August Karate Test

The boys had another karate test last month and did great! Ryan tested for his red/black belt and Gabriel tested for his purple belt! They have come such a long way in the past 2 years that it still amazes me! Ryan will be testing for his black belt next month... WOW! He has to relearn all of his color belt forms, be able to do 50 push ups, and will have to break a real wooden board! It sounds like a lot, but he is well on his way, and I have no doubt that he will do an AWESOME job come October!!!

Ryan doing his red belt form.

Ryan sparring (in red helmet)


Ryan asking permission to break his board with a hammer fist strike.


Ryan earning his red/black belt at the awards ceremony afterwards.


Gabriel doing his green belt form.


Gabe sparring (in red helmet)

Gabe earning his purple belt at the awards ceremony afterwards!

Lilly enjoyed watching the belt testing too!!!

Lilly at 2 Months

It's hard to believe that my baby girl is 2 1/2 months already... The time has flown by! At her 2 month check up she weighed 12 lbs. and was 23 3/4 inches long! She is so alert during the day now. She loves to sit up and see everything that is going on, and she especially loves to see her daddy and her big brothers (and of course mommy). Daddy seems to have the magic touch to bring out Lilly's beautiful gummy smile!

Lilly's favorite toy is her Baby Einstein play mat that cousin Harper is letting her borrow. She smiles, laughs and talks to it every time she is on it. She has pretty good control of her head now and is doing a great job of lifting it up and turning it around during tummy time!

Lilly is also sleeping great! She usually takes 2-3 naps during the day, and will sleep for 6-7 hours straight at night. She usually wakes up to eat around 5 or 6 AM and will go right back to bed when she is done and sleep until around 9 AM!!!

I have enjoyed every minute that I have been able to stay home with Lilly and the boys this summer! I go back to work next week and will work 2 days a week until the boys start back to school on August 24. This will at least let me gradually get back into the groove of things, and knowing that Manuel will be with her during those days should help too. We have a nanny who will watch her at the house when I am back full time. This will be a nice change of pace from day care like the boys are in. Cross your fingers everything works out okay! I interviewed nearly 20 people before I found Brandy. She has been over to the house a couple of times already and met Lilly. Even though Brandy is really nice, it will still be hard to turn my sweet baby over to her all day long.... Oh how I wish I didn't have to work and could stay home with her...!

Our little ballerina!

Bath time! This was Manuel's first time to give Lilly a bath all by himself! It was quite amusing to watch, but he did a great job!!! =0)

Modeling her robe that Clyde & Delores got her!

Grandmama Cherie's Birthday

We celebrated mom's birthday yesterday at Justin and Hayley's house. We grilled hamburgers and hot dogs and ate yummy strawberry cake and brownies for desert! Harper and the boys had a blast riding in Justin's ATV afterwards. Ryan even got to drive it around some! Lilly was feeling a little bit under the weather, but enjoyed seeing her Grandmama!

We used these pictures to make mom's gift. I was originally going to use these pictures to make mom a card, but it ended up evolving into a scrapbook page that I framed for her.

Grandmama Cherie and her sweet grandsons!

Aunt Hayley and cousin Harper

Justin taking the boys out riding. Ryan didn't stop smiling the entire time they were out there! They had such a fun time.

I loved how this picture came out. Ryan has the most adoring look on his face looking at his Uncle Justin!

4th of July Weekend

We spent the July 4th holiday weekend in Abilene with friends and family and had a great time! We spent the day Friday with my mom and grandparents. My friends Christi and Terra also came over to meet Lilly for the first time. It was great to see them and catch up for a little while! Mom also bought the boys an inflatable pool, which they loved! At 9 PM, we had to drag them inside to go to bed!

Saturday was spent in Merkel with Manuel's family. His little sister, Rosalinda, and her family were down from California. They only make it in a couple of times a year, so it was great to be able to spend some time with them. That evening we popped fire crackers. All of the kids had a great time!

Christi & Lilly

Old friends together again!

Terra, Josh, Christi, Brittny & Lilly

Ryan and Gabe practicing their karate moves in the pool Grandmama Cherie got them!

My beautiful family!

Sweet Lilly Grace ready for July 4th in her red, white & blue!

Ryan hanging out at Grandmama Cherie's house.

Gabriel and his 3 furry best friends: Stitchy, Panda, & Beary

Grandmama Cherie & the kids

Grandma Rosemary with all 7 grandkids.

Ryan rolling out his first tortilla at Grandma Rosemary's house.

The finished product!!! He was so proud.

Gabe having fun with the sparklers!

Sparklers!!!

I thought this picture was pretty cool. You can see the smoke from the roman candle that Gabe and Manuel were shooting.

11th Wedding Anniversary

June 20th was mine and Manuel's 11th anniversary! In the past 11 years, we have moved 9 times, had 3 absolutely wonderful kids, and have had more laughs and tears than I can count! Manuel is a thoughtful and caring husband. He is a fun loving, devoted father. He is the love of my life and I can't imagine it without him! I love you Manuel and can't wait to see what the next 11 years have in store for us!

THEN:

1997 Clay Walker Concert

NOW

Lilly is 4 Weeks Old

I can hardly believe that Lilly is 4 weeks old today! It doesn't seem possible! The boys are still absolutely in love with their new little sister. They love to kiss her and pick out her clothes each day. They are both such good big brothers!

My days seem to fly by. All I feel like I do is feed and change the baby! She sleeps fairly well at night, although the past couple of nights have been long. She is much more alert these days and will gaze into our eyes perfectly content for the longest time! Manuel has been a great help in the evenings when he gets home from work. He likes to burp her, help bathe her, and rock her to sleep after I have fed her, which is nice since it gives me a little break (not that the boys let me have too much of a break)! All in all, life with little Lilly is great! We are so blessed to have this precious little girl in our lives. Our family feels so complete!

Summer is here!

I can hardly believe that summer is finally here! The boys are super excited to be out of school, and I am still in shock that I now have a 1st and 4th grader! Time has really flown by. This is the first time that I have been able to be home with the boys for the summer (thank goodness for a 12 week maternity leave). I just hope I can come up with enough stuff to keep them entertained!