Mae Evangeline

Surprise! I'm back with a new edition or should I say addition. Mae Evangeline was born Saturday, June 30, 2012 at 6:23 am. She was 6 lb 8.5 oz and 19.75" long. She is perfect. We are all so excited to have her join our family and Claire is an awesome big sister already. She loves to feed her bottles, to hold her and to laugh when Mae's diaper gets filled. Mae is a great newborn too. She is on a 3 hour feeding schedule with naps inbetween. It makes life fun for now as long as she'll stay on that schedule. Justin's been amazing as usual too. Even offering to let me go see a movie and just get out of the house which is so sweet except there's no place I'd rather be than with my beautiful family.

Update!

So here. I'm posting. Nothing new or exciting.

Routine

We have gotten back into our daily routine which is nice. Justin was not feeling well at the end of last week, so he stayed home with Claire and I went to work. Then over the weekend we just took it easy so we all could rest up for the work week. Sunday was great and church is such a joy for all of us. Yesterday, we all got back to our norm. Claire's teacher said that she has been having lots of good days in a row so we told her if she kept it up, we'd do something extra special, like going camping! This week is exams for my students which puts me on autopilot and lots to think about while I walk around the classroom for 2 hours while the students let their brains ooze out onto their scantrons. On the way home from school yesterday Claire asked if she got to do ballet today. I told her that today was Monday and she gets to do ballet on Wednesdays. She emphatically said, "I will never forget that again." And somehow, I believe her!

Arabesque!

Claire had her first ever ballet/tap dance class today! She has been asking since August when a few girls in her new pre-K class were involved. We thought it was just because it was new and she was trying to fit into her new class. However, after 4 months of persistent requests, pleas, and begging, we surprised her at Christmas by allowing her to start ballet. We went last night to pick up her leotard and to get her shoes/slippers. She was on cloud 9. She begged and begged to start her class right then, but it was not her age group. So today she got to go. We got there early and there was only 1 other little girl there for her class. They became fast friends and are like 2 peas in a pod. Needless to say, she fit right in. She had so much fun that she threw a fit when I told her that she couldn't wear her ballet outfit to church tonight. It took 20 minutes to calm her down. Like I said, she's just a little excited! The dance studio doesn't allow any photographs, so I couldn't take any, but I have a mind full of memories imprinted of her smiles, and her wobbly Arabesques, Position 1's, shuffles, etc. I am so glad that she is able to enjoy it and I hope she keeps it up! She's a beautiful ballerina!

Praises!

During Claire's 4 year wellness check up in October, her doctor discovered a heart murmur. She had Claire change positions, but it was still there. She wasn't alarmed, but just wanted to be safe and have Claire checked out a little more thoroughly by a pediatric cardiologist. Texas Children's Hospital had a very long waiting list for patients like Claire who didn't have an urgent issue. So today, we had the follow-up with the specialist. They took a chest x-ray and an EKG, which Claire was not too fond of, and then 2 doctors came in with their high-tech stethoscopes to listen to her heart. They listened for a long time and finally looked at each other and agreed that she has a "venous hum" which they explained is completely harmless and she'll outgrow at some point in her life. Praise the Lord that this was nothing serious or anything that required more tests. Before we went to the doctor, I wanted Claire to have a good attitude, so I took her to the mall and let her play in the play area and we ate at the food court for lunch. She was so good! She made quick friends as always and showed them how to do the most dangerous stunts on seemingly safe play equipment. She had lots of fun and so did I!

Easy Bake

Today I went back to work. I didn't want to, but I did and I'm glad. Claire had a great day at school and we went grocery shopping afterwards. Then we came home and make cookies in her new Easy Bake Oven. She was so excited, yet scared. She wanted me to do everything. I'm sure that will change with time. She did have a fun time eating them and of course sharing them with Daddy! The pictures of Daddy were taken by Claire as well...a little photographer!

Glitter Lava

Aunt Tricia got Claire "Glitter Lava" crafts for her birthday back in October. The first package were suncatchers. Claire and I did them soon after her birthday. We followed the directions and when we put them in the window to catch the sun, the lava dripped down the window, blinds, and wall and created a huge mess. We ended up throwing them away which was too bad because they really were cute. Reluctantly, Claire and I worked on the next package today. This is a butterfly garden. We are leaving them out much longer than the directions say in order to avoid the same mess as last time. I hope it works out, but even if it doesn't, we still had fun today making them.

