Daddy Day Care

Since May, Blake has been keeping the babies at home and we have been saving the expense of day care. Now, Zane is out for the summer so all 3 kids are home and the caregiver has their work cut out for them. Blake stays home with them on the 5 days that he is off and my mom comes on the weekdays that Blake is working in Houston. I am not sure who is enjoying MeMe being here...the kids, me, or MeMe! The babies are becoming a daddy's boy and a daddy's girl real quick! Kade was already there, but now Macy is leaning more that way. I don't mind though. I think there is something very special between a daddy and his little girl!
Blake has been enjoying his time with the kids and they are often found eating breakfast at Whataburger and roaming the aisles of Lowe's. My kids love going to Lowe's! I love being able to come home on my lunch break and get lots of hugs and kisses from my babies too! So far this arrangement is working out well. We are not sure how long they will stay at home, but we are going to enjoy this time while it lasts. They will both be in school before we know it.
These are a couple of my favorite pics I received from Blake while they enjoyed time at their favorite places!

FuN with pAiNt!!!

Today I was able to take the day off from work and spend some time with the kids. Mom wasn't feeling very well and she is busy with Revival at church this week so I was on child-duty. I love my job, but I really enjoy being able to stay at home and do activities with my kiddos. Today I let them paint their planter boxes that Daddy bought them at Lowe's. Blake thought that would be a FuN activity for them to enjoy today...I wonder why he didn't save this for another day this week?!? They had fun, and even though I was sweaty, dirty, and covered in paint by the time it was all said and done, I had fun too!

Tough Day for a Houston Firefighter

Today was a hard day in the life of my Houston Firefighter.
I am sitting in my conference at the Hilton and had an overwhelming urge to text Blake and let him know that I missed him and hoped he was having a good day. An hour later he was on top of the roof of a home daycare facility fighting a fire. Three children lost their lives. Others were transported to the hospital with serious injuries. He called me later in the afternoon and told me he was not having a good day and explained to me what was going on. He asked me to hug the kids for him. I wanted nothing more than to rush to my kids and take them home, which is exactly what I did.
I picked Zane up from Kids Klub first and on the way to pick up Macy (Kade is spending the week with my mom and Lee) I explained to him what happened. I struggle with how much information I should give him when things like this happen, but I feel like he needs to be aware and so I told him everything. We talked about it for awhile and he wanted to make sure that his daddy was ok and then was very concerned about the kids who lost their lives in the fire. He was very quiet and I looked back at him to ask if he had any more questions and he had tears just streaming down his face. He said that he was very sad for the kids who died and their families. It made him think of Kade and Macy and how they are at a daycare too and we never know what may happen. He has such a tender heart and I love that boy so much. When I put Macy in her car seat he was just looking out the window and wouldn't turn her direction. I told him that Macy was telling him "hi" and he wiped the tears from his face and eyes and then faced her with a huge smile on his face. He didn't want her to see that he was sad or that anything was wrong. He is such an awesome big brother.
Once we made it home we looked online for the news headlines and videos. Blake is still upset, angry, hurt, sad, etc. This was a tough day for him. He has made some really tough runs in the past, but the ones that involve children are the worst ones to make. Blake LOVES his job and we know that he is exactly where GOD wants him to be, but there are definitely some tough days he has encountered in the short time he has been in the fire department. I am thankful for him and all of the other firefighters who risk their lives every day they go to work to keep the rest of us safe.
Please be praying for all the children involved in the fire, their families, and the firefighters!
The picture I have posted shows Blake waiting to climb the ladder to get on the roof.

Happy Birthday Zane!

We celebrated Zane's 8th birthday today. I can't believe that it has been 8 years since Blake and I became parents. He brought us so much joy to us the day he was born, and he has continued to bring us much happiness. He has such a sweet spirit. He loves school - favorite subjects are science, computers, and reading. He is an excellent speller, reads extremely well (on a upper 4th grade level), and is learning how to free draw. I love how he plays with his younger brother and sister. He is such a good big brother, helping us out by watching them, playing with them, and protecting them. We are so blessed to call him our son and I pray that he has a great year, and many more birthdays to follow!
He woke me up before 6AM this morning with a big smile on his face and announced "It's my birthday!" He loves celebrating birthdays, especially his. He took mini cinnamon rolls to school to share with his classmates and I brought McDonalds lunch to him at school. He requested breakfast for his birthday dinner so Blake fixed pancakes, eggs, potatoes, bacon, and brownies for dessert. He received numerous phone calls from family members and was excited that so many people called to talk to him. It really made his day special.
What a great day! Happy Birthday Zane! We love you buddy!!!!

