This week’s theme for I Heart Faces is “Hilarious Outtakes.” Since it is the end of the year, I thought I'd find some of our funnier times from throughout the year! Hope you like!

Entry No. 1
In February we took a trip to the Dallas World Aquarium...Matt was trying to get a picture of Ryder and I together. I did not realize there was a huge growling thing behind us. Ryder seems to be saying, "Hey Mom, there is a huge Leopard behind us and he is showing his teeth...you may want to take a look!".

Entry No. 2
It was March. The weather was beginning to warm up and my morning sickness woes were beginning to fade. We spent the day in Matt's parent's backyard after church one Sunday. We Blew Bubbles, Rode the Four Wheeler and pulled my nose for hours!

Entry No. 3
OK, so don't say I don't put it all out there for ya! After I had "Plus One" in September I was going through all of the pictures we got at the hospital. This is the first one on the card. I was totally unaware it had been taken. In fact, I was pretty unaware of anything except that I wanted an Epidural 5 minutes ago. Thanks, Babe...I know you wanted to get it all documented, but really?

Entry No. 4
So looking back this was a really fun day. I took both boys to the Arboretum right after Halloween so a friend of mine from high school could snap some pictures of them. In the course of that day, I managed to lose Ryder only once and get some amazing photos from Allison. Here is one I captured myself after she left that day...notice Rustin is sticking his tongue out at me. This is right before we left and I think it says it all! A very long day although lots of fun! Both boys were asleep five minutes out of the parking lot.

Entry No. 5
And finally, here is one of my 3 boys. Remember our Smith Family Photo Shoot? I was hoping to get a good shot for our 2009 Christmas Card. This one didn't make the cut but I thought it was worthy for this contest/post! We were on a bridge next to a railroad track and a train was passing through, this offers explanation for Ryder. Matt was wishing we hadn't picked a photo spot so close to a train and Rustin was just hanging out in true "Plus One" form.


That's a quick look at some of our crazier 2009 moments! If you have never played the I Heart Faces game before, this is the perfect week to start. You are allowed 5 pictures this week and I'd love to see some of your outtakes from the year!

Dear Outside

Dear Outside,

I desperately miss you and can't wait for our reunion.
Love- Ryder

Christmas 2009

Our Christmas 2009 was absolutely divine...Santa brought lots of toys for two little boys!

Our Tree sparkled Bright while our Lawn was covered in White!

Our girls took a quick run before it was melted by the Sun!

This Christmas was a first for my sweet Baby Rustin, and I couldn't help stuffing him in the Stocking I was brought home in...Christmas of 1977.

Ryder pretended to feel happy that day, but soon his fever would give him away.

Soon we found out that RSV spoiled his day and all he could do was find a chair and lay.

Not wanting to leave his sweet baby out...24 hours later he began fighting the same bout.


We're all getting better and soon will be fine, but we'll always remember this Christmas 2009!


We Love you all and hope you had a Blessed Christmas! Can't wait to hear and see you all in the coming New Year!

Santa Babies!

I have to admit that a tiny bit of me was hoping for a photo like this! Secretly, aren't we all? Those are my sweet friend Heather's beautiful kids. My Boys didn't scream...guess a strange man, with a white beard, all dressed up in red isn't that scary after all!

I will say that Ryder was far more interested in all of the Books behind Santa than he was in Santa. The Photographer worked really well with the kids and managed to flash a squeaky toy around enough to get one picture of Ryder standing next to Jolly Ole' St. Nick!

The Downtown Dallas Neiman Marcus is beautiful this time of year. There are interactive window decorations, complete with tunnels and slides, for kids at least 4 years of age. Even though we were still too young to experience that part first hand, Ryder loved watching the other kids through the window. Hats off to them for giving Ryder, Rustin and Me a fun day with my Mom and Sister!

A little of this and A little of that...

Why have I been absent from my Blog? I'll tell you why...we've been doing a little of this and a little of that which has added up to a whole lot of time! I can't believe Christmas is only 5 days away.

Here are a few of the things that have been keeping us so busy:


We've been doing a little Tree Trimming. I buy the Boys a Keepsake ornament every year and write their name and the year on the box. I love this little tradition. I try to pick one out that is fitting of them at that point in their lives. I could not find a good "Baby" ornament for Plus One, but I loved this little Reindeer with his superman cape and airplane.


