Halloween 2009

Payton's 2nd Halloween! I think it took about 2-3 houses for Payton to realize- knock on the door, say "Thank You" and you will get candy. By the time we hit the 2nd street she was running to the door!

Counting 1 to 10!

Making Animal Sounds!

Payton has been learning a new animal noise every couple days. Here is what we have done so far!

Sitting on the Potty, Take 2!

Picture Day....well kinda!

Today Payton had picture day at school. I have been counting down the days all week. Last night before Payton went to bed I said "Picture Day is tomorrow...you gotta get your beauty sleep." I stayed up late last night making her some cute hairbows to match her pretty dress.
This morning when she woke up I said "It's Picture Day!" I think I have been more excited about today than anyone. Payton looked so cute this morning when she left the house. I had to catch a few pictures of Payton and Daddy before they left.

I was so excited to hear about how picture day went when I got home. I wanted to know where we could go to look and order the pictures. When I asked Ricky he said "Payton's teachers said that she was the prettiest girl for Picture Day, but she didn't get her picture taken." I guess several of the kids were scared of the guy that was taking their pictures and Payton wouldn't even sit down in front of the backdrop to have her picture taken.

When I got home she was still in her dress from picture day, so we had a little picture day of our own. Unfortunatley, she wouldn't pose for me either!

LABOR DAY...yes, it was LABOR!

For Labor day Ricky and I thought we would do some work to the yard. We decided to pull up a few of the deck planks and fix some of the weak spots.....I guess there was a little more work to be done than we planned on. I guess a lot can happen over 5 years, so we decided to give the deck a make-over. I guess this Labor Day project has turned into a September project, seeing that today was the 1st day of many for re-staining.

Payton has been so good playing in her house, pool, slide, bubbles, but by the end of the weekend she was looking for something new to play with....

just wish it was WASHABLE PAINT instead of WATERPROOF STAIN! You know she is in to something when she gets really quiet!

"B" is for Baseball & Bubba

Saturday night was the 1st night of baseball for the fall season. It is so much fun to go to the games now because Payton runs around and pulls on the fence and says "GO BUBBA!" It sure beat last year when we had to drag toys and everything else out to keep her budy.

This was so cute. Payton gave Jacob a GOOD LUCK kiss through the fence. She sure loves her bubba!

I LOVE BANANAS!

Payton LOVES her some bananas and to hear her ask for a "nanna" is just so cute. AND YES, she does have clothes.....I guess with the heat in Texas she just likes being naked at home!

Payton on the Potty

This is also Payton's new face she does. Now she does it on demand!

August 31st, Payton's 6th day at CampFire, she sat on the potty and went for the 1st time.....she has sat on the potty many times since then, but nothing. Oh well, it's a work in progress. I just hope we will be diaper free by the end of the year.

School makes me SLEEPY!

She looks so long laying across the sofa. I have to fine the picture of her sleeping here when she was just a couple days old, when she wasn't even as long as the pillow.

Since Payton has been in school she's been taken 2-2 1/2 hour naps and is ready for bed a 7pm. She plays so hard that now she doesn't even put up a fight at bedtime. Sometimes she will just pass out anywhere!

School

Payton has been in school for about 6 weeks now. First we tried Children's Courtyard, but it just wasn't the right fit. We moved her to a place called CampFire USA and we couldn't be happier. Payton's favorite thing in the world right now is coloring. Here is her FIRST art projects from school.

Taking a step back!

I never did get a chance to post anything about Ricky Graduating with his MBA from TCU last month. I am so extremely proud of him and I am so lucky that he was willing to do it for our family. I know he hasn't seen any changes since he graduated, but it will change our lives in the long run. You're the Best Babe! We love you!

Family Fun at Chuck E. Cheese's

After Jacob's track meet we went to celebrate at Chuck E. Cheese's. Payton had been there before, when she was 10 months, but this time was a lot of fun. She was all in to putting the tokens in the slots and the tickets in the machine, heck with the games!

Summer Track

Jacob is involved with summer track for the first time and man is it different than I remember. Being a runner, I always loved track meets. You brought a cooler, a blanket and a cooler. It was fun to camp out all day long while you waited on your events. Being a spectator, with a 1 year old...is a completely different story.

We really enjoyed watching Jacob long jump, where he placed 2nd, also placed 2nd in the 400 meters with a time of 77 seconds....which means he could probably beat me right now and then placed 3rd in the 200m with a time of 33 seconds. He's quick...just like his daddy.

Bring out in the Texas heat sure makes for a good nap! Payton decided to take her nap in the Wendy's during lunch (I know the air conditioning felt great!) and they both passed out the entire way home. Jacob was so cute. He went to sleep holding his ribbons. I think he was as pround of himself as we were.

I have to say that although it is tiring sitting around all day in the Texas heat and it is amazing to see how well Jacob is doing. He really has been suprising us lately with his athletic skills!

We aren't walking, we're running!

Payton is on the move. She is full on running these days and is getting into everything. She keeps us on our toes for sure. I wonder where she got her skills? Hmmm.....

ZOO MONDAYS!

Every week on Monday we hit the Fort Worth Zoo with our friends to see what the animals are up to! With each week Payton is learning a new animal and it's sound. For a while there, I thought she was going to call EVERY animal a dog and say that they all said "Eww, Eww, Ahh, Ahh" like a monkey. We are finally starting to understand that although they are all animals, they are all different...let's just say it is an ongoing process for sure!

One of our favorite things is feeding the birds, but it's hit or miss when it comes to the birds being hungry.

Summer Fun!

It's summer time in Texas & nothing beats hanging pool side with family and friends. Payton, now 16 months, has been in swim class for the past 8 weeks. She has learned so much and is really loving the water. The only bad part is that she has NO FEAR and jumps in- even when no one is around. What can I say, she takes after her mama, she's FULL THROTTLE! (A name Ricky once gave me, but I am pretty sure I have grown out of it.) I guess I thought I would rather have her comfortable with the water than to be scared of it, but...I was wrong!

Win or Lose, the heart loves the game!

Ricky coached Jacob's baseball team this past season and Jacob got his 1st opportunity to pitch. We didn't realize how great he would be at it. I took a million pictures of him pitching and was able to make this great picture and blow it up for him to remember this great day!
I also think I scored some "BEST STEP-MOM" points with this one!