Bounce House

For Christmas, Claire received a Bounce House or Moonwalk to play with at Memaw and Papa's house. Since we celebrated Christmas at our house, the Bounce House stayed here until we see them again for them to take it back. We pulled it out today and Claire had a great time bouncing in it. It has an inflatable basketball and a hoop to play with inside. It was a crisp day with lots of wind so most of the time Justin was chasing the basketball around the backyard.

Also, I finished a 2000 piece puzzle that Jimmy had gotten me as a birthday present. However, 2 pieces are missing, so I'll be spending some time looking for them.

New Years 2010

Last evening we went to church and spent some time with our friends learning a new domino game called 42. Justin won! Then we came home and shot off some fireworks and rang in the New Year before going to bed for the night. Today we spend the day enjoying a day of rest and our new toys. Claire and Justin played Prince and Princess with her new Princess Castle that Uncle Matt got her for Christmas. Then tonight after dinner we went outside and shot off the rest of the fireworks. Justin does a great job of picking the right ones out at the stand and then the right order for us to watch. Claire was really excited about the fireworks until the first one went off....she started screaming, FIRE! FIRE! FIRE! We had to explain to her that FIREworks contained FIRE. Then she decided she didn't like fireworks so much. After the next one went off though, she quickly forgot her apprehension and went along with it. She enjoyed them so much! Seeing her face light up was priceless! Here are some pictures to enjoy!

Above all we can imagine

Back in November Justin accepted a job offer from BP for the Houston campus. We have been working on getting ready for the big move to Houston in August. Since the beginning of the year we have been preparing our house to be ready to be sold as well as looking for a new house/job for me/school for Claire/church for all of us and numerous little things that go along with a family relocation. The first of the big things that God provided was a job for me. I am still excited about the prospect of the job and all that it will involve come August 11. Then He provided a school for Claire there at BP, Justin's work, so that he can go and visit her on his lunch break, be close to her and spend some daddy/daughter time that is so precious. Now, once again, God has provided again for us in a new home. We went house hunting this week in Houston. FINALLY. I say finally because since the day we got the offer (not accepted but got it) I have been scouring the internet and tv for houses. We were specifically told not to talk to a realtor, and I followed the rules but searched seemingly endlessly for that one house that could be ours. We looked at budget calculators, followed the stock market, and of course the new tax laws in order to make sure that we were doing the right thing for our family. We had settled on older homes because we liked the charm and character they had to offer as well as the fact that typically they were more "economic" and we could do some work ourselves. I enjoy remodeling and renovations and although Justin doesn't like that, he's able to see the potential and profitability of them in the long run. We have taken several trips to Houston to look at neighborhoods, houses on the market, etc to get ideas as well as internet forums, etc. You name it, I've done it. At the beginning of July we were given the go ahead to get a real estate agent to help us find a home. YIPPEE! We were so excited. I again was searching daily to see updated listings, which homes we liked, ones that went under contract. The real estate agent contacted us but still seemed in no hurry. That really frustrated me because I had been waiting since November and it just wasn't happening fast enough for me. She explained how older homes while a good deal and potentially profitable may not be our best option due to the relocation possibilities in our future with BP. We decided that we wouldn't rule out older homes but would include newer ones as well. I wasn't too sure at first especially since most of my research had been on older homes but I trusted her judgment. We emailed back and forth a few times about what we were looking for and we gave her very little information in order to keep our options open and really find something that would fit. All we told her was 4 bedrooms, at least 2 bathrooms, and around 2000 square feet. We preferred a gas stove, and we had a baby grand so we would need a place for that in addition to a living room or den/game room. We went looking on Tuesday for the first time. We viewed 7 homes and all of them were spot on. But we also knew they weren't the right one for us. Especially since at the end of the day, Justin was leaning on one house and I on another. I was worried one of us would have to compromise. I prayed that evening on the way home that whatever happened we would have the peace of Christ in our hearts and that He would lead us to agree without compromising. Wednesday we went back to look some more. We started off looking at 2 houses in an older subdivision that we both absolutely loved. Mature trees, beautiful homes, each unique, and yet unified as a subdivision. Our dream subdivision. It also happened to be a subdivision that had a lot of sentimental value to me due to memories as a kid. I was just sure we'd find our dream home here. Both homes while beautiful, were not what we were looking for. We knew immediately. It was disappointing. We so wanted that subdivision and even as we left I mentioned we should keep praying that a home would list soon there that would work for us. We saw 2 more beautiful homes, but again ones that just weren't THE one for us. The 5th home of the day was a surprise. It was next door to a house that we'd looked at on Tuesday. I asked why we hadn't seen it Tuesday and the real estate agent said it must have been a mistake--she wasn't sure. When I stepped out of the car I noticed the price had dropped and immediately started thinking of why it might have dropped. We had seen some houses that needed some work and I was assuming that was the case with this one. We walked inside. Justin immediately pointed out that this layout was different than any of the other houses we'd seen and would be perfect for the baby grand piano. We walked in the kitchen (my first stop in every house) and i was trying to pay attention to details. I liked it, but still wasn't set on it. We were about to leave and i mentioned how that the only thing that was missing was a fireplace. Justin had specifically requested a fireplace to me months ago as the only MUST in a house. (Why a fireplace in Texas is a must? i don't know, but to him it was so I put it at the top of the list) His response was that it was okay with him because it had everything else we were looking for. We left and debated about it. He was sure immediately. There's this thing about his gut feeling. When he gets them, they're 99.9% of the time right. He doesn't get them very often, so I've learned to pay attention to them. I started rethinking the house in my mind. I wasn't crazy about the house, but I didn't dislike it either. As I rethought it, I realized that it was the best one we'd seen for the price and had all the things we really needed and lots of things we wanted and even better yet a lot of things we hadn't known we wanted! We decided to talk it over at lunch and then go back for a second showing that afternoon. At the end of lunch we were pretty peaceful about it and ready to go back and see it. We looked it over the second time in a few hours and immediately as we walked in, I had a peace about it, knowing it was the one for us. God had given me the peace of mind to know this was His doing. We looked for every problem and couldn't find any. I mean not one problem. Another neat fact is that about a month ago I told Justin that in the new house I wanted to paint the kitchen green to match our dishes and the "apple" theme. We have red apples in this kitchen and I am tired of the red, but still love apples, so I figured I'd switch to green. This kitchen is green. I couldn't believe it! We signed all the paperwork for the offer, but wanted to go home and pray about it some more and get some counsel and sleep on it to make sure it wasn't an emotional decision, but a godly one. We asked the real estate agent not to submit the offer until we gave her the permission to do so. She understood. The next day we submitted the offer. We heard back from the seller and they countered. We still were really not satisfied with their counter so we countered back to them at the end of the business day on Thursday. We were prepared for their counter since we really didn't think they'd accept ours. Friday morning we got an email saying they had accepted our counter! We were ecstatic! We never talked about the scenario that they would just accept our counter! We were sure they would counter back again. Praise the Lord for all He's done in this blessing. He truly went above all that we could ever ask or think or even imagine. I know He says He will, but I am always surprised at just how good God can be. To sum things up, we are moving into a furnished apartment for a month before we move into the house. So we leave Beaumont August 16th and will be in Houston until mid September. Then we'll move into our new house and wait for His next step for us.