It's been awhile!

I have not updated our blog in quite some time and I really regret that I have missed posting some really great things happening in our family. I am staying incredibly busy with the kids, housework, my job, and well LIFE in general. By the time I have a free minute to sit down and update the blog, I am basically too tired and either want to go to bed or just relax and watch t.v. with my love! So I will give a shortened version of what has been happening in our world - a Family of Five!
Blake and I have been busy with work. He is working a couple days a week in Houston and he absolutely loves his job as a firefighter. I am so happy that he has a job that he truly enjoys. On the side, he is learning the A/C business and making some extra money on his days off. This keeps him very busy and tired! I am so thankful to have a husband who works so hard to provide for his family. I enjoy my job as well and could not imagine being in any other job. My supervisor, co-workers and the faculty/staff and students in my department are a joy to work with. Even though I would give anything to be home with my babies every day, I am thankful to have a job that provides for our needs and one that I can enjoy going to everyday.
Zane, our firstborn, is growing up so fast! I cannot believe he will be 8 years old this week. He is such a delight and is a great big brother. He loves his big brother role and is a big help to us. He is doing so well in school and this year in 2nd grade he has had 2 report cards with straight A's! He loves reading, science, and computers and has just recently taken an interest in free drawing. He has lost 3 teeth since May and has a couple that are loose. He is active in his church choir, tone chimes, RA's, and baseball so he keeps us busy...we cannot imagine what it will be like when we will have all 3 kids participating in activities!
Kade, our middle child, is a very strong-willed little boy who will be turning 3 in a few months. He challenges us as parents, but he is such a loving little boy who is constantly seeking our praise. He loves sports more than any 2 year old I know. He will ask to watch football and baseball on t.v. and even prefers sports over cartoons a lot of times. He is happiest if someone is playing ball with him or when he is cuddling and rocking with us. The boys share a room with bunkbeds, but Kade always seems to convince Zane to sleep on the bottom bunk with him and we always find them with their arms wrapped around each other. So sweet!
Macy, our baby girl, is such a joy and truly completes our family. I am so happy that we are blessed with a baby girl and I look forward to building the mother and daughter relationship with her that me and my mom have. The boys adore her and she laughs and plays with them all the time. She is 14 months old and picks up on things so quickly. She loves to imitate her brothers and has started saying so many words! She is definitely more talkative and vocal than either of her brothers were at this age. She loves cats and will call them to her and just squeal with delight. She has also started interacting with her baby dolls. It so much fun to watch her play with them.
I hope to update the blog on a more regular basis. I enjoyed doing it at the beginning and really wish that I would have been more consistent. Oh, well. I will give it another try!

Update on the Kids

Macy is now 5 months old and doing great. She is such a joy and a great baby. She weighs in at 13lbs 14oz and she really wants to roll over. It won't be long until she figures it out. She sleeps great at night and is the happiest baby in the mornings! She loves spending time in her exersaucer, sitting in her bumbo seat and watching her big brothers. She can't wait until she is big enough to join in on their fun.
Kade is 23 months and will be turning 2 years old in just a few weeks. He is talking in sentences, loves making new friends wherever we go (grocery store, restaurant, etc.), enjoys going to school and is learning his colors, and likes playing with his big brother and little sister.
Zane is anxiously awaiting the start of baseball and is doing wonderful in 1st grade. He is an advanced reader and has made a 100 on every spelling test this year as well as making an excellent rating in math. We are so proud of him. He LOVES his teacher and enjoys school. He is a wonderful Big Brother and we are thankful that he is such a big helper around the house.
Blake and I are so blessed to have such sweet, loving, and joyful children!

Happy Valentines!

Macy enjoyed her 1st Valentines Day. The boys each had a party at school and ate lots of chocolate so I know they enjoyed it as well. Kade decided he didn't want to be in this picture. I think the terrible twos have set in early!