What's Up Doc?

Elijah turned 15 months on Sunday and had his 15 month check-up today (Thursday). We are thrilled to say that our sweet boy is doing great!Plus this visit was the best he has ever done,even with 3 shots! He has shown some growth in weight and height (not as much as we were hoping for) but it is progress. :) His doctor isn’t concerned since there was improvement in both areas. So as long as the doctor isn’t worried, then we can breathe easier. We love Dr. Gmoser and trust him completely!! I will never forget how incredible he was to both of us when Elijah had to spend time at Texas Children’s right after he was born. We are so fortunate to have such a wonderful pediatrician for our son.

Here is an update of some things Elijah is doing:

-Tries to wipe his mouth with a napkin
-Can show Mommy and Daddy where his nose, ears, and mouth is, but still not sure about where his eyes are
-Has finally decided he likes another vegetable – sweet peas
-Shows a great interest in anything that has music involved
-Now drinks out of a Sippy cup without handles or a straw
-Helps Mommy/Daddy push his high chair back in place after he is done using it each time.
-Plays the most adorable game of “Peek-a-Boo” we have ever seen. It always brings a smile to our faces and makes us laugh – a lot!
-Knows that his socks and shoes are worn on his feet and tries to help us put them on each time
-Only uses his binky when he takes his nap and at bedtime – Yea!
-Still prefers to be outside
-Shows us occasionally that the “terrible twos” are not going to be fun.
-Is still obsessed with everything that has wheels on it
-Makes the sound of the engine/motor when playing with his trucks

But most of all, he continues to steal our hearts every single day. You are our sweet boy and we love you unconditionally!

His vocabulary so far: Mommy, Daddy, ice, duck, up, eat, egg, all gone, hot, Nana, his version of dog – “gaga”, his version of guacamole “guac guac”, hi, and bye-bye. He can also sign milk and understands the sign for bath.

It is hard for Byron and me to believe that at his next check-up, Elijah will be 1 ½ years old. Time is passing by so fast.


Hey Doc, does everything sound OK?

Let the Cooking Begin

For those who know me, you know that I am not a person who likes to cook or cooks that well. But now that I have the privilege of being a stay at home mom (thanks honey!),I felt like I needed to work on improving my cooking skills. I am happy to say that in the last 2 months I have made progress and no one has got sick (he he). I am very excited about a group of ladies that I recently joined. This group of woman choose a cookbook and basically cook through the book and then blog about it.I am excited to say that I made my first dish, Cowboy Calzone, and blogged about it. The blog is called “Cook a Book”. I've attached a link. One recipe down and many more to go. :)

"Chili" in Sienna

Today Sienna held it first Chili Cook Off and Byron had the privilege to be part of a team. Most teams started at 8:30, others ealier, with prepping and cooking. Then at 12:00, the tasting began. This event was for residents only as a way to encourage people to attend and meet others who live in Sienna. We thought that was a cool concept! There weren't many teams competing , but enough to make it fun and competitive. Elijah and I arrived after he got up from his nap and stayed till the end. The team that Byron was on consisted of four people – a father & son, Byron, and a lady. They did not place with their chili, but they did win for Best Area/Set Up. :) The feedback they received throughout the event, made it clear, that theirs was the people’s favorite. However, like they say on Iron Chef “The judges have spoken”. The weather was great and Elijah was in heaven because he was outside. Daddy, we are SO proud of you!!!!!


The Team - Lisa, Johnathan, Byron,Juan, and Elijah (the future team member)
Not only did they cook delicious chili – they also served bacon wrapped shrimp with garlic/butter sauce, and jalapeno bread with jalapeno jelly. Can you say YUMMY?!


My two favorite guys!


Thanks Dad for letting me borrow your cap.


Chef in training


Hey, where did all the chili go??


Since we are usually taking pictures of Elijah, it was nice to finally get a family pic. :)

A Morning at the Museum

This morning Elijah and I headed out to the Children’s Museum. We have not been able to go for awhile so we both were looking forward to it. Elijah has always enjoyed himself when we go, but today he had a blast!! I love that a large group of people doesn’t seem to bother him at all. He just played and played and I just watched and smiled - a lot. It was a great morning!
*Yep, I got carried away again with taking numerous pictures and posting them :)


Look at the cutie in the mirror!


Hey buddy, fill it up please.


Look Mom, not only does the ball fit in here so does my hand.


I love things that light up.


Can you say curious? He knew what to do with this object but he couldn't figure out "how" it work. But he tried his best to.


The petals on the flowers go round and round.


We are still working on smiling and not just opening our mouth when he is having his picture taken. He he :)


This was actually taken yesterday, but I thought it was too cute not to post.