Claireisms

Claire told me the other day, "When I get a dress, necklace, and earrings on, I'll be married!"

Then tonight, as she was going to sleep, she said, "I wish I was a superhero to save people from their monsters. In Jesus' name, Amen!"

the month of May

Has it been a month already?? WOW! So much was happening this past month, it just flew by! Justin graduated May 18th and we all celebrated his wonderful accomplishment. My parents flew down to attend the longest graduation in Lamar's history and Claire was very good during the whole thing. Claire finished up at her day care here in Beaumont at the end of May and her friends and teachers threw her a going away party. It was so sweet, but Claire really had no idea what all the hubbub was about. It hit her on the way home how much she was going to miss her friends and she started crying. She is such an emotional gal. Gee, I wonder where she gets that from? =) As soon as we got home though, the girl from across the street came over (1st time ever) and asked if Claire could come outside and play. It was a reminder that God cares even over the little sparrow and how Claire's need for a friend could be fulfilled so quickly. A week later, I finished up the school year uneventfully (Thank you Lord!) and so now we're into summer! A few stories I want to document though so that I don't forget them later on.

Sunday, Claire and I were in a department store getting ready to check out. I was getting her a yellow shirt that said "Gymnastics" on the front since that is so Claire. She was walking through the store holding it up to her like she was wearing it already and dancing around (as usual). We were standing in line and a lady comes up behind us. The following is my best recollection of their dialogue.

