Aren't they cute?

These cuties are getting extra special attention on my blog because....

They're both having February birthdays (Jessica's B.D. is Feb 4th , I can't remember Lady's)

and they're both missing their Walter, who is away in the Carribean, studying hard to be an M.D. Next year's birthday celebration will be a lot happier, with their Daddy lots closer.
Happy birthday Jessica!

a bouncy Saturday

The very cool, crisp weather was a treat this weekend -- a great time to celebrate Ava and Laila's birthdays.

I don't know who got more excercise, Evan, or the adults (and kids) scampering in all directions to keep him from falling off the edge.

  He thought our concerns for his safety were very funny.

Sweet Ava is four years old now, and along with  bouncing on a trampoline, she loves princesses, and anything girly.

Laila is the sweetest little sister, and didn't mind sharing the birthday limelight with Ava. She just turned two and wasn't quite sure what all the celebration was about.

She had more important things on her mind, like using her new play cell phone.

my weekend -- celebrating all those March birthdays!

                                      Pretty Mommas, Pretty Babies

                                     Happy grandkiddos

And all the way from Minnosota, via Skype, Mark, Courtney, and Colby get to say hello!

The only thing that could have made the weekend any better, was if these guys were here in person.

it's that time of year again!

The last of the Thanksgiving turkey is in the soup pot, and this Grammy is left with memories of another Thanksgiving come and gone.

One thing I'll never forget are the rolls that were almost a disaster. There was an unlabeled plastic bag of canning salt in the cupboard next to the sugar canister (I won't tell who was responsible for that, but it wasn't me).

While mixing up my traditional holiday rolls, I ran out of sugar, and replenished the canister from that plastic bag (it looked just like sugar). I was wondering why the sugar wasn't dissolving as it usually does while on the stove top with the butter and milk...wondering why the dough seemed a bit weird.

While stirring the sugar, butter, milk mixture for the next batch of dough, and noticing the sugar still wasn't dissolving, I stuck my finger in the sugar clumped on the bottom of the pan. YUCK! Then I tasted the first batch of dough. DOUBLE YUCK! Tasted worse than the Dead Sea. My taste buds were ruined for the rest of the day. . That canning salt is powerful stuff. Luckily this happened early enough in the day, so I was able to start all over again, and was very thankful I did a taste test. It took a while for my taste buds to forgive me for that one.We had a houseful of little cousins having so much fun together and creating memories. Their laughter and chatter fills the house. They get along so well. The only crying is when someone gets hurt or a baby is tired.

Today, I'll put up the Christmas tree. What a day to do it! This morning, deep in the heart of Texas, the rain turned to snow ... for about an hour the biggest, fattest flakes came tumbling down. It stopped for awhile and now snow flurries are coming down again... freezing temps. tonight.

Happy Birthday to Brian (from his very favorite mother-in-law)

Today is Brian's birthday. I remember the first time he showed up at our door (tall, dark, and handsome -- not the door, but Brian) for his first date with Emily.

They didn't seem to hit it off on that first date, so I thought we'd never see him again. Now look who's in the picture 9 years later, not only Brian, but four beautiful children. Brian is a kind and loving husband and father and we are very thankful that he is in our lives. We love you Brian.

another July birthday!

Happy 21st Birthday to Philip! The 7th of 8 kids, Philip was born on 7-8-88 -- very easy to remember. Philip was always such a happy baby, even when he went to Disney World in Florida with us when he was 1 year old (top right picture). He had that happy smile on his face the whole day, and didn't fuss or cry once during those 3 long days. Philip is definitely a "people" person, and makes us laugh with his funny imitations. He loves sports--running, playing basketball. Have a wonderful birthday Philip!

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday, to our much loved daughter-in-law, Courtney. We are so blessed to have her in our family. She has been a wonderful support to Mark, as he obtained his D.D.S. degree. Courtney is an adventurous girl who enjoys the outdoors, camping and kayaking. Having a great love for animals (raised seeing eye dogs as a kid), she got her degree in animal science from BYU. She is also gifted with creative, artistic talents. Her biggest accomplishment, for which we are so grateful, is the birth of a beautiful son, Colby. Hope your day is the best Courtney!

(P.S. scroll down further to see 2 new blog updates.)

more on a busy month

We finished off the month of June by celebrating this sweet grandson's 5th birthday. He and cousin Kyla (standing right next to him), will be entering kindergarten in Aug. They are such good buddies. We had so much fun at Aiden's house, jumping on the trampoline, swimming, and just being together. We were treated to Brian's delicious barbecue, a new side dish Emily made --Emeril Lagassie's (sp?) corn pudding (a real treat), and Emily's homemade coconut cake.

another kids'(or kid-in-law) birthday!