Valentine's Day - The Ups and Downs

Let’s start with the positive :)

- Waking up to my best friend and the most incredible husband whom I have been married to for almost 20 years. Not to mention he is the most amazing Dad to Elijah!
- A wonderful dinner with my two favorite men Saturday night. Byron cooked one of my favorites he makes, homemade pizza. Can you say yummy?! Weight loss is not likely when you have a husband that cooks as good as Byron does.
- A beautiful double heart charm to add to my bracelet. Byron and Elijah gave me a James Avery charm bracelet this past Christmas. Each time I wear it I think of my two special guys. This new charm is going to be a great addition.
- A delicious dinner with Byron tonight (Sunday night). Elijah went down early and is sleeping great! So we had some time for just the two of us.
- The huge smile on Elijah’s face when he realized that his Valentine’s gift created bubbles. Elijah loves bubbles – especially popping them.
- Byron not being able to figure out what Elijah and I got him for his Valentine’s present.

The Downs :(
- Saturday night Elijah had a very bad night. His allergies caused complete havoc. We saw signs early on but we were just praying that we were wrong. But we weren’t. So, we did shifts during the night to take care of him since he was not sleeping and crying a lot. Not a fun night, but you do what you have to.
- Realizing that Elijah’s first bubble machine we gave him didn’t work. So Dad went and got him another one & that one did work. The second machine was way cooler than the first one. So in the end, all turned out well.
- Did not get to make it to church or take Elijah to the Rainforest Café for lunch liked planned. We thought he would love Rainforest Cafe because of all the neat stuff there he could check out. Plus we thought it would be a kid friendly place to take him for Valentines. So next Sunday we hope we take him. They now have one in the Galleria so it is a lot closier for us than the others.

Even with the ups and downs this week, it made me stop to think. I am incredibly blessed to have such amazing guys in my life whom love me unconditionally. I love you Byron and Elijah A LOT!!! I am a better person because of you.



What is in this bag? I dont' know, but I am going to find out.(Sunday)


Going in for the kiss - Thanks Nana and Pawpaw (my parents) for all of my Valentine's Day goodies and the card you sent me. I wore both outfits this weekend and I must say I was looking pretty handsome in them.- Saturday


Hey Dad, can't you put those batteries in any faster? I am ready for some bubbles!


Bubble, bubbles, everywhere! Now, let's see how many I can pop.



Hey Mom, can I water the plants for you?


Calling Grandma and Granddaddy (Byron's parents) on Skype to wish them a Happy Valentine's Day.

Sitting in My Highchair

Sitting in my highchair, highchair, my chair
Sitting in my highchair banging my spoon,
Bring on the.....


chips and salsa... Elijah LOVES all types of Mexican food. Wonder where he gets that from? :)


Mickey Mouse pancakes


ham and mac & cheese (using a fork correctly - work in progress)


a grilled cheese sandwich

Actually the song goes:
Sitting in my highchair, highchair, my chair, sitting in my highchair banging on my spoon
Bring on the carrots, bring on the peas, somebody feed this baby please.
(Verse 1)

Elijah likes this song so we sing it a lot at meal times.

Right now, Elijah likes meats, poultry, seafood, and any carbohydrates. He does not like fruits or vegetables but we work on this daily. We know how important fruits and vegetables are in his diet, so we refuse to give up in the quest of getting him to eat them. Our motto - “Try, try, try again”. We used to serve Elijah his food on some cute plates we got for him. However, he decided that dumping the food off the plate and playing with the plate was more fun than eating. So we went back to just putting the food on his tray. I would have to say that one of Elijah’s favorites, hands down, is guacamole. He loves it! He has even got me eating it now. (I never like it or ate it before) The things you do for your kids! :)

Valentine's Party

I recently joined a playgroup in Sienna so that Elijah could make new friends and I could meet moms who live in our community. Well, today we attended the Valentine’s Day party for our play-group. It was a lot of fun! The kids enjoyed playing with Sara’s toys, just hanging out together, and eating the yummy snacks. Elijah really like the heart-shape Rice Crispy treats Mrs. Julia, our hostess made. Mrs. Julia had everything decorated so cute! The kids did great creating their Valentine’s wreaths - well, with some help from their Moms.:) When we got home, Elijah crashed. He played hard! Thanks Mrs. Julia for a great time and party!
*Thanks Alexis, Brayden, and Sara for Elijah's valentine treats. He enjoyed looking at them and eating them out after his nap.


Having fun with the guys- Brayden and Jacob.


Elijah loves pushing the buttons on our microwave at home and even in a play kitchen he has to do it. Too funny!


Mommy and Me



Mrs. Missy and Jacob - our neighbors and friends.




Check out the Valentine's wreath I made.... well,with help from my Mommy. :)