24 weeks

Today I'm 24 weeks pregnant. Time is flying!! I went to the doctor last Friday and everything seems to be going great. I'm feeling wonderful. I have energy, I have a (big) appetite, and I don't think that I'm gaining as much weight as I did with Samuel.

Luke has been kicking a ton lately. It's fun to watch my tummy wiggle as he does his aerobics. Samuel still really has no clue what's going in. I think once we get the baby stuff out he will realize that something is different.

Here is a self portrait of me at 24 weeks. I feel huge!

Some Samuel news:
He is saying new words all the time. He has the cutest, cheesy smile that just melts my heart. Samuel has also started to throw some major tantrums. He probably had at least one a day this week. We are trying to work through them with him but it sure is hard to do after a long day at work!! We know that this is part if being a toddler, though and that it won't last forever.

Our precious little man at the zoo

Big News

So in September I was feeling a little different, and I told Matthew I thought I should take a pregnancy test. Matthew kept making me put it off because he didn't want to spend the money on a test and he knows I can be a bit dramatic, but I eventually convinced him we should do it. We were shocked to see a plus sign appear!! We were both very excited. We told our families by putting a big brother shirt on Samuel and just having them figure it out. It took Matthew's family no time at all, and it took mine a little longer.:) We found out at 19 weeks that we are having another boy!! I really wanted another boy for several reasons: I love Samuel so much and have tons of fun with him and I think a boy will just add to that, I know how to raise a boy so I am more confident, they can share a room, making the extra room a playroom, and we already have all the clothes and I get to go through them and remember when Samuel wore them!! As you can tell, I am very excited to be welcoming Luke Joseph into our family.

Here is our newest little guy at 20 weeks. 

18 Months

Well I have been the worst blogger ever!!! Guess I've been a little busy.:) I wanted to give some highlights of Samuel's 18th month.
- 25 lbs, 12 oz (50th percentile)
- 33 inches long (25th percentile)
- wearing 18 to 24 month clothes
- Samuel is talking so much! He will pretty much try to say anything we ask him to, but some of his favorite words are: mama, dada, Santa, nana, outpa, rob, Hannah, oh no, what's that, truck, please, thank you, bear, and all animal noises.
- Some of Samuel's favorite toys are puzzles, books, cars and trucks, and plastic animals.
- Some things he likes to do: play with toys, go on walks, go to class at church, play hide and seek (really he just runs and hides) and take baths.
- Favorite foods: bananas, raisins, graham crackers, any fruits, potatoes, yogurt, bread.
- takes one 2.5 to 3 hour nap per day.

Samuel has a sweet, loving, and stubborn personality. He loves giving kisses and snuggling (though the snuggles don't last long). When he wants something, it's hard for him to be distracted from it. He is very active but can focus on a book or puzzle for a good amount of time. We love our little man and can't imagine life without him!!

July and August

Well, summer is coming to an end and I can honestly say this has been the best summer of my life. I have had so much fun with Samuel, family, and friends. I really don't feel like summer flew by like it usually does and I am thankful for that. Here are some highlights from our second half of summer:

We took lots of walks to go see the ducks.

We did several activities at home to avoid the heat. We played with cornmeal, jello, and cool whip. Messy but fun!

We swam, swam, and swam some more!!

We tried lots of new foods from hamburgers to watermelon to cherries...there is not much that the little man won't eat!!

We played and played and played!!!

We spent time with Uncle Rob, Nana, Granddaddy, and Granny. Such fun!

We learned to play the piano and the harmonica!!

We are in the process of watching "Shark Week" with our little shark.

Here are some things that Samuel is up to these days:

Talking- He is still just saying a few words: mama, dada, cheese, dog, I think he can say hi and I think he tried to say banana this morning. He makes animal noises for a lion (roar), monkey(oooh ooooh aaaah aaah), duck (cack cack), and pig (tries to snort).

Walking- Samuel finally took his first steps on Saturday, August 4th. We were at the ACU Welcome Center in Abilene and he took 3 steps! Since then, he has taken several steps a day. We're still waiting for him to do some real walking.

I am so sad for summer to end but I have to keep thinking of the fun we had. AND, the fun doesn't stop just because I'm working!!



4th of July and Splash Park

We had a fun 4th of July with the Irby/Driscoll clan. Some of Matthew's family has a lakehouse out past Gainesville so we went there for the day. We played, jet-skiid, and ate!

 Here is Sammy taking a nap with Daddy before we left.

 Sammy loved the dogs! He can say "dog" now and would say it anytime he played with them.

 Had to get a nap in during all the excitement!

 Out on the dock

 Believe it or not, this is the best pictures I got of the two of them playing!!

 Outpaw with his grandbabies



We've just discovered the splash park down the street from us. Samuel loves it!!

We sure are enjoying our Summer!!

Sammy's Birthday Party

Samuel had such a great birthday party! His/our friend and family came and we had so much fun! We swam and played in the sprinklers, ate mini burgers and hotdogs, ate cake and cupcakes, and opened presents.

Here are some of the decorations: Baseball cupcakes and baseball glove cake

This is a banner that went around the bar in our kitchen. It had pictures for every month from when Samuel was a newborn until now.

Matthew cooked sliders and mini hotdogs. They were delicious!

 Here's our one year old the morning of his birthday.

Here's our big boy digging into the cake. He had really never had sweets before, and he LOVED it!! Needless to say, he got it EVERYWHERE!!

Here we are opening presents. Man, Samuel got so many toys and cute outfits!!

It was a great day!!

Christ in Youth Camp

We went to Durango, Colorado with our youth group for camp last week. The kids rode a charter bus through the night, but we drove ourselves. On Friday, we stopped in Abilene and spent the night. Saturday morning we drove all the way to Durango and spent the night in a hotel. Then Sunday the fun began with the youth.

We had a wonderful week praising God, making new friends, enjoying meaningful Bible studies, and just having fun! I'll let the pictures tell the rest:

 Samuel had no idea what he was in for!!

 Pit stop at the Santa Rosa dam

 Driving right up to a wildfire...scary feeling

 Sammy and Daddy admiring the train

 Samuel and Daddy with an astronaut!

 Worshipping

 Samuel with his new buddy, Durango.

 Ah oh, Mommy took away the ice cream!!

 Beautiful!!

 Our precious girls

 We spent the night in Amarillo on the way back and made a trip to the zoo. Samuel loved looking at the animals.

It was a wonderful trip and Samuel did an amazing job. I'm sure there are many more camp trips in his future!!