Claire: Hi! How are you doing?
Lady: Good, How are you?
C: Good. Do you like my shirt?
L: Yes, it's very pretty.
C: All of Mommy's friends are going to like my shirt.
L: I'm sure they will.
C: Where do you live?
L: Thomas Road in Beaumont
C: I live in Beaumont too! That's in TEXAS!
L: Yes, it is in Texas.
C: What are you buying today?
L: (starts pulling out her things) Some straps for my luggage, and these suitcases.
C: Are you going on the ark?
L: The ark?
C: Yes, the ark is a BIG BOAT!
L: Oh.
C: That's where we used to live--the ark! It was a real zoo in there!
L: What was on the ark?
C: 2 Elephants, 2 giraffes
L: Oh. Who else was on the ark?
C: Oh this guy named Noah.
Me: It's time to go Claire. Say goodbye.
C: Goodbye. It was nice talking to you!
L: Goodbye.

I couldn't believe it! I mean, it was the first true conversation she had with an adult. She reminded me so much of Grandpa being able to just see someone in the store and strike up a conversation with them so easily. I'll admit at the time I was a little nervous. The cashiers were snickering and amused the whole time. The lady loved it (she must have been a grandma). Claire thought nothing of it. I mean she enjoyed it, but she had no idea what she'd done. On the way out to the car, I started chuckling to myself and claire asked why. I told her because she is so precious. And ya know what? She absolutely is!

Today we also took our first family trip to the movies. We saw UP. It was good. I was surprised by how moving and sentimental it was. I cried at several parts (what else is new?) But the funny thing was at one point Claire got down off my lap and buried her head in the seat next to us bawling. We asked her what was wrong and she said she missed her cousins. But it was at a really sad part in the movie, so i'm not sure if it was really the cousins that had her upset. She sure is a person who picks up on emotions so quickly and they really matter to her. I hope that doesn't change as she gets older, but I do hope that she will be able to control them a little sooner than I was.

Happy Mother's Day!

What a day! I was allowed to sleep in this morning when Justin got up with Claire! What a treat! Then as soon as I came out of the bedroom, Claire shouted, "Happy Mother's Day!" Then she gave me a vase with beautiful flowers in it. Next came touching, thoughtful cards from her and Daddy. Justin made a wonderful chicken penne alfredo lunch that was so yummy! I couldn't have asked for a better Mother's day! Thank you!

60 years!

Yesterday we attended Justin's grandparents Diamond Anniversary Celebration. They've been married for 60 years! They were married May 3, 1949. Crazy! It was such an event to celebrate. So many marriages these days tend to end or not even begin prematurely. So it is quite an accomplishment to stay married for so long! They were so cute and so honored! I have to say even though I don't spend a lot of time with them, that the more I got involved with the party, the more excited about it I became. We looked up anniversary jokes, found interesting facts about 1949 and the whole family pitched in and we came up with Sixty Plus Reasons We Love You for them. We ended up with about 100! It seemed everyone in the family enjoyed it. It was really nice and also a nice goal for Justin and I to one day, Lord willing celebrate 60 years! That would be August 3, 2062! WOW!

April recap

Wow. April has flown by. So much has happened this month! Justin is only 3 weeks away from finishing school! He competed in the IEEE Region 5 conference with his team in robotics and individually for his paper/presentation on supercapacitors. His team tied for 11th place (with 11-25th places) but his team still did fairly well based on what they had to work with. He won 2nd place individually! This is such a huge success for him. All seniors had to write a paper/presentation as part of a class grade last semester. All the engineering faculty read the papers and chose the best 2 to compete at the Area level. Justin's was one of the two chosen. At the Area level, Justin also placed well enough to go to Region 5. And there he won 2nd place! This was up against schools such as University of Colorado, University of Texas, Texas A & M, Louisiana State University, and many more. Very well known and large schools. What an honor for Justin to do so well! We also celebrated Easter this month, and Claire went to church with Memaw and Papa. She sat in big church and did very well from what I understand! We have been diligently pressing on in home improvements and have finished the master bathroom as well as much of the landscaping/yard work to be done. Even today we were able to take Claire to Rogers Park here in Beaumont and the sprinklers were on. When we got there, Matty and Uncle Matt were already there, so Claire joined Matty in getting wet! They have such a ball together. I love how they play together so well...honestly better than brother and sister. They hardly ever argue. Matty has been in baseball games and we have made every effort to make as many as we can. Claire likes to go and has learned how to maneuver on the bleachers very well. She also likes to pick us flowers (weeds) and cheer on the Indians! School stinks for me, but I am almost done. The Lord has truly blessed us this month and we praise Him for all the seen and unseen blessings!

Da Bears!