An Elmo that sings Jingle Bells, what could be better for my Sesame Street crazed 2-year old? Grover. No Grover ornaments to be found though. Matt's Mom also buys each grandkid (7 total now) an ornament every year. By the time they leave home, they'll be able to decorate a full sized tree without having to buy a single ornament!


We've been car shopping and did finally purchase a new car. Our old one received some unrepairable ouchies the week of Thanksgiving. God is Good and Airbags do save lives.


We've been Partying! Ryder had his school party on Thursday. I packaged up some Magic Reindeer Food and these little crazy-straw cups for each of his friends.


We've been baking like crazy around here and there is still more to get done.


We've been wrapping like crazy around here.


We've been mailing out Christmas Cards and receiving them, too. I love Christmas cards and seeing how everyone's family has grown and changed over the year!


We've been preparing for a very special day...Rustin was Baptized on Saturday evening. It was such a Blessing to have all of our family and friends around on this magnificent December Day!

We've been awe struck by these ladies! We celebrated my Birthday with a trip to see the Radio City Music Hall Rockettes Christmas Spectacular. Thanks, Babe!


We hope you all are having a Very Merry Christmas!

Wordless Wednesday

I♥Faces...Sweet dreams

I haven't played the I♥Faces game in awile, but i love this week's theme! I took this picture of "plus one" when he was 4 days old...nothing sweeter than the face of a sleeping, brand new baby!

3 Months Old

I can't believe it as I am typing it, but Rustin is 3 months old today! He has lots of new skills, but his most impressive: sleeping 10 hours a night! We're moving into our second week of full nights of sleep and they are absolutely amazing. Rustin also loves to talk to whomever will pay some close-up face attention to him and he flashes smiles at us all the time. He is our laid back child who just seems to go with the flow on a daily basis. He is such a blessing...

A Snowy Wordless Wednesday

Tasty Tuesday

I was trying to think of something all Holiday-ish to post for a recipe today. Then I saw these Cranberry Bliss Bars. They are similar to Starbucks Cranberry Bliss which are delicious! I follow her Blog, it is where I found the idea for Ryder's Cookie Monster Cupcakes. I might just have to make these tomorrow!

Its already 2?

One of those mornings/days that seems non-stop, I can't believe it is already 2:00 PM. Matt was home most of last week, so today we spent getting back into our normal routine. There is always an adjustment day in there after he has been home for awhile. An adjustment for Ryder not having Daddy at his beck and call. An adjustment for me not having another set of hands/handyman/can you bring me this/you get the idea. We always get back in the swing of things though!

Both boys are asleep and I sit here wondering what I should do next. The list is endless but I'll spare you the monotonous details! I promised Ryder a trip outside after lunch, but told him he had to keep his hat on. Its cold out there in Texas Standards. This was a hand me down from his older cousin Matthew pronounced "fthew" in Ryder talk.

Look at him being all sweet and stuff! Ha! You should have heard him five minutes later...terrible twos, I am ready for you to leave!

Alright, I'm off to do something productive...

You Guessed It!

Well you all guessed right!! Ryder was up top and Rustin was down below!

Lets Play the Guessing Game!

You guys might not think this is fun, but I always enjoy it! Guess who is who and tomorrow I'll post the answers!

Hands down, the best part about having two children who are the same sex and born at exactly the same time of the year is that you can re-use absolutely everything! Someone gave us the cutest little reindeer outfit when Ryder was a baby. I slipped it on "Plus One" today and was once again shocked by their resemblance in the pictures. In everyday life, I can really start to see differences in the two....but photos sometimes tell a different story!

On another note..."Plus One" was up at 4 to eat this morning, so I slipped out the door to Target the second I finished feeding him. I wasn't planning on getting out early today with two little ones in the house now, but I couldn't resist. I was shocked by the parking lot when I pulled up. There was a line that was probably half a mile long just to get in the door. This really sounds crazy....but it is such an adrenaline rush! I love Black Friday shopping. I love watching people storm the doors of the store for a $10 gift card. Seriously? But what can I say...I'm right there with all the crazies every year. I snag anything and everything I think might be a good deal and then selectively put things back. There was a mad rush of people this morning, but I got some really good buys! Super Exciting and it definitely feels like Christmas now!

