NYC - 2013

My hubby and I took a quick trip to the Big Apple this past week. We arrived in NYC Wednesday afternoon and left Friday morning, so it was very quick! We've been to NYC before and did the whole sightseeing adventure/touristy stuff back in 2009 so this time we did some things that we weren't able to do last time. Wednesday night we went on a dinner cruise and got to see the city at night. It truly is beautiful to see all the tall buildings lit up. The weather was perfect and it was nice to get dressed up and spend the evening with my sweetheart. Thursday we went to a Yankee game. It just so happened the Texas Rangers were in town and we cheered our Rangers on to a win!!! We weren't, however, brave enough to wear our Rangers shirts. I think you'd have to be crazy to do that! The ball game was a day game so that gave us time that night to go to Time Square and eat at the Hard Rock Cafe and just walk around and take in all the sights of the Big Apple.

We had a wonderful "mommy/daddy getaway" trip to NYC. It was the first time we've ever left Brady, ever! He's never spent the night away from us in his life. My sister, Kristian & Gavin, was nice enough to stay at our house while we were gone so Brady would be comfortable and able to sleep at night. I sure missed my little guy while I was gone. I knew he was fine and happy, but it was still so hard to be so far away. This trip was really good for Steven & me. It was nice to just get away and relax. It was nice to just focus on us. I'm so blessed to have such a sweet and loving husband. He likes to spend time with me and go and do things I like to do. He really is my best friend and I can't imagine what life would be without him.

Riding a taxi is always an adventure and scary!

The subway was stinky and hot but a good & fast way to get around.

My sweetheart on the dinner cruise.

Me :)

Such a pretty sunset.

Brooklyn Bridge behind us.

The new World Trade Center (Freedom Tower). At night it is lit up red, white, and blue.

Game day @ Yankee Stadium... a dream come true for me!

It was a hot day for a 1pm game! But we're from Texas so we're used to hot!

First pitch of the game.

Love him! :)

Rangers win 2-0!!!!!

Dinner at Hard Rock Cafe in Times Square

Taking in the sights of the Big Apple.

We walked like 2 miles for some Baskin Robin's ice cream! 

I LOVE SUMMER!!!!  :)

15 months with Brady

Summer is in full swing and I’m really enjoying my time with my sweet baby boy. It’s so hard to believe he’s 15 months old. He changes so much every day. I’m amazed how fast he picks up on things. Here’s what he’s been up to this past month.

Brady’s 15 months stats: weighs- 23lb 6oz (58%); length- 30in (10%); head- 19in (86%)

*He’s finally starting to talk. He can say bible, Jesus, daddy, tractor, bye-bye, ball, and last but not least he is finally saying MAMA!!! I’m so happy!!!

*He is a tough little guy. He hardly ever cries. He has a lot of bruises and scratches and I don’t know where they came from because he never says anything when it happens.

*He is very fast, especially when he’s got something he shouldn’t have and I’m trying to get it away from him.

*He likes to dance. When he goes to my grandmother’s house, he gets on top of her kitchen table and dances around. Of course, everyone encourages him to do this, and laugh at him, which makes him want to do it more.

*He’s very gassy, especially during prayers at church.

*His teachers at church say he  knows what’s going on and can do what they want him to do.

*He loves the water. When we put him in the pool he starts kicking.

*He is stingy. If a kid has a toy, he’s going to go take it away from them. We’re going to have to work with him on that.

*He’s a pro at sleeping. He gets very grumpy when he’s tired.

*He’s got a mouth full of teeth & he’ll bite you if you put your figure in his mouth.

*He’s a pretty good eater. He loves yogurt, breads, and biscuits & gravy. I make him drink lots of water; he’s not a big milk drinker.

*He gives the best hugs.

*He’s still very social and will go to almost anyone who wants to play with him. He doesn’t want people to hold him much, but he loves to play around and be silly.

*He loves being outside. He loves riding the 4-wheeler, tractor, and his Pap’s blue truck.

*If you ask him how old he is, he can hold up his first finger to say 1.

*He loves to pick his nose and he usually does it when there’s a lot of people around.

*He’s wearing 18 month clothes, size 5 in shoes, and size 4 diapers.

Funny story, the doctor was examining Brady at his check-up and said he looked good and healthy and I said, ‘really, he’s only in the 10^th percentile in height’, the doc said how tall are you and your hubby..so I told him and he did a little configuring and said that Brady will be about 5’6”-5’8” when he grows up! Poor kid, he doesn’t have a chance to be tall. I’m glad to know he’s healthy and I’m not going to worry about his height anymore. If he’s short, then he’s just going to be short. I will always love him no matter what!