Happy Birthday (26th) to son-in-law Walter whom we've seen grow from boy to man. Our family first met Walter when he was 18 yrs. old. Walter and Jessica live pretty hectic lives. Walter's finishing up at U. of H. (in Dec.) and getting ready to apply to med. school, while Jessica is teaching school. (Sorry, Walter, I had wanted to post a photo showing how you've gracefully aged since your marriage, but in my haste (getting ready for San Antonio), all I could find was your engagement photo!) Have a fun birthday!

belated birthday post!

My wonderful husband turned 63(!!!) on March 27. Our Texas kids and grand kids came for the weekend to celebrate and to attend Colby's blessing. Grandpa is a native Texan, born and raised in the Houston area. Carl is so smart! He can fix just about anything, and recently surprised me by fixing and servicing my sewing machine. But most of the time, when he's fixing something, it's in our driveway or garage. Remember this car Lauren?

Well, I could go on and on and on about my sweetheart. We're going to be celebrating our 35th wedding anniversary next week. We can't believe how fast these years have flown by. The best is yet to come!

I love you!

Happy Birthday to Carl !

Our "baby", Carl turned 17 on Mar 2, sharing same birthday as niece Avery. He is a sweet son and a fun uncle(Uncle Ta-Ta) who's always willing to entertain his 5 nieces and 4 nephews. He's living life in the fast lane now, as an only child (his 7 siblings have left the nest) with old grandpa and grammy. You'd think that after raising a bunch of kids, that we'd be able to keep track of only one. Last summer, when we dragged him along on a vacation trip, we left him behind at a gas station. I didn't notice he'd left the car to use the restroom. We drove on, not realizing he wasn't with us, since he was so quiet the whole trip, sleeping on the back seat. Luckily, he had our cell number memorized. Just as we were about to pull up at our destination, we get a call,"Mom, you left me!" Everyone in the gas station was laughing, watching him run after our van as it was pulling out. Carl's birthday post is a bit late, since I've been very busy taking care of these two sweet granddaughters and picking older sister up from school. Their mommy, Lauren, is even busier, taking care of newborn Evan.

Kyla was so cute, helping me clean up the kitchen by washing down the benches.

Happy Birthday to Jessica

Born on Feb. 4, 1984, Jessica was the baby sister 6 year old Lauren prayed for every night!

As a little girl, Jessica enjoyed playing with dolls, reading,writing in her journal every day, friends like Ashley (whom she's known since kindergarten), fun times with family and cousins like Kristyn (who's the same age). She endured much teasing from older brother Andy.

Teenage years brought her more reading ("Sweet Valley High" books in junior high), continued journal writing, a new hobby - scrapbooking, too much flirting with boys, fun times in cross country and track, and her future husband,(pictured above at senior prom). After high school, she was able to fulfill many dreams -- running a few marathons, graduating from BYU, marrying her high school sweetheart, and getting a job that she had always wanted since she was little, a teacher. She's enjoying teaching pre-K at a charter school in Houston. She's also helping her husband fulfill his life-long dream of becoming a doctor.
Happy Birthday, Jess! We love you. May all your birthday wishes

come true.
(P.S. -- the reason you are now hearing the song"Fur Elise", instead of the usual birthday song, is because that is Jessica's song, and where she gets her middle name "Elise". While I was pregnant with her, I played that song everyday on the piano. (My piano teacher wanted me to memorize it.)

Happy Birthday to Mark!

It's hard to believe that Mark, our oldest son, is 29 years old. It seems like yesterday when Mark's older sisters were first introduced to him after he was born, and 21 month old Lauren said, "What a silly baby!"

Mark was a sweet, happy little boy, who played well with his siblings, loved the new babies, and didn't give us any worries, other than the time he fell out of a two story window. He miraculously survived without injury, defying gravity and missing a square of concrete below.

Mark grew up to be an artist (he created the mural pictured above for a wall in our high school), an Eagle Scout, adventurer, out-doors man (he is snowboarding with brother Andy in above photo). He went on a 2 year mission to Latvia, Estonia, Belarus (bottom, left photo), and then graduated from BYU (microbiology/chem) and went on to dental school at U.T.San Antonio (he'll graduate in May). His two greatest accomplishments are marrying his lovely bride Courtney and .....

becoming a brand-new father! Mark loves children and will be a great Dad to sweet little Colby. We love you Mark!

shared birthdays

My "baby" Carl (also known as Uncle TaTa) turned 16 the same day, March 2, that his sister's baby, Avery, turned 2. What a good sport he is, sharing a birthday with a 2 year old!