Oh Thankful Day!

Today is Thanksgiving. A day to be thankful for all of the Blessings in our lives. Beyond words, I am thankful for the three boys above, and the fact that they are all healthy and safe on this Thanksgiving Day. Life can change in the blink of an eye...so hug those around you today and let them know how thankful you are to have them in your life.

First Aid/CPR

We lasted 10 weeks and 2 days before I had my first huge freak out moment as a Mom of two boys. Not too bad, huh? A Box of Raisins was the cause. Ryder is on a total raisin kick. You can buy them at Costco in Bulk and we go through them like crazy. I think I've heard that too much of one thing is never a good thing, but I tell myself it is better than snacking on cookies or crackers.

Getting to the point of my freak out, we had been on a walk this morning and were just back inside the house. I had nestled Rustin into the safety of his swing and was wiping down the counters in the kitchen while I updated Matt on our morning via phone. Ryder walks into the Kitchen and whines for some raisins. Since I am on the phone, I just handed him a box. Quiets him and I continue my conversation.

A few seconds later, I hear incessant coughing (so I thought) from the other room. I ask Ryder "Whats going on in there?" and step out of the Kitchen to see him shoveling raisins into Rustin's mouth. He is sweetly saying, "Here Baby!". I think my heart about came out of my chest. In fact, I know it did...I still had my heart rate monitor on from our walk and after I had cleared all of the raisins out of Rustin's mouth and was sure he was breathing normally, my pulse was still at 185. I Freaked! I Double Freaked! There is nothing worse than feeling helpless. I had taken First Aid and CPR over the summer, but in the heat of the moment it is so, so hard to remember the right things to do. I can only imagine how I would have felt had I not taken the class and had no knowledge at all.

So here is my point...if you have little ones at home, you should really consider taking a First Aid/CPR course. Matt pounded away at me on this one and I always thought he was slightly ridiculous, but not after today. I was so thankful to have that little bit of training in the corner of my brain.

Tasty Tuesday

Hmmmm....so I don't have a recipe in mind for this week. It seems like cooking has been on the back burner and I am not real sure why. Life seems so crazy, but really it isn't. I feel like I am in a rut, but more likely I am just tired. When both boys finally tire out at the same time...I find myself perusing the computer instead of doing useful things like laundry, COOKING, paying bills, etc... Please tell me I am not alone.

The days and weeks have flown by since Plus One got here. Every week seems to be jam packed with little errands and impromptu things to do...I always say that next week will be calmer, but it never seems to be. I count my blessings for every minute I have with both of my children, but most days I feel like the end of the day arrives with minimal "quality" time spent with either. After fulfilling their basic needs and handling all of the little details around the house as well any work responsibilities (few as they may be..there are still some), where is the time for one-on-one fun?

Sometimes, I think that if I worked outside of the home, I'd actually spend more time with them than I do by being with them all day. Translation: I feel sure I take for granted that I have all day to spend with them and actually waste away some of our quality time. If I only saw them at night...would I be a better Mom? Would I treasure my time with them more knowing that I would be missing them the next day? Would Ryder spend less time being frustrated with me..would I spend less time being frustrated with his new-found 2-year old stubborn independence? I want him to know right from wrong and grow to be a respectful, loving creature of God. It breaks my heart on the days that he spends countless little bouts by himself for an attitude adjustment as seen in the above picture...I just hope that he is learning what good is and gains a "Happy Heart" as I heard my friend Lisa tell her daughter one day this past summer.

I don't fully know the answers to these questions. But I can positively say that I wouldn't trade leaving my 50 hour a week day job to stay home with my kids for the world. My husband makes this possible..he is an amazing man in case I haven't mentioned that before. A beautiful blessing was handed to me when we figured out that I could consult part-time, on my own, from our house and stay here with Ryder. I give God thanks for every minute he gives me with each of my boys. I pray that our time together is cherished by them as much as it is by me and that it will leave a positive footprint on their little lives.

No recipe today...but I'll think hard and get one up here soon! Thank you Blogger for always letting me get these things off of my chest...you are the best!