Since we are moving to Houston this summer, I have to switch jobs. I sent out my resume and a cover letter to 5 school districts in the area and 13 schools. After several responses, interviews, and communication, I selected a school to work for. I won't give the name of the school for personal and professional reasons, but I will say my new mascot is the Bears. I am so excited! I really felt the Lord's peace about the school I am going to and am already praying for my future students. One more piece to the puzzle that will be our new life and the Lord truly is showing Himself mightily. There are only a few "big" pieces left to fit and I know that He already is carving them out for us.

Claire went all week at school with no accidents, praise God! We are so proud of her accomplishments! She also is learning the states of America and knows where our family lives. Good thing we mostly live in states that are pretty easy to pick out...Texas, Michigan, and Florida.

Justin is feverishly working on the robot as competition is next week and lots of work is still needed to complete it. He will be going to competition without a cheering section, but we will be cheering him on here at home.

Boo Hoo Matty

We went to Matty's baseball game today. In the 2nd inning, he got hit in the face with a pitch. It hit his upper lip and swelled immediately. Poor Matty. We left the game, but he was ok. Claire and I saw him later on and he was feeling much better. Before the game, Justin and Papa went to get wood for the cabinet they're building for the master bathroom. They were working very hard on it. I'm sure they'll have it finished in no time.

Blogged Down

I have been wanting to post for a while now, but it seems so much has happened, I felt that I wouldn't do justice. So, I've decided to just start back up and leave the past in the past. If it gets brought up in future posts, so be it.

Today we worked outside in the yard on the front flower beds. They have not gotten worked on since we've been in the house--4 years. So it was certainly time. Claire had fun out there digging with her little pink shovel in the dirt. What 3 year old wouldn't? Justin and I did not have fun, but we were productive. He trimmed back the shrubs from excessive overgrowth and I raked out the flower beds from the leaves, etc that had been collecting underneath. While we were out there, a neighbor's dog came to see what was going on. He had been let out to go potty. Claire asked why he was out there so we explained. She then asked, "Why does everything go potty?" So I turned into teacher mode and said that it was all our waste coming out. Sort of like taking out the garbage to which she responded, "Why do we have waste?" At this point Justin turned to me and exclaimed, "She's at this stage now, isn't she?" I said to Claire, "Well, because we're not perfect!" Claire asked why we weren't perfect. Sin was basically my answer and then I told Justin that I had never related going potty as sin before. Claire was content with that answer or else was distracted by something else because no other questions came. I'm sure this was just one of many "Why?" conversations we'll have. It was humid after yesterday's rain so we didn't work out there too much longer than necessary. Then we came inside and Claire and I made ChiliMac. Yum. She helped me the entire time which was nice. I think she'll be an excellent cook someday. We then ate and relaxed until Justin went to work. Claire and I took a nap and then hung out the rest of the evening here at home. While we were relaxing with Justin, she was playing a Dora Candy Land computer game. It froze up on her and she called for help. I tried to help, but was unsuccessful. Justin came in and asked if I could minimize the window. Claire said, "Mommy, minimize it!" We were shocked that she repeated such a big word. It seems like she's growing up right before my very eyes.

Photo Tag!

Here's how you play!
1. Go to your 4th folder where you store your photos.
2. Select your 4th picture (no exceptions)!
3. Post the picture with an explanation and link it back to your tagger
4. Tag 4 people (or as many as you want) to do the same!!


So the picture above is of course Claire. It was taken in February 2006 so she was 4 months old. She is a stomach sleeper. Always has been. I remember this outfit though specifically. My parents bought it for her before she was born. Hence the white (we didn't know what gender we were having prior to her birth). They bought it in Hawaii for baby. It was one of the special outfits that she wore to church early in life. I love how babies sleep. How precious and vulnerable they look. How happy and comfortable.

4 people I'm tagging.
1. Walker
2. Stacy
3. Christina
4. Susan

Charleston Chew

Claire decided today that Charleston Chew is her favorite candy bar ever. Good thing is, Memaw's favorite too so they have that in common. We surprised Memaw today with one and a visit from us. I am feeling SOOO much better from yesterday. What a turnaround! Thank you Lord! Today also I heard 2 spontaneous prayers from the backseat. "Thank You Jesus, for making such a sunny day for us to go to the park!" and "Thank You Jesus for making us happy!" I can't express what joy bubbles inside me when I hear things like that especially from Claire. Lord, please keep her heart tender towards You all the days of her life. I know that You can control our hearts just like You made Pharoah's heart hardened against the Israelites. I praise You for Your power in our lives. In Jesus' name. Amen!