Brady is such a joy to be around. I couldn’t have picked a more perfect baby to call mine. He’s the most wonderful blessing to have ever happen to Steven & I and we’re having so much fun with him each day.

Wonderful News

My hubby grew up in a christian home and went to church, and was baptized. He has loved God all his life. When we were dating he decided to go to church with me, where he's been very active and has lived a wonderful christian life, but lately, he's questioned his first baptism. We've talked about it several times, and I told him I couldn't make this decision for him, "it was between him & God" and my advice to him was "if I had any doubts, I'd make sure I did what I needed to remove all those doubts". Well, last Wednesday, he decided he wanted to be rebaptized.

I'm so thankful Steven was brave and wise to remove all the doubts he might have had about the most important decision of his life. I know he loves God, and he serves God, and now all he has to do is to continue to live faithfully all the days of his life and he'll someday be with God in heaven.

This news was too important and exciting to not share. I'm so blessed to be married to such a wonderful christian man. He's a wonderful husband and daddy to Brady.

May 2013

Well, May is in the books. And now it's summertime!! I'm officially finished with the 2012-2013 school year and now I get to enjoy my days with my sweet little guy. I'm so looking forward to this summer. We have a couple of trips planned and I'm so excited to get to do a little traveling. VBS is coming up in 2 weeks so we'll be really busy that week. I have a couple workshops I have to go to for school, but those won't be a big deal. I'm always my happiest at this point in the year! The beginning of summer time is the most exciting time of the year, to me.
May was a busy and rough month. We celebrated several birthdays, and unexpectedly lost my grandfather. I'm hoping we have many good months with lots of fun times with our family this summer. I'm looking forward to relaxing and enjoying life! Here's a few pictures from our May 2013.

This May has seemed cooler than most Mays, but Brady & Gavin did enjoy one Sunday afternoon in the hot sun and cold water!

My 33rd birthday with Brady, Papa & Grandma

Brady loves riding the tractor with his daddy.

My Papa turned 83 on May 23rd. This is the last picture I have of him. He past away 5 days later. He will forever be missed!

Brady in his Sunday best and ready to go to church.

Oh how I love my sweet baby boy!

My sleeping angel.

Saddest Word

Without a doubt, the saddest word in the English language is good-bye. My grandfather, Bobby Robinson, past away this past week and it has been so hard to say good-bye to him. He's been fighting cancer for the past year. It's been getting worse over the past few months, but no one would have known it because he wasn't a complainer. He was a fighter. He was so strong during his entire battle with that terrible disease. He smiled even when he was in terrible pain. He didn't feel sorry for himself. He was the perfect example of how a Christian should act in the face of adversity.
On Monday, Memorial Day, I spent the afternoon with Papa. My family gathered to celebrate my brother's upcoming graduation (from high school). I sat by Papa the whole time. His belly was extremely swollen from fluid (from the cancer). Just 4 days earlier he had the fluid removed (4 liters) and he had already filled up again, but worse by Monday. He sat outside under the trees and enjoyed the beautiful weather, cool breeze and great company of our family. He never complained, not one time. My grandmother asked him several times if he was ready to go home and he said no...he wanted to stay. I could tell that he was happy. Even though he had a big belly from the fluid, he actually looked better to me on Monday than he had in a long while.
The next morning, Papa & Grandma woke up & got ready. She asked him what he wanted for breakfast, he put in his order and she started preparing breakfast. When she was done, she called him and he didn't answer, she walked over to his recliner, and there he sat, just as peacefully as he could be, he was gone.
I can't even begin to thank God enough for allowing Papa to just pass away peacefully. That is exactly what he would have wanted and I'm so thankful it happened like that.
My heart hurts because I know I'll never walk into their house and see his smiling face there to greet me. I'm going to miss his soft hands when he'd hold my hand when he'd see me. I'm really going to miss his mischievous grin and that sweet laugh he had. From this point on, there will always be a hole in my heart, that will never been filled. I miss him so much it hurts.
BUT, the good news is that my Papa was a wonderful Christian man who loved God and lived a Christian life. There are two commandments that God gives us, 1) Love God first and foremost. 2) Love your neighbor. My Papa lived by those commandments all the days of his life. I know where my Papa is now, he's at a place where he's not hurting from cancer, he's at peace, he's happy....and for that, I have peace knowing that one day we will be reunited.

I will forever be thankful that God chose me to be Bobby Robinson's grand-daughter. I knew him for 33 years. What a blessing he's been to my life. I hope I can continue to live my life in a way that would make him proud. Papa was one-of-a-kind. I don't think he ever knew how many lives he touched, it was a lot!!!