Caelyn was more interested in the dye tablets dissolving and the Princess and the Frog stickers to put on the eggs.

Longhorn boy

Cayson absolutely loves being outside. Not so much a fan of the grass, but he just sits in his stroller watching the world around him. He looked adorable in his longhorn outfit and hat.

Caelyn's garden

Caelyn is very helpful in the yard. Since the house is still new to us, we are not sure what existing flowers we have. Caelyn is taking good care of them and is excited about them blooming. We have a couple of places in the yard where there are flowers coming up. Caelyn has her own set of garden tools, a watering can, and a garden tool belt for her tools. Caelyn fills her watering can over and over, but only the same couple of flowers get watered. She is very proud of her garden. We planted a couple of indoor plants and Caelyn wants to take the extra seeds and plant them in the yard.

Getting ready for Easter

Caelyn and Cayson seemed pretty excited about Easter, especially Caelyn. They played dress up. Caelyn was the bunny and Cayson was the lamb. Cayson did not like keeping the lamb ears on. Caelyn also had a good time making Easter cookies. Of course, all she really wanted to do was lick the icing off the knife. She was good putting the decorations and the sprinkles.

Flying a kite

The weather here has been really nice lately. We had the opportunity to take the kids to the park and fly a kite.

Well we are surviving. We are trying to get back in our routine. It is starting to warm up a bit. The highs have been in the upper 40s and 50s. The snow is starting to melt. Spring is near. YAY!! Caelyn and Chad are working on their dance routine for the spring show. It is really cute. If all goes well, Caelyn will be starting Catholic School in the Fall. She is still learning a lot at her preschool. She is starting to write letters. She read "Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See" the other day to herself. It was from memory, but she read it. Cayson is now 9 months. he is getting to be so big!! Cayson is crawling and pulling himself up on everything. We started eating meats. Not a big fan. No teeth yet, but I think he will have something in the next week or two. I can feel some bumps on his lower gums. He is talking away. We are starting sign language with him. Caelyn is excited about showing him all the signs she learned. Caelyn tries to be really helpful with Cayson too. She likes to try to feed him and give him his snack.

Fun in the snow

I wanted to take Caelyn out to play in the snow before it all melts. The temperatures have been above freezing and we won't freeze to death after a few minutes outside. It had been raining so the snow was pretty packed down. It was really hard for Caelyn and I to make a snowman, nothing like what you see on TV. I was sweating out there. Our snow man is more like a snow Jabba the Hut.

Cayson has figured out how to crawl - the right way. It is quite humorous. No more army crawl. He is really good at it now and really fast. This is Cayson after he pulled up on the stair rails, with close supervision of course. Video of him crawling is soon to follow.

Cayson's Baptism

Cissy's Wedding

We were all excited to be apart of Cissy and Garland's special Day!! We had so much fun.

Tea Party

Right now Caelyn is very into tea parties. She was able to have a special tea party with Aunt JoAnn.

Cayson Being Cayson

Cayson is getting really close to cutting teeth. Nothing yet though. He loves putting EVERYTHING in his mouth. Spoons are one of his favorite. He also likes being naked.

Valentine's Day

On the plane

Both Caelyn and Cayson did great on the plane to Texas for Aunt Cissy's wedding and Winter Break. Cayson liked walking up and down the aisle looking at all the people. I think Caelyn did well because she just wanted to get to Texas and see her flower girl dress.

Chinese New Year

We took Caelyn and Cayson to the Chinese New Year event at the local library last month. Caelyn insisted on trying the lo mien with chopsticks. She was actually pretty good.

Why we had to drop the bed

Old Mac Donald/ B-I-N-G-O Remix

This is what Caelyn was signing in the car the other day.

Old Mac Donald had a farm. E-I-E-I-O.
And on the farm he had a dog,
and Bingo was his name -O
B-I-N-G-O. B-I-N-G-O. B-I-N-G-O. and BINGO was his name-O.

Chuck E Cheese

My school had a fundraiser at Chuck E Cheese. Caelyn and Cayson both had a good time.

Everything is going well. We are just recovering from our last trip to Texas, just to start packing to return. It took several weeks to unpack, thus no blog updates. Cayson is gaining weight. He is 14 pounds 4 ounces. Still a little guy, but at least he is on the chart again. As of January 14th Cayson went mobile. He has only gotten down the army crawl, but he is moving around. It is funny to watch him. January 29th he figured out how to sit himself up from crawling and he is trying to get the "normal" crawl down.

Caelyn is still doing well in preschool. We are thinking about starting her in a universal pre-k program in public school next year. She would go to school with me.

We are excited about our return trip back to Texas in a couple of weeks and can't wait to see everyone.

Playing around

Cuellar Wedding

Sitting up all alone

Cayson started sitting up on his own December 31st at 29 weeks. Funny enough, right after we had an in home photographer come take his picture and he was not able to sit on his own. He is getting so big!!!

Christmas Part IV

Christmas Part III

First movie

We took Caelyn to see her first movie, at least her first movie with us. She went to the movies every Tuesday this summer with her school friends. Caelyn really enjoyed the Princess and the Frog and is still talking about it and asking us to read the book to her. Cayson stayed at home with Grandpa and they both caught up on their zzz's.

Christmas III- Tyler

Christmas morning visit from Santa-Part II

Christmas morning Caelyn and Cayson had a special visitor stop at the house in Georgetown. Santa came to pass out gifts and gets lots of hugs and kisses. However, Caelyn was not fooled. She knew Santa was actually Grandpa. Chad's neighbor made Caelyn this really awesome nanny bench from way back in the day. It was absolutely amazing!!

Christmas Part I- Clifton Park

Caelyn was a little concerned a couple of days before Christmas because we don't have a chimney, but we were able to convince her that Santa had a special key to come through the front door. Caelyn's only request from Santa was a Cinderella dress. She was really excited to see what was under the tree. Of course, Cayson was only interested in tasting the paper and chewing on the card board box. At times, Caelyn was more interested in Cayson's gifts than her own.

Christmas

We celebrated Christmas so many times this year, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day (twice), and in Austin (twice). I hope Caelyn does not think that Christmas lasts for almost a week next year.

Cookies and Milk

Caelyn helped leave cookies and milk for Santa. She was not happy that we put out one of our good gingerbread cookies. She repeatedly told us that Santa could only have animal crackers.

First Hair Cut

We finally took Caelyn to get her first hair cut. Caelyn is very tender headed and cried a couple of times. A lollipop dried up those tears. She was very happy with the results and to this day likes to wear her hair straight. However, a little bit of moisture or humidity causes it to curl and frizz up immediately.

Hanging with Santa

Caelyn got to visit with Santa at her preschool. She even got a special gift from him. Santa and Mrs. Claus also came through the neighborhood on a fire truck to visit kids. Caelyn was a little shy both times she saw Santa.

Santa Hats