Blog Responsibilities

Hello World! Things have changed so much around this house it is difficult to catch up from last time I blogged.  So I won't even try.  My computer had a near crash and had to be rebooted from last fall so I lost a ton of pictures. Ugh!  Every time I have tried to blog over the last 3 months blogger has been super slow and never would upload my pictures.  So no pictures today just an update on what is going on in our world. 

Camden turned two March 29th! We went to San Antonio a couple weeks before and celebrated with Honey and Dado.  Camden loved going to Sea World and still talks about it whenever he sees a whale or a dolphin. He'll say, Shamu! Sea World!  We celebrated quietly at home on the day of his actual birthday.  We met up with Cliff for a picnic for lunch, fed the ducks, had a nap and then Camden got to play in his new sand box. It was a hit!  The biggest surprise for all of us though was when my Dad showed up at dinner time from Arlington!!!  It was the best surprise of my life for sure!  He thought he just had to see his grandson on his second birthday so he hopped in the car around lunch time and headed the 6 hours to Amarillo.  He left the next day when Camden went down for a nap.  What a special Grumps Camden has!!  Camden played and played with my Dad and enjoyed every second of his short trip.

Mom was here the weekend before Camden's birthday and brought all kinds of goodies.  Camden got a new potty seat, underwear, potty treats from Leigh-Leigh, and potty books.  I was very nervous about the whole potty training issue.  I have heard so many horror stories.  We tried it as an expirament though just to see what he would do.  Before he would have a fit about even sitting on the potty so I wasn't really expecting much.  The skittles did the trick though and he is now officially potty trained!  Boy was I surprised and let me tell you it had nothing to do with my awesome parenting.  LOL!  Nope, this kid likes those potty treats and will go potty at church and sometimes at restaurants.  He was ready. Of course he is still in diapers when he sleeps. Still in the crib and uses the sussy to sleep but all of that will come.  I feel like we've mastered the biggest hurdle for now!!

Cliff is super busy at work already and the summer has not even hit yet.  He is getting to remodel the whole children's area! New paint, carpet, all new furniture, the works!  I can't wait to show pictures when it is done.  Needless to say he has been in and out of his office because of the construction and still trying to complete day to day activities and plan for summer stuff.  This weekend is a preteen retreat followed by a three day staff retreat in Glorieta. Camden and I already miss him!

We will be getting a reprieve soon though. Cliff and I get to go on a cruise! Woohoo! Cozumel and Progresso here we come.  I am so looking forward to five whole days with Cliff alone without cell phones and computers.  Camden is going to stay with my parents and get some good grandparent and cousin time.  I hope he is not too mad at us for leaving. I'm kind of nervous about dropping him off with limited communication but I know he'll survive, in fact he will probably have the most fun he has had in a long time!

That's about it for now.  Maybe I will try a photo post again soon. 

Christmas

Sweet boy on the road heading east to spend Christmas with family in East Texas. Honey came and spent several days with us and got to ride all the way with us in our car.



Christmas morning was at Nana and Grandpa's house in jacksonville. It was all a bit overwhelming for Camden but the banana helped.




Eating cheetos with Grandpa. So fun!

Our annual pj picture!

Kimberly and Josh are engaged!! They will be getting married this summer. I am so excited for them and look forward to getting to know my soon to be brother-in-law in the future.

We spent several days in Arlington on the way back home. These sweet sweet kiddos just steal my heart everytime I get to spend time with them. They are all so much fun!!! I can't believe that they are growing up so fast. Time is flying and I don't know how to stop it!

These three found a comfy spot on the bench watching Aaron and Cliff play pool. These three have a blast together!

First of December

Camden is learning all sorts of new skills. You can see he found the zipper one morning! And he has figured out that he can reach the light switches. He turns lights on and off for us all the time. He's such a helper!!

My family stopped in one night on their way to Colorado for a ski trip. I was so bummed that I couldn't go with them, but it was nice to hang out for a little while!

This little guy is a hoot! Denver enjoyed his dinner! This kids is the messiest eater I have ever seen. It doesn't matter what he's eating...it's all over. :)

This is the best pic of Camden in frotn of the Christmas tree that I could get. We had our own family Christmas about a week before Christmas day. It was nice to have a quiet mornning at home with a big breakfast and present opening.

October 2011

October has flown by very very fast. We got to see family, visit pumpkin patches, and have lots of fun this month. Camden is growing so much. He is talking all the time...getting new words every week. He had a hair cut at the first of this month. I can't wait for it to grow back! I just love his crazy long hair. :)

The first week of October we stopped by the pumpkin patch. The pumpkin patches are my most favorite part of Amarillo. I had to get a couple of pumpkins for the front porch. We've since made several more trips to the pumpkin patch this month.

What a cute little hiney!! Ha! We had a fun time before bath playing in the nude outside.

Our sweet friends came to town and visit and invited us to play one morning. We were so thankful to see Elizabeth and Reese Mason. We sure miss them!!

Mom made Camden this sweater. I tried to get a picture of him before church on Sunday morning. He was very busy and hard to get a shot of. This is the best one and it is still a little blurry. Thanks for the adorable sweater NeNe!!

Cliff and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary this month too. Hannah kept Camden for us one day and Cliff and I got to hang out for several hours. We went to the driving range, painted the cars at Cadillac Ranch and ate at Saltgrass. It was nice spending a day as friends and reconnecting a little. I sure do love my husband!

One Sunday I was in my room getting ready and it got really quiet in the house. I came in the kitchen to find Camden getting ready as well. Ha! I had done my makeup while he had breakfast and didn't put it away yet. He is such a little copy cat these days.

All of these munchkins came to visit last week for four days. We got to go to the pumpkin patch, the discovery center, and to the zoo. Such a fun week. Thanks Leigh for taking time to come to Amarillo!

We made chocolate chip cookies. I had lots of help!

The crew at the pumpkin patch. We picked out pumpkins to go back home and paint on. Boy was that fun...and messy! I didn't get any pictures because both Leigh and I were busy keeping the paint on the pumpkins.

Camden wants to play with the iPhone so badly! He can't, so the next best thing is to watch Lerin really closely!

Today, Oct. 27th, we have had snow all day. It is 1:55 right now and it just now stopped snowing. The snow started in the middle of the night! We went out early because I thought once the sun came out it would all be gone. Camden liked the snow but it was cold, we didn't stay out very long.

Family Update

I am being such a bad blogger these days!! I broke ANOTHER camera so it has not been as easy to upload pictures. The camera still works but I have to keep the battery/sim card part taped shut with heavy duty tape. Such a hassle to put back together every time. Why am I so rough on cameras?!

Our fall calendar has filled up quickly already. It is full of fun stuff but I have to say, me and the calendar are not friends. I wish we were more free to do what we want when we want! That phrase sounds so winey and selfish but it's true. I WILL be going camping with my two guys at some point this fall! I am determined to use our camping stuff before it rots in the garage. Ha!

Last week we go to go to the land in Coleman and spend a few days with Cliff Sr., Debbie, and Nana and Grandpa. Let me tell you...Camden had such a fun time!! He got muddy and wet everyday. He was just too cute in his jeans and boots getting to play like a little raggamuffin until he just pooped out. He got to eat up at the big table with us without his high chair. Why is he getting so big so fast?! He got to play with JJ (the family dog), and a kitten named Whiskers. He wasn't sure about them at first but soon warmed up to both and would reach down to pet them and talk to them. He got to ride in the jeep and "drive" them himself. I can tell we are going to have lots of fun memories out at the land.

Tomorrow we leave again to go to Arlington. Cliff has a conference all week in Dallas so Camden and I are going to spend time with our family there. Looking forward to some time to play with cousins!

I am looking forward to pumpking patches, spiced tea, and cooler weather to come. Hoping the fall doesn't fly by too fast! I am trying to savor the days while my sweet boy is so small. I can already feel the time slipping through my fingers!

A visit with Honey and a trip to Kenya

These two had a ball together for a few days at the end of July! Honey came early to Amarillo before leaving on the 29th for a Kenya mission trip with Cliff. Camden got his fill of electronics with the iphone and ipad games and got lots of time to love on Honey! Below are a few pictures we snapped after playing in the tunnels at church.

Cliff and Debbie say they had a wonderful trip to Kenya. There were lots of new kids at the orphnage and lots of seeds were sewn. This was Cliff's 4th time to go to the Baptist Children's Center in Kenya. They are praying about another trip for next year!

Camden